Saya nak jadi Engineer yang berjaya!

Sekadar hiasan.

I am now on my way to becoming a power engineer. Even in my wildest imagination, I've never dreamed about it. But, here I am. In Penang. Studying one the hardest branches of engineering, electrical. Coming to Penang have made me revised almost everything about my whole life. About how I view the world, how I handle my emotion - this is so true since I am a very bad first-timer, and most importantly why all things that have happened to me happened. Almost every day, after Subh prayer, I would look outside my room asking  to Allah the hikmah and pondering the moments. My room faced a huge field where cows grazed. I lived at 6th floor, so you can imagine how beautiful it could be. I love doing that. The air was so fresh and cold.

Allah lets me start anew :) 

By of His grace, I would wake up every day, and never failed to utter my syukur. My early day prayer would sound somehow like this;

"Oh Allah... I am thankful for everything. For my heart that never fails me to put my faith in You. For my eyes in which I can see beautiful things. For my nose - I could breath the cold air every morning. For my ears that often took me away blissfully when hearing Al Quran and music. For my intellect and my ability to observe that always made me stunned and humbled in front of Your genius creation. For blessing me with such an amazing family. For the love you gave me to love. For my feelings of care towards others. For Iman, in which with it I would strive to seek to understand the wisdom of good and bad in my life. For letting me becoming a Huffaz and giving me the chance to preserve it. For letting me to become an Ummah of Prophet Muhammad SAW. For giving me the way to embrace Islam as my way of life. And most importantly, without it my life would not mean a thing, for letting You being my God, and for letting me to be your servant. Bless me and bless my life, and bless the people I love". [This prayer was inspired along the way when I read buku Kecerdasan Asma'ul Husna. The book was so thick, and I was so laaaaazzzyy to renew it at the library, I had to pay RM 6.00 fine in the end. -.-]

My plan

Dulu-dulu, my mind is set to becoming a physicist. Now, I've set my aim to become an engineer. So, let me tell you my plan and you will help me by praying for me. I will finish my study and I will work for big companies like TnB. After four to five years, I would appeal to my employer to continue my master part-time, and ask my employer to sponsor my PhD. I want to do my master or PhD overseas, and I will bring my wife there. After finishing my PhD, I would to take on the 'Ir' title. After that, I plan to open up my own consultation firm. From there, I will apply to be a part-time lecturer. By entering academics arena, I will be able to do networking in academics research. Just like UPM did with Islamic University of Gaza, thanks to Dr Hafidzi. So, I plan to collaborate with Palestinians. My experience as a personal escort and interpreter for two Imam Muda Gaza last Ramadan have made realized, how much they suffer not only in terms of medicine and food, they lacked almost everything. Job opportunities to electrical power. Almost everything. And I cannot stand to let things go that way. After collaborating, I want to open up orphanage and animal care centre. Our prophet loved orphans and animals. I want to place the orphanage near Al-Amin or any MUSLEH school. So that they can attend the very special school in my heart and go through tarbiyah. And at nights, they will also be loving wardens waiting for them. Not wardens with cane and strictness, but wardens with smiles, patience, and heart. If we read Prophet Muhammad's sirah, we will realize that Prophet Muhammad had never once laid its hand on any kids. When kids came to him, he would play with them. He would hug them and cherish them. He would praise them. Rindunya Nabi :'(

And animal centre. I got three cats when I was in primary school. Kitty, Kidtun, Kittan. Kitty and Kidtun are cats with spots black and white. When I berkhatan (traditional and painful like api), I used to hang kain pelekat on top of me. People yang berkhatan traditionally would know this. During this period, those two naughty cats would jump over the kain pelekat. Macam saja-saja. Sometimes they 'accidentally' jump on the kain pelekat and on the spot and I would scream so loudly and painfully. Many times. My dad once made the decision to throw them away. My dad brought them so far from our home at night. My brother and I cried heavily. You know what happened? In the morning, when I opened the door, Kitty and Kidtun jumped on me. I was so happy. My Kittan died in a car accident. It meowed so weirdly in front of my house one day, its belly was crushed. After those three passed away, I've never had any animals in my life. I loved them. And dogs! Although I cannot touch dogs, and I love dogs and I often watched 'The Dog Whisperer', I want to hire people so that they can care for stray cats and dogs. The problem with The Dog Whisperer Cesar Milan's method in handling dogs is that they don't work for cats(Of course, the method was meant for dogs =.='). When I meet cats, I often try the techniques I learned from him to those cats. But as always, I'll end up looking like a fool trying to shh shh the cat to sit and stay. And the cats will always end up looking at me with the expression "Pehal mamat ni. Buang tebiat apa?" and go away ignoring me. Haha.

