Paradigm Shift

Kimono and Islam

2012-01-22T10:07:00.003+02:00

Japanese muslim woman, still wearing her kimono..

Islam did not come to destroy any customs or traditions, but to purify it. As long as they do not contradict with Islamic laws or value, they should not be abolished or prohibited.

Baju kurung or baju melayu is just as Islamic as jubah. Remember, Islam did not come to 'Arabize' people..

Mumayyiz?

2011-12-06T02:33:00.001+02:00

The ability to tell good from bad is a pretty basic skill for a human being, actually.

The term 'mumayyiz' is often referred to a toddler who is able to differentiate between good and bad, right and wrong.  Grown ups are supposed to be able to do more than that.

Sufyan bin ‘Uyainah is right when he said, "The intelligent person is not one who merely knows what is good and what is bad. The intelligent person is one who, when he sees what is good, follows it, and when he sees evil, shuns it.”

  Saturate yourself with good deeds, so that it wont leave any room for the bad ones. Remember that whoever tasted the sweetness of iman will always recognize the bitterness of sins.

Winning hearts or arguments?

2011-11-24T11:46:00.001+02:00

Sometimes as we grow older, we realize that not everything has to be debatable.

When we were young and eager to talk, we wanted to debate about everything. We thought we knew everything, and wanted the whole world to know that we did. Bad words were exchanged and feelings were hurt.

What we didn't realize is that wisdom actually makes somebody more calm, humble, unemotional and rational.

A wise person will know that winning hearts is more important than winning arguments.

A smart person will know that even though he/she is a good debater, but he/she is a much better son/daughter/husband/wife/friend.

There will be a time when we will look back at our previous arguments and say, "Oh my, why did i say that? Couldn't i just let it go?"

So, before we talk, think. Before we judge, understand. Before we hurt someone, feel.

There's no ctrl+z in life. Once you say something, it'll be out there forever. So, speak wisely :)

Buah, Jigsaw Puzzle & Manusia

2011-11-21T11:53:00.001+02:00

Perhatikan keajaiban buah-buahan. Kesemuanya disiram dengan air hujan yang sama, tetapi mengeluarkan rasa berbeza-beza. Ada yang manis, ada yang masam, ada yang pahit.

Sebab itu tidak pelik melihat perbezaan di kalangan manusia. Kadangkala mereka menuntut di universiti yang sama, bergerak dalam jemaah yang sama, ditarbiyah dalam usrah yang sama, bernaung di bawah kalimah tauhid yang sama, tetapi hasil tindakan dan aliran pemikiran boleh jadi berbeza-beza.

Adakah wajar disalahkan wujudnya perbezaan tersebut? Ataukah lebih bijak untuk mengurus serta meraikan kesemuanya dengan berlapang dada dan usaha menuju sinergi?

Jika setiap kepingan jigsaw puzzle itu sama sahaja bentuknya, tidak dinamakan jigsaw puzzle lah begitu. Namun seperti juga manusia, setiap satu bersifat unik. Tetapi mempunyai kebolehan bergabung sesama sendiri sehinggalah menghasilkan satu imej yang jelas dan indah.

Coffee and Life

2011-11-20T17:44:00.001+02:00

Sometimes we struggle through a tasteless coffee till the last sip.. But then we find sugar lying at the bottom of the cup. That's life :)

Sometimes we just have to endure the bitter part of life to finally get to the sweet part. We'll never know what Allah has planned for us. Just be grateful with what you have and be optimistic ;)

Thermometer or Thermostat?

2011-10-31T22:20:00.002+02:00

Are you a thermometer or a thermostat?

A thermometer can only measure the 'temperature' of a society, without being able to change their condition. People like this usually love to criticize and judge, but do nothing to make a difference.

But a thermostat, on the other hand, is not only able to analyze the atmosphere, but can also make some changes to it when necessary. People like this realize the importance of doing something in order to make an impact.

So, which one are you? :)

Unity in disguise

2011-10-27T02:54:00.000+02:00

Sometimes what seems like a disunity might actually be a unity in disguise.

Remember when Prophet Jacob p.b.u.h instructed his sons to enter Egypt from different doors (Surah Yusuf: 67). That did not at all result in disunity among them, but rather a strategy, in the sense that if one way turned out to be unsuccessful, the others would have another alternative to get their tasks completed.

It doesn't really matter which way we use then, as long as it leads to the same destination. Each way has its own advantages and disadvantages.

Some people pick a country road for its scenery. Others pick highways because they're faster. But nobody could ever say that their way is better than the other.

Lets just enjoy our road trips and we'll see each other at the destination soon ;)

Ibrah al-Kahfi (1)

2011-10-21T17:51:00.001+02:00

Surah al-Kahfi menggariskan ciri-ciri kepimpinan yang perlu ada di kalangan pemimpin umat Islam.

Salah satunya ialah identiti "ghurabak" yang ditunjukkan oleh Ashabul Kahfi; para pemuda yang berani & bersemangat kental melawan arus pemikiran yang rosak, tanpa terikut-ikut ideologi majoriti ketika itu, walau mereka tahu implikasi buruknya.

Pemimpin yang hebat juga bukan sahaja yang hanya tinggi ilmu agamanya, warak sifatnya, atau petah kata ucapannya, tetapi juga yang menguasai ilmu moden lain yang diperlukan mengikut kesesuaian zaman.

Dalam kes Zulqarnain, selain penguasaan teknik komunikasi dan pentadbiran, ditonjolkan juga kemahirannya dalam bidang kejuruteraan & senibina apabila beliau mampu membina tembok pemisah dari Yakjuj dan Makjuj daripada campuran besi dan tembaga, yang ketika itu sudah dikira sangat kukuh dan moden.

Justeru jika kepimpinan hari ini berhajat kepada penguasaan bahasa Inggeris, ilmu ekonomi, sains sosial, pengurusan, pentadbiran mahupun pertahanan, maka pemimpin kita perlulah mempersiapkan diri dengan elemen-elemen tersebut untuk memimpin dengan lebih efisyen.

Moga kita diberi peluang untuk berada di bawah pimpinan Islam yang hebat menurut acuan al-Quran suatu hari nanti. Insya Allah :)

Lighter burden or Stronger shoulder?

2011-10-20T20:05:00.000+02:00

Unlike humans, Allah will never place a burden on someone greater than he can bear.

Thus, whenever we face a challenge, put faith in ourselves that we are capable of overcoming it. We just have to be patient, try harder and know where to look for solution.

A locksmith will never create a lock without its key. Similarly, for every difficulty that we have, Allah has already created a solution that we will find eventually.

Pray not for a lighter burden, but rather for a stronger shoulder.

Brotherly Love

2011-10-18T13:05:00.000+02:00

ما أعطي بعد الإسلام نعمة خيراً من أخ صالح، فإذا وجد أحدكم وداً من أخيه، فليتمسك به - عمر الخطاب

"There is no higher blessing -besides the blessing of Islam- other than the blessing of having a pious brethren. If any of you finds affection from your brother, hold on to it tightly." -Umar al-Khattab

"Tidak ada satu nikmat -selain nikmat Islam- yang lebih baik daripada nikmat memiliki sahabat yang soleh. Jika kamu dapati kasih sayang antara kamu berdua, maka peganglah ia dengan erat." -Umar al-Khattab

Poem for single Muslims

2011-10-15T02:42:00.002+02:00

O single Muslim!

How chaste are you!

While others engage in haraam and fulfill their desires,

You shun the many calls to sin,

For fear of the hellfire!

O single Muslim!

How modest are you!

While others are ‘alone’,

They loose their fear of Allah,

But alone or not, you lower your gaze,

Refusing to look at haraam!

O single Muslim!

How sensible are you!

While others waste away their hours watching bollywold flicks,

You spend it worshipping Allah,

Fasting and increasing in ilm!

O single Muslim!

How devoted are you!

While others memorize lyrics to the latest songs,

You make an effort to memorize duaas and Quran!

O single Muslim!

How upright are you!

While others foolishly throw Quran and Sunnah to the side,

You strive to learn and implement them both into your life!

O single Muslim!

How blessed are you!

While others gossip,

And partake in useless matters,

You spend your time reflecting,

And preparing for the herafter!

O single Muslim!

How aware are you!

While others fall for the first person who plays the sweet card,

You know the tricks of shaytan,

And remain constantly on guard!

O Single Muslim!

How steadfast are you!

While others loose their modesty and dignity along the way,

You remain chaste and honorable,

And your sabr only increases each day!

O single Muslim!

How fortunate are you!

While others rack up sins for forming illicit relationships,

You gain reward from Allah for your trials and hardships!

O single Muslim!

How intelligent are you!

While some make marriage their ultimate goal,

You know it’s only a means,

To reach the final abode!

O single muslim,

How wise are you!

While others desire spouses,

With only beauty and riches,

You desire an upright person,

With good character and religion!

O single Muslim,

How successful are you!

While others spend their time in grief,

Regretting their foolishness and haste,

For your steadfasteness and patience:

Allah grants you one of His most righteous slaves!

And O single Muslim,

How honored are you!

While others who lived in sin,

Will be humiliated on Qiyamah,

You will be granted honor and shade,

On the Day when there is NO shade,

Except under the throne of ALLAH!

#copied from Tumblr.com

Jojo terperangkap

2011-09-27T17:16:00.001+02:00

Jojo memang suka tidur kat tempat tersembunyi. Nak privacy lah kononnya. Tapi bila susah nak cari, akibatnya Jojo terperangkap dalam rumah selama 3 hari tanpa makan dan minum kerana Abah & Mama ke KL terlupa nak ajak dia.

Bila Jojo bangun dari tidur dan tengok tiada siapa di rumah, mula la dia mengamuk. Sebagai tanda protes, habis semua benda diserakkan tanpa segan silu.

Makanan pun habis diterbalikkan. Berterabur semuanya. Ntah dari mana lah dia dapat panas barannya. Mungkin juga sebab genetik. Keturunan abah memang berangin semuanya.

Balik dari KL, rumah dah bersepah. Tahulah, ini kerja Jojo! Tapi bila cari dia nak marah, tak jadi pula. Sebab tengah kompius sekarang ni sama ada nak jentik atau nak cium Jojo bila nampak dia buat muka macam ni (^^!)

p/s: He's crafty and cunning, i tell ya. Don't fall for it.

Late Bloomers

2011-09-21T23:16:00.002+02:00

Some people are like weed, which grows fast the moment it's planted. But others are like bamboo tree, which shows no growth for a year but then grows 30 meters in the next 3 months.

Not everybody can reach their 'prime' early in their life. Some are late bloomers. But when they bloom, they could be better and stronger than the early bloomers. And they are the ones who will remain blooming when others have already fallen down to the ground.

Even bacteria and viruses have their own 'incubation period', which differs from one to another.

It's not important where you are today. The most important thing is where you will reach tomorrow. And in order to unleash your inner strength, you just have to make full use of the potential implanted in us by God.

Don't let your current position deceive you into getting comfortable and settling down. After all, after a game of chess, the king and the soldiers go into the same box.

Tokmiyah dan Kehidupan

2011-09-15T16:56:00.001+02:00

Pesan orang-orang lama Mesir, kalau nak makan tokmiyah, jangan fikirkan sangat apa dalam tu & macam mana diorang buat. Sebab kalau tahu nanti terus tak jadi nak makan.

Begitu juga dengan hidup. Kalau nak berjaya, jangan fikirkan sangat cabaran dan dugaan yang terkandung di dalam proses mencapai kejayaan tersebut. Sebab kalau tahu nanti terus jadi lemah semangat & putus asa.

Bulatkan azam dan usaha sehabis baik!~

Building bricks

2011-09-06T17:46:00.005+02:00

In biology, we are taught that healthy cells make a healthy tissue. Healthy tissues make a good organ. Good organs make a properly functioning system. And finally multiple functioning systems make a perfectly healthy human being.

Similarly, developing a great ummah starts from the very basic stage, which is creating a great individual, which in turn, creates an exemplary muslim family. When these families live harmoniously with each other, it constitutes to a great society, and finally, an outstanding nation.

Just like the building bricks. If each individual brick is strong and perfectly shaped, it'll make a beautiful building. If it is made from defected bricks, there's no doubt that it'll result in a crooked wall that will collapse at any time.

It's simple math. When you make yourself better, you make the world better too. It all starts from ourselves.

As the Russian writer Leo Tolstoy put it, "Everyone thinks of changing the world, but no one thinks of changing himself.”

Be the change you want to see in this world. Personal growth is always intentional. Nobody improves by accident.

Quoting John Maxwell in his book, 25 Ways to Win with People, “Making yourself more valuable is not an entirely selfish act. When you acquire knowledge, learn a new skill, or gain experience, you not only improve yourself, but you also increase your ability to help others.”

Competition in Islam

2011-08-24T08:40:00.002+02:00

Life isn't always about competition.  

Being a winner simply means making somebody lose. Our Prophet p.b.u.h has never condoned any unhealthy competitions, but instead promotes his companions to try to have a win-win situation.  

That's why in Islam the only valid competition is the one with oneself, in the sense that a Muslim should be better than he was yesterday.  

A sensible Muslim will never ask Allah to make him 'the best', but to make him 'among the best', so that indirectly he wishes his society to achieve greatness along with him.  

What could be better than to be successful AND be surrounded by successful people that have the same goal; which is to serve the ummah and gain Allah's affection.  

This concept is subliminally shown by the architectural design of the holy kaabah that has four parallel corners that point upwards; which symbolizes togetherness in order to achieve triumph in this worldly life and hereafter.  

Contrary to the pyramids which pretty much highlight victory by stepping on others in order to be on top.  

Selfishness is not an option here. Remember, when you help others, Allah will help you. And when Allah helps you, nobody can ever bring you down.

Milky Mustache

2011-08-17T14:46:00.002+02:00

Carrying a bad attitude is like having spoiled milk on your mustache. Pretty much everywhere you go, you'll claim that the place stinks really bad.  

You struggled to find where does the smell come from, when it's there right under your nose.  Life is all about your attitude towards something. We can't control our fate, but we can control our reaction towards it.  

A proactive person sees challenges as opportunity, while a reactive person sees challenges as the end of the world.  

Just like the story of two shoe salesmen who were sent to an Island to sell shoes. When the 1st one saw everybody there walking with bare feet, he sent a message to the HQ saying, "Will return tomorrow. Nobody here wears shoes."

  But the 2nd salesman, who was facing the same exact situation, sent a telegram to the HQ saying, "Please send me 10,000 shoes. Everybody here needs them."

  It's your attitude, not your aptitude, that determines your altitude.

Gold Investment: from dummy, for dummies

2011-08-12T02:29:00.004+02:00

-Daripada biarkan wang anda berkepuk-kepuk di dalam akaun bank biasa, yang bukan sahaja menawarkan kadar bonus yang rendah, malah haram pula, alternatif yang lebih baik ialah dengan melaburkannya dalam bentuk emas.

-Ada 2 pilihan, sama ada beli dinar/syiling emas (Kijang Emas), atau buka Gold Investment Account di Maybank atau bank-bank lain.

-Jika anda pilih untuk membeli dinar emas, anda perlulah menyimpan sendiri syiling emas tersebut, dan terdedah kepada risiko hilang atau dicuri. Sekeping syiling pula berharga sekitar RM5,800 kerana ia mengandungi kira-kira 31 gram emas.

-Tetapi kalau duit tak berapa banyak, lebih baik simpan dalam bentuk akaun emas, di mana anda boleh beli serendah 1 gram emas.

-1 gram emas, buat masa ini berharga sekitar RM175/gram. Bermakna, jika anda ada RM1750, anda boleh beli 10 gram emas dan ia akan didebitkan ke dalam buku akaun anda sebagai bukti belian.

-Jika anda ingin mengeluarkan emas tersebut (pada bila-bila masa) dalam bentuk cash, mereka akan tolak (kredit) buku akaun anda ikut gandaan 1 gram, menurut harga beli semasa.

-Pelaburan emas hanya sesuai untuk mereka yang ingin melabur untuk jangka masa panjang, kerana beza antara harga jual dan harga beli agak tinggi (harga beli lebih rendah, of course), kira-kira RM7 per gram. Maksudnya, kalau selalu keluar masuk, rugi lah.

-Untuk mereka yang hendak melabur untuk jangka masa pendek, Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) adalah pilihan yang lebih baik. Kerana duit pokok dalam ASB tidak akan berubah. Anda hanya akan dapat bonus setiap tahun (selalunya sekitar 8%). Bermakna, jika anda simpan RM10,000 selama setahun, akan dapat bonus RM800, dan boleh keluarkan RM800 itu sahaja tanpa mengusik RM10,000 yang asal.

-Walaupun harga emas selalu turun naik setiap hari, tetapi secara general nya, harga emas tidak pernah turun (kecuali zaman 1980an dahulu). Dan keuntungannya lebih besar.

-Sebagai contoh, jika anda beli 31 gram emas pada 1/8/2009 dengan harga RM3550, pada 1/8/2011 anda boleh jual semula emas tersebut dengan harga setinggi RM4872! Bermakna 37% keuntungan dalam masa 2 tahun berbanding 16% sahaja di ASB.

-Cuba lihat keuntungan untuk tempoh 10 tahun pula. 31 gram emas pada 1/8/2001 berharga RM1100. Maka jika anda menjual emas tersebut pada 1/8/2011 dengan harga RM4872, keuntungannya ialah sebanyak 343% berbanding 80% sahaja di ASB!

-Besides, ASB ni diperselisihi hukumnya. Maklumlah, banyak sangat mufti dalam Malaysia ni. Hukum emas generally disepakati keharusannya. Baca komen Ust. Zaharuddin di SINI.

-Nisab zakat untuk emas simpanan ialah 85 gram. Bermakna, jika anda ada 85 gram atau lebih, yang telah disimpan cukup setahun, anda perlu mengeluarkan 2.5% sebagai zakat, berdasarkan nilai harga semasa (berapa ringgit untuk 1 gram) yang ditetapkan oleh Jabatan Agama negeri masing-masing.

p/s: Kalau dah kaya labur emas nanti, boleh la belanja saya makan ke.. Ok. hehe

Good VS Evil

2011-08-04T14:21:00.003+02:00

The battle between good and evil is an ongoing process, whether we realize it or not.

Unless we tame it with taqwa, the human soul is certainly prone to evil. And with Satan's persuasion, wrongdoings are made easy. But with continuous soul purification, it will willingly bow to Allah's command.

When we feel gratified doing good things or uneasy when doing bad things, it indicates that we still have a healthy soul.

But when maksiat has no effect on you, then beware of Allah's wrath, as it is a clear indication that you are dead inside.

Although guidance is purely Allah's right to give it to whom He pleases, we as His slaves must persistently ask for it. And the effort towards change is mandatory; for Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in their hearts.

Hamba Ramadan

2011-08-02T05:43:00.000+02:00

Apabila datang Ramadan, jiwa-jiwa yang masih ada sekelumit iman akan tunduk hormat kepada tetamu agung ini.

Yang tidak rajin ke masjid, akan cuba gagahkan diri melangkah ke masjid untuk berterawih. Yang tak pernah buka al-Quran akan meletakkan target khatam. Mereka yang bakhil pun akan berlembut hati mengeluarkan sedekah.

Inilah yang dimaksudkan dengan "dibuka pintu-pintu syurga" dalam sebuah hadis yang menyebutkan kelebihan kedatangan bulan Ramadan, menurut para ulamak. Hati-hati manusia akan lebih cenderung kepada ketaatan, maka pintu syurga akan terbuka untuk mereka.

Juga, mereka yang merokok, terpaksa berhenti sebentar. Yang kuat marah akan jadi lebih sabar. Yang tidak bertudung, akan menutup kepala. Artis-artis seksi pun turut sama keluarkan kenyataan akan berpakaian sopan, demi menghormati bulan puasa.

Inilah juga yang dimaksudkan dengan "ditutup pintu-pintu neraka, dan syaitan akan dirantai." Hati-hati manusia akan lebih cenderung untuk tidak melakukan maksiat, maka pintu neraka akan tertutup buat mereka.

Namun usaha ini perlu diteruskan walaupun setelah berlalunya bulan puasa. Kerana kita hamba Allah, bukan hamba Ramadan.

Selamat menyambut Ramadan Al-Mubarak :)

Menjamu orang berpuasa

2011-07-30T13:06:00.001+02:00

Jika nak pahala extra di bulan puasa, berilah makan kepada mereka yang berbuka puasa. Ganjarannya besar. Nabi s.a.w memberitahu pahalanya sama dengan pahala orang yang berpuasa. (HR Tirmizi)

Setiap kali datang bulan Ramadan, abah akan pastikan anak2nya keluarkan duit seorang sedikit untuk beli barang2 seperti beras, kicap, susu, gula dll, untuk diberi kepada keluarga terdekat untuk bekalan bulan puasa; kerana sedekah yang terbaik adalah sedekah kepada ahli keluarga. (HR Muslim)

"Orang (yang bersedekah kepada kerabatnya) mendapat dua pahala; pahala hubungan silaturahim dengan kerabatnya dan pahala sedekah itu sendiri." (HR Bukhari dan Muslim serta al-Nasa'i dan at-Tirmizi)

Budaya memberi juadah berbuka sangat kuat di Mesir. Tidak cukup dengan Maidah ar-Rahman (menjamu orang2 miskin beramai2), kadang2 mereka mengupah budak2 kecil untuk mengedar bungkusan makanan kepada kereta2 yang terperangkap dalam traffic jam pada waktu maghrib.

Orang yang memasakkan makanan berbuka pun dikira menjamu orang yang berpuasa juga.

Allah tak pandang besar atau kecil sumbangan kita. Masing2 menyumbang mengikut kemampuan sendiri. Yang penting ikhlas.

Tetamu agung akan datang esok. Apa persiapan kita? :)

Fasting 101

2011-07-29T03:18:00.002+02:00

Puasa adalah satu ibadah yang unik.

Dalam sebuah hadis Qudsi riwayat Bukhari dan Muslim, Allah menyatakan bahawa semua amalan manusia adalah untuk diri mereka sendiri, kecuali puasa. Puasa adalah untuk Allah dan Allah akan personally beri ganjaran kepada mereka yang berpuasa.

