a new life of DOYAgrl (:

Nak 'Couple' Boleh Tak?

2007-12-12T22:35:00.000-08:00

This is really good article.

Nak 'Couple' Boleh Tak?

:)

2007-12-12T17:18:00.000-08:00

:) :) :)

SHUKR Islamic Clothing

2007-12-12T12:26:00.000-08:00

Salam :)

Check out this webby.

SHUKR Islamic Clothing

Oh Allah. My eyes got so rambang when I was browsing this website. lol. I am so loving it!

For the past few days, I did browsed some other sites for Muslimah fashion worldwide, but I find most of them being influenced with too much of Western essence in their fashion. This one is just right. Lovely :)

What's So Special About DzulHijjah?

2007-12-12T09:52:00.000-08:00

The first 10 days of this month are full of blessings and are very special for many reasons, as followed:

#01: Allaah swears an oath by these 10 days, and when Allah swears an oath by something it indicates its importance and great benefit.

Allaah says (interpretation of the meaning): “By the dawn; by the ten nights” [al-Fajr 89:1-2].

Ibn ‘Abbaas, Ibn al-Zubayr, Mujaahid and others of the earlier and later generations said that this refers to the first ten days of Dhu’l-Hijjah. Ibn Katheer said: “This is the correct opinion.” (Tafseer Ibn Katheer, 8/413)

#02: The Prophet (sallallahu'alayhi wasallam) testified that these are the best days of this world and Allah has preferred them over all the other days of the year

#03: The Prophet (sallallahu'alayhi wasallam) commanded us to recite a lot of Dhikr (remembrance) of Allah, example – Allahu Akbar, Laa ilaha illallah, Alhamdulillah, Subhaanallah

#04: These days include the Day of Arafaah, on which Allaah perfected / completed the religion of Islam and fasting on this day will expiate for the sins of two years

#05: These days include the pilgrims (hujjaj) performing Hajj in Makkah

#06: These days include the Day of Sacrifice – Eid ul Adhaa

Ibn ‘Abbaas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (sallallahu'alayhi wasallam) said:

“There are no days in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Allaah than these ten days.” The people asked, “Not even jihaad for the sake of Allaah?” He said, “Not even jihaad for the sake of Allaah, except in the case of a man who went out to fight giving himself and his wealth up for the cause, and came back with nothing.”

Hadith Reported by Sahih Al-Bukhaari

- Adapted from: “Virtues of the Ten Days of Dhul Hijjah” by Shaykh Muhammad Salih al-Munajjid and “Superiority of the first Ten Days of Dhul Hijjah” by Shaykh ibn al-Uthaymeen. (Courtesy of AlQamarDesigns)

Seeking 'Ilm

2007-12-11T22:47:00.000-08:00

Sabda Rasulullah..

2007-12-11T21:07:00.000-08:00

Sabda Rasulullah (sollallahu 'alaihi wassalam) maksudnya:

“Tidak ada sesuatu yang paling disukai ALLAH subhanahu wa Ta'ala selain daripada dua titisan dan dua kesan. Dua titisan itu ialah titisan air mata yang keluar kerana takutkan ALLAH subhanahu wa Ta'ala & titisan darah yang tumpah di dalam perjuangan di jalan Allah. Manakala dua kesan ialah kesan berjuang di jalan Allah SWT dan kesan kerana menunaikan kefardhuan yang telah difardhukan oleh Allah.”

(at-Tirmidzi)

Apabila cinta Allah sudah sempurna maka Allah s.w.t akan berfirman:

"Barangsiapa yang menyakiti wali-Ku (kekasihKu), maka Aku isytiharkan perang kepadanya. Tidaklah hamba-Ku mendekati-Ku dengan suatu pekerjaan yang lebih Aku sukai daripada dia mengerjakan apa yang Aku telah fardhukan keatasnya. Dan sentiasalah hamba-Ku mendekatkan dirinya kepada-Ku dengan melakukan yang sunat sehingga Aku cinta kepadanya.

Maka apabila Aku telah mencintainya, adalah Aku-lah yang menjadi pendengarannya yang ia mendengar dengannya, dan penglihatannya yang ia melihat dengannya, dan tangannya yang ia tamparkan dengannya, dan kakinya yang ia berjalan dengannya; Dan sesungguhnya, jika ia meminta kepada-Ku, nescaya Aku berikan kepadanya; Dan sesungguhnya, jika ia memohon perlindungan kepada-Ku nescaya Aku berikan perlindungan kepadanya."

(Sabda Nabi Muhammad sollallhu 'alaihi wassalam, riwayat Imam Bukhari)

Zikir Munajat.. MasyaAllah..

2007-12-11T20:46:00.000-08:00

Syukran ya Allah!

2007-12-09T17:59:00.000-08:00

My parents went to Johore this morning, so I requested for a novel highly recommended by a sister in Islam. hehe. The novel is entitled "Tautan Hati" by Fatimah Syarha. I was reading the first chapter and was shedding tears already masyaAllah!!

The first chapter highlights a girl named Imtisal. She was mentally battling the whispers of the DEVIL LAKNATULLAH which insisted that Allah has characteristics imaginable by human.

Subhanallah! Allah is far beyond the imagination of mankind. We seek refuge in Allah from any intrusive thoughts.

& MasyaAllah I am really syukr to Allah because ayah has bought for me a CD of Qur'an recitation by Syeikh Saad Said Al-Ghamidi! I really adore the CD cover too (the flowers and fonts are in purple. hehe).

Hasbi Rabbi jallallah
My Lord is enough for me

Ma fi qolbi ghoirullah
None in my heart except ALLAH

Nur Muhammad sollallah
The light of Muhammad peace be upon him

Laa ilaha illallah
There is no God but Allah

Ma fi qobi ghoirullah...
I will try my best to love my Creator with all my heart. I do not wish to risk losing the iman and the light of hidayah from Allah just because of mere infatuation. hehs. Infatuation. What happiness can it assure? It's a dirt of the shoulder.

Ya Allah, guide my heart towards You. I do not want to be deceived by this world. Gee. Now I feel very guilty. You wana know why. A few days back, I was captivated by the games my classmates were indulging in Facebook. I was just watching them trying to beat high scores. In addition to that, being able to send stuffs like cute cupcakes, flowers.. etc. I was so enthralled that the thought of creating a Facebook account came across my mind.

But I gota remind myself! Nadzirah, wake up & for goodness sake you are a Muslim. You have your special entertainment of zikrullah and Qur'an! You will never get to experience that spiritual lift if you are so busy with Facebook. Then you will grumble if your iman is weak. Like what Mr. Wong loves to say, that is so "DUH".

Watching "Qaish & Laila" the other night also left a strong note to myself. For those who have watched, remember the part which Laila wanted to share her personal feelings about Qaish to her sister? Her sister refused to listen. Instead, she gave a gentle but strict reminder.. "Remember our mission here."

In the story, their mission was to provide aid for the people in Afghanistan. But applying it in the context of a Muslim's life, our mission in this temporary world is to worship Allah. So yes, "Remember our mission here".

Coming Back to You

2007-12-08T22:39:00.000-08:00

The song "Hidayah Keinsafan" describes exactly how I am feeling..

It is time that I shape a new life. Maybe not so much of brand new, but a better life. I yearn to develop a better life. I hope for nothing else but a strong iman. I realised with iman, it has kept me strong and steady in facing the reality of this world.

The current status: I have failed. I lost my focus in seeking pleasure from Allah. I have drifted far from siratul mustaqim (the straight path). I am enveloped in oblivion. Why? Why? The answers are screaming right at my face. My heart was blinded. My iman had weakened.

A human born with feelings, I do have a liking towards a Muslim guy for quite some time. I was worried whether this would attain anger from Allah, but was assured by an aunt that feeling itself is a gift from the Creator. It is natural to have a crush on someone.

Things changed when I received an sms from a kind ukhti yesterday. It reminded that those whose hearts are filled with love towards someone not in accordance to Islam, it is IMPOSSIBLE for the light of ALLAH to penetrate into the heart.

Upon reading that message, I froze. I was speechless. I was guilt-ridden.

Everything crumbled down on me. I cannot afford to lose the nur (light) of Allah. I enjoyed the presence of iman in my heart; why am I foolishly letting the sweetness of iman fade away?

How can I possibly dedicate a portion of my heart to someone when I am born in this world solely to extol and love Allah? Yes, feeling is a gift from Allah, but it is also a test from Him. Just ask yourself, when you think about that 'special someone', how is it possible that you remember Allah at the same time?

Aku leka dengan duniaku
Tiada ku tahu dunia ini palsu

I realise I am not making my way towards Allah wholeheartedly. I was carried away with this feeling of crush. I have much hatred towards syaitan laknatullah, but the irony is that I am subconsciously obeying his evil whispers. It was an abrupt decision made, but I chose to let go of this feeling. I am in no regret.

Aku kembali mengikut hidayahMu

God, forgive me. Ya Ghaffar..

Hidayah Keinsafan

2007-12-08T01:20:00.000-08:00

Di malam sepi
Hatiku mula menangisi
Kerana keinsafan yang mula menyelubungiku

Disaluti angin bayu
Terkenang daku pada dosa yang lalu
Sejarah silam zaman kejahilanku
Adakah diampunkan

Aku leka dengan duniaku
Tiada ku tahu dunia ini palsu
Mencari kepuasan mengejar harta
Gelaplah hati
Butalah mata

Ku insafi segala dosa
Taubat dan keampunan daku pinta
Adakah dosaku kan terhapus
Adakah diampunkan

Kau Tuhanku yang satu
Aku kembali mengikut hidayahMu
Dari kealpaan dosa yang melalaikan
Kembali ke dasar kebenaran
Dari segala kealpaan

Hayya 'Alassolah

2007-12-07T10:43:00.000-08:00

Salaam.

I would like to share with you an ukhti's blog.

http://mirror-to-islam.blogspot.com

I urge you to read the post dated 6th December 2007, entitled "Rijalun - Lelaki Yang Tidak Dilalaikan Dengan Solat". MasyaAllah. I was beguiled by the eagerness of Muslims before us in performing solah. Upon hearing the adzan (call to prayer), they immediately and completely left the matters of dunia (world) to worship and extol Allah the Almighty.

"Everybody stopped whatever they were doing. The shoppers who were busy carrying their stuffs will let go of them on the ground. The shopkeepers who were holding packages of flour will let the flour dropped on the table. The people paying will just drop their money on the ground. Everyone were rushing towards the mosque to take their wudu'k ("Back in History", 2007, para. 2).

I remember in one of the lectures, an ustadz illustrated the following situation:

We are engrossed in watching TV. Then we hear the adzan calling us to worship Allah, but our eyes are glued to the screen. When the adzan resonates "Hayya 'alassolah.. hayya 'alassolah.." which means "Come for prayer.. come for prayer..", we ignore the call and continue watching the TV.

The question is: WHO IS GOD TO US? Allah, or the TV??

O Allah, make us among those who yearn to worship you earnestly, & sheild us from any reluctance of the heart. Amin.

Semi-Holiday :)

2007-12-06T18:14:00.000-08:00

Salaam to everyone :)

MasyaAllah I am in such high spirits today! I was already in the "hooray-hooray" mood since the start of school this morning. We practised on Informative/Persuasive Speech and my group presented a persuasive speech on why death penalty is morally wrong. The class had a heated debate about that afterwards. lol. Had APA citation revision cum lunch with Yue Shi at McDono (my term for McDonalds, also known as Macky! :D ). Hmm some people just love dashing across the road ay. I wonder who is that. haha :D

APA (I call it "appaaaa") citation test was somewhat a breeze masyaAllah. I hope to score well for it insyaAllah.

Tabby is 17 today. I wished her a happy birthday in Mandarin, but I have forgotten what is it already. oops. hehe. We had a small celebration in class. Glenn was so sweet to bake a chocolate cake for us. :)

The journey home was exhilarating! :D Since the weather is cold (masyaAllah I love the weather!), I wrapped myself with a black shawl. Every now and then I was swishing the shawl to the back and it reminded me of Hindi movies. haha. Like when someone in the movie does that out of anger, it will be followed by a thunderstorm sound effect. lol. "macam faham". nevermind if you do not get it. :D

Anyway, there is no school tomorrow! I want to polish up on the Paragraph Exercise and maybe list out more things to do later. Thank You Allah for giving me happiness. I hope while I am enjoying this feeling, I won't forget You ya Rabb. :)

o(^.^)o

Salaam!

"And as for those who are guided, He increases them in guidance and gives to them their Taqwaa (dutifulness)."
[Surah Muhammad: 17]

Angels of Allah

2007-12-03T12:12:00.000-08:00

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said:

"I have been given permission to relate to you about the Angels of Allah – the Most High – that carry the 'Arsh (Throne). Between one of the Angels' ear and shoulder is the distance of a seven hundred year journey."

Saheeh: Related by Aboo Daawood (no. 4272) and al-Bayhaqee in al-Asmaa was-Sifaat (no. 398), from Jaabir ( radiyallaahu 'anhu ). It was authenticated by Imaam adh-Dhahabee in al-'Uluww (p. 58).

Allah, What Is the Hikmah Behind This?

2007-12-02T08:24:00.000-08:00

Salaam. Sobah ul khair (good morning)!

I would like to blog for awhile before doing research for in-class writing assignment this coming Wednesday insyaAllah.

Ever wonder why we tend to be easily upset when calamity strikes? It can be as minor as having a speck of dust entering your eyes, or the other extreme of being betrayed or losing a loved one. When this happens, do not go "dammit" and grumble. The fastest (and most effective) cure from my point of view, is to ask "Allah, what is the hikmah (wisdom) behind this?".

Lol. This incident happened early this morning. I was doing the bit of laundry and when I rose to stand up, my head hit the edge of the low ceiling at the side of the washroom. Yes, it was a sore in the head because I got up too fast haha. There was this loud "thud" sound even.

But Alhamdulillah, the first thing that came to mind was the question "Allah, what is the hikmah behind this?" and immediately I forgot about the thud thingy. :D Then I told my mum "Agaknye dah lepas terhantuk, orang terus boleh hafal banyak surah eh." haha insyaAllah ;)

What is good about asking that question is that positive thoughts will follow. I strongly feel that this is what causes relief from the agony.

Alhamdulillah, all thanks and praises to Allah cus learning this technique works perfectly well for me masyaAllah. Things occur only with Allah's permission. Of course He would not allow adversity to happen for no reason. (ya Allah I solely trust You on that. :D )

The incident is just a light example of course. But assure yourself, you are not alone. Calamity strikes everyone on earth. What differs is the level of severity - and the level of imaan we have to Allah.

"Are the people proud of this thinking that they will be left alone because they say, 'We believe and they will not be tested?