I want to start 'dapur amal' as in the US too. Few things I learned last year. There are many homeless people in Malaysia. I once slept at a bus stop near Jalan Raja Laut (my old bad habit - I tend up to wander at nights if I don't feel good and stop somewhere to sleep), an old man approached me asking for just RM2. I asked what for. He said, he was hungry. I gave him some money. If you want to know, there are a few 'dapur amal' di Malaysia. 'Dapur amal' is a food centre where people who don't have enough money to eat or just homeless can come and eat. For free. People who have never been through poverty would never understand. But we can try and be considerate. I myself never feel that poverty. I feel so pity when I see many 'pengemis' at mosque and pasar. We know ada tempat yang ada sindiket. My principle - I will help for now. Beli nasi untuk mereka, beli air. Bagi kuih untuk anak-anak mereka. Entah. I don't know. Prophet Muhammad in one story, gave a man money for him to buy an axe and find some firewood to sell. That's how we should help. But, for now, how? I don't know.

These are my aims for now.

And for that to come true, I must work hard. I think if I keep the pace as I did this semester, insyaAllah I will be there.

It's a long way to go. And it is not easy, I know. But now, I am working with a power engineer who owns a power company and at the same time a part-time lecturer. He supervised the RnD robotic team I am in. So, it is not impossible. I know.

Apa yang constant?

Dreams may change. Although mine are still not. The most important thing is, you know your true place. Why do you want to chase your dreams and how? Always keep Allah as your priority. Always.

And along the way, it can only be achieved by tarbiyah.

I choose to be in IKRAM. Each has their choices. One of my anak usrah chose to be in ISMA. He once asked me what are the differences between jemaahs? Alhamdulillah. I was taught to highlight ONLY the good of others. Not weaknesses. Although in the midst of critical analysis, we tend to open up other weaknesses, but no. We are Muslims, we don't do that. We choose to do da'wah not because we want them to join our jemaah. No. We choose to do da'wah because it is our responsibility. And we do da'wah to invite others to ISLAM. And we chose what we choose because we believe that is the best choice for us to convey Islam.

The moment my anak usrah chose to be in ISMA, yes, it disappointed me a bit. But, I must accept it. And I accepted it. The good moment came when we agreed, one day maybe when our generation led the jemaah, we may at last come to an understanding and join again as one. InsyaAllah. Or maybe not. Still, he is good with me till today. Like nothing happened.

So, regardless of our jemaah, we share the same responsibility. Either you are in PAS, tabligh, ISMA, or Haluan. We invite others to Islam, and we Islah each other. Da'wah and Islah. We have differences and SIMILARITIES. Look at our own body. Some cells bring oxygen, some cells defend the body from bad agents, some cells connect and respond. Brain decides, hand feels, foot walks, eye sees, nose smells, ear listens. Our own body is a great example of harmony. Harmony - differences are dealt effectively, and similarities dimanfaatkan optimally. We share the same goal.

Islam itu rahmah. Seluruh 'alam. Muslims and non-Muslims will feel it. If we practice Islam, truly, it will be rahmah. From the individual level where Islam shapes good persons. Good persons make happy family. Happy family makes good neighbour. Good neighbours form an understanding community. Community where religious rights are respected, understanding governs, and values uphold. Noble community demands clean and efficient administration where the demands are rooted from caring concern towards future generation and their welfare. A government where 'good governance' is applied. Muslims and non-Muslims work together to strive for a better world. A world where sensitive issues are countered with akhlaq and effective intellectual response. Think what would happen if all of Muslims behave the way we should behave.

What I wish to be the constant in my life? Tarbiyah :)

So that others, you and I may leave this world in peace. I want when my soul returns, Allah greets me as in Surah al Fajr.

 (It will be said to the pious): "O (you) the one in (complete) rest and satisfaction![27] "Come back to your Lord, Well-pleased (yourself) and well-pleasing unto Him![28] "Enter you, then, among My honoured slaves,[29] "And enter you My Paradise!"[30]

The English translation is insufficient. The verses themselves are beautiful. The arabic words used are so deep. Deeeeep... Memuncak kerinduan rasa.

Allahumma amitna bi mauti syuhada'.

All in all

1. JOM! Strive for a better life and a better world. Turn your dream into actions. Don't just sit there.

2. Baru habis seminar. Nanti kalau successfully double duit I'll share. Sekarang tak boleh lagi. Dia suruh ada bukti baru bagi tahu orang. The main speaker, successfully turn USD 1000 to 2 million USD in a year.

3. Tadi buat majlis pecah botol Ayaz. Bukan pecah berkecai macam tu. Cuma, just nak rasmikan pada ayaz lepas ni tak guna botol dah. "No bottles are harmed". Selepas ni Ayaz tak minum susu guna botol dah. Abang-abang kat rumah semua menjerit "Yes! Zaman kegelapan dah berakhir! Kezaliman botol susu dah berakhir!". Although ada lagi sorang maharaja botol susu - yang paling kecik Saif. [Kelihatan Saif gelak jahat sorang-sorang di sudut ruang tamu].

