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?
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.
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.
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.
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.
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:
Money
money money
The moment
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 beinga 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.
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:
Be fluent in Arabic- for myself so that I can
understand Quran. For others so that I can teach and explain Quran to
others.
Learn Quran-
to correct my reading insyaAllah.
Learn about
Muslims here-how Muslims here differ from non-muslims in Australia
Travel a bit
and learn of the Seerah
Find a Zauj-
insyaAllah
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...
Tapi tahukah kalian betapa berbedanya mereka saat cinta seorang lelaki menyapa hatinya??? Tak ada senyum bahagia, tak ada rona malu di wajah, tak ada buncah suka di dada...
Namun sebaliknya...
Ketika Akhwat Jatuh Cinta...
Yang mereka rasakan adalah penyesalan yang amat sangat, atas sebuah hijab yang tersingkap...
Ketika lelaki yang tak halal baginya, bergelayut dalam alam fikirannya, yang mereka rasakan adalah ketakutan yang begitu besar akan cinta yang tak suci lagi...
Ketika rasa rindu mulai merekah di hatinya, yang mereka rasakan adalah kesedihan yang tak terperih akan sebuahr asa yang tak semestinya…
Tak ada senyum bahagia, tak ada rona malu… Yang ada adalah malam-malam yang dipenuhi air mata penyesalan atas cinta-Nya yang ternodai… Yang ada adalah kegelisahan, karena rasa yang salah arah… Yang ada adalah penderitaan akan hati yang mulai sakit…
Ketika Akhwat Jatuh Cinta…
Bukan harapan untuk bertemu yang mereka nantikan, tapi yang ada adalah rasa ingin menghindar dan menjauh dari orang tersebut…
Tak ada kata-kata cinta dan rayuan…
Yang ada adalah kekhawatiran yang amat sangat, akan hati yang mulai merindukan lelaki yang belum halal atau bahkan tak akan pernah halal baginya…
Ketika mereka jatuh cinta, maka perhatikanlah, kegelisahan di hatinya yang tak mampu lagi memberikan ketenangan di wajahnya yang dulu teduh…
Mereka akan terus berusaha mematikan rasa itu bagaimanapun caranya… Bahkan kendati dia harus menghilang, maka itu pun akan mereka lakukan...
Alangka kasihannya jika akhwat jatuh cinta… Karena yang ada adalah penderitaan…
Tapi ukhti… Bersabarlah… Jadikan ini ujian dari Rabbmu…
Matikan rasa itu secepatnya… Pasang tembok pembatas antara kau dan dia… Pasang duri dalam hatimu, agar rasa itu tak tumbuh bersemai… Cuci dengan air mata penyesalan akan hijab yang sempat tersingkap...
Putar balik kemudi hatimu, agar rasa itu tetap terarah hanya padaNya…
Pupuskan rasa rindu padanya dan kembalikan dalam hatimu rasa rindu akan cinta Rabbmu…
Ukhti… Jangan khawatir kau akan kehilangan cintanya…
Karena bila memang kalian ditakdirkan bersama, maka tak akan ada yang dapat mencegah kalian bersatu…
Tapi ketahuilah, bagaimana pun usaha kalian untuk bersatu, jika Allah tak menghendakinya, maka tak akan pernah kalian bersatu…
Ukhti… Bersabarlah… Biarkan Allah yang mengaturnya... Maka yakinlah... Semuanya akan baik-baik saja…
Semua Akan Indah Pada Waktunya…
Doa buat renungan dan amalan :
Ya Allah…kurniakanlah kami pasangan yang soleh… yang menjaga dirinya… yang menjaga hatinya hanya untuk yang halal baginya… yang sentiasa memperbaiki dirinya… yang sentiasa berusaha mengikuti sunnah Rasulullah… yang baik akhlaknya… yang menerima kami apa adanya… yang akan membawa kami menuju Jannah Mu Ya Rabb…
Kabulkan ya Allah… Kerana hati kami teramat lemah…
Saya menerima email mengenai sungai di bawah laut. Mengkagumkan! Subhanallah. Demikian hebat ciptaan Allah, apakah belum tergerak di hati kita untuk mentaatiNya sepenuh hati?
Penglihatan kurniaan Allah adalah untuk melihat bukti kebesaran dan kehebatan Ilahi. Nikmat penglihatan sungguh besar buat kita semua. Tujuan ia dicipta guna membawa hati kepada Allah. Jika penglihatan diguna melihat perkara yang diharamkan Allah, maka pudarlah cahaya iman yang menjadi matlamat manusia diwujudkan. Betapa banyak perkara halal yang boleh dilihat, namun nafsu manusia yang cenderung kepada kejahatan lebih suka memilih perkara yang diharamkan. Perkara haram adalah racun kepada jiwa manusia seperti foto-foto dan perbuatan lucah yang banyak dicari manusia hari ini.
Artikel di bawah sudah diedit ke Bahasa Melayu. Artikel asal dalam Bahasa Indonesia.
“Dan Dialah yang membiarkan dua laut mengalir (berdampingan); yang ini tawar lagi segar dan yang lain masin lagi pahit; dan Dia jadikan antara keduanya dinding dan batas yang menghalangi.”
(Al Furqan 25:53)
Jika saudara termasuk orang yang gemar menonton rancangan TV `Discovery’ pasti kenal Mr.Jacques Yves Costeau. Dia seorang ahli oceanografer dan ahli selam terkemuka dari Perancis. Orang tua berambut putih ini sepanjang hidupnya menyelam ke pelbagai dasar samudera di seantero dunia dan membuat filem dokumentari tentang keindahan alam dasar laut untuk ditonton di seluruh dunia.