"Apakah manusia itu mengira bahawa mereka dibiarkan saja mengatakan; 'Kami telah beriman,' sedangkan mereka tidak diuji?"

(Surah Al-Ankabut:2)

Have a good weekend people ;)
Salaam be upon you.

The Sin of Speaking Without Knowledge

2007-12-01T01:55:00.000-08:00

'Abdur-Rahmaan ibn Mahdee (may Allah have mercy on him) mentions:

We were with Maalik Ibn Anas when a man came saying:
"O Abu 'Abdullaah, I have travelled a distance of six months. The people of my land sent me to ask you about a matter."

So he said:
"Ask!"

So the man asked Maalik Ibn Anas some things, so he replied:
"I do not know"

...and the man thought he had come to someone who knew everything, so he said:
"What shall I tell the people of my land when I return to them?"

He said:
"Say to them: Maalik Ibn Anas does not know."

A Sentence from the Treasures of Paradise

2007-11-30T11:59:00.000-08:00

La haula wala quwata illa billah - There is neither might nor power except with Allah.

Listen to this one insyaAllah!

Anas (radhi Allahu anh) berkata, "Bersabda Rasulullah (sollallhu alaihi wassalam) yang bermaksud,

Siapa membaca selawat untukku sekali, maka Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala memberikannya 10 selawat. Barangsiapa membaca selawat untukku 10 kali, maka Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala memberinya 100 selawat.

Dan barangsiapa membaca selawat ke atasku 100 kali, maka Allah akan mencatat pada dua matanya dua kebebasan: bebas dari sifat munafik dan bebas dari api neraka. Bahkan di hari kiamat, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala memasukkannya ke dalam syurga bersama-sama dengan mereka yang mati shahid."

Remember Allah!

2007-11-29T11:45:00.000-08:00

Remember Allah wherever we are! :D yeah hehe. I remember performing my zuhur prayers behind the lecture hall last semester as there was no time to pray in musollah. Yue Shi was guarding the area while I was praying. haha :)

My grandmother likes to remind us, "Sembahyang jangan lambat-lambat. Nanti malaikat balik." Aye ma'am! Love her very much (and my cute grandfather too).

Anyway, I came across this in one of my the emails I got.
Allahu Musta'an = Allah is the One who grants success :D

Allahu Allah.. I can't live without You! :D

Your Heart is the Pillar of Your Worship

2007-11-28T18:28:00.000-08:00

by 'Abdullah 'Azzam (may Allah have Mercy upon him)

"...the heart is the machine that drives all acts of worship. It is what moves the entire body!

As long as the heart is alive, then the limbs will be alive, and the soul will open itself up to worship. However, if the heart becomes diseased, then worship will become too heavy on the soul, leading to it eventually disliking and hating - and we seek refuge with Allah from this - worship. Because of this, Allah - the Glorified and Exalted - said, regarding the prayer:

"...and truly, it is extremely heavy and hard except on those who are submissive..."
[al-Baqarah: 45]

The prayer is heavy, because one's legs and hands are not what get up for the prayer. What gets up for the prayer are the heart and the soul.

"Verily, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allah, but it is He Who deceives them. And when they stand up for the prayer, they stand with laziness and to be seen of men, and they do not remember Allah but little."
[an-Nisa': 142]

Growing Up With Qur'an

2007-11-28T14:24:00.000-08:00

Hopefully my son will be like the boy in the video. haha :) insyaAllah amin ya Allah.

Talk by Khalid Yasin.

2007-11-28T12:25:00.000-08:00

Surah An-Najm by Muhammad bin Saalim Al Kanderi

2007-11-27T00:21:00.000-08:00

:)

2007-11-26T19:41:00.000-08:00

Thanks Yue Shi for the 'enlightenment'! haha :)

What Allah Has Forbidden & Hated For You

2007-11-26T15:24:00.000-08:00

[Sahih Bukhari: Volume 3, Book 41, Number 591]

Narrated Al-Mughira bin Shu'ba (Radi Allah Anhu): The Prophet (sal-allahu-alleihi-wasallam) said:

"Allah has forbidden for you:
(1) to be undutiful to your mothers,
(2) to bury your daughters alive,
(3) to not to pay the rights of the others (e.g. charity, etc.) and
(4) to beg of men (begging).

And Allah has hated for you
(1) vain, useless talk, or that you talk too much about others,
(2) to ask too many questions, (in disputed religious matters) and
(3) to waste the wealth (by extravagance)."

Allah the Forgiver of Sin, the Accepter of Repentance

2007-11-26T11:03:00.000-08:00

Narrated Abu Huraira (Radhi Allah Anhu): I heard the Prophet Muhammad (sal-allahu-alleihi-wasallam) saying,

"If somebody commits a sin and then says, 'O my Lord! I have sinned, please forgive me!' and his Lord says, 'My slave has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for it, I therefore have forgiven My slave (his sins).'

Then he remains without committing any sin for a while and then again commits another sin and says, 'O my Lord, I have committed another sin, please forgive me,' and Allah says, 'My slave has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for it, I therefore have forgiven My slave (his sin).

Then he remains without Committing any another sin for a while and then commits another sin (for the third time) and says, 'O my Lord, I have committed another sin, please forgive me,' and Allah says, 'My slave has known that he has a Lord Who forgives sins and punishes for it I therefore have forgiven My slave (his sin), he can do whatever he likes."

[Sahih Bukhari : Volume 9, Book 93, Number 598]

Al-Falah Youth Talk

2007-11-25T09:21:00.000-08:00

Salaam everyone!

As I am leisurely nestled in my room typing this post away, I still cannot forget the exuberance from the date today which is still enveloping me! MasyaAllah.. Thank you Allah for letting me go out on a date with my beloved sisters - Sis HANI! :D, Sis Iffah, Sis Rafiqah & Sis Lin! :)

We attended the youth discussion, about developing moral conduct, at Al-Falah mosque in the morning and I must say that I had benefited MUCH from the session masyaAllah. There is a uniqueness to this event which enthralled me. Unlike normal talks in which audience becomes rather passive and only allowed to voice out during Q&A, this was very much a different.

Ustadz Saif-ur-Rahman shared with us stories of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and his perfect conduct which we are to emulate insyaAllah. For example, how Prophet Muhammad continued to go to the mosque everyday despite having waste and stones thrown at him.

And in another encounter, a poor man presented to Prophet Muhammad a fruit. Instead of passing it to his companions to have a bite of it like he usually did, Prophet Muhammad ate the fruit all by himself. When his companions asked him why, he replied that the fruit was sour as it was still unripe. He did not want his companions to taste the sourness of the fruit. MasyaAllah..

Ustadz also noted that if you manage to conceal someone's negative habits, Allah will in return conceal your faults and bad deeds during the Day of Judgment. I feel it is better to reflect on our weaknesses than spread around faults of a person like wildfire.

Whoever emulates Rasulullah, it is deemed as he is following Allah."

Even the smallest deed entitles a reward from Allah! Worshipping Allah (hablum minallah) is not complete if we do not nurture our relationship with human beings (hablum minannas). Smiling, giving sadaqah, helping an elderly cross the road are some of the ways to develop hablum minannas. On top of that, we have to make the small deeds a habit as Rasulullah emphasized on the importance of istiqamah (consistency).

Relationship with Allah and human beings come in a package, incomplete with the absence of any one. According to Ustadz Saif, "A brownie isn't complete without the melted chocolate and vanilla ice cream" I could not tahan when he was describing the brownie part. lol.

Following that, we were given a few questions and divided into groups to discuss. Sis Rafiqah, Sis Iffah, Sis Lin, Sis Hani, Sis Fazliah (it was nice to meet her yesterday!) and myself. We called ourselves "The Ainul Mardhiahs". :D Given the huge white sheets of paper, a marker and limited time, we kicked in quite a substantial amount of input. Best! Just like those groupworks in primary school. hehe.

InsyaAllah I will continue on what we have derived from the youth discussion. Best best :)

Salaam alaykum.

Kewafatan Rasulullah (peace be upon him)

2007-11-24T01:15:00.000-08:00

Yay!

2007-11-23T23:07:00.000-08:00

I am going on a date tomorrow :D Bi iznillahi ta'ala.

Nasihat Umar Al-Khattab

2007-11-22T14:19:00.000-08:00

Saiyidina Umar Al-Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) berkata:

· Orang yang banyak ketawa itu kurang wibawanya.

· Orang yang suka menghina orang lain, dia juga akan dihina.

· Orang yang mencintai akhirat, dunia pasti menyertainya.

· Barangsiapa menjaga kehormatan orang lain, pasti kehormatan
dirinya akan terjaga.

Think Before You Speak

2007-11-21T16:18:00.000-08:00

"Before you speak, let your words pass through three gates. At the first gate, ask yourself 'Is it true.' At the second gate ask, 'Is it necessary.' At the third gate ask, 'Is it kind.'"

Sheikh Abdur Rahman As-Sudais

Talking Cats!

Watching TV - Halal or Haram?

2007-11-20T09:31:00.000-08:00

Most, if not all, households in the West have a television nowadays. It is so common and part of every day life that many may consider it odd if you don't have one.

As Muslims we need to take care of our Deen first. So is television Halaal or Haraam? Some consider it totally haraam due to what is broadcasted nowadays. Here are some points from a lecture given by Dr. Saalih as-Saalih [A] to clarify this issue insha'Allaah whether or not TV is haraam.

Dr. Saalih as-Saalih started by going through the ill-things that are shown in television. Television shows violence, criminals, fights.. it contains unlawful music. It shows superficial and unrealistic things. It shows free-mixing of sexes, nakedness, gays, lesbians... distorted information about Islaam and Muslims. In soap operas you witness cheating, unlawful relationships, drinking haraam things. The extent of these things vary but in many cases they exist.

Watching television falls under three cases:

(1) Watching that which is of benefit for one's Deen / beneficial matters of this life - this is ok yet conditional -> it should not become a means to watch haraam.

(2) Seeing that which is harmful to one's deen -- this is haraam. The mu'min, believer, is obligated to protect himself and his family in Deen.

(3) Seeing that which is of no benefit or harm. This is non-sense. It is wasting time.

We should understand that the TV is an instrument. In itself there's no rules regarding it. The ruling applies to its use. If it is used in haraam (showing haraam pictures, foolishnes, cheating, deviant creeds, altering realities, inciting fitan etc) then it is clearly haraam.

If it used for the recitation of Qur'aan, enjoining what is right and forbidding what is wrong etc it becomes permissible from this angle.

If the evil exceeds the good things, it becomes haraam.

Al-Falah Youth Talk

2007-11-19T23:59:00.000-08:00

Salaam. The talk is back once again! :)

HEART TO HEART TALK : YOUTH DISCUSSION II

"Developing Our Moral Conduct"

Saturday 24th November 2007
10.00 am - 12.30 pm
Al-Falah Mosque

Lead by:
Ustaz Saif-ur-Rahman
Court Manager/ Syariah Court Of Singapore

Content:
* The importance of good conduct towards family members.
* How good conduct can develop better personality, leadership qualities and help one to attain rewards from Allah.
* Learn how to emulate our Prophet Muhammad's and The Companions' good conduct towards their family.

If your age is between 16 - 21 years old and interested to know more about the above, have a heart for knowledge and are inspired by mind-opening discussions, do join us! Places are limited to 60 participants only.
Registration is free, so book your places now!

Call 6235-3172 or e-mail yousef@alfalah.org.sg

***

I was in the living room getting ready for supper when my ayah (dad) came home from running some errand. Of course, he greeted "Assalamualaikum".

Due to hunger, I mistakenly replied "Jemput makan."

(-_-")

Putting that aside, my weekend was fabulous masyaAllah. I spent my Saturnoon with Sis Iffah, Sis Linnnn :D & Sis Rafiqah in Orchard. Alhamdulillah, we attended the Al-Falah's talk about the Persona of Rasulullah (peace be upon him). It was a talk absolutely worth attending and listening to.

Allahumma solli 'ala Muhammad, ya Rabbi solli 'alaihi wasallim.

We leisurely toured Orchard after 'Asr prayer and yes I had a wonderful time with the sisters masyaAllah. haha especially Lin! sape bully sape eh. haha. Sis Iffah and I can almost be twins due to the many similarities we share. :) But definitely not the pineapple cheese. oops. hehe.

Sunday was spent with a good `ol friend of mine. I tried to be more serious when talking with her this time, but unfortunately I could not. lol. We updated each other about our lives which could be a chat of infinity. The moment she headed home, I told her, "I hope you'll be taller the next time I see you." haha. Height-wise, we are very distinguishable. lol.

Salaam alaikum.

Du'a - Sheikh Amed Al Ajmi

2007-11-18T23:20:00.000-08:00

Ladies Night

2007-11-17T08:11:00.000-08:00

Salam

Ladies Night event organised by MSS (Muslim Students Society) can be described only by a word. No, two words. It was remarkably fantastic! :) It is a 2 day 1 night event beginning from yesterday evening, but I could only attend it on Friday night. Even so, I really enjoyed myself there masyaAllah. We had the time of our lives! :)

The event was held in a mega spacious room near Canteen 2 in school. I was in fact very pleased upon my arrival at the venue. I am sure the 2 sisters I came to the event with felt the same way too, cus the whole stretch of windows were concealed with a veil of black plastic sheets! Something that screams "Privacy for Muslimah!" :)

Ice-breaking games were great because it seriously helped me to remember the names of other sisters. hehe. It was followed by a workshop, allowing us to discern the qualities of a Traditional lady, a Modern lady & and a true Muslimah. That got me thinking.

We prayed Maghrib in a jemaah. MasyaAllah I wish we can have it often because I rarely get to pray jemaah with sisters. We then devoured the delectable nasi lemak after prayer. :)

Subsequently, there was another talk about Spiritual Beauty. We were asked to define the term according to our understanding of it. Many interpretations were derived. Personally, I feel that spiritual beauty is a Muslimah's iman (faith). In order to taste the sweetness it, we need to get closer to Allah.

Just for entertainment, there was the Muslimah's very own project runway! haha. Wah sis Maisarah vogue seh :P Congrats for winning the V.I.P (Vogue Ini Perempuan) prize! :D

Sadly though, Sis Rafiqah and I had to make a leave as it was already late. Nevertheless, the memories that left the room with us will be etched in our hearts insyaAllah ;)

Now is feedback time. hehe. I can see that the committee has invested much of their time meticulously planning and gracefully executing the event. They did an impressive job, no doubt about that. Two thumbs up for the ladies! :)

I must say that I enjoyed the event to the fullest! The mini workshop and talk about spiritual beauty were especially invigorating. That was the highlight of the event. haha not forgetting the grand finale too. :D Ladies Night allowed us to strengthen the ukhwah among the fellow sisters and enabled me to express my thoughts and feelings. I feel that my confidence level has shot up a few notches too. MasyaAllah. hehe. Looking forward to the next Ladies Night insyaAllah. :)

And the excitement is still bubbling underneath my skin. hehe.

