Mainetalities

Who is 'Ulama'?

2011-08-21T22:22:00.000-07:00

Answering Artane About 'Ulama'

By Syed Akbar Ali

A reader called Artane sent me some comments about 'ulama' in reply to another post a few days ago. Artane's comment has also been replied by some others. Today I want to revisit this issue which actually concerns how Muslims are programmed to think. I have written about this subject before on June 27, 2010, you can refer my Blog No Such Thing As "Ulama" Class In Islam.

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First here is Artane's comment in full.
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Artane said...Assalamualaikum Mr. Syed, I think some of us here may have gone beyond their capabilities to comment on Islamic issues. Why am I saying this? I can tell a few reasons.
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Some of us are openly mocking these ulama'. Yes, I know what you guys think of them. And yes, they are human too. But here is what you may miss. They learn about these things. They are trained about these things. They may graduate from different schools, may have different thoughts, but they have their own reasons why (unless they are "paid" to think and speak).
Now think of them as professionals; doctors for example. There are many doctors in the world. They graduated from different schools. Some may have failed repeatedly, but they may still become doctors. Now, when they are practicing, you come in with a set of undiagnosed, mysterious symptoms. If you go to 10 different doctors, you may be diagnosed with 10 different things. You find an immunologist, he/she may think it's an infection. If you find an oncologist, he/she may think it's a cancer. It's a matter of interpretation. And they have their own reasons why. You may get cured or you may not.
Now you may get frustrated with the different diagnoses and everything. But is it OK to diagnose yourself based on some articles you find or from something you read? Can that beat all those years of medical training? If everyone can do that, why bother having doctors? We have books, we have internet, we can buy anything online, why bother training doctors?
The same thing happens to these ulama'. Not only now everyone can fly, everyone can claim to be ulama'. They want to rationalize things based on what they know. If you really want to be an ulama', go take the course for 5-6 years, then when you graduate you can claim to be one. I can also diagnose a disease based on symptoms, but I never claim to be a doctor. I also do have opinion on religion but I never claim myself to be an ulama' or claim that I'm better than them in their profession.
My point being, don't go caterwauling in blogs about your opinion on Islam. You have something to say, gather your proof, make your case to the ulama' you want to address. Or go look for second opinion. Same as with doctors, when you are not satisfied with the diagnosis, go make your case with evidence to the doctor, or get a second opinion. Then not only you can ascertain the truth, but you can also correct the perception of the ulama' and ultimately the society if you are correct.
Well, I made my case here. Thank you for your time.
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Salam Artane. And thank you for your comments. First of all, by coincidence, I received the following piece of writing by one Dr Djohan Effendi just a few days before I wrote that Blog where you have posted your comment.

Dr Djohann alo talks about the 'ulama'. I will reproduce his views in full (which I agree with) before adding my own comments later.

"Teman2, dalam percakapan ini kita berulang kali memakai perkataan ulama. Dalam pemahaman dalam masyarakat kita ini kata ulama dimaksudkan mereka yang memiliki pengetahuan keagamaan bahkan seringkali disamakan dengan fuqaha atau ahli2 fikih.

.Bahkan juga ada yang memahami bahwa perkataan ulama hanya khusus untuk kalangan umat Islam yang memiliki pengetahuan keagamaan Islam. Bagaimana sebenarnya perkataan ulama itu dipakai dan dipahami di masa Nabi?

Dalam al-Quran perkataan ulama dipakai dua kali, pertama dalam surah 26 (asy-Syu'ara) ayat 197 yang menyebutkan tentang ulama Bani Israel. Dus kata ulama justru dipakai untuk kalangan Yahudi.

.Yang kedua dipakai dalam surah 35 (al-Fathir) ayat 28 yang menegaskan bahwa yang sesungguhnya yang takut kepada Allah itu di kalangan hamba-Nya adalah ulama.

.Siapa yang dimaksud dengan ulama dalam ayat ini dapat kita bisa baca selengkapnya bunyi ayat tsb. Bahkan dimulai dari ayat sebelumnya.

.Bunyinya: Apakah engkau tidak melihat bahwa Allah menurunkan hujan dari awan, lalu dengannya kali keluarkan buah2an yang beraneka ragam warnanya. Dan di gunung2 terdapat garis2, putih dan merah, bermacam2 warnanya sedang yang lain hitam pekat. Dan begitu juga di antara manusia, binatang dan ternak, ada yang berbeda2 warnanya. Hanya orang-orang yang berilmulah (al-ulama) dari kalangan hamba2Nya yang takut kepada Allah. Sesungguhnya Allah itu Yang Perkasa dan Pengampun.

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Dari kontek ayat ini maka perkataan ulama lebih merujuk pada para scientist atau ilmuwan.

.Lalu bagaimana dengan ungkapan yang menyatakan "al-Ulama adalah pewaris para Nabi" (al-anbiya, jamak)? Kata ulama di sini pun tidak membatasi maknanya hanya para ahli ilmu agama.

Mungkin lebih mendekati pada kata kaum intelektual, kaum terpelajar/cendekiawan. Sebab dalam sejarah kaum muslimin kemudian dikenal katagore "ulama`us-su`" atau ulama jahat yang sepengertian dengan istilah "pelacur intelektual".

Dan kalau kita menyimak peri kehiudupan para imam mujtahidin seperti empat imam madzhab, mereka bukan hanya ahli ilmu agama tapi juga ilmu2 lain seperti sejarah, sastra dsb, dan mereka juga memiliki integritas moral yang teruji.

Mereka tidak menghamba pada penguasa. Keempat imam mazhab misalnya menghindar dari penguasa dan bahkan disiksa dan dipenjara oleh khalifah di zaman mereka.

Billahit Tawfiq wal Hidayah. Dr Djohan Effendi"

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Now here also are replies by two other commenters to Artane.

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Anoynymous said : Artane ni lahir tahun berape agaknya.Tak ikut perkembangan parti Pas zaman tahun 80an. Masa tu isu kapir menkapir ulama PAS yang ungkitkan. Pas tu tambah dgn sembahyang 2 iman, kahwin tak sah dgn pak iman UMNO dan macam2 lagi. Adik beradik putus sedara sebab fatwa ulama Pas. Bapak aku seorang guru agama bila cuba memerangkan kepada abang dan kakaknya yg gila Pas tentang Islam dan bila jatuhnya kafir seseorang terus diputuskan sedara macam tu. Bila dah nak mati, baru lah si abang & kakak mau berbaik semula. Kau punya comparison ulama dgn doktor langsung tak betul.Pakai logik je. B*d*h.

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1munafikmalaysia said...Artane, ISLAM is for all. It's not 'Hak cipta terpelihara Ularmak". BTW which university did prophet, the caliphs and the friends of prophet graduate from? If they can interpret the Quran what's stopping anyone else doing so. Is there an injunction in the Quran that says so? I think there is a verse that says the quran is made easy to understand and is there anyone willing to learn.Read surah Al Qamar :17 and Al Baqara:185 If something is easy to understand why do we need a third party to tell me what it says. You analogy with Medicine is childish at best. Medicine changes with time. New things are discovered old things are discarded. Are you saying that ISLAM also changes with time?? God has given us a brain so that we can think for ourselves.

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Now here are my comments: First of all I agree that trying to compare the 'religious people' with doctors is childish. I am sorry but it is reflective of the immature thinking that has become religious education among Muslims all over the world. As time wasting as it is, I wil have to dwell on this 'comparing with doctors' issue too.

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I use the words 'religious people' and not ulama simply because I dont think the religious people are ulama. From a Quranic point of view the two are not the same. Please read my previous Blog on this : No Such Thing As "Ulama" Class In Islam.

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As I have written in that article, and as Dr Djohan Effendi also points out, Surah 35:27-28 defines an ulama:

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Surah 35:27-28 "Do you not see (Alam tara) that GOD sends down from the sky water, whereby we produce fruits of various colors? Even the mountains have different colors; the peaks are white, or red, or some other color. And the ravens are black. Also, the people, the animals, and the livestock come in various colors. This is why the people who truly reverence GOD are those who are knowledgeable (ulama). GOD is Almighty, Forgiving."

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The people who see or observe :

i. the cycle of rain are meteorologists
ii. those who study plants, fruits, flowers are agronomists, plant biologists and horticulturalists
iii. those who study the colours and types of rocks on mountains are geologists
iv. the people who study the birds are ornithologists
v. those who study humans are anthropologists, medical doctors, biologists, scientists
vi. those who study livestock and animals are veterinarians and animal biologists.

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The Quran says the people who see all this Nature and observe all this Creation and appreciate all this handiwork of the Creator are called the 'ulama'. Clearly then this is a description of scientists. An ulama is therefore a scientist.

.The word science comes from the Latin word 'scientia' which means knowledge. And the arab word 'ulama' is the plural form of 'alim'. Alim comes from the arabic word "Ilmu" which ALSO means knowledge or science.

.An alim is therefore a knowledgeable person and ulama is plural meaning 'many knowledgeable people'. Ulama are therefore scientists who study everything around them and appreciate all the things that the Creator has created in this universe. Those are the ulama. I dont think today's religious people can be called ulama at all.

.But will a Book such as the Quran fail to provide a proper name for the priests of religion, those guys who wear beards and robes, who dress funny, talk funny and behave funny who are part and parcel of every "religion"? Here is the Quran again :

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Surah 9:31 "They have set up their religious leaders (habar) and rabbis as lords, instead of GOD. . . "

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The Quran refers to 'religious leaders' and the priests as HABAR. The Quran does not refer to them as 'ulama'.

Habar are the religious priests who wear strange clothes, wear beards, speak strange and say that they are "closer to God". They can promise things like the keys to paradise. They are best given doodle pads to draw on and be locked up in asylums. If allowed to roam free, they can become "mursyidul am", ayatollah, pak sheikh and so on (in extreme cases).

.How lets talk about Artane's comparison of religious people with doctors. A doctor is a man of science. A knowledgeable person, a real ulama. It is a strict requirement of science that you must criticise, argue, ridicule, poke holes in scientific findings. The scientists thrive on this.

Whenever a scientist discovers something new, they must publish it in scientific journals. Then other people will read what they have discovered and criticise it. If the new discovery can withstand all the criticism, only then it becomes established as scienctific knowledge. Then the doctor who discovers something new in medicine or a new treatment will not call you 'sesat' or a deviant just because you criticise him.

.On the other hand, the religious people, who dont know anything about science or logic or dont appreciate science or logic, will call you 'sesat', 'kafir', etc if you criticise them. You cannot disagree with them at all. And then the funny thing is there are so many types of religious people. You have shiah, sunni, wahhabi, sufi, tablighi, ismaili, alawite, ahmadiah, tareqat, arqam etc etc. They all say that if you question them, you are sesat or deviant.

.This is not Islamic behaviour. That is why the religious people are often childish and immature in their reasoning capabilities. They are definitely not the same as doctors and scientists who thrive on questioning and criticism.

Now lets go back to something else that Artane said : "
Some of us are openly mocking these ulama".

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So, does this mean that it is ok to mock other people? This is what I understand from the religious people. They dont make any noise if someone mocks others. For example if you mock Tun Dr Mahathir, well that is ok by many religious people. One assh*le religious munafiq even said that 'Tuhan juga mencarut'. So he said that it was ok for another assh*le to write a filthy book criticising Dr Mahathir using words like puk*mak !! To me these are pengikut ajaran setan.

So be careful. The indoctrination that you can mock other people, but it is not ok to mock the religious people is munafiq or hypocrisy.