4. Malam ini pergi ini pulak.

Conclusion

:)

Home

Last Ramadan, I behaved very abnormally. I was having some kind of confusion and loss control. It was like all of my unresolved life's conflicts surged all at once. I didn't return home. I traveled from mosque to mosque, iktikaf and sometimes, I slept at a bus stop at Greenwood, just to find answers and clear my head. My parents were very worried. During that time, my father sent me a single text message. He said whatever I was going through at that time, face it like a man and always remember, my parents will always be there for me, come home. Upon reading the text, my fear swept away. I felt safe and secured, I felt at home in my heart. I did not know what was I afraid of, and still do not know now. I don't know what had happened, but it was a very miserable moment.

And here, I have the same 'home' feeling. Apart from my weekly call to my parents and little cute chubby brothers and my daily text message to my little sister, I feel like home when reading the Quran. Reading the Quran makes me feel safe and secured. It gives me a very deep tranquility. It is like every ayat is intended for you. And it feels hard to turn to another page because of how beautiful your heart interacts with the page, but it also feels very excited and curious for what is waiting for you at the next page.

This Ramadan is a very blessed Ramadan. I got to have iftars with ikhwah at baitul ikhwah here in Penang. I got to learn from my naqib, who went to Gaza last year's Ramadan. The way he described Gaza and al Aqsa, oh, I really wish I could die there syahid, and be buried with syuhada'. Allahuma amitni bi mauti syuhada'. ALhamdulillah, this week I will be tasked as a bodyguard and personal assistant for an Imam from Gaza who came here. His name is Imam Mu'min. My duty will start tomorrow. I want to learn as much as possible from him.

May Allah help us all in improving ourselves.

ALhamdulillah for the life I'm having now :)

Majlis Khatam Al Quran Naim

Assalamu 'alaikum.

Sabtu lepas, pergi ke Darul Quran. Naim, adik saya yang kedua, berumur 19 tahun, Alhamdulillah telah berjaya mengkhatamkan Quran di Darul Quran.

Moga perjalanan dia selepas ini tak terlalu berliku sangat sampai tersesat, dipermudahkan, dan smooth. Moga perjalanan dia tak macam abang dia, moga perjalanan dia terus tiba ke destinasi. Moga perjalanan dia diberkati, dipermudah, dan segalanya dirahmati Allah.

He's very unlike me. If I love to switch channel to documentaries about space, science, history and military, he has a different taste. He likes to watch documentaries about animals, animals, and animals. If I like to read, he doesn't. He likes to socialize with people. If my siblings slack out with their chores, I keep it silent and do it myself, or just let things as it is. But he likes it more to berleter to them, and tells them to do it faster and quicker. And sometimes, I am the one who gets his leteran. Among all of us, he is the most hardworking - in terms of house chores. In my history of taekwondo, I was with him almost all of the time. We are both black belt holders, but we rarely spar with each other, if I could remember, never. I always remember my memory with him in a tournament, where we fought each other, and after putting all his efforts he couldn't find a way to beat me, his last resort was to sondol me out of the ring. He ran towards me so fast, he sondol and hugged me, and pushed me out. Haha.. Until now, whenever we talk about that, I'll always bring that up.

My mum, Naim, Saif, Iman and Amru.

He's a good brother, although we disagree on many many things. He's a respectful brother. You know, whenever kami salam, he always kiss my hand. Can you imagine that, a brother only two years younger, now 19 years old, kiss his older brother's hand? Even in front of his friends. So, I respect him so much. Although I never ever prefer my hand to be treated like that, not at all, hey, I'm only his brother not some kind of ustaz, teachers, or even parents. But he still does it. And I always pray for him for that. May Allah walk along his life with him. And so he does not make the same mistake he once did.

I always remind him, to read. Be knowledgeable. He sometimes seems to be enjoying life too much.

That's it. Lepas ini dia akan sambung UIA in Engineering. I wonder, if anyone from my siblings wants to be a doctor. Setakat ini macam tak ada. My younger brother in form 3, he wants to be like Nostradamus. =.= Apa hal macam tu pun tak tahu lah.

May Allah bless him all the way. Along his life, until the end. Tahniah Naim! Jaga amanah Quran elok-elok.

Darul Quran.

A calm and very beautiful place. Come visit there one day, surely you'll be astounded.

Few buildings in a big place. Yang lain semua alam semulajadi.

Very peaceful, tepi tasik ni lah petang-petang akan nampak student wanita penuh untuk hafal Quran. Layan sentimental mungkin.

We students used to pimpin tangan these guys every day. Mereka OKU, buta, dan mereka menghafal Quran guna Braille. Kata salah seorang dari mereka, Quran itu cahaya di hati.

Pluralist in Action

Assalamu'alaikum.

