Friday, February 22, 2013

Rasulullah - our role model

For the past 1 week, I have been listening to Mufti Ismail Menk's lectures on the life of Prophethood Muhammad (Peace be upon Him).

It is not about his history that is important. It is his character that is of GREAT value.

When I was in school, the exam questions of history of Muhammad(Peace be upon Him), is what year & place was he born. Who is the wife, when is the Battle of Badr, how many Muslims were there in the battle of Badr against how many Disbelievers & so on...

There was no emphasis on the GREAT character of Rasulullah.

How to deal with people who humiliate you in front of public? How to deal with people who has spit on your face 3 times? How to control your anger when facing with your enemy?

Rasulullah has great patience, because it is not him that matters. It is to Allah that is important.

He was cool & composed when being humiliated. He did not argue back by raising his voice or uttering bad words. He usually smiled back at his attackers & explained nicely to them. You don't fight fire with fire. You fight anger with facts & calmness.

Do you know that when you are angry, that is where you are at your most vulnerable? You are too obsessed in trying to defeat or attack your opponent, that most of the time you lose your focus. And when things get very heated, then just take a deep breath and walk away gracefully, leaving your attacker in a state of shock...

How Rasulullah dealt with his wife & daughters. He helped them, rather than dictated them. He would talk nicely to them, forgave them when they made mistakes & guided them nicely without even raising his voice. He was firm but soft. He led by example. He never demanded respect, he earned it with distinction.

How Rasulullah dealt with financial problem.. He never had any desires to have this worldly things like we crave for today. Sufficient to have good food & good house with minimum requirements. He never wanted anything more than he needed. Similarly, if we do not crave for any latest gadget/model, we do not desire to have big houses with nice gardens & swimming pool, we do not desire to have branded clothes & accesories, then what we earn is more than sufficient.

Dealing with tough bosses, family members & financial problems will cover about 80% of our current problems.

OK, how to deal with traffic jams. Just turn on the CD, & listen to the Holy Quran & it's Tafseer & you will have quality education time in the car. If you have family members in the car stuck in the jam, then let us talk/listen & have a good conversation together (another quality time with family).
Rasulullah has laid down solutions to your daily problem. Only us, that are being misled by our surroundings.

May Allah grant us goodness & understanding of this WONDERFUL gift (ISLAM & IMAN) from our MAKER..  

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Another opportunity to ponder.. Greatness of Allah

In Malaysia, the beginning of February 2013, there are a number of Public Holidays.

Beginning with 1st Feb, there is Federal Territory Day which falls on a Friday (long weekend), then Chinese New Year for 11 & 12 Feb 2013, which falls on Mon & Tue (again a long weekend)

Again, the opportunity for me to be with my beloved family & reflecting on life as a whole.

How I cherish these holiday moments with my family. Just being with them gives me great pleasure.

I took the opportunity to drive back to my wife's hometown in Kota Bharu. That is 480KM away from Kuala Lumpur. It has been a good 3 years that I did not go back to my mother (in-laws) place. The last time I went back was when my late mother (in law) past away in Nov 2010. I managed to pray at my favourite surau (Kg Teluk Chat, Wakaf Che Yeh).

I have a request that I made to Allah. This time, if Allah grant my wish, I will do 1 day fasting for thanking Allah. I have faith that Allah will grant my wish. The only question is..when?

My three daughters nowadays, where ever they go, they will bring a book. They are all reading books "The series of Unfortunate events" by Lemony Snicket. There are 13 books alltogether. That spurred me to also read a book.

I am currently reading a book "In the hands of the Taliban" by Yvonne Ridley. This is a story about a lady from Britain who was caught by the Talibans just after 9/11. She was a war journalist. But Allah gave her hidayah & she fell in love with Islam. She is currently an anti-war activist & a practicing Muslim.

How wonderful Islam is if we truly know how to submit ourselves to the only GOD - Allah.

I also discovered that there is a huge difference between "I have to do it" and "I want to do it". That is the level of sincerity in doing things. I want to do it gives the inner strength to push you to the limit. And if we can channel/focus our energy for the sake of Allah... masyaallah.. what an achievement.. Wow!! EVERYTHING we do is considered IBADAH

If I say.. I have to perform prayers (solat) & compare it with I want to perform solat (for the sake of Allah).. The energy level is different.
If I say.. I have to exercise 3 times a-week & compare it with I want to exercise 3 times a-week (for the sake of Allah), the result is different.

Enough for now, let us finish with doa.. May Allah grant us goodness in this world & the hereafter.. Ameen

Tuesday, February 5, 2013

LEGOLAND & blessings from Allah

This particular posting is about Syukur (Thanking & counting my blessings) to Allah.

On 25th January 2013, my family & I, we went to Malaysian International theme park, The LEGOLAND. It is in the south most of Peninsular Malaysia, at a place called Nusajaya, in the state of Johor.

We travel to JB & stopped over for window shopping at JPO (Johor Premier Outlet). Then off we went to LEGOLAND. The weather was very hot that day & the children had so much fun. I did not go on the main roller coaster ride as I am afraid that the excitement might have an effect on my "operated" heart.

Anyway, I thank Al-mighty Allah that I have the opportunity to be able to go to this place. I can never (& will never) count the blessings that Allah has given me & my family to this date.

Recently, I have been revisiting all 163 of my previous postings and review my position & what I have written. Whatever I write & promise to do, I will continue to do. To continue to do good deeds & to always remember Allah. To read the Quran & to learn Arabic in order to enhance my understanding of the revelation. To always know that whatever Allah has bestowed upon me is the BEST for me & Allah is the ALL Knowing.

I will not get what I wanted, but rest assured that I WILL ALWAYS GET WHAT I NEEDED.

All praise be to ALLAH. I bear witness that there is no God but ALLAH & Muhammad SAW is the messenger of ALLAH.

You are my Sustainer, Nourisher, Maker, Creator. Please give me the strength to be your slave until the last breath of my life. Protect me from syaitan & give me the strength to do what pleases you & abstain from the ones that displeases you.

Ameen ya rabbal alameen.