.Now let us go back to the doctor example. This is a very bad example and it shows incapacity to think in a logical manner. It is reflective of the type of indoctrination that is dished out by the religious people. This is why the Islamic countries are in the Club of Doom. Over the centuries, the religious people have destroyed the peoples' capacity to think.
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A doctor goes to medical school where he studies the most rigorous science for five or six years. Usually only the best and the brightest from any society even qualify to study medicine. You must have a string of As in your high school exams before you can enter medical school. On the other hand, for centuries now, it is always the practise that those young people who have no other options or have little chance of going to medical school. university, college, teacher training, joining the army or the police will end up going to religious school. It is usually the last option, they have no more choice.

.In other words, religious education usually absorbs or attracts the least capable people from society.

.A doctor is trained to think logically and scientifically. As a scientist, a doctor's entire thinking process runs on logic. There must be a logical reason why a person got sick. Lets study the symptoms. Lets logically identify the causes. Even if we cannot identify the exact cause, thens lets rule out other reasons that we know of. This is the logical and scientific method. This is science.
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And as I said, the doctor will be most happy if you criticise him. He will not call you murtad, sesat, kafir and other such things if you dont agree with him. He will not say that you will go to hell if you disagree with him or if you prove him wrong.

.Now the religious people, who were usually school dropouts or the intellectually less capable from among society who cannot qualify to go to medical school, will say that 'Kita tidak boleh gunakan akal'. I have heard this a hundred times.

.So the religious people dont like logic. They insist that you cannot use logic to answer anything. This is just one of the many reasons why you cannot compare a doctor and a religious person. You are comparing apples with oranges. Tak boleh. It is also very insulting to compare doctors with the religious people. A doctor studies for five or six years in a very tough scientific curriculum, which keeps changing all the time.

.This is also the same reason why you cannot compare a medical doctor with a magician, David Copperfield, a witch doctor, a bomoh or pawang. They are also very dependent on "tidak boleh menggunakan akal".

Some religious people believe (I think this is from the Shiah) that during the time of the Prophet, the moon was split in two. And then one half of the split moon fell in the backyard of Saidina Ali's house. (The Shiah use this story to say that it was a petanda that Saidina Ali should be the true Khalifah, and not anyone else).

.How a belief like this cannot rely on logic. It must be an illogical belief. You must rely on the conept of "tidak boleh menggunakan akal" to believe that the moon actually split and that one half of the moon then fell in Saidina Ali's backyard.

.Think logically, in the recent earthquake and tsunami in Japan, it was just one earthquake which caused all that damage in Japan. The earthquake was caused by the movement of just a small part of the tectonic plates under the sea.

Imagine what would have happened to the earth if the moon had split in two? Or that one half of the split moon had fallen into the Pacific Ocean? The entire world would have been destroyed. But this is thinking logically. We know the moon did not split in two because the moon is still there in the sky above us.

If you want insist on "tidak boleh menggunakan akal" then you might agree with those people who say that Saidina Ali's backyard was big enough to accomodate half the moon that fell down ! !

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The same concept applies if you insist in believing the children's nursery rhyme :

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Hey diddle diddle,
the cat and the fiddle.
The cow jumped over the moon
and the dish ran away with the spoon.
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You can insist that the cow did jump over the moon, but that would be based on the concept of "tidak boleh menggunakan akal". It will not be accurate (or fair) to compare such illogical beliefs with medical science which runs on pure observation, science and logic.

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So Artane, you now have to choose, which 'tidak boleh menggunakan akal' you want to follow? The Shiah, Sunni, Ahmadiah, Sufi, Tareqat, Tablighi etc. There are so many to choose from. In Malaysia, the religious law (which also is based on "tidak boleh menggunakan akal") decides what you can or cannot be in your religion. Recently shiahs were arrested in Gombak. A man who declared himself a Rasul was jailed for 10 years. And so on.
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But back to the word 'ulama' - surely the scientists, including doctors are the ulama - the knowledgeable people. This is because they observe God's Creation (alam tara) and they use logic.

Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar says...

2008-01-15T17:30:00.000-08:00

10hb Jan, 2008

Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Syed Albukhary diumumkan sebagai Tokoh Maal Hijrah 1429.

Interview by Syed Agil.

   Kita kawal agar nikmat tidak rosakkan kita. Yayasan Albukhary menjadi tempat untuk menempatkan lebihan yang boleh rosakkan diri kita supaya dapat berkongsi dengan orang lain.

     Dalam hal mengapa orang Melayu begitu ketinggalan berbanding kaum lain jika diimbas kembali kemajuan yang dicapai oleh kaum bumiputera sejak 50 tahun lalu, kerajaan banyak membantu melalui Permodalan Nasional Berhad.

    Ini untuk membantu usahawan Melayu dalam bidang peruncitan, pemborongan dan pengedaran.

   Tetapi dalam tahun 80an-90an, usahawan
Melayu yang dilahirkan oleh Dasar Ekonomi Baru (DEB) menjual kepentingan dan saham, melanggar DEB untuk kekayaan sendiri kemudian mereka hilang. Golongan ini saya gelar 'Individualis Melayu'. Golongan yang mempunyai keupayaan tetapi tidak membantu masyarakat yang memerlukan bantuan. Jadi apa guna kerajaan bagi bantuan.

   Kita tak boleh pentingkan diri sendiri. Saya sudah merasa semua nikmat di dunia, cuma mati saja belum rasa. Nikmat yang Allah berikan tiada yang lebih lagi. Kita kena lebih kan di negeri sendiri, tanah tumpah darah kita bukan di luar negara.

    Tan Sri mengalami kerugian RM2bilion semasa krisis ekonomi...
Tahun 1997, kita labur dalam syarikat yang disenarai awam demi mengekalkan pegangan 30 peratus dalam syarikat-syarikat ini, naik setinggi mana pun kita tak jual. Jadi apabila krisis tiba dan harga saham merudum, kerana ingin kekalkan 30 peratus, rugi lebih kurang RM2bilion. Macam-macam perasaan ada tetapi kita cari jalan untuk lupuskan kerugian dan cari peluang perniagaan baru.

    Kerajaan didukung oleh UMNO memang ada polisi untuk menolong orang Melayu. Tapi DEB hanya bagi orang Melayu 30% dan 70% kepada kaum lain. DEB kaya kan seluruh masyarakat Malaysia dan memberi peluang terbuka kepada semua kaum. Saya tahu perkara ini sebab saya menceburi perniagaan sejak dari awal lagi.

    Kita minta tolong pemimpin kita mengenai apa yang kita boleh buat dan setakat mana kemampuan kita. Bukannya mengambil lesen kemudian bagi kepada orang lain. Orang jenis ini fikir untuk diri sendiri saja. Bila umur 45 mesti ada apartment di luar negara, duit RM50juta. Jadi ini bukan masalah UMNO atau DEB. Ini masalah Melayu yang tak percaya kepada diri sendiri. Mereka percaya kepada duit dalam akaun.

- Syed Mokhtar

Among his contributions:
- RM5 million a year towards financing Islamic historical content and artifacts for Islamic Muzium at Lake Garden KL.
- mosque built on Jalan Hang Tuah; a squatter area, where the Muslim community is just a minority.

-  college being built in Alor Star for the poor which will be ready in 2009 which costs around RM600 million. 3000 students made out of 30% local students and  the balance by International students.
You will be surprised, it is not an Islamic teaching college. It will instil 8 hours for studying, 8 hours for sleep, 8 hours for personal activities and voluntary work. There are dialysis centre, mosque,old folk's home and orphanage in the college area for this activity built in the same compound.

Tan Sri stresses that religion is supposed to be the responsibility of each Muslim to themselves and towards God, so if they want to learn it, it has to start from each individual.

- 60 to 70 Imam, bilal, Tok Siak who earns humble salaries are chosen through Tabung Haji list for Haj a year.

- He contributes his zakat 70% towards the Muslims and the balance towards non Muslims. He recently sponsored students from China to study in UIA but stresses that they are not forced to embrace Islam.

What is he going to do with RM80,000 cash reward received with his Tokoh Maal Hijrah?
'Saya akan berikan kepada ibu saya. Masa dulu bila saya dapat RM1,000, saya hanya memerlukan RM500 saja. Bila saya dapat RM1,500 dan bawa balik rumah, mak saya kata RM750 cukup untuk keluarga. Baki Rm750 bagi kepada orang tua-tua.

SAYA DAH ADA INTERAKSI DENGAN MASYARAKAT. - Syed Mokhtar
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How many urban Malays would read Utusan Malaysia? I don't use to read it, but ever since I learnt that Utusan main sections offer good read about Soal Jawab ugama, I make it a point to buy Mingguan Malaysia to read Dr. Asri and Syed Al Attas's columns.

I read last week's newspaper with so much pride.

The article reminded me when I once wondered, why does Allah s.w.t stresses so much that Prophet Muhammad is remembered as his messenger.

We would just utter 'Aku naik saksi Nabi Muhammad pesuruh Allah, Tiada Tuhan selain Allah' - the part about Nabi Muhammad is usually said for the sakes of it being part of the verse, but how many people genuinely respect, thus love him by learning what he had done for us all.

I found that many Malaysian grew fond of Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar for his thoughts and actions, not just for the Muslims, but people of all races. And how much they look up to him and want to be like him.

If only we knew what Prophet Muhammad s.a.w has done for us, we will be so much more inspired, just the way Tan Sri is and how he reciprocates.

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Respect Muhammad s.a.w like He respected Jesus

2006-09-26T00:40:00.000-07:00

A beautiful article by Dr. Chaalal that I really must share to commemorate this Holy months of Ramadhan.

Respect Mohammed like he respected Jesus

Omar Chaalal
ABU DHABI,
UAE
September 20, 2006 --

Mohammed spoke of Jesus with respect - why can't the Pope respect our Prophet? It is the right of every human, according to God, whether you name him God or whether you name him Allah to have a shelter, food, a nation, security, dignity, respect, and consideration.

What is deplorable is to hear that the Pope has been quoted to say that Islam was spread by the sword, that Islam is the religion of ignorance, that it is not compatible with the mind, a religion based on violence - or words to that effect. Far from being a "religion" of ignorance, Islam is a world community, which is not roaming in the "dark ages" as his Holiness seems to think. It is a culture that has seen the re-birth of the word of God and has seen the rise of great scholars.

His Holiness forgot that Al Ghazali said "I think therefore I am" and Descartes took it from him, not to mention that Ibn Roushd was the one who brought the Greek philosophy to the West via Spain. Muslims are respectful of the word of God and they are not belligerent by nature. Who raises the cries of war? Who raises their power against innocent blood? Who sends their armed forces to once peaceful countries? Who treats every Muslim as a pariah, even in its own country?

Ultimately, the question is who behaves as an ignorant? Look around you - and tell me - who? What is also deplorable is for a superpower dictating to the world that it is all right for the USA and Israel to bear arms, to maintain paramilitary units, to design and build nuclear warheads, sell armaments, and at the same time deny other nations the same rights - what hypocrisy and blatant misuse of foreign policy.

Nationalism is the right to protect one's country and one's people from harm. Every nation will attest to that. Kurtis Cooper, spokesperson for the US State Department states that religious and ethnic hatred is not acceptable. However, out of the mouths of the US administration come words like, "the enemy," "fight them in their land," "it's us against them," "the bad guys," "we are in it for the long haul," "bring in the Kurds, then the Shiites and then the Sunnis will fall in," and one wonders why there is such political unrest and unease in the world.

Freedom of speech is a right, but what is not a right is to defame one's God, beliefs, and a nation's choices of how they govern. Why does US President George W. Bush dress his democracy in the skirts of rightwing theology and then say that if you differ in your ideology, such as being an Islamist or a Communist, we will bomb the hell out of you?

What gives you the right to use "carrots and sticks" such as bribery, torture, and the press in the name of the stars and stripes and Jesus? Now that I have your full attention, why do you infer that Muslims do not know how to govern, look after their children, understand the judicial system, or do banking.

