D.O.A.

17 Safar 1434

One thing I noticed here, the students here love to ask others to make doa for them. Anytime anywhere. I was sleeping the other day, and my flat mate came to me. "Kak, saya nak gi exam ni, doakan saya eh." And straight away after she left, I raised my hand to make doa-half asleep. Since it is now the exam period, a lot more people asked you to make doa for them.

The wonderful about doa in Islam is, if you make doa for someone without them knowing, the angels will make the same doa for you 10 times. Now, who won't make doa for their friends then?

Power of language

16 Safar 1434

Yesterday was my first day out and about with actual Egyptian Dollars in my hands. And people say that money can buy anything- it's not that I believe in it anyways. And yesterday made me believe less in it. It was so hard for me, needing to have someone accompany me wherever I wanted to go just so that I can get what I want translated into actual understandable words. Then there's the cultural and system differences that comes with it. I had spent so much money yesterday.

1. Vodafone

I bought my line yesterday. Having used to using the Cap system in Australia, I need to get used to using prepaid again in Malaysia and Egypt. NOT EASY. I settled with the 50LE recharge for my mobile internet. Happily, I started activating my packet data and started FBing and checking my emails. Happy happy… Being used to the postpaid mobile internet system in Australia, I thought the system here is similar, when you bought a recharge amount for your mobile- which you want certain amount for your internet usage, the saleslady will handle it and give you a mobile ready for usage.

Little did I know that I have to purchase the mobile package myself using my recharged amount. Sigh! I think she did mention it somehow yesterday because I heard she said something about 1LE etc etc but perhaps my friend misunderstood it as well because she never used a mobile internet before, just a simcard for her tablet. So….. I finished my 50LE for a 53MB worth of internet usage which could have bought me a 1GB internet plan. There goes. Language is power. Spoken language and cultural language. I will take this as a lesson for myself.

2. Sanad Talaqqi Quran and Arabic course

I paid for my registration yesterday. It cost me around 1720LE for both courses. It is not expensive. Believe me, for knowledge, it is not. Now I just need to utilise the teachers.

3. Biscuits and Drinks

Later we stopped over a grocery shop. I bought some interesting looking biscuits which have no price tags on. And bought a carton of mineral water. The system here, they do a lot of delivery for free. Cool huh? I didn't have to carry the heavy water myself, alhamdulillah. The water cost me 18LE but the total comes to 63LE. I was like…. What? I bought only 4 small items apart form the mineral water and these alone cost me 45LE?!

Then only my friend explained to me that imported goods here are very expensive. And I go… T_T

I was not told beforehand. And there was no price tag. And it was a small grocery shop, you don't normally expect them to sell expensive imported food. And it was my first day shopping remember? So I didn't even think much when I had to pay 63LE. Of course you are still confused with the currency itself. Hehe… Aish…. Langauge is power.

There goes my first day with Egyptian Dollar. Lesson learnt. Language is power. Never be afraid to communicate, whatever language you can use. Sign language, drawings, spoken language- anything. Communication is essential. Don't simply trust others to make decisions for you. Make informed decisions! Get the knowledge.

Shin-Kaf-Raa

15 Safar 1434

What does one really understand about being grateful?

Does being grateful mean feeling undeserving of something just because you got something more than others? Does it mean downgrading yourself due to that? For me, Being grateful means being thankful for what you got at that moment and utilising that opportunity for the best.

Today is the third day of me being in Egypt. Do I enjoy it so far? Alhamdulillah, it could not have been better- Abu Obaydah taught this way of answering. In other words. Whether or good or bad things happened, you always take it as the best that God has decreed for you. He- El Rabb knows best, remember?

There are three things I wanted to talk about today regarding Syukur.

Well, actually there are three main aspects:

1.  Money money money
2. The moment
3. The balance

Money, Money, Money

Being a fresh graduate from Australia, you can't really escape from being inquired about your life there. Comparing the lifestyle here and there, of course it is quite different.

For one- the lifestyle of Australian are much healthier; exercising, healthy food and all those government initiatives to make the people more healthy. Campaigns to walk one stop for the bus, cycle to work and others.

Then the cost of living- after the conversion of course. MashaAllah! It is like the sky and the earth.

Australian Dollar (AUD) is three times Malaysian Ringgit, and Malaysian Ringgit is twice Egyptian Dollar (LE). How much of a difference would that be between AUD and LE? When I explain to my flat mates about the cost of this and that over there in Australia, I do have that feeling. That I shouldn't be granted so much compared to them. You know the feeling when you are living so lavishly and when you see poor people on the streets, you feel like you shouldn't be living in that mansion of yours and distribute the wealth.

But as I was writing the intro of this entry, I thought to myself; being grateful does not mean that you feel unworthy of what you have received. It's about being thankful for what you received and using it for the best. Of course, never forget to say Alhamdulillah. Since I was given more opportunity (in terms of wealth) by the government for my studies, I should work harder to give back to the ummah.

The moment

So what's the big deal about the moment? Most of us only feel grateful when we have lost something. And it is always an outsider that needs to tell you about the great things that you have. Let's take myself for an instance. Before I left Adelaide, I have always wanted to come to Egypt- land of the Prophets to learn and sharpen my understanding on Islam. When I reached here, and attended my first Talaqqi Quran bi El Sanad (learning Quran with chains rooted back to Prophet Muhammad) with Sheikhah Karimah, I realised that I could've gotten the same opportunity from Umm Obaydah, living in Adelaide. I'm not sure whether or not it is bi El Sanad but from my observation, it seemed as such, and mind me, Umm Obaydah never charged anything for her classes.

Secondly, as I am here. Students here do feel appreciative of my enthusiasm for coming all the way, a fresh graduate to Egypt to learn. And then I realize. They (or maybe some of them) are just like me. They are not seizing the opportunity whilst in Egypt. Egypt is the centre of Islamic knowledge, and they are so many opportunities to learn talaqqi from the mashaaikh here. Then again, who am I to judge people. I was the same. So, an advice to Malaysian students sent overseas to study: Find the pearl in your local area.

• Melbourne have a lot of scholars and Islamic centre. It is like the America of Australia- lot of lots English speaking scholars. One of them being Al Kauthar Institute.
• Sydney have Lakemba- Sheikh Afrooz
• Adelaide have Islamic Information Centre (IICSA)- Abu Obayda
• Brisbane have HikmahWay- Sheikh Aslam
• Perth have Sheikh Yahya Ibrahim

Allahuakbar! The opportunities are vast. Don't just stick to your Malay community. Explore and grasp the opportunity before it is too late.

The Balance

Finally, for every mu'min, they must understand and find the right balance between being an abid and being  a khalifah. Being in zikr and being in fikr. I am currently reading the book Menjadi Mukmin Professional (Being a Professional Mu'min) by Ustaz Pahrol Mohammad Juoi.

I can't be grateful enough! It is, as I am reading through each page, the best book to read in this journey of self discovery. Sometimes I feel like I am too focusing on the worldly affairs that when I get here to Egypt, I just feel so left in my religion that I feel like continuing my stay here and perhaps study more of my religion. But this book has been helpful, Alhamdulillah. It is all about the balance. Understanding your religion and the worldly affairs are both important and you must strive for both. I will probably write an book review after I finish the book, but for now, I can safely say, I am happy with the book and others should definitely read it too. You won't regret, insyaAllah.

First Day into a New Dimension

14 Safar 1434

Alhamdulillah,

Today is my first day in Eygpt.

For such a long time, I've been wanting to come over to this Ardhul Anbiya'.

InsyaAllah, to set my goal and focus right, I will write down my aims here.

My goals of being in Egypt within this three months:

1. Be fluent in Arabic- for myself so that I can understand Quran. For others so that I can teach and explain Quran to others.
2. Learn Quran- to correct my reading insyaAllah.
3. Learn about Muslims here-how Muslims here differ from non-muslims in Australia
4. Travel a bit and learn of the Seerah
5. Find a Zauj- insyaAllah
6. Find myself.

At about 5.40am, I arrived into Egypt, specifically Cairo.

First thing at the airport, this one made me laugh and a bit annoyed actually at one point. The luggage carousel belt- They are semi-auto or semi-manual whichever you prefer to call it. But The bags actually have to queue and wait for traffic to enter the rotating circle belt. So if the belt is full, unless the bag owner remove their bag from the belt, the next bags can never get onto the belt. Imagine if the bag owners came late and these other bag owners had to wait for the traffic. I was amused, but as I realised it was taking forever and I have friends waiting to fetch me, I felt a bit agitated.

As I got out of the arrivals, I saw a lot of Arab men waiting to fetch people. I stole a few glances hoping to find Sarah, but no hope. There was only one lady in Niqab. She didn't react to me so I assumed she was not Sarah. As I walked pass those men, I felt somehow naked- well, that is how you feel when you walk in a public place and you know that is the 'centre stage', so yeah, I do feel that. Makes me appreciate hijab and niqab more. In my mind, the thought of Egyptian men waiting at the airport to 'seduce' Malay ladies came. Thank you Abah and some other people for giving me such thought. It might haunt me these three months.

Then I saw Sarah, her friend and a Musyrif. In Egypt, most of female Malay students will get Musyrif (a male company) to accompany them when they need to leave the house during night time. Quite convenient for the sisters, and you feel safe as well. But for me who have been used to travelling alone, I feel a bit hard, and also for the Musyrif, they really need a lot of sabr to have to accompany the sisters at night outings. May Allah grant them blessings for their works. We took the cab to Rumah Negeri Sembilan- in Egypt, taking a cab is expensive if you get a quote. Always try to get a metered cab, unless you know the estimate charge.

Egypt today is quite different from the Egypt I used to know when I came 16 years ago. It used to be less developed, except for the tourism spots. And the muslim female used to wear less colours- they are more fashionable and modern now. Some in a good way, but some I may say are not very pleasing to the eyes. The hustling and bustling of the vehicles on the road are just insane. You will hear honking every other second. But that hasn't changed since I was 5. If you are scared of crossing the road in Malaysian roads, you won't survive here.

From Rumah Negeri Sembilan in Sabi' area, we left for Abasiyyah, Sarah's place. Then I fell asleep at 10.30am. We promised to go out to get my money changed and buy a sim card for myself after Dzuhr but when I woke up, it was already 3pm. Jetlag-obviously. So, we got ready for the Smart Cirle- sort of a halaqah that Malaysian students here have and as usual, there will be FOOD! Egypt is fruit heaven-alhamdulillah. The fruit cocktail is probably my food of the day for today, you can get it from most fruit shops. This one is a combination of kiwi, apple, pear, strawberry and banana-heaven!

That night, we took the van taxi back to Azhar area. As we were waiting for the Musyrif to get us from the side street, I heard the Athan for Isya'. MasyaAllah, I think I cried- but it was night and dark, no one saw me. Perhaps because I missed the sound of athan. Have only been hearing athan from phones and laptops.

When I get home (the Negeri Sembilan House), I felt asleep again, and woke up at almost 12. Now I'm wide awake- 7am Malaysia. Hopefully my biological clock adjusts soon...

(Sorry, too lazy to upload photos)