Walaupun hakikatnya semua amal ibadat diberi ganjarannya oleh Allah, tetapi Dr. Yusuf Qardawi menyebut bahawa puasa dinisbahkan kepada Allah untuk menunjukkan kemuliaan puasa.

Ganjaran ibadat juga ada darjat-darjatnya. Ada yang dibalas setimpal sahaja. Ada yang digandakan 10, atau 700. Tetapi ganjaran puasa tiada hadnya, sama seperti ganjaran sabar yang disebutkan dalam surah Az-Zumar ayat 10.

Puasa juga adalah ibadah yg boleh disebutkan kepada orang lain, dan tidak dikira riyak. Jika kita dimaki atau dicerca ketika sedang berpuasa, kita diingatkan supaya bersabar dan berkata, "Aku sedang berpuasa."

Tetapi ibadah lain seperti qiamullail & sedekah perlu disembunyikan, dan tidak boleh diwarwarkan kepada orang ramai, e.g "Malam tadi aku qiamullail."

Latihlah diri mulai sekarang untuk mengawal nafsu bercakap, bimbang2 bila banyak bercakap banyaklah salahnya. Bila banyak salah, maka jadilah puasa kita lapar dan dahaga sahaja.

Selamat menyambut Ramadan Al-Mubarak :)

F.O.C.U.S

2011-07-24T13:08:00.002+02:00

What's the main difference between the light from a light bulb and a laser beam? What gives laser the ability to cut through stuffs, from cornea to steel, but not ordinary light?

Focused & amplified.

Yes, that is the power of focusing. Similarly, if we want to be good in something we do, focus is a must.

A focused person is more determined and motivated, thus amplifying his ability and capability to succeed. But in order to be focused, we first have to eliminate all the external distractions.

Muslims are obliged to practice the focusing skill at least 5 times a day. Through meditation which our daily obligatory prayers provide, we repeatedly exercise our mind to repel all external thoughts that might interfere with the process of remembrance of Allah.

If we really make full use of this regimen which is provided for us, focusing on other worldly matters would be easier.

Quoting Brian Tracy, "The key to success is to focus our conscious mind on things we desire, not things we fear."

Helium balloon

2011-07-21T20:47:00.000+02:00

A balloon which is filled up with helium could soar high up in the air. But if you fill it up with the air from your lung instead, it would just fall down to the ground.

Why? It’s simple. Because the difference lies in what’s within.

Just like us humans. From the outside, we might look the same. But the inside is what makes us unique and different from each other.

It is the internal aspect that determines whether an individual crashes down into the valley of disgrace or soars high up towards greatness.

So fill yourself with positive values, and don’t contaminate it with insignificant things that might decrease your value.

Keep going up, up, to the sky! ;)

Bird's-Eye View

2011-07-17T02:22:00.008+02:00

Human eyes, although amazing, are often limited. The binocular vision does give us the ability to estimate depth and distance, but it's not as wide as the monocular vision; thus limiting us to perceive a panoramic picture.

Thus, for birds of prey such as eagles and owls which have limited binocular vision, they would have to fly high to be able to see more clearly.

Hence, a bird's-eye view is an elevated view of an object from above, with a perspective as though the observer were a bird.

An open mind enables us to see a certain issue from a more holistic view, revealing an expansive point of view, without neglecting meticulous details in the process. It is ridiculously crucial as to make just and sound judgments.

Without it, we would be like a small bug creeping on a beautiful lawn, failing to see the breathtaking reality.

****

I'd like to humbly invite you to my newly-developed blog, Bird's-eye view (Tumblr). It's easier for me to update some short thoughts, or great quotes. I'll still be updating this blog, if i were to write some long and serious stuffs. And feel free to follow, bookmark or link it to your blog; i'd appreciate it very much (^_~)

Horse with blinkers

2011-07-11T16:23:00.006+02:00

Sometimes we only see what we want to see. Or what we are programmed to see. Neglecting the practice of impartial & unbiased rationalization in the process.

Just like horses wearing blinkers, limiting their wide field of vision, which is supposed to give a clearer and more holistic perception on a certain issue.

It is crucial, especially nowadays when there's nothing as simple as black and white. Too many gray areas.

It is natural that everybody thinks that they're right. That is why it is important to give reasoning in a purely educational way, not in emotional or sarcastic ways.

True, you can gain more support with humor and sarcasm, because people enjoy "Oh-snap!" remarks every now and then. But will that help you to reach your objective? Or will that just worsen the situation?

If you really value the truth over winning an argument, you will put aside all grudge and resentments and focus on achieving a final and acceptable conclusion.

Because let's admit it. We can pretend like we're discussing like civilized people, but deep inside there's this hatred we're all trying to hide, but leaks sometimes. Let alone discussions that are full with intense hostility. Of course it will yield undesirable outcomes.

Choose our words wisely, as not to offend other people unintentionally. Before saying or writing anything, take 5 seconds or so to think, will my words offend anybody in any way?

Fix your mindset. Learn the correct method of thinking, rather than spending a huge amount of time on things or issues that are temporary in nature.

It's like spending a lot of time sawing a tree with a blunt saw, when you can just take some time sharpening it first. Quoting Abraham Lincoln, "If I had eight hours to chop down a tree, I'd spend six sharpening my axe."

Reputation & Character

2011-07-07T16:40:00.006+02:00

It takes a lifetime to build a reputation, but only a few seconds to destroy it.

But if you're fighting for a good cause, don't worry much about it. Because reputation is merely what others think of you. Character, on the other hand, is what you truly are.

Worry more about what Allah has to say about you. Because that's what matters most.

Try very hard to gain His love. Love those on earth, and those in heaven will love you. [Hadis qudsi]. And when Allah loves you, He will throw affections into people's heart towards you.

But if you want to make people like you at the expense of your obedience to Allah, think again.

Because whoever seeks the pleasure of Allah at the risk of displeasing the people, Allah will take care of him and protect him from them. But whoever seeks the pleasure of the people at the risk of displeasing Allah, He will abandon him to the care of the people. [Hadis narrated by Aishah r.a]

Tun Mahathir on liberating Al-Quds

2011-07-03T22:25:00.004+02:00

Tun Dr. Mahathir on 30th June 2011 was asked to deliver a speech in conjunction with the ‘Forum of International Nusrah Day in Solidarity with Al-Quds and Palestine’ by the invitation from Al-Azhar University, held at the Azhar Conference Centre (ACC).

As a Tun M's fan (obviously), I'm trying to transcribe his speech because of the annoying Arabic translation dubbed inside the video. It is not perfect. I missed some words. But if u happen to catch the words, feel free to leave a comment below.

His accent might be a little Malay-ish, and his intonation might be a little monotonous, but if you listen carefully, his contents & choice of words were very precise, making what he's trying to say very easy to understand and straight to the point. And more impressively, without even reading from any text.

I am honored to be given such a great opportunity to attend and listen to one of the great mind of our time speaking that day. May Allah give him a long beneficial life. Amin.

And oh, by the way, i was in the video (minute 1:30) Ahaks (^^)

Enjoy ;)

*******

Firstly, i would like to thank the organizers, the general congress for the forum of al-Quds and al-Azhar university for this invitation to speak at this distinguished forum on the problems faced in the struggle in order to liberate al-Quds, and for the return of the refugees.

I have heard and listened carefully to the speeches made before me, and i believe it is important that we always remind ourselves of the problems faced by al-Quds. If we don't gather like this, if we don't talk about it, we will forget it. And this is exactly what our enemies would like to see us.

So this gathering is very important because it brings together .... minded people. I'm quite sure that the people here is united in the struggle in order to liberate al-Quds. But obviously it is not enough for us to gather and to talk about al-Quds. The struggle must be something that will have a greater effect than just talking about it.

I have observed and i have studied this struggle for a long time. It has now been 60 years, and during that period there have been many efforts made, many actions taken, in order to help liberate Palestine. But we know, that far from liberating Palestine, we see Palestine being occupied, and we see settlements being built all over Palestine.

When i came to Palestine, i was delayed at the checkpoint made by Israelis. This is a checkpoint for people going to Palestine. I have no desire to go to the occupied Palestine. But i was horrified to find that actually, the whole of Palestine is under Jewish control. And even the roads built in Palestine are barred to the Palestinian people.

That is the extent of the conquest of Palestine by the Israelis. And as we all know, they have been building a lot of new settlements even in Jurusalem; the third holiest city in Islam.

..... little that we can do. Indeed we can protest, but this has no effect. ..... struggle, without any real planned, without any strategies, without any ... nation... I maybe wrong, but I find that actions taken are almost individualistic by small groups acting on their own without the knowledge of others. And these of course, have not yielded any results.

We feel that we should take revenge. If they kill us, then we kill them. And when we kill them, they will kill us, and we should kill them again. And this goes on and on for 60 years with many death among us, but we have achieved very little in the struggle to liberate al-Quds.

I believe that no struggle can be successful without a plan, without a strategie, without ... I know that it is impossible to get 1.5 billion to act together. But we have to remember that at no time in the history of this world are there as many muslims as there are now. There are 1.5 billion of us.

Not only that, we are the richest people in the world. Muslim people are today the richest people... granted what is be given by Allah Taala. The oil wealth, that seems to be specially located in Muslim countries.

We have a lot of money. We have a lot of people. We have a lot of intellectuals. We have a lot of technical capacities et cetera. But because we are not coordinated. Because we have no real plan on how to liberate Jurusalem and Palestine, because we don't have any strategies. Today we have not made any progress.

It is time that we revise our strategy. Make a plan. And coordinate our actions. Obviously, as i said just now, it is not possible to unite 1.5 billion people, because Muslims are very divided. We know today unfortunately, Muslims are killing Muslims. We are in fact, helping the enemies of Islam to succeed. We kill our fellow Muslims because of the differences in the interpretation of our religion. We consider some people are of this group , and that group as Sunnis, Shiah, Wahhabi, and Salafis.

But to our enemies, we are all Muslims. They don't know the difference between us and the different sects that we belong to. So at least, in the struggle to liberate Palestine and al-Quds, we should be united. Our differences in terms of different interpretation of religion should be set aside, because this is a struggle that should unite all Muslims.

This is a struggle against the people that have denigrated the Muslims. They have insulted us. They have insulted our prophets. And what can we do beyond demonstrating in front of their embassies. That's all we can do. And why is it that we can only do that? It is because we are not united, and we are weak, and we have no single plan to defend ourselves.

In the Quran, we are urged that we have to have the capacity to defend the ummah. But we have allowed ourselves to become weak, because we failed to acquire the knowledge that would enable us to provide ourselves with the weapons that are needed in order to defend ourselves. It is going to be very difficult for us to build up our strength, military.

But a struggle is not always a military struggle. Maybe today, a military struggle is not going to yield results. But there are other areas where we can act in order to ensure that we make progress in the struggle to liberate Jurusalem.

I don't think that we can do these things in one day. Not even in one year. Not even in one decade. It may take a long time. Remember that the Jews were the prosecuted people before. For 2000 years they had to face attacks against them in the Christian countries. There were pogroms, there we massacres of Jews.

But because they strategized and planned, they are today able to get the support of most of the countries of the world, to the point where some of these countries have prepared to fight their wars for them.

So we too, should try and work out a strategy, draw up a plan, and coordinate it. So that we can ensure the rest of the world would support our struggles. On our own, we will not be able to succeed. We need to be friends and supported from outside the Muslim world.

But if we act irrationally, by killing people who are not against us, by attacking people who are not against us, and causing them to be very angry against us, we are not helping ourselves. If we have a plan, we should make sure that what we do will gain support for us from among those people who are not in favor of Israel.

Believe me, there are many people in Christian world, in Europe and in America who are sympathetic towards the struggle to liberate Palestine. There have been speeches made in favor of not helping Israels. There have been attacks in America by Americans against the American policy of supporting Israel. But we have not made use of these people.

Now if we build up relationship with people who are influential in their countries, we will reduce the support given to Israel by these countries. But if we act irrationally, if we kill people that are innocent, the feelings against us will be very strong. And when that happens, then...

(to be continued)

Hijabbed & Homosexuals

2011-06-29T10:41:00.005+02:00

Remember this video? Everybody was soo touched by those who stood up to the Islamophobic guy and defended the muslim woman. After 9/11, life as a muslim has gotten a little bit rough in America. Well, not so much for a guy as it is for a woman.

But, if you think Americans are Islamophobic, discriminatory and narrow-minded, just read this blog post. It happened to one of my cousins, in our own so-called 'multi-racial' country, Malaysia.

**********

And now, from the show that brought to you this heart-touching video, "What would you do?", they did another experiment to see what would people do in scenarios like this:

So tell me, if you happened to be in that restaurant, would you stand up to the waitress as we expect other people to stand up to those who discriminated against hijabbed women?

If your answer is no, then this would be a great time to discuss on this interesting topic.

Islamophobia is now a great concern to those who fight for human rights. That's why it is not so surprising to see non-muslims defending the civil rights of a muslim nowadays. Why not, it is not fair after all to treat people based on their beliefs.

As a muslims, we are appalled by those who discriminated against us. Living in foreign countries, we expect people to treat us the same with everyone else. And if we were to be denied service just because we are muslims, we would stand up and expect other people to back us up.

But what if the situation is reversed. What if other people are discriminated against because of their, say, sexual orientation? Would we back them up, or just keep quiet and mind our own business?

This is a huge dilemma that a muslim must deal with. Homosexuality is just another example of a social taboo, yet it gives us the clearest example of the practice of double standards among muslims. Would we accept, as a fact, that non-muslims have the same right to be homosexual as we do to be muslims?

If yes, what happened to the people of Prophet Lot? And if not, why the double standards?

We play the freedom-of-choice card when it comes to our benefit, but we simply discard the very same concept that we've used before when it is not parallel to our principal.

We adapt the 'Western' idea of social freedom whenever it is convenient and abandon it whenever it is inconvenient.

Is it morally correct, then? How do we justify this?

Perihal Tulang Rusuk

2011-06-27T17:13:00.007+02:00

Sewaktu zaman saya masih lagi rajin membaca buku-buku cerita Islamik, saya pernah terjumpa satu kisah di zaman Umar Al-Khattab di mana timbul kekeliruan terhadap jantina seorang khunsa ini. Adakah dia lelaki atau perempuan. Maka diarahkan untuk dikira tulang rusuk si fulan ini, ternyata tulang rusuk kirinya hanya ada 11. Maka sahlah bahawa dia ini lelaki, kerana salah satu daripada 12 tulang rusuk kaum lelaki digunakan untuk mencipta kaum wanita.

Kebelakangan ini, sudah tersebar di blog-blog dan Facebook satu artikel yang menceritakan mengapa tulang rusuk Nabi Adam a.s. diambil ketika beliau sedang tidur. Dikatakan, jika ia diambil ketika sedar, pastilah Adam akan merasa sakit lantas membenci Hawa.

Saya kurang pasti dari mana mereka adaptasikan kisah ini. Jika ada satu hadis sahih yang menceritakannya, tidak mengapa, kerana tidak ada satu tempat pun di dalam al-Quran yang menyebutkan perihal ini. Tetapi apa yang saya risaukan ialah jika ianya diadaptasi dari kitab Bible yang terang-terang menceritakan kisah ini di dalam buku Genesis bab 2 ayat 21 dan 22:

"21 So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. 22 Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man."

Seindah mana pun pengajaran yang boleh diambil daripada kisah tersebut, umat Islam tidak boleh berkompromi dalam hal ini. Ayat al-Quran atau hadis sahih mestilah menjadi sumber rujukan, agar unsur Israiliyat tidak sewenang-wenangnya dicampur aduk dan diadaptasi menjadi hikayat Islam. Lebih-lebih lagi jika ia bertentangan dengan fakta saintifik yang konkrit.

Kisah Umar al-Khattab yang saya sebut di atas contohnya, sangat tidak bertepatan dengan anatomi manusia, kerana semua manusia normal mempunyai 12 rusuk di sebelah kiri dan 12 rusuk di sebelah kanan, tidak kira lelaki atau perempuan.

Ramai para ulamak yang berselisih pandangan, adakah ianya kiasan sahaja atau memang benar Hawa dicipta dari tulang rusuk Adam. Boleh dengar perbahasannya di sini oleh Dr. Maza.

Pihak pejuang feminisme hari ini ramai yang mempersoalkan, mengapa Islam merendahkan martabat wanita dengan menyamakan mereka dengan tulang rusuk yang bengkok? Bagi mereka, ini adalah satu penghinaan!

Maka sebagai langkah berhati-hati, pemilihan kata amatlah penting. Bagaimana jika kita gantikan perkataan 'bengkok' tersebut dengan perkataan 'melengkung'?

Perkataan melengkung kurang offensive berbanding bengkok, dan amat relatif sifatnya. Jika tulang rusuk anda patah, adakah anda akan menggantikannya dengan tulang rusuk lain yang tegak?

Tidak. Kerana sifat melengkung itu menepati maksud kesempurnaan dalam konteks ini, bukan sebaliknya.

The green-eyed monster

2011-06-22T09:26:00.005+02:00

I believe in giving credit to people where it is due. Don't let your ego come in the way and overlook other people's achievement just because you are too insecure about yourself.

That's why you can see some people try very hard sometimes to justify other people's success by saying things like, "Oh, he's rich because he cheats in business," "Oh, he's smart because he's lucky to have rich parents," "Oh, he got good results because his university has an easy marking system."

This is actually their way to console themselves as why they can't achieve what other people achieved. Or maybe they're just jealous. Instead of just acknowledging people's success, they choose this pathetic path.

True or false. It is easier to find friends who will be sad when you are sad than finding friends who will be happy when you are happy.

The Prophet p.b.u.h. explicitly told us that envy is allowed only in two scenarios; when seeing someone who recites Quran day and night & someone who is blessed with wealth and he gives it to charity day and night. And envy here = the desire to become like them.

Beware. Jealousy is a green-eyed monster.

Jangan suka last minute macam Firaun

2011-06-18T11:35:00.007+02:00

Orang zaman sekarang semua benda nak buat last minute. Siapkan kerja last minute. Buat assignment last minute. Study nak exam pun last minute. Siap ada PERSELAM lagi. PERsatuan Study LAst Minute.

Sedangkan Nabi s.a.w. dah pesan, "Apabila engkau berada di waktu petang maka janganlah engkau menunggu datangnya waktu pagi, dan apabila engkau berada di waktu pagi maka jangan tunggu waktu petang. Dan gunakanlah waktu sihatmu sebelum sakit dan hidupmu sebelum mati" -HR Bukhari

Tahu tak orang yang suka last minute ni macam siapa?

Firaun.

Di saat-saat terakhir hidup Firaun, dia akhirnya mengaku bahawa "tiada Tuhan melainkan yang dipercayai oleh Bani Israil", dan dia adalah "dari orang-orang yang berserah diri". [Surah Yunus ayat 90]

Namun disebabkan taubatnya itu last minute; sebelum ditenggelamkan air laut, maka taubatnya itu tidak diterima Allah.

Islam amat menekankan kepentingan penjagaan masa. Sebab itulah solat perlu dikerjakan pada awal waktu. Waktu solat bukan dibuat bertempoh supaya boleh dilengah-lengahkan, sebaliknya untuk memberi keringanan kepada mereka yang ada perkara yang tak dapat dielakkan.

Ini adalah salah satu bentuk tarbiah Islam supaya umatnya sentiasa berdisiplin dan menepati masa.

Pesanan kepada diri saya dan ahli-ahli PERSELAM sekalian. Memanglah dengan anugerah kapasiti short-term memory anda yang besar itu anda mampu mendapat markah yang tinggi dalam exam.

But exam is not everything. Sometimes it is only an indicator of how much information can you cramp into your brain the night before exam, and how well were you able to vomit the contents into the exam paper the next day.

So, don't get too comfortable. When God wants to destroy the ants, He then gives them wings.

Jom kita ubah sikap. Jangan ikut resmi Firaun.

:)

Anak yatim tak pandai berterima kasih

2011-06-14T16:16:00.007+02:00

Kita semua tahu, berbakti kepada anak yatim merupakan amalan mulia di sisi Islam. Sehinggakan Nabi s.a.w. pernah mengisyaratkan bahawa baginda dan orang yang memelihara anak yatim akan berada di dalam syurga serapat jari hantu dan jari telunjuk.

Tapi tak ramai yang tahu apa garis panduannya. Muka surat pertama surah An-Nisaa memerincikan lagi isu ini.

Antara intipatinya ialah, penjaga anak yatim perlulah bertanggung jawab menyimpan harta pusaka mereka serta melaburkannya dalam sebarang bentuk perniagaan agar membuahkan hasil.

Hasil daripada wang pelaburan tersebut barulah boleh digunakan untuk menyara nafkah harian anak-anak yatim tersebut dari segi pakaian, makanan, tempat tinggal dan sebagainya.

Sebab itulah digunakan istilah فيها dan bukannya منها , sebagai isyarat bahawa duit pokok seboleh-bolehnya tidak disentuh untuk membiyai kos kehidupan mereka, sebaliknya hanya duit keuntungan pelaburan itu sahaja. Dan para penjaga yang berkemampuan dilarang sama sekali untuk menyentuh wang tersebut untuk kegunaan peribadi.

Inilah bentuk pengorbanan yang dilakukan oleh mereka yang sanggup menjaga anak-anak yatim, demi mendapatkan kedudukan yang tinggi seperti yang dijanjikan Nabi s.a.w.

Setelah anak-anak yatim itu mencapai umur baligh, penjaga perlulah menyerahkan semula harta pusaka yang diamanahkan kepada mereka, setelah melepasi ujian kematangan berfikir dan survival skills. Mereka yang boros atau masih tidak pandai mengurus kewangan, akan dipanjangkan lagi tempoh di bawah jagaan.

Namun, alangkah sedihnya jika ketika menerima harta itu semula, anak-anak yatim tersebut tidak mahu mengucapkan sekalipun ucapan terima kasih kepada penjaga mereka, dengan beralasankan bahawa duit-duit yang mereka terima itu bukanlah duit penjaga tersebut, sebaliknya duit ~~taxpayer's money~~ pusaka mereka sendiri!

