This year, Russian Council of Muftis has organized the 4th Poetry Contest which is named as ‘A Blessing to all the worlds: the Prophet Muhammad (saas)’. Russian poet Nikolai Pereyaslov is the winner among all 112 contestants throughout the country.
After the ceremony, Poet Nikolai Pereyaslov told the journalists about his source of inspiration which was related to his vacation in Antalya, Turkey. Pereyaslov stated that he visited the tomb of Saint Nikolai (a Saint who is still beloved and respected in Russia) in Turkey with a group of people and expressed his feelings by saying: “We were surprised to witness Turkey’s holding high esteem to Saint Nikolai although it is a Muslim country. The cleanliness and the situation of the churches also cause high admiration without any question.” Pereyasloy also explained that he has started to take an interest in Islam and read the life of the Prophet Muhammad (saas) when he returned to his country. He also clarified that he was especially impressed by our Prophet’s (saas) ‘Farewell Speech’ by saying: “I was mostly impressed by Farewell Speech and saw nothing contradictory in terms of our own religion. The speech was so inspiring to me and thus, I wrote down my emotions in a poem. Muhammad (saas) is a Prophet who scatters light to all the worlds.”