Salaam.

Wonders of Hijab.

2007-11-16T01:29:00.000-08:00

Salam

Alhamdulillah, I am delighted that the weekly religious class by Ustazah Khamaliah has resumed masyaAllah! I hope that by regularly attending such classes, I will keep myself further rooted to Islam insyaAllah. I believe that in order to develop ourselves into a good Muslim, we should strive in finding means to boost our iman (faith). Allah will not help those who do not usaha. :)

During Written Communication tutorial yesterday, we went through the essay paragraphs we had earlier prepared based on a topic of our choice. I chose the topic "Hijab" or commonly known as "tudung". We were actually required to come up with an Example Paragraph, but majority of the class produced the Cause-Effect Paragraph instead; mine included. lol. Nonetheless, I'll let you read it. Pardon me for any form of mistakes.

Hijab which is an Arabic term for “covering” is not only beneficial for Muslims; its scientific benefits also serve the society for at least three main purposes, namely for regulating the body temperature, maintaining your personal hygiene and protecting against skin cancer. Firstly, loose-fitting hijab allows regulation of the body temperature as it circulates air movement and absorbs perspiration, therefore imitating the process of evaporation. Wicking away sweat would also mean keeping you comfortable, at the same time retaining adequate sweat to keep your body temperature cool. Secondly, the hijab assists in maintaining your personal hygiene. When being outdoors, your hair is constantly being exposed to pollution, making it a carrier of germs. This is where the role of the hijab comes in as it keeps your hair from slipping, thus preventing transmission of germs, which is especially true for people who work in deli counters, surgeons in operating theatres and chefs. They wear some form of head covering to maintain cleanliness and purity. Thirdly, the hijab shields yourself from the risk of contracting skin cancer, which is an epidemic phenomenon at present. A factor which leads to this malignant disease is due to excessive skin exposure to the sun’s ultraviolet rays, which is also responsible for other undesirable conditions like cataracts and premature aging. Hijab helps to counter this problem by reflecting sunlight away from the skin without absorbing so much of the heat. It preserves the skin’s natural oils, preventing it from being evaporated along with your sweat.

orz & Minyak But But.

2007-11-13T23:59:00.000-08:00

In Social Psychology lecture yesterday, Hector (our facilitator) shared an enthralling form of letters. I was engaged in that particular term. It's called "orz".

"orz" does not hold any denotative meaning, but can you see a figure out of those three letters? Allow me to enlarge them for your viewing ease.
orz

Before scrolling down for the answer, think hard and figure it out. Hint: Letter "o" is a head of a person. Do not scroll down just yet, until you secure an answer for yourself. :)

So you are finally scrolling for the answer.

Give up?

The answer is in the picture below.

(^.^)v

No, not that one. It is the one below.

orz

MasyaAllah..

Just now after Maghrib, I was in my room, reading the Qur'an when mum entered. Apparently she was talking to my dad in the living room.. I could not concentrate well because this was what she said

"...bla bla bla... minyak but but (pronounced boot boot).. bla bla.."

It came out abruptly that I could not help giggling. But Alhamdulillah, managed to resume reading and kept my focus.

Marhaban Ya Rasul

2007-11-13T01:03:00.000-08:00

MasyaAllah this is mellifluous! All praises to Allah for blessing such nice voices upon the lads, Allahuakbar.

And this is one of my favourite childhood ear candies! :) Thank you awak, for the link!

Salafi Sisters

2007-11-12T12:31:00.000-08:00

Salaam alaikum everyone

Currently I am enjoying my rest in the musollah in school. The next lecture will be at 2pm and insyaAllah I hope to spend my time wisely.

Alhamdulillah, I came across this website called Salafi Sisters. I discovered about Salafi Sisters through the emails from Muslimah Connection (sisters, I urge you to sign up insyaAllah!). MasyaAllah I am so grateful to Allah for making the process of seeking `ilm an ease. Click the link below to access the website (it's purple in colour. hehe)

Salafi Sisters

There is an article from the website which drew my attention. Click of the 'Fear The Dunya' to download it and take your time to read. InsyaAllah, it will benefit us in some ways.

Surah Saba (Verses 1 - 23)

2007-11-11T13:34:00.000-08:00

Al-Falah's Tea Talk

2007-11-11T01:28:00.000-08:00

Topic
Prophet's Persona - A Blessing To All Mankind

Speaker: Ustaz Firdaus Yahya

Saturday 17th November 2007
2.15 pm - 4.15 pm
@ Al-Falah Mosque

Content:
- The beauty of Islam has to be shared with others in a wise and gracious manner.
- An understanding of the Prophet's characteristics eg. "Rahmah", "‘Aziz", "Rauf" & "Rahim".
- How can the spirit of "rahmah" be internalised in todays context ?

* Q&A session at the end
* Child minding service available
* Refreshment provided
* 60 places only, free registration. Book now!

For registration, please email:
yusri@alfalah.org.sg

7 Tips For Improving Your Relationship With Qu'ran

2007-11-08T17:20:00.000-08:00

Are you one of those people who rarely touches the Quran? Or do you read daily, but don’t find it is having the impact on you that it should? Whatever the case may be, these are some simple tips that can help you connect with the Quran.

1. Before you touch it, check your heart

The key to really benefiting from the Quran is to check your heart first, before you even touch Allah’s book. Ask yourself, honestly, why you are reading it. Is it to just get some information and to let it drift away from you later? Remember that the Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) was described by his wife as a “walking Quran”: in other words, he didn’t just read and recite the Quran, he lived it.

2. Do your Wudu (ablution)

Doing your Wudu is good physical and mental preparation to remind you you’re not reading just another book. You are about to interact with God, so being clean should be a priority when communicating with Him.

3. Read only 5 minutes everyday

Too often, we think we should read Quran for at least one whole hour. If you aren’t in the habit of reading regularly, this is too much. Start off with just five minutes daily. If you took care of step one, Insha Allah (God willing), you will notice that those five minutes will become ten, then half an hour, then an hour, and maybe even more!

4. Make sure you understand what you’ve read

Five minutes of reading the Quran in Arabic is good, but you need to understand what you’re reading. Make sure you have a good translation of the Quran in the language you understand best. Always try to read the translation of what you’ve read that day .

5. Remember, the Quran is more interactive than a CD

In an age of “interactive” CD-Roms and computer programs, a number of people think books are passive and boring. But the Quran is not like that. Remember that when you read Quran, you are interacting with Allah. He is talking to you, so pay attention.

6. Don’t just read, listen too

There are now many audio cassettes and CDs of the Quran, a number of them with translations as well. This is great to put on your walkman or your car’s CD or stereo as you drive to and from work. Use this in addition to your daily Quran reading, not as a replacement for it.

7. Make Dua (supplication)

Ask Allah to guide you when you read the Quran. Your aim is to sincerely, for the love of Allah, interact with Him by reading, understanding and applying His blessed words. Making Dua to Allah for help and guidance will be your best tool for doing this.

SOURCE: SOUNDVISION

Jihad (Struggle) of a Butterfly

2007-11-07T23:52:00.000-08:00

A man found a Cocoon of a Butterfly. One day a small opening appeared; he sat and watched the Butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could and it could go no farther.

Then the man decided to help the Butterfly, so he took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the Cocoon. The Butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings.

The man continued to watch the Butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened! In fact, the Butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly.

What this man in his kindness and haste did not understand was that the restricting Cocoon and the struggle required for the Butterfly to get through the tiny opening were nature's way of forcing fluid from the body of the Butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the Cocoon.

Moral of the Story
Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our life. If nature allowed us to go through our life without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. And we could never fly. Freedom and flight would only come after the struggle (Jihad).

Ciri-Ciri Anak Soleh.

2007-11-05T20:46:00.000-08:00

1. Berbuat baik kepada kedua ibubapanya walaupun ibubapanya musyrik.

2. Menjauhi perbuatan yang tidak baik, sekalipun pada masa itu tidak ada orang mengetahuinya

3. Mendirikan solat

4. Mengajak manusia kepada kebaikan

5. Menjauhi kemungkaran

6. Bersabar menghadapi dugaan dalam kehidupan

7. Tidak bersikap sombong

8. Tidak melakukan perkara yang tidak baik dalam masyakarat

9. Selalu bertutur dengan sopan

10. Menghormati orang lain

This video has an impact on myself MasyaAllah. I hope to be a good daughter insyaAllah amin.

Among the major sins is disobedience to parents.

Narrated by Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) Allah's Messenger (peace be upon him) said:

"Shall I inform you of the greatest sins?" and in another variation he repeated this three times. We the companions said, "Certainly, O messenger of Allah!" He (peace be upon him) said: "Associating anyone with Allah, disobedience to parents."

The prophet sat up straight after he had reclined and added,
'And I warn you against false utterance and false witness. And I warn you against false utterance and false witness..' The messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) kept saying that warning until we thought that he would not stop.

[Bukhari&Muslim]

Alhamdulillah, I Feel More Composed.

2007-11-04T14:01:00.000-08:00

I stayed overnight at my aunt's place yesterday as my family went to Malacca for a family event. Alhamdulillah, I had a heart-to-heart talk of few hours with my aunt yesterday night and this morning after breakfast. It was indeed a fruitful conversation altogether.

I expressed my most prioritised area of concern - school. Alhamdulillah, her advice is really enlightening and I thank Allah for bestowing help upon myself through my aunt. I guess I was too fretful about studies that the piled-up pressure led to the frequent mind blockages. I need to calm down and should not panic.

The conversation we had after breakfast delved into more personal matters. Feelings, to be exact. MasyaAllah, my aunt shared with me a suprising hypothesis after what I told her. It never came across my mind. Nonetheless, it kinda made me smile.

Demoralised.

2007-11-02T19:49:00.000-07:00

I realise I am steadily losing my focus! Oh no. I figured it is due to the more flexible school schedule that I am sadly in this state. It would need me just 10 minutes to read a book before I start to feel restless. Not forgetting procrastination! Oh no. Ya Allah what is happening to me?? Socpsych quiz just now was poorly done although I managed to pass. This should not be happening at all! Astaghfirullah.. Ya Allah please help Your impotent slave. Is there anything I had done wrong ya Allah? :'(

I wish to have that academic zeal I once had in the past semester.. I sincerely miss that feeling of achievement after much hardwork. As opposed to the situation now, in which I yearn to focus but my mind keeps trailing off!! I simply CANNOT afford to bring my parents down with poor performance in school.

Note to self: Nadzirah, you need help darling. You desperately need some help. It would do you good.

Astaghfirullah. Forgive me ya Allah. I think I am giving myself in to too much distractions of this dunia (world). There are times I envy my friends but I know I should not think that way. Please, ya Allah.. do not punish me by letting me suffer in this state. I know this is a reminder from You that this dunia is only temporary. Guide me please ya Allah, in the matters of seeking duniawi & ukhrawi knowledge.

Amin. ya Allah please accept this supplication of Your dhoif slave. :(

A Meeting With Allah

2007-11-01T19:48:00.000-07:00

"And when My servants ask you concerning Me, then surely I am very near; I answer the prayer of the suppliant when he calls on Me, so they should answer My call and believe in Me that they may walk in the right way."

Surah Al-Baqarah, verse 186.

Salaam to everyone!

Alhamdulillah, today has been a great day masyaAllah. The highlight of the day - I made a new friend in musollah today Alhamdulillah. Her name is Hasinah. Actually, I have seen her a few times in musollah but did not get the chance to have a conversation with her. Finally today, we had a chat and I got to know that she is the sister of Mardhiah (I'm unsure of the spelling of her name. oops), the 19-year old girl who has memorized the whole book of Qur'an masyaAllah! :)

I was jubilant to be able to chat with Hasinah. She gave me encouragement in the pursuit of studying Islam. Her sister Mardhiah is currently studying in Syria. MasyaAllah I'm so happy for her.

This morning, my class had our Advertising Speech presentation during SpeechComm class. Hmm.. I felt that my performance of speech was just satisfactory; pulled down by a few blunders. I hope not to repeat those mistakes again in future by making sure that preparation is sufficient insyaAllah.

A Meeting With Allah

Words of wisdom by Imam Al-Ghazali:

Amatlah rugi orang yang jahil itu,
kecuali mereka yang berilmu.
Amatlah rugi mereka yang berilmu itu,
kecuali mereka yang beramal dengan ilmu.
Amatlah rugi orang yang beramal itu,
kecuali mereka yang ikhlas dalam amalannya."

Islam Is My Deen.

2007-10-31T09:43:00.000-07:00

Salaam alaikum :)

Alhamdulillah, being a new member of the Muslimah Connection Egroup, I have gained more exposure to Islamic Knowledge with the sisters' active discussion about Islam. It is a group both for Muslim & non-Muslim ladies who are interested in Islam. :)

The group abides by guidelines like importance of using credible source from the Qur'an, Sunnah & the understanding of the Salafussoleh (Pious Predecessors). There's also a sharing session & masyaAllah, I learn a few good tips in becoming a better Muslimah insyaAllah. Ladies, it's definitely something worth signing up for, insyaAllah. :)

Click here to get a quick bite of what Muslimah Connection Egroup is about (and don't forget to sign up too insyaAllah. hehe).

Oh, & on top of that, I just have to share this website with you. It's irresistable! :)

Alquranic.com

I was euphoric upon reading it. MasyaAllah! Thank you Allah for this beautiful web discovery. No worries, this is for both the gents & ladies. I just signed up for it just now and insyaAllah I'm sure this is going to be a fabulous learning journey fii sabilillah (in the path of Allah) :) I guess since some among us are unable to frequently attend Islamic talks in mosques/centres (that includes myself), this is the best way to learn more about Allah's religion insyaAllah.

I feel so happy Alhamdulillah. :)

& this video is really sweet. hehe.