A doctor's dillema

2011-06-11T19:13:00.004+02:00

Every doctor is constantly reminded that all life is sacred. Regardless of one's skin color and religious background, there must be no discrimination when it comes to saving lives.

Even in Islam, no saint takes advantage over a sinner. Every patient must be treated the same in a doctor's eyes.

But how do we really grasp this concept when it comes to real life? Can we be so sure that we won't discriminate against anybody? Yes? Hold that thought.

Should the circumstance force you to do mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to this guy, would you perform it? :)

Sure you can argue that nowadays, in cardiac arrest, it is no longer considered as one of the cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) components because chest compression alone should suffice. But that's only true if you live in a world where cardiac arrest is the ONLY indication for mouth-to-mouth resuscitation.

What about respiratory arrest? In this case, pulse is present. So chest compression is moot and artificial respiration is needed more.

Say if this guy were to drown in a swimming pool and you happened to be nearby. There's no pocket mask, ambu bag, or any other device whatsoever to use instead. What would you do?

Help? Not help?

:)

P/S: Apalah nasib. Kalau orang hensem/cantik, mesti korang berebut-rebut nak buat, walaupun tak indicated. Sobs~

I Am Number One

2011-05-29T21:57:00.011+02:00

Sejak dari bangku sekolah lagi, kita diprogramkan oleh pelbagai pihak untuk merebut tempat pertama dalam segala aspek. Ramai yang melihatnya sebagai sumber motivasi dalam mencapai kecemerlangan.

Tetapi tak semua menyedari implikasi buruk di mana ada yang mengamalkan konsep 'selfish', sehinggakan sanggup menyembunyikan ilmu dan tak mahu berkongsi maklumat semata-mata untuk mendapatkan kedudukan tertinggi di dalam kelas, mahupun bac.

Sebab itulah Islam datang memperbetulkan salah faham kita tentang konsep kejayaan dalam hidup. Menjadi yang terbaik bukanlah tujuan utama di dunia mahupun akhirat. Sebaliknya, kejayaan sebenar diukur pada sejauh mana kita mampu membawa orang sekeliling kita ke arah keterbaikan.

Kita boleh temui banyak tempat di dalam al-Quran, di mana konsep 'be among the best' diaplikasikan. Maka lahirlah gaya bahasa al-Quran yang unik seperti 'jadikanlah aku daripada golongan orang-orang yang beriman', 'yang sabar', 'yang bertaubat', atau 'yang soleh'. Jarang sekali kita jumpa ayat al-Quran yang mempromosikan konsep 'I am number one'.

Paling hampir pun ialah surah al-Furqan ayat 74, "dan jadikan kami pemimpin bagi orang-orang yang bertaqwa." Itu pun masih lagi sempat mendoakan supaya pimpinan bawahannya menjadi mereka yang takutkan Allah.

Sifat 'keakuan' di dalam al-Quran hanya dipamerkan oleh watak-watak antagonis seperti Firaun, "Akulah tuhanmu yang maha tinggi." (an-Nazi'at ayat 24), Qarun, "Sesungguhnya harta ini aku perolehi atas kepandaian diriku sendiri." (al-Qasas ayat 28), dan juga Iblis, "Aku lebih mulia daripada dia (Adam)." (al-A'raaf ayat 12).

Satu makhluk yang dahulunya dimuliakan Allah di kalangan para Malaikat, kini menjadi terhina dan dijanjikan neraka yang paling bawah selama-lamanya. Semuanya hanya kerana sikap keakuan atau egocentric yang memusnahkan. Jika kita pun turut sama mengikuti aliran pemikiran Iblis ini, bayangkanlah di mana tempat pengakhiran kita. Lebih hina daripada Iblis kah?

Konsep kejayaan berkelompok ini jelas dilihat pada struktur binaan ka'bah sendiri, di mana keempat-empat penjurunya selari menuju ke atas; sebagai simbolik kebersamaan dalam mencapai kecemerlangan, bukannya seperti piramid; yang secara tidak langsung mempromosikan konsep memijak orang bawahan untuk tujuan mencapai puncak.

Atas sebab ini juga, konsep tarbiah dalam Islam tidak terhad kepada level individu semata-mata. Sebaliknya perlu diluaskan kepada level masyarakat secara amnya. Prof. Wan Daud dalam menghuraikan konsep Ta'dib oleh Al-Attas sebagai sistem komprehensif sebenar pendidikan dalam Islam menyebut,

"...no Muslim who understands even a general worldview of the Quran would negate or neglect his societal duties, for he knows that even though God’s judgement in the Hereafter is strictly individual in nature, yet His judgement in history is societal."

*****

Justeru, apabila berdoa kepada Allah, pintalah untuk jadi 'antara yang terbaik', bukannya sekadar menjadi 'yang terbaik'.

:)

The Long-Desired Leader

2011-05-23T19:46:00.007+02:00

This is the article that got me 2nd place in the Article Writing Competition during Perubatan's Medicophilic Month 2011. It's a little bit long, sorry. And believe me, not that great. So, please no judging or criticizing, ok :p

Sociologists tell us that even the most introverted person will influence ten thousand other people during his or her lifetime. In other words, leadership naturally comes as an innate aptitude or a default setting in every individual, without exception. Everybody will somehow lead and be lead in an aspect of our life or another. This pretty much reminds me of a hadis narrated by Ibnu Umar which reminds us that everyone of us is a leader, and we will be held accountable for the people we led.

People always associate great leadership with a number of things: circumstance, timing, luck, or natural talent. But not many are able to realize that leadership skills and knowledge are the most important tools in creating a great leader.

Nobody is 'born to be a leader'. That is overrated, if you ask me. To be influential, one has to develop a very high sense of understanding of the people he leads and remarkable communication skills. And in order to acquire those qualities, it necessitates strong determination and tremendous efforts, not just a specific ‘leadership gene’ that one inherits, even if he is a prince in a monarchic kingdom in which the power of ruling will be passed down as a hereditary right.

According to a research conducted by a renowned psychologist, Dr. Benjamin Bloom, based on his anonymous interviews with the top twenty performers in various fields, the report stated conclusively that drive, determination, and desire, not great natural talent, led to the extraordinary success of these individuals.

It is agreed then, that natural aptitude plays some very little role in establishing an illustrious leadership in an individual. But the question remains here. What does academic achievement have to do with being a successful leader? Is it really a crucial component in assuring one's influence on others?

Well, history shows us a very clear pattern on the priority set by most of the world-class leaders throughout the world. Those who made it to the top and got recognized internationally have spent their fair share of time in some prestigious institutions.

Take the 44th and current President of the United States for example. Barack Obama graduated from two of the most prestigious universities in that country; Columbia University and Harvard Law School in 1983 and 1991 respectively. He then served as a professor at the University of Chicago Law School for twelve years as a Lecturer from 1992 to 1996, and as a Senior Lecturer from 1996 to 2004 teaching constitutional law. He is not merely a product of some overhyped campaigns like most of the political candidates nowadays are. That is why he succeeded in smashing the previous presidential mould and got elected by the United States citizens to be their first African-American president.

And who would be a better example of our own leader when talking about leadership than our 4th Prime Minister. Unlike the others who preceded him, Tun Mahathir did not come from The Malay ruling elite. He endured a very difficult life as a child. He was just the son of a former schoolteacher when he first got involved in politics. So nobody was there to give him the advantage when climbing up the political ladders other than his academic credentials and his leadership qualities. But in just 22 years he has proven himself worthy and was granted the sobriquet of Bapa Pemodenan (Father of Modernization) for his magnificent efforts to promote the economic development of the country and emblematically put Malaysia on the world map.

Even the most humble-looking political leader like Gandhi himself did not fail to follow this pattern. Who in the world would ever think for a second that Gandhi is actually a law graduate from University College London back in the 1890's? As hard as it is to believe, he has clearly proven to the world that in order to give great influence to others to the extent that he was able to initiate the civil rights movement in South Africa from 1893 to 1914 and responsible for the independence of India in the 1940’s, academic achievement is a nonnegotiable option.

To demonstrate the vitalness of academic achievements in leading one’s country, let me just reveal an ugly truth on the obvious difference between a developing country and a developed country. You are not going to like it, and some might even see it as offensive. But to prove my point, I am just going to spill it, no matter what it costs me.

See, although Malaysia and Singapore are just two countries located beside each other, one can see the huge difference in terms of development and technology advancement between them. One of the thought-provoking hypotheses that was proposed is the presence of huge difference between the academic credentials of Malaysian and Singapore Cabinet Ministers. While most of Singapore Ministers graduated with at least a master’s degree from various prominent universities in the world such as Harvard, Yale, and Imperial College in London, some Malaysian Ministers on the other hand did not even graduate from any university, be it local or abroad, thus rendering their ability to handle their portfolio assigned to them questionable.

If we were to narrow the scope a little bit, it is also inarguable that the head of a certain department in any institutions should be the one with the most knowledge on that particular subject. A head of the Neurosurgery department for instance, must be the one who is considered as the most knowledgeable and skillful among the other neurosurgeons available. Of course leadership materials are important factors too, but in order to make sound judgments and crucial decisions, it surely requires enough eligibility as to avoid any malpractice that could compromise the credibility of the whole department that represents the reliability of the hospital.

We are always reminded of the phrase, “We cannot give what we don’t have.” It is a simple math, indeed. A leader with inadequate knowledge on a particular field cannot be much of a help to others that he leads. This is agreed by one of the most prominent figures in leadership training worldwide, John Maxwell. He said in his book, 25 Ways to Win with People, “There are people who possess good hearts and the desire to give, yet they have very little to offer. Why? Because they have not first added value to themselves. Making yourself more valuable is not an entirely selfish act. When you acquire knowledge, learn a new skill, or gain experience, you not only improve yourself, but you also increase your ability to help others.”

But it is a little bit unfair to be talking about knowledge and academic achievements only, when there is one more factor which is as important, if not more, as these components. What else could it be other than your attitude. We often hear the saying, “It is your attitude, not your aptitude, that determines your altitude.” Despite the fact that it rhymes perfectly, it somehow manages to convey the message entirely. Natural talent without positive attitude is just plain moot.

Leadership is influence. People catch our attitudes just like they catch our colds – by getting close to us. It is important as a leader that I possess a great attitude, not only for my own success, but also for the benefit of others. A leader without proper attitudes, no matter how talented he is in a certain field, will only repulse others. I love the proverb that says, “He who thinks he leads, but has no followers, is only taking a walk.” If you cannot influence people, then they will not follow you. And if people won’t follow, you are not a leader.

A leader with good attitudes will always look for a way to understand other people, sacrifice for them, point out people’s strengths, see within the larger context and put any form of personal gain aside, remember people’s good days, not their bad ones, give positive energy to the surroundings, provide stepping stones for other’s success, maintain motivation, be one of the environmental change agents in the workplace atmosphere, put people in their strength zone, celebrate success, practice listening skills, and so many more.

Of course all of those desirable qualities could not be all attained overnight. The adjustment of our attitudes is a lifelong project. We choose what attitude we have right now, and it is a continuing choice which we have to make every day. This is the attitude of a – as the famous author of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, Stephen R. Covey put it – ‘proactive’ person.

One of the most important leadership components which is worth discussing is the communication skill. John W. Gardner, the former Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare under President Lyndon Johnson observed, "If I had to name a single all-purpose instrument of leadership, it would be communication."

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) who is the most influential leader throughout history, as the author Michael H. Hart put it in his book, ‘The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History’, possessed a very exceptional communication skill the world has ever seen. Manners-wise, he was the incarnation of the Holy Quran. It doesn’t come as a surprise when the Islamic historians told us that many of disbelievers embraced Islam during the Prophet’s time just by seeing the attitude showed by him.

When talking, for example, he was so polite that everybody who listened was pleased. Sometimes he repeated what he said three times, as to make sure the listener hears it clearly. He also spoke in accordance to the intellectual level of those he addressed something to, as not to make it hard for them to perceive what he was trying to say.

The Quran has shown us many communication tips for Muslims to be implemented in their daily lives. One of them is mentioned in Surah Al-kahfi verse 93 in the form of a narration of a great leader, Zulqarnain. He was portrayed as having succeeded in conquering the East and the West during his reign; hence the name, which literally translated to ‘the one who possesses two horns (East and West)’, and one of the components of his success was his distinct communication skills, which was so good that he managed to solve the problems of those residing between the mountains despite the language barrier between them.

Listening skills were also given a similar emphasis in the Quran. In surah an-Naml verse 20, it was mentioned that prophet Solomon (peace be upon him), despite his enormous kingdom and immense ruling power, still spared some time to hear the explanation of a small hoopoe bird regarding its ‘AWOL’, if you may, as not to pronounce any unjust judgment on anybody, even a small bird. This is a must-have quality for a successful leader. Without it, followers will no longer give their full respect and undivided support a leader deserves, because they feel like they are not a part of the team in any decision-making process.

In a nutshell, it is undeniably true that a true leader must possess utmost intelligence, immense knowledge, and critical mind to be able to create positive shock waves the world needs nowadays, not just some natural aptitudes one is born with. Some complementary leadership elements are equally important too, and these, together with the academic credentials one is equipped with, will definitely produce a long-desired leader the world has always waited for.

To conclude, let me just share what a Noble Price winner in Literature, George Bernard Shaw once said about the most intellectual person the world has ever seen, “I believe that if a man like Muhammad were to assume the dictatorship of the modern world, he would succeed in solving its problems in a way that would bring it much-needed peace and happiness".

On Crossing Fingers

2011-05-16T18:58:00.004+02:00

I'm skeptical when it comes to many things. One of them is conspiracy theories. You know, the ones which give you the idea that behind every inch of our life aspects has a hidden Christian or Jewish or Illuminati's agenda.

But i'm kinda surprised that those people spent a lot of time digging and unraveling the mysteries, but failed to point out things that are sooo obvious such as the expression 'keeping my fingers crossed', which is widely used among Muslims.

Well, some might say that it is just an expression to superstitiously wish for good luck. And some people do it because it looks cool when the actors on TV did it.

But according to Mr. Wiki, Christians believe that crossing one's fingers is to affirm one's faith in Jesus Christ who is said to have died on a cross.

Thus, crossing fingers = † = Christians.

Why isn't it obvious? (*_*)

Maskahwin murah?

2011-05-16T18:41:00.002+02:00

Kita selalu dengar kenyataan bahawa wanita yang paling berkat ialah yang paling murah mas kahwinnya.

Sebenarnya hadis yang diriwayatkan daripada Aisyah r.a. ini menyebut 'yang paling mudah', bukan yang paling 'murah'. Dan 'mudah' ini subjektif sifatnya.

Mungkin bagi anak jutawan, RM50,000 dianggap mudah. Bagi seorang doktor, RM10,000 dianggap mudah. Bagi seorang pelajar universiti, RM 3,000 pun sudah dikira sukar.

Jika mahu berpegang sungguh pada sunnah, empat daripada isteri Nabi s.a.w. dinikahi dengan mas kahwin 400 dirham.

1 dirham sewaktu zaman Nabi boleh beli seekor ayam.

Kita letak harga ayam hari ini RM15 seekor. Dengan mengambil kira kadar inflasi, bermakna maskahwin hari ini RM6,000 adalah average, dan mengikut tauladan Nabi.

Tak lah 'murah' seperti yang kita expect =)

Afterlife pension

2011-05-16T17:52:00.004+02:00

Some people can achieve a lot in an hour or so. Some people can't even get one thing done in a day. That is what we call 'keberkatan masa', and it is pretty much dependent on Him who owns time.

So when our daily schedule is all messed up and unmanageable, it's only logical to ask Him to make it sorted up, so that our short lives will be well spent =)

We can't risk wasting our time on something unproductive. Ummat Muhammad s.a.w. already have shorter life span compared to those before us. While they could do their ibadah for hundreds of years, we can only make it to our 60's. 70's tops.

But despite the downside, Allah has offered us something more special than a long lifespan. Because He knew that we are an easily-distracted creature. Long lifespan doesn't always mean more ibadah. It can also mean more maksiat.

So He created a loophole system.

Lailatul Qadar = A night in which the ibadah is better than 1000 months / 83 years.

Set a good example = Teach a person something good, and as long as he's doing it, you'll get the reward even after you die. If that person teaches it to some other people, you'll get the commission too. Kinda like the MLM system.

Charity = Give something as a charity, and as long as it gives benefits to people, you'll get the reward even after you die. [Read more here]

..and so many more. In a way, our lifespan is automatically prolonged. An afterlife pension, if you will. Now tell me, what could be better than that :)

Ghaddul basar only for men?

2011-05-09T15:34:00.005+02:00

Contrary to popular belief, the command to lower one's gaze (ghaddul basar) in the Quran is not exclusively directed to men only. Surah An-Nur: 31 clearly states that the believing women should also lower their gaze and guard their modesty, using the same phraseology as the previous verse which is directed to men.

So, it is equally obligated to both men and women to abstain themselves from seeing or looking at something which is not permissible in Islam.

It is quite inaccurate then to say that 'men have to lower their gaze, and women have to help men to lower their gaze', by wearing appropriate clothing and not uploading their pictures online etc.

It's a sexist remark, if you ask me. It appears as if men are all sex maniacs and women have to take precautions for that. And as if women has no role whatsoever in lowering their gaze as well.

Don't think for a second that women don't get aroused by visual stimuli too. They do.

The true concept of ghaddul basar in Islam is that both men and women are responsible to guard their visions and help each other to do so. If women can't upload indecent pictures to Facebook, it is only fair that men also don't do the same.

The concept of 'men and women are equal but not the same' in Islam has become a cliché, and sometimes not properly used, like in this case. Don't let it be a license to practice sexism!~

Konsep murah rezeki

2011-04-26T16:15:00.005+02:00

Kita selalu berdoa supaya murah rezeki. Kadang-kadang kita dengar, orang yang suka bersedekah rezekinya murah. Tapi apa maksud sebenar di sebalik istilah ini? Bagaimana hendak diaplikasi kepada seorang guru misalnya, yang gajinya tetap setiap bulan. Selain daripada melakukan side business, direct selling, internet marketing dsb, agak sukar untuk dibayangkan bagaimana dia boleh dimurahkan rezekinya dengan mendapat lebih daripada RM2,500 sebulan.

Konsep murah rezeki sebenarnya sering disalah fahami. Kita selalu pandang konsep ini dengan pertambahan duit, atau harta. Makin banyak duit, maka makin murah rezeki seseorang itu.

Sedangkan dalam pengurusan kewangan individu, kita lupa bahawa ia terdiri daripada 2 elemen; pendapatan (income) dan perbelanjaan (expenses).

Hidup tak semudah yang dirancang. Kadang kala kita lihat, 2 individu yang bergaji sama banyak, tetapi seorang hidup senang dan selesa, sedangkan seorang lagi dipenuhi hutang keliling pinggang. So what makes up the difference?

Terlalu banyak variables yang membezakannya. Dalam tempoh sebulan, seseorang itu mungkin diuji dengan kereta rosak, anak sakit, rumah dipecah masuk pencuri, disaman polis, terlibat dalam kemalangan, terlanggar kereta orang, kebakaran rumah, dibuang kerja, dan sebagainya.

Ada yang kurang bernasib baik mendapat isteri yang shopaholic, suami yang kuat berjoli, anak yang kuat berbelanja. Ada yang di usia muda sudah mendapat penyakit kronik yang memerlukan ubat-ubatan berterusan yang mahal, atau pembedahan besar yang menelan ribuan ringgit.

Ini semua meningkatkan lagi expenses seseorang itu, sehingga boleh mengalami defisit atau kemuflisan hingga terpaksa meminjam wang sana sini. Perkara ini semua tersangatlah luar dari kawalan kita sebagai seorang manusia. But fortunately, faktor-faktor ini semua ditentukan oleh Allah yang berkuasa menentukan rezeki hamba-Nya.

Jadi, apabila Tuhan kata orang yang suka bersedekah akan dimurahkan rezeki, seperti mana disebut dalam sebuah hadis Qudsi, "Besedekahlah, Aku pasti akan sedekah kepada kamu," maka ia tak semestinya dalam bentuk bonus duit, atau durian runtuh.

Tetapi boleh juga dalam bentuk Allah memberi kesihatan yang baik kepada kita dan keluarga, dijauhkan daripada kemalangan dan kecacatan anggota, dielakkan dari kecurian dan kerosakan harta benda, diselamatkan daripada bencana alam dan banyak lagi perkara yang boleh meningkatkan jumlah bayaran bil bulanan kita.

Atau boleh juga dalam bentuk kita dikurniakan anak-anak soleh yang berjaya dunia akhirat, yang dapat menampung hidup kita di hari tua kelak.

It's true, God works in mysterious ways. Kita sebagai hamba perlu meletakkan sepenuh kepercayaan kepada-Nya. Banyakkan berdoa, bersedekah dan amal soleh, bukan sekadar menggantungkan ayat seribu dinar di rumah-rumah sebagai hiasan semata-mata untuk me'murahkan rezeki'. No it doesn't work that way. Givers gain. What goes around comes around.

Here's a nice Arabic tongue twister just for u =)

مَنْ مَنَّ مِنْ مَنٍّ مُنَّ عليه

"Man (Barangsiapa) manna (yang memberi/bersedekah) min (daripada) mannin (pemberian Allah kepadanya) munna (maka akan diberi kembali) 'alaih (ke atasnya)."

Hujan Oh Hujan

2011-04-05T13:36:00.007+02:00

Bila sebut pasal hujan, teringat satu kisah. Ada seorang wali yang hidup pada zaman Imam Abu Hanifah. Dia dikisahkan sebagai tidak mahu rukuk dan sujud jika solat, suka makan bangkai, dan lari dari rahmat Allah s.w.t.

Tetapi apa yang dimaksudkan sebenarnya ialah dia sering mensolatkan jenazah (tiada rukuk dan sujud), suka makan ikan (tidak disembelih - so technically ia dikira bangkai), dan lari dari hujan (rahmat Allah) untuk mencari tempat berteduh =D

2 hari lepas hujan lebat di Mesir. Siap guruh dan petir lagi. Terasa macam kat Malaysia pulak.