Pluralism. A philosophy that I've taken quite interested in. Because I think it's beautiful, and I think it's a transitional step to become a better person. Because from what I've seen and engaged, people with real pluralism in mind, they are really nice persons. These people - they act upon their belief. They are a bit like Muslims, where almost every step they take and things they do, they revolve around their principles. We may not realize it, but Islam is a very-very comprehensive and meticulous religion. Open up your Internet Explorer, Mozilla, Google, Safary or anything - and compare other religions with ours for good. You will be surprised by how our two main sources are preserved, and applied in our daily lives. Everything we do in our lives is an act of following the way of life of the greatest human on Earth - Prophet Muhammad. Peace and blessings be upon him.

But we are different in terms of faith. From one aspect, we feel relieved, calm, firm and assured by our faith because our physical proof which is the Quran is undeniably preserved and authentic - no doubt about it. And our creed comes with such a beautiful logic. It is like a nice person comes to our house, knocks politely, we feel safe, we like him and we invite him in. There's not an iota of doubt inviting him in. The same goes to our creed. Surah al Ikhlas in the Quran describes very well about our creed - that our God, Allah is the One and Only God. No father and son, independent, and nothing like Him. It follows the logic very well. It is our instinct to feel relief as we meet our purpose of life. We don't have vital conflicts to deal with - such as which one is greater? Jesus, the Father, or Holy Ghost? Nor we have any conflicting and contradicting premises between our scripture and our described creed such as Christians do. They have very much to deal, because the issues are fundamental - Original Sins, The Calling Eli Eli Lamma Sabatchani, who are the Sons of God, is there any other Alpha and Omega other than Jesus,  who are the real writers of important gospels and letters, does Christian's faith today is the real faith of Jesus or is it Pauline Christian, what about other sects that are dismissed especially during Council Of Nicea and many more. We can take another religions but it will be a very long list. While we Muslims, only have to deal with issues regarding misconceptions. So, it is a relief. Plus, we have a strong historical evidence and records following our stands, principles, and vital points of Islam.

Pluralists instead of referring to real physical records, evidences, and scriptures - they believe that truth lies everywhere. It is an entirely different context than we religious people (Read : Muslims, Christians, Hindus) usually believe. We believe that absolute truth is within our religion. Especially in Islam. We strongly believe that absolute truth is within Islam, and as for me, YES, I am confident that absolute truth lies in my religion. Is there any truth in any other religion? How can Muslims regard there is no truth in any other religion? Yes. We believe there have been some truths in other religion, as we believe Allah has sent thousands of messengers and prophets before Muhammad - two of them are Moses and Jesus(peace be upon them) which play a huge role in Judaism and Christianity. There is also possibility that Buddha and Hindu also originally a religion of Allah. But, as time passes by, we believe the essences are corrupted. And as Muhammad the last messenger of Allah, we believe it is a continuation and a completion of religion of Allah. Muhammad came and confirmed previous messages of previous prophets. We believe Muhammad did not create a new religion, but continued a legacy. In Quran for example, the proof that we believe there was a religion of God but carried different names - [2:62], Christians(Nasara), Jews(Yahudi - Haadu), Sabi'ins are example of it. The essence that should be in each of these old religions are belief in Allah, belief in the Day of Judgement, and the importance of good deeds. So if we take a verse from Chandogya Upanishad [6:1:2] "Ekam Evadvitiyam" which means "He is One without a Second" - yes, it is possible that once Hindu was also a religion of Allah. It is a normal perspective from any other religions that the absolute truth lies in theirs.

Islam, the last religion of Allah
Islam, is the last religion of Allah. A religion that will prevail to the end of time. The definition of Islam itself is sufficient to describe what does it really mean. Islam is not only a millah(religion) but it is the deen of Allah. Deen means 'way of life'. The word 'Islam' can be derived from three root words, 1. Aslama(to surrender) 2. Salima(pure, authentic) 3. Salam(peace). So, Islam means, "A way of life by submitting oneself to Allah in a pure and authentic way to attain inner peace and blessings". Why must I add 'pure and authentic' in the definition? To show you one of the differences between Islam and other religions. In Islam, everything we do have its sources. We worship Allah, the way Allah wants us to worship Him. Everything, is according to His wishes.

Pluralists believe that the truth may come from other religion as well - and none of these religions contain all the truth. They believe that everything in this world is inter-connected. Their main pillars are universal values - peace, human right, love, justice and many more. They acted on these values, and you can see that they are not biased to certain sides or groups. When you engage with them, you will learn to respect them. Because of how much efforts they have put to stand and act on what they believe. And I dare to say, although there is no actual pillar or reference to this belief, they hold it really firm. Truth can come from anyone, anywhere. In short, every religion is the same. Same in the context that it does not only bring people to the truth, but to the extent that details of each religion are not as important as the purpose of the religion itself. Contradictions are normal. When I first know about this philosophy, I was thinking, how can you live with all those contradictions in yourself? I mean, because they regard religions are all the same - and when they choose they want to live as a Muslim, they also think it's okay to wear cross or pray in a Gudwara to Satnam because nothing changes. Whoever God you worship, you will arrive to the truth. I myself don't understand how is this even possible. Such contradiction is unbearable.