I must tell you that Muslims are very well educated, have strong work ethics, excellent health standards, strong family ties and discipline that the Western world would do well to emulate. My wish is that we would all realize that we are brothers and sisters under God and as such live in peace!

Cavities in Creativity.

2006-05-15T00:32:00.000-07:00

A freelance MENSA speaker shared an interesting analysis about the changing level of creativity among human beings.

He presented the first illustration:

This analysis was conducted by NASA on 100 newly born babies. Till the age of 5 their creativity level in terms of movement, vocal and illustrative ideas is rated at 95%.

When they reach the age of 12, the creativity level decreased to 47%.

I'll jump straight to what the findings look like towards the same set of babies when they reach 25.

The creativity level went down to 12%!

This addresses my personal fear, in being one of the 12%.

When I rock climb, I thought for hours what my next step should be when climbing slim branced trees 25 years ago was a jiffy.

I needed someone to remind me of songs played 15 years ago which I used to sing along so many times.

I used to wear knee length jackets, funky belts, scarfs and shawls to work. Now I buy everything in one suit, I just can't pull off a good mix and match to look unique anymore.

This makes me ponder:

The moment we go to school, we read the same books. The teachers tell us what to say and what to memorise. Our parents tell us not to waste time in sports and arts.

The moment we became teenagers, we dress up according to what we see in pop magazines.

Now what's most scary is, when we're about to live on our own.

In the morning, we get dressed the same way, squeeze our toes into all covered shoes, get in the car and everyone goes towards the same direction - to work.

In the office, we started as ourselves - we talk to reflect our personalities. Give it a month to see if we tend to talk the way our colleagues do.

Lunch, we eat what everybody eats. Evening, we have coffee where everybody drinks and at night do what everybody does - clubbing or eat out.

When we go home, it's beginning to be the same type of habitat - pigeon holes! Enough that we drive ourselves into the car park everyday, get in the lift to reach our office maybe a few times in a day. We repeat the same sequence when we reach home and again fit ourselves in four walls - YeeHaaa pigeon holes hoppers!

Phewwwhhh. All that limited space!

If there is any awards that should go to the best psychoanalysis made about the Malaysian consumers' behaviour, I say it should go to the Mamak chain of restaurateurs. They give us temporary freedom! It doesn't require them to pay Accenture to come up with market intelligence pun to set up their million ringgit cash business.

The only way we could put ourselves under the sky in open space is probably by being by the beach, we can't do that often. At least on daily basis is during dinner and supper, we go to kedai mamak just for a teh tarik, not inside the shop but on the road side. Our subconscious mind is telling us something. Free yourselves from the monotony others create!

"Muhammad and Me" Toons - Rediscussed

2006-03-12T19:10:00.000-08:00

Bobby's blog has been receiving overwhelming comments from around the world towards his cartoons (see below). Here's a sample of thoughts I could contribute.

Images are intellectual property of Bobby Wheelock.

Describe Muhammad in this toon in your own words:

AIAI: I have many friends whose names start with “Muhammad”. Muhammad Ali, Muhammad Hassan etc. Muhammad in this toon is surely a Muslim guy, perhaps from Mid East as he has thick lips and eyebrows, perhaps still studying in high school, outgoing, a non racist, caring, loving.

BIBI: I agree with those traits, to add, I think he is portrayed as the follower. Everything his white friend does, he will follow. The sorrow face character may be drawn to illustrate pressure. Muhammad's way of doing things may denote his race is more backwards.

Do you think Muhammad in this toon denotes the Prophet? If not, why?

AIAI: No.

BIBI: I cannot be certain on his real intention to use the name Muhammad. I look at it as in a general name for Muslim. He is definitely portraying a white and a muslim in the picture. Muhammad is no 1 world most common name and I’ve many friends who has the name Muhammad .so automatically, I look at it as in a general name for muslim...as of course , Bobby being the smart fellow, he is manipulating it in a lot of way especially after the cartoon controversy...strike while it is hot..I bet, years ago, he would have probably use "Me and Osama" instead of "Me and Muhammad".

AIAI: I agree with that!

Describe Bobby as a character in his own toons.

AIAI: Playful, sharing, loving

BIBI: Jovial.

Do you see evil in this cartoon, is it provocative?

AIAI: Absolutely not

BIBI: Not at all

What do you think this cartoon is intended for?

AIAI: Kids drawings are honest thoughts. Bobby’s, in this case,… it could be his real experience, it could be his way of studying religious and racial differences, it could be his portrayal of peace, what he wish the world could be, it could be just his understanding. I am curious where he is bringing it to and where the twist is.

BIBI: A psychology study to readers

What is your perception about the Muslim and the Christians, the two major races who makes comments in Muhammadandme.blogspot. You may break them down to more categories if you want.

AIAI: I used to perceive that Muslims are very emotional and easily jump when provoked. In the comment box, giving benefit of the doubt the commentor by the pseudonym "Prophet Muhammad lovers" are real, the majority of them are emotional. I am surprised the Christians are too when they are not the one at the moment under any religious oppression. Glad to see many who also studies the cartoons in utmost proximity and takes things positively.

BIBI: I am not sure if my answer relates but i think generally the commenter are focusing on the extreme side , how ..?? influence by the media. What i see is how they are have already had the hatred build in them and that is why they look at the picture negatively..

What are your spiritual backgrounds and race?

AIAI: A Muslim by birth. Was secular and hedonist, still is sometimes. Discovered the personality of my Prophet and our God at the age of 28. I speak about my religion only at the age of 30 but still not a completely pious person.
I am a Malay.

BIBI: Good question, you got me thinking hard there. I am a Chinese. I was born a Buddhist not a strong one, got lost half way into Christianity...and now still seeking. I had a Muslim boyfriend for donkey years and I would like to be buried the Buddhism way until further notice. I won’t be surprised I’d choose Catholic one day.

Any further comments about the cartoon from a person of your spiritual background?

AIAI: I don’t feel offended with the picture of Muhammad getting drunk. I think it goes to show everyone’s imperfect. Everyone’s perception is it is definitely a genious work of art that spurs debates. And what's wrong with Muhammad reading "3 Little Pigs" to Bobby which has the word piglets in it? It is just a story book.

Put being a Muslim aside, in a bigger perspective we forget that we are normal human beings who can’t stop ourselves from being succumbed to over indulgences and sins.

How can we deny that we do drink, utter profanities, behave insensitively towards other race and religion etc although every religion preaches good things.

My wild guess is Bobby is genuinely a white guy, yet the tagline mentions "Mecca."
The Muhammad and Me tagline explains itself, “On the way to Mecca, there are many stops.”

To me it serves a universal meaning, there are certainly a lot of challenges before anyone discovers themselves regardless our creed and colour.

BIBI: Probably he/she ( the cartoonist) is a lost but good soul like me ( hehee) still searching for the right destination. Whatever he is trying to tell in his artwork , one thing for sure , it is up to the viewers on how they want to look at it. I WISH everyone values the cartoons the way children do; with innocent thoughts.

My quote of the day : Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.

AIAI: Hmmm... I hope the two horns on Muhammad's head doesn't carry double meaning, him standing like a cross when they are fitting their suits.... oh, oh, please erase this from my imaginations!!!

"A coward is incapable of exhibiting love; it is the prerogative of the brave".
-Mahatma Gandhi

Scientific Explanation of Hell.

2006-03-07T19:48:00.000-08:00

Subject: Is hell exothermic or endothermic?

The following is an actual question given on University of Washington chemistry midterm. The answer by one student was so "profound" that the professor shared it with colleagues via the Internet, which is of course, why we now have the pleasure of enjoying it as well.

Bonus Question:

Is Hell exothermic (gives off heat) or endothermic (absorbs heat)?

Most of the students wrote proofs of their beliefs using Boyle's Law,(gas cools off when it expands and heats up when it is compressed) or some variant. One student, however, wrote the following:

First, we need to know how the mass of Hell is changing in time.

So we need to know the rate that souls are moving into Hell and the rate they are leaving. I think that we can safely assume that once a soul gets to Hell,it will not leave. Therefore, no souls are leaving. As for how many souls are entering Hell; let's look at the different religions that exist in the world today. Some of these religions state that if you are not a member of their religion, you will go to Hell.

Since there are more than one of these religions and since people do not belong to more than one religion, we can project that all souls go to Hell. With birth and death rates as they are, we can expect the number of souls in Hell to increase
exponentially.

Now, we look at the rate of change of the volume in Hell because Boyle's Law states that in order for the temperature and pressure in Hell to stay the same, the volume of Hell has to expand proportionately as souls are added.

This gives two possibilities:

1. If Hell is expanding at a slower rate than the rate at which souls enter Hell, then the temperature and pressure in Hell will increase until all Hell breaks loose.

2. Of course, if Hell is expanding at a rate faster than the increase of souls
in Hell,then the temperature and pressure will drop until Hell freezes over.

So which is it?

If we accept the postulate given to me by Ms. Teresa Banyan during my Freshman year that "...it will be a cold day in Hell before I give you my number" and take into account the fact that I still have not succeeded in acquiring her number, then 2 cannot be true, and thus I am sure that Hell is exothermic and will not freeze.

The student received the only "A".

Endothermic:
a reaction which absorbs energy (ie, cools its surroundings).
For example, ice melting is an example of an endothermic process because it absorbs heat from its surroundings

Exothermic:
A process or reaction that releases heat. For example, wood burning in the presence of oxygen is an example of an exothermic reaction

Message of Peace

2006-02-06T02:28:00.000-08:00

It was the first day of work and we stayed in late in anticipation of horrendous traffic. I deleted so many forwarded emails regarding the cartoon that insults the Prophet. In spite of that, a few colleagues were reading out loud the news to me.

On the contrary, I asked them in what way is it possible that we are brothers and sisters. One free thinker colleague answered, "Through Adam!"
I'm amazed how apprehensive she is about history.

"But that made me wonder if we're all practising incest!" She said.

Hmm.... okaaaayyyy, that's a good one.

Now what makes this Danish cartoonist feel he's on the right edge and compelled to provoke?

"Nine things the Lord has commanded me:
Fear of God in private and in public;
Justness, whether in anger or in calmness;
Moderation in both poverty and affluence;
That I should join hands with those who break away from me;
And give to those who deprive me;
And forgive those who wrong me;
Andthat my silence should be meditation;
And my words remembrance of God;
and my vision keen observation," (Razin)

The above is Prophet Muhammad's sayings.

A great part of the Prophet's mission was to bring peace to the world. One way of doing so was to convince people tha tall men and women, although living in very different regions of the world, and seemingly different from one anther in colour, culture and language etc were in fact each other's blood brothers and sisters.

Among his preach to his followers: "You are all Adam's offspring and Adam was made of clay." And in his prayers to his Creator, he would say, "O Lord, all your servants are brothers."

He would also tell the people that, "every religion has some special virtue, that of Islam being modesty." He never made others feel small, unwanted or embarrased. He urged his followers to do likewise, to release slaves whenever possible, and give alms, especially to very poor people, orphans and prisoners-without any thought for reward.

The above is taken from a book called "Goodnight Stories from the Quran". Published by Goodwordbooks.

My free thinker friend's chirpy yelp to answer me was enough to tell me that in our country, there's still hope for us to live in harmony despite our differences.

Who are you MWT? Who is this Seth?

2005-12-08T23:07:00.000-08:00

To find someone who can share spiritual insights is so rare. MWT used to visit MI and gave me this comment.

Who are you? Who is this Seth? I want to own his book.

