How to leave this Earth

Dalia Mogahed is one of the most prominent Muslim voices in American public life. For three decades, she has researched and defended the experiences of Muslim communities in the United States, advising leaders and challenging misconceptions about Islam, identity and belonging. But after a lifetime speaking for others, Dalia Mogahed is now exploring her own questions of faith and legacy.

A cancer diagnosis on the eve of her 50th birthday prompted a period of deep reflection, bringing into focus years of personal loss, including the deaths of her father, her best friend and her mother, alongside the end of her marriage. Through these experiences, Dalia has been reflecting on how we find meaning, sustain faith and understand what truly matters.

Dalia reflects on the journey that has taken her from researcher and public intellectual to a more personal exploration of spirituality, vulnerability and purpose. She shares how faith can be tested, reshaped and deepened through moments of uncertainty.

Drawing on her experiences as a Muslim woman navigating public life in America, Dalia explores questions that reach far beyond one person or one community: How do we want to live? What do we leave behind? And how can we find meaning when life asks us to look inward?

(Photo: Dalia Mogahed and John Offord outside East London Mosque. Photo credit: John Offord)

Producer/presenter: John Offord
Executive producer: Julia Paul
Production co-ordinator: Mica Nepomuceno
Editor: Chloe Walker