Pluralism in Physics
But later, I come to understand the situation as I read a book "Isms and Oologies" by 'I don't remember who'.  The example is as follows. In physics, there are two 'contradicting' situations. Newtonian Mechanics and Quantum Mechanics. In Newtonian Mechanics, everything can be predicted and calculated. You can know an object will travel to where, its speed and arrive when - you just need enough information. But in Quantum Mechanics as Michio Kaku describes, 'nothing is certain'. It's a probabilistic world. You can never be sure, NEVER. For instance, you can only know either the momentum of an electron or its position. You can never know both. Never. Regardless how advanced the technology is, you will never know. It's the uncertainty principle.  For example, a specific electron can be at two places at one time. That's the quantum world. It behaves that way. Another example, if you shoot an electron at a big hill, there's a chance that the exact electron will create a tunnel through the hill and be at the other side of the hill. When we bring this example to macroscopic level, it is impossible. Earth cannot be at two places at a particular time. When we throw a ball to a thick hard wall, there's no way the ball could make a hole to that wall and be on the other side and the wall return hole-less. You got the idea? Quantum Mechanics is usually used to deal with things at microscopic level ie electrons and protons, while Newtonian Mechanics is used to deal with things at macroscopic level ie planets and stars. Today's scientists use both to deal with different problems - although in real life it's contradicting, but they use both to solve problems from both worlds. That's what we call pluralist. Still, in this scientific community, there are other people who believe in the theory of eveything - a theory that describes literally everything. They believe one day, the 'truth' they want will be found in the theory of eveything. While pluralist is okay with contradictions, this kind of people (monism) believes that absolute truth is contained in one entity. This kind of people is really much alike with us religious people. They are in search for ToE and they are not satisfied until they are able to explain why are Quantum Mechanics and other mechanics are so different etc. Except for each of us Muslims, Christians, and Jews believes that the absolute truth was already found and is within our own religion. (Read : QM as for now can also be applied to some aspects at macroscopic level)

Ada Shrodinger's cat di situ. Haha

He's a magnificent pluralist
He is very nice. He smiles, treats people nicely, and an ardent advocate of peace. When you talk to him, you will come to know that he is a man of principle. As for now, he often posts at an FB group - a group with various people with various faiths and religions; United Religions Initiative. Here is the example of his posts in the group.
1.
They are forever free who renounce all selfish desires and break away from the ego-cage of 'I,' 'me,' and 'mine' to be united with the Lord. Attain to this, and pass from death to immortality." (Hinduism. Bhagavad Gita 2.71)

"Torah abides only with him who regards himself as nothing." (Judaism. Talmud, Sota 21b)

"O son of Man! If you love Me, turn away from yourself; and if you seek My pleasure, regard not your own; that you may die in Me and I may eternally live in you." (Baha'i' Faith. Hidden Words of Baha'u'llah, Arabic 7)

"The Man of the Way wins no fame,
The highest virtue wins no gain,
The Great Man has no self." (Taoism. Chuang Tzu 17)

"If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it; and whoever loses his life for my sake and the gospel's will save it." (Christianity. Mark 8.34-36)

"In the evening do not expect [to live till] morning, and in the morning do not expect evening. Prepare as lone as you are in good health for sickness, and so long as you are alive for death." (Islam. Forty Hadith of an-Nawawi 40)

"He who has no thought of 'I' and 'mine' whatever toward his mind and body, he who grieves not for that which he has nott, he is, indeed, called a bhikku." (Buddhism. Dhammpada 367)

INNERWORK self-reflection for the week: "What does my faith/belief say about the Ego and Self-Denial?


2.‎"Every sacrifice is a boat to heaven." (Hinduism. Satapatha Brahmana 4.2.5.10)

"Lo! We have given you abundance; so pray to your Lord, and sacrifice." (Islam. Qur'an 108.1-2)

"Greater love has no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends." (Christianity. John 15.13)

"One must have the courage to face life as it is. to go through sorrows and always sacrifice oneself for the sake of others." (African Tradition. Kenyan-Kipsigis saying)

"A bodhisattva resolves, 'I should accept all sufferings for the sake of sentient beings, and enable them to escape from the abyss of immeasurable woes of birth and death... Why? Because I have set my mind on enlightenment in order to liberate all sentient beings; I do not seek the unexcelled way for my own sake.'" (Buddhism. Garland Sutra)

"Let all your deeds be done for the sake of Heaven." (Judaism. Mishnah, Abot 2.17)

Inner Work self-reflection & self-awareness guide for the week:
"WHAT SACRIFICE HAVE I MADE FOR THE OTHER? WHAT SACRIFICE HAS ANOTHER MADE FOR ME?"

