Berkley Center

Nandi Pointer: Buddhism would be kind of the closest I've come to practicing a religion that's making me feel connected to something outside of myself. But yeah. What about you and your religious background?

Saleema Robinson: For me, it was interesting. When I was younger, my mom is religious. I was raised Christian. And so my journey to Islam was my own choice after that. But we wouldn't go to church all the time. I didn't really understand what Christianity was really, because I was like, there's God and then there's Jesus. And then Mary's important. And I'm like, and we celebrate Jesus, but he's the Son of God. So I was always a little confused about the relationship. And so then I really had to just say what was going on and bring it up. And so then after that point, I had lots of different spiritual explorations.

And I would say for me, the one that resonated most with me was Buddhism. And what I love about Buddhism is I feel like there is very much a grounding in the natural world and how it works and how it functions and being at peace in it and being present. And I loved all those things and it kept just inching closer. But I didn't have any awakening until just I had a spiritual awakening, which seems like a little stereotypical. When you wake up and you realize. And then I came to Islam, but it's-

Nandi Pointer: Was that your spiritual awakening coming to Islam? So how did that happen?

Saleema Robinson: Yeah, that one, I was deep in the Who Killed Malcolm X series on Netflix. Honestly, it was during the pandemic. I got into the nation of Islam and Malcolm X's role in that and his own spiritual journey when he was in prison and he had his spiritual awakening and decided to accept Islam. And I was just watching it and just like the director of the video was Muslim and he showed himself praying in the documentary. And I'd never seen that before like ever. I'd never seen a Muslim person praying.

I think it just kind of got into my subconscious a little bit. But then I was like, I think I actually do want to be Muslim. I want to practice this religion I know nothing about. So it was like a whole journey after that. It took me a minute even to start wearing the hijab after I decided to be Muslim. I had to really practice it and to realize that this is the most liberating thing I've done for myself. I feel free and I feel protected and under the guise in the eye of God, that the way I present myself in the everyday is not for anyone but Allah, for God.

Nandi Pointer: So you covering up now makes you feel more protected and more like in your everyday representation, you're kind of honoring or for God. For me, there's a part of God and spirituality to me that's like unknown. I don't know. I feel like sometimes humans don't want to not know. It's connecting you to a force of saying, I'm acknowledging that there's something greater outside of me that could be guiding me. I think what I've never. Yeah, I've never fully found that feeling that I hear people talk about with their faith of feeling like you were saying…someone's…it doesn't matter what other people think. I have someone, my creator who loves and cares about me and who maybe has a plan for me. I think in some ways I do believe that, but I don't…because I can't ascribe it and go, "I'm Muslim, I'm Buddhist, I'm Christian." It makes me feel like a disconnect. You know what I mean? Because I'm not like, "That's what it is and that's what sustains me or supports me." And so yeah, I have to give some thought to maybe how I can find that.

Saleema Robinson: It is easy to be in a religion and have all the. It's like, "Okay, I'm here. Have a ride." But it's honestly, I've found that I am more challenged. It's like the challenge, whether you have the title of being Muslim or Christian or whatever, you will forever be dealing with your faith. It is all about faith and whatever you believe in. And it doesn't matter who you're ascribed to. It's still between you and whatever you're navigating.

Nandi Pointer: Kind of like this idea of just who you are as a person is what matters most and how you treat people and loving people and wanting to kind of figure out what it is that, what talents you have to share, what you've been given, and to make the most of those while you're here. And I believe there's a piece of truth in every religion. I'm just trying to, I guess, find the one that resonates most for me.