Pada suatu hari, ketika sedang melakukan eksplorasi di bawah laut, tiba-tiba dia menemui beberapa kumpulan mata air tawar yang segar dan sangat sedap rasanya kerana tidak bercampur/tidak melebur dengan air laut yang masin di sekelilingnya, seolah-olah ada dinding atau membran yang membatasi keduanya.
Fenomena ganjil itu memeningkan Mr. Costeau dan mendorongnya untuk mencari penyebab terpisahnya air tawar dari air masin di tengah-tengah lautan. Dia mulai berfikir, jangan-jangan itu hanya halusinasi atau khalayan sewaktu menyelam. Waktu pun terus berlalu setelah kejadian tersebut, namun dia masih belum menemui jawapan yang memuaskan tentang fenomena ganjil tersebut.
Sehingga suatu hari dia bertemu dengan seorang profesor muslim, kemudian dia menceritakan fenomena ganjil itu. Profesor itu teringat pada ayat Al-Quran tentang bertemunya dua lautan (Surah Ar-Rahman ayat 19-20) yang sering dikaitkan dengan Terusan Suez . Ayat itu berbunyi,
Maksudnya: Di antara keduanya ada sempadan yang tidak boleh ditembus.
(Al-Rahman 55:20)
Kemudian dibacakan surat Al Furqan ayat 53 di atas.
Selain itu, dalam beberapa kitab tafsir, ayat tentang bertemunya dua lautan tapi tidak bercampur airnya ditafsirkan sebagai lokasi muara sungai, di mana terjadi pertemuan antara air tawar dari sungai dan air masin dari laut. Namun tafsiran itu tidak menjelaskan ayat berikutnya dari surat Al-Rahman ayat 22 yang berbunyi,
Maksudnya: Keluar dari keduanya mutiara dan marjan.
(Al-Rahman 55: 22)
Padahal tiada mutiara yang dihasilkan di muara sungai.
Terpesonalah Mr. Costeau mendengar ayat-ayat Al-Quran itu, melebihi kekagumannya melihat keajaiban pemandangan yang pernah dilihatnya di lautan yang dalam. Al Quran ini mustahil disusun oleh Muhammad yang hidup di abad ke tujuh, suatu zaman yang mana belum ada peralatan selam yang canggih untuk mencapai lokasi yang jauh terpencil di kedalaman samudera. Berita tentang fenomena ganjil 14 abad yang silam benar-benar suatu mukjizat. Akhirnya terbukti pada abad 20, Mr. Costeau berkata bahawa Al Quran memang sesungguhnya kitab suci yang berisi firman Allah, yang seluruh kandungannya adalah benar belaka. Justeru itu, dia lalu memeluk Islam.
Allahu Akbar…! Mr. Costeau mendapat hidayah melalui fenomena teknologi kelautan. Maha Benar Allah yang Maha Agung. Shadaqallahu Al `Azhim.
Rasulullah s.a.w. berkata, “Sesungguhnya hati manusia akan berkarat sebagaimana besi yang dikaratkan oleh air”. Bila seorang bertanya, “Apakah caranya untuk menjadikan hati-hati ini bersih kembali?” Rasulullah s.a.w. berkata, “Selalulah ingat mati dan membaca Al Quran.”
Jika anda seorang penyelam, maka anda harus mengunjungi Cenote Angelita , Mexico . Disana ada sebuah gua. Jika anda menyelam sampai kedalaman 30 meter, airnya air segar (tawar), namun jika anda menyelam sampai kedalaman lebih dari 60 meter, airnya menjadi air asin, lalu anda dapat melihat sebuah “sungai” di dasarnya, lengkap dengan pohon dan daun daunan.
Setengah pengkaji mengatakan, ia bukanlah sungai biasa, ia adalah lapisan hidrogen sulfida, nampak seperti sungai… luar biasa bukan? Lihatlah betapa hebatnya ciptaan Allah SWT.
Atau siapakah yang telah menjadikan bumi tempat menetap dan telah menjadikan sungai-sungai di antara bahagian-bahagiannya serta telah menjadikan untuknya gunung-ganang yang menetapnya; dan juga telah menjadikan di antara dua laut (yang masin dan yang tawar) sekatan (semula jadi) yang memisahnya? Adakah sebarang tuhan yang lain bersama-sama Allah? (Tidak!) bahkan kebanyakan mereka (yang musyrik itu) tidak mengetahui.
Atau siapakah yang memperkenankan doa orang yang menderita apabila ia berdoa kepadaNya, dan yang menghapuskan kesusahan, serta menjadikan kamu pengganti (umat-umat yang telah lalu) mendiami dan menguasai bumi? Adakah sebarang tuhan yang lain bersama-sama Allah? Amat sedikit di antara kamu yang mengingati (nikmat Allah itu).
(Al-Naml 27:62)
Nota: Terdapat perselisihan pendapat mengenai keislaman Jaques Costeau. Hal itu sama ada benar atau tidak, saya sudah mengulasnya dalam ruangan komen. Terdapat perkongsian idea daripada para pembaca yang saya luluskan penerbitannya. Harap dapat baca semua komen terutama yang memberi fakta berbeza untuk mendapat gambaran lebih jelas tentang artikel ini.
Apa yang penting yang mahu ditonjolkan di sini ialah kebesaran Allah dalam penciptaanNya dan bahawa al-Quran itu mukjizat yang agung. Dan yang lebih penting lagi ialah jiwa kita sendiri bersedia untuk memperakui kebesaran Ilahi seterusnya menggerakkan saraf dan seluruh anggota badan untuk sujud dan patuh kepadaNya. Sama ada Jaques benar-benar Islam atau tidak sebelum kematiannya, urusannya telah selesai di sisi Allah. Kita hanya perlu fikirkan bagaimana nasib kita sendiri di akhirat kelak serta bagaimanakah penutup episod hidup kita di dunia fana ini.