To our Muslim brothers and sisters: Bayramiz Eidil Adha Mubarak Olsun!

To me, a person with this kind of paradigm is nice and kind. He takes good values from every faith, and appreciates it very well. This kind of person, you will have a hard time to start comparing which one is better, your religion or his ideology. You know why, unlike other religions, this philosophy ACCEPTS truth might come from anyone. So they are the kind of people who is very open-minded. For example, when you face people from another religion, it's easier(Read : not EASY) as you can start comparing, and they have 'something' to defend - something fixed - the religion itself. You know what are their weak spots, and you know how exactly they will react. But with pluralists, it's kind of like this "Yeah.. each person has its own opinions" without getting anywhere close to being challenged or provoked at all. And his life revolves around his values. One of the good things that I learned from him, is he really wishes he could stop 'religious-motivated violence'. As he views religion as something beautiful, he wants people to stop using religion as an excuse to do violence. Until now, I do not know, how to really deal with it. Care to give any ideas? The only thing that we Muslims have, is the real assurance of the Oneness of Allah, greatest example of Muhammad, and the outstanding Quran - which lead us to believe we are on the right track. And I know, they only rely on the beauties of their values.

He really is a nice person, and I pray to Allah so that one day, Allah will bless him His hidayah. Amin..

[Declaration of Global Ethics]
Their declaration.

Conclusion
There has been a major confusion to Muslims about how to regard this philosophy. Pluralism, is a philosophy that puts every religion as equal and each religion will bring you to the truth. We believe that Islam is the only way to the truth. We are taught by Prophet Muhammad, to respect another religion and faith, to treat people as nice and kind as possible even though they are people from different faiths, and to live Islam as our way of life. "Lakum diinukum waliya diin" Surah Al Kaafirun. They have their own ways of lives, we have our way of life too. We don't need to be the same as them. Pluralism instead is about lowering your 'fences' to let people in and accept them. Acceptance is the key word. Because the way they see, these fences and differences are the contributing factors to religious-motivated violence. We Muslims have no urgency to lower our fences or dissolve our limitations and prohibitions, because our beloved Prophet had taught us, that he also can live peacefully with the Jews at Madinah without 'lowering any fences'. It's the akhlaq of the prophet that we need to constantly embrace.

Freedom and Justice Party

You can also have a look at a new party in Egypt, Freedom and Justice Party - their vice president is a Coptic Christian. People say that this party is very closely related to Muslim Brotherhood, Al Ikhwan Al Muslimun - but IM says the party operates separately. :) Even a proponent of Daulah Islamiah can have a Coptic as their vice. Still, before the first meeting the Muslim members went to the mosque to pray together. What a view! Video


* This is a post ignited by my amazement towards my friend, a pluralist - May Allah bless him Hidayah! Amin.

Tunjang..

Salam.

Once a man passed by a book stall and saw a book, God and Man: Questions and Answers. He stopped and said to the book seller, "This book should be called 'Man and God'." "Why?" asked the book seller.

 The man said, "Well, man came first, then God." The man then walked away.

Taken from the book God and Man: Questions and Answers. 

Aqidah tunjang kita. Nak kuat yang lain, jaga aqidah. 'Fa'lam annahu la ilaha illAllah'. Aqidah kena diasaskan dengan ilmu. Kenal dulu aqidah betul-betul, supaya, aku dan kau tak murtad satu hari nanti. Allah pegang hati ini, moga menjadi asbab dengan faham aqidah Allah tak palingkan aku dan kau. Amin. Buku di atas, amat bagus. Simple dan ada flow. Bukan macam 'textbook' kata orang, walaupun aku minat je textbook. Terima kasih pada Pakcik Nicholas Sylvester bagi pinjam, through Omar hehe. Jadi, kalau nak cari buku pasal Aqidah, ini dia aku syorkan. Alhamdulillah.

Ikhwah akhawat, aqidah itu penting. Kefahaman pun penting. Kalau kita ada kefahaman, even masa kita down kita akan tetap istiqamah insya Allah. Kalau hanya semangat tanpa kefahaman, apa jadi bila kita down? Lihat Ka'ab dipulau selepas perang Tabuk oleh satu Madinah, kalau bukan sebab Allah letak kefahaman dalam diri beliau, masa tengah down sangat, mesti dia dah terima tawaran delegasi Kristian yang jumpa dia masa tu. Wallahu a'lam.

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Apekaah?

