Sheikh Ahmed Deedat
Scholar of comparative religion, master of dialogue, and founder of the Islamic Propagation Centre International — who gave his life to presenting Islam to the world with confidence, evidence and dignity.
Few figures in the modern history of da‘wah are remembered as vividly as Sheikh Ahmed Deedat. From a small shop in the province of Natal to the great halls of London and the United States, he carried a single conviction: that Islam has nothing to fear from honest dialogue — and everything to offer it.
“The best of people are those most beneficial to people.” — a hadith that shaped a lifetime of service.
From a shop counter to the world stage
Ahmed Husein Deedat was born on 1 July 1918 in Tadkeshwar, in India’s Surat district. Poverty and separation marked his early years — his father had already left for South Africa, and the young Ahmed followed at the age of nine, arriving in Natal with no English and little formal schooling. What he lacked in education he made up for in a hunger to read and to understand.
The spark
As a teenager working at a store near a Christian mission, Deedat found himself the target of missionaries who questioned and ridiculed his faith. Rather than retreat, he resolved to answer them. The turning point came when he discovered Izhār-ul-Haq (“The Truth Revealed”), a work documenting the methods of missionary polemics. It set him on a path of relentless self-study — of the Bible, of theology, and of the art of measured, evidence-based debate.
Founding IPCI
In 1957, Deedat established the Islamic Propagation Centre International in Durban — an institution built to train du‘āt, publish accessible literature, and present Islam to people of all faiths. Under his leadership IPCI printed and distributed millions of booklets and Qur’ans, translated into numerous languages and sent around the globe.
The great debates
It was on the public stage that Sheikh Deedat became a household name across the Muslim world. His debates and dialogues with leading Christian evangelists — most famously Jimmy Swaggart in the United States in 1986, and figures such as Anis Shorrosh and Josh McDowell — drew vast audiences. He even extended an open invitation to debate to the Vatican. Long before the internet, his recorded lectures circulated on cassette and video, reaching millions who had never set foot in a lecture hall.
Recognition
In 1986, in recognition of half a century of service to Islam, Sheikh Deedat was honoured with the prestigious King Faisal International Award — one of the highest distinctions in the Muslim world.
Steadfast to the end
On 3 May 1996, shortly after returning from a tour of Australia, Sheikh Deedat suffered a stroke that left him paralysed and unable to speak. Yet even confined to his bed, communicating through a system of eye movements, he continued to encourage and direct the work of da‘wah for another nine years. He passed away on 8 August 2005, aged 87, and was laid to rest in Verulam, KwaZulu-Natal.
A life in dates
- 1918 Born on 1 July in Tadkeshwar, Surat district, India.
- 1927 Emigrates to South Africa as a young boy to join his father in Natal.
- 1936 Working at a store near a Christian mission, he is challenged about Islam — and answers back.
- 1940s Discovers Izhār-ul-Haq and devotes himself to the study of the Bible and comparative religion.
- 1957 Founds the Islamic Propagation Centre International (IPCI) in Durban.
- 1986 Debates evangelist Jimmy Swaggart in the USA and receives the King Faisal International Award.
- 1996 Suffers a stroke on 3 May that leaves him paralysed — yet he continues to guide the work.
- 2005 Passes away on 8 August, aged 87, in Verulam, KwaZulu-Natal.
Selected works
More than twenty booklets — distributed freely and translated worldwide.
Tribute to the Lion of Da‘wah
Sheikh Ahmed Deedat (1918 – 2005) · Raḥimahullāh
Innā lillāhi wa innā ilayhi rājiʿūn
Today we remember a man who held no PhD, who never graduated from Al-Azhar or the University of Madinah — yet through whom Allah shook the Christian world and defended Islam. His name is Sheikh Ahmed Hussain Deedat: the man who showed us how to debate without insulting, how to win hearts with the Bible in one hand and the Qur’an in the other.
Who was Ahmed Deedat?
- Born on 1 July 1918 in Tadkeshwar, Gujarat, India.
- Migrated to South Africa at the age of nine to join his father in Durban — a poor boy who could not finish formal schooling because of poverty.
- He worked as a furniture salesman. Near the Christian theological seminary in Durban he watched missionaries mock Islam — claiming the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ was false and that Islam was spread by the sword.