Hujan di sini kurang popular; orang ramai tak berapa suka. Sebab setiap kali lepas hujan, jalan banjir kerana di sini tiada sistem perparitan. Mungkin kerana mereka rasa membazir agaknya. Iyelah, hujan setahun 3-4 kali je.

Sahabat saya Hilmi Ahmad kata, "Tajuk salur pelongkangan tak masuk dalam muqarar (syllabus) exam arkitek diorang. Cikgu diorang cakap tajuk tu malghi (boleh diabaikan/negligible)." haha

Mereka decide bahawa lori penyedut air (gambar) lebih praktikal dan ekonomikal.

Kadang-kadang kelakar juga tengok budak-budak Arab yang excited main bola dalam hujan. Terpekik-pekik keseronokan. Baguslah, orang Malaysia kalau hujan masuk dalam rumah.. Lari dari rahmat Allah! ;p

Lepas hujan barulah langit Kaherah yang tercemar kembali terang. Begitu juga dengan mata kita. Perlu selalu dibasahi dengan air mata keinsafan supaya penglihatan kembali terang dan jelas. Itu resmi kehidupan.

Satu fakta menarik dalam Quran. Allah tak gunakan perkataan:

نزل من السماء ماء
(hujan turun dari langit)

tetapi Allah gunakan

أنزل من السماء ماء
(Dia menurunkan hujan dari langit).

Jika hujan sekadar 'turun', tak heran... Tapi hanya dengan tambahan satu huruf sahaja (أ) sudah mampu untuk menunjukkan kebesaran Tuhan!

Jom tengok satu video best yang boleh menaikkan bulu roma (^^)

April Fool sunat

2011-04-01T05:58:00.007+02:00

Dah menjadi tradisi, setiap 1 April saya akan menulis tentang April Fool.

Pada tahun 2009, saya melahirkan rasa skeptik terhadap cerita yang direka-reka mengenai April Fool, kononnya umat Islam dibunuh beramai-ramai, semata-mata untuk menghalang umat Islam daripada meraikan April Fool dengan tipu daya dan prank. Sedangkan cukup saja jika kita katakan April Fool haram kerana tipu itu berdosa dan bertentangan dengan nilai-nilai Islam. LINK

Pada tahun 2010, saya ketengahkan satu isu di mana umat Islam di'April Fool'kan orang Islam sendiri, melalui fakta-fakta palsu yang direka, bertujuan menambahkan kebencian yang tidak relevan kepada orang bukan Islam. LINK

Tahun 2011 ini, saya ingin berkongsi mengenai isu 'bohong yang dibenarkan di dalam Islam'.

Orang Melayu kita panggil 'tipu sunat'.

Menurut sebuah hadis riwayat Tirmizi, Nabi s.a.w menyenaraikan 3 keadaan yang dihalalkan berbohong:

1) Seorang suami yang ingin menggembirakan isterinya.

Si isteri masak tak berapa sedap. Tapi kalau cakap nanti, bimbang kecil hati pulak. Lalu si suami cakap, "Emmmm sedapnya masakan ayang!" Walaupun menipu, tetapi menipu jenis ini dibenarkan.

Atau si isteri mengadu sudah gemuk. Lalu si suami memujuk, "Eh, mana ada. Ayang masih nampak slim lah~" Ini terang-terang satu pembohongan, tapi demi menjaga hati isterinya, ia dibenarkan, malah mungkin juga dapat pahala menjaga keharmonian rumah tangga.

2) Helah atau strategi peperangan

Ini sudah obvious melalui contoh-contoh taktik Nabi s.a.w. dalam beberapa peperangan. Jika umat Islam masih berkeras untuk 'jujur' dan 'berkata benar' dalam peperangan, alamatnya mudah-mudahlah dikalahkan musuh ;p

3) Untuk mendamaikan dua pihak yang bertelagah

Si C, sebagai pihak ketiga, mereka-reka cerita yang kononnya si A beritahu yang dia sebenarnya sayangkan si B, dan si B sebenarnya sangat hormatkan si A. Sedangkan mereka benci antara satu sama lain.

Ini satu pembohongan, tetapi perlu untuk mendamaikan 2 pihak yang bergaduh. Selari dengan ayat surah Al-Hujurat ayat 10, "Sesungguhnya orang-orang mukmin itu bersaudara, maka damaikanlah antara kedua saudaramu..."

****

Dalam sebuah hadis lain juga, Nabi s.a.w. memberitahu bahawa Nabi Ibrahim s.a.w. tidak pernah berbohong melainkan 3 kali:

1) "Sesungguhnya aku sakit." (Surah As-saaffaat ayat 89), sedangkan beliau tidak sakit ketika itu.

2) Ketika ditanya siapakah yang memecahkan berhala, beliau menjawab, "Sebenarnya patung yang besar itu yang melakukannya..." (Surah al-Anbiyak ayat 63), sedangkan beliau yang memecahkannya sendiri. Tetapi ini dilalukan secara sarkastik, untuk membuatkan kaumnya berfikir.

3) Ketika Nabi Ibrahim berpesan kepada isterinya Sarah supaya mengaku sebagai adiknya kepada seorang pemerintah zalim, atas sebab-sebab keselamatan.

****

Orang yang menipu untuk bersuka-suka atau sebagai prank untuk menjatuhkan maruah orang lain, hukumnya HARAM dan berdosa.

“Kecelakaan ke atas sesiapa yang menipu untuk menghiburkan manusia, kecelakaan ke atasnya, kecelakaan ke atasnya.” [HR Abu Daud, at-Tirmizi, dan an-Nasai’e]

Jadi, jangan sambut April Fool dengan prank orang ya. Berdosa..

Loyar buruk doktor - Siri 2

2011-03-24T12:07:00.004+02:00

"What does it mean by cardiac cirrhosis. Is it cirrhosis of the heart?" :D
-Dr. Allam, Univ Al-Azhar (2011)

***

"The term for inflammation of the cornea is 'keratitis'. There's no such thing as 'cornitis'. If you put 'cornitis' in exam, you will get 'sifritis'.
-Dr. Kafrawi, Univ Ain Shams (2010)

LOL ^^

***

Loyar buruk siri 1 di SINI.

The Japanese & Egyptians

2011-03-17T15:24:00.003+02:00

Our ethical threshold has become very low lately. We are so proud of the revolution done by the Egyptians that we try to overlook the fact that there were numbers of crimes committed during the period that interfered with the moral integrity of the revolution itself.

There were lootings, robberies, even sexual assaults.

They were inevitable collateral damages, u say. Well brother, we can see now that the Japanese have recently proven you wrong.

Some might justify their cheatings, reckless littering, and unpunctuality done over the years, just because they succeeded in their revolution. As if it redeems all the wrong acts they have been doing.

They even challenge those who condemned the Egyptians for their laziness and sloppiness to try to initiate a revolution of their own.

The Egyptians' strong will and determination are nevertheless worthy of praise, i admit. Not any nation in the world can stand up to their dictators like they did, as one single entity. But it would be unwise to say that there's no room for improvements.

We, the best 'ummah' as described in the Quran, only want to settle for the consolation price. We feel that it's enough that a certain level of success is achieved, but we do not aim for the best.

The Japanese have endured more than that, and they have proven to the world that nothing can come between them and their ethics. Not even the Tsunami.

http://daliaalifmim.wordpress.com/2011/03/14/gempa/

But here we are, getting all proud for no reasons, when we Muslims, by default, are supposed to behave better. Waay better than those who don't have Islam as a way of life.

How humiliating.

Khutbah dan Si Gila

2011-03-15T03:24:00.008+02:00

"Maka oleh itu diamlah dan dengar dengan taat, moga kita semua mendapat rahmat. Insya Allah."

******

Itulah yang seringkali diingatkan oleh bilal kepada para jemaah sebelum khutbah Jumaat dibacakan.

Berbeza dengan keadaan zaman Nabi & sahabat di mana para jemaah boleh berinteraksi dan bertanyakan soalan kepada khatib, kita hari ini disuruh 'diam dan dengar dengan taat'.

Hadis riwayat Bukhari yang menyatakan bahawa pahala Jumaat akan luput walaupun dengan kita menyuruh sahabat kita 'diam' sekalipun, seringkali disalah fahami. Ia bermaksud berbual sesama rakan sebelah, bukan dengan khatib.

Namun hari ini di Malaysia, andaikata saya bangun bertanyakan soalan atau menegur khatib ketika khutbah Jumaat, sudah pasti saya akan dilabel gila. Silap-silap ditangkap orang Jabatan Agama.

Mungkinkah itu sebabnya umat Islam hari ini mundur? Sikap taqlid buta dan mengangguk sahaja, tanpa berfikiran kritis telah dipupuk seawal peringkat masyarakat setempat lagi.

Bagaimana ingin melahirkan masyarakat yang unggul di mata dunia?

Khutbah yang disampaikan pun sangat statik dan tidak inovatif. Saya akui perkara-perkara asas di dalam Islam tidak boleh diubah. Tapi cara persembahan dan huraiannya sangat menerima perkembangan dan pendekatan baru, selaras dengan peredaran zaman.

Ia secara tidak langsung menghadkan para jemaah untuk berinteraksi dengan khatib. Lebih teruk lagi, menyebabkan ketiduran.

Tapi iyelah, nak berinteraksi macam mana. Khutbah pun baca teks.

=)

Safar & Maksiat

2011-03-11T04:52:00.002+02:00

1) Permusafiran kerana maksiat (السفر للمعصية )

dan

2) Maksiat dalam permusafiran (المعصية في السفر )

******

Walaupun kedua-dua ayat hampir sama, tetapi bezanya amat besar. Terutamanya terhadap implikasinya ke atas hukum solat jamak dan qasar.

Yang pertama bererti tujuan perjalanan itu memang untuk maksiat. Sebagai contoh, perjalanan dari JB ke KL bertujuan untuk ke Casino di Genting Highlands. Atau untuk menghadiri konsert Jom Heboh atau konsert Wondergirls. Atau untuk jumpa awek yang belajar/kerja di sana.

Maka orang-orang seperti ini TIDAK BOLEH melakukan jamak qasar, kerana mereka tidak dikira sebagai musafir menurut hukum syarak.

Manakala yang kedua bererti tujuan asal perjalanan itu merupakan sesuatu yang baik. Contohnya untuk menghantar anak ke IPT. Atau menghadiri undangan majlis perkahwinan. Cuma ketika permusafiran itu, berlaku maksiat-maksiat seperti memandang/mendedahkan aurat, percampuran lelaki perempuan, tinggal solat, mengumpat mengeji, atau singgah di tempat-tempat maksiat.

Golongan kedua ini masih DIBOLEHKAN untuk melakukan solat jamak qasar, kerana walaupun berlaku maksiat yang ditegah syarak, tetapi niat asalnya ialah bertujuan baik. Berbeza dengan golongan pertama tadi yang memang tujuannya permusafiran itu untuk sesuatu yang ditegah syarak.

****

Juga, antara sunnah Nabi ketika bermusafir ialah untuk singgah di masjid sebelum pulang ke kampung halaman.

Qasar (memendekkan solat 4 rakaat kepada 2 rakaat) ialah hadiah Allah kepada umat Islam. Maka terimalah hadiah tersebut, walaupun hari ini perjalanan 90km mengambil masa tidak sampai pun 1 jam dan highway dipenuhi dengan R&R.

Wallahua'lam, harap disebar-sebarkan ilmu yang sedikit ini.

=)

Satu lagi tempat pelik dalam al-Quran

2011-03-08T11:23:00.004+02:00

Tahukah anda, secara generalnya, di dalam resam Usthmani, semua huruf ha dhamir (ha tebal untuk kata ganti diri) mempunyai beberapa kaedah khas:

1) Jika diapit dengan huruf yang berbaris (lihat contoh kotak putih), maka ia dibaca dua harakat. Dalam hukum tajwid kita panggil mad silah qasirah.

2) Tetapi jika huruf selepas ha dhamir itu ialah huruf hamzah, maka ia dibaca dengan 4 atau 5 harakat. Ini namanya mad silah towilah. Contohnya dalam Surah al-Baqarah ayat 90:

بِئْسَمَا اشْتَرَوْا بِهِ أَنفُسَهُمْ

3) Tetapi kalau ha dhamir didahului dengan huruf berbaris mati (lihat contoh bulat kuning), maka ia dibaca satu harakat sahaja.

4) Melainkan SATU tempat sahaja di dalam Quran (Surah Al-Furqan ayat 69 = lihat contoh bulat merah) di mana walaupun didahului dgn huruf ya berbaris mati, tetapi tetap dibaca 2 harakat.

Ingat tu =)

Rahsia di sebalik mengapa ia dibaca 2 harakat (instead of just 1) menurut sesetengah ulamak ialah untuk mengisyaratkan kehinaan (baris bawah melambangkan bahagian bawah neraka yang hina) kepada ahli maksiat yang mensyrikkan Allah, membunuh manusia lain dan penzina, seperti yang diceritakan dalam ayat tersebut.

Wallahua'lam.

4 tempat pelik dalam al-Quran

2011-03-04T15:27:00.016+02:00

Cuba kita selak semula lembaran hidup kita. Sepanjang kita bergelar muslim, berapa kali kita sudah khatam al-Quran.

Jika setahun sekali, alhamdulillah. Jika sebulan sekali, itu sudah cukup bagus!

Tetapi persoalannya, yakinkah kita bahawa bacaan kita itu menepati kaedah sebenar yang diajar Nabi s.a.w?

Tolak tepi makhraj Arab yang agak sukar disebut oleh orang Melayu kita (kecuali jika benar-benar dilatih oleh guru al-Quran), bagaimana pula dengan benda-benda basic?

Dalam post kali ini, saya akan tunjukkan 4 tempat di dalam al-Quran yang bacaannya agak pelik sedikit dari biasa, di mana anda boleh menguji bacaan dan tahap pengetahuan anda.

Jika kita selama ini kita tersalah baca, bermakna kita sudah silap strategi. Kita terlalu fokus pada 'kuantiti' bukannya 'kualiti' bacaan.

Kita ada 2 pilihan. Sama ada meneruskan rutin harian kita dan khatam 12 kali setahun tetapi melakukan 12 kesalahan berulang-ulang kali, atau kita boleh KIV sebentar target khatam sebulan sekali itu dan fokus untuk improve bacaan al-Quran kita dari segenap aspek (makhraj, tajwid, kaedah bacaan dsb).

Tapi kalau semuanya OK, alhamdulillah =)

**********

1) Surah Huud ayat 41

Cara bacaan yang betul ialah maj + rare (British pronunciation) + haa

Bukannya maj + roo + haa

ataupun maj + ray + haa

Kaedah bacaan ini dipanggil Al-Imalah (الإمالة)

Rujuk link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jiaiF5LyayA
(minit ke 0:40)

****

2) Surah Yusuf ayat 11

Asal perkataan tersebut ialah 'Laa tak-ma-nu-na', yang bermaksud, "Tidak percayakan kami."

Tetapi telah digabungkan kedua-dua nun itu menjadi satu nun sahaja yang bersabdu.

Sebab itulah ketika membaca, kita perlu memuncungkan bibir sewaktu nun sabdu (macam nak cium orang), seolah-olah kita nak sebut 'tak-ma-nu-na' tetapi 'nu' itu tak disebut. Ia digantikan dengan muncung.

Maka jadilah Laa Tak-man(muncung)na

Dari segi bacaan tiada beza. Cuma perlu buat isyarat mulut muncung tu.

Kaedah ini dipanggil Al-Isymam الإشمام

***

3) Surah Fussilat ayat 44

Di atas huruf alif, ada satu simbol bulat hitam (tiada lubang). Anda hanya boleh jumpa simbol ini di tempat ini sahaja.

Asal perkataan ini ialah a-a'-ja-miy.

Hamzah pertama bermaksud 'adakah'.

Hamzah (alif) kedua pula ialah sebahagian daripada perkataan Arab: A'jamiy - yang bermaksud 'orang bukan Arab'.

Cara bacaannya ialah dengan meringankan bacaan hamzah (alif) kedua. Seolah-olah digabung dengan hamzah pertama. Bukannya dibaca kedua-dua hamzah itu sama jelas seperti a+a'jamiyy,

tetapi lebih kepada
Aaa'jamiyyuw wa 'arabiyy

Seolah-olah hamzah dibaca dua harakat sebelum dimatikan dengan 'ain.

Rujuk link:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yNnWJIcSbO0
(minit ke 4:40)

*****

4) Surah al-Ahqaaf ayat 4

Menurut kaedah secara general, hamzah wasal (alif yang di atasnya ada huruf saad kecik) perlulah dibunyikan mengikut baris huruf ketiga.

Jika huruf ketiga berbaris depan, maka alif itu pun berbaris depan.
Jika huruf ketiga berbaris bawah, maka alif itu pun berbaris bawah.

Cuma jika huruf ketiga berbaris atas, lain sikit. Alif tak jadi baris atas juga, tapi dibaca dengan baris bawah.

Tapi dalam surah Al-Ahqaaf ini, huruf ketiga berbaris depan. Maka kalau nak ikutkan kaedah, sepatutnya alif tu kena baca baris depan la kan?

Tapi kat sini pelik sikit.

Kita kena baca:

ii-tuu-nii

Bukannya

Uk-tuu-nii

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dRY70ogCj6A
(minit ke 0:53)

*****

Penulisan dalam blog sangatlah terhad. Jika anda takut tersalah, rujuklah mana-mana guru al-Quran. Dengar dan ikutlah bacaan dia. Itu lebih selamat. Wallahua'lam.

=)

Nak tahu Quran resam Uthmani kita ni tulisan tangan atau komputer? Klik SINI

Gay Imam

2011-02-21T07:19:00.005+02:00

Everyone now is talking about how oxymoronic the 'British gay Muslims seek Islamic weddings' issue is. It sounds weird, i agree.

But it's funny how everybody is freaking out about it, but never offered even a single solution to this malignant problem. This is a very delicate issue. Gay muslims, they do exist in our community, whether we want to believe it or not. So we're looking at an inevitable problem here.

Islamic scholars, especially, must not condemn, but find a way to deal with these people. Guide them to the path of fitrah. It's a challenge. A new one, perhaps.

In what way, u ask?

There's counseling, group therapy or support group, like those of AA meetings, where they support each other to go back onto the straight path. Literally & figuratively ;p

It is proven to be working, unless if those people are planning on using it as a dating service to meet fellow gays ;p

And if u're looking for a more extreme approach, there is an illegal method used in the US where they force homosexuals to sit n watch gay porn & simultaneously giving them nauseating agents. So that the gay thoughts will be linked to nausea inside the brain. It's called 'conditioning'. But i wouldn't recommend that ;p

I've read a scientific article on the presence of 'gay gene' in The Best American Scientific Writing 2006.

They argued whether gayness is contributed by environmental factors alone or occurs genetically or hormonally inside the mother's womb.

This is very important. If it is proven scientifically regarding its presence, then the Islamic scholars should start discussing on how to be 'a good gay Muslim'.

It's not bullsh*t. They have scientific evidence to support their theory.

If u study medicine you'll know that everybody is female by default. Then there's this hormone which stimulates the formation of male genital organs of the baby (fetus). If the hormone is somehow insufficient, for example, it'll reduce the masculinity of the baby (fetus).

It'd be like any inborn errors (e.g kecacatan anggota). It's not fitrah, for sure. But still, it happens. If he accepts his fate with sabar and redha, Allah will reward him paradise.

So similarly, maybe homosexuality is just one of Allah's ways to test His slaves. To see how they react to his 'abnormality'. Whether to refrain themselves from it or to fall into temptations. If they abstains and stays on the right path, they will be considered as 'good gay muslims' and Allah will also reward them paradise.

Another example is sex maniacs. Hypersexuality is a valid medical condition, categorized under psychological disorders.

So, say if a muslim is unlucky enough to be tested by Allah with this condition, would it be logical to condemn him? Or to say that the condition doesn't exist because Allah has made everything according to fitrah?

What we should do is guide him to channel his sexual desires to a halal way. For instance, a spouse. Or if she can't meet her husband's sexual needs, ask him to practice polygyny.

********

In the US, homosexuality has been recently excluded from psychiatric textbooks. It is no longer considered an abnormality that needs to be cured by therapies or counseling sessions. That's just politics, if u ask me.

Time to shift your paradigm. Invent new methods of approach. Didikan agama is crucial, no doubt. But the presence of this 'Gay Imam' we've recently heard of, just proves that people do not necessarily become gay due to lack of religious knowledge.

Don't only judge or condemn. It's like a rocking chair. It gives you something to do, but it brings you nowhere.

Scam Iblis

2011-01-20T00:41:00.009+02:00

Apa yang kita tidak tahu, selain daripada menyesatkan manusia dengan cara menghasut mereka untuk melakukan kejahatan, Iblis juga sebenarnya boleh memperdayakan manusia dengan cara lain.

Tapi cara ini bukan cara biasa. Ini cara licik.

Bijaknya Iblis, sehinggakan orang yang ditipu tidak akan sedar yang dia sebenarnya buat salah. Malah boleh berbangga mendabik dada bahawa dia sedang melakukan amal soleh!

Antara kitab yang terbaik untuk dibaca yang mengumpulkan 'scam' Iblis seperti ini ialah kitab 'Talbis Iblis' karangan Ibnu Al-Jauzi.

Jika anda tidak berpeluang membaca kitab ini, tak mengapa. Saya boleh bagi contoh 'live'.

Isu terbaru. Isu bacaan al-Quran di speaker2 masjid.

Hari ini, semua benda kita nak baca kuat-kuat di speaker masjid dengan sangkaan itu benda baik, dan expect semua orang untuk hormat kerana ia sesuatu yang 'sacred', sedangkan kita tak sedar yang sebenarnya kita telah ditipu Iblis. Baca mengapa di SINI.

Tapi orang kata. Maksiat melambak-lambak lagi di luar tu, kenapa laa bacaan Quran jugak yang hangpa nak tegur??