Semalam, lepas beli keyboard baru WATERPROOF (selepas tertumpahkan air atas keyboard lama..dan dicuba macam-macam cara), aku pergi duduk di ruang tamu dengan adik-adik lain. Tengah berborak, tiba-tiba plupp, aku terfikir, kenapa aku tak main dengan mereka macam aku main dengan kawan aku dulu?

Asyraf Roslan dan aku, masa tingkatan empat dan lima, kami main congak-congak laju-laju. Cara dia macam ini, seorang pegang kalkulator, tulis nombor darab bahagi etc semua, lepas tu congak jawapan. Dua-dua jangan tengok jawapan la. Memang best. Tapi, aku buat kat adik-adik aku lain. Aku pegang kalkulator, buat soalan, mereka berlumba congak dan jawab. Syarat dia, tak ada kertas, tak ada gerak-gerak jari atas meja atau lantai(takleh kire selain congak la..) cepat jawab dan betul dapat markah. Jadi, aku mendapati ceh, kaedah ini baik untuk perkembangan bahagian matematik derang.

Contohnya, aku tanya macam mana nak buat angka besar jadi kecik, dengan guna kaedah sama, angka kecik membesar. Jawapan dia, basically la, untuk taraf mereka =1/x.

Lepas tu mereka akan tahu, kalau ada macam kiraan 21 x 15. Nak senangkan hanya turun value belah kiri dari 21 jadi 7, kemudian naik belah lagi satu dengan factor sama 15 jadi 45.

Lepas tu pulak, mereka akan tahu macam mana nak tukar decimal jadi simple fraction. Macam 60 x 0.2 = 60 x 1/5 = 60 bahagi 5.

Betul ke ni? Major brain stimulant. 

Dan macam-macam lagi, ingat malam ni nak main. Semalam sampai sebelas suku kot main. Haha. 

Jadi, kalau korang nak stimulate brain adik-adik korang sambil mengeratkan hubungan kekeluargaan, mainlah game ini. "Ingatlah orang tersayang" :) 

Of life and struggle - Allah is always with you.

Sometimes, life doesn't always be with you. What you know you cannot always make people understand. Even if it is true. Even if it is too simple - yet you cannot make people understand. It's life.

Sometimes, you lose yourself. It ain't that hard isn't it to lose yourself? Just let things happen. And happen and happen. You know when it is wrong - but you just see your heart weak and tired. Fatigue. Sick and ill. Your heart tries to reach you - ignorance is bliss.

Of Hitler's struggle - Of Friedrich's death of God - Of Darwin's difficulties of the theories - Of Christian's council of Nicea - Of Jew's birth of Muhammad - Of my own ignorance of responsibilities.

Events unfolded. Yet, we cannot wake up. Take a sip of breath and- still cannot move on. Allah..

Ar Rahman - Ar Rahim. These two names decorated every but one surah in the Quran. Such significance of presence only realized after years of learning.

Ar Rahman
The richest - vast and powerful - far-stretched - widest domain of love. Care. Guardian. He guards you, He cares about you and He is willing to do anything in order to protect you. He's like a caring boss, a loving CEO who rules the multiverse, and you are given the privilege as His believer - He will be with you along this life. What you ask, He grants - as long as it's good for you. He's with you whenever life throws unbearable problems, sufferings, despairs, and grief at you. He's the problem solver.

Ar Rahim
Less rich - specific and personal - special. He comes to you like a loving friend. Caters your life in an unexpected way. No less you could expect from Him. You fall, He helps you to get up. You sleep, He wakes you up. You can count on Him anything anywhere anytime. You loss your key, you can ask His help. You cannot prove the conjecture, you can ask His help. He treats you in a very friendly and loving way. Always - you had your back facing Him, yet He is Kind and All-Forgiving. He keeps giving you chances.

These two names - are two names from 99 names of Allah my God. You see - in al-Fatihah the first Surah in Quran Allah introduced Himself by these names. In the name of Allah, Ar Rahman and Ar Rahim. Now I see why Islam stays as the fastest growing religion on earth. Muslims have a very loving God. These two names encompass human yearnings of love. Real love.

Ar Rahman Ar Rahim - He is with you. Whenever you have big problems and small problems, He'll always be with you. Of that I will never doubt. I have a beautiful walk with Allah along this life. One day, trust me, one day, when the day comes - you'll end up crying. Cry and cry and cry. Why is Allah so kind and forgiving to us? We deny Him many times. Many deny Him. Many ignore Him. Allah still forgives us. Keep giving us chances. Your heart will sank - realizing how bad you have been as a servant. And how much Allah loves you. One day, I hope I'll end up like that.

Allah will always be with me. I know that. Ramadhan is coming.

"Ya Allah ya Wadud, ya Ghafur, please save me and my friends from fake love. If really the 'love' we wish is meant for us, keep it. Let us know after we have attained your love. Only by that way I know, you love the love I wish. Please save us from smart justification of syaitan, hatred, stupidity, and envy. Decorate our hearts with love, not with lust. Help us to stay healthy by heart and mind - and my soul. Let us be one of them who fights for your cause - I know the time is near. Please, bless my choices and guide me. Aminn.."