- He had no Islamic knowledge to answer them. That pain drove him to the library.
- There he found Izhār-ul-Haq (“The Truth Revealed”) by Rahmatullah Kairanawi — a reply to the missionaries. It changed his life. He read it and said: “I found my weapon.”
- From that day he made a promise: “I will defend Islam till my last breath.”
His Da‘wah — what did he do for Islam?
Sheikh Deedat was not merely a man — he was an institution. Through him, Allah achieved a great deal:
- He established the first Islamic Da‘wah centre of the modern era. In 1957 he founded IPCI — the Islamic Propagation Centre International — in Durban. From a small room it grew to print millions of free books for the whole world. It was the first of its kind.
- He brought debate back to Islam. For fifty years Christians attacked Islam while Muslims stayed silent. Deedat said, “No more silence,” and went to their churches, universities and television stations to answer them. Among his unforgettable debates:
- Jimmy Swaggart — one of America’s biggest televangelists — Louisiana, 1986.
- Anis Shorrosh — “Is Jesus God?”, Alabama, USA.
- Dr Floyd Clark, Josh McDowell, John Gilchrist and many others.
- His most famous lecture: “Muhammad ﷺ: The Natural Successor to Christ” at the Royal Albert Hall, London — before thousands.
- He wrote books that still win souls today — small booklets, but each like an atomic bomb:
- The Choice: Islam and Christianity (2 volumes) — his masterpiece
- Is the Bible God’s Word?
- Crucifixion or Cruci-Fiction?
- What the Bible Says About Muhammad ﷺ
- Christ in Islam
- Al-Qur’an: The Miracle of Miracles
- Combat Kit
- Arabs and Israel — Conflict or Conciliation?
- He taught us the method of Da‘wah — unique and Qur’anic:
“Invite to the way of your Lord with wisdom and good preaching, and argue with them in a way that is best.”— Qur’an 16:125
- He never insulted Jesus — he loved him, saying, “Jesus Christ is my beloved.”
- He never insulted the Bible — “I respect your Bible; let me show you what your Bible says.”
- He debated with a smile, humour and a formidable memory, quoting thousands of Bible verses — chapter and verse — better than the pastors themselves.
- He made Da‘wah accessible to the ordinary Muslim. Before Deedat it was for scholars; after him, every Muslim could carry the message.
- He produced students who are giants today. Among them is Dr Zakir Naik, who said, “I am a student of Sheikh Ahmed Deedat. He inspired me.” Deedat told the young Zakir: “My son, you will do what I could not. Go and conquer the world for Islam.”
- His patience in trial. In 1996 a severe stroke paralysed his whole body — he could not walk or speak; only his mind and eyes remained. He was locked within his body for nine years, until his passing on 8 August 2005. Even then he answered letters through eye movements, and his final instruction was to continue Da‘wah. Allah tested him as He tested Ayyūb (AS), and he was patient.
Why we love Sheikh Deedat
- Because he proved Islam is not a religion of the illiterate.
- Because he made us proud to be Muslims.
- Because he defended the Prophet Muhammad ﷺ when few had the courage.
- Because he showed that with only the Qur’an and the Bible, one can win hearts for Allah.
The Christian world feared only one Muslim in the 20th century — Ahmed Deedat.
Our prayer
Yā Allah, forgive Sheikh Ahmed Deedat.
Yā Allah, expand his grave and make it a garden of Paradise.
Yā Allah, reward him for every soul that embraced Islam through his books, tapes and debates.
Yā Allah, reward him for every dā‘ī he inspired.
Yā Allah, grant us his courage, his wisdom, and his love for the Prophet ﷺ.
Yā Allah, let us continue his mission. Āmīn.
Sheikh Ahmed Deedat is gone, but his Da‘wah lives on. His books are still debating; his videos are still winning souls. Rest well, Lion of Da‘wah — your children carry on.
Farewell to the Lion · 1918 – 2005
Proud student of Sheikh Ahmed Deedat’s school of thought
Carrying the message forward
Each year IPCI honours Sheikh Deedat through the Ahmed Deedat Annual Lecture Series (ADALS) — continuing the tradition of confident, evidence-based da‘wah he pioneered.