Trials or Punishment (In relation to the great flood of 2014)

What is it about calamities that befall others which makes us think whether what those poor souls are going through are the consequences of their bad behaviours and bad decision making?

We are a creation of cause of consequence. Being given the ability to think (akal), we want to find reasons behind everything that happens around us even though the amount of knowledge that we have about the world around us is limited. We only know what we only know, might just be a nano-drop from a drop of water in the vast sea of knowledge.

When a natural disaster (which is always beyond out control) happens, it saddens me when I hear people say "oh, those people had it coming, they've been doing mungkar things all these while".

Hold on to your horses for a while and get down from that high riding horse. 

First off, let the judgment be done by The Almighty.

Secondly (this is my main point):

Sometimes we do not know whether the adversities or hardship that we are going through is a test or a punishment from Allah SWT?

It is an interesting point brought up during one of Q&A session in one of Yasmin Mogahed's podcast session/talk (can't remember which one, but anyways..) according to her explanations, the way to know which is which is by looking at the outcome of what you've become after all of it.

• A Punishment from Allah SWT:
  If the tribulations that happen to you takes you away from the rememberance of Allah SWT.
  
• A Test from Allah SWT:
  If the tribulations that happen to you brings you closer to Allah SWT. You will be rewarded for being patient.

Allah knows best.

I also found another interesting post here: http://islamqa.info/en/324

Punishments are what happen to people in return for their evil deeds. Trials are tests which are sent to try people, and people may be tested by good things or by bad.

Concerning punishments, Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Whatever of good reaches you, is from Allah, but whatever of evil befalls you, is from yourself…”

[al-Nisa 4:79]

Concerning trials, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: “If Allah loves a people, He tries them, and whoever has patience will have patience, and whoever is anxious 

will be anxious.” (Reported by al-Imam Ahmad; Saheeh al-Jami’, 1706).

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) also said: “The extent of the reward will be in accordance with the extent of the trial. If Allah loves a people, He tries them, and whoever is content will have contentment, and whoever is angry will have anger.” (Reported by al-Tirmidhi, 2320; Saheeh al-Jami’, 2210).

November musings

I don't think there could be enough days off that would make me feel like i want to go to work tomorrow. a week a home is a blessing, even more so when I have used up all of this year's leave. Some people gets irritated being cooped up at home, but i quite like it. I am a homey (or homie), or maybe I'm just a create of comfort, in which 'comfort' means sitting in a semi dark area, watching daytime tv, or reading a book or doing 'research' on the internet about Unsolved Mysteries of The World (that time travelling guy in the B&W photo is really intriguing) or just unsubscribing to the various newsletters that has been taking over my inbox for quite sometime now.

I picked up a few new things over the course of this one week being at home.

1. I have just finished reading Charlotte Street by Danny Wallace.






This guy is probably one the authors that my brain subconsciously favorited, because I have three of his books; Yes Man, Friends Like These and this one. Although consciously I don't really fancy the way he writes (he sounds like me trying to write a novel), but the ideas of his stories are amazing.

Yes Man was an interesting idea to pick up, also what he did in Friends Like These and this one too. He is like a man of 'social experiments' where you do one thing that leads to another thing, which could be a bizarre thing or a superb thing depending on your luck or fate.

Anyways Charlotte Street was quite a challenge to read at times because sometimes Jason Priestley (not of the 90210 fame) is a drag when he yaps about his life. And his life wasn't a very sad one, or a very exciting one, it's just a bit of a ...drag. or a snag, whatever you like. He seems to be falling off a cliff, then hitting a rock on the way down, hooked on a dead tree branch and then falling some more. A loser.

But in the end, something nice happened. A sweet turn around. Which I think was the sort of ending that was much needed. Felt glad that I finally finished reading it. Perhaps it stirred something in me to go out and do something with my life, or make the best out of it. Or just find some interesting thing to do and called it an adventure.

2. A lot of research on the internet, just to fill up my time and curiosity. Well, most of it was to revisit some old blogs that I've bookmarked, read about the Illuminati (what else is new?), Hollywood mind control, what are we to do with them? Is Russia a part of it or are they not? How does North Korea fits into all this secret chaos?

Locally, there isn't anything interesting, but I found that there are Malay atheist blogs, a Muslim gay blog, Malay Christian confessions. Interesting to read their point of views. Now I know why people from Perkasa or ISMA are so worried about. I know it is scary and worrying, But you can't tell others what to believe in, can you? You just can't impose rules on what to belief, because at the end of the day, being religious is a matter of faith. You just can't force someone to be religious if they don't want to be.

I honestly feel that the way to address these issues are not through force or the 'Taliban' way, but through love, understanding and also psychology (do I sound like 2/5 of the Captain Planet team?).

3. In lieu (yes, did just use a lawyer-ish word) with trying not to fall into the Hollywood-Illuminati trap, I went on to find a few independent films on Youtube that I quite like. One of them was Arranged (2009 film). I saw it once before, this is actually the second time watching it again. Some Iranian films. Films about Palestinian-Israelis relationship and a Arab family living in Canada. Well, there's a lot of things to watch on Youtube.

Arranged was probably an endearing one, maybe because it's a friendship story between a Muslim and an Orthodox Jew in Brooklyn, where the story revolves around (guess what?) ... Arranged marriage. It was funny and cringe-worthy seeing all the suitors for these two people. Then I was on-board to doing research about Arranged marriage in Orthodox Jew culture, because in the movie it seems to be very... systematic. I also got a glimpse into the lives of the other 'selected group of people of heaven'.

The internet is really a big web (duh), one thing leads to another, I ended up learning a thing or two about Jewish tribes, the Holocaust, the Torah.. and then.... somehow came back to the Illuminati.

One thing I can say is, this thing is very complicated (the Israel-Palestine issue) and also this religious tension and political power tug of war.

4. Since it got too serious and intense, I decided to tune-out for a bit and sat down in front of the TV and watch this reality tv show that is being repeated over and over again on Lifetime, which is Married at First Sight. (what is it about all this arranged marriage thing?).

At first I though it was a silly gimmick, but then I was HOOKED. Like, seriously hooked and watched the whole season immediately. Bingeing at its best.

They call it 'social experiment', but in truth it was an arranged marriage set up by experts (PhD people really). One of the couple (out of three) was my favorite one. They didn't really hit it off at first, but as the show progresses, you can see how the relationship grows and it is really endearing (I love this word). There was another couple, which hit it off very well at first, but towards the end you could see that they went from 0 - 200 kmh, then lost control; crash and burn. And another couple, who were sweet on each other and they were the lovey-dovey ones, which I think had chemistry right from the start.

Of course, my favourite one was the second one (Jamie and Doug) because it was very endearing (this word!). She has emotional baggage (loads, big bags of emotional baggages) and he was the rock, the kind and patient person. Seeing how Jamie starts to warm up to Doug and how she grows to feel comfortable around him from one episode to the next was heart warming. It was like watching a romantic film as a reality tv show. Haha, I guess this is my guilty pleasures. Luckily the seasons ends and I get to go to work with a content heart.

So we have here various outcomes of arranged marriage. One that was right from the start, one that has potential to grow into something positive and one that seems to be a good match, but turns out to be a very bad mistake. Interesting show, isn't it?

5. And maybe one last conspiracy theory, which is a new one to me:
Stevie Wonder isn't blind (!!??)

Isn't that shocking? Why would a person fake being blind for his whole life?
I think he really is legally blind.

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D

Intercession on the Day of Judgement

Yesterday, I learned about Intercession on the Day of Judgement. It is the event that happens when while we are being judged by Allah SWT on the Day of Judgement, before Allah SWT gives out His judgement, someone or something will intercede for us, somewhat like making a case for us against Jahannam (or maybe Jannah, na'uzubillah). Or making recommendations to help us go to Jannah (shafaat).

It is mentioned in Surah Ta'ha, ayat 109.

According to Sh Nasir Jangda:
There will be no intercession on the Day of Judgement, except for ONE case, having to meet ALL THREE criterias.

1) Whoever is interceding on behalf of someone must be allowed by Allah SWT  to speak.
2) Allah SWT is pleased or has approved what the interceder will say.
3) The person who is interceded (whom the judgement will fall upon) is approved by Allah SWT.