* Philosophy of Ar Rahman and Ar Rahim is extracted from a class, "How to think critically through the Balaghah of the Quran", reference - Fakhruddin ar Razi.

Light and Life [Intro]

Salam.

Bismillah.

Here is another short series, an attempt for me to induce a new perspective and insight, as well as sharpening my poor writing skills. The main reason I choose light as the theme, is because it is near to us, around us and it's always interacting with us. Therefore, we could easily take light as a reminder. No matter where, this creation of Allah will be a simple reminder for us to glorify Allah The light of the heavens and earth.

Hope this could go as well as the cosmological conflicts that I've written in Karim, although some facts were too 'far' from our readers back then, Insya Allah, hope the facts that I will put forth can be used to reflect our lives. This life is short. The question of death, what is death, how does it feel, and what does it look like becomes meaningless when you don't know how to live.

We are at the verge of the end-time, where almost every culture feels a connection with this event. Christian puts it in an 'Armageddon' way, Mayan prophecies described it as '2012' in their calendar, and we have it in our faith, believing in 'Al-Qiamah'. It is one of those 'mega program's that have been set in our mind. In our deep instinct. Still, the nearer we are, the further we are from our true selves. From our purpose of life. From our culture. From our religion. From our nature.

Haven't we realized it yet? We seem to take this world INTO our heart. We do know that this world is a set of illusion, but do we really bear it in our mind? Where almost in every aspect of our life, materialistic philosophy rears its true face. Still, what appears to us as good often be a bad one. In food, clothes, academics, ambitions, even life dreams. Some even have only atheistic dreams although he is a Muslim, Christian or theists. As if God doesn't exist, and he does not include God in his equation of dream. For us, a human, our basic nature altogether is to attain peace. We are not a Nazi, not a Fascist, not a racist. We don't view peace retards human progress. We don't get involve into that kind of things. We want PEACE. We LOVE it. Our heart's longing for the world peace.

As now, it is our duty to spread the message. Let us together leave our bad habits. Force and aggression on people in order to follow the peaceful elements of religions. We want PEACE. We can find the perpetual inner peace that we've been searching for a long time in Islam. Islam itself means ''attaining peace by submitting yourself fully to Allah''.

Insya Allah. I wish to enlighten you few things about light. It's not telling you what I know, but rather sharing what I'm learning. As Ust Hasrizal said, ''Bukan memberi tahu, tapi mencetus mahu'' :)

The world is dying. The Anti-Christ is arriving. The Last War is waiting. Together we stand.

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Update - lagi dua minggu nak final. Sama-sama doa untuk ana ya. Syukran.

Does GOD exist according to modern science?

Salam.

Prologue..

[Ringtone message] Mesej masuk..
"Salam. erm, asif. nak tanya nta ok ke?"
"Ws. ya. alhamdulillah. ngapain?"
"Boleh ana interrupt skit? blog nta..kenapa bahasa nta macam x macam dulu?"
"Apa yg x mcm dulu? len ek?"
"Agakla..mcm ringan sgt..n santai sgt.."
"Jangan rso..hanya penyesuaian diri..sasaran blog ana bkn ikhwah2 akhawat2..tu je..mesej masih ada kan?"
"Hmmm..yelah..ana pcaya nta. Jaga iman leklok. salam"
"Salam"

Kemungkinan ada gaya bahasa yang tidak sesuai atau yang membuat bulu meremang(hehe), sejuta kemaafan dari tuan blog. Hanya wujud sedikit asimilasi budaya. Ambil yang jernih, buang yang keruh. Selari dengan sasaran blog ini. Bukanlah sasaran pembaca dari mereka yang sudah disyarahkan Majmu'atur Rasa'il, mahupun sudah pergi Jaulah, juga bukan untuk mereka yang sudah berbai'ah, namun golongan yang lebih ingin didekati iaitu mereka yang masih mencari. Sumber-sumber kekuatan Islam yang masih belum digarap, digilap juga dicanai. Macam mana ye? Seluruh dunia sedang bergerak. Perbezaan semakin jelas. Arah tuju semakin jelas. Tinggal pilihan tuan punya badan je..

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Silalah datang. Kalau free. Brother Shah Kirit ni speaker untuk Friendly Comparative Religion. Very lucid and fluid cara dia elucidate agama-agama. Dalam konflik(ke?) antara agama-agama, theists and atheists, marilah kita bersama-sama meluangkan waktu. (Thinking..macam mana nak keluar DQ?) Ehehehe...kadang-kadang kenakalan sewaktu menengah dan rendah amat bermanfaat ketika ini..a hidden art that'll only be learned at a specific age. When the time passed, the hidden art will never appear..haha.