T R A V E L A C C O U N T S o f C A P E O F G O O D H O P E b y O M E R L U T F I Translated from Ottoman Turkish b y Y u s u f Z i y a K A V A K C I LLB. BD. Ph.D. ( Istanbul ) Ex-Professor and Dean of a College of Islamic Studies (Turkey) Director of The Islamic Center,Richardson/Dallas,TX,USA For Hero-Scholars Who had to live and serve Far away from their own countries Muhammad Hamidullah M.Tayyib Okic Translator's Note This is a translation of a book published in 1876 A.D. at Istanbul.The book was originally written in Ottoman Turkish; a language consisting of turkish,arabic and persian words;written in arabic script with some additional letters borrowed from Persian. Ottoman Turkish is a language which is not read and understood properly by the young turkish generation. The book is a travel account of a person who went to South Africa,especially to Cape of Good Hope and Cape Town. This journey was a missionary type of journey,despite the distance from Istanbul to South Africa. The journey was made more than a century ago in the company of a turkish scholar called Abu Bakr Efendi, who was commissioned by the Ottoman Empire to go and teach Islam to South African muslims. They had originally requested the British Government to provide for them a scholar who would teach them Islam and guide them in religious affairs.The book speaks for itself.It narrates a story of a scholar who was sent by the Ottoman Empire to South African muslims.This scholar was a unique person who went to South Africa and propogated, taught and introduced Islam to local people. He is one of thousands of scholars of the Ottoman Empire,but the first one who went out of the Empire to serve and die in a foreign country .Perhaps this may be mentioned as one of the defects which was observed during the period of the Ottomam Empire.The defect is not to send scholars out side of the Sovereignity with long range plans and full support in order to let them propagate islam,set examples for the non- muslims through the centuries and get results. Let's think for a moment if muslim scholars worked among non- muslims of Europe four- five, even six- seven, centuries ago to spread Islam,to teach it to all people around and set example to them, what would have been the result.I think we would have had today half of the Europeans (French,German,Italian,English,Yugoslavian, Poles,Russians,and swedes etc.) as muslims speaking their own languages, and living in their islamicized cultures. We would have had muslim members of the parliaments and congresses today. We have no muslim in the parliaments of those countries today. Since America was formed by immigrant europeans who migrated three -four centuries ago, then we would have had muslims possibly among the first bunch of immigrants; that means Islam would have got an opportunity to be represented here as early as three centuries ago,may be,even earlier than that. Imagine the impact of muslims in the World today, if they had worked three canturies ago here in Europe and Americas. Think about the situation, if muslims were not defeated in Spain and went down to France and other europeann countries and worked for Islam centuries ago,what would have been the results in Europe today. Unfortunately we do not have many scholars who sacrificed for Islam as Abu Bakr Efendi did.We do not have books written by muslim scholars in old french,old germanistic languages,old english language etc. No name is known of a scholar who went there and worked there for decades. Luther got results.Protestants got results.Many strange movements and activities got in their turns results.Why not muslims? Can any body tell me,why not muslims? Muslims of the American Continents are struggling and fighting very hard for Islam;Insha Allah they will make up for the neglect of the past and Islam will flourish with its full splendor and magnificence on this Continent as well. This Continent, Russia, China and Japan wait for Islam. They need Islam.The problems of these countries can not be solved without Islam. Family problems,drugs and alcholism, unwanted pregnancies, murders,abortion issues,corruption in business,bribes,family ties issues,mental instability of people,confused people,people full of anxiety,fear of bills and living,broken families etc. are the problems which can not be solved without having a real attachment to religion, I believe, Islam. The churches, and big Christian organizations seem to be helpless in this regard,even they play a role of indoctrinating the people in a way that they can't see what is true and can't figure a practical way out. They work day and night with TV and satellites etc.reaching out every where,making crusades and attempting to reach every possible point of the world,getting the help of every source of finance and being supported by huge companies and organizations etc. The first page of the book describes itself. A dutch orientalist, Mia Brandel-Syrier, worked on the Book of Abu Bakr Efendi and published it in Leiden ( Holland ) in l960.But I don't think that he knew about the Travel Accounts of Cape of Good Hope by Omer Lutfi. The memories recorded herein occured during the time of Abdulaziz,an Ottoman Emperor,just before the Sultan Abdul Hamid,II.,who is very well known in the late Ottoman and Islamic History. I personally got interested in this subject about twenty years ago;even wrote a little article in Turkish. I believe some of the grandsons and granddaugters,if not the sons and daughters, of the persons whose names were mentioned in these memories and accounts are alive. They might be interested in hearing about the activities of their fathers or forefathers. Further more the actual situation in South Africa,does not help muslims living there.They are hardly mentioned in the media. Perhaps this work may give them an opportunity to reflect on their past and think about it. I had previously mentioned this work to some people from South Africa,including Br.Ahmad Deedat. Nevertheless the will and help of Allah has arrived later to realize this humble desire. Any body who knows about translation will understand the difficulties in translation,putting into proper words,especially for a person like me. Of course there are different theories and practices about the techniques of translation.I tried to do my best. The numbers of the original pages were kept on the left,at the begining of the line,to manitain uniformity with the original. Copies of a few pages in original form are enclosed at the end of the book as specimens of the original text. I hope this may contribute to modern Islamic studies and possibly attract the attention of responsible persons who have the means to promote and undertake actvities such as those in which Abu Bakr Efendi and Omer Lutfi Efendi were involved. Wa ma tawfiqi illa billah. " O my Lord! Grant me that I may be grateful for Thy favour which Thou hast bestowed upon me and upon my parents and that I may work righteousness such as Thou mayest approve; and be gracious to me in my issue.Truly have I turned to Thee and truly do I bow to Thee in Islam." October 1992 Yusuf Ziya KAVAKCI Dallas, Texas, USA