Basically to put in terms of my understanding;
We know that if someone have children who is a hafiz (who memorises the Quran), that child will be a savior for him on the Day of Judgement and he will be able to enter Jannah because of the Tahfiz.
But it doesn't mean that this is a guaranteed case. It doesn't mean that if you have a son who is a great tahfiz, but you keep on sinning and making destruction on earth, you will still go to Hell. Well that is Allah SWT decision to decide.

The condition of us getting anyone to intercede us is upon the condition of Allah SWT wanting to give us His Mercy (or not). If you have 10 sons who became a tahfiz, but you don't get Allah SWT's OK on the intercession, then they can't intercede for you.

Wallahu'alam.

Reclaim Your Heart (Part 2)

The talk given by Sr Yasmin Mogahed last night revolves around the topic of :- Lessons that we could learn from the stories in The Quran.

Disclaimer: the following are my notes taken during last night's talk. If there are any mistakes or misinformation, do let me know so that it could be corrected. I do hope we could all benefit from it.

Many of the stories told in The Quran are about The Prophets. The main reasons why we are told these stories are not just for time-fillers or entertainment, but they are to inspire us, to guide us and there are lessons for us to learn from.

(I think I will start with typing the content of the talk first and followed by a summary).

1) Prophet Adam A.S.
Lessons we can learn from the creation of Adam A.S. and what goes down between him and Iblis is that the creation makes mistakes; Adam ate the forbidden fruit and Iblis didn't want to bow down to Adam A.S. when commanded to do so.

Both made mistakes, but what differentiates them was how they reacted. Adam A.S. repented and took responsibility for his mistakes. He asked for Allah SWT forgiveness in full humility. On the other hand, Iblis allowed arrogance to take over, refused to repent and instead vowed to take as many human beings as he could together with him into Hell.

2) Prophet Yunus A.S.
Nabi Yunus A.S. was trapped in the belly of a whale in the middle of the deep blue ocean. He was practically "trapped upon a trap". There is no one that could save him, not even himself. Even if he managed to get out of the whale's belly, he's still in the middle of the sea or underwater with no where to go. The only One who could save him is Allah SWT.

Nothing is more worthy of worship than You, Allah is high above anything else. And indeed I was among the wrong doers.

That is how Yunus A.S. responded to calamity, with humility. Fully believing that only Allah SWT that could take him out of that problem. Our external situation will not change if we don't change our internal self (situation). And in the end Yunus A.S. was saved, by Allah SWT.

3) Prophet Musa A.S.
Nabi Musa A.S. is individually trained by Allah SWT. He lived in a very difficult situation since childhood. Starting from the time when Firaun wanted to kill all baby boys in that time. When his mother puts her son (Musa A.S.) in a basket and let the river floats him, that is an act of Tawakkul to Allah SWT. She lets go of something that she loves the most for the sake of Allah SWT. She puts her trust in Allah SWT that He will take care of her baby son. And indeed Allah SWT has kept Musa A.S. safe and later brought back to her in a much better situation, as the adopted son of Firaun (thanks to A'siyah R.A) and was raised as a prince.

When Musa A.S. was at Mount Tsur, Allah SWT introduced Himself as the The Lord. Told him to make rememberance to Allah SWT through Solah. He also told Musa A.S. to throw his staff that he leans on to the ground and then it became a snake and when it was picked up again it return back into a staff. This is to show that we musn't fully rely on the means because it could become something that could hurt you (snake) at one time, and could be something that could help you in another time. We can use the tools and the means, but never truly depend on them.

During the great escape from Firaun's army, Musa A.S. and the Israelis were blocked by the Red sea and was trap between the sea and the impending army with no possible escape route. But Musa A.S. trusts is in Allah SWT. "By no means, my Lord is with me and will guide me through". He struck the staff to the water and by Allah's will, the Red Sea parted into two and created a safe path for the refugees to pass through. The staff is only the means, the True Provider is Allah SWT. He will give His servants a way out of a sticky situation in a way that is beyond our imagination.

4) Prophet Ibrahim A.S.
Nabi Ibrahim A.S. is also one that is individually trained by Allah SWT. He observed the movements of the sun, moon and the stars, noticed that even the most impressive things have imperfections and they can't be god. The creation is imperfect. Only The One True Creator is Most Perfect and has the power to control all the creations.

When Ibrahim A.S. was thrown into the fire by the disbelievers, the only help Ibrahim A.S. needed to keep him safe from the fire is only from Allah SWT. He doesn't fear the creation and he believes that Allah SWT will protect him from harm. Allah SWT cooled the fire and secured Ibrahim A.S. Within the hardship, there can be a place for security if our hearts is turned only to Allah SWT.

Then came a command from Allah SWT on sacrificing his beloved son, Ismail A.S., as we know that Ibrahim A.S. only got Ismail A.S. after many, many years of marriage and definitely his son is very precious to him. Despite of his love to Ismail, Ibrahim still followed the command of Allah SWT. Eventually, Ismail A.S.'s place has been replaced by an animal during the Qurban. This is a symbolic of slaughtering a potential competitor for his love to Allah SWT. When we are given gifts from The Giver, we sometimes forget and lose perspective of the The One that we should be focusing on. When He takes the gifts away from us, it gives us the chance to refocus ourselves to what is important. Our response when the gift is taken from us depends on what is in our hearts. In return, He will give us something much more priceless than that has been taken away.

5) Hajar R.A.
The story of Hajar R.A. is of dependence to Allah SWT is an act of the heart as well as the act of the body. She stayed back with her baby, Ismail A.S. in the desert of the hijaz. As they grow desperate for water, Hajar was running to and fro from Safa to Marwa looking for water. Usually, for a normal human being like me, I would just stop after one round of running between these two places if I failed to find anything. But Hajar, she kept on it for 7 times, never giving up effort to look for a water source. Finally, a source of water sprang out from their feet and it continues to supply water until today, which is the Zamzam water.

This is action, this is hope and this is sabr. The results of our actions doesn't come solely from our efforts. It comes from Allah SWT.

In Conclusion:

There are a chestful of treasures that we could learn from the stories mentioned in The Quran. Among them are:

Humility:
admit your shortcomings to the Creator. Do not be like Iblis who was arrogant. Adam A.S. and Yunus A.S. were humbled by the calamities that befall them. They acknowledged Allah is the Most Greatest.

Repentance:
do not despair in the mercy and forgiveness of Allah SWT. Adam A.S. was forgiven for his mistakes for consuming the prohibited fruit.
The imperfection of the creation: This is the design of the creation that are with flaws.

Tawakkul:
Fully trust in Allah SWT that He will provide and keep up secure. He will create an exit for you during hardship. But you must act with your faith intact. Do not lose hope, keep on striving and have sabr.

Giving up something you love for the sake of Allah SWT:
take lessons from Musa A.S. 's mother and Ibrahim A.S. act of Qurban. For everything that we give up for the sake of Allah SWT, He will definitely replace it for you with something much more better.

Never lean on the means:
The means are just tools to help you get closer to Allah SWT. If misused, they could be the thing that causes you pain or distracts you from the real focus. The more you need the creation, the more it lets you down and the more it runs away from you.

Love the Giver more than the gift, then you will be gifted.


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Reclaim Your Heart - Yasmin Mogahed in Malaysia (Part 1)

God works in the most mysterious ways (from our point of view using our limited knowledge. Of course He is The Most Knowing). A good friend of mine NinaIjan (or IjanNina; I always get confused on this cos they're interchangeable?) texted me one night, asking if I wanted to go to a Yasmin Mogahed's event an replace her seat since she wasn't able to go. So there I was, last night at Matrade Centre thanks to her generousity. May Allah SWT bless her with many rewards in this world and the hereafter.

The event was called Reclaim Your Heart, based on Sister (Sr.) Yasmin's latest book of the same title. Although the event was from 8-11pm, the talk by Sr. Yasmin only started at 930 until 11-ish. The first hour was filled with other interesting show/sessions: a Quran recitation of Surah An-Nur (35-38), a talk by the NGO director of Viva Palestina Malaysia (VPM) about Adopt A Hafeez Program, a short drama sketch by children about going to school in Gaza (which was distressing) and a lengthy video about VPM volunteers telling us about their experiences.

Part 2 will cover the content of her talk. I hope it will be beneficial for me and oher readers. Just watch this space, insyaAllah.