*******************
The purpose of being and life as explained by Seth……….

"You are here to aid in the great expansion of consciousness. You are not here to cry about the miseries of the human condition, but to change them when you find them not to your liking through the joy, strength and vitality that is within you; to create the spirit as faithfully and as beautifully as you can in flesh."

"In the most basic sense, the purpose of life is being--as opposed to not being.”

"Within your experience now is the joy of your being--and that fine, astute, pure nature-rousing itself up through stems of flesh and limbs of arms, looking out through your own individual eyes at the Universe it has created, and finds it good. What is gross about your being? Only your belief! You shine with reality that in other universes appears as stars, and they look and they say, "What beauty, what distance, and what fine, undefinable existence is this?"

"As all of you know, but as all of you need telling--not from me, but from yourself--spontaneity knows its own order. If you did not distrust yourselves so thoroughly, you would not worry about your responsibilities.

Being yourself automatically fulfills any responsibility. The gods created the Universe out of joy and playfulness and creativity, not because they thought they had to. Your being is blessed and spontaneous because it is. And fulfilling it with nature automatically fulfills your purposes and, in your terms, your responsibility.”

"If you are the self that you are, you use your abilities out of joy. When you use your abilities out of responsibility you distort them. You help because you think you should, not because it is a joyful part of your being. And you begin to question, "Who needs my help most?"

"The appreciation must come from yourselves. You think you are aware with techniques which you read [about]. Listen to just one cell within your body, and hear it sing with purpose, and integrity, and joy!

"Feel a leaf! Feel the petal-like quality of your own thoughts. Be yourselves in the moment and, again, what the power of the present is! I demonstrate it for you, but it is your own, and it is within you now, the energy that you perceive.”

"You each have the same energy, and it sings within your being. You need not be shy of it. It is your own! You need not look to gurus, or gods, or Seths. It dwells within you! “
"There is spirituality within your tissues. Physical existence is sacred and good. There is nothing wrong with it. Atoms and molecules, they are holy. Your consciousness is holy, and so is your little toe. You can aspire--you must aspire for that is within you. But All That Is is now within you.”

"You do not have to traverse worlds; you do not have to meet hopeless little gods at doorways to let you know whether or not you can enter or follow through on tests, as some psychics tell you. You do not have to take upon yourselves definite rituals. You have only to look within yourself for the source of exaltation, creativity and song....”

"Its sources rise from your own being and from the fountainhead of creativity that is within each of you. The teacher is within each of you, and you are yourselves the teacher that you do not recognize, and the voice that speaks in your dreams is the voice of yourself that you do not recognize speaking from the ancient founts of knowledge that are your own.”

"As easily and miraculously as a flower grows or as a hair grows out of your skull or as a thought rises from your brain, that energy resides within you. That energy is your own--your own divinity rests within it. The bridge ways that you form and that all of you know are made of this vitality. In silence it grows and is nurtured, but it is not of itself quiet. It is vigorous and it is not afraid of quiet. It forms you. Get on good terms with it and do not deny it.

"There is nothing more stimulating, more worthy of actualization, than the desire to change the world for the better. That is indeed each person's mission. You begin by working in that area of activity that is your own unique one, with your own life and activities.

You begin in the corner of an office, or on the assembly line, or in the advertising agency, or in the kitchen. You begin where you are.... When you fulfill your own abilities, when you express your personal idealism through acting it out to the best of your ability in your daily life, then you are changing the world for the better."

Who's your Spiritual Icon?

2005-08-16T16:45:00.000-07:00

When I started Mainetalities, I couldn't put it in words why I'm aspired to make a collection of thoughts from various religious icons.

Just recently a new friend, Rashid, I met through a blogger came over and handed me two picture frames, one contains the famous 'Desiderata' text, another contains 'The Earth is Precious' text on the most profound statement regarding land written by The Great White Chief in 1854 in Washington. I was completely bowled over by this gesture.

He puts my aspirations right, that I saw Islam at the end of every beautiful things I see or read. At least, that's what I wish other people see Islam as too. I'm so happy that Mainetalities's purpose is now explained.

***
The People's People
Once, the great Asian Marketing Guru, Hermawan K. shared with me who his spiritual icons are. They are namely: Lady Diana, The Late Pope and Mother Theresa. He reasoned that these people deserve the title because whatever deeds they do goes to all walks of life.

When I shared this to my friends, some will say, "But Lady Di had so many affairs", "But they said Pope was a paedophile" blaa blaaa. Why is it that these Holier than Thou can't leave them alone when it comes to what's between them and their God and see the bigger picture?

Hermawan's presentation touched me slide by slide although the content was really more about Marketing issues. At the end of it I thought, what a spiritual person this man is. At the end of the day I was disappointed that he's not a Muslim as I felt from the beginning of our session. And then I got disappointed with myself for thinking that way as it doesn't have to take a Muslim for us to discover the beauty of everything around us and God Al-Mighty.

The Muslim's icon
Shaikh Ahmad Hoosen Deedat passed away at the age of 84 on 8th August, 2005. The news didn't come out on first page of newspapers like the others.

Well, maybe because he wasn't capable of saying or doing anything during the 8 or so years suffering from stroke which puts him completely out of the limelight.

In times like this when Islam is only associated with terrorism, where is someone who'd speak for a cause like him?

***

The Malay's Icon.
The Akademi Fantasia phenomena this year has put forward a supposedly new breathe of a Malay/Islamic icon, none other than Mawi.

One of the AF professional jury, Adlin Aman Ramli, had it spot on about Mawi,

My Spiritual Icons
At first I kept pushing my attention aside towards this lady. Hated the wild facade she portrayed when she used to be with her ex-husband, Bob Thornton. What am I saying??? That's between her and God. Who would have thought that someone like her would donate (USD2mil) to the Afghans PERSONALLY? She flew down to Afghanistan, did some ground work like handing food and clothes along with handing the money. Just a couple of months later, she handed another million. Even the Arab's king won't do that.

I want to move myself around the world for the same purpose as her although I am not a millionaire. Jolie had also donated USD2mil for the orphanage in Cambodia last year and when I looked at this picture in the newspaper, I am so proud of her. She received the Cambodian citizenship signed by King Norodom Sihamoni in recognition of her environmental work in the country. She is spending USD5mil over the next 15 years to set up a wildlife sanctuary in Battambang.

I think that makes her greater than Lady Di, it's all her personal thoughts and her own hard earned money. And she's gorgeous and she's adventurous and she'd adopt kids despite their ethnic differences.

The one other icon of mine is none other than Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhari. Why? I think you have already read his biography below, sorry for those who can't read in Bahasa Malaysia though.

Water Crystals = the Spirit?

2005-06-10T05:57:00.000-07:00

A lot of progress has taken place since I last learnt about its scientific findings, but I know a lot of people only pay attention to the meaning of this discovery only on the surface.

This topic is something that I have been pondering over for the past two years, I contemplated blogging about it as the complexity of this subject makes it very challenging to me grammatically, so please bear with it, I am trying as much as I can to use a lot of pictures instead for better illustration to denote meanings. It is something you will apply in everyday life no matter what religion, colour, ethnic, age you are.

***

MY THOUGHTS ABOUT DR. MASARU EMOTO'S RESEARCH.

Maine: If not in real life, we see in the movies how water is used to ward off evil spirits byy sprinkling water that has been prayed upon onto exorcised persons or to cleanse certain places. The Hindus bathe themselves in Ganges River to cleanse their sins. The Muslims drink water which has been prayed upon by pious people to gain calmness of the soul (air penerang hati). The Christians has the Holy Water for Christening etc. Have we wondered, why water?

I couldn't find a picture of sample of water crystal from those holy sources. But here's a few:

1.Water Source: Saijo-Japan 2.Water Source: Lourdes-France

My contemplation: People of every race and who worship other Gods in this world can enjoy 'good' water.

Dr. Masaru Emoto (Japan):
"Water has a very important message for us. Water is telling us to take a much deeper look at our selves. When we do look at our selves through the mirror of water, the message becomes amazingly, crystal, clear. We know that human life is directly connected to the quality of our water, both within and all around us.

Mr. Emoto has been visually documenting these molecular changes in water by means of his photographic techniques. He freezes droplets of water and then examines them under a dark field microscope that has photographic capabilities. His work clearly demonstrates the diversity of the molecular structure of water and the effect of the environment upon the structure of the water."

My contemplation:
I am sure you heard or read about doctors telling expecting mothers to put on headphones on their stomachs and some of the things they should play are classical music and prayers? that expecting moms should try view upon more beautiful things too. Sometimes we think people who's obsessed about getting perfect children do the strangest things.

But I think this illustration on Dr. Masaru's findings may provide spiritual rationale behind it:

Exposed to the song 'Beethoven-Pastoral'.

Fujiwara water - Before prayer & Fujiwara water - After prayer

My contemplation: So? What's the relationship between water being prayed and listened to classical music got to do with babies in the stomach?

Be in the know that 80% of our body consists of water/liquid (this is a scientific fact). Now make your own assumptions, I am sure we all have the same conclusion.

WORLDLY WATER.

My contemplation: Now look at other Dr. Masaru's findings. The process of changing the crystals of the water from its first state is by saying words, in any language!

The process of words or sounds we utter reaching towards water is sound waves that create vibrations. Could good or bad vibrations be the only means to change its molecular structure?

Exposed to 'Hitler' word and Exposed to sentence 'You make me sick- I will kill you'.

My contemplation: The answer is no. These water crystal changes its molecules to look unsightly even only by having little pieces of papers with words written on it with words such as above pasted on the cup or glass surface.

Even thoughts can create vibrations - the intangible changes the tangible!

Now, of course this.

My contemplation: It seems like the water crystal is telling us something? Could it be that the soul is located within our hearts? Or that they are one?

That's after the word 'Thank You' is uttered to it.

NOW ENOUGH OF WATER CRYSTALS PICTURES. THERE ARE TWO THINGS THAT MAY JUST BLOW YOUR MINDS! THIS ARTICLE IS ABOUT TO FINISH.

1. Dr. Masaru:

"And so, looking at the pictures of the water crystals and the impact they are having, I came to realize that these themselves are ghosts. Up until now, I had thought of ghosts as something to be frightened of, something that we could do nothing about. But watching these crystals, I realized that by simply projecting beautiful music and words onto them, the crystals or ghosts become beautiful. If that's the case, there's nothing to be frightened of. We need to let everybody know about this, and all use beautiful words and offer beautiful music, and create beauty in the environment".

When we are alive, the human body is at approximately 36 degrees Celsius. This is the temperature of the fluids in the body. When we die, this goes to zero degrees Celsius. When we die and go to the other side, crossing the river, we are no longer able to move our bodies. But the crystalline structure of our soul emerges. It's like water. When water turns to ice, the crystalline structure becomes visible, but it also becomes immobile. So "crystal" equals "spirit."

COULD ADAM BE A VERY DARK SKINNED PERSON?
2. "The purest well is the Zam Zam well. The purest two valleys for human are the valley in Makkah and the valley in India (Ganges River). For that is where Adam landed from the heaven. In it there's goodness for my creatures"

My contemplation: I'm curious, are there valleys for the angels, the geannies and all those 4th dimension beings?
Adam was dropped in which valley? India or Makkah? I think it means Adam fell in one place and Eve fell in another? Could it be that one is dark skinned and another is really fair?

The verse above (No 2) is a Sunnah by Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. "Sa'id bin Mansur meriwayatkan dalam kitab sunnahnya. "

3. Ponder this: Our parents always tell us to behave; not to ever insult the food or argue among each other infront of our meals. Praying before meals that we are thankful to God for what's on the table is now hardly practised.