Message from the website - got it from IslamicTube.com

Dear Brothers and Sisters,

This is a video for those who are going through a tough time or feel some sorrow and sadness. Insha Allah this video will cure your pain and relieve your sorrows; what we all go through are just tests and trials in life, from Allah to see if we are patient and have perseverance. And remember what Allah said: ` Verily after hardship comes ease.` So watch and smile! DON`T BE SAD! Wa Allaakum Asalaam

Orang Mukmin Yang Baik Itu Unik

2007-10-31T01:44:00.000-07:00

Orang mukmin yang baik itu hidupnya luar biasa
Unik dan berbeza sangat dengan manusia yang lain
Dia berhadapan dengan kehidupan penuh tenang
Kejahatan orang tidak dibalas dengan kejahatan
Bahkan didoakan orang yang membuat jahat dengannya

Berhadapan dengan ujian dia tenang
Berhadapan dengan nikmat dia bersyukur
Jadual waktunya dengan Tuhan tetap dan istiqamah
Walau di dalam keadaan susah dan senang

Bermesra dengan orang
Tetamu yang datang dihormati sesuai dengan kedudukannya
Tidak boleh mendengar orang mendapat kesusahan
Selagi tidak dapat ditolongnya, menderita jiwanya

Merendah diri adalah budaya hidupnya
Setiap orang yang meminta pertolongan jarang tidak ditunaikannya
Pemurah sangat terserlah di dalam kehidupannya
Tidak pernah mengeluh berhadapan dengan penderitaan
Tapi dia mengeluh dengan dosa-dosanya
Atau mengeluh bila berhadapan dengan kelemahan dan kecuaian

Rasa kehambaan tampak kelihatan pada mukanya
Tuhan selalu sahaja disebut-sebut di dalam perbualannya
Nampak sangat bahawa Tuhan itu adalah sandaran hidupnya
Gembira tidaklah sampai ketawa berdekah-dekah

Kesusahannya tidaklah sampai muram di mukanya
Lebih-lebih lagi tidak rasa kecewa dan putus asa berhadapan dengan
kesusahannya
Tawakal, sabar dan redha adalah menjadi budaya hidupnya

***

The above was obtained from an e-mail a friend sent me. & check out this video. Sheikh Fahd Al-Kanderi in his youth, reading Surah Al-Furqan, verses 61 - 77.

And here he is leading an enormous crowd of Muslims in a prayer, reciting Surah As-Shura, verses 36 till the end.

This Is A Long Post.

2007-10-30T20:49:00.000-07:00

There are certain things in life which words cannot explain; they remain that way forever. It is a trial by Allah - a tough one. It challenges my self-esteem & iman (faith). It also puts my emotions to the ultimate test.

I, being unable to conceal my emotional feelings well, broke down in tears a few times in school yesterday. I felt like I was at the losing end, close to giving up. I thank Allah for blessing me with loving sisters like Sis Rafiqah who took care of me in musollah yesterday during lecture break, and my classmates (thanks Sam) for the emotional support. I love you people.

Alhamdulillah, I feel much better today. Radio Production workshop was expectedly entertaining. It kinda cheered me up, having Felix as our facilitator. He played our one-minute recordings in class for comments and reflections. Alhamdulilah & thanks to Allah, the feedback about my recording was uplifting, though there is room for improvement. Given new assignment too. Maybe will start working on it during the weekend insyaAllah.

I met my ibu after school (I love Tuesdays cus we end at 11am). We headed to Wisma Mendaki to collect my certificate and book voucher. It was an opportunity to have a really good conversation with ibu (but i think half of the time we were giggling at some silly jokes). We had our lunch at Bedok. Following that, we boarded bus 196 to Kampung Siglap Mosque to perform Zuhur prayer.

MasyaAllah. I felt a wave of relief as I was praying to Allah, particularly in a mosque. It has been long since I stepped into one. I miss the atmosphere of serenity. I thank Allah for making prayers 5 times a day obligatory as I am able to remember Him despite school and the array of other activities. It acts as a form of temporary withdrawal from this Dunia (world). Allah, I seek solace in You. Don't leave me alone ya Allah.

We walked towards Wisma Mendaki and were kinda dazzled by the cosy private housing vicinity. Sometimes I wish to have a house like that. You can have a small garden where you can let your rabbits and cats roam freely (mum's dream). I can even settle in a corner of the garden and exude what creativity that is left in me - sketching or some random painting. That would be great. But then again, maintenance cost would be high, according to my aunt. I would prefer to utilise the money for a family trip to Umrah/ Haj (pilgrimage) or invest in some good finance insurance. The list goes on.

Back to Mendaki. I was beaming with delight upon collecting the gift of glory. Alhamdulillah. I was supposed to attend the awards ceremony last 20th Oct but I could not make it due to the raya outing in Johore. I felt an overwhelming sense of achievement masyaAllah, reflecting back on those Saturday mornings spent for Mendaki lessons for last year's Olevels. It was worth it after all. It was a ticket for me to entering Masscomm. But this is all with the consent of Allah. Allah has been so generous and kind to me despite myself being His slave of an almost nothingness.

I'm still on the road to recovery. It will take some time. I know this is absurd, but if Iman came as a form of a tablet, I would have swallowed a dozen of them at once.

Surah Maryam: 1 - 21. Radio Is Sound.

2007-10-28T09:43:00.000-07:00

Alhamdulillah! I've submitted the Radio Report in softcopy & am done with the presentation script for the One-Minute Music Capsule. I hope my voice will turn out okay for tomorrow's recording. InsyaAllah :)

Surah Fussilat - Verse 34

2007-10-28T08:59:00.000-07:00

The good deed and the evil deed cannot be equal. Repel (the evil) with one which is better (i.e. Allâh ordered the faithful believers to be patient at the time of anger, and to excuse those who treat them badly), then verily! he, between whom and you there was enmity, (will become) as though he was a close friend.

(Surah Fussilat - Verse 34)

If Only Allah Gave Me Some Super Powers.

2007-10-27T11:51:00.000-07:00

I finally decide to leave the matter as it is. I am already clueless as to how to deal with it any longer. My last resort is to surrender this to ALLAH for He has the Best Knowledge of all situations. Tawakkal 'alallah..

The least I can do now is to constantly forgive and forget. I was reading the past e-mails and came across an article consisting of notes from AaGym's talk early this year. Always be ready to forgive no matter how much your heart aches. I shall do just that insyaAllah. This will only happen with the strength from Allah.

Yesterday especially, I was drowned in a concoction of feelings. It was, what I would say, an emotional torment. Alhamdulillah, I realise the hikmah (wisdom) of this & I think Allah wants me to not get distracted with this world and its content, as this world is only temporary. Everything on this earth will diminish except Allah, the Everlasting.

Alhamdulillah, I feel much better after having a good sleep & reading the Qur'an after Subuh prayer. In life, problems are inevitable. But having faith in Allah despite these challenges is pivotal.

At times when I'm in pain, at times when I can't cope
When calling out Your Name, my heart is filled with hope

Beautiful Adzan. The Barber & His Customer.

2007-10-26T09:10:00.000-07:00

Adzan (call to prayer) by Kamal Uddin - this fella is only 23 years old. MasyaAllah. Let him be an inspiration to plant the seed of concrete Islam in ourselves.

A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard trimmed. The barber began to work and they began to have a good conversation. They talked about so many things and various subjects. When they eventually touched on the subject of ALLAH, the barber said,

"I don't believe that ALLAH exists."

"Why do you say that?" asked the customer.

"Well, you just have to go out in the street to realise that ALLAH doesn't exist. Tell me, if ALLAH exists, would there be so many sick people? Would there be abandoned children? If ALLAH existed, there would neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving ALLAH who would all of these things."

The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an argument. The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop. Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked dirty and unkempt.

The customer turned back, entered the barber shop again and said to the barber,

"You know what? Barbers do not exist."

"How can you say that?" asked the surprise barber. "I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!"

"No!" The customer exclaimed. "Barbers don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside."

"Ah, but barbers do exist! That's what happens when people do not come to me."

"Exactly!" affirmed the customer. "That's the point! ALLAH, too, does exist! That's what happens when people do not go to Him and don't look up to Him for help. That's why there's so much pain and suffering in the world."

Illallah.

2007-10-25T22:50:00.000-07:00

A Muslim sis introduced me this nasheed singer - Kamal Uddin. MasyaAllah. So far I've listened to two of his songs - Subhanallah & Illallah. It gave me courage - something crucial at times like this.

This world is not my home
About this I must learn.
It’s from You that I came
And to You I shall return

Another sis sent me this incredibly heartwarming sms.

"Soleha women smile in trouble, gather strength from doa, grow brave by istighfar & solat, stand firm & zikir when she sees & goes through painful test everyday."

I felt this surge of guilt when I read it, realising that my amount of zikr to Allah is extremely minute. InsyaAllah, I will do more zikr in order to obtain the longing emotional strength I feel I once had.

My high hopes plunged down with me.
It was an almost impossibilty; why did I even dare to dream?
It will either enliven me, or drag me down to the ravine of sadness.
I seek in guidance in Allah, for this is not the end.

Whatever Happened.

2007-10-23T23:14:00.000-07:00

It dawned on me that I haven't been attending any talks (ceramah/syarahan) for quite some time now. I need to do something about this.

MD Recorder. Random.

2007-10-23T21:42:00.000-07:00

Hello. Salaam to everyone.

I had a great time in Radio Production tutorial this morning. We recorded our voices with the MD recorder for a minute, describing what we observe to create that visual image in the listener's mind. Initially, I tend to lapse into silence since I'm not much of a conversationalist. But Alhamdulillah, having Mel as my partner, the confidence gradually increased and I think I did pretty okay describing what I saw in Canteen 1. Alhamdulillah. And I personally feel that Mel has that soothing radio voice yea. hehe :)

The moment I reached outside home from school, I called out to my mother,

"Assalamualaikum! Cik, kami datang nak beraya."

lol. That's what I've been saying for the past few days whenever I come back home. Semangat raya :P

Nevermind about mum's reply. She played along with me. lol.

Oh, and an incident which never fails to make me smile each time I think about it. It happened just this morning, while I was watching the morning news in RTM 1 (very unlikely of me. But I was having breakfast then). There was news about a Tahfiz school in Kelantan destroyed by some calamity. I conveyed the news to my mum, since she wasn't in the living room. She was busy chatting with my brother. It went something like this.

Me: Ibu! Sekolah tahfiz kat Kelantan musnah (the newscaster used that word. lol)

Ibu: Ape?

Me: Sekolah tahfiz kat Kelantan musnah

Ibu: Starfish?

Me: Tahfiz

Ibu: Tapak sulaiman?

Me: Tahfiz

lol. It's not that my house huge that she couldn't hear me, but I think the loud volume & distance posed as hindrance. Finally I urged her to watch the news with me. Lesson learnt, I should approach my mum to tell her instead of calling out from the living room. Shall keep that in mind, insyaAllah.

Today's been unexplainably glorious a day. MasyaAllah. Especially just now during the adzan (call to prayer) during Asr time; the atmosphere was so tranquil. The glint of sunlight that penetrated into my purple-walled room lifted my mood! It looked different. Macam very cerah & uplifting. Subhanallah. It's a blessing from Allah.

Surah Al-Mu'minoon: 1-22

2007-10-23T02:21:00.000-07:00

I am loving this Surah already. MasyaAllah. Thank you Allah, for first attracting me to Surah Al-Mu'minoon through the 14th verse.

Monday. Answering An Atheist.

2007-10-22T18:41:00.000-07:00

Salaam.

Another week of 4 lectures in a day. It drove my mind to exhaustion.

WrtiComm lecture was dense with grammar drilling. Conjunctive adverb, gerund, main verb + auxilliary verb = verb phrases, etc. I need to cope. Social Psychology was slightly dry, but Alhamdulillah, I learnt something new like the schemata, recency, perception errors.. just to list a few. Hopefully I'll be able to do some revision tonight, insyaAllahu Ta'ala. I need to rest for now.

In our SpeechComm lecture, Cordellia (our facilitator) mentioned something about atheist, someone who disbelieve in the existence of God. Alhamdulillah, Allah let me read this nice article about how Imam Abu Hanifah answered an atheist's doubt that God exist.

***

"Is there any proof that God exists?" an atheist asked Imam Abu Hanifa and he replied,

"Forget it! At the moment, I am busy thinking about this ship. People tell me there is a big ship, it contains different goods on board. There is no one to steer it, no one maintaining it. Yet, this ship keeps going back and forth; it even traverses big waves on the oceans; it stops at the locations that it is supposed to stop at; it continues in the direction that it is supposed to head. This ship has no captain and no one planning its trips."

The atheist who posed the question interrupted and exclaimed, "What kind of strange and silly thought is this? How can any intelligent person think that something like this can occur?"

Imam Abu Hanifa said, "I feel sorry about your state! You cannot imagine one ship running without someone looking after its affairs. Yet you think that for this whole world, which runs exactly and precisely, there is no one who looks after it, and no one owns it."

Hearing the reply, the atheist was left speechless but he found out more about Haqq (The Truth) and proclaimed Islam.

***

I've learnt from SpeechComm that in order to obtain a positive attitude from audience towards our speech, we have to consider 2 factors - tactfulness & language. Imam Abu Hanifah successfully explained to the atheist by using logical thinking (tactfulness). Yup. Logic. That's it.

Raya Di Johore. Qur'an.

2007-10-20T23:59:00.000-07:00

Recitation of Qur'an. Surah Al-Mu'minoon (The Believers). Sheikh Mishary.

Finally, a Hari Raya outing overseas - something I exactly needed after 5 days of school. Being able to appreciate the scenic view of nature along the highways during the journey.. it was a blessing from Allah The Creator. We visited the youngest sister of my late nyai (granny in Javanese) in Batu Pahat, Johore. Had a great time there. Good food too :) Tears were welling up during moment of separation. Somehow, I regard grandaunt as my own grandmother. Nyai passed away in 2004. May Allah place her soul among the Muttaqin. Amin.

Majority among the 6 families were eager to go for a little spending spree in this huge mall. I just bought this box of Apollo chocolate coated biscuits. No interest in shopping, anyway. I was just pushing the trolley, following mum around. And constantly reminding her, "Ibu, kemahuan atau keperluan?". That did the trick.

"Zuhud.. zuhud." Her voice resounds in my mind.

Another visit to an uncle's place also in Johore ended our little overseas trip late evening. Most of the time I was reading a book, a gift from an acquaintance. It's called " Al-'Azhamah - KEAGUNGAN " by Dr 'Aidh Abdullah Al-Qarni. Plethora of Islamic knowledge already derived from reading. Alhamdulillah.

I learnt something from Social Psychology & Communication class yesterday which is pertinent to what Islam teaches.

"Quantity of communication doesn't mean quality."

My mind was processing those words as they were projected. It's very much similar to what our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) once said:

"Let him who believes in Allah and the Last Day either speak good or keep silent."
[narrated by Bukhari & Muslim]

:) so being an introvert is a good thing afterall. Syukran ya Allah, I shan't worry about not talking too much.

Oh. Regarding the Qur'an recitation above (also on the right side of my blog. Just that it's recited by a different person. My favourite recitor, that is. Sheikh Mahir. hehe), check out verse number 14. Click the link below and search for the 14th verse.