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Repurposing the Istikharah

I just want to share some thoughts I have about Solat Istikharah.

We are told to make this special prayer when we want to make decisions, especially when deciding to get married to a person, or not. We do the Istikharah prayer maybe 7 nights in a row before going to bed and hope to receive a 'sign' either in our dreams or some other ways that tells us which decision to make.

I think Istikharah has been under rated by me until now. These past couple of months, I've been listening to a few Islamic talks from a few scholars about this and I have came to a conclusion that this prayer has been overlooked by me. Let me explain; with what little knowledge and understanding I have.

1. It would be most beneficial if we understand what we are reading/reciting when we do the prayer and reading the supplements afterwards. For example, in the guidebook on how to perform Istikharah, they advice to recite Al-Fatihah followed by An-Kafiroon and Al-Ikhlas in each rakaat respectively.

The Al-Fatihah is a surah which is also a du'a from us, the slave, asking from the Lord of all creation, Master of the Judgement Day, who is the Most Merciful and Most Giving. The One we all must bow down to and ASK from, to GUIDE us onto the straight path and prevent us from going down the wrong path by giving the example of two kinds of people; the ones whom He gave blessings and the one whom He is angry with.

Even before we read the Istikharah du'a, we are already asking from Allah to guide us to the right path.

The Al-Kafiroon in a testament of our faith that Allah is the only God (monotheism) and we will not bow down to other man-created deities.

Al-Ikhlas is another testament of our faith that Allah is the ONLY God and He does not have a child and He is not begotten.

So one surah to declare against all other religions created by man and the other against the wahyu religion misled by man (Christianity), which strengthen our faith in Allah that He is the rightful Creator to ask from and not from other creations.

2. Then after finish praying the Istikharah, we are advised to say "Subhanakala 'ilma lana,illa ma 'allamtana innaka anta 'a limun hakim"
- which says Glory be to Allah, we do not have knowledge except what is given to us, and He is the most Knowing and Most Righteous.

This is to say, we human beings have very limited knowledge. We do not have any knowledge beyond anything of what we know. I mean, we do not know if something that we like might not be good for us in the future.. Only Allah SWT knows because His knowledge encompasses everything in and out and beyond everything.

So we ask from Him, the Knower of all things to guide us.

3. In the final part, the du'a, there is a part where we tell or ask Him to make easy for us the decision that we are going to make IF it is good for us in our deen, life and after life and then bless it.

However if the decision that we are about to make is bad, then we ask Him to take it away from us and make us ridha with His decisionnto take it away and then replace it with something better.

So I think that section in the du'a is a good one because in any case, we are setting ourselves in a win-win situation (in a good way, not in the greedy-opportunistic way).

Isn't Islam beautiful? We submit ourselves as His servants, making decisions wholly in His guidance, asking Him for His blessings and fully trusting Allah that whatever happens next is something that is good for us.

Back to re-purposing Istikharah, I think it should not only be done only when one decides to get married or other big things in life, like, buy a house. It's best to just do Istikharah for any decisions that we want to make because in all of it, we are asking Allah with His vast knowledge to guide us in making a good decision in this world and that will also affects the next.

Wallahu'alam. This is just my opinion using all the little intellect I have. Do guide me if I am wrong.


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Help each other with good news and taqwa (recap of Muslimah Conference)

Last weekend, I was given the time and opportunity to attend a Muslimah Conference (Saturday) and also listen to a talk given by sister Yasmin Mogahed (Sunday).

Listening to insightful talks and shared experiences and interacting with sisters was really an eye (and heart) opening event.

There's so many things that I've learned over the short period of time that I think it is ever possible for me to put it all out in one blog entry, but here are some notes that I managed to jot down.

1) There is a sense of false assumption that had been taken up by women that she can only be herself when she follows the definition and standard of being a woman that is being set by man, society, fashion and media.

What women should strive to be is not to achieve those standards set by man, society, fashion and media, but is measured on a much higher scale, which is piousness, taqwa.

2) Seek the perfection that could be found in God. Completion can't be found other than Him. Never ever think that you're "incomplete" or "deficient" until you reach marriage. No prince can complete you. No knight can save you. Only God can.

3) true liberation and empowerment lies in the freeing of oneself from the standards of man and society. Only focus on being a servwnt to the true Master, that is God.

4) Imaan in our hearts could be faded like clothes that we wear. Make du'a to Allah to make it constant. Seek ways to restart your imaan.

5) believe in Allah and trust in Him. Take lessons from what you see around you and apply that lessons into your personal life.

6) Kick Syaitan away from you. Know that he is very weak and don't give him way. Making rememberance to Allah, saying A'uzubillah and replacing bad habits with good ones are the ways to keep syaitan away.

7) A knowledgeable muslimah is a smart, beautiful, storng and capable of doing anything.

8) Sometimes we are too busy chains the dunya that we forget Allah. The Quran is there to guide us back.

9) Islamic feminism is unlike feminism in the west. It focuses on the nature of the way how women are created. Being feminine, having empathy and emotion are not signs of weakness, but instead it is our strength. Islamic feminism is not about being equal and the same as being like a man.

10) Know that there is no single way of being a good muslim woman, there are many ways of becoming one. There is much more to a woman than being a mother. In the Quran and sirah, we've heard about the Queen of Sheeba (Balqis), Asiyah (Pharoah's wife), Khadijah, A'isyah, Fatimah and many more who played much bigger role in the society and nation. They are our role models.

11) A gift, given by the one we love, must be held in the hand and not in the heart. When the gift is taken away, it will create pain in the hand, but it is not as hurtful as the pain if it was held in the heart because it is something we are not dependent upon. If we felt pain in the heart when the gift is taken away, then know that it's because we have attached that to our hearts and know that we have put it in the wrong place. What is held in the hand could be easily put down, do not put Allah there.

12) Be aware to not put aside God because of the gift. Do not ask to take away air because of the necklace, which will eventually choke us to death.

13) Suffering begins when we confuse the ends with the means. Allah is the ends, the gifts are the means.

14) If the fact that our worship tomAllah feels like a burden, then it is a sign that we have not seen and love Allah with our hearts. Because naturally, serving a loved one will feel like an honour rather than a burden.



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A special gift

I learnt the other night that the word 'hidayah' comes from the root word of 'hadiah', which means 'gift'.

When I think about this, it makes perfect sense. A gift is something good and nice that we give to someone who is dear to us. The gift giver has a choice of what and whom to award the gift to. Total complete control.

Truly, Hidayah is a gift from Allah. If you think about it, He has the will to choose who among His servants that He wants to grant this blessed gift to and by right He also has the authority to claim it back if He wants to.

When i think about it, i feel so weak and powerless. As a servant, who has no rights over everything in this world, should be very, very grateful that He has choosen me to be born in a Muslim family and being brought up as a Muslim. Alhamdulillah. Imagine if this was not the case, I believe it will require a multitude of efforts for me to find the right path. And He does not wills it, does not grant me hidayah, i wouldn't have found Islam and na'uzubillah, be condemmned eternally in the hell fires.

Allah is the Most Merciful and Most Giving.

Some people are given this priceless gift later in life. But the rewards are nothing less than those who had it earlier in life. We can't judge others with what they have at one moment of time, for who knows they might grow to be a better human being than us. Save your judgement for yourself and let Allah SWT decide, for Allah accepts repentance from His subjects even when they are on their deathbed. The only time Allah SWT stops accepting taubat is when you're almost out of your last breath and when the End of Days has finally arrived.

This reminded me of the story (in brevity) of a man who has killed many people and was seeking repentance. He was told to make hijrah to a new city to start a new life. As fate would have it, he died in his journey before reaching the new city. Two angels came to claim his soul, one for hell and the other for heaven. Finally a third angel came and tell them to compare the distance between the body and the two cities. Turns out he was one step closer to the new city and he was taken to heaven.

However, this does not mean that one could do anything she pleases and only make taubat when she's on her deathbed. We must not say "One day I'll be good. Allah knows it. For we don't know when exactly we will die and Allah SWT knows the intentions in your little heart. That is the same like procrastinating your taubat. Procrastinate does not give us any good and you gain nothing from it. The earlier you do something the better. Saves you a lot of anxiety and perhaps heartache.