Well, two wrongs don't make a right. Dah memang dua-dua salah, mengapa tidak dua-dua ditegur?

***

Satu lagi fenomena yang biasa di kalangan orang kita. Pasang bacaan al-Quran di radio atau komputer di dalam bilik, sambil baca buku, lepak2 atau sembang2 minum kopi.. Atau sebagai background di kedai2, pejabat, klinik dan hospital.

Dari luaran memanglah nampak 'Islamik'.. Dapat pahala dengar al-Quran, katanya..

Tetapi Mufti Mesir, Sheikh Ali Jumuah pernah menegur golongan2 begini supaya jangan dipasang alunan al-Quran jika tidak mahu mengamati dan mentadabbur isi kandungannya.

Adab-adab al-Quran perlu dijaga, dan antaranya ialah duduk mendengar tanda hormat berdasarkan perintah Allah dalam Surah Al-A'raaf ayat 204. Bukan dipasang sebagai 'lullaby' sebelum tidur hingga terlelap. Lagi2 jika ikut baca bersama. Memang terang2 dilarang oleh Nabi.

Dan tolonglah, saya tak nak dengar orang komen, "Alaah, at least lagi baik lah daripada orang2 yang pasang lagu2 lagha!"

(T_T)

Loyar buruk doktor

2011-01-17T17:07:00.004+02:00

"What is the cause of unilateral lower limb edema?" our lecturer said during a class session.

Silence.

"If the patient has systemic venous congestion but one of his legs was amputated," he continued with a straight face.

...and it took us like 2 seconds to realize that that was a joke! LOL

(^^)

Missionary position - 18sx

2011-01-10T17:52:00.015+02:00

(This post is intended for medical students & adults. If you're underage, or a prude, this would be the perfect time to stop reading. If u insist, don't blame me for the explicit content)

Today's lecture was about sexual positions. I'm not sure whether it's really medical related or not that we had to discuss it in class. But that's how 'open' our professors in Al-Azhar university are.

They also talked about erectile dysfunction and masturbation. But i got out of the class after they finished talking about sexual positions to attend to some business (which shall remain secret). Heh~ So, topic masturbation tak sempat attend. Tapi takpe, i already know everything there is to know ;p

***

My prof said, medically speaking, missionary position is the best position to do 'it', for several reasons...

1) Eye-to-eye contact.

2) Proper semen deposition into the cervix of the uterus, due to its position, thus increasing the probability of conception.

3) Delaying ejaculation, thus prolonging 'its' duration. (Dunno how. I wasn't really paying attention) ;p

4) More stimulation of the woman's clitoris, which is less achieved in other positions. Plus the presence of G-spot, which is located at the anterior wall of the vagina 3 inches away from the opening.

This is why some people say size doesn't matter. 3 inches are enough to satisfy both parties. So if you're a 3, don't feel bad ok =)

(Ha, ukur la, ukur..)

I know we Asians are not blessed in 'that' department as are other races like Africans & Caucasians. But it's the effort that counts. Don't believe me? Tell me the two largest populations in the world today!

(^^)

Cutie pie~

2011-01-09T22:44:00.002+02:00

Dare to be different!~
***

Don't let people judge you solely by your looks. It's what's inside that counts =)
***

When life gives you lemons, make lemonade!
***

Make the best use of your youth before you're all hairy & saggy!~
***

Rasuk hantu

2010-12-31T13:00:00.005+02:00

Although i'm sure most people would disagree to this, but frankly speaking, being a medical person i am, i'm kinda skeptical when it comes to this so-called 'exorcism', or being possessed by a ghost in the first place.

It's true that sometimes the human action & behavior cannot be entirely explained by science, but we have to remember that everything in this world has to be in the course of sunnatullah. Especially when there are still lots of things in the field of neurology & psychiatry that are yet to discover.

I am not an expert yet. So i don't want to comment excessively on this particular subject. But i just want to share some of these thought-provoking points with all of you, and i hope it might help u understand what i'm trying to say.

On changing voice, personality.

This can simply be explain by a psychiatric disorder called Multiple personality disorder. People who suffer from this condition have at least two personalities that alternately take control of the individual's behavior, associated with memory loss and voice change. Some might even change gender.

It is triggered by emotional stress, anxiety, paranoia, or sometimes, spontaneously. So it gives the illusion of someone being 'possessed' by 'other person', when it's actually just another personality inside his mind.

React to ayat Quran or ustaz as if it is jinn.

This is your mind playing tricks on you. Your mind will create its own game, with its own rules. Especially when it is pre-programmed by social believes.

For example in Msia, we are told since we're little, that jinn/hantu will go away on ayat Kursi or Yasin recitation. So, your mind will follow the rule. Whenever an ustaz recite a Quran, the jinn will scream and then left the host's body.

If it is really jinn, why does it react the same way when the Bible is read? (Christian exorcism) Or any traditional spell? Is jinn afraid of that too?

Speaking foreign language.

Two possibilities:

1) The person has watched any foreign movies, or heard any foreign songs, or any people talking in foreign language, then what they perceived is stored in their subconscious mind that is blurted out during his 'episodes'.

2) Or it's just gibberish. Not a real language. But we sometimes think that it's 'Bahasa Siam' because it sounded alike, sedangkan kalau panggil orang Siam pun diorg tak paham apa dia cakap. Most probably due to any injury to the speech center of the brain, leading to what we doctors call 'aphasia'.

Contagious. Kalau sorang minah histeria, jap lagi jangkit pulak kat kawan dia.

This might be explained by episodes of panic attack, which can be acquired by watching, or just by being in the same room.

Wikipedia: "People who are "hysterical" often lose self-control due to an overwhelming fear that may be caused by multiple events in one's past..."

Hysteria is defined as 'a state of mind of unmanageable emotional excesses.' It can be hormonal, or psychological. Some psychologists also said that hysteria might be one of the manifestations of unresolved childhood issues or desperate attempt to seek attention.

Kena hempap/tindih

Explained mostly by sleep paralysis.

Or by pavor nocturnus, or night terrors, characterized by extreme terror, temporary inability to regain full consciousness, waking abruptly from sleep, accompanied by gasping, moaning, or screaming while waking.

Sometimes it is caused by sleep apnea. Difficulty breathing leads to anxiety, causing our mind to perceive it as 'kena hempap'. People will try to wake themselves up, and some by reciting ayat Kursi, and during that state between dreaming & consciousness, our brain produces scary thoughts or images leading to false illusion of 'hantu hempap'.

*******

I could really use some useful insights on this topic. Maybe from an Islamic point of view. Mungkin berserta kisah zaman Nabi atau sahabat yang pernah dirasuk.

Saya tak berani komen banyak. Saya tak pernah kena. Dan tak berniat nak kena.

Apa2pun, Allah lebih mengetahui. Wallahua'lam =)

Bad day

2010-12-21T10:16:00.006+02:00

It's 10 in the morning, and today is already a bad day for me =(

As early as 6.30am i had to go out on my motorcycle to my tuition class (and it's winter!). I traveled nearly 10km just to find out that it was canceled! =(

Balik bilik tido kejap. Bangun balik nak gi kelas. Tengok2 tayar motor pancit. Terpaksa gi kedai tayar untuk tampal.

There i found the cause of my problem. A scrap of sharp aluminum and two long nails lodged into my tayar belakang. Costed me LE15 to get it fixed.

Pastu ke kelas. Sampai2 dah terlambat, so prof. kunci pintu, tak kasi masuk sebab lambat. Terpaksa balik bilik semula =(

And you know what's the worst part? The anticipation of what's next!! ;p

But i'm trying to console myself by reminding myself that there are other people who are having far worse day than mine.

Just on my way home tadi pun, nampak ada satu line panjang makcik2 tua beratur. Ada yg dukung anak kecik. Dekat 100 meter jugak. Kesian, sayu hati. I dunno what's there, but i assume it must be something worth queuing for.

I wasn't diagnosed with cancer today. Or had any fatal accident. I'm blessed with family and friends. I don't face any bankruptcy.

Speaking of money, in fact, today i received a good news too (^^)

PNB mengumumkan pengagihan pendapatan skim Amanah Saham Bumiputera (ASB) hari ini. Alhamdulillah, dividen ASB 7.5% dan bonus 1.25% untuk tahun 2010.

Dividen dikira berdasarkan simpanan semasa kita. Contohnya kalau tahun ni cukup setahun simpan RM10,000, maka dividennya ialah RM750.

Bonus pula dikira berdasarkan simpanan kita 10 tahun dahulu. Tak kisahlah sama ada duit tu ada lagi sekarang atau tak. Contohnya kalau tahun 2000 dulu kita ada simpan RM1,000, maka bonusnya ialah 1.25% daripada RM1,000 = RM12.50 (hek eleehh?)

Walaupun sikit, better lah than nothing ;p

Tahun lepas dividen ASB 7.3%. Tahun 2008 dulu lagi banyak, 8%. Patutnye tahun ni diorang kena naikkan banyak lagi, untuk ambil hati rakyat pasal menara 100 tingkat tu, kan? hehe

Apa2 pun jangan lupa bayar zakat simpanan (2.5%) bagi mereka yang dah cukup haul (setahun). Tapi mesti cukup syarat sekurang2nya menyimpan RM9,000. Kalau tak sampai 9k, tak perlu bayar.

Boleh kira zakat simpanan anda di SINI.

Esok saya exam oral Paediatrics. Doakan =)

Nauseous or Nauseated?

2010-12-13T20:53:00.003+02:00

What's the difference between the word 'nauseous' & 'nauseated'? They are often used interchangeably, but they actually differ in meaning.

Nauseous = nauseating = causing nausea = memualkan.

Nauseated = feeling sick = rasa mabuk / nak muntah.

So, it's incorrect to say, "I'm nauseous," (unless of course, if u really are disgusting. hehe). I'm nauseous = saya memualkan.

Correct usage:

I feel nauseated. (Saya rasa mabuk / nak muntah)

There's a nauseous/nauseating odor in the room. (Ada bau yang memualkan dalam bilik)

Same goes to "I'm bored." Some Malaysians say "I'm boring" when they actually meant "I'm bored." Unless...

******

Also, in pronouncing certain words with the letters 'mb' like bombing, plumber, climbing, the correct pronunciation (not pronounciation) is to make the 'b' silent.

Bombing = bomming
Plumber = plummer
Climbing = climing

Western Dining Etiquette - UnIslamic?

2010-12-05T15:13:00.007+02:00

I have met several individuals that criticized those who follow the 'western' dining etiquette, calling them 'un-Islamic' or 'westernized' because they put the food inside their mouth using the fork on their left hand, instead of right, which is, according to them, more 'Islamic'.

It is an understandable, albeit unacceptable misconception among Muslims. Most probably due to the misinterpretation or generalization of the hadis (narrated by Muslim), "Eat with your right hand."

As un-Islamic as it sounds, the Mufti of Egypt, Dr. Ali Jumuah said in one of his fatwas that it is alright to feed yourself with your left hand if both hands are occupied, as in eating using fork and knife. The problem is only when one uses his left hand when his right hand is empty.

It's based on the hadis reported by Imam Ahmad, that the Prophet used to eat from both hands alternately, where in his right hand was a cucumber while in his left hand was a watermelon.

So similarly, when both hands are occupied with a fork and a knife, do we really have to defy the standard dining etiquette and switch them just because we think that it is 'more Islamic' (when it's actually not)?

Some might say that they don't see any problem with switching the fork and the knife.

Well brother, Islam is not exclusive for Arabs.. Or Malays. They are thousands of Westerners who are muslim too. We might not think that it's a big deal. But there are some Westerners who feel very strongly about having to change the way they eat.

Islam did not come to destroy any customs or traditions. So as long as they do not contradict with Islamic laws or value, they should not be abolished or prohibited.

So the only remaining question is, "Does putting one's food into his mouth using the left hand while the right hand is occupied even contradict any Islamic moral code?"

No!

=)

Valve replacement - USD15,000

2010-11-25T17:44:00.003+02:00

-We always say that God's blessings are priceless. But what do we actually understand about the word 'priceless'?

-Let me give you an example. In human heart, there are 4 valves, namely Tricuspid, Pulmonary, Mitral & Aortic valves. Each valve plays a very important role in keeping the blood flow the way it's intended.

-Say if something were to happen to any of these valves that damages it, the result is almost fatal in a long run.

-And to replace any of it nowadays will cost you at least USD15,000 each.

-BUT, the replacement will not be the same with the original ones which God has given you. Each has advantages and disadvantages in terms of durability (how long they will last) and risk of blood clots forming on the valve.

-A bovine (cow) valve, for example, although is more natural, will require you to change it every 10-15 years due to its 'wear and tear' properties. Also there are some risks of rejection, because the body consider it as something 'alien' to the body.

-The same thing goes to the porcine (pig) valve which is the most similar to the human heart.

-A mechanical (synthetic) valve on the other hand, although lasts longer, requires consistent anti-coagulation therapy (blood thinner) for the rest of the patient's life. Otherwise blood clots will form around it causing thromboembolism.

-So, you can see now why God's gifts for us are irreplaceable.

*******

-One more thing, as we know, all parts of dead animals which are not slaughtered according to the Islamic method is considered as najis. So, it got me thinking, "Apa hukum umat Islam berusaha mengeluarkan produk 'bovine (cow) valve' yang suci dan tidak najis? Fardhu kifayah kah?"

=)

Was The Prophet a Pedophile by Marrying 9-Year-Old Aisyah?

2010-11-18T08:42:00.005+02:00

Pedophile is an adult who has sexual desire for children or who has committed the crime of sex with a child.

In answering the issue on whether or not our Prophet s.a.w. is a pedophile by marrying 9-year-old Aisyah, several points must be included:

-First is the fact that Aisyah has already hit puberty by the time she married the Prophet. So as far as the syariah is concerned, he did not break any law at that time.

-Also by definition, according to Microsoft Encarta Dictionary, puberty is defined as 'the stage in human physiological development when somebody becomes capable of sexual reproduction.' So he even did not defy the very definition of puberty given by modern-day linguists.

-Secondly, we cannot simply judge the customs of the Arabs 1400 years ago based on the present day's standard. The culture was different back then. Proof?

Before Aisyah was married to the Prophet, she was also engaged to a guy name Jubair ibn Mus'ab before they broke it off. So, this is a clear indication that marriage in early age is NOT something bizarre during that time as it is also done by several people other than the Prophet.

Also we can see from sirah nabawiyah that the enemies of the Prophet tried very hard to destroy the reputation of the Prophet. They accused him of being a sorcerer, a magician, a liar, a fabricator. But NEVER once we heard they call him a pedophile. This is clearly because the Arabs 1400 years ago see this as something normal, otherwise this would be a very perfect opportunity to destroy his reputation in a blink. But they didn't, because it's irrelevant.

-We can also see some evidence from the sirah regarding the maturity of the 11-year-old Aisyah when she was accused of being unfaithful to her husband in the famous story of hadith al-ifk. These are some quotes of Aisyah proving how mature she was in dealing with such a difficult situation:

“I know by Allah that you have heard these rumors, and that these rumors have settled in your heart and soul and you have believed it already. So if I were to tell you that I’m not guilty, you wouldn’t believe me. And if I were to admit to a crime that I did not commit, then you will believe me and think that I did it. So all I can say to you is what the father of Yusuf said. ‘Patience is beautiful.’ And Allah’s help is sought concerning what you describe.”

“I turned around on my bed. Allah knew I was innocent of this charge and I knew that Allah would reveal my innocence. However, wallahi I never thought that Allah would reveal Qur’an concerning me. I thought myself far too low in the sight of Allah, that Allah would speak about me. Rather, I was hoping that the Prophet might see in his dream something that would declare my innocence.”

-Would you ever guessed these came from the mouth of an 11-year-old girl? Our daughters or sisters during that age will be still playing with barbie dolls or collecting cute stickers.

-Also, not long ago, about 80 years back, it's not unusual to hear our great grandmother got married in young age of 15 or 16. So why should there be any shock when it happened 1400 years ago?

-Even the customs vary in different regions of the same country. For example, today in Egypt, the average age of women getting married is 25-28 in downtown part. But in rural Egypt where they have no carrier to pursue, they get married even earlier, say, 16-20.

-So there are just too many aspects to consider in determining whether something is acceptable in a particular society or not.

-BUT, if we still wanna measure this up using our modern day standards, come take a look at some of the examples of legal ages of consent in different countries around the world:

Australia: 16
Bulgaria: 14
Canada: 16
China: 14
Czech Republic: 15
Germany: 14
Japan: 13
Mexico: 12

-Not much of a difference from what happened 1400 years ago, eh?

Why the Prophet stayed married to 9 wives while Muslims are allowed only 4?

2010-11-13T08:51:00.006+02:00

Why did the prophet die leaving 9 wives, not 4 like other muslims? Is he above the law? And was it out of lust?

*******

Why 9?

-Yes, our Prophet did die leaving 9 wives. Throughout his life, he had 12 wives. Namely:

Khadijah bint Khuwaylid
Sawdah bint Zam’ah
A’ishah bint Abi Bakr
Hafsah bint `Umar ibn Al-Khattab
Zaynab bint Khuzaymah
Ummu Salama
Zaynab bint Jahsh
Juwayriah bint Al-Harith
Umm Habibah
Safiyah bint Huyay ibn Akhtab
Maymunah bint Al-Harith
Maria the Coptic

- When the Quranic verse that says - a Muslim should have a maximum of 4 wives - was revealed, our Prophet had already had 9 of the wives, whom he married between the age 53-60, except for Khadijah.

-As a consequence, other Muslims who had more than 4 wives at that time had to divorce some of them to reach the max number of 4.

-But as the case of the Prophet, he couldn't divorce them because Muslims are prohibited to marry any of the Prophet's ex-wives, because the wives are their mothers (hence the term Ummul Mukminin) according to surah al-Ahzab: 6

النبي أولى بالمؤمنين من أنفسهم وأزواجه أمهاتهم
"The Prophet is closer to the Believers than their own selves, and his wives are their mothers."

- So the Prophet had no choice but to keep all 9, as not to be cruel to them. Because the ex-wives of other Muslims can always remarry, but not the Prophet's ex-wives. The syariah cannot contradict itself, because it came for the benefit of humankind, not to harm them.

- But right after that, another verse was revealed, prohibiting the Prophet to marry any other women, or to change any of the wives:

"It is not lawful for you (to marry other) women after this, nor to change them for other wives." (Al-Ahzab 33:52)

- So that's the story behind why the Prophet kept all of his 9 wives till the day he died.

******

Was it out of lust?

- The Prophet remained monogamous for 25 years with Khadijah. And after she died when he was 50, he still remained unmarried for 2 years.

- While the 'cool thing' among Arabs during his time was to marry a virgin, all of the Prophet's wives are either a divorcee or a widow, except for Aisyah r.a.

- So if he really was a lustful person, the reasonable thing to do is to marry virgins instead of divorcees or widows. But he didn't.

- There were reasons behind some of the marriages. I will continue the stories in my next post insyaAllah. Keep reading (^_~)

In the mean time, read this post on the Prophet being a pedophile by marrying Aishah.

Tips meramaikan zuriat (?)

2010-11-07T08:09:00.007+02:00

Pada 13 dan 14 April 2010, saya telah dijemput oleh Badan Kebajikan Pelajar Johor di Mesir sebagai pembentang untuk sesi ceramah kesihatan kursus pra-perkahwinan khas buat pelajar-pelajar di Mesir.

Antara fokus utama yang saya tekankan sewaktu slot tersebut ialah kepentingan perancangan keluarga bagi pasangan-pasangan yang baru berkahwin.

Saya terangkan, walaupun Nabi s.a.w. berbangga dengan bilangan umat baginda yang ramai, tetapi dalam masa yang sama Nabi berpesan agar umat Islam tidak menjadi seperti buih-buih di lautan; bilangannya banyak, tetapi amat lemah. Dalam erti kata yang lain, Nabi mementingkan KUALITI berbanding KUANTITI. Maka untuk mencapai hal itu, perancangan keluarga adalah mandatori bagi setiap pasangan.

Saya juga terangkan, bahawa antara persepsi di kalangan masyarakat Melayu yang perlu diperbetulkan ialah keperluan untuk melahirkan anak sebaik sahaja berkahwin. Mungkin kerana mereka takut dipandang serong oleh masyarakat atau dilabel dengan gelaran seperti 'mandul' dan sebagainya, maka ramailah yang mencuba untuk mendapatkan anak ketika usia perkahwinan masih setahun jagung.

Tiada salahnya, cuma kadangkala mereka terlepas pandang aspek-aspek penting seperti kekukuhan ekonomi keluarga, persediaan emosi dan mental sebagai ibu bapa, kelapangan masa untuk membesarkan anak-anak dan banyak lagi.

Saya mencadangkan kepada mereka agar tunggu setahun dua lagi sebelum mencuba mendapatkan anak. Mungkin setelah itu, ekonomi keluarga sudah agak kukuh, dalam erti kata suami mampu menyediakan kemudahan bersalin yang selesa, sama ada di hospital kerajaan atau swasta yang bukannya murah zaman sekarang.

Susu dan pampers sudah mampu dibeli secukupnya. Jika anak sakit, boleh dibawa ke klinik tanpa perlu berhutang atau menebal muka meminta sana sini. Belum cerita lagi kos tadika, sekolah rendah, sekolah menengah, dan universiti yang perlu ditanggung oleh ibu bapa dalam masa terdekat!

Ada ibu bapa yang kebanggaan mereka terletak pada jenama pakaian yang dipakai anaknya. Atau video games yang mahal-mahal. Namun bagi sebahagian yang lain, seperti ibu bapa saya sendiri, kebanggaan mereka terletak kepada kemampuan mereka menyediakan wad yang selesa di hospital swasta ketika kami keracunan makanan.. Atau menyediakan bahan bacaan kanak-kanak yang berkualiti untuk kami baca.. Atau dapat menghantar kami ke guru tusyen yang baik.. Atau keselesaan kami semasa belajar.. Kata kuncinya, 'Prioritize'.