My contemplation: NOW, THAT INVOLVES NOT JUST THE WATER THAT WE DRINK, PARENTS TELL US TO RESPECT THE FOOD WE EAT TOO. FOOD CONTAINS WATER. IN A BIGGER PICTURE EVERYTHING THAT'S ALIVE CONTAINS WATER. THERE'S MOISTURE IN EVERY LIVING CELL.

I bet it's not really because they knew the secret of water, it's just meant for us to mind our manners.

KEYWORD IS 'VIBRATIONS'.

My contemplation: Everything in this world that's alive receive and emits vibrations. Perhaps that's how love at first sight happens, that's also how we could dislike someone although we never spoke to em etc.

Just for knowledge sakes to other religion, Muslims are told by our Creator that we are made out of two things, water and soil.

Again, since our body consists of 80%f water, say good things and do good things to yourself.

The common things we observe daily, those who utter soothing and loving words to their plants, children, parents so much, the results is always positive, if not physically, at least of course spiritually!

I'm just sincerely sharing my thoughts of what I discovered. You are welcomed to share yours too here.

Click on Dr. Masaru's link above to find out more.

***************

Sidetrack on relationship regarding water and Islamic teachings and the impact it has made to our daily life:

For those who wants to find out how a local entrepreneur who uses this both scientific and religious method in her business, explore the link. It's interesting. The water is called Musoffa Za'faran. I just discovered that Za'faran is actually Saffron as in the herb, the secret about this herb is also mentioned in the Quran.

And regarding the holiness of Zam Zam water. My contemplations again, ponder how Makkah is the centre of the universe (click here to view illustration). And how we pray towards one direction, all that prayers, that vibrations that focuses towards Zam Zam well.

The Invitation

2005-05-25T19:55:00.000-07:00

It doesn't interest me what you do for a living.
I want to know what you ache for, and if you dare to dream of meeting your heart's longing.

It doesn't interest me how old you are.
I want to know if you will risk looking like a fool for love, for dreams, for the adventure of being alive.

It doesn't interest me what planets are squaring your moon.
I want to know if you have touched the center of your own sorrow, if you have been opened by life's betrayals or have become shriveled and closed from fear of further pain!
I want to know if you can sit WITH pain, mine or your own, without moving to hide it or fade it or fix it.
I want to know if you can be with joy, mine or your own;
if you can dance with wildness and let ecstasy fill you to the tips of your fingers and toes without cautioning us to be careful, be realistic, or to remember the limitations of being a human.

It doesn't interest me if the story you're telling me is true.

I want to know if you can disappoint another to be true to yourself; if you can bear the accusation of betrayal and not betray your own soul.

I want to know if you can be faithful and therefore trustworthy. I want to know if you can see beauty even if it's not pretty every day, and if you can source your life from God's presence.

I want to know if you can live with failure, yours and mine, and still stand on the edge of a lake and shout to the silver moon, 'Yes!'

It doesn't interest me where you live or how much money you have.

I want to know if you can get up after the night of grief and despair, weary, bruised to the bone, and do what needs to be done for the children.

It doesn't interest me who you are, how you came to be here.

I want to know if you will stand in the center of the fire with me and not shrink back.

It doesn't interest me where or what or with whom you have studied.

I want to know what sustains you from the inside, when all else falls away.

I want to know if you can be alone with yourself; and if you truly like the company you keep in the empty moments.

Written by: Oriah Mountain Dreamer, Native American Elder, May 1994

Tan Sri Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhari - Biodata

2005-05-13T19:53:00.000-07:00

I've waited so long to know more about this generous person; the way he grew up.

There are so many inspiring poems, profound thoughts about spiritual people whose religion different than mine collected in here. Finally, here's one of my own, in terms of common ethnics too.

When he first made himself public during the Double Rail project (MMC and Gamuda), everyone wondered who he is and where could this individual get all his money. The first thing I heard was that he started as a rice smuggler up North. So... how many rice smugglers had managed to obtain Tan Sri'ship or a millionaire title I wonder.

Negative thoughts always go towards people (mostly politicians) who gets rich within a single generation. Somehow something tells me to research more and make my own conclusion as this man doesn't talk like a politician and does not move like one too.

Hope you'd get inspired along the way.

*****

Syed Mokhtar's Biodata in his own words in B. Malaysia.

Umur - 53 tahun
Pendidikan - SPM
Mula berniaga - 19 tahun (jual beli lembu dan kerbau)
Nilai dirinya -RM1,425 juta
Ke 7 terkaya di Malaysia
Ke 32 terkaya di Asia Tenggara (Forbes)
Antara syarikat miliknya - MMC, Pelabuhan Tg. Pelepas,
BERNAS, Gardenia, DRB-HICOM dan Bank Muammalat
Kereta - Proton Perdana

Sumbangan sosial -Yayasan Al-Bukhary, institusi pengajian untuk 3,000 pelajar, Muzium Kesenian Islam, Kompleks Al-Bukhary, menaja kelas tuisyen untuk pelajar Melayu, pengindahan Masjid Negara, sumbangan RM1 juta untuk Tabung Tsunami dan menaja setiap tahun penghantaran rakyat Malaysia yang tak mampu untuk tunaikan haji.

Bagaimana sumbangan sosialnya bermula - Bila mana ibunya menyuruh memberikan sebahagian elaun (RM750.00) pertamanya sebagai pengarah syarikat beras kepada jiran yang susah. Sebahagian lagi (RM750.00) ibunya simpan. Selain itu, ibunya juga menyuruh beliau menghantar lampu kerosen ke surau-surau untuk menerangi kegiatan sepanjang malam bulan Ramadhan. Dari situ bermulalah pembentukan peribadi dan pemikiran Syed Mokhtar yang kita kenali hari ini.

1. Ada sebab kenapa saya bekerja seperti tiada hari esok. Agenda sosial dan kerja-kerja kemasyarakatan itulah antara sebabnya. Saya mahu meninggalkan warisan untuk anak bangsa yang kekal berpanjangan

2. (berkenaan know who) Bangsa lain tak mengapa tapi orang Melayu kena berdamping dengan orang politik sedikit-sedikit. Tapi masalahnya kita tidak mahu melalui kesusahan; banyak yang mahu senang dengan mendampingi orang politik semata-mata.

3. Tiada apa-apa rahsia. Saya ini hamba Allah biasa, budak dangau macam saudara semua juga. Tuhan jadikan manusia ini sama sahaja. Proses kematangan saya yang membezakannya. Saya percaya sesiapa pun boleh menjadi apa sahaja asalkan mereka berusaha dengan tekun. Tetapi tentulah ia memakan masa. Tiada jalan singkat.

4. Saya mengenali kekuatan dan kelemahan saya. Apa yang tidak mampu buat saya akan minta orang lain tengok-tengokkan. Saya melalui jalan yang susah tapi itulah jalan yang kekal.

5. Kita perlu menggunakan kepakaran mereka (bangsa Cina) kerana mereka jauh lebih maju dan mahir daripada kita. Apa yang kita kurang faham kita berkongsi dengan tujuan untuk belajar dengan mereka. Apabila sudah faham baru kita boleh menjaga kepentingan kita.

6. Saya sedih melihat sistem sekolah pondok di Kedah. Saya ada cita-cita mahu memodenkan sekolah pondok. Kita kena maju.

7. Saya terlibat dalam perniagaan ini kerana saya tiada pilihan lain.

8. Untuk memajukan perniagaan, memang kena banyak sabar dan kuat berusaha.

9. Tidak ada jalan singkat. Saya belajar tentang perniagaan ini sejak kecil lagi dan saya juga biasa kena tipu.

10. Saya pun suka kemewahan. Saya pun suka tengok dunia, ke Tokyo, New York dan London. Saya pun suka pakai baju elok. Tapi kita hendak bermewah setakat mana, hendak pakai baju banyak mana, hendak tidur dalam berapa rumah satu malam, hendak makan pun sampai larat mana ?

11. Dalam hidup ini kita sebenarnya tidak ada status; ada masa di atas, ada masa di bawah.

12. Ketika Allah memberika kemewahan, kita kena turun ke bawah, tengok mana-mana yang boleh dibantu. Allah beri rezeki melalui kita untuk kita tolong orang lain. Rezeki itu bila-bila masa dia boleh ambil balik. Jika ada orang korporat Melayu yang tidak mahu turun ke bawah mungkin kerana bayangan duit itu lebih kuat daripada yang lain.

13. Korporat Cina turun ke bawah membantu. Orang Cina ada pelbagai persatuan. Kita tidak ada; kalau ada pun berpecah. Orang Melayu kita tidak mahu bekerjasama kerana perasaan dengki menguasai diri. Sudahlah tak mahu berusaha, apabila orang lain berusaha mereka
marah

14.Saya ada emotional attachment kepada agama, bangsa dan ummah. Saya bukan individualistik. Diri saya tidak penting. Pangkat dan gelaran ini kepada saya tidak mustahak.

17. Saya sedih media tonjolkan saya begini. Saya malu kerana orang Cina kaya beratus-ratus kali ganda daripada saya. Tapi saya tahu orang Melayu kalau hendak berjaya kena kerja kuat tidak kira siang malam. Kita ada kekuatan yang tuhan beri melebihi daripada bangsa lain. Tetapi untuk maju kita perlu berusaha

18. Saya asal daripada tidak ada apa-apa. Apa yang saya tidak tahu saya belajar, minta tolong daripada orang. Saya tidak malu. Saya bukannya mencuri. Saya usaha sendiri. Sikap pemalas dan pemalu ini yang orang Melayu kena atasi. Kita kena berani kerana benar. Apabila kita dapat keuntungan dan rezeki lebih, bolehlah kita menolong orang.

19. Kaya itu bukanlah kepada diri sendiri. Kaya itu adalah kepada kumpulan perniagaan ini, kepada bangsa dan kepada orang ramai. Saya hanya memegangnya untuk sementara sahaja.

20. Saya tiada keinginan untuk menyimpan kekayaan ini untuk anak dan isteri. Duit ini tidak akan kekal. Saya percaya hanya perkara yang baik yang kita lakukakan akan kekal. Bukan duit yang akan melindungi saya nanti tapi apa yang saya lakukan sekarang.

21. Saya perlu terus mencari peluang dan perniagaan lain supaya kita terus dapat bantu orang lain mengembangkan diri masing-masing. Saya bukan buat semua ini untuk diri saya semata-mata.

22. Ada juga yang saya usaha tapi tak dapat dan orang tak tahu. Apa yang saya dapat itu yang jadi masalah kononnya Syed Mokhtar sapu semua. Bangsa lain memegang pelbagai kepentingan dalam ekonomi, siapa pun tak ata apa. Ini masalah orang Melayu. Di kampung orang Melayu berpecah kerana politik, di bandar berpecah kerana ini (wang).

23. Saya percaya kalau rezeki itu Allah beri kepada saya ia bukan untuk saya tetapi untuk orang ramai juga. Orang tidak tahu banyak syarikat yang saya ada ini gagal dan tidak maju kepada saya tetapi orang tidak tahu.

24. Banyak orang percaya bahawa dia mesti ada RM10 juta atau RM20 juta dalam tangan baru hidup boleh selamat. Ini yang menyebabkan mereka hanyut daripada menolong orang lain. Mereka lebih takutkan diri sendiri. Mereka lupa bahawa kekayaan tidak boleh membantu selama-lamanya.

25. Orang kata saya takda duit tapi banyak hutang. Orang berniaga mana yang tak berhutang. Tapi mesti tahu bagaimana hendak meminjam dan membayarnya semula. Ada cara boleh kita buat.

Tapi sebelum berhutang RM100 juta mesti sudah fikir bagaimana hendak membayarnya balik. Mesti ada tanggungjawab. Banyak orang mahu senang tapi tidak ramai yang mahu bertanggungjawab.

26. (perasaan setiap kali mendapat rezeki). Saya ini kata orang Kedah, lebai kodok bukan lebai pondok. Tapi saya tahu hal-hal asas. Kalau mahu saya minta terus dari tuhan. Tuhan beri manusia akal dan fikiran. Kalau hendak pakai baju dan seluar biarlah padan dengan
badan.

27. Kesenangan yang saya perolehi ini datang dengan tanggungjawab (bila pinjam bayar balik dan buat amal jariah). Kalau hendak dibandingkan dengan bangsa lain, perniagaan saya ini tidak ada apa. Tetapi walaupun sedikit tetapi yang sedikit itu ada berkatnya.

28. Saya suka kalau nikmat sedikit yang saya dapat itu orang lain boleh berkongsi sama.

29. Saya kadang-kadang kecewa dan sedih melihat anak orang alim yang sesetengahnya lupa diri setelah mendapat kekayaan. Saya pun sama seperti orang lain suka hendak ke luar negara tetapi kita tidak boleh lupa kubur kita dan asal usul kita. Di kampung kita mungkin ada jiran-jiran yang perlukan bantuan.

30. .....kalau tidak mungkin saya sudah ke Haatyai dan jadi bakal. Saya manusia yang banyak buat kesilapan. Tetapi saya insaf, beristighfar dan jalan lagi. Sejak awal saya ada kesedaran mahu mengekalkan hak kita sebagai orang Melayu.

31. Saya kata kepada diri sendiri kalau kerana itu saya terpaksa bersusah sedikit pun tidak mengapa.

32. Kekayaan ini tuhan beri kepada saya untuk saya menolong orang lain pula. Saya percaya kepada keberkatan rezeki. Hari ini kita tolong orang, esok lusa orang akan tolong kita pula dengan cara yang
lain.

33. Kalaupun tidak sanggup tunggu 34 tahun seperti saya berilah sedikit masa untuk faham selok belok perniagaan, Insya Allah boleh maju.

34. Kita jangan cepat putus asa. Putus asa boleh tapi kena cepat-cepat kuatkan semula semangat untuk bangkit balik. Jangan jadikan agama hanya satu tempat untuk kita bergantung apabila kita susah. Tanggungjawab ibadah adalah tugas seharian.

35. Lifestyle ? Saya tidak ada lifestyle yang kena masuk kelab sana dan sini. Tapi tak semestinya saya tidak boleh turun ke kelab.Orang Melayu kalau hendak ke depan mesti ada cara hidup yang fleksibel, boleh naik dan turun.

36. Lifestyle ini sebenarnya satu penyakit. Saya biasa pakai Mercedes tapi sekarang saya pakai Proton Perdana untuk sokong kereta nasional. Kereta itu pun cukup untuk bawa saya ke mana-mana.

37. Tiada sebab orang kenapa Melayu tidak boleh maju. Ini saya berani perang dengan sesiapa pun. Orang Melayu boleh maju. Kalau saudara jadi wartawan saudara kena tanam semangat suatu hari nanti mahu ambil alih akhbar ini. Tidak ada sebab kenapa ia tidak boleh berlaku.

38. Kejayaan dan kelemahan orang Melayu bukan disebabkan oleh bangsa kita dan agama kita. Ia berkait dengan sikap dan cara kita berfikir. Gigih, tekun dan tidak mudah putus asa merupakan kunci kejayaan kita. Tapi perkara ini kurang wujud dalam cara orang Melayu berfikir.

39. Tuhan memberi peluang kepada siapa saja yang bekerja kuat. Apa yang ada pada saya ini hanya usaha. Kalau anak dangau macam saya boleh, tidak ada sebab orang lain terutama mereka yang dari pekan tidak boleh.

40. Kita tidak usahlah selalu mengulang-ulang perkara yang boleh memberikan kesan psikologi negatif kepada orang Melayu (kereta dan rumah besar. Kita kena kurangkan bercakap tentang kereta besar dan rumah besar. Sesiapa pun mahu pakai kereta mewah tapi bukan itu matlamatnya.

41. Orang Melayu sebenarnya kena membantu diri sendiri, kena bekerja keras dan fokus.

42. Sikap merendah diri perlu sentiasa ada dalam diri seseorang walau setinggi mana pun kejayaan dicapai.

43. Apa yang saya buat ini (kerja-kerja sosial) semuanya bermula daripada didikan orang tua saya sendiri.

44. Saya sendiri berhutang sambil berniaga dan buat sumbangan amal jariah. Saya tak mahu tunggu hutang habis baru hendak buat semua ini. Saya takut kalau hutang habis saya pun mati dan apa pun tak sempat saya buat.

45. Saya biasa saja. Hidup saya tidak berubah, dari dulu beginilah. Saya terima apa saja nikmat yang diberikan oleh Allah. Tidak ada segelas air, ada setengah gelas pun saya bersyukur.

46. Kalau kerana sedikit bantuan itu mereka lulus peperiksaan dan hidup mereka menjadi lebih baik, saya sudah gembira. Saya tidak boleh buat banyak. Alhamdulillah, lebih baik buat sedikit daripada tidak buat langsung.

47. Saya tiada minat untuk beli kapal layar atau kapal terbang. Saya fikir kalau saya beli sesuatu biarlah orang ramai boleh pakai. Saya suka kalau saya beli sesuatu yang mahal, biarlah orang ramai boleh pakai.

48. Saya gembira dapat membantu. Saya mahu orang lain merasai (kesenangan) apa yang saya pernah rasa. Saya tahu bagaimana perasaanya. Saya kata kepada diri saya, apa yang saya dapat saya mesti beri orang lain merasainya sama. Jangan beri kurang, lebih tak mengapa. Itu yang membuat hati saya seronok.

49. Saya rasa saya ingin menyumbang lebih daripada ini. Saya kata kepada kawan-kawan ini baru warm-up saja; kita belum berjalan lagi. Saya rasa kita terlalu banyak ketinggalan

An Interesting Poem

2005-05-06T20:45:00.000-07:00

I discovered this moving poem through listening to the reknowned Asian Marketing Guru, Hermawan Kertajaya. He pitched the importance of Spiritual Intelligence (SQ) in order to keep customers' loyalty. And that SQ is not about religion or being religious.
Won't dwell into that yet. Here's the poem I'd like to share with you.

*******************************************************************************

People are often unreasonable, illogical and self-centered;
Forgive them anyway.

If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives;
Be kind anyway.

If you are successful, you will win some false friends and some true enemies;
Succeed anyway.

If you are honest and frank, people may cheat you;
Be honest and frank anyway.

What you spend years building, someone could destroy overnight;
Build anyway.

If you find serenity and happiness, they may be jealous;
Be happy anyway.

The good you do today, people will forget tomorrow,
Do good anyway.

Give the world the best you have, and it may never be enough;
Give the world the best you've got ... anyway.

You see, in the final analysis, it is between you and God,
It never was between you and them anyway.

This poem was written by Mother Teresa and is engraved
on the wall of her home for children in Calcutta.

Quote: Prof Muhammad Al-Mahdi.

2005-05-01T01:22:00.000-07:00

I impress upon them that Islam is not all about praying, reading the Quran or fasting. It is ALSO about learning how the universe works and why things are the way they are. I explain everything scientifically. There now exists scientific proof of the existence of God, based on the universally accepted facts of modern physics.

Professor Muhammad Al-Mahdi, an Atheist (American) till he converted to a Muslim at 35. He’s now 62.

An Interesting Conversation.

2005-04-25T00:05:00.000-07:00

Next entry called 'An Interesting Poem' will be published on 6th of May.

An atheist professor of philosophy speaks to his class on the problem science has with God, The Almighty.

He asks one of his new students to stand and.....
*****
Prof: So you believe in God?
Student: Absolutely, sir.
*****
Prof: Is God good?
Student: Sure.
*****
Prof: Is God all-powerful?
Student: Yes.
*****
Prof: My brother died of cancer even though he prayed to God to heal him.
Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But God didn't. How is this God good then? Hmm?
Student: (Student is silent.)
*****
Prof: You can't answer, can you? Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?
Student: Yes.
*****
Prof: Is Satan good?
Student: No.
*****
Prof: Where does Satan come from?
Student: From...God...
*****
Prof: That's right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world?
Student: Yes.
*****
Prof: Evil is everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything. Correct?
Student: Yes.
*****
Prof: So who created evil?
Student: (Student does not answer.)
*****
Prof: Is there sickness? Immorality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don't they?
Student: Yes, sir.
*****
Prof: So, who created them?
Student: (Student has no answer.)
*****
Prof: Science says you have 5 senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son...Have you ever seen God?
Student: No, sir.
*****
Prof: Tell us if you have ever heard your God?
Student: No , sir.
*****
Prof: Have you ever felt your God, tasted your God, smelt your God? Have you ever had any sensory perception of God for that matter?
Student: No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.
*****
Prof: Yet you still believe in Him?
Student: Yes.
*****
Prof: According to empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, science says your GOD doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?
Student: Nothing. I only have my faith.
*****
Prof: Yes. Faith. And that is the problem science has.
*****
Student: Professor, is there such a thing as heat?
Prof: Yes.
*****
Student: And is there such a thing as cold?
Prof: Yes.
*****
Student: No sir. There isn't.
(The lecture theatre becomes very quiet with this turn of events.)
*****
Student: Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don't have anything called cold.
We can hit 458 degrees below zero which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that.
There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of heat.
We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.
(There is pin-drop silence in the lecture theatre.)
*****
Student: What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?
Prof: Yes. What is night if there isn't darkness?
*****
Student: You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something.
You can have low light, normal light, bright light, flashing light....But if you have no light constantly, you have nothing and it's called darkness, isn't it?
In reality, darkness isn't. If it were, you would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?
Prof: So what is the point you are making, young man?
*****
Student: Sir, my point is your philosophical premise is flawed.
Prof: Flawed? Can you explain how?
*****
Student: Sir, you are working on the premise of duality. You argue there is life and then there is death, a good God and a bad God.
You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can
measure.
Sir, science can't even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one.
To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing.
Death is not the opposite of life: just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor.
Do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?
Prof: If you are referring to the natural evolutionary process, yes, of course, I do.
*****
Student: Have you ever observed evolution with your own eyes, sir?
Prof: (The Professor shakes his head with a smile, beginning to realize
where the argument is going.)
*****
Student: Since no one has ever observed the process of evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavour, are you not teaching your opinion, sir?
Are you not a scientist but a
preacher?
Prof: (The class is in uproar.)
*****
Student: Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor's brain?
Prof: (The class breaks out into laughter.)
*****
Student: Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor's brain, felt it, touched or smelt it?.....No one appears to have done so.
So, according to the established rules of empirical, stable, demonstrable
protocol, science says that you have no brain, sir.
With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures, sir?
*****
Prof: (The room is silent. The professor stares at the student, his face unfathomable.)
Prof: I guess you'll have to take them on faith, son.
*****
Student: That is it sir.. The link between man & God is FAITH. That is all that keeps things moving & alive.
*****

Thanks to both my managers (different religious background all three of us)who sent and helped me put this up here.

Presentation about God

2005-04-21T06:29:00.000-07:00

Gone were the days I used to get really nervous if the GM or the Sales Manager needed to walk into my room or if they needed to call me very late at night since they hardly need to do that. Coz I'd walk into their rooms and update them everything they need to know about work. Informal stuff are usually shared during breakfast or social hours after work. I always had the impression that I might have done something wrong or did not do something good enough for them if they need to visit me like that.

Our new Sales Manager has been with us for only the past 6 months. I don't know about the rest but I am so excited because we've been without one for more than a year on 'auto-pilot' mode, when emergency situations strikes, it sometimes does get pretty ugly.

Now, surely there must be something new to learn from him.

To my surprise, not only have I learnt more tricks-of-the-trade with regards to distribution business, I learnt many other things everyone would dream of getting from their elder brother.

A pair of birds drop by my office window once in awhile. From the way they gaze at each other and chirp towards the world, you'd know that they're such a happy couple, utterly contageous gestures. I imagined that maybe the angels might've sent them to come by to cheer up a few or maybe hundreds of people that way.

The boss opened my door after a few months working here and said: See, that's my bird, the one with one white strip under his right wing.

I said: No! It's mine!

The boss said: Which one? There's two of them.

I said: Both! I knew them first!

The boss: I feed them you know, that's why they come so often. U feed them or not?

I said frowningly: Noooo.

The boss: They're miiiine!

TODAY.
The boss: Have you checked your email?

I frantically clicked 'get messages', we're on two co-marketing projects in December and I was paranoid again if there's something I might have forgotten to do.

I received an email from him which I now want to share with all of you. Just click 'View Presentation'. It's non multimedia rich so it'll take you only two minutes to view the whole thing.

Of course, I'll always add my take on top of other's take. The last piece of slide that says 'I'm always here'. Do we understand now why He tells us not to do certain things which makes us get hi, hallucinate, furious overboard and the likes?

Because during that moment will our thoughts about Him disappear, we then may physically or mentally hurt someone, get vulnerable like being raped, steal to obtain more intoxicants, overspend and forget the poor and so on. Now do we still think it is too much for Him to ask us not to forget Him even for a single second anymore by staying away from intoxicants? Because He is always there for all of us, unconditionally.

But... only when we embrace the nature around us will we be able to define ourselves through the way He shares His love... just through observing every second of His actions and by just appreciating our own existence.

He is really aaaalways there, do we always notice?

*I'm only human too.

The Literate Messenger

2005-04-21T06:24:00.000-07:00

I received this comment just yesterday in my October 2004 entry titled "The Illiterate Messenger". This is the kind of answer I've been waiting for, someone who sees a mistake and help to correct it with great effort and very constructively, therefore I'm compelled to publish it here. I need to correct those who thought what I wrote was right. I have visited the sites provided and what a wonderful discovery...truly so much intellecual insights, you try it.

On what is said about women and men being the same, I have always agreed on the specializations that we have. It's the reason men and women would need and complement each other.

Thank you so much Yusof Estes, Salam.

At 11:36 AM, Anonymous said...

Where is the evidence that Shaikh Tareq Swaydan said any of this?

I have met him a couple of times while traveling around to give lectures and I know him personally. I have never heard him mention these things.

Whoever did mention them needs to be corrected in a number of issues, inshallah.

First of all, Allah does NOT say that men and women are equal. Read the Quran itself (for a FREE Quran download: http://www.islamtomorrow.com/downloads/noblequran.exe )

Look up surah An-Nisaa' verse 34: Men are the protectors and maintainers of women, because Allah has made one of them to excel the other, and because they spend (to support them) from their means. Then read in surah Al-Baqarah, verse 282 about witnesses to a contract: ... And get two witnesses out of your own men. And if there are not two men (available), then a man and two women, such as you agree for witnesses, so that if one of them (two women) errs, the other can remind her.

The concept of men being the same as women is ridiculous and should be dealt with only from the true Muslims point of view. Men are not equal to women and women are not equal to men. Both are different and both have seperate and important roles to play in life. The idea equality only applies to the treatment with justice for both and the status in front of Allah for those who come to the correct belief and then satisfy their roles in life as Allah has prescribed for them.

Next, using the FREE Quran download mentioned about, click on the magnifying glass (word search of Quran) and type in the word 'man'. You will find it says the number of occurances is not 24 - but rather 771, and the plural form 'men' comes up 1013 times.

Now check the word 'woman', you find only 22 (still not 24) and the plural 'women' appears 83 times.

Now check out 'life' - 203!

Now 'death' - 100!

'People'? - 524

'Messengers?' - 180

'Angels' - 154

'Satan' 100 and 'devil' - 34

Magi c 60 . Fitnah (dissuasion, misleading) 60

Magic (60)? - Nope

Fitnah (dissuasion = 0) misleading - only 1 (Surah Fatihah)

The only Quran quote from the Quran was the dua of Yunus (Jonah in the whale) surah Al-Anbiya, verse 87.

We have something on our website that is very important for all Muslims about these kinds of lies and misrepresentations about Islam, Allah, the Quran and the prophet, peace be upon him. Please take time to enjoy it at:

http://www.islamtomorrow.com/lies

Let us know of any corrections to what we have. Thank you so much. We look forward to sharing with everyone, inshallah.

Thank you, jazakalah khair was salam alaykum,

Yusuf Estes
National Muslim Chaplain
Washington, DC - USA

FREE QURAN to download:
www.IslamTomorrow.com/downloads/noblequran.exe

The Illiterate Messenger

2005-04-21T06:23:00.000-07:00

Explore the various ways different people explain the meaning of this picture:

To an innocent 8 year old, This is plain and simple 'Rokok'

To smokers, this is pleasure, escapade, freedom, individuality, symbol of comraderie, simplicity, valid, status symbol...

To anti smokers this is destruction, cancer, arrogance, wasteful, loveless, selfish, idiocy, derogatory, immoral....

My point is, even for literate people in this age who's vocabularies are somewhat refined throughout zealous reading and listening, we can hardly begin to utter nor write what we feel in our hearts or what we have in our thoughts in words which perfectly express what's inside. Even when we express them through actions, they are hardly understood.
On the contrary, being literate (which also added with emotional influences) makes us capable of explaining things which reflects things we see only from our angle with certain degree of biasness.

The written and verbal expressions about the cigarette box above illustrates what I mean with the word 'angle'.

Prophet Muhammad s.a.w is illiterate throughout his life. Yet the divine Al-Quran was brought to us through him; the perfect encyclopaedia, because it is not just about the past and His present but also about the future and sciences.

This is both for my collections and sharing. The divine Al-Quran that has never been altered by a single word.

Tariq Al Swaidan discovered some verses in the Holy Qur'an that mention one thing is equal to another, i.e. men are equal to women. Although this makes sense grammatically, the astonishing fact is that the number of times the word man appears in the Qur'an is 24 and the number of times the word woman appears is also 24, therefore not only is this phrase correct in the grammatical sense but also true mathematically, i.e. 24 = 24.

Upon further analysis of various verses, he discovered that this is consistent throughout the whole Qur'an, where it says one thing is like another. See below for astonishing result of the words mentioned number of times in Arabic Qur'an:

Dunia (one name for life) 115. Aakhirat (one name for the life after this world) 115
Malaika (Angels) 88 . Shayteen (Satan) 88
Life 145 .... Death 145
Benefit 50 Corrupt 50 People 50 Messengers 50
Eblees (king of devils) 11 . Seek refuge from Eblees 11
Museebah (calamity) 75 . Thanks 75
Spending (Sadaqah) 73 . Satisfaction 73
People who are mislead 17 . Dead people 17
Muslimeen 41 . Jihad 41
Gold 8 Easy life 8
Magic 60 . Fitnah (dissuasion, misleading) 60
Zakat (Taxes Muslims pay to the poor) 32 . Barakah (Increasing or blessings of wealth) 32
Mind 49 . Noor 49
Tongue 25 . Sermon 25
Desite 8 . Fear 8
Speaking publicly 18 . Publicising 18
Hardship 114 .... Patience 114
Muhammed 4 . Sharee'ah (Muhammed's teachings) 4
Man 24. Woman 24

And amazingly enough have a look how many times the following words appear:
Salat 5, Month 12, = Days 365,
Sea 32, Land 13 Sea + land = 32+13= 45
Sea = 32/45*100=71.11111111%
Land = 13/45*100 = 28.88888889%
Sea + land =100.00%

Modern science has only recently proven that the water covers 71.111% of the earth, while the land covers 28.889%. Is this a coincidence? Question is that Who taught Prophet Muhammed (PBUH) all this? Reply automatically comes in mind that ALMIGHTY ALLAH taught him this.

Frymysquid, this is your take and my take. When's our ever pending meet?

Stop Nurturing this National Flower

2005-04-21T06:19:00.000-07:00

It’s plague-some on normal days. It’s the flower which fully bloom on the fields and the audience seats after every sports events, by the roadsides after every pasar malam, in the rivers near squatters area, even in the drawers in our own kitchen, it's everywhere!

In our country, the highest harvest for it is during fasting month. We’ll find red, pink, blue, grey 'flowers' easily. We buy two currypuffs, they go into one small plastic bag, then we order four pulut udang, they go into another small plastic bag. When we buy dishes with gravy, we’ll go back and throw the plastic bag away because it's wet and smelly therefore not suitable to be kept for future use.

Best of all, we can’t reuse the tiny plastic bags which accompany the kuehs, so although they are dry and can be stored, but then, there’s already a hundred of them in the Toyogo 3 tiers drawer. It’s been a week of shopping for food at bazaar ~~jodoh~~ juadah, the drawer in the kitchen is full. So we always resort to throwing the tiny dry plastics away. Not over yet, we need to spend money in order to throw all these plastics; 50 pieces of garbage bags for RM5.00.

The nature is firstly consumed by this negligence, secondly our own beloved descendants will suffer in ways I don't want to imagine. Can we please start these:

When we have a specific item to buy and we know we will head straight home right after, prepare a suitable kind of storage from home to carry the item in.

Okay, first week of fasting, we are still impulsive shoppers, we can’t think straight once we see good looking guys, ok I lied, there's none, when we see pretty chics.

Cum second week, we’ll know that we want just ayam perchik which goes with the nasi tomato at home. So bring proper containers. We know we are sick of air sirap and wanna buy air tebu and just kueh (we know we'll get that tiny plastics again), bring proper containers!

What on earth is the difference of carrying two pieces of DVD in the plastic bag when it takes also just one hand to hold both all the way into the car? We won't seem less sophisticated!. This kind of purchase is usually specific, you’ll get in your shorts and slippers, buy DVD and go home. Just like buying ciggy. Skip the plastic bag, or it’ll end up filling up your paper basket, what a clean garbage. This is one flower which is hardest to biodegrade, it takes a thousand years.

I loathe seeing grocery items being separated into many different plastics when it only takes me 3 minutes to carry them from the car to my kitchen. So, just chuck them all as long as the plastic bag won't break!
The things which need different kinda handling are just eggs, tofu, bread oh well, they’re not so many right?

God loves us so much, we are born in the age when the greenery is still around us and at the same time we're able to indulge in modern living. Yet we take it for granted. Yet too, there are people who still consider taking up roadside sweeping and garbage collecting. Thank goodness.

Let’s just please practise unconditional love, yes, it sounds so mushy. Unconditional love is about caring, be thoughtful, then make it a habit, for nature and people around us regardless of whether we get anything in return or not.

Debate on Religion just what we Need

2005-04-21T06:11:00.000-07:00

That's the title of my uncle's letter to MalaysiaKini to rebuttal the article written by Dr Ismail Ibrahim (on Agama Bukan Mainan di Media). The latter remarked that the Internet online newspaper abuses freedom of the press by opening a religious debate on various sensitive inter-religious issues and publishing cynical remarks. Dr Ismail also concluded that this media was playing with fire and setting off a possible time bomb!

When I read Dr Ismail's article, everything sounded fine as I do experience uneasiness and embarassment listening to loud slandering and condemning towards our country's PM on Islam Hadhari's failures in our own blogosphere-partly because I thought they are going across the wrong market readers and that this blogger should just channel those out by becoming a columnist for Harakah and such instead.

The part of my unc's letter that pulled the right chord in me is this:

This discussion on religion reflects the gap among Malaysians on each other’s religious and cultural heritage. It documents the failure of our educational system as well as institutions such as the Institute Kefahaman Islam Malaysia (Malaysian Institute for Islamic Understanding) which was once headed by Ismail himself.
On this score, we must admit that we have a lot more to learn and understand about each other in order to become better Malaysians.

And this mind blowing sentence which is extracted from Holy Al-Quran:

God created variations among us in order that we appreciate each other’s differences.

For those who still remember the late Johan Ismail of Joe-Blogs, I have an excerpt from his entry titled "It's only a movie for Bruce sakes!" (if you remember the huha about a Minister wanting to ban the movie, Bruce AlMighty) I would like to cross-reference with, and here's what he said:

"I just have this to say to the Minister, God in all His wisdom and greatness does not need a civil servant to protect His reputation. If anyone were to take this movie seriously then they belong in a psychiatric institution. If you are offended by the premise of the movie, DON'T SEE THE FILM. If you don't approve of the contest run by the radio station, SWITCH CHANNELS. Simple kan? No fuss, no bans required!"

Tsk! Tsk! It's so true, in reality, on any matters at all,
there are no sensitive issues, there are only sensitive people (proverb also by Johan Ismail)
I now see things in a different light, this IS a great place to document our thoughts and to look for others' thoughts, which helps us to reflect on ourselves. Although I wish subjects regarding spreading the religion should only be written beautifully. But, if limitations are imposed, particularly on religious matters, I guess we'll never get to see all these 'colours' and see things from many angles.

Conclusion for me: If I'm embarassed by any articles that're shouting negative vibrations for attention, ain't gonna read them. Heyh, I'm quite collected!! Ain't going near any psychiatric institution!

Here's mine since rules are largely imposed on printed matters:
Man created the cyberspace in order that we learn to appreciate each other’s differences.

It gives me piece of mind now that I know how to learn to appreciate them :)

They Suck your Energy Dry?

2005-04-21T05:55:00.000-07:00

Dear bloggers, I hope the content of this article changes your life forever after you know how to differentiate the negative and positive energies.. This is a part of the Art of Self (intuitive) Healing, some people are born with a natural ability to do this, some has to learn it. Use this approach in your relationships; be it for the family institution, for interactions with office colleagues, for married/yet to marry couples, for spreading religious beliefs, anything!

Relationships are always an energy exchange. To stay feeling our best, we must ask ourselves: Who gives us energy? Who saps it?

It's important to be surrounded by supportive, heart-centered people who make us feel safe and secure. It's equally important to pinpoint the energy vampires, who, whether they intend to or not, leech our energy.

Positive energy in others can be rejuvenative. For instance, you're nervous about a job interview, but the minute you meet your prospective boss you relax. He's so calm and welcoming, you calm down too. Or perhaps you have a good friend around whom you always feel loved. These are energy-givers, those we must gravitate towards.In contrast, energy vampires exude negative energy that drains.

Vampires range from the intentionally malicious ones to those who are oblivious to their effect. Some are overbearing and obnoxious; others are friendly and charming. For example, you're at a party talking to a perfectly nice person, but suddenly you're nauseous or weak. Or how about the co-worker who drones on about how she broke up with her boyfriend for the tenth time? Eventually, she feels better, but you're spent. The bottom line is that on a subtle energy level these people suck you dry.

Tips for Dealing With Energy Vampires

1.Take an inventory of people in your life who give energy, and peoplewho drain. Specifically identify the energy vampires, and begin to evaluate ones you'd like to limit contact with or eliminate. Plan at least one complete afternoon with people who give off positive energy and avoid drainers. Notice how this beneficially affects their physical and emotional well-being.

2.Protect Your Energy: Set Clear Boundaries. It’s crucial to limit the time you spend discussing a vampire’s gripes.When approaching her, remember: the difference between being a bitch and setting boundaries is attitude. Instead of saying, “You’re selfish and self-obsessed, I can’t take you anymore,” which a part of you likely feels, take a breath and shift to your heart.

3.Meditate. Sitting in meditation is a life-line to your center, to the earth. it will ground you when you’ve been struck by a vampire. By calming the mind, you can re-align with your essence. Close your eyes. Focus on your breath. Then gently extend your awareness downward to strata, bedrock, minerals, and soil. From the base of your spine begin to feel a continuity with the earth's core. Picture having a long tail that roots in that center. Allow the earth's energy to infuse your body and stabilize you. If you meditate for five minutes or an hour this is sacred time.

4. When you’re with vampires you can’t get away from visualizing a protective shield of while light surrounding every inch of you. This lets positive energy in, but keeps negative energy out—particularly efficient for vampires at family dinners or social events where you’re trapped.

by Judith Orloff MD

Judith Orloff M.D is now part of the Myss Expert Forum located in the resource section on the home page of myss.com and can be reached through her website www.drjudithorloff.comJudith Orloff, M.D is a board certified psychiatrist and practicing intuitive, author of the bestsellers Second Sightand Intuitive Healing and the upcoming book Positive Energy. She is assistant clinical professor of Psychiatry at UCLA and an international workshop leader.

One is Born yet One has Gone.

2005-04-21T05:47:00.000-07:00

19th July, 2004. Congratulations Shaliza and Feizril on your newborn, Naydine Falisha. Congratulations too uncle for finally getting the 'datukship'.

Tengok! Lagi sorang penat penat berenang seberang Selat kali ni dah tak dapat Datuk dah. The title of this article was supposed to be 'Sign cheques for wedding, new tactics to get Datukship", but then the thunder belongs to those two lah.Didn't bring my digicam so I can post the pix here. Just when it striked me that I should go visit you and then I get to visit everyone one shot!Seeing how the baby slept so soundly although the sound coming outta the grandma's mouth was comparable to the radio-non stop... ok lah, she must've practised well while eavesdropping in the stomach.

But I wonder if she's already used to Shakira, her mom and her grandma altogether ~~yapping~~ talking. She's as fair as the mother, tapi nasib baik kepala dia martian macam bapak dia (yeah my kepala like Klingon), so betul laa, kan!
20th July, 2004.

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Al Fatihah to my late Uncle Rashid, the person who got me closest to nature when I used to spend time with his family during my primary school holidays.He showed us what it's like to spend time in the kebun, getting chased by the geese, feeding hens, plucking rambutans, stepping onto 5x1 inch length green worm (alien!), eating cendawan sisir in scrambled eggs, porcupine meat, pigeon soup, deer meat, learn how to slaughter poultries, how to run a laundry shop... at the end of his day he is still be so warm and friendly. Anyone who sees him will notice his smiling eyes and he'll have so much stories to share. His hospitality is undescribable. My first beach holiday (at PD) was his and aunty Na's effort, it seemed like the longest journey then. He brought me to Seremban once and I get to witness the grandest wedding in my life. Grandest because it was really full of honest, help and laughter and adat. Uncle Rashid had slaughtered a lamb as a gift, he put the head right behind my seat and I had the longest headache smelling it all the way to Seremban. The smell of mutton always reminds me of that trip and wedding. The only wedding I know that serves Ikan Sembilang gulai tempoyak and it tasted superb! The bride and groom were carried around the kampung on seats mounted on bamboo sticks. I was too busy staring at a mount of sand with lots of bees around it. His diabetes caused him to lose one of his leg, his eye sights were badly affected too.But he still greeted me and anyone else with his smiling eyes and mouth while keeping his face just 3 inches from the tv monitor. It was him who kept us entertained after 10 yrs we've not met and my intentions was to accompany him for awhile coz I was too lazy to take the effort the years before.Being with God is a better place, walk in the orchard, have all the animals you always wanted to rear and not worry about thieves anymore, see things in colour again and entertain ppl around you with your stories. Thank you uncle, it's been a priviledge knowing you, hope to see you again in our next life.

Visit your friends, visit your relatives too.

Singaporean Way of Projecting Islam

2005-04-20T06:14:00.000-07:00

Just like Buddhism, the flavour is different in India, Thailand, China etc.
Just like Christianity, there's Scientology, Catholic, New Testament etc.
Islam is not left out for having the three orientations, Sunni, Shi'i Islam and Kharijis.

And different races which embrace a common religion may project it differently too.

Whatever religion it may be, in places where the level of intelligence and civilisation are higher, the better the way the society project what they stand for, at least that's how it should be. Being religious alone by practising everything that're asked by God without understanding the rationale behind it is useless.

What a big difference being just religious and being both religious and spiritually intelligent are.

I beg not to be labelled 'holier-than-thou' for saying the above. I may be digressing from what I really want to explain from the beauty I saw in this article I'd like to share, heads up of Shaukat Ali. It is such a gem to just let it fade away.

Written by: Shaukat AliFeb

15, 05 1:53pm

According to a report in the Singapore Straits Times recently, the Islamic Religious Council of Singapore (Muis) has drawn up a tentative list of 10 desirable attributes for Singapore Muslims.According to the report, Muis put together this list '... after much brainstorming and dialogues' and will further discuss it with the Muslim community in Singapore this year.

According to Muis, a Singapore Muslim -

1. holds strongly to Islamic principles, but yet is adaptable to change when applying them in response to contemporary issues and challenges.

2. is morally and spiritually strengthened to face the challenges of modern society, especially the changing economy.

3. knows about Islamic history and civilisation, and is intellectually equipped to understand Islam and contemporary issues of the Islamic world.

4. believes that a good Muslim is also a good citizen.

5. is well adjusted to living in a secular state and multi-religious society, and contributes to Singapore and global humanity, including taking leadership roles.

6. is progressive, keeps up with the demands of modern society and practises Islam beyond rituals or form.

7. appreciates the richness of other civilisations, and is self-confident enough to interact with others and is prepared to learn from them.

8. is inclusive and practises pluralism where this does not go against Islamic principles.

9. wants to be a blessing to other communities by embracing universal values and principles, thus transcending minority status.

10. aims to be a model and inspiration to others.

It seems to me that all of the above would be relevant in the Malaysian context, especially when one looks at the angst generated by campaigns to instil Islamic values by dictate. What the Muslim community in Singapore is trying to do, as part of its "Singapore Muslim identity" project should be observed closely by the appropriate institutions in Malaysia.

It is worth noting, as the report said, that Muis, as part of the project, has been encouraging mosques to reach out to non-Muslims and improve their understanding of the religion; and to urge the 'madrasah' or religious school students to learn the humanities and sciences, and not just subjects on religion.Mosque leaders also receive training and attend courses to learn about national issues facing Singapore and social issues facing a globalised world.

It is ironic that the Muslim community in Singapore does not need a Jabatan Agama Islam enforcement counterpart or a group of the mat skodeng to monitor issues of morality in a resolutely secular, cosmopolitan city-state.That in itself should give us in Malaysia much food for thought.

New Age Noah's Ark

2005-04-19T05:57:00.000-07:00

It's school holiday and I'm testing out my ~~misleading~~ teaching abilities with my brothers. I was hoping that they would bring their previous test papers which could help me to study their areas of weaknesses and strengths and then tackle the right angle (fuiyooo!!). They brought none. So I desperately searched through the papers for those 'Pendidikan' supplement hoping there'd be something useful to use as an instant test papers. Suddenly I got sunked!

English for Science & Technology is one interesting subject.. for me! I remember watching this group of UPM students who proposed using rice husks. How? Well, first of course they'd suspend the oil slick using the floatline before a tanker comes to shoot rice husks unto it. Collected rice husks together with oil that sticks to it will then be squeezed to regather the oil. Even when the proposal was moved theoretically, we can point out a lot of flaw in it.

Not until the idea below came about, a new hope to save the earth's creatures, just that this time, they just need to stay put. Thanks to Dr. Omar Chaalal.

Now I wonder if any of this vessel is already carrying out its purpose.