Surah Al-Mu'minoon

Easy reference below. :)

I'm really addicted listening & reading the particular verse again and again and again. :) :) Especially Sheikh Mahir's way of reciting it in fast speed. under "Favorites" section >>>

Conclusion - Qur'an has myriad ways to attract people to it. I agree. :) My current favourites surahs are either because I'm attracted to the name of the surah (chapter), the captivating recitation, an interesting verse (like Surah Al-Mu'minoon:14).. etc. Lovin' it. :)

Till the next time I blog, insyaAllah. Salam alaikum,

Breaking Down.

2007-10-20T00:36:00.000-07:00

The current situation is not getting any better. I know this is a trial from Allah. Allah wants me to be stronger in the mind. But somehow my emotions refuse to cooperate. Almost on the verge of giving up. But I trust Allah that this won't last forever.

Tuhan, jangan pikulkan kami yang tidak kami terdaya..

Grave Sins.

2007-10-19T12:15:00.000-07:00

1. To assign partners to Allah.

2. To kill anyone unjustly without proper cause.

3. Practising of witch-craft and charms by childless women during the confinement of another woman so that the child of that woman may die and she may have a child. This also amount to murder.

4. To tease the parents and to put them to inconvenience.

5. To indulge in adultery.

6. To misappropriate the property of orphans, to deprive the daughters of their share in the legacy.

7. To accuse a woman of adultery even on slightest doubt.

8. To oppress someone, to speak ill of someone and backbite.

9. To be disappointed of Allah's mercy and blessings.

10. Not to fulfill a promise or to misappropriate a trust.

11. To abandon willfully any of the duties enjoined by Allah such as prayer (Namaaz), fast, Hajj and Zakaat; to forget the Holy Qur’aan after memorizing it.

12. To tell a lie and particularly to take a false oath.

13. To swear by the name of anyone other than Allah.

14. To swear in such words that he or she be deprived of kalimah at the time of death or may die with want of Imaan (Faith).

15. To prostrate(sujud) before anyone other than Allah.

16. To miss prayer (Namaaz) without legitimate cause.

17. To call any Muslim a non-believer or dishonest, or to call Allah's curse upon anyone or to call anyone as enemy of Allah.

18. To complain against anyone or to hear such complaint.

19. To steal or to indulge in usury; or to express joy on dearness of food grains; to compel on lowering of price after settling the bargain.

20. To sit in seclusion with prohibited persons - male or female.

21. To gamble. Some women and men play certain games with stakes on them, this is also a kind of gambling.

22. To like and appreciate the customs of infidels.

23. To find fault with food or with other persons.

24. To enjoy dance and music.

25. Inspite of being in a position, not to advise others.

26. To ridicule others with a view to humiliate them.

27. To search defects in others.

These are some of the grave and major sins which negate Faith (Imaan). May Allah save all of us from these. Aameen.

Speech + Writ Comm Tutorials.

2007-10-18T23:22:00.000-07:00

School was definitely a wonderful time for me today. Speech Communication tutorial in the morning. We learnt phonetics - how to pronounce words correctly. Great discovery of new words along the way too. Cordellia's exuberance made learning more enjoyable. A very sweet facilitator. :)

And I was pleasantly surprised to hear Genny's accent. It was really nice to listen to her speak! :)

Written Communication tutorial was next, in the afternoon. Mr Wong's class was fun & enlightening, really. "Nirvana", as he would call it. He supplemented us with more new vocabs, and essentially the 3 basic steps to writing - Freewriting, Brainstorming & Clustering.

Freewriting entails scribbling down anything that comes to your mind. The main objective is to switch off our "internal editor". We're given 5-10 minutes to freewrite anything about ourselves. Anything. And from there, choose a word from our passage.. and freewrite about that particular word. My word was "Ramadhan".

In the focused freewriting (since we've got a narrowed down topic), I expressed my general knowledge of Ramadhan, and how I miss it dearly :'( Come on akhis & ukhtis, you gotta agree with me. May Allah let us meet the next Ramadhan insyaAllah, amin.

I hope the modules that I'm taking currently, I'll be able to incorporate Islam into them as well. That way, I can speak & write about my religion more confidently, insyaAllah. Of course, I would need to learn in depth about Islam too. That's a personal challenge.

Little Child.

2007-10-16T22:42:00.000-07:00

Salam alaikum.

I feel the urge to blog again. I guess there's too many things running in my mind, I need to direct them to somewhere.

I had a dream. I was alone, walking on the streets. I saw a girl in a distance. An emaciated child with round eyes, unkempt hair. She was alone too. I walked towards her and asked, "Adik sorang je?". She stared at me. Her look sent chills down my spine. I asked again, "Rumah adik kat mane?"

She got up on her feet, grabbed my wrist and led the way. I followed. I was clueless where she was bringing me to.

After some time, she stopped. I looked around. We stood before this empty, cold place. She let go of my hand and rushed towards a bin. Someone was hiding behind the bin. An old lady, resting herself on some pieces of cardboard, some tattered cloth covering her for warmth.

I approached them. I never witnessed anything like that before. Out of sudden, the girl hugged me. In between sobs, she muttered some words..

"Kak, tinggalkan dunia. Orang kaya, lupa kita."

She said to me again, "Zuhud.. zuhud".

I'll never forget that.

Hari Raya.

2007-10-16T22:03:00.000-07:00

The morning of Hari Raya. The sound of takbir resonated and vibrance permeated through the land. The aura. It was beautiful. Especially when you're in a kampung. The time came to seek forgiveness from family & relatives. I hoped for their do'a that I can excel in studies - I don't know why but that was the only thing on my mind.

My parents. I knelt before my dad. It was just silence between the both of us. I was speechless - cus I was choking back tears. "You're a good girl." he said softly.

Everybody's changing.

Cicakman & School

2007-10-16T18:40:00.000-07:00

As promised, let me briefly share with you in the next few posts, my vacation in Malacca a few days ago. Let's begin from Day 1, the last day of Ramadhan.. just few incidents plus some significant other.

In granny's suite (kampung, actually. give some glam to it. lol), I was clearing out stuff from the refrigerator compartment to make way for the Hari Raya cakes. To my horror, I saw this lizard - frozen & black - sticking to the wall of the refrigerator. It was dead. But I was aghast. lol. Cicak mati! I couldn't tahan. So well, I was frightened (tsk), thus called my granny. She came, saw the lizard & very casually plucked it out from the wall and said to me,

"Ape nak takut??" (What for to be scared?). uh. oops.

Those words sunk in immediately & I thought to myself. A'ah eh, it's a dead lizard afterall! How silly I was to be intimidated by a dead lizard. hehe. After the incident, at least now I can slap mosquitoes already (kampung mosquitoes are huge, mind you). Nice :)

Lesson learnt: Instead of having the "eew! it's a lizard" attitude, I should shift to a "Ler. It's just a lizard" kind of cool. How about that for a change. But changes take time. So let's start from mosquitoes first.

School matters: My first tutorial for Radio Production today was really really entertaining! Having a tutorial at 8am in the morning, laughter would do great to start a day. Felix (our facilitator) even shared that he ever studied about Islam too. Cool huh. Semoga diberi hidayah one day insyaAllah amin. :)

And now there's a 500-word Radio Report assignment for me. hehe. Pretty exciting. :) & thanks to Allah's Mercy, my schedule is now more flexible than last semester's. Alhamdulillah :)

Burung Murai.

2007-10-16T00:01:00.000-07:00

My favourite Hari Raya commercial. Saw this on TV3 in kampung recently.

I was moved to tears when I first watched this. Do treasure our parents. Show them we care.

Bibabika Lan Ughadirahu - Far East

2007-10-15T23:28:00.000-07:00

My favourite song! :) :)

New Semester

2007-10-15T15:57:00.000-07:00

I'm currently in school, lecture theatre to be precise. 3 lectures down, 1 more to go. the lectures have been great so far. :) New boost of motivation. An urge to emerge. I need to focus. I want to skim unnecessary activities and maximise my time doing something beneficial. Even if i'm not a star student in the modules, to know that I've gone beyond comfort zone will be rewarding at least. I'm doing this for the sake of my future. For my parents too. I want to see them smile.

I'll update on Hari Raya @ Kampung (sounds like a show. lol) soon. If I can allocate time for it, though. InsyaAllah.

Sunnah of Prophet For `Eid

2007-10-12T08:17:00.000-07:00

Here is what the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to do (Sunnah) on the day of `Eid:

(1) To rise early in the morning.

(2) Take a full bath.

(3) Clean the teeth.

(4) Wear the best clothes that he had.

(5) Wear perfume.

(6) To eat something sweet like dates before leaving home.

(7) Go to the `Eid prayer location very early.

(8) The Prophet used to go to the `Eid Prayer location by one route and will return through another route. (In that way, he could meet more people)

(9) He used to go for `Eid on foot.

(10) He used to chant slowly on the way to the `Eid prayer location, the following words:
“Allahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Laa ilaaha illallahu Wallahu Akbar, Allahu Akbar, Wa lillahil Hamd."
Translation: Allah is the Greatest, He is the Greatest. There is no God except Allah. He is the Greatest. All praises and thanks are for Him

(11) The Prophet used to give Sadqa-e-Fitr (zakatul fitr) for before the `Eid day.

Let's celebrate `Eidul Fitr (Hari Raya Aildilfitri) within the boundaries of Islam. Furthermore, `Eid is an Islamic event. Thus, it would be appropriate that Islamic guidelines be instilled into this festive occasion.

I'll be leaving for Malacca pretty soon, insyaAllah :) Kampung, here we come! Wishin all my fellow Muslim brothers & sisters a joyous `Eid! Allahu Akbar! ALLAH The Greatest!

Selamat Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Maaf Zahir & Batin. Seandainya kiter pernah tersilap kata, atau pernah mengguriskan hati sesiapa, sudilah maafkan hamba yang dhoif ini. May Allah bless us all! Have a good day everyone. :)

Salaam & Warmest Regards,
Nadzirah :)

Ramadhan.. Don't Go :'(

2007-10-12T01:14:00.000-07:00

Salaam. I got this article from a Muslimah's blog, Sis Atiqah a.k.a Farfalla. hehe. Such a sweet girl. Pertaining to the message below, I was moved, reading this. Read till the end. You'll realise how much we've been missing out in Ramadhan. :'(

Adakah kita termasuk yang merindukan kehadiran bulan Ramadhan, saudaraku? Jika ya, inilah keindahan bulan yang kita sangat rindukan itu sedang bersama kita. Inilah detik demi detik waktu, kita lalui bersamanya. Inilah masa-masa bahagia, masa-masa semakin dekatnya jiwa bersama Allah, masa-masa kedamaian, hal yang belum tentu kita temui saat ia tidak bersama kita lagi.

Saudaraku,Hiruplah dalam-dalam udara malam-malamnya. Hiruplah dalam-dalam udara sahurnya. Kita kini sedang berada pada hari-hari perpisahan yang sangat memilukan. Perpisahan dengan bulan mulia yang telah hadir bersama seluruh keindahan dan keistimewaannya bersama kita. Perpisahan dengan bulan terindu yang keutamaannya tak dapat dikalahkan oleh apapun yang terindah dalam hidup.

Jika Rasulullah SAW bersabda, "Barang siapa melakukan satu ibadah sunnah dalam bulan Ramadhan, maka ia seperti orang yang melakukan ibadah wajib di bulan selain Ramadhan. Dan barang siapa yang melakukan ibadah wajib di bulan Ramadhan maka ia seperti orang yang melaksanakan 70 ibadah wajib di selain bulan Ramadhan". (HR Ibnu Khuzaimah). Maka, berpisah dengan bulan ini berarti kita meninggalkan kesempatan meraih pahala kebaikan yang berlipat-lipat.

Jika Rasulullah SAW bersabda, "Ada dua kegembiraan bagi orang yang berpuasa, kegembiraan saat berbuka dan kegembiraan tatkala bertemu dengan Allah." (HR. Al-Bukhari dan Muslim).. Maka, perpisahan dengan bulan ini, bererti terlewatnya dua momentum kegembiraan di kala buka puasa itu.

Jika Rasulullah SAW bersabda, "Barangsiapa yang berpuasa kerana keimanan dan semata-mata mengharap pahala, nescaya diampuni dosanya yang telah lalu. (HR. AlBukhari dan Muslim). Maka, perpisahan dengan bulan ini adalah hilangnya kesempatan kita untuk memperoleh ampunan Allah SWT terhadap dosa-dosa kita yang menggunung.

Saudaraku,
Jika Rasululah SAW bersabda, "Barangsiapa yang menunaikan qiyamullail pada bulan Ramadhan kerana keimanan dan mengharapkan pahala, nescaya akan diampuni dosa-dosa-nya yang telah lalu." (HR. Al-Bukhari dan Muslim) Maka usainya kebersamaan kita dengan bulan Ramadhan adalah lenyapnya kesempatan kita untuk menunaikan sholat malam dengan jaminan pahala ampunan atas dosa dan kekhilafan, yang kita sudah tenggelam di dalamnya.

Jika Rasulullah SAW bersabda, "Siapa saja yang solat tarawih bersama imam hingga selesai, akan ditulis baginya pahala solat semalam suntuk (HR. Abu Dawud, At-Tirmidzi, An-Nasai dan Ibnu Majah) Lalu bagaimana dengan kualitas ibadah solat tarawih yang sudah kita lakukan? Perpisahan dengan bulan suci ini, berarti juga kita akan kehilangan pahala solat tarawih. Kehilangan pahala semalam suntuk.

Saudaraku,Jika para salafushalih, selama bulan ini berlumba-lumba memperbanyak membaca AlQur'an. Malaikat Jibril memperdengarkan AlQuran kepada Rasulullah SAW pada bulan Ramadhan. Utsman bin Affan mengkhatamkan Al-Qur'an setiap hari pada bulan Ramadhan.

Sebagian salafushalih mengkhatamkan Al-Qur'an dalam solat tarawih setiap tiga malam sekali, tujuh malam sekali dan sepuluh malam sekali. Mereka selalu membaca AlQur'an baik di dalam solat maupun di luar solat. Jika Imam Asy-Syafi'i dapat mengkhatamkan Al-Qur'an sebanyak enam puluh kali di luar solat dalam bulan Ramadhan.

Sementara Al-Aswad mengkhatamkannya setiap dua hari sekali. Qatadah selalu mengkhatamkannya setiap tujuh hari sekali di luar Ramadhan, sedangkan pada bulan Ramadhan ia mengkhatamkannya setiap tiga hari sekali. Dan pada sepuluh terakhir bulan Ramadhan ia mengkhatamkannya setiap malam. Pada bulan Ramadhan Imam Az-Zuhri menutup majlis-majlis hadith dan majlis-majlis ilmu yang biasa diisinya. Ia mengkhususkan diri membaca Al-Quran dari mushaf. Dan Imam Ats Tsauri, beliau meninggalkan ibadah-ibadah lain dan mengkhususkan diri untuk membaca Al-Quran.

Saudaraku,Jika mereka demikian tinggi semangat dan mujahadahnya (kesungguhannya) membaca Al-Qur'an di bulan ini. Bagaimana dengan ibadah membaca Al Qur'an yang kita lakukan? Bila Ramadhan berlalu, berarti kita pun kehilangan kesempatan agung untuk memperoleh barakah istimewa dari membaca Al Quran di bulan ini…

Jika Allah SWT berfirman, "Sesungguhnya Kami telah menurunkannya (Al Qur'an) pada malam kemuliaan. Dan tahukah kamu apakah malam kemuliaan itu? Malam kemuliaan itu lebih baik dari seribu bulan (QS. Al-Qadr: 1-3). Dan jika Rasulullah SAW senantiasa mencari malam Lailatul Qadr dan memerintahkan sahabat untuk mencarinya. Beliau membangunkan keluarganya pada malam sepuluh terakhir dengan harapan mendapat malam Lailatul Qadr. Jika dalam Musnad Ahmad dari Ubadah, Rasulullah SAW bersabda: "Barangsiapa yang bangun sebagai usaha untuk mendapat malam Lailatul Qadr, lalu ia benar-benar mendapatkannya, nescaya akan diampuni dosa-dosanya yang lalu dan yang akan datang."

Jika kaum salaf dari kalangan sahabat dan tabiin mandi dan memakai minyak wangi pada sepuluh malam terakhir untuk mencari malam Lailatul Qadr, malam yang telah dimuliakan dan diangkat derajatnya oleh Allah. Maka perginya bulan ini dari sisi kita, berarti terlewatnya kesempatan yang tak pernah terbayar dalam seluruh hidup kita sekalipun. Bererti, lenyapnya kesempatan kita memperoleh keuntungan 1000 bulan yang sangat jauh lebih daripada usia kita sendiri.

Saudaraku,Jangan sia-siakan detik detik perpisahan ini. Rasakan benar-benar kehadiran kita di sini, di bulan ini. Lantunkan dzikir, tilawah Al Qur'an, munajat, permohonan ampun di sini. Buang kepenatan, hilangkan rasa lelah, dan paksalah diri ini. Hanya untuk hari-hari terakhir menjelang perpisahan dengan bulan penuh kemuliaan. Kejarlah segala yang terluput dari diri kita pada malam Lailatul Qadr. Sekarang, saudaraku. Jangan tunda lagi.Dan, menangislah. Kerana kita pun harus berpisah dengan bulan ini…

Thanks Sis Farfalla! For both the article & the video. Barakallahu feek, darl. :)

Salaam

Achievements in Ramadhan & Celebrating `Eid

2007-10-11T14:52:00.000-07:00

Salaam.

I've updated the Favourites section. Added a webby of Islamic comic strips. Thanks Sis Iffah for introducing me to the webby. I love it to bits :) hehe. Qur'an Recitation is also updated. Surah Al-Mu'minoon by Sheikh Mahir Al-Muayqali. :) :)

I visited a few blogs before bringing myself to update. I'm definitely grateful to Allah for blessing me with friends who are inclined in Islam, reminding each other about the Greatness of Allah. Sisters & brothers of Islam, we have each other for support. Don't lose hope in this jihad (struggle) we are wading ourselves through. May Allah be with us 24/7 yo. Amin.

The truth is that, although I feel my ibadah to Allah wasn't well done (was hindered by health reasons), I can't help to feel satisfied that this Ramadhan is undeniably the BEST when compared to my previous years of Ramadhan. Yes. That feeling of achievement is empowering me. Why?

(1) I have a better understanding in Qur'an. Alhamdulillah! Macam, can roughly figure out the recitation heres & there. :D

(2) I learnt a list of Arabic words & phrases! :) Syukran friends, for the generous sharing of them. Barakallahu feekum!

(3) Patience. :)

(4) I made more new online friends too! Conversations with the akhis & ukhtis are entertaining, and educational too. :D

(5) Realising that my life & death is dedicated to Allah. My love is for my Prophet Muhammad (peace & blessings be upon him). My utmost priority is my family. My ibu, ayah & abang rank high in my list (although brother can get on the nerves sometimes. lol. yang penting niat - his current favourite quote. lol).

Moving on, my family will proceed to kampung in Malacca this weekend, insyaAllah. Like the previous years, we will be celebrating Hari Raya there :) I'm anticipating this; to roister the occasion from the perspective of a young adult (ehem). hehe. I'm not expecting much of the $$ actually. Receiving them would be a bonus, it would be from the Ceaseless Provider, Allah. All praises to Ya Razzaq.

I'm actually looking forward to the day I would be giving out green packets instead. InsyaAllah, perhaps one day.

Some tips with regards to celebrating `Eid.

Step 1
Decorate your home and place of business or help your neighbours and family decorate their homes in anticipation of this special day. Balloons, banners or signs that read "Eid Mubarak" will help to create a festive atmosphere in which to celebrate `Eidul Fitr.

Step 2
Dress in your best attire on the day of `Eidul Fitr, after taking a cleansing bath with natural soap. Don't forget to scent yourself with perfumed oil, such as sandalwood. These simple actions are a traditional way to celebrate Eid Ul-Fitr, perhaps because it is symbolic of emerging from the sacrifice of Ramadhan into a state of purification in Syawal.

Step 3
Share your prosperity generously with neighbours and those less fortunate. Invite neighbours (especially those who are alone) over for a meal and consider making a donation of food to a homeless shelter, orphanage or other facility to celebrate `Eidul Fitr with underprivileged brothers and sisters.

Step 4
Get the family to participate in a gift exchange to celebrate `Eidul Fitr. Simply place everyone's name in a kufi (round cap) and let each family member draw to find out for whom who he or she will be purchasing or making a gift.

Eid Mubarak! - In A Few Days Time

2007-10-09T23:57:00.000-07:00

The Prophet (peace & blessings be upon him) said to Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him): “Every nation has its festival, and this is our festival.” (Bukhari & Muslim)

Here, he referred to the fact that these two `Eids (`Eidul-Fitr & `Eidul-Adha) are exclusively for the Muslims.

Anas (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that when the Prophet Muhammad (peace & blessings be upon him) migrated from Makkah to Madinah, the people of Madinah used to have two festivals. On those two days they would have carnivals and festivity.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) asked the Ansaar (the Muslims of Madinah) about it. They replied that before Islam they used to have carnivals on those two joyous days. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) told them:
“Instead of those two days, Allah has appointed two other days which are better, the days of `Eidul-Fitr and `Eidul-Adha.” (Reported by Abu Dawud)

`Eidul-Fitr is celebrated on the first day of Syawal, at the completion of Ramadhan. Syawal is the 10th month of the Islamic calendar. The `Eidul-Fitr is a very joyous day; it is a true Thanksgiving Day for the Muslims.

On this day Muslims show their real joy for the health, strength and the opportunities of life, which Allah has given to them to fulfill their obligation of fasting and other good deeds during the blessed month of Ramadhan.

27th Ramadhan.

2007-10-09T08:58:00.000-07:00

Alrighty. I’m tagged. I seldom do this, but for this once, why not? Thanks honey :)

5 things in my bag
1. Umbrella
2. A packet of tissue
3. Notes
4. Pencil case
5. A plastic (to store umbrella after usage. Mum’s advice. lol)

5 things in my wallet
1. Library card
2. Ez-link card
3. Some loose change
4. A pink paper of creases
5. That’s all. Really.

5 things in my bedroom
1. A closet
2. A studytable
3. Curtain
4. A HP calendar I received from work :)
5. Books

5 things I wish to do
1. Speak Arabic fluently (Amin) & study Islam intensively (Amin)
2. Leave worldly interest as much as I can & pursue interest for Hereafter in depth (Amin).
3. Memorise Qur’an (Amin), so when I’m bored I can recite the verses to myself.
4. Be successful (Amin). Too broad a wish, but that’s my aim for everything. insyaAllah.
5. I want to acquire carpenting skills, I want to do some construction work, I want to be as hardworking as my dad (Amin).

5 things I'm doing right now
1. Typing this.
2. Listening to the zikr “Allah Hu”.
3. Relaxing my mind. (MasyaAllah, the morning is just perfect)
4. Thinking of what to type.
5. Ending this.

lol. I don't know if anyone would even bother reading the above. Try-try je. hehe. :P I simply am enjoying the moment now. Start your day with zikrullah! Download some nice zikr & play 'em loud. Like the zikr featured in this post. You can inform me should you want any good zikr for ear candies. Subhanallah, I'm lovin it.

This video is great. Something all of us can do, especially in this Blessed Month. :)

ALLAH the Almighty - He is Worthy of all praises. To Him belong all the Beautiful Names. ALLAH is the Greatest.

I will. InsyaAllah.

2007-10-08T18:30:00.000-07:00

I feel like I'm being left far behind. As though I'm situated in the centre of this world, oblivious to the constant changes. I feel as if I'm doing nothing while everyone else is moving forward. I dislike this feeling. Yet I know it is this feeling that pushes me to progress.

I'm 17 years old, having too many ambitions.. unsure if I'm able to achieve them all within the shortest time to come. Looking around, I'm inspired by youths who have made it far. Particularly, ukhrawi matters. The capacity to memorise Qur'an, owning the ability to converse in Arabic, having saturated knowledge of Islam.. am I too late to clinch them all?

No, my friend convinced me.

I've roughly mapped out my road of life after I've obtained this diploma I'm currently pursuing. Mass Communication. After which I hope to enrol into an Arabic class, perhaps study for Diploma in Islamic Education too. and maybe, get myself into a tahfiz class? InsyaAllah. if Allah wills. Let's be kiasu for now, shall we?

I know I can do it. Binasrillah (with Allah's help). It's the matter of passion, as told by a sister. :)

My First Khatam Qur'an Event

2007-10-07T23:59:00.000-07:00

Just like how a pre-school child would be exhilarated for her first day of school, I was pretty much in a similar vibe too, but for a different event, of course. hehe. Al-Khair mosque organised a Khatam Qur'an (Completion of Qur'an) event today & it was my first time attending such an occasion. Dad signed up as a participant, so I thought, why not tag along? Besides, it would be a great start to a Sunday morning, especially to attain Allah's Pleasure.. :)

Dad & I separated ways as I marched up the stairs to the muslimah's (ladies) area on the 2nd floor. Alone like a lost child, I was wandering around to find a place to sit. A friendly middle-aged lady called me to sit with her. Soon, more of her friends joined us, thus forming a group for the recitation which would commence any time then.

Basically, the event entailed groups of about 4-6 people each to complete a section of the Qur'an. The group I was sitting with was assigned to read the first half of Surah Al-Baqarah, taking turns to read the verses of the Holy Book. Initially, I just planned to observe how the event would be like, not planning to read the Qur'an.. mainly because I was quite nervous with the idea of reading it in front of a group of people. I never did that actually. To my family members, yes. But not to people I wasn't familiar with. hehe.

However, after the lady next to me finished her recitation, she roped me into reading as well. I hesitated for a second, saddled with unconfidence at that point of time. What if my voice squeaks? What if my mind goes blank? Those fears led to frustration, but somehow I managed to toss them out of my mind & I told myself; just read!

So I went ahead, remembering that ALLAH would help me when I needed Him. MasyaAllah! The nervousness slipped away the moment I read the verses of Qur'an. I felt at home instantly. The worries all gone. MasyaAllah.. I suppose this is the peace that ALLAH Assures us if we read the Qur'an. :)

After confirming that every group had finished their parts, we then listened as the male participants from the praying hall downstairs took their turns to read surahs from Juzu' Amma, beginning from Surah Adh-Dhuha to Surah An-Naas. Finally, the event was sealed with do'a upon completion. :)

This event has certainly boosted my confidence in reading the Qur'an when with others. I am definitely looking forward to the next Khatam Qur'an event insyaAllah. There is a first time to everything, yes? And I'm sure that it won't be my last insyaAllah. :)

I Asked For..

2007-10-05T17:28:00.000-07:00

"..and it may be that you dislike a thing which is good for you and that you like a thing which is bad for you. ALLAH knows but you do not know." [Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 216]

ALLAH also says "Ud’uuni astajiblakum" - Call upon Me; I will respond to you. Every du`aa is accepted, just sometimes in ways we cannot comprehend.

Wallahi, I'm moved by this video.. and Allah's promise..

JustQuran.com

2007-10-04T16:09:00.000-07:00

Salam alaikum.. Check out this website! :)

http://www.justquran.com

As listed in the website, it consists of
- Qur'an Recitation (Arabic)
- English Translation of the meaning
- Other Languages Translation
- Qur'an Tafseer
- Nasheed
- Qur'an Tajweed
- Science & the Miracles of Qur'an
- Dua's & Zikr
- Misconceptions
- Lectures/Talks
- Children Recitation
- Reminders & Advice

Alternatively, you can click on the link provided under the 'Favorites' section, on the right hand corner of this blog. :)

I'm lovin it :)

Look Out for Lailaitul Qadr :)

2007-10-04T14:52:00.000-07:00

A`ishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported:
When the last ten nights (of Ramadhan) would begin, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) would keep awake at night (for prayer and devotion), awaken his family and prepare himself to be more diligent in worship.
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim]

A`shah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported:
The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to strive more in worship during Ramadhan than he strove in any other time of the year; and he would devote himself more (in the worship of Allah) in the last ten nights of Ramadan than he strove in earlier part of the month.
[Muslim]

1. One should concentrate more on prayers and worship on the last ten nights of Ramadhan than the first twenty nights, in the same way as one should do more worship in Ramadhan than in the other months.

2. One should keep oneself awake for prayer, worship and glorification of Allah in the last ten nights of Ramadhan so that one can attain the blessings of Lailatul Qadr.

3. One should also persuade his family members to keep themselves awake for prayer and worship in the last ten odd nights of Ramadhan so that they can also make efforts to please Allah.

4. I`tikaf (seclusion in the mosque for prayers) in the last ten days of Ramadhan is also a meritorious act for it was a practice of the Prophet (peace be upon him).

Although no specific sign of Lailatul Qadr has been mentioned in the Ahadith, some eminent scholars have stated, on the basis of their own experiences and observation, that since angels descend on this night, one feels a peculiar tranquillity and peace of mind and one is overwhelmed with a unique tenderness of heart.

The night is neither very hot nor very cold but a temperate one. Similarly, the sun that rises on the next day is also not very hot etc. etc. Allah knows the truth of the matter despite all that has been said in this regard. In any case, on this auspicious night every Muslim should earnestly pray to Allah for the forgiveness of his sins with reference to His Attribute of Forgiveness.

Source:
http://www.masmn.org/documents/Hadith/Riyad_Us_Saliheen/08_0214.htm

Lailatul Qadr Nasheed

2007-10-04T00:35:00.000-07:00

Di dalam bulan Ramadhan
Ada satu malam
Nilainya menyamai
Dengan seribu bulan

Itulah dia malam Al-Qadar
Hadiah pada hambanya yang bertaqwa

Di dalam bulan ramadhan
Ada satu malam
Nilainya menyamai
Dengan seribu bulan

Singkaplah tabir
Di sepuluh malam terakhir
Berlumba kita mencari keredhaanNya
Hidupkan malam beribadah dan iktikaf
Berdoa, bertasbih dan memohon keampunan

Malam apakah ini ?
Kiraannya 83 tahun
Melangkaui kadar lazim biasa umum
Usia umat nabi pilihan
Beruntunglah bagi hamba

Di dalam bulan Ramadhan
Ada satu malam
Barangsiapa yang menghidupkan
Lailatul Qadar
Akan diampunkan dosa-dosanya yang silam

Ya Allah
Yang memberi
Kemaafan
Maafkanlah kami
Semua hamba-hambaMu

Kindly view a wonderfully pleasant nasheed about Lailatul Qadr through this link. I was bedazzled :) Subhanallah..

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MPLlPQxXdZc

Random Pictures :)

2007-10-03T14:19:00.000-07:00

Salam alaikum my friends.. May peace be upon you :)

I just feel like posting some pictures. Hehe.

See the cat in the photo frame? That's Manja I, the first cat I ever had, when I was 5 years old. We nicknamed her "Manja - tapi tak manja" cus I suppose that's her nature.. lol. I miss her..

This is Manja II. She's my best friend :) I dote on her alot too. hehe. I remember studying for O level Chemistry last year with her sleeping on my studytable. Tidur dengan khusyuk. hehe. I miss her tenderly :'( and her kittens too, Qaish & Laila.. Miss them so much..

This is what happens when one fails to monitor the cleanliness of the window grille. Dust alert! hehe.

Notice the little black object? That's a dead beetle. hehe.

My dad's best friend the stepladder. As well as the toolbox. hehe. I'm still developing my relationships with the both of them. :P

My newly-revamped notice board :) The contents are kept to a bare minimum, cus the intricate design of the batik background speaks volume by itself. :)

Love of my life..

"There is no God but You, Glory be to You, truly we have been of the wrongdoers.."

"The difference between the impossible and the possible lies in a person's determination"
A bookmark from Unity Sec Sch, given to O level candidates last year :)

"Goodgirl prays to Allah"
My parents bought the badge for me. I love my ibu & ayah :)

Till the next time, Salam alaikum.

View Of Ramadhan

2007-10-02T23:56:00.000-07:00

An online chat I had with a friend yesterday made me ponder about how my life has progressed since the beginning of Ramadhan. He asked me, how do I feel about this Holy month. Subhanallah, a simple question it may seem to be, but the answers to it were in abundance. Thoughts & self-reflections streamed endlessly into mind in response to his question. Somehow, it made me realise how meaningful this Ramadhan has been to me. Subhanallah.

Well, I can’t really compare myself now & the past years in terms of my worship & devotion to Allah Ta’ala. I’m now a young adult, Alhamdulillah.. whereas back then I was just a teenager still struggling to understand life. How silly was I to look forward to listening to Hari Raya songs when it was only 15th Ramadhan!

A few years ago, a friend invited me to come along to perform taraweeh prayers in a mosque in Singapore. It was my first time, as previously taraweeh prayers would be done at home. MasyaAllah, the ambience was invigorating, unexplainable by words. I felt the strong bond within the ummah through the congregational (jemaah) prayers. Definitely one of the best moments.. MasyaAllah..

Last year especially, it was during Ramadhan too that O level candidates were busily poring over textbooks & notes, sitting through extra classes, consultations & whatnots. Initially, I felt that that was the end, thinking - how can a constant failure like me obtain academic success with just a month of concrete preparation? Indeed, it was ridiculous but Alhamdulillah, the strength I got from Ramadhan 2006 proved those who disparaged me wrong. Alhamdulillah, I thank Allah for not giving up on me. :)

Just a small advice, ALLAH’s help will bestow upon those who persevere till the very end. Syukran lillahi ta’ala..

I’ve heard of a term which describes Ramadhan as a school. It educates us - literally. The perpetuating trials throughout this Holy month has molded me into a extremely patient individual.. MasyaAllah. Yes, I do get offended, disappointed.. helpless sometimes too, perhaps driven by my pre-existent emotional sensitivity, but the assurance that all these tests are from ALLAH is really comforting. Ujian itu tarbiyah (lesson) from ALLAH. Tak sia-sia sesuatu kejadian itu. Ujian itu penghapus dosa. Thanks to friends who have been supplementing with words of wisdom at times I was down in the dumps. Jazakallahu khairan, from the bottom of my heart. :)

Yes, it is undoubtedly sad to realise Ramadhan will leave us soon. It is even more dejecting when we look at our society towards the end of Ramadhan. Embarrasment is the word when it comes to comparing this ummah with the people in the early days of Islam. During the nights of Ramadhan, they willingly sacrificed their sleep to devote themselves to ALLAH, constantly worshipping as though there’s no tomorrow. They felt sorrowful when separating with Ramadhan. Ramadhan was their lives.

It’s a complete opposite now..

The excitement for Hari Raya diminishes the hope for Lailatul Qadr :’( The bazaars are awfully packed with people. Jemaah in mosques are getting lesser & lesser by the day, as though they are no longer important now that Syawal is approaching. Hari Raya songs? Baju kurung sales? We’re still in Ramadhan my friends.. still in Ramadhan..

I guess this embarassment leads to the reluctance in buying any new traditional clothings for myself – that’s just mere tradition. Nothing beats Islam. In actual fact, Hari Raya Aidilfitri is only reserved for those who enliven Ramadhan with remembrance of ALLAH, worshipping Him and praising Him every breath of their lives. Thus personally, I don’t think I deserve to celebrate Hari Raya.. O ALLAH forgive me please..

Kemuliaan Ramadhan - In Team & UNIC

2007-10-02T16:53:00.000-07:00

Gonna miss you, ya Ramadhan..

Welcome To The Last 10 Days of Ramadhan ;'(

2007-10-01T23:51:00.000-07:00

It as narrated by Abu Hurairah that Prophet said:
"Anyone who stays awake for the Night Of Power with belief and for the pleasure of Allah, all his previous sins will be forgiven."
[Bukhari and Muslim]

A'ishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported:
The Messenger of Allah (PBUH) used to observe I`tikaf in the last ten days of Ramadan and say, "Seek Lailatul-Qadr (Night of Decree) in the odd nights out of the last ten nights of Ramadhan.''
[Al-Bukhari]

A'ishah (May Allah be pleased with her) reported:
I asked: "O Messenger of Allah! If I realise Lailatul Qadr (Night of Decree), what should I supplicate in it?'' He (Prophet Muhammad) replied, "You should supplicate:

Allahumma innaka `afuwwun, tuhibbul-`afwa, fa`fu `anni
Translation: O Allah, You are Most Forgiving, and You Love forgiveness; so Forgive me
[At-Tirmidhi].

As far as the signs of Lailatul Qadr are concerned:

1. The sun rises early in the morning without rays.

2. Rain may fall either during the night or during the day of that night.

3. During night the sky will be lightly foggy.

4. The sky will be slightly lighted without reflections and without rays.

5. The angels and Gabriel all descend down onto earth for many purposes.

What we can do in search for Lailatul Qadr:

a. Recitation of the Our'an.

b. Prayers-Nafl after Taraweeh.

c. Remembrance of Allah or zikr

d. Supplication or Du'a for you and for others.

e. Pondering and contemplating into the universe, the creation of the Heavens and the Earth: "...and they contemplate the (wonders of) creation in the heaven and the earth…."(3:191)

f. Reading books of Hadeeth so as to enjoy the sayings of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

g. Reading Tafseer of Qur'an.

h. Giving charity to others if you can afford it.

i. Trying to explain Islam, if you know something about it, to those next to you so they will benefit from you.

The Night of Power is a very important occasion in Islam. Everyone is asked to live it and to enjoy it. This Night is a night of Mercy, a night of Blessing, a night of Peace and a night of Guidance. It is a night of Unification between the finite world of ours and the Infinite Universe of the Unseen.

Anyone who is interested in attaining the Mercy of Allah will strive very hard to look for the Night of Power. Anyone who is interested in receiving the blessings of Allah on the Blessed Night will work very hard to enjoy the Night of Power. Anyone who is interested in attaining peace of mind, peace of body and peace in society, he has to look for this Night and to live it.

May Allah give us the strength, the power, the courage and the effort to do our best to obey Allah and to follow His teachings. May Allah guide us and may Allah strengthen our Iman. May Allah help us to live another year with sincerity and devotion. May Allah make us realize that one year of our life is over and that we are one year closer to our graves.

Let us wake up and do our best to please Allah in our daily life. Let us ask Almighty Allah forgiveness. Ameen

Adapted from Islamic Finder and masmn.org.

I've Seen & Lailatul Qadr

2007-09-30T23:30:00.000-07:00

Salam alaikum my friends. I'm currently infatuated with this song by Outlandish featuring Sami Yusuf entitled "I've Seen". MasyaAllah, listening to this song makes me realise how lost we are without our beloved Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).. without the light of his presence. Ya Rasulullah, we're missing you so desperately. :'(

Lailatul Qadr

One of the reasons why the Blessed month of Ramadhan is important is because it was during this month that the Holy Qur'an was revealed. The night when Angel Jibril first came to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to bring him the divine message.

Lailatul Qadr means The Night of Power, or the Night of Decree. This is a special night, and is the most important night for those Muslims who are fasting.

So when is Lailatul Qadr? Well, it is not known exactly which night of the month of Ramadhan it is, but it falls in the last ten days of Ramadhan, and believed to be in the Odd Nights - that means the 21st, 23rd, 25th, 27th or 29th. Many people also believe that Lailatul Qadr is on the 27th Night, because this was the night that it was originally on.

So what happens on this night? On this night, people who fast try and make even more ibadah (worship) than the other nights in Ramadhan. It is better than a thousand months, and so is very special and unique.

Muslims try to read more Qur'an and perform nafil solahs (optional prayers). They make more zikr and remember Allah more. Many Muslims stay up all night in ibadah, so that they could take advantage of this special Night, because it only comes once a year.

Allah (Subhanahu wa Ta'ala) has explained how special Lailatul Qadr is in the Qur'an:

"Surely we have revealed the Qur'an on the Night of Al-Qadr;
The Night of Al-Qadr is better than a thousand months;
The Angels and the Spirit (Jibrael) Descend in it
by their Lords' permission, with every decree.
Peace it is, until the break of Dawn."
[Surah Al-Qadr, 97: 1-5]

Mum, You Owe Me $14.75

2007-09-30T00:29:00.000-07:00

A little boy came up to his mother in the kitchen one evening while she was fixing supper, and he handed her a piece of paper that he had been writing on. After his mom dried her hands on an apron, she read it, and this is what it said:

For cutting the grass: $5.00

For cleaning up my room this week: $1.00

For going to the store for you: $0.50

Babysitting my kid brother while you went shopping: $0.25

Taking out the garbage: $1.00

For getting a good report card: $5.00

For cleaning up and raking the yard: $2.00

Total owed: $14.75

Well, his mother looked at him standing there, the boy could see the memories flashing through her mind. She picked up the pen, turned over the paper he'd written on, and this is what she wrote:

For 9 months I carried you while you were growing inside me: No Charge.

For all the nights that I've sat up with you, doctored and prayed for you: No Charge.

For all the trying times, and all the tears that you've caused through the years: No Charge.

For all the nights that were filled with dread, and for the worries I knew were ahead: No Charge.

For the toys, food, clothes, and even wiping your nose: No Charge,

Son. When you add it up, the cost of my love is: No Charge.

When the boy finished reading what his mother had written, there were big tears in his eyes, and he looked straight at his mother and said,

"Mom, I sure do love you".

And then he took the pen and in great big letters he wrote: "PAID IN FULL"

Our Prophet Muhammad said

"Paradise lies under the feet of your mother.”

"A man asked the Prophet: "Whom should I honour most?" The Prophet replied: "Your mother". "And who comes next?" asked the man. The Prophet replied: "Your mother". "And who comes next?" asked the man. The Prophet replied: "Your mother". "And who comes next?" asked the man. The Prophet replied: "Your father" (Bukhari and Muslim).

Languor.

2007-09-28T21:59:00.000-07:00

Assalamu'alaikum.

I'm in the kitchen's balcony, with the accompaniment of IKIM.FM, currently broadcasting the taraweeh prayers live in one of the mosques in Malaysia. It struck me that instead of typing this, I should be part of the congregation in a mosque performing taraweeh. But no.. sigh. :(

I get tired very easily these few days. At one point of time I can be moving around in the house, bursting with energy & finding chores to do, & the next (like now), I'm quietly nestled at the corner of home, doing my own things. Listening to the young lad leading the prayers reciting long surahs. Subhanallah, the peace Qur'an provides oneself.

Allah, I seek refuge in You from any form of sickness. :( Ya Allah, I don't think I have the energy to even stand up now. :( Allah, berikanlah hambaMu ini kekuatan cus hanya Engkau yang Maha Berkuasa.. Ya Ghaffar, kasihanilah hambaMu ini. I'm feeling so weak now. :(

It's the 17th of Ramadhan now. A day of remembrance of the Battle of Badr which occured on this date in the 2nd year of Hijrah. All praises to Allah for bestowing upon Islam military victory against the kuffar. In the Battle of Badr, Islamic force was only armed with 313 Muslims & the pagan army (led by Abu Jahl) - 1000 warriors. Allahuakbar!

I need to read in depth about the history of the battle of Badr. Till then, Assalamu'alaikum.

There is no God but Allah, & Muhammad is His Messenger

Taubat Seorang Hamba - Irsyadee

2007-09-28T08:37:00.000-07:00

& sis! MasyaAllah I love this song very much. Hehe. Thanks for posting it in your blog, honey :)

Hati hiba mengenangkan
Dosa-dosa yag kulakukan
Oh Tuhan Maha Kuasa
Terima taubat hamba berdosa

Ku akui kelemahan diri
Ku insafi kekurangan ini
Ku kesali kejahilan ini
Terimalah .. terimalah.. terimalah..
Taubatku ini..

Telah aku merasakan
Derita jiwa & perasaan
Kerna hilang dari jalan
Menuju redhaMu ya Tuhan

Di hamparan ini ku meminta
Moga taubatku diterima

IKIM.FM did played this piece on air a few times. & listening to this song in the honey's blog instantaneously triggered me to post this song as well. hehe. Syukran ya ukhti! :)

The song's by Irsyadee, Singapore's nasheed group formed comprising of students from Madrasah Al-Irsyad Al-Islamiah. My cousin who's also from the school introduced me to their songs. Soothing to the ears, ay. :)

This song, especially. It instills the sense of taubah in oneself, as one reflects back his/her past in the jahiliyah days. Ya Allah, terimalah taubat kami! Kami hamba-hambaMu yang jahil, berlumuran dgn dosa.. forgive us O Allah, for Your Mercy encompasses all..

Hijab Is A Gift From Allah

2007-09-27T23:40:00.000-07:00

Most IMPORTANT about Hijab (Hejab) is that Allah has ordered to wear Hijab (Hejab). For detail please see Noble Qur'an (33:59, 24:30, 24:31).

Do you wear a Hijab (Hejab)? Give it a try today.

The pea is a splendid plant. It proudly displays its strong green Hijab (Hejab). It protects it from the hot and cold weather and guards it from insects. Allah has blessed the pea with a special Hijab (Hejab), because without it, the seeds would scatter, dry up and die.

The orange keeps itself within its shiny orange Hijab (Hejab) to protect its delicious fruit. Otherwise it looses its taste too.

So are the banana, the coconut and the pomegranate. Each one has an elegant and unique Hijab (Hejab), which protects it from disease and destruction.

The jewel of the sea, the pearl, has been given a very tough and rugged Hijab (Hejab) - oyster shell. It protects it from sea animals and keeps it sparkling and shining inside.

However, the most beloved of Allah in all His creation is the Muslim Girl who wears the Hijab (Hejab). She knows it is a gift from Allah. It protects her from harm, injury and mischief. She wears it knowing it gives her dignity, beauty and respect. So precious she can be that she hides herself beneath her Hijab (Hejab).

Allah Made Me Funny - Azhar Usman

2007-09-26T03:28:00.000-07:00

This is seriously hilarious.

Surah Fussilat (Verses 37-54)

2007-09-25T15:43:00.000-07:00

Salam alaikum :)

I'm actually in the midst of a task. hehe. But I think it doesn't hurt to blog for a short while. With regards to the video above, the recitor (Sheikh Fahd Al-Kanderi) has a gifted honeyed voice, don't you think? Along with Sheikh Mahir Al-Muayqali (!!), Sheikh Mishary Rashid, Sheikh Ghomidi (!!) & Sheikh Luhaidan. hehe. Just to list my favourites.

I really adore Sheikh Mahir's style of reciting the word "Alhamdulillah" (All praises to ALLAH) in Surah Fatihah. It's very unique, to me. :) I knew of him when I was watching the taraweeh prayers telecasted live from Makkah, shown in RTM 1 quite recently. Here's a recitation of Surah Fatihah from Sheikh Mahir. :)

Anyways, just to end this post.. I hope all of us Muslim brothers & sisters are maximising our time in attaining the Pleasure of Allah, in this Holy Month of Ramadhan. For the ladies: Don't despair should you be unable to fast & perform taraweeh prayers. As what was advised by a friend, we can carry out other ibadah like zikrullah & perhaps listen to Qur'an recitations too. :)

Salam.

Iftar @ Pertapis Halfway House

2007-09-23T23:28:00.000-07:00

Salam :)

My weekend has been tremendous :) All praises to The Lord of the Worlds, ALLAH. Yesterday afternoon was spent at the Pertapis Halfway House, a rehab centre for drug addicts. There was an iftar event held at the venue. During our journey there, in which we commuted by a cute minibus, Cik Hasnah briefly described to us the place we would soon be arriving at. Hehe. It was pretty apparent that all of us (The youths from Al-Khair mosque & I ) were very enthusiastic! :)

The staffs there guided us with instructions regarding our duties. Basically, we were in charge of the drinks for the people who were invited to break their fast there – families destitute. Best! Macam kendarat. :)

We scurried around either placing styrofoam cups on the table or pouring drinks & refilling the jugs. Plus orders like,

“Adik, nak cawan lagi satu dik.” (Can I have another cup)
“Dik, ade plastic tak?” (Do you have any plastic (bag)?)
“Dik, mintak air tambah lagi!” (More water please!)

and this cute request

“Kak, boleh ambil gambar dgn kakak?” (Can i take a picture with you?) lol. So cute. :P

Personally, the event was simply a memorable one for me. There were other encounters now etched in my mind.. only Allah knows. Furthermore, I made new friends from Pertapis Girls Home too! Hehe. I’m looking forward to the next event & insyaAllah I will be able to meet them again!

Salam :)

Signs of ALLAH in Our Tongues

2007-09-22T02:39:00.000-07:00

ALLAH, The Lord of the Worlds

Have you ever wondered about your tongue? It is one of the wonderful creations of Allah. Allah Ta'ala gave each of us one tongue. But this one tongue is able to taste thousands of different types of food and drinks. If our taste buds on the tongue were to become inactive, we would not know the difference between an orange or a stone.

Moreover, like finger print, everyone has a different tongue print.

Relative to its size, tongue is also the strongest muscle in the human body. And it is the only muscle which is connected to only one side. The tongue is so strong that it can create a pressure on the roof of the mouth equivalent to the weight of two double decker busses!

The strongest muscle of our body, the tongue, has been created by Allah for us to glorify Him. Trully, with the help of this tongue, we are able to recite the Glorious Quran and talk about Allah's Greatness. Let us not spoil the tongue by backbiting, slandering and lieing.

...

2007-09-20T22:19:00.000-07:00

Allah, I need Your help.. please.

Deep Impact.

2007-09-20T15:54:00.000-07:00

Salam

A friend recently shared with me this video. Jazakallahu khair, awak.

It goes to show that our lives are too short to divert our attention to the temporary pleasure this world has to offer. What matter most to ALLAH are our deeds. Good or bad, they'll accompany us 6 feet under.. and we're responsible for them.

:)

2007-09-20T11:09:00.000-07:00

An Imam was selling his horse in the market. An interested buyer came to him and requested if he could get a test drive.

The Imam told the man that this horse is unique. In order to make it walk, you have to say Subhanallah (Exalted is ALLAH). To make it run, you have to say Alhamdulillah (All praises belong to ALLAH) and to make it stop, you have to say Allahu Akbar (ALLAH The Greatest).

The man sat on the horse and said Subhanallah. The horse started to walk. Then he said Alhamdulillah and it started to run. He kept saying Alhamdulillah and the horse started running faster and faster. All of a sudden the man noticed that the horse is running towards the edge of the hill that he was riding on. Being overly fearful, he forgot how to stop the horse!

He kept saying all these words out of confusion. When the horse was just near the edge, he remembered Allahu Akbar and said it out loud. The horse stopped just one step away from the edge. The man took a deep breath, looked up towards the sky and said Alhamdulillah!

The Zikr - Ramadhan 2 Zaman

2007-09-20T00:04:00.000-07:00

Ramadhan, satu nasib tak serupa,
Peluangnya sama, natijah berbeza.

Ramadhan mereka gemilang cemerlang,
Mukmin berjasa di awal zaman.
Ramadhan kami malang terbuang,
Muslim berdosa di akhir zaman.

Mereka gembira kerana kedatanganmu,
Kami gembira dengan pemergianmu.
Malam mereka meriah disimbah nur Al-Quran,
Tapi malam kami muram berkabung dengkur.

Mereka berlumba mengejar makrufat,
Tapi kami lesu diburu nafsu,
Hati mereka bercahaya digilap taqwa,
Jiwa kami gelap didera dosa

Takbir mereka takbir kemenangan
Hadiah mujahadah sebulan Ramadhan
Takbir kami lesu tak bermaya
Tanda kalah lemah tak berdaya

Puasa sekadar lapar dan dahaga....

How Embarrassing!

2007-09-19T10:56:00.000-07:00

Song video "The Prophet", peace be upon him. By Dawud Wharnsby, a Canadian Muslim convert. Allahuakbar :)

***

People usually feel embarrassed when they do something wrong in front of a crowd. The embarrassment increases as the size of the crowd increases. For example, a person will feel more embarrassed if his/her faults are revealed in front of a thousand people than in front of only 10 people. Imagine how you would feel if your faults were broadcasted through the media to all the people in your country.

We are very particular in protecting our honour and dignity in this world, however, while disobeying Allah, are we mindful of the Day of Judgement when we will be standing in front of Allah in the presence of the whole humanity? Besides the ordinary people, all the prophets will be present along with all the sahabah, martyrs and pious individuals. How embarrassing it will be if they see us standing in front of Allah as sinners! Besides the whole humanity, how bad it is if we are to stand in front of Allah alone as a disobedient servant? Therefore, to avoid those major humiliations, we should avoid committing sins in this world.

Best Taraweeh Ever

2007-09-18T14:58:00.000-07:00

Salam.

In the month of Ramadhan, Muslims are highly encouraged to perform a special set of prayers called Taraweeh, at the fall of night after Isya' prayers. Amongst all the congregational taraweeh prayers that I was part of in mosques, I really enjoyed Taraweeh prayers yesterday night at Al-Khair Mosque. :)

It was the normal ritual like any other taraweeh prayers, but what took my fancy was that it was led by imams (leaders) made up of youths! (one of them is my primary school mate) They took their turns to lead the jemaah (congregation), each reciting a surah (chapter) of the Qur'an, spread across a number of raka'ahs.

Moreover, the surahs chosen happened to be my utmost favourites! - Surah Qaf, Ar-Rahman (The Most Gracious) & Al-Qiyamah (The Resurrection).

On top of that, their mellifluous voices simply drowned me in wonderment! The ayats (verses) of ALLAH conveyed in such harmony - it was an heartwarming moment indeed MasyaAllah.

May ALLAH preserve the lads into becoming Islamic scholars of the future.. Amin.

Salam

Importance of Saying Insha Allah

2007-09-17T15:55:00.000-07:00

During a Jumah Khutbah in a small town, an Imam talked about the significance of saying "Insha Allah" (if Allah wills) when planning to do something in the future. After a few days, a man who had also attended the Khutbah was going to buy a cow from the market. On the way, he met a friend who asked him where he was going.

He told him about buying the cow but did not say Insha Allah in the end. His friend reminded him about the Khutbah and told him to say Insha Allah. However, this individual said that he had the money he needed and the energy to go to the market, thus, there is no point of saying Insha Allah as he will certainly buy the cow. He thought that saying Insha Allah will not make any difference.

When he reached the market, he found a cow that met his expectations. He bargained with the seller and came to a reasonable price. Finally, he decided to pay for the cow but was dumbfounded when he discovered that his money was missing. A thief had stolen the money while he was walking through the busy market.

The cow seller asked him whether he was going to buy the cow or not. "Insha Allah, I will buy it next week," he said.

When he reached home, his wife inquired about the cow. He told her about how he forgot to say Insha Allah, and also added, "Insha Allah, I wanted to buy the cow. But Insha Allah, my money was stolen. Insha Allah, I will buy it next week."

His wife clarified to him that we should say Insha Allah for things that are yet to happen, not for those things that had already happened. He never forgot his "Insha Allah" again.

This incident was narrated by Shaikh Wahidullah from Toronto, Canada.

***

I can easily relate myself to the story above as at times, I tend to forget to say Insha Allah too. For instance, if my dad asks me whether I would be going out as planned, I would reply "Pergi" (going). My dad would remind me by saying, "Insha Allah". Cus we are unable to predict whether our activities will be accomplished as intended. We do the planning, ALLAH overpowers the outcome.

Also, I remember an ustadz once said that the term "Insha Allah" is just like a promise. For example, Fatimah asks Ali if he is going to the mosque for taraweeh prayers later that night. Ali simply says Insha Allah. If so, he must comply with what he has said.

I believe sometimes we are apt to understand the word Insha Allah, which is why we take it lightly when we mention it, yes? Correct me if I'm wrong, "in" in Insha Allah means 'if', "sha" = will or want, & Allah is of course, the one Lord. Thus "Insha Allah" = if Allah wills.

Perhaps ni future if we are unable to make decisions within a restricted time, we can replace the term insha Allah with "no promises", unless we are really determined to carry out as promised.

Salam.

7 Tips For A Healthier Ramadhan

2007-09-17T00:49:00.000-07:00

Eat Suhur
The Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, highly recommend eating this pre-dawn meal before a day of fasting. While you may want to pass to catch some more sleep, remember that you can always take a catnap while you're fasting, but you won't be able to eat or drink. To make it easier, set out utensils and dry food on the table before going to bed so you can quickly eat and go back to sleep after Subuh prayer.

Limit fat intake
That's right, limit it, don't cut it out. Otherwise, you'll have to get rid of what's considered "traditional" Iftar food in most Muslim cultures. If you're not sure what kind of food is being referred to, think fried, greasy and/or super sweet.

Follow the Prophet's golden rule of one-third
This especially needs to be said in Ramadan. We should strive to have no more than one-third food, one-third liquid and one-third air in our stomachs when eating.

Encourage dip-dunking
Fruits and vegetables get left to the wayside during regular days, let alone at Iftar time. But you can whip out those carrot sticks if you've got some tasty dips to eat them with. Check out some healthy recipes.

Walk after Iftar
Before you fall over from exhaustion after Iftar and dinner, take a short walk around the block or just around your building. The change of environment and exposure to fresh air may just wake you up in time to go for the next activity listed below.

Pray Tarawih
More great exercise, not to mention a wonderful way to build concentration, stamina and brotherhood/sisterhood.

Take a short afternoon nap
Experts say you don't need more than a 15-minute siesta to really refresh you. During lunch hour, find a quiet spot, set the alarm on your watch/cell phone and nap. This can help your body adjust to the daily Ramadan schedule that requires early waking for Suhur.

Harapan Ramadhan - Raihan

2007-09-16T00:02:00.000-07:00

Ku mengharapkan Ramadhan
Kali ini penuh makna
Agar dapat kulalui
Dengan sempurna

Selangkah demi selangkah
Setahun sudah pun berlalu
Masa yang pantas berlalu
Hingga tak terasa ku berada
Di bulan Ramadhan semula

Puasa satu amalan
Sebagaimana yang diperintahNya
Moga dapat ku lenturkan
Nafsu yang selalu membelenggu diri
Tiada henti-henti

Tak ingin ku biarkan Ramadhan berlalu saja
Tuhan pimpinlah daku yang lemah
Mengharungi segalanya dengan sabar
Kita memohon pada Tuhan diberikan kekuatan
Ku merayu pada Tuhan diterima amalan

Selangkah demi selangkah...
Dengan rahmatMu oh Tuhanku...
Ku tempuh jua