Anyways, the take away from all these lengthy paragraph is:

Learning that Hidayah is a a special gift from Allah, this sets the perspective of how big is the grace and mercy of Allah SWT. Being a Muslim and recognising this as a good thing is a very meaningful gift from Allah. Always ask in our du'as for Allah to give us His blessings and hidayah. And pray that He continues to do so. InsyaAllah.


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A supplement for the heart

'O Allah, put right for me my deen in which lies the protection of my affair and put right for me this world in which lies my livelihood and put right for me the Next World in which is my future. Make life increase in every good thing for me and make death a rest for me from every evil thing.'

O Allah! I ask You for all the good which is in the present or in the future, which I know and which I do not know.

I came across a couple of du'as on some islamic website today.

At times, we think we have full control on our lives. We are raising a perfect family, we are in a rocket on our career path, we are stable financially, we have a home over our heads, we have good friends, we eat good food every day and we laugh more than we cry.

Some or all of these things could make us forget that if it is not because Allah SWT wills it, all of these life's riches that  we are experiencing will not happen. And if He wills it, He could take it away from us at any time He wants.

We as human beings, are just merely servants of Allah SWT and if you believe in Him you must do everything that He pleases. It is not supposed to be a chore or like being forced upon us. We need to let open our hearts and take it in that we don't have full control of our lives and we depend on The Almighty.

Iman and hidayah does not come for free. We might be born in a Muslim family or a Muslim country, but nobody can guarantee that everyone in that family or country will be a good Muslim. I'm not sayin' there won't, there are a number of 100% good ones, MasyaAllah. But there are always evil beings out there who are always trying to lure us away from Allah SWT. That is why we must always ask for Him to keep us in the righteous path, make our hearts still and our will strong to keep on the straight path.

The grass always seems greener on the other side and we always think of the 'What ifs'. It's great if we think about the What Ifs when we think of the future so we could decide on which road to choose. But lamenting on the What Ifs of the past is practically cancer that slowly eats up from inside.

Therefore, I ask from Allah SWT to make me content with what I have right now and guide me making good decisions for the coming days.

As Muslims, we perform solat

I hope you remember the story about the time Rasulullah SAW was being taken to see Allah SWT on the night of Israk and Mikraj. Where at first Allah has instructed upon us to perform 50 prayers daily. However, after Musa AS spoke to Rasulullah SAW and said even his (Musa) followers would not be capable of performing 50 prayers and asks for reduction from Allah. Rasulullah SAW returned to Allah a few more times and the prayers were reduced to 40, then 30, 20, 10 and finally 5.

In this story, lies the virtue of the Mercy of Allah SWT. He is the Most Considerate and the Most Merciful. With that 5 prayers, we are given the same deeds as doing the 50. Now that is a super great deal for Muslims. 5 is very easy, say, compared to 50.

I'll be honest, sometimes I can't even complete all 5 at its given time. Things get in the way, sleep, work, fun, travel,embarassment. In my younger days, I was even worse. Which is a shame really, because if Rasulullah didn't ask for reductions, and we would still be doing 50 prayers, I would then fail miserably.

My daily prayers is something that I need to keep a close observation on. An action that needs to be improved and reflected upon. For after all, it is the first thing that we are being questioned when we stand before Allah SWT on Judgement Day.

This article below shares the experience of a fellow Muslim and I hope it will be useful for us.

Main thing to remember:
You do not schedule your prayers to fit your life, but instead schedule your life around your prayers.


Daliah Merzaban: How To Pray Five Times A Day With A Busy Work Schedule

Before I genuinely began to cultivate and nurture my relationship with God, I regarded the five daily prayers that Islam enjoins on believers as laborious. It seemed impractical to expect that I would be able to stop what I was doing during my busy work schedule to take time out and pray.

Working as a news wire journalist, I was often spending upwards of 10 hours a day in the office or at conferences, interviews and meetings, barely able to make time for a lunch break. If I wasn't working, my time was divided between house chores, errands, family and friends, and exercise. I was punctual with everything in my life, except that I was late five times a day.

In my mind, it was not viable to expect that I could wake up before the crack of dawn to pray the early-morning prayer, fajr, otherwise I would be too tired to work effectively later that morning. It also seemed inefficient to interrupt my work meetings to pray duhr, the mid-day prayer, and asr, the afternoon prayer.

Making the sunset prayer maghrib was often a challenge because the window to pray is typically quite short and coincides with the time between finishing work, having dinner and returning home. So, in effect, the only prayer that was feasible for me to pray on time was isha, the evening prayer. For most of my life, thus, I would at best pray all five prayers in the evening, or skip prayers here and there to accommodate my immediate commitments.

Without realising it, my inconsistency and approach to praying trivialised the principle behind performing prayers throughout the day. I believed in God and loved Him, but on my own terms, not on the terms very clearly set out in the Quran and Prophetic teachings. Yet praying the five daily prayers, at their prescribed times, is the backbone of being a Muslim; we cannot stand upright in our faith without them. It is one of the essential practices that God has called on those who endeavour to live in Islam, a state of existence whereby a human strives to live in submission to God.

When I came to truly understand the importance of prayer, the realisation was both overwhelming and quick. It dawned on me that if I was not fulfilling this precondition, then I really could not claim to be Muslim. Even if I desired to have a solid connection with the Almighty I was not taking the necessary steps to do so. I promptly reoriented my life and it has now been a year and a half that I have not intentionally missed a prayer time, whether I am in the office, mall, grocery store, out with friends or travelling.

Looking back, I see how wrong I was about the impracticality of Islamic prayers, which are succinct and straightforward notwithstanding their resonance. When I moved from trying to fit prayers into my life to fitting my life around my prayer schedule, I instantly removed a great deal of clutter from my daily routine. Since regular prayer promotes emotional consistency and tranquillity, I began to eliminate excess negativity and cut down on unnecessary chitchat, helping me be more focused, productive and patient.

Over a short period of time, what amazed me was how easy and fluid the prayers became. Performing the early-morning prayer actually gave me a burst of energy during the day and, gradually, the prayers that I had initially perceived as cumbersome became an essential facet of my routine. With God's help, I would find ways to make a prayer regardless of the hurdles. While in Canada for the summer, I would often catch duhr prayer in a department store fitting room, with the help of a handy Islamic prayer compass application on my Iphone.

"'Verily the soul becomes accustomed to what you accustom it to.' That is to say: what you at first burden the soul with becomes nature to it in the end."

This is a line drawn from a magnificent book I am in the process of reading by great Islamic thinker Al-Ghazali, entitled "Invocations and Supplications: Book IX of the Revival of Religious Sciences." Al-Ghazali describes a series of formulas, drawn from the Qur'an and Hadith, which we can repeat to help us attain greater proximity to the divine and purify our hearts.

At each turn in my quest to enrich my faith, I have found that what at first appears difficult becomes easy when performed with sincerity. Soon after I reoriented my life to revolve around prayer, the five prayers felt insufficient in expressing my devotion. I examined Hadith, or the traditions of Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, and discovered there were optional prayers I could add to my routine. Since then, I have not let a day pass without praying them.

To supplement my prayers, I have integrated various zikr, or remembrance and mentioning of God, into my days. Zikr, including repeating such phrases as "la illa ha il Allah" (There is no God but God), habitually draws our attention back to God.

Among the many rich invocations mentioned in Ghazali's book is this one which I have started to incorporate. As we leave our houses each day, if we say "In the name of God" (Bismillah), God will guide us; when we add "I trust in God" (Tawakalt al Allah), God will protect us; and if we conclude with "There is no might or power save with God" (La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah), God will guard us.

I suppose to an outsider, these acts of devotion can appear a bit obsessive, and I have had a couple of people say this to me. Yet it is an obsession with the greatest possible consequences that can improve rather than disintegrate one's disposition. The more time I devote to God, the greater the peace of mind I find filling my life and the more focused I become on what is important -- such as treating my family and friends honourably, working hard in my job, giving charity with compassion and generosity, and maintaining integrity.

Remembering God throughout the day, through prayer and invocation, truly does polish the heart as Hadith teaches; you erase obstructions that would impede faith in its purest form.

"Truly when a man loves a thing, he repeatedly mentions it, and when he repeatedly mentions a thing, even if that may be burdensome, he loves it," writes Ghazali.

Coretan an-Nisaa akhir zaman

I normally get restless when I read long wordy posts. Selalu skip some parts or just scan through without giving any thoughts. I blame my short attention span, also some suspects of minor dyslexia (perasaan sendiri sahaja) or maybe just plain spacing-out. With that said, I wonder why I'm pursuing a postgrad degree which requires me to read and write stuff, go figure.

Anyway, here's a lovely and syahdu post from a blogger friend of mine, MM about the strong women in Islam. I am glad I took the time to read and drink in the whole content although had to struggle focusing my attention.

For you who happen to be here, please spend some time reading it... I highly recommend you to do so. Very nicely written and the writer manages to touch my heart and made me think of myself where do I rank among these strong Muslimat. I am soooo not worthy.

Rasulullah swt bersabda :“Aku melihat ke dalam Syurga maka aku melihat kebanyakan penduduknya adalah fuqara (orang-orang fakir) dan aku melihat ke dalam neraka maka aku menyaksikan kebanyakan penduduknya adalah wanita.” (HR. Bukhari dan Muslim dari Ibnu Abbas dan Imran)

Ya Allah

Jadikan aku tabah seperti Ummu Khadijah

Sehingga dirinya digelar afifah solehah 

Dialah wanita pertama 

Tiada ragu mengucap syahadah 

Pengorbanan bersama Rasulullah 

Susah senang bersama 

Walau hilang harta kerana berdakwah 

Walau dipulau 3 tahun 3 bulan 

Imannya sedikit pun tak berubah 

Mampukah aku setabah dirinya?

aku Cuma An-Nisaa

Andai diuji sedikit sudah rebah.. 

Baru dihina sudah mengalah 

Ya Allah..tabahkan aku sepertinya.. 

Ya Allah.. 

Jadikan aku semulia Fatimah Az-Zahrah 

Betapa tinggi kasihnya pada ayahandanya 

Tidak pernah putus asa pada perjuangan dakwah baginda 

Anak yang semulia peribadi baginda 

Tangannya lah yang membersihkan luka 

Tangannya jua yang membersihkan cela 

Pada jasad Rasulullah tercinta 

Gagahnya dirinya pada dugaan 

Mampukah aku sekuat Fatimah? 

Saat diri terluka dendam pula menyapa 

Saat disakiti maki pula mengganti 

Ya Rabbi..teguhkan hatiku sepertinya.. 

Ya Allah.. 

Jadikan aku sehebat Masyitah dan Sumaiyah 

Tukang sisir yang beriman 

dan Keluarga Yasir yang bertakwa 

Sungguh kesabaran mereka menggoncang dunia 

Iman tetap terpelihara walau nyawa jadi taruhan 

Mampukah sabarku seperti mereka? 

Tatkala digoda nafsu dunia.. 

Entah mana hilangnya Iman di dada 

Ya Rahman.. 

Kuatkan Imanku seperti Masyitah 

Terjun penuh yakin bersama bayi ke kuali mendidih 

Kerana yakin Allah pasti disisi 

Sabarkan aku seperti sumaiyah 

Biar tombak menusuk jasad.. 

Iman sedikit pun takkan rapuh. 

Ya Allah.. 

Jadikan aku semulia Ummu Sulaim 

Perkahwinannya dengan Abu Talhah atas mahar Iman 

Islamlah Abu Talhah sehingga menjadi sahabat Rasulullah 

Betapa hebatnya tarbiyyah isteri pada suami 

Hinggakan segala panahan ke Rasulullah pada hari uhud 

Disambut dengan belakang jasad Abu Talhah 

Ya Allah.. 

Tarbiyyahkan aku pada cinta sepertinya 

Tingginya nilai cinta pada harga Iman 

Mampukah aku menatap cinta itu? 

Sedangkan rupa yang menjadi pilihan 

Ketulusan Iman diketepikan 

Ya Allah.. 

Ilhamkan aku pada cinta sepertinya.. 

Ya Allah... 

Jadikan aku sehebat Aisya Humaira 

Isteri termuda Rasulullah 

Biar dilempar fitnah 

Dia tetap teguh pada ketetapanNya 

Isteri sejati yang memangku Nabi 

Pada saat terakhir baginda

Hadis dan Sunnah Rasulullah dipertahankan 

Betapa hatimu seorang mujahidah 

Ya Allah.. 

Mampukah aku contohi dirinya? 

Pada fitnah yang melanda 

Diri mula goyah dan putus asa 

Teguhkan Imanku sepertinya..Ya Rahim.. 

Ya Allah.. 

Teringat diri pada Khansa 

Empat orang anaknya mati di Jalan ALLAH 

Dia meratap tangis.. 

Anak sulungnya syahid 

Anak keduanya turut syahid 

Anak ketiganya dan keempat jua mati syahid 

Namun tangisan itu bukan kerana pemergian anak tercinta 

Jawabnya kerana tiada lagi anak yang dihantar untuk berjihad

Wahai kaum Adam yang bergelar khalifah.. 

Diriku bukan setabah Ummu Khadijah 

Bukan jua semulia Fatimah Az-Zahrah 

Apa lagi sesabar Masyitah dan Sumaiyah 

Mahupun sehebat Ummu Sulaim 

Dan tidak seteguh Aisya Humaira 

Kerana diri cuma An-Nisaa akhir zaman 

Dimana Aurat semakin dibuka terdedah 

Dimana syahadah hanya pada nama 

Dimana Dunia yang terus dipuja 

Dimana nafsu fana menjadi santapan utama 

Dimana batas sentiasa dileraikan 

Dimana ukhwah sentiasa dipinggirkan 

Wahai Kaum Hawa 

Kita cuma An-Nisaa  

Para pendosa yang terbanyak di neraka 

Lantas walau tak setabah para Mujahidah 

Namun Tabahlah pada ketetapan Allah 

Kerana padanya ada Syurga! 

Walau tak semulia para wanita sirah 

Tapi muliakan diri dengan agama yang memelihara 

kerana padanya ada Pahala! 

Walau tak sesabar para wanita solehah 

Namun sabarkan jiwa pada nafsu dunia yang menyeksa 

Kerana padanya ada bahagia! 

Sesungguhnya Hawa tercipta dari Tulang rusuk kaum Adam 

Bukan untuk ditindas kerana lemah 

Tapi untuk dilindungi kerana Indah 

dan Indah apabila tertutup terpelihara 

Karena disitulah terjaganya Syahadah 

Bak mekarnya wanita dalam sirah 

Tuntunlah kami ke arah syurga.. 

Kualiti atau Kuantiti

Solat Fardhu hanya ada 5 sahaja. Rata-rata di masjid kalau solat berjemaah, kita ambil masa lebih kurang 15-20 minit untuk tunaikan. Dan kalau solat sendirian, mungkin 10-15 minit untuk selesaikan tanggungjawab. Ada juga yang solat 5-10 minit sahaja. Ikut kelajuan masing-masing.

Malam tadi terdengar rancangan muhasabah diri di kristal televisyen ('kristal' sebab LCD) yang berkata tentang kepentingan menyempurnakan solat. Ada satu bahagian yang disentuh penceramah mengenai bacaan Al- Fatihah yang, dengan lidah Melayu, biasanya silap disebut.

Poin-nya disini ialah, kalau salah sebutan bacaan, maka tak sempurna lah solat. Tak dapat 100% full score. Lebih teruk lagi, mungkin 0%. Macam mana pada Hari Pengadilan nanti, bila neraca timbang senget sebelah ke arah ...

Solat fardhu perlu dititik beratkan. Bermula dengan wudhuk. Ada beberapa perkara yang mungkin kita (sebenarnya, saya) terlepas :

1) elakkan buka paip besar2 macam air terjun. Membazir itu amalan syaitan. Go easy with the water tap.
2) air tak kena SELURUH anggota wudhuk. Bila basuh tangan sampai ke siku, pastikan BELAKANG siku juga kena air.
3) Gunakan tangan untuk sapu air ke celah2 jari kaki. Jangan geli pegang kaki sendiri. Tujuan wudhuk utk sucikan anggota badan itu.

... Yang diatas hanya antara beberapa perkara. Ada lagi yang lain, secara amnya pastikan air kena seluruh bahagian anggota yang wajib.

Berbalik kepada solat, pangkalnya syarat sah solat perlu dititik beratkan. Pay attention to the details. Niat, takbir, Al-Fatihah dan seterusnya... Sampai kepada tertib. Pergi belajar dengan guru mengenai cara-cara solat yang sempurna. Itu tanggungjawab kita sebagai hamba Allah. Perfecting our skills and performance. Macam KPI if you want to look at it that way.

Sayang sangat kalau kita solat 3-20 minit tunggang terbalik, tapi semua tak sempurna atau lebih teruk lagi. Iya, mungkin kita mengejar masa. Akan tetapi apalah sangat masa yang kita kejarkan berbanding dengan masa yang diluangkan untuk menyempurnakan solat untuk Allah. Long term investment, surely like me, you believe in the Day of Judgement.

Forever is a very, very, very.... Long time.

Solat membentuk akhlak. Benar, kalau insan yang bersolat itu memahami intipati solat. Faham di akal dan menghayati sepenuh hati apa yang dibaca. Percaya dengan apa yang dibaca.

Jadinya disini, saya merasakan kualiti ibadah saya perlu diperbaiki. Kuantiti juga penting. Tapi titik beratkan kualiti. Sebab menurut buah fikiran saya kalau memberi 1 biji buah durian yang elok lebih baik daripada memberi 10 biji buah durian yang tak elok. Akan tetapi, kalau kita beri 10 biji buah durian yang berkualiti, lagi baguskan?

Wallahu'alam.

Fell free to share your opinion / berkongsi pendapat.

- Posted using BlogPress from my iPad

Kisah masyarakat yang tak sedap didengar

Pada hujung minggu yang lepas, saya pergi ke rumah sepupu saya yang melangsungkan perkahwinan dengan pilihan hati. Majlis diadakan di rumahnya, jadi macam biasalah kat Msia ni jalan depan rumah akan penuh dengan sesak dengan khemah dan tetamu2 yang hadir. Jadi faham2 lah keadaan sekitar akan jadi sedikit kucar-kacir dan banyak kereta yg parking disepanjang dan berhampiran jalan tersebut.

Selepas selesai makan dan bertemu-muka (socialising by talking) saya bergerak pulang ke kereta. Dari jauh nampak sekumpulan orang berkerumun keliling sebuah kereta. Bila sampai kat situ, rupanya ada 'drama' yang sedang berlangsung.

Cerita dia macam ni (kisah benar ni):

Anak jiran sepupu saya parking kereta beliau didepan sebuah rumah yang sedang direnovate (yang tiada penghuni lagi) sebab ada khemah block jalan. Bila tuan rumah yg sedang renovate(dia baru beli rumah ni) ni datang dan nampak ada kereta parking depan rumah dia, dia bagitau DJ kenduri kahwin buat pengumuman over the PA supaya tuan kereta tu alih kereta dia. Agaknya si jiran tu lambat datang ataupun si renovate tu tak sabar menunggu dia pun terus calarkan bonet kereta tu, siap buat karangan.. "kan dah kata jangan parking, padan muka" (lebih kurang lah, saya pun lupa) dan pancitkan tayar (2 tayar!) dengan screwdriver dengan menikam tayar tu bertubi-tubi. Bila tuan kereta ni datang, bayangkan lah apa perasaan dia tambahan lagi kereta tu masih baru lagi (kalau ikut plat kereta tu macam beli 3-6 bulan lepas). Kalau saya, nangis dah kot kat situ.

Jadi si mangsa ni pergi lah ke rumah si renovate ni dengan hajat nak berbincang (secara baik) mcm mana nak settle benda ni kan. Tapi si renovate ni pergi marah pulak si mangsa dan mak mangsa sekali dimarahnya pasal parking depan rumah dia. Bila anggota RELA datang utk break the heat, dengan si RELA ni pun dihamburnya. Jadi akhirnya perbincangan tu tak ke mana. Saya cadangkan dekat makcik tu pergi ke balai polis utk buat report polis ke atas si renovate tu sebab dia merosakkan harta benda orang lain. Harap2 polis ambil tindakan lah.

Sigh.. benda2 macam ni lah yang buat saya mengeluh panjang... sila faham, ada kenduri, memang org parking merata2. harap bersabar.

Saya tak sangka ada orang seangkuh si renovate tu. Selalu jumpa orang bongkak dan kurang ajar macam ni dalam drama tv je, rupanya ada hidup2 orang macam ni. Tau la kau baru beli rumah, rasa best la kot pasal ada duit banyak, tapi Please! Tolong hormat orang tua. Dah le baru nak duduk kat kawasan tu, dah buat samseng dan eksyen. Macam orang luar berkelana, masuk sebuah kampung, bina rumah utk tinggal dan pergi bakar rumah jiran dia.

Saya tak dapat nak bayangkan macam mana nanti mereka hidup berjiran nanti bila si renovate masuk rumah baru tu. Depa duk dekat2 je, satu lorong. Mesti bengang je. Orang2 macam si renovate ni patut duduk dalam hutan jauh dari orang lain. Mungkin hutan pun dibakarnya. Ya Allah, Engkau jauhkanlah aku daripada orang2 yang hati jahat macam ni.

OK, memang la saya pun akan bengang kalau ada orang parking depan kereta saya menghalang jalan saya, tapi tak tergamak nak buat macam ni. Dan orang yang parking merata pun (especially double parking), tolonglah considerate sikit dan letak la no phone utk contact atau jangan tarik handbrake. Bila saya google pasal benda ni [pancit tayar + calar kereta] rupanya benda macam ni "normal" di kota besar.  Berjaga2 lah korang parking kereta, kalau silap parking, bersiap sedia lah utk panggil tow truck. 

Saya SANGAT SEDIH ramai orang macam ni.... rasa hormat terhadap orang lain dah hilang. Yang tahu hanya kepentingan diri sendiri. Dah takdak agama kot? Kalau ikut kan mana2 agama pun mengajar utk hormat orang dan jangan buat jahat dekat orang lain. Pendek je fius kesabaran, cepat je nak meletup marah.

Dekat2 nak Malidur Rasul ni saya rasa sayu pulak. Kalau lah setiap insan ni ada at least sedikit sifat Rasulullah SAW dlm jiwa diorang, mesti rasa bahagia dan aman je tinggal kat dunia sekarang. Tau tak Rasulullah SAW tolong makcik tua angkat kayu balik ke rumah dan sepanjang perjalanan tu makcik tu dok mengutuk Rasulullah SAW? Baginda tak kata apa2 pun, dia senyum ja.

Mungkin ada baiknya, kalau kita ditimpa ujian, kita berfikir sejenak, apa yang Rasulullah SAW akan buat? Jangan lupa selawat banyak2 dan mengucap syahadah.

tentang revolusi rakyat

Sepanjang cuti panjang tahun Baru Cina, selain daripada keluar menziarahi shopping2 mall, saya dan keluarga meninjau perkembangan di Mesir melalui internet streaming website-website berita seperti Al-Jazeera, CNN, dan banyak lagi, sampai nak habis fair usage threshold internet P1Wimax (mind you, ni baru 6hb February. Ada lagi 22 hari utk renew threshold baru. huhu.. tapi apa boleh buat?).

Amazing how the fall of one country leader (Tunisia) could trigger domino effect across the middle east region.

Apa yang berlaku kat Tunisia pun bermula dengan satu 'trigger' yang agak unik, seorang pemuda mati akibat kecederaan kerana beliau membakar diri sendiri (self immolation) sebagai tanda protes terhadap pemimpin. Sebenarnya itu bukan 'self-immolation' yang pertama kali berlaku di Tunisia. Ramai yang telah membakar diri sebagai tanda protes, tapi yang ni satu ni yg mencetuskan huru-hara dan protes di seluruh negara sampaikan Ben Ali terpaksa lari keluar dari negara sendiri. Persoalannya, bagaimana ianya menjadi 'viral' dan semangat itu tersebar sampai ke Mesir, Yaman dan beberapa negara Arab yang lain?

Pada pendapat saya, pemuda tersebut mesti memiliki pengaruh yang tersendiri di kawasan tersebut. Dan terkena pula pada masa, protes ibunya dikongsi di internet dan saluran berita. Dan tindakan pemimpin yang cuak menghentikan internet dan lambat bertindak membakar lagi kemarahan rakyat. All boils in one pot. Bila api tak ditutup, membuak2 lah kuah yang panas di dalam periuk. Panasnya periuk tersebut dapat dirasakan oleh kuali yang terletak bersebelahan periuk. (Refer Tipping Point - Malcolm Gladwell).

The things that you are capable of doing when you are not afraid anymore.

Saya tak tau. Tapi saya kagum dengan rakyat2 Tunisia dan Mesir yang bangkit menentang pemimpin2 yang tidak berlaku adil. Walaupun setelah 20-30 tahun bersabar dengan kerenah pemimpin tersebut. Mereka keluar dari rumah2 mereka untuk berkumpul di dataran, tak takut kemungkinan yang mereka akan dibalun oleh polis. Marah. Mana tak mereka tak marah? Corruption, kekayaan negara tak dikongsi sama rata, rakyat miskin dan tiada pekerjaan.

When you have nothing, you are willing to risk it all to fight for something.

Kemudian saya terfikir tentang negara saya. Tak mungkin boleh berlaku sebegini teruk kot. Sebabnya kita (saya terutamanya) mempunyai banyak kepentingan. Mungkin tak sanggup untuk mencagarkan semuanya untuk itu. Duit di bank, kereta, rumah dan barang2 di dalamnya, mesti takut hilang semua kalau berlaku huru-hara. Keluarga, saudara-mara dan kawan-kawan semuanya sihat dan segar bugar, tak sanggup kita tinggalkan mereka begitu sahaja. Itulah, 'attachments'. Baru saya tahu kenapa pada zaman Rasulullah SAW dahulu, para sahabat sanggup untuk derma/ tinggalkan harta dan keluarga untuk memperjuangkan Islam. Kerana dengan meninggalkan 'attachments' kita hanya ada diri kita sendiri dan dapat berikan 100% fokus utk mencapai matlamat utama tanpa perlu risaukan apa2 dan sesiapa dibelakang.

Semoga revolusi rakyat di Tunisia, Mesir dan negara2 yang terlibat mencapai matlamat dan objektif utama mereka. Dan diharapkan agar pemimpin2 zalim yang senang duduk di atas kerusi empuk mereka berasa panas punggung dan cepat2 insaf.

The Elephant in the Room

I read a letter written by a guy lamenting his woes to the world about having to fight his inner 'demons' on a daily basis. Even though this brother says he is married, but he still can't curb his urges. And who does he blame for all his problem? Women.(!!!)    To him, that is just one simple word to sum up all the evil that is going on in his loins.

I do agree with you brother, on some points, but you can't just blame us women for your own problems.

Yes, I do agree with him that all women should cover up to guard their modesty. But in this world we are living now, it is very difficult to have that ideal kind of living. Even in our own 1Msia, we have various kind of people living in this country and we all know how 'un-modest' some people can be nowadays in terms of dressing, let a lone behaviour.

Yes, I do agree that life can be rough sometimes. I don't know about you, but for me I feel that as a Muslim, living in this modern world today is not without its own challenges, not just in my own Islamic country, but also in the rest of the world.

Put aside the negative stereotyping by others and mischiefs done by 'irrelevant believers' that caused the stereotyping to start, our iman are still being 'attacked' and tested from every known angle whether we are aware of it or not. There's temptations coming from the TV, cinemas, Internet, books, songs in radio, neighbours, people on the street and many more. It is very difficult to go around one day without having to face these temptations, unless you're living as a hermit in a cave on top of a mountain without any means of communication and contact with the rest of the world (but temptations could come in many forms too).

For example, say you wanted to go to a site to look at innocent and funny pictures of cute cats and kittens, but the adverts that supports these sites are far from 'innocent'. Then one of the scenes in the latest HPotter movies is also quite 'suggestive', even if it was a movie about kids fighting evil wizard with magic. Top songs on the billboard, sings about profanities and body parts and still we whistle to its tune because it's 'catchy'.

My point is, temptations are every where around us. A few ways to guard yourself is to see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil and do no evil.

I am going to share a website that could help this brother and others. The topic that it discusses might be different from his actual problem, but in some ways is quite similar. Even if you don't have this kind of problem, I would still suggest you watch and listen to it because we can learn something useful.

I've come across one very interesting and informational website driven by a brother who talks about the 'elephant in the room' - problem of porn addiction in the muslim community. Yes, I said that right, 'porn' and 'muslim' in the same sentence. He says that the porn industry is one of the most lucrative industry and generates the most money in US. Sex really does sell huh?

With Internet access, practically anyone in this world have access to porn. A shocking statistic data reveals that the half of the Top 10 countries accessing porn sites are Islamic countries! Quite shameful as it is, but numbers don't lie. These countries should change their names either to Pornistan or Pornisia. (Even saying 'porn' like half a dozen of times in just this entry might just have increased the traffic to this blog alone!).

Porn addiction, like any other disturbing addictions (like drugs, gambling, alcohol drinking,etc) are a disease that needs to be treated. Normally people collectively would scorn and scowl upon these addicts and eventually these actions will push away these helpless people away from the community and Allah. Once they're a far distance away from Allah and a strong supportive community, it is much easier for syaitan to enter and control their hearts and actions.

Link: www.purifyyourgaze.com


What I'm trying to say is, we can't avoid being in this troubling environment, it is something beyond one's control (unless one is very powerful and decides to revolutionise the whole media world itself). We can tell the whole world to cover up, but they just won't. But if there is one thing that you can control, and that is yourself. To purify your gaze, you must break the isolation, define your sobriety, master your emotion and use the problem as a way to find Allah SWT. May we all be under His guidance.

Link: www.purifyyourgaze.com

Anak Adam dan 3 perkara

“Apabila mati seseorang anak Adam, terputuslah segala amalannya melainkan 3 perkara ; Sedekah Jariah, Ilmu Yang Bermanfaat dan Anak Yang Soleh Yang Mendoakannya” Maksud Hadis

"Three things help a man after his death, and these are: a charity given by him, a good habit he taught to others and a good offspring he leaves behind, who prays for his forgiveness."

(saya ambil dr Google).

(nota kepala: betulkan saya kalau salah).

I believe most of us are familiar with the hadith above (who comes from sekolah asrama, masa kuliah maghrib mesti ada cakap pasal hadis ni at least sekali). I'd like to relate this to our rolling balance after we die. For us who believes that Allah's promise about the afterlife is true, this is a good investment. Isn't it? Would you like to have extra income coming from outside being funded into your account even after you stopped banking-in your savings?

This is a good starting point for your motivation to build a better life right now and a secured future after.

Where to start? you wonder... raise children well. Well, that's all I can say about that because, unlike the rest of us, I'm only down with the two other option, I don't have any children. But that's not a problem at all. Bagi sedekah, janganlah kedekut sangat. sedekah duit, makanan, senyum pun boleh. Kongsi ilmu yang berguna dengan orang lain. Lagi banyak, lagi bagus.

(nota kaki: betulkan saya kalau salah).

Selamat manjalankan ibadah di bulan Ramadhan

As for other worldly matters, this will do...

For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.

Kita sekarang dalam kesibukan memprotes diatas jalan-raya membantah keganasan rejim zionis terhadap penduduk Palestin di Gaza dan dalam kekecohan emel-emel dan sms-sms yang dihantar bertalu-talu kiri-kanan-atas dan bawah untuk memboikot barangan buatan syarikat-syarikat Barat yg menyokong kerajaan Israel tu. How's that working for you? Sikit pun depa tak kurangkan jumlah bom dan tembakan ke atas kawasan tersebut. Pernahkan kita terfikir semua tindakan kita ni umpama cuba menyelamatkan nasi yang telah pun menjadi bubur?

Kenapa saya berkata sedemikian?

Kerana selama ni, mereka dah pun membuat perancangan yang sangat teratur utk menghapuskan musuh-musuh mereka. Pembunuhan besar-besaran yang berlaku sekarang di Gaza, bukanlah akibat perbincangan 'overnight' atau akibat mesyuarat tergempar yang diadakan 5-6 minggu lalu. Saya yakin, semua ni dah dirancang bertahun-tahun lamanya. Paling kurang pun 10 tahun. Sikit demi sedikit, mereka membaham umat kita dari dalam, umpama api dalam sekam. Duit yang kita bayar utk makan, minum dan pakai barangan branded kita selama 5, 10, 20, 30 atau 60 tahun yang dulu sedang digunakan oleh mereka utk menyembelih penduduk Gaza sekarang. Kita baru sekarang nak boikot?

I am not saying that what we are doing now is not proving any points to the zionist, what I am trying to say is that, we have been living with these products all our lives. Some of us may not have known any other. If you think about it, do we know any Islamic products that is par as these items, other than the most widely selling book, The Quran? (Itupun some people beli sebab adat and not because they are interested in learning the meaning).

Why is there no successful worldwide franchise owned by a Muslim? (Hmmm.. let me think... I don't have any, pls let me know if you have one, at least can save face). The first usage of coffee was documented by Muslims. But the famous coffee shop right now is, guess who? Islamic civilasation bloomed much more earlier than the European revolution, they're still in the dark ages, mind you. Now who creates the latest and funky gadgets, green-cars and send people to the moon? The oldest university is Al-Azhar, but the famous ones we are familiar and proud of now (becos some of our politician protege comes from there) are Oxford, Cambridge, Yale, Harvard, etc..

Entiti moral orang-orang muda yang beragama Islam di negara kita sekarang usah diperkatakanlah... lebih banyak yang terumbang-ambing dilaut daripada yang dapat mengemudi iman dengan betul. Lebih teruk lagi, ada yang cuba mengenal Islam, tapi tersilap kenal ajaran sesat pula.

My point is, we are left with no choices because we are not well equipped with knowledge and we don't recognise opportunities when they come staring at our faces. Therefore, we are not able to create opportunities to others. Which is quite sad if you think about it.

What we know now is only how to react to the force. We are so good at retaliation and showing off our emotions, whether it be appropriately or inappropriately (tunjuk perasaan bertempat dan tak bertempat). If our reaction is equal to the amount of force applied to it, that's ok, but if the force is too strong to handle, we'd topple down. But have we thought about the force that we could've created if we are pure and clever enough to utilise our potentials?

Semua orang Islam, "Iqra!". Bacalah. Tuntutlah ilmu. Dan yang paling penting sekali gunakanlah ilmu tu sebaik-baiknya. Simpan sorang-sorang buat apa?

Korang baca betul-betul extrak petikan dibawah, dan buat penilaian tentang diri kita sendiri.

Extracts of speech by Hafez A.B Mohamed: Director-General, Al Baraka Bank.

Demographics:
o World Jewish Population. 14 million
o Distribution: 7 m in America
5 m in Asia
2 m in Europe
100 thousand in Africa
o World Muslim Population: 1.5 billion
o Distribution: 1 billion in Asia/Mid-East
400 M in Africa
44 M in Europe
6 M in the Americas
o Every fifth human being is a Muslim.
o For every single Hindu there are two Muslims
o For every Buddhist there are two Muslims
o For every Jew there are 107 Muslims
o Yet the 14 million Jews are more powerful than the entire 1.5 billion Muslims

Why?

Here are some of the reasons.
Movers of Current History
o Albert Einstein Jewish
o Sigmund Freud Jewish
o Karl Marx Jewish
o Paul Samuelson Jewish
o Milton Friedman Jewish

Medical Milestones
o Vaccinating Needle: Benjamin Ruben Jewish
o Polio Vaccine Jonas Salk Jewish
o Leukaemia Drug Gertrude Elion Jewish
o Hepatitis B Baruch Blumberg Jewish
o Syphilis Drug Paul Ehrlich Jewish
o Neuro muscular Elie Metchnikoff Jewish
o Endocrinology Andrew Schally Jewish
o Cognitive therapy. Aaron Beck Jewish
o Contraceptive Pill Gregory Pincus Jewish
o Understanding of Human Eye. G. Wald Jewish
o Embryology. Stanley Cohen Jewish
o Kidney Dialysis Willem Kloffcame Jewish

Nobel Prize Winners
o In the past 105 years, 14 million Jews have won 180 Nobel prizes whilst 1.5 billion Muslims have contributed only 3 Nobel winners

Inventions that changed History
o Micro- Processing Chip. Stanley Mezor Jewish
o Nuclear Chain Reactor Leo Sziland Jewish
o Optical Fibre Cable Peter Schultz Jewish
o Traffic Lights Charles Adler Jewish
o Stainless Steel Benno Strauss Jewish
o Sound Movies Isador Kisee Jewish
o Telephone Microphone Emile Berliner Jewish
o Video Tape Recorder Charles Ginsburg Jewish

Influential Global Business
o Polo Ralph Lauren Jewish
o Coca Cola Jewish
o Levi's Jeans Levi Strauss Jewish
o Sawbuck's Howard Schultz Jewish
o Google Sergey Brin Jewish
o Dell Computers Michael Dell Jewish
o Oracle Larry Ellison Jewish
o DKNY Donna Karan Jewish
o Baskin & Robbins Irv Robbins Jewish
o Dunkin Donuts Bill Rosenberg Jewish

Influential Intellectuals/Politicians
o Henry Kissinger , US Sec of State Jewish
o Richard Levin, PresidentYaleUniversity Jewish
o Alan Greenspan , US Federal Reserve Jewish
o Joseph Lieberman Jewish
o Madeleine Albright , US Sec of State Jewish
o CasperWeinberger , US Sec of Defence Jewish
o Maxim Litvinov , USSR Foreign Minister Jewish
o DavidMarshal , Singapore Chief Minister Jewish
o Isaacs Isaacs, Gov-GenAustralia Jewish
o Benjamin Disraeli, British Statesman Jewish
o Yevgeny Primakov, Russian PM Jewish
o Barry Goldwater , US Politician Jewish
o Jorge Sampaio, President Portugal Jewish
o Herb Gray, Canadian Deputy - PM Jewish
o Pierre Mendes, French PM Jewish
o Michael Howard, British Home Sec. Jewish
o Bruno Kriesky, Austrian Chancellor Jewish
o Robert Rubin , US Sec of Treasury Jewish

Global Media Influential
o Wolf Blitzer, CNN Jewish
o Barbara Walters ABC News Jewish
o EugeneMeyer , Washington Post Jewish
o Henry Grunwald, Time Magazine Jewish
o Katherine Graham , Washington Post Jewish
o Joseph Lelyeld, New York Times Jewish
o Max Frankel, New York Times Jewish

Global Philanthropists
o George Soros Jewish
o Walter Annenberg Jewish

Why are they powerful? why are Muslims powerless?

Here's another reason. We have lost the capacity to produce knowledge.
o In the entire Muslim World (57 Muslim Countries) there are only 500 universities.
o In USA alone, 5,758 universities
o In India alone, 8,407 universities
o Not one university in the entire Islamic World features in the Top 500 Ranking Universities of the World
o Literacy in the Christian World 90%
o Literacy in the Muslim World 40%
o 15 Christian majority-countries, literacy rate 100%
o Muslim majority - countries , None
o 98% in Christian countries completed primary
o Only 50% in Muslim countries completed primary.
o 40% in Christian countries attended university
o In Muslim countries a dismal 2% attended.
o Muslim majority countries have 230 scientists per one million Muslims
o The USA has 5000 per million
o The Christian world 1000 technicians per million.
o Entire Arab World only 50 technicians per million.
o Muslim World spends on research/development 0.2% of GDP
o Christian World spends 5 % of GDP

Conclusion.
o The Muslim World lacks the capacity to produce knowledge.

Another way of testing the degree of knowledge is the degree of diffusing knowledge.
o Pakistan 23 daily newspapers per 1000 citizens
o Singapore 460 per 1000 citizens.
o In UK book titles per million is 2000
o In Egypt book titles per million is only 17

Conclusion.
o Muslim World is failing to diffuse knowledge

Applying Knowledge is another such test.
o Exports of high tech products from Pakistan is 0.9% of its exports.
o In Saudi Arabia is 0.2%
o Kuwait , Morocco and Algeria 0.3%
o Singapore alone is 68%

Conclusion.
o Muslim World is failing to apply knowledge.

What do you conclude? no need to tell the figures are speaking themselves very loudly we are unable to listen

Advice:

Please educate yourself and your children. always promote education, don't compromise on it, don't ignore your children's slightest misguidance from education (and please, for God's Sake, don't use your personal contacts or sources to promote your children in their education; if they fail, let them and make them learn to pass; b/c if they can't do it now, they can't ever).
We are World's biggest and strongest nation, all we need is to identify and explore our ownselves. Our victory is with our knowledge, our creativity, our literacy...And nothing else.

....Wake up...