Juga dalam tempoh setahun dua yang pertama itu, suami isteri boleh 'enjoy' perkahwinan mereka, berkenal-kenalan dan bergurau senda sepuas hati mereka, sebelum isteri menunjukkan 'belangnya' sewaktu hormon mengandung menguasai emosinya, dan sebelum anak-anak mencuri penuh perhatian suami ke atas isteri dan perhatian isteri ke atas suami.

Suami isteri juga perlu menyiapkan mental mereka sebelum mendapatkan anak. Perkara-perkara asas seperti keperluan nutrisi ibu dan anak, apa perlu dibuat jika anak yang baru lahir menjadi kuning, bagaimana cara menyusu yang betul.. Semua perlu diberi perhatian, bukan dah beranak baru kelam-kabut dan tak prepared.

Termasuk dalam persiapan mental juga ialah, suami yang merokok wajib untuk cuba berhenti sebelum isterinya mula mengandung; demi menjaga ekonomi keluarga dan juga kesihatan anak di dalam kandungan.

Siapa yang bakal menjaga anak juga perlu dibincangkan. Ibu bapa hari ini dengan mudahnya menghantar anak ke nursery, tanpa mengetahui bahawa didikan yang terbaik datangnya daripada ibu bapa sendiri.

Di negara-negara maju, salah seorang suami atau isteri sanggup berhenti kerja atau mengambil cuti tanpa gaji semata-mata untuk menjaga anak mereka yang baru lahir. Mereka juga akan mengkhaskan sebuah bilik (nursery room) khas untuk bayi tersebut. Semua ini demi memastikan anak mereka membesar dengan baik dan mendapat kasih sayang secukupnya.

*********

Selepas itu, saya jelaskan kepada mereka, bahawa konsep perancangan keluarga ini bukan satu konsep yang baru diperkenalkan oleh perubatan moden. Ia telah pun disarankan oleh Nabi s.a.w. lebih 1400 tahun dahulu.

Al-Quran dan hadis Nabi menggalakkan umatnya menjarangkan anak, sekurang-kurangnya 2 tahun. "Para ibu hendaklah menyusukan anak-anaknya selama dua tahun penuh." [Al-Baqarah: 233] Dengan cara ini, anak dapat menyusu dengan sempurna, dan mendapat perhatian dan didikan secukupnya daripada ibu bapa sebelum mendapat 'adik baru'.

Nabi di dalam sebuah hadis yang dilaporkan oleh Abu Daud mengingatkan, “Janganlah kamu membunuh anak-anak kamu secara senyap-senyap (gheelah), kerana ‘gheelah’ merampas kuda dari penunggangnya lalu menjatuhkannya dari kuda tersebut.”

Jika anak hanya diselangkan setahun, bermakna, belum sempat anak pertama menyusu penuh selama 2 tahun, dia perlu berkongsi susu ibu dengan adiknya. Inilah yang dinamakan 'gheelah'.

********

Namun setelah beria-ia memahamkan para hadirin tentang kepentingan perancangan keluarga pada slot itu, ketika sesi soal jawab seorang hadirin bangun lalu bertanyakan soalan,

"Doktor, ada tips tak untuk meramaikan zuriat?"

(*_*)

200th post!

2010-10-26T19:05:00.004+02:00

Alhamdulillah
This is officially my 200th post in this blog (^^)

My 100th post was written on 16 Sept 2009
So it's ok i think to say that i write roughly about 100 posts a year.

So that's about, once every 3.65 days! ;p

I don't update my blog often.
I do it only when i'm emotional.. Or have something to say.
And definitely during the exam period! When the writing hormone is raging..hehe

Anyways, thanks y'all who have been reading my blog and leaving good comments.

I hope all my words will be considered as amal jariah (literally means continuous deeds - because it will continue to benefit people -i hope- even after i'm long gone), and hopefully they will not go against me on the Day of Resurrection (^_~)

Please pray for me so that i continue to write and give benefit to ummah for yeaars to come. Amin.

Oh, feel like sharing with u this funny quote:

"Children are like farts.. You always think your own are inoffensive but other people's are soo repulsive."

(^^)

Parents: Our pediatrician by nature

2010-10-23T18:14:00.007+02:00

Round pediatrics memang sangat meremukkan hati.

Pertama, melihat anak2 kecil yang tiada dosa ditimpa dengan pelbagai penyakit; ada yang curable dan ada juga yang permanent. Membuatkan saya terfikir betapa besarnya nikmat zaman kanak2 yang sihat walafiat. Satu nikmat yang jarang kita renungi dan syukuri.

Kedua, melihat ketabahan ibu2 yang terpaksa menerima hakikat bahawa anaknya itu; anak yang bakal hidup bersamanya 20-30 tahun akan datang, mengalami mental retardation.. Atau cerebral palsy.. Atau apa2 keadaan lagi yang tiada penawar. Anak yang sepatutnya dilihat sebagai satu aset pelaburan akan datang.. Yang sepatutnya membawa pulangan sama ada dari segi kewangan atau penjagaan di hari tua kelak.. Tetapi hakikatnya adalah perkara sebaliknya. Seolah-olah melihat saham yang sudah pasti jatuh merundum.

Anak yang sepatutnya menjadi khabar gembira, bertukar menjadi khabar menyedihkan. Anak yang sepatutnya dikerumuni dan dipicit pipi, hanya boleh dilihat dengan pandangan belas kasihan. Anak yang sudah pasti memerlukan penjagaan rapi berkali-kali ganda berbanding anak2 lain yang sihat dan normal.

Ada yang terpaksa mengorbankan karier dan masa. Ada yang terpaksa menukar karier daripada nenek kepada ibu akibat kesempitan hidup. Dan jika cucunya ditakdirkan sihat dan membesar dengan sempurna, belum tentu usaha nenek itu dihargai sepenuhnya. Entah2 dimarahi anaknya sendiri supaya 'tidak mencampuri urusan budak itu, kerana ibunya sendiri lebih berhak ke atasnya'.

Ada yang menitiskan air mata akibat kesedihan sewaktu kami mengambil history. Atau physical examination. Hati menjadi lebih pilu bila melihat riak muka yang semakin sedih apabila menerima kertas prescription daripada doktor, mengenangkan kos ubat yang perlu dibeli sendiri.

Ada yang masuk ke wad dalam keadaan menangis. Mengoffer doktor segala duit yang dia miliki, asalkan anaknya itu mendapat special & immediate treatment.. "Tolonglah doktor. Anak saya dah nak mati ni!" Sehingga doktor terpaksa memujuk, "Eh mana ada nak mati. Korang tengok ada macam nak mati ke budak tu?" kata doktor kepada kami sambil menunjuk ke arah anaknya yang masih mampu tersengih ketika itu.

Walaupun terpaksa menghadapi kuliah yang sangat bosan, dan tangisan anak2 yang sangat annoying dan membingitkan (like seriously), but i have to admit. It is a very heartbreaking experience. I don't think i can be a pediatrician in the future. I'm just not cut for it.

But despite of the difficulties, our parents didn't ever complain about being our pediatrician by nature. Jika kita demam, merekalah yang berjaga malam, mengawasi suhu badan kita. Jika kita sudah selepas membuang air besar, merekalah yang mencebokkan kita walaupun ketika itu mereka sedang makan. Jika berlaku small accidents, terpijak jarum, tersepit pintu, terhantuk kepala, merekalah penyelamat pertama.

Sedih la. Tak sanggup nak habiskan. K bye~

The hardest word: Thanks!

2010-10-19T16:10:00.004+02:00

Everybody has at least one thing that they are very good at.. Some are good at cooking, baking, designing, sports, speaking, sewing, etc.. And remember, with great 'power' comes great responsibility.

When God gave me the basic knowledge to use, say, Adobe Photoshop, i know it's God's way of telling me to help others designing stuffs.. Otherwise it would be a vain gift.

That's why i don't mind helping people with some designing work. For free, yeah.

But i do have some rules.

The first one is simple. Appreciation. A simple 'thank you' would be enough. Not that i crave thanks. I know that the praised ones in the Quran are the ones who say, "We feed you for the sake of Allah alone: no reward do we desire from you, nor thanks." (Al-Insan: 9)

But what i'm afraid of is my fellow Muslim friends who lack common sense & basic courtesy. Friends who don't even acknowledge hours of work with a simple call or sms or Facebook wallpost (F.O.C). I mean, what if they become a really successful someday and deal with various people from around the world. I would hate it very much that people like this carry the name Islam with them.

Probably because of the way i was brought up. My parents are very strict about that.. Also my grand-dad, who ALWAYS knows what to say when we give something to him, even if it's SO obvious that he made it up. Tapi takpelah kan. Asalkan hati orang yang bagi tu rasa sejuuuk je.

Like for example when we brought him a roti jala with chicken curry.. He'd say, "Oh terima kasih banyak2.. Atok baru je teringin nak makan roti jala malam tadi, tengok2 je korang dah bawakkan." Funny right? But i LOVE the fact that he is showing his appreciation, even to his grandchildren, who is by definition, is obligated to do stuffs like that.

****

The second thing, i would REALLY HATE it when i'm done with the work [hours of work, to be exact], that person suddenly decided not to use it, for whatever reason. Masa nak mintak tolong, macam nak mati paksa. Last2 tak jadi guna. Can u imagine?

That would reaaaaally set me off. No next time, for sure. Sounds ridiculous, but it really happened to me, SEVERAL TIMES!

****

The third one is the common courtesy to return the favor next time. Well it's not uncommon to find people who asked u for a favor, then when it's time we wanted help, macam2 alasan dia bagi tanak tolong. Even if the favor isn't comparable at all. Waaaayy too easy compared to what i did.

I mean, come onn.. Most of my friends aren't dumb people. Most are med students with high IQ. Why the lack of common sense?

Bedside manner

2010-10-16T07:10:00.005+02:00

Doctors often talk about patients as if they're subjects of discussion, but we always forget that they're also humans.. With feelings and emotions..

Dr. Jerome Groopman M.D in his book 'Second Opinion' told about how a doctor asked his colleague whether is it a 'good case', referring to Groopman's sick child.

So try to master not only clinical skills, but also people skills =) It's what we call 'bedside manner', which is the attitude and conduct of a physician in the presence of a patient.

Would u rather be treated by a world-class physician with poor attitude or a fairly good doctor with world-class attitude? =)

Stethoscope

2010-10-05T15:31:00.005+02:00

When i talked about doctor's malpractice in my last post, believe it or not, all doctors, without any exception, are included. The only difference is, to what extent?

There are 2 types of errors in medical practice; errors of ignorance (mistakes we make because we don't know enough), and errors of ineptitude (mistakes we made because we don’t make proper use of what we know). And i personally think that most malpractices in hospitals are because of the latter.

You can't boast and say that u NEVER did such thing. Lemme give u a simple example.

A stethoscope.

Do u know how many diseases can u get from a stethoscope?

Almost every doctor in a hospital, or a clinic - regardless of what disease does the patient have - will use the stethoscope to check your blood pressure, heart sound, breathing sound, bowel movement sound etc. The stethoscope is pressed onto the patient's sweaty chest, and then transferred to another patient without any prior cleaning and disinfecting.

This is what Atul Gawande in his book 'Better: A surgeon's note on performance' emphasized on. Simple things like washing hands and disinfecting surgical instruments.. and a couple of other things that may have been taken for granted by doctors.

That's why Dr. Robert S. Mendelsohn; a medical heretic who was actively criticizing the practices of modern medicine, talked about the 'compulsory ritual' performed by doctors - which is using the stethoscope unnecessarily, just to make the patient 'feel good' about themselves, that they are being taken care of by the doctor.

While in fact, sometimes the use of stethoscope is of no significant importance. On the contrary it could even transfer some infectious diseases from one patient to another.

There's a lot we are still to learn. Even when u feel that u're the best doctor in town, or a top student in your class, there are still things that u are yet to improve.

Learn from the mistakes of others. You can't live long enough to make it all yours. (^^)

Asian & Caucasian

2010-10-03T13:08:00.007+02:00

Alhamdulillah just arrived home yesterday from our family holiday in Phuket. People there are soo nice and polite. Dealing with local people here, i can see now why Kuala Lumpur was once labeled the 3rd rudest city in the world!

Also my paradigm also shifted. I used to think that mat salleh are the most polite people in the world. Maybe God wanted to show me that there are some undiscovered jewels in other places, and what do u know... There it is, just beside Malaysia (^^)

On the contrary, i can see some very rude white people who were there in Phuket.

********

First when we were on Maya Beach, my sister walk beside a white woman when she heard her saying, "I hate Muslims," then walk away.

Then again on the boat, when our tour guide handed out sliced watermelons to us and said that they are for the monkeys on the beach, an Australian guy said, "Which monkey. That monkey??" pointing at a handicapped Arab who was with us in the boat! Gosh, he kissed his wife/mom with that mouth? Grrr~

Also when i was at the Premium Factory Outlet in Phuket, when i entered the Quicksilver retail shop, again, an Australian guy were looking around and then said to me, "Everything is medium and small size. This is all fucked up!" Well, maybe it's something common to them, but to say that to a total stranger is kinda rude. At least for me.

And before our plane back to Singapore took off, the stewardess asked a Caucasian male behind me to wear his shoes during take off. And he replied disrespectfully, "Are you kidding me??" But not knowing it was a rhetorical question, she replied politely, "No sir, i'm not kidding." (LOL)

**********

But i totally respect the local people there. They did not even once, raised their voice. On the last day when i went shopping, i bargained a T-shirt with the Thai salesgirl. I insisted on 270 Baht (that's RM27 to us). So when i paid 300 Baht she told me that she doesn't have a small change, and asked me is it ok to settle down to 300 Baht.

I said no. I want the 30 Baht (RM3! haha soo kedekut). After a long argument, she just went away to get the small change and then said in a disappointed voice, "Aiyaaa, why you do thiss.. You so handsome.."

Hahaha (^^) That was as rude as she can be!

At Maya Beach, where Leonardo DiCaprio shot his movie Za Bitch (The Beach). hehe

At Premium Factory Outlet in Phuket.

Bookaholic

2010-09-25T03:52:00.004+03:00

Alhamdulillah, yet another med-series book has arrived yesterday morning --> Better: A Surgeon's Notes on Performance by Atul Gawande. Thanks to my old friend, Rozaliyana Radzi who got me the book (and also, insisted on not being paid back). It costs £1.90 + £2.75 (delivery). Jzkk ;)

And in exchange, i got her Islam: The Misunderstood Religion by Dr. Danial Zainal Abidin. What makes it special is that it's not sold in any bookstores worldwide. I still got a couple of copies with me, that i've been saving only for those who did me HUGE favors like this one (^_~)

****

Although i'm no longer writing a book, like i did during my first 3 summer holidays, I've enjoyed my summer reading list this time. I thought, instead of wasting my time reading novels or worse, status updates on Facebook, why not spend my time reading books that could shape my mind as a better doctor in the future? Hence the med-related books that are superbly written.

He wrote, "There are 2 types of errors in medical practice; errors of ignorance (mistakes we make because we don't know enough), and errors of ineptitude (mistakes we made because we don’t make proper use of what we know)."

And i think most malpractice in hospitals are because of the latter. Read my previous post on one of the causes of malpractice in hospitals.

****

I think the word 'shopaholic' doesn't apply to books. 'Bookaholic' maybe. I may not be able to finish ALL the books during the time allocated. But well, you can buy magazines, comics, and newspapers every day/week/month and NOT even reading them thoroughly, why can't it be educational books? At least the contents won't be outdated like newpapers. At least for yeaaaaars to come ^_^

Here are some of the books that i bought just during 2010 summer holiday. Some are new ones, and some are used =)

Solat ni leceh?

2010-09-22T11:15:00.006+03:00

Tapi biasalah, iklan yang tiada nilai komersil dan tidak menguntungkan, tiada siapa yang sudi taja.

Solat itu mudah, jangan disusah-susahkan.. Jangan diletak syarat yang mengarut2 e.g. mesti bertelekung, berkopiah, berbaju melayu, kain pelikat etc.

Memang benar solat perlu dalam pakaian terbaik, tetapi jika 'diwajibkan' benda2 sunat, bimbang orang akan memberi alasan tidak solat di shopping2 kompleks semata2 kerana 'lupa nak bawak telekung' atau 'kain pelikat'.

Nampak seperti tak logik, tetapi ia benar-benar berlaku di kalangan masyarakat. Pada 1 Syawal yang lalu, ketika masuk waktu solat Jumaat, saya bertanya kepada adik saudara saya berumur kira-kira 11 tahun, "Sembahyang Jumaat tak?"

"Alaa, takde samping laa.."

Lihat implikasi tidak langsung kesan daripada 'programming' masyarakat kepada anak-anak kecil. Sehingga dia rasa seperti tidak sah solat jika tiada samping.

2 minggu lepas juga sepupu lelaki saya mengadu tentang seorang pakcik yang menegurnya kerana memakai T-Shirt ketika solat di surau Jusco. What kinda sick advice is that?? So what, dia prefer orang2 yang pakai T-Shirt di shopping kompleks untuk TIDAK solat langsung? Ugh~

****

Bagi lelaki, dah besar panjang tu, kencinglah duduk, jangan berdiri. Sudah terpercik nanti, bagi alasan tak solat sebab seluar bernajis..

Bagi perempuan pula, pastikan aurat anda ditutup dengan sempurna ketika keluar berjalan. Jika anda masih perlu 'menutup' atau 'menampung' lagi mana-mana bahagian untuk tujuan solat, bermakna belum sempurna la tu.

Melayu = Me-layu??

2010-09-21T12:16:00.006+03:00

I just got back from two different car companies yesterday. One was Mutiara Motors Sdn. Bhd. (a large Malay car company in JB) and another one was Sri Kasa Sdn. Bhd. (kedai kereta Cina tepi jalan aje), and i saw a HUGE difference on how they do business.

Not to belittle my own people, but the Malay salesman was kinda unprofessional, unfriendly, cold, 'kerek', and to a little extent, rude. He put very little effort in convincing us to buy the car and talked to us like we're kind of people who can't afford it. It's like, "Alah kalau ko tak beli pun ramai lagi customer lain yang nak beli."

I was a little bit sad when we came to another car company later on, seeing the Chinese salesman who's very polite, friendly, answering to every question we asked, and his effort in convincing us to buy the car (which is in a SUPERB condition, by the way, compared to the one at the Malay's company) was really OBVIOUS.

What makes me even sadder is the fact that Malays ALWAYS play the 'sesama Islam' card to attract muslim customers. Come on lah, change your business attitude and then, and only then, talk about Muslims' obligations!

Not only in car business. You name it. From grocery stores to multi-million businesses, where are we compared to Chinese people?

Not to generalize. But majority of them fits the stereotype. Like at my father's company where there are Malays and Chinese working together. Unnecessary MCs, late attendance, early parting, slow work, unwillingness to learn new things and to do something that's out of their job description... ALL MALAYS! (-_-)

Come to think of it, how did we become like this? We have Islam and the hereafter to boost our motivation to work every day. But still.. sigh~

My dream car, Audi TT.

Oh, the Chinese salesman was kind enuf to let me daydream in this car. Jangan syarikat Melayu, nak sentuh pun dia dah pandang slack. Ugh~

The so-called excellent med student

2010-09-17T09:19:00.010+03:00

Most malpractice in hospitals begin with the medical students' attitude in med school. Although some are 'excellent' in their exams, sometimes they lack the very basic common sense one should have.

Let me give u an example. A couple of years ago when we were doing a medical check up session in Malaysia Hall Cairo, i saw an intolerable attitude of some of the med students there, which was 'taking things for granted'.

All med students should know, that there are specific instructions to use the lancet; a needle-like object used to prick a patient's fingertip for glucometer purposes. The new ones should be differentiated from the used ones, indicated by the position of the 'cap'. Here's a picture:

A picture, showing a used lancet (left) and a new one (right).

So when i tried to compress the plastic garbage (where they throw away those lancets among other things) to give more room, my hands were pricked by several lancets. And when i checked inside it, most lancets were thrown away without their respective caps!

The caps were put there for a reason, people! But when i asked who left the lancets naked, this one friend said to me, "Alaah takpelah, bukannye ada apa pun. Nanti buang jugakk."

Can u imagine??!

This is a LETHAL mistake. I'm not exaggerating. You're working with blood here. Imagine if some of the patients have, say, Hepatitis B, or even AIDS, i would definitely get it too! Coz i was freakin' pricked by their lancets!

Guys, I'm not the only one at stake here. Garbage collectors and innocent bystanders are also involved.

This 'endah-tak endah' or 'melepaskan batuk di tangga' attitude is what leads to bigger malpractice in the future, where lots of bigger things are at stake.

Yes, today it's a 'small' thing like this.. But when habits become attitude, who knows what else he would have done?

This is some of the things that Dr. Jerome Groopman feels strongly about. He even wrote a book titled 'Second Opinions' where he narrated some of the stories which involve some of huge complications caused by doctors who took things for granted, just to get a (i'm quoting) 'good long sleep'. He's the author of this must-read book, 'How Doctors Think'.

Oh, i have a collection of all of his books. Thanks to a friend in Cardiff who is kind enough to buy them from me from amazon.co.uk and refused when i wanted to pay her back. Jazahallahu khairal jazak ^_^

Gosh, u guys must be soo jealous at me rite now~ LOL (^_~)

Pemikiran kanak2 VS orang2 dewasa

2010-09-14T11:40:00.004+03:00

Come to think of it, sometimes there's isn't that much of a difference between a child's mind and an adult's.

Once during a family gathering, i have this 3-year-old nephew who just got out from the bathroom and walked around naked. We were like, "Eeee tak maluuuu.. Nampak dia punye laa." And he went, "Yang awak pergi tengok tu sape suroohh!"

It pretty much reminds me of some grown ups who wear revealing & inappropriate clothing, and when advised not to, they'll be like, "Yang pak aji gatal sangat pegi tengok tu kenape? Sukati saya la nak pakai apa!"

See the similarity there? No?

Speaking of proper clothing, most people feel like they have to dress appropriately according to syariah in order to get more 'religious' or to show that they are. But how about the other way around. What if proper clothing is seen as the reflection of what you have inside, not to get what's inside?

That way, there will be no such thing as, "Pakai tudung ke, tak pakai,yang penting hati baik," or "Minah tu semua pakai tudung, tapi perangai macam setan!"

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I always tell my younger brother (well, not so young anymore..He's 18 now) who have some kind of anger management issue, to be more like water instead of gasoline, because water, as we know, will remain unaffected by fire or sparks, compared to gasoline.

But he went like, "Kau tu jangan jadi api langsung boleh tak?!"

Well, there are two things in this world; things that are within our control and things that are not.

If i were to be more like my brother, that means i can only change what's within my control. And there's only so much that i can actually control. What about the things that i can't?

You can't possibly ask EVERTHING not to be 'the fire', and even if you could, there's still a chance that they won't listen. Also don't forget that there are inevitables in life, like failures, losses, backbiters, natural disasters etc.. And they WILL affect your mood in one way or another. How are u gonna deal with these stuffs by insisting on being the 'gasoline'? You'll definitely get burnt!

So the best thing to do isn't asking them NOT to come at you (because it's impossible!), but rather to get a good grasp of your own emotion and control your action in response to those inevitables. In my words, "Be like water, not gasoline." Versus if we place our focus on things that aren't within our control we become reactive to situations and feel more burdened.

That is the difference between (according to Stephen Covey) proactive & reactive people.

"Tapi air kalau kena bakar pun lama2 kering?" my brother argued.

How old are you? Six?? Duhh!~

2 in 1: Puasa enam & Puasa qada'

2010-09-11T06:52:00.005+03:00

من صام رمضان ثم أتبعه ستا من شوال فذاك صيام الدهر
رواه الجماعة إلا البخاري والنسائي

Sesiapa yang berpuasa pada bulan Ramadan, kemudian diikuti dgn 6 hari lagi pada bulan Syawal, maka dia seolah2 telah berpuasa setahun."

Maka berdasarkan ayat Al-Quran

من جاء بالحسنة فله عشر أمثالها
Satu kebaikan = 10x ganda.

30 hari (Ramadan) x 10 = 300 hari.
6 hari (Syawal) x 10 = 60 hari.
Maka 300 + 60 = 360 hari = setahun

Sebab itulah ramai ulamak berpendapat bahawa puasa 6 dan puasa qada' TIDAK BOLEH digabungkan, atau dalam kata lain, TIADA 2 DALAM 1, kerana nanti tidak cukup kiraan setahun (Siaam ad-dahr)

Baca dalil-dalilnya mengapa tidak boleh gabung di SINI oleh UZAR.

My International Stalkers

2010-09-09T00:49:00.007+02:00

I dunno why suddenly, according to my blog traffic, people around the world were dropping by THIS BLOGPOST.

So far i got people from [New Delhi], [Germany] Baden-Württemberg, Nordrhein-Westfalen, Herten, Ubstadt-weiher, Hamburg, Jüchen, [UK] Rochdale, Glasgow, London, [India] Cuttack, Orissa, [Colombo], [Islamabad], [Croatia], [Kosovo], [Maldives], [Mexico], [Holland], [France] Rillieux, Rhone-Alpes [USA] Illinois, Michigan, New York, [Australia] Victoria, [Russia], [Pakistan] Karachi, [Macedonia] Skopje, [Mauritius] and Terengganu (tetibe je, hehe)

Most of them arrived from google. I dunno maybe someone shared the link somewhere or something.

It's interesting to know where your blog readers are coming from, you know. And thanks to my traffic provider who makes it possible.

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Other interesting google search [from which they found my blog] include:

Kuala Lumpur arrived from google.com.my on "Paradigm Shift: FAQ LASIK" by searching for harga lasik malaysia.

Miri, Sarawak arrived from google.com.my on "Paradigm Shift: Anjakan paradigma?" by searching for apa yang dimaksudkan dengan anjakan paradigm .

Kuala Lumpur arrived from google.com.my on "Paradigm Shift: Gula: berapa gram sehari?" by searching for berapa sudu pengambilan gula sehari.

Barcelona, Catalonia arrived from google.es on "Paradigm Shift: Raja Namrud dan Myiasis" by searching for sarcoph.

Kuala Lumpur arrived from google.com.my on "Paradigm Shift: On baby dumping" by searching for baby dumping solution.

Shah Alam, Selangor arrived from google.com.my on "Paradigm Shift: Doa Sempena Hari Kemerdekaan" by searching for doa hari kemerdekaan.

Kuala Lumpur arrived from google.com on "Paradigm Shift: Malaysian Medical Student Syndrome" by searching for malaysian medical student.

Ipoh, Perak arrived from google.com.my on "Paradigm Shift: Selamat Hari Raya - Khat Nasakh" by searching for selamat hari raya khat.

Kuala Lumpur arrived from google.com on "Paradigm Shift: Medic Al-Azhar Explained" by searching for adakah bagus belajar medic di mesir. (OUCH!)

Columbia, South Carolina arrived from search.yahoo.com on "Paradigm Shift: Misconception: Plastic Surgery" by searching for will you go to hell if you get plastic surgery. (LOL!)

......and many more to list (^_^)

Notes on Aidil Fitri

2010-09-07T18:47:00.005+02:00

-Sebagai muhasabah, mari kita sama-sama fikirkan. Adakah patut bagi seorang Muslim yang dihidangkan dengan portion terbaik Ramadan Kareem (10 mlm terakhir), tetapi hatinya berada pada 1 Syawal?

-Salah seorang sahabat saya membuat analogi, cuba bayangkan dalam setahun kita kerja, sehari dibayar RM100. Namun ada satu bulan khas di mana setiap hari diganda sebanyak 10 kali. Jadi sehari kita dibayar RM1000. Agak-agaknya lah, mesti kita nak jadikan setiap bulan adalah bulan yang diganda 10 tu, kan? Dan bila bulan tu dah nak tinggalkan kita, mesti kita sedih. Sedih sebab tak dapat duit lebih.

-Begitu juga dengan Ramadan. Setiap amalan berganda-ganda pahalanya, setidak-tidaknya janganlah tidak ada sedikit pun perasaan sedih ketika bulan yang penuh 'tawaran istimewa' dan 'mega sale' ini berlalu meninggalkan kita.

-Perasaan bercampur baur sekarang ini. Gembira - atas kemenangan melawan nafsu selama sebulan. Sedih - kerana penghulu segala bulan ini akan pergi meninggalkan kita. Takut - andai kita tergolong dalam golongan yang didoakan kecelakaannya oleh Nabi, iaitu mereka yang berlalunya Ramadan tetapi masih lagi tidak diampuni dosanya oleh Allah (T_T)

-Namun Ustaz Hasrizal berpesan, jangan pula terlalu diratapi pemergian Ramadan sampai dicela kedatangan syawal dan kegembiraan mensyukurinya.

-Ustaz Zaharuddin juga mengingatkan, "Berziarah & berkumpul di musim raya sepatutnya menambah pahala dan BUKAN mencipta dosa pelbagai melalui mata & lisanmu. Bukan pula medan menunjuk kemampuan diri, apatah lagi untuk membanding dirimu dengan kenderaan, pakaian & harta orang lain. Redhalah dengan apa yang sedang kamu miliki, jangan sesekali merasa diri ‘lebih’ atau ‘kurang’. Bebaskan diri dari rantaian kebanggaan & kehinaan kerana pemilikan duniamu."

-Dr. Asri Zainul Abidin juga ada menyentuh perihal menziarahi kubur dan bersedih-sedih pada pagi raya di SINI.

-Juga oleh kerana hari raya pada kali ini dijangkakan akan disambut pada hari Jumaat, mari kita luaskan pengetahuan kita mengenai hukum menunaikan solat Jumaat jika telah didahului dengan solat hari raya pada paginya di SINI.

-Maka saya dengan rasa rendah dirinya ingin mengucapkan Selamat Hari Raya Aidil Fitri dan maaf atas segala silap, zahir dan batin, sengaja atau tidak.

-"Jadilah hamba Allah, bukannya hamba Ramadan." Semoga amalan Ramadan kita diterima Allah dan dikurniakan istiqamah dalam beribadah. Wallahua'lam

Adam = Isa?

2010-09-05T16:36:00.003+02:00

Di dalam surah Ali Imran ayat 59 disebutkan bahawa, "Sesungguhnya perbandingan (kejadian) Nabi Isa di sisi Allah adalah sama seperti (kejadian) Nabi Adam. Allah telah menciptakan Adam dari tanah lalu berfirman kepadanya: "Jadilah engkau!" maka menjadilah ia

Ayat ini menekankan persamaan antara Nabi Adam dengan Nabi Isa a.s. dari segi penciptaan mereka, iaitu tanpa proses persetubuhan suami dan isteri, sebagai menjawab dakwaan orang-orang Kristian yang mengangkat Nabi Isa sebagai tuhan kerana beliau tidak mempunyai bapa.

Namun di sebalik persamaan ini, terdapat juga persamaan lain antara Nabi Adam dan Nabi Isa; iaitu kedua-dua mereka disebut sebanyak 25 kali di dalam al-Quran.

Ya, nama Adam 25 kali, dan nama Isa juga 25 kali. Tak percaya boleh kira sendiri (^_^)

Bermakna, Adam = Isa bukan sahaja dari sudut penciptaannya, malah bilangan berapa kali disebut di dalam al-Quran. Begitu detailnya mukjizat al-Quran sehingga mengambil kira aspek matematik sekali ;)

Jangan lupa baca post tentang Kalimah Allah VS Imej Jesus di SINI.

Reynaldo Farinas, lelaki dari Florida yang mendakwa melihat imej Jesus di dalam chest x-ray beliau.

Syaitan penyebab lupa?

2010-09-04T17:21:00.004+02:00

Di dalam al-Quran, terdapat 2 tempat di mana 'lupa' dinisbahkan dengan 'syaitan'.

Dalam surah Yusuf ayat 42, disebutkan bahawa salah seorang daripada 2 orang pemuda yang berada di dalam penjara bersama Nabi Yusuf a.s. dipesan oleh baginda untuk menceritakan hal keadaan baginda yang sebenar kepada Raja Mesir selepas pemuda itu dibebaskan dari penjara. "Maka dia dilupakan oleh syaitan untuk menyebutkan (hal Yusuf) kepada tuannya. Dengan sebab itu tinggalah Yusuf dalam penjara beberapa tahun lagi."

Dalam surah al-Kahfi ayat 61, diceritakan kisah ketika Nabi Musa dan temannya sampai ke tempat pertemuan antara dua laut, lalu ikan yang mereka bawa terlepas ke dalam laut. Maka setelah beberapa ketika, mereka berhenti berehat dan Nabi Musa meminta temannya itu mengeluarkan ikan itu untuk makan tengahari, maka temannya itu menjawab,

"Tahukah apa yang telah terjadi ketika kita berehat di batu besar itu? Sebenarnya aku lupakan hal ikan itu; dan tiadalah yang menyebabkan aku lupa daripada menyebutkan halnya kepadamu melainkan Syaitan; dan ikan itu telah menggelunsur menempuh jalannya di laut, dengan cara yang menakjubkan". [Ayat 63]

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Justeru mohonlah perlindungan kepada Tuhan daripada syaitan yang menyebabkan kita lupa. Lupa hafazan, lupa pelajaran, lupa kewajipan, lupa nikmat, lupa keistimewaan dan lupa tanggung jawab sebagai seorang Muslim. Amin

Resam Uthmani: Tulisan tangan atau komputer?

2010-09-03T17:01:00.005+02:00

Tahukah anda al-Quran resam uthmani yang kita tatap saban hari ini sebenarnya tidak ditulis dengan komputer? Sebaliknya ditulis tangan oleh seorang penulis khat bernama Uthman Taha.

What a coincidence huh. Mula ditulis secara lengkap dahulu pada zaman Uthman r.a. dan hari ini, ditulis oleh penulis bernama Uthman juga =)

Beliau pertama kali menulis naskhah lengkap al-Quran pada tahun 1970 di tempat asal beliau, Syria, dan selama 30 tahun sehingga kini, beliau sudah pun menyiapkan 10 naskhah al-Quran pelbagai versi.

4 daripadanya ditulis untuk kerajaan Arab Saudi selama 18 tahun, menurut 4 bacaan; Hafs, Warsh, Qaluun dan Dauri, dan kerajaan Arab Saudi telahpun mengedarkan lebih 200 juta naskhah ke seluruh alam.

Beliau biasanya mengambil masa sehari untuk menulis satu mukasurat, dan kira-kira 3 tahun untuk melengkapkan satu mushaf + setahun lagi untuk disemak oleh lajnah antarabangsa yang terdiri daripada ramai ulamak dari pelbagai qiraat.

Kertas asal yang ditulis bersaiz 100cm x 70cm dan apabila dikumpulkan satu naskhah lengkap, ianya seberat 60kg!

Bayangkan betapa besarnya pahala beliau. Tidak berjalan sesaat melainkan ada pahala buat beliau, kerana mushaf hasil tulisan tangannya dibaca oleh orang Islam dari setiap pelusuk dunia!

Benarlah kata2 yang ditulis beliau, "Khat itu kekal sepanjang zaman selepas (matinya) penulisnya, walaupun setelah penulis khat itu ditanam di dalam bumi."

Di Malaysia, al-Quran juga ditulis oleh beberapa individu daripada Yayasan Restu dan telahpun dicetak dan diedarkan ke seluruh pelusuk negara dan beberapa buah negara lain. Dengar kata, sekarang ini mereka sedang dalam proses untuk menulis kali kedua Al-Quran Mushaf Malaysia. Sama2 kita doakan ;)

The problem with the so-called talented people

2010-09-01T17:13:00.015+02:00

Sometimes when u want to be a winner, u have to start acting like one. But the problem is that people who are trained to be the best sometimes have the tendency to be a little bit.. err.. condescending?

I have lots of experiences with people like this. Especially among calligraphers (penulis khat). Well, if u must know, being in this field is very competitive. Because in order to be recognized, u have to be simply better than any other calligraphers.

I remember when i was in school, i would practice secretly so that this one friend won't see all the tricks and skills, and then imitates it. Kedekut ilmu betul kan! ;p

Once back when i was in Darul Quran, we opened a stall tulis nama atas bookmark, something like that. Then there was this one guy from Yayasan Restu (a foundation which published the Quran Mushaf Malaysia). As he passes our stall, he looked at my khat and went, "Eh, ada salah ni~ hehe"

So i was like, "Oh iye ke. Kat mana salahnye?"

He just smirked. He said nothing and walked away.

So i decided to go to his stall where he did his khat demonstration. Well, a guy who walks around criticizing other people's khat must be really good, rite? But shocker! Bukan nak kata apa, buruk gila ok!~ LOL

Biasanya orang2 yang berlagak ni selalunye takde la power mana pun. Serious. Macam tin kosong (*_*)

I always get the "banyak salah niii" comment, but when i ask kat mana salah, tak jawab pulak.

So what, do they say stuff like that just to annoy people or to show that they are better, or what??

But it's different with humble people. Back in 2003 when i won the national khat competition, my artwork was sooo hideous. I dunno how it got the 1st place. So i consulted this one friend who i respect very much; Ust. Fadil Sulaiman who's an experienced calligrapher in Yayasan Restu.

I asked him where i did wrong. His reply was, "Ish, dah ok la nii. Lawa sangat dah."

Tapi bila paksa2 suruh bagitahu jugak, he just paused and said, "Hmm, cuba cek huruf Saad tu nanti."

I mean, was that the nicest comment ever or what?? He didn't say that it's wrong (although it obviously is). But instead, he did it in the most heartwarming way possible. 'Cuba cek', meaning even he's not sure benda tu salah, but go check just to be sure. <-- and that's coming from one of the top calligraphers in Malaysia.

On another separate occasion when i wrote this khat recently and asked him to comment on it, he merely said, "Come dah, sebenonya susah nak membezakan apatah lagi menulis waw dan mim antara dewani dan dewani jali."

Well, he wanted to say that my waw and mim tu ada salah, but see how he indirectly nsinuated it? Sedap telinga mendengar kan?~

See, orang yang betul2 power ni biasanya humble je. Orang yang tak berapa power ni biasanya yang lebih2. Well, maybe that's their way of compensating their insufficiency. I don't blame them =)

So my point is, no matter how talented u are, practice humbleness. Don't be boastful and act condescending. Believe it or not, people don't like it so much, no matter how talented u are.

It's not ur aptitude that matters in the end. It's ur attitude! (^_~)

Ust Fadil Sulaiman with his artwork. Jaw-dropping, isn't it?

Doa Sempena Hari Kemerdekaan

2010-08-31T00:06:00.005+02:00

Di dalam al-Quran Nabi Ibrahim berdoa untuk negara Makkah pada dua tempat. Pertama dalam surah al-Baqarah 126:

رَبِّ اجْعَلْ هَـَذَا بَلَداً آمِناً وَارْزُقْ أَهْلَهُ مِنَ الثَّمَرَاتِ مَنْ آمَنَ مِنْهُم بِاللّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ

"Wahai Tuhanku! Jadikanlah (negeri Makkah) ini negeri yang aman sentosa, dan berikanlah rezeki dari berbagai jenis buah-buahan kepada penduduknya, iaitu orang-orang yang beriman kepada Allah dan hari akhirat di antara mereka".

Dikatakan ini adalah doa ketika mana Makkah belum lg menjadi tempat yang masyhur. Sebab itulah digunakan kata nama am (balad) tanpa alif lam.

Kali kedua di dalam surah Ibrahim 35:

رَبِّ اجْعَلْ هَـذَا الْبَلَدَ آمِناً وَاجْنُبْنِي وَبَنِيَّ أَن نَّعْبُدَ الأَصْنَامَ

"Ya Tuhanku, jadikanlah negara ini negara yang aman, dan jauhkanlah aku serta anak-anakku daripada menyembah berhala2."

Dikatakan ini adalah doa setelah Makkah diiktiraf sebagai tempat (negara) rasmi dan masyhur. di kalangan umat Nabi Ibrahim. Sebab itulah digunakan kata nama khas (al-balad) dengan alif lam.

Maka selari dgn kemerdekaan dan pengiktirafan negara kita, setelah diberi nikmat dengan pembangunan, kemajuan dan kemasyhuran, marilah kita berdoa dengan doa yang diajarkan oleh Nabi Ibrahim setelah tertubuhnya Makkah, iAllah (^_~)

Memetik kata-kata Ustaz Hasrizal sebagai renungan kita bersama, "Betapa bertuahnya Melayu mendapat Islam, namun bertuahkah Islam mendapat Melayu?"

اللهم أعزنا بالإسلام, وأعز الإسلام بنا

"Ya Allah, muliakanlah kami dengan Islam, dan muliakanlah Islam dengan (sebab) kami."

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Mlm ini dah masuk 10 mlm terakhir. Aishah r.a. meriwayatkan dlm sahih Bukhari, Nabi s.a.w. bersabda, "Carilah lailatul qadr pada 10 mlm terakhir bln Ramadan."

Pakat-pakat pasang pelita / lampu luar rumah untuk menerangi jiran-jiran yang hendak qiam di masjid. Pesan Nabi s.a.w. dari Umar r.a, "Barangsiapa yg menerangi masjid-masjid Allah, maka Allah akan menerangi pula kuburnya kelak.

Fungsi Masjid - Redefined

2010-08-29T10:41:00.002+02:00

Fungsi masjid hari ini sudah disempitkan oleh muslim2 jumud. Mungkin kerana salah faham tentang hadis yang melarang percakapan tentang urusan dunia yang sebenarnya hanya mencakupi aspek jual beli dan pencarian barang yang hilang sahaja.

Bila sebut sahaja 'majlis ilmu di masjid', di minda hanya tergambar kelas mengaji al-Quran dan ceramah agama semata-mata. Sedangkan masjid pada zaman Nabi bukan sahaja pernah digunakan untuk pelbagai aktiviti keduniaan yang lain, malah untuk membincangkan strategi peperangan!

Tolak tepi isu politik kepartian dan isu politik secara umum dahulu (kerana takut kontoversi), mengapa kuliah antara maghrib dan isyak, atau selepas subuh, tidak boleh diisi dengan 'majlis ilmu' yang lain seperti ceramah kesihatan, ceramah ekonomi, ceramah motivasi dan sebagainya?

Kita tahu, umat Islam pada hari ini amat LEMAH dari segi ekonomi. Umat Islam terus miskin, walaupun sepatutnya dengan kadar kutipan zakat kita sekarang ini, peratusan muslim miskin sepatutnya jatuh kepada 0%!

Apa salahnya jika sekali-sekala kita jemput pakar ekonomi atau pakar pengurusan kewangan keluarga untuk memberi 'kuliah maghrib' mengenai cara terbaik mengatasi masalah kewangan keluarga. Tips mengenai pengurusan hutang, mana satu yang perlu dilangsaikan dahulu, bagaimana mengurangkan kadar hutang. Atau plan insurans mana yang terbaik untuk diambil. Atau aset apa yang terbaik untuk dimiliki. Atau teknik2 pengurusan saham dan sebagainya.

Atau mungkin boleh dipanggil penceramah motivasi, sama ada motivasi kekeluargaan, atau motivasi etika pekerjaan, atau motivasi individu, atau motivasi kecemerlangan pelajar.

Atau dijemput doktor2 pakar untuk memberikan tips penjagaan kesihatan jantung (pembunuh no.1 di Malaysia), diet untuk pesakit kencing manis, penjagaan pesakit buah pinggang, nutrisi dan suppliments, slot fikah perubatan dan sebagainya.

Tetapi mengapa ianya tidak pernah dilaksanakan? Kalau ada pun, kadang-kadang di luar 'prime time', seperti pagi dan petang selepas asar, ketika tidak ramai orang di masjid. Itupun bukan dibuat di dalam dewan solat utama.

Impian saya suatu hari nanti ialah untuk menjadi one of the top transplant surgeons di Malaysia (amiin) dan memperuntukkan satu hari setiap minggu untuk menyampaikan ceramah mengenai kepentingan pendermaan organ di kalangan rakyat Malaysia yang amat kurang kesedarannya tentang isu ini.

Ia masih menjadi 'taboo' apabila dibincangkan di kalangan masyarakat. Mungkin kerana kurangnya maklumat dari sudut teknikalitinya, atau mungkin dari sudut hukum hakam menurut Islam, menyebabkan tidak ramai berminat untuk menderma organ.

Dan untuk tujuan itu saya perlu terlebih dahulu menganjak paradigma rakyat Malaysia tentang fungsi masjid-masjid agar tidak terikat dengan pandangan2 konservatif yang menghadkan tajuk ceramah kepada hal2 agama semata2. Mungkin jika sudah berjaya nanti (doakan saya), boleh juga diubah mentaliti mengenai isu non-muslim memasuki masjid untuk mendengar ceramah organ transplant saya nanti (ops! sensitif) ;p

Maybe it's too big to be implemented, and I'm not saying that it's an easy job. But we will be seeing the results in a couple of decades from now, insya Allah (^_^) Dream big!

Nuzul Quran - 17 atau 21 Ramadan?

2010-08-26T18:24:00.005+02:00

Nuzul Quran bererti hari diturunkan al-Quran. Dan ia bertepatan dengan hari kerasulan Nabi kita s.a.w.

Selain Selangor, ada beberapa negeri yang turut memperingati nuzul Quran dengan memberi cuti kepada pekerjanya seperti Kelantan, Pahang, Perak, Perlis, Pulau Pinang, dan Terengganu. Selain negeri-negeri ini, seperti saya orang Johor, tidak bercuti sebab kami dah ambil cuti awal Ramadan (which makes more sense, i think.. hehe no offense)

Kebanyakan orang termasuklah kita rakyat Malaysia sendiri, berpendapat bahawa Nuzul Quran jatuh pada 17 Ramadan setiap tahun. Namun pada Ramadan kali ini, mari kita anjak sedikit paradigma kita dan lihat apa pula pendapat Sheikh Safiyurrahman Al-Mubarakfuri, pengarang kitab sirah terkenal "Ar-rakheeq Al-Makhtum" mengenai hal ini.

[Terjemahan m/s 66 terbitan Darul Muayyid, Riyadh] :

"Para ilmuan berselisih mengenai hari dimana Al-Quran pertama kali diturunkan di bulan Ramadan, iaitu sama ada pada hari ke-7, 17 atau 18.

Kami cenderung untuk menyatakan bahawa ianya jatuh pada hari ke-21, walaupun kami tidak pernah mendengar siapa2 yang berpendapat sedemikian.

Hal ini kerana kebanyakan ahli sirah telah sepakat bahawa Nabi diutuskan pada hari Isnin, dan ini disokong oleh hadis daripada Abi Qatadah r.a. bahawa Nabi s.a.w. pernah ditanya tentang dirinya yang berpuasa pada hari Isnin. Maka Nabi menjawab, "Kerana padanya aku dilahirkan, dan padanya juga (al-Quran) diturunkan kepadaku." [HR Muslim, Ahmad, al-Baihaqi, al-Hakim]

Dan hari Isnin pada bulan Ramadan tahun kenabian tidak jatuh melainkan pada hari ke-7, 14, 21 dan 28.

Dan banyak riwayat2 sahih menyatakan bahawa lailatul qadar hanya berlaku pada malam ganjil sepuluh malam terakhir. Dan al-Quran itu diturunkan pada malam lailatul qadar. [Surah al-Qadr ayat 1]"

****

Maka Sheikh Safiyurrahman Al-Mubarkfuri menyimpulkan bahawa hari yang paling menepati ciri2 yang disebutkan di atas (hari Isnin, 10 malam terakhir, dan malam ganjil) ialah pada malam ke-21 Ramadan.

Namun, ramai ahli sirah lain yang cenderung kepada malam ke-17. Justeru tidak kisahlah pada malam 17 atau 21, kita umat Islam disarankan untuk memperbanyakkan bacaan al-Quran pada bulan Ramadan ini. Tak usahlah bertikam lidah. Post ini hanyalah untuk pertambahan thaqafah (info) semata-mata. Wallahua'lam (^_~)

Breastfeeding Male Colleagues

2010-08-25T17:37:00.005+02:00

While respecting the ulama's as the highest authority in religious affairs, don't forget that they are also human like us. They are not infallible. Sometimes they do make mistakes. Fatwa's by ulama's, no matter how great their credentials are, sometimes can be revised. It's not final and mandatory to all muslims to follow.

If u disagree, now tell me, would u practice the fatwa that women should breastfeed their male colleagues in order to avoid ikhtilat? Bcoz there was a fatwa on that.

It was issued by the head of al-Azhar's Department of Hadith, Dr. Izzat Atiya around 2007 and caused a great controversy among Islamic scholars and the Arab world.

He said that if a woman fed a male colleague directly from her breast at least five times they would establish a family bond and thus be allowed to be alone together at work. "A woman at work can take off the veil or reveal her hair in front of someone whom she breastfed," he said.

But he retracted the fatwa soon after it has been revised. So, sorry guys, no breastfeeding for you (^_~) hehe

My point being, not all fatwa's are precise when they are first issued.. They may be revised later on. If we can understand this simple concept, then we will have no problems dealing with issues like, say, fatwa on doa's for non-muslims which was issued recently by Dato' Harussani - saying that it's HARAM.

Though there are lots of debate regarding this matter (Read Dr. MAZA's brilliant comment HERE), i don't wanna discuss it now. Let's just hope that Dato' will come into his sense and revise his fatwa later on.

Having said that, i just wanna say that it's heartbreaking to see how some politicians in our country would exploit a religious issue like this for political gains that they tarnished the name of Islam.

Isu umat Islam sudah berbakul-bakul banyaknya. Tidak selesai yang lama, ditambah pula dengan yang baru. I hope it's worth it... Or not.

Teka-teki Bahasa Arab

2010-08-25T04:58:00.005+02:00

Teka-teki no 1:
Ada 2 orang lelaki. Lelaki A berkata, "أنا قتلْتُ رجلاً" Lelaki B pula berkata, "أنا قاتل الرجل"

Soalannya, siapa yang akan dikenakan hukuman qisas? A atau B atau kedua2nya sekali?

_________

Teka-teki no 2:
Jika seseorang yang sedang berpuasa Ramadan berkata,
"أكلْتُ ناسيًا" batal atau tidak puasanya?

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Untuk jawapan, klik SINI
(^_^)

Firaun 101

2010-08-23T17:40:00.005+02:00

1) Firaun hanyalah merupakan gelaran seseorang yang memerintah Mesir sahaja, dan bukan nama sebenar. Ia sama seperti gelaran Raja, Sultan dan sebagainya.

2) Firaun sempat mengaku beriman sebelum dia ditenggelamkan di dalam laut. Namun imannya tidak diterima Allah kerana taubat tidak diterima jika dilakukan betul-betul sebelum ajal. Kisah ini dirakamkan di dalam surah Yunus ayat 90.

3) Jasad Firaun diselamatkan Allah supaya menjadi teladan kepada umat-umat selepasnya. Firman Allah dalam surah Yunus ayat 92, "Maka pada hari ini, Kami selamatkan badan kamu untuk menjadi tanda bagi orang-orang yang selepasmu..."

4) Untuk berbuat kebajikan tidak perlu meminta izin. Mereka yang menyuruh orang lain meminta izin untuk berbuat baik sebenarnya menuruti legasi Firaun. Firaun bertanya kepada ahli-ahli sihirnya dalam surah Taha ayat 71:

"ءامنتم له قبل أن ءاذن لكم؟"

"Adakah kamu beriman kepadanya (Musa) sebelum aku memberi keizinan kepada kamu?"

5) Namun sejahat-jahat Firaun sekalipun, Allah masih lagi memerintahkan Nabi Musa dan Harun untuk berlembut dengannya, sebagai satu bentuk rahmat-Nya kepada makhluk.

"فقولا له قولا لينا لعله يتذكر او يخشى"

"Maka bercakaplah (wahai Musa & Harun) kepadanya (Firaun) dgn kata2 yg lembut, moga2 dia beringat dan takut."

Jika beginilah rahmat Allah kepada insan yang mengaku Tuhan dengan menyebut "أنا ربكم الأعلى" (Akulah tuhanmu yang maha tinggi), bagaimana pula rahmat-Nya kpd insan yang bertasbih memuji Tuhan dengan mengucapkan "سبحان ربي الأعلى" - "Maha suci Tuhanku yang Maha Tinggi."

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Baca kisah Raja Namrud pula di sini.

On baby dumping

2010-08-20T19:59:00.008+02:00

It's a hot issue nowadays, even in our so-called 'Islamic' country, regrettably speaking. We often resent & condemn the irresponsible mothers for dumping their babies. But comparing them to animals alone doesn't even come close to solving the problem.

Sure they made a mistake by sometimes committing extra-marital sex in the first place. Well, everybody makes mistakes. Only theirs are big ones. Instead of pointing fingers, why don't we offer a solution.

Maybe we could strengthen our foster and child care system. There are thousands of couples who are trying to get pregnant but couldn't, and maybe by improving the adoption system they could actually go and meet the pregnant females who couldn't afford to raise the child all by herself (for any reason) and make an agreement to adopt the child as soon as they are born.

At least, this pregnant females have a place to turn to when they have no other options, instead of dumping their children in a dumpster.

It's not easy for them too, u know. Most of them are desperate, afraid, and under pressure. Don't judge them easily. Especially men. One of my friends said that if men could get pregnant too, the number of dumped child would double in our country. Luckily they just do what they do and get away with it.

If u come to think about it, the reason why these women dumped their babies in the first place is because men are irresponsible enough to abandon them after finding out that their girlfriend is pregnant. If they have some common sense in their little brain, they would find a way to marry her and raise the child together. So my point is, don't blame this totally on women alone.

This is a must-watch video on baby dumping by Ustaz Hasrizal. Wallahua'lam

All-or-none law dalam kehidupan seharian

2010-08-17T00:19:00.002+02:00

The all-or-none law is the principle that the strength by which a nerve or muscle fiber responds to a stimulus is not dependent on the strength of the stimulus. If the stimulus is any strength above threshold, the nerve or muscle fiber will give a complete response or otherwise no response at all. [Pardon the medical jargon.. Budak2 medic paham la kot]

Satu perkongsian menarik oleh saudara Hafiz Adam tentang all-or-none law ini dalam kehidupan seharian:

1. Dulu diajar fadilat terawih, ramai-ramai solat ajak anak bini sebab nak dapat fadilat. Sekarang dah tahu fadilat tu tipu, ramai-ramai berlumba balik umah nak tengok tv cerita hantu.

‎2. Dulu diajar bercakap masa azan mayat jadi berat, pakat-pakat nasihat member supaya diam. Sekarang dah tahu tiada larangan bercakap masa azan, menjerit-jerit bersembang sbb member tak dengar.

3. Dulu diajar tak boleh main alat muzik bertali, asyik bernasyid dengan kompang. Sekarang dah tahu fatwa Qardhawi semua boleh asal lirik OK, dari pagi sampai ke petang jamming menggitarkan lagu Maher Zain.

Selamat Hari Raya - Khat Nasakh

2010-08-14T05:11:00.007+02:00

Karya khat Nasakh pada 14/10/2010 - Selamat Hari Raya

****

Adakah patut bagi seorang Muslim yang dihidangkan dengan Ramadan Kareem, tetapi hatinya berada pada 1 Syawal?

Ucapan memasuki Syawal:

جعلكم الله من العائدين والفائزين
"Semoga Allah menjadikan kamu dari golongan orang-orang yang kembali (kepada fitrah) dan orang-orang yang berjaya."

Ramadan Al-Mubarak

2010-08-13T11:49:00.004+02:00

Selamat Menyambut Ramadan Al-Mubarak

Bukan Ramadhan Al-Mubarak, bukan Ramadan Al-Mubarakh,
tetapi Ramadan Al-Mubarak (^_~)

Al-Mubarak bermaksud yang diberkati, yang dipenuhi berkat.
Berasal daripada perkataan (بارك) - (يبارك) - (مبارك)

Ramadan Kareem

2010-08-13T08:46:00.005+02:00

Ramadan Kareem - رمضان كريم

(Ramadan Kareem jawabnya Allahu Akram - الله أكرم)

*Puasa membentuk taqwa - Jika perkara harus pun boleh ditinggalkan sepanjang siang hari bulan Ramadan, bagaimana pula dengan yang haram setelah berlalunya Ramadan*

Notes on Ramadan

2010-08-12T14:04:00.004+02:00

► Anak2 bwh umur baligh tidak diwajibkan puasa.. Maka jangan dipaksa, kerana jika mereka curi2 makan dan tidak kantol, tanpa sedar kita hanyalah mendidik mereka menjadi penipu professional.. Sebaliknya wajibkan mereka solat fardhu seawal 7 tahun seperti mana yang diperintahkan oleh Nabi s.a.w, kerana orang yang menjaga solat 5 waktu TIDAK akan ponteng puasa..

► Keberkatan sahur bukan terletak semata2 pada makan, tetapi kepada hikmah 'mujahadatun nafsi' (perang melawan nafsu) bangun seawal sebelum subuh sebagai latihan bangun qiamullail selepas berlalunya bulan Ramadan nanti ~ Dr. Fatma

► Imsak 10min before subuh is overrated. Sunnah is eating as late as possible. You can finish what inside your mouth even after azan berkumandang~ (please note: your mouth, not your plate!)

► Niat adalah salah satu rukun puasa. Jadi berhati2, jangan sekali2 ada niat utk berbuka kerana ia membatalkan puasa mengikut sebahagian ulamak, walaupun belum mkn apa2 lg~ Namun bila disebut 'fiqh', semestinya ada khilaf di kalangan ulamak. Maka yang terbaik ialah keluar daripada khilaf = menjauhi perkara tersebut, sebagai langkah berjaga-jaga (للإحتياط)

► Bila Nabi s.a.w. kata Allah suka baru mulut orang yang berpuasa, tak bererti tak payah gosok gigi ye~ Gosok gigi di siang hari tidak makruh seperti mana yang disangka ramai, apatah lagi membatalkan puasa. Cuma elakkan berkumur2 secara berlebihan.

► Antara saat yg plg dimakbulkan doa = ketika berbuka puasa. So, take a sip of water / bite of kurma first (untuk dapat pahala sunnah mengawalkan berbuka) dan doalah bersungguh2, seperti mana kesungguhan kita bershopping pada Sogo Member's Sale Day ;)

► Tahukah anda, batal puasa dan wajib qada' jika makan kerana menyangka belum azan subuh tetapi sebenarnya sudah, atau menyangka sudah azan maghrib tetapi sebenarnya belum? Ia berbeza dengan terlupa yang dia sedang berpuasa (=tak sengaja), tetapi ini tersalah waktu = batal. Namun jangan risau, tidak berdosa, cuma perlu qada' sahaja.

► Sometimes hukum2 fikah in old kitabs need revision.. For instance, "Apabila seseorang itu mencurahkan air ke dalam telinganya dan sampai ke otaknya, batallah puasanya."

External ear is bounded by ear drum, and middle ear is bounded by oval n round window, and water won't reach brain [like, ever!] except for some cases of labyrinthitis where there's fistula formation.. So?

► Satu lg tugas para ustaz: Menerangkan dengan terperinci maksud 'batal puasa jika gila, walaupun sebentar'.. Gila jenis apa? Schizophrenia? Delusional? OCD? Paranoia? Bipolar? Ataupun sekadar seizures (epilepsy) sahaja? Jika seizures, jenis apa pula? Petit Mal? Grand Mal? Status Epilepticus?

► Terawih, berasal dari perkataan arab تراويح, bermaksud berehat2.. Solat perlu la rileks2, bukan kelam kabut nak cepat habis.. Adapun terawikh, tidak diketahui asal usulnya. Wallahua'lam ;p

► Kita sibuk bercakap tentang Islam mementingkan kualiti berbanding kuantiti, tapi masih ada lagi imam terawih yang membaca selaju mungkin hingga tunggang terbalik segala mad dan tajwidnya, semata2 kerana mengkhatamkan 30 juz sebulan?

********
رمضان كريم - جعلكم الله من العائدين والفائزين - امين

Bad mood kejap~

2010-08-07T13:14:00.009+03:00

Harini mood negatif sikit.. Walaupun haritu baru diajar tentang kepentingan berfikiran positif di Seminar Celik Mata dan Jiwa (1/8/2010), tapi disebabkan kalah pertandingan khat harini (and i'm not used to losing~), terpaksalah korang layankan mood negatif aku kalini ye ;p

1) Performing Jumaat prayer at Masjid As-Syakirin KLCC yesterday got me thinking... Is the idea of a fluent english-speaker Imam is soo strange that they couldn't even pick one to conduct the congregational prayer? This stereotype has got to stop. It's like, everyone who is involved in religious field MUST suck in English, whereas those so-called 'liberated' Malay has English as their mother tongue. Does religion somehow makes them incapable of mastering English?

2) Why is it that every surau in a building (shopping mall, office etc.) is HAPAK? Frankly speaking i have never entered a surau that's not hapak. I know lots of water is involved, but is this the message u want to convey to people? That surau is not a surau unless it is hapak?

3) Why is it soo hard to find an internationally-recognized book that is written by a Muslim? Be it in politics, self help, economics, novels, medicine, even a cookbook. Well, with the exception of Islamic books, Stephen Covey, JK Rowling, Kumar & Clark, John Gray... All are names that are world famous, but none of them are Muslim.

4) Why is it that in Msia, Chinese are more hardworking than Muslims when all they have to motivate them is the worldly life, while we Muslims have both; dunia & akhirat?

5) Why is it that Muslim countries or residences are always dirty? Just look at the Arab countries, or even Malaysia. One friend of mine who is now studying in UK even once said to me, "If you want to know whether Muslims or Christians residing in a particular area here in the UK, just look whether it's clean or not.. If it's dirty, then it's definitely a Muslim residency." How embarrassing is that?

In comparison, just ask people who have been in Japan. How clean is their city, or even kampung. Japanese people might just say, "What does Islam have to offer, when our country is cleaner than yours, and our people are more ethical than you people?"

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Sorry la ye, dah dekat 2 minggu tak update blog, tiba2 je kena suap dengan negative (rhetorical) questions..huhu

Jawapan Teka-teki

2010-08-02T10:11:00.006+03:00

Post ini adalah jawapan bagi teka-teki di SINI.

Jawapan no 1:

Lelaki A.

Dalam bahasa Arab, sighah fe'el madhi membawa maksud perbuatan yang telah lalu. Bererti lelaki A telah pun membunuh seorang lelaki.

Tetapi sighah isim fa'il selain membawa maksud sedang atau telah berlaku, ia juga boleh digunakan untuk menggambarkan sesuatu yang akan berlaku = yang hendak dilakukan.

Contoh:

1) Surah as-Soffaat ayat 99: إني ذاهب إلى ربي سيهدين

"Sesungguhnya aku hendak pergi kepada Tuhanku, Dia akan memimpinku."

2) Surah Sad ayat 71: إذ قال ربك للملائكة إني خالق بشرا من طين

"Ketika Tuhanmu berfirman kepada malaikat: "Sesungguhnya Aku hendak menciptakan manusia - Adam dari tanah.""

3) Surah Ali Imran ayat 55: يَا عِيسَى إِنِّي مُتَوَفِّيكَ وَرَافِعُكَ إِلَيَّ وَمُطَهِّرُكَ مِنَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ

"Wahai Isa! Sesungguhnya Aku akan mengambilmu dengan sempurna, dan akan mengangkatmu ke sisiKu, dan akan membersihkanmu dari orang-orang kafir."

Bermakna, lelaki B masih belum membunuh siapa2 lagi. Cuma dia 'hendak' atau 'akan' membunuh seorang lelaki. Maka tidak dijatuhkan hukumam qisas baginya =)

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Jawapan no 2:

Hukum puasanya mengikut i'rab perkataan ناسيًا itu sendiri.

Jika mansub kerana i'rab HAL, maka tidak batal, kerana makan secara tidak sengaja atau terlupa tidak membatalkan puasa.

Namun jika mansub kerana i'rab MAF'ULUN BIH, maka batal, kerana makan nasi itu membatalkan puasa (^_^) hehe, hope u understand.. this one is just a joke ;p Sorry guys~

Orang Melayu Memandai-mandai

2010-07-29T19:32:00.010+03:00

Orang kata, Bahasa Melayu kita ni miskin. Buktinya, terdapat banyak perkataan yang diadaptasi daripada bahasa lain termasuklah bahasa Arab. Yang sedihnya, banyak sungguh perkataan2 adaptasi ini lari daripada maksudnya yang sebenar.

1) Contoh yang paling mudah ialah perkataan 'pinggan', yang berasal dari perkataan 'finjaan' yang bermaksud 'cawan'. Mungkin ia berkait rapat dengan pedagang Arab yang dahulunya berniaga di Tanah Melayu yang menunjuk ke arah cawan sambil berkata, "Finggaaan.. Finggaaan.." Namun nenek moyang kita tersalah faham, ingatkan pinggan itulah 'finggaan'.

2) Mungkin juga kerana ada yang cuba memandai-mandai, seperti dalam kes 'Allahyarham'. Mereka ingat, jika ustaz = lelaki, ustazah = perempuan, maka Allahyarham = lelaki, Allahyarhamah = perempuan (?) Sedangkan perkataan 'yarham' merupakan sejenis kata kerja (verb) yang tidak berubah mengikut jantina si mati, berbeza dengan Al-marhum dan Al-marhumah yang memang betul penggunaannya kerana ia kata nama (noun).

3) Kebiasaan orang Melayu juga, jika hendak menyebut nama seseorang yang sudah meninggal dunia, didahului dengan perkataan 'arwah' e.g. Arwah Abu, Arwah Ali

Sedangkan perkataan 'arwah' itu sendiri sudah tidak betul dari segi nahunya. 'Arwah' ialah kata jamak (plural) kepada 'ruh'. Maka jika kita kata 'Arwah Ali', secara literalnya bererti 'ruh-ruh Ali'. Jelas itu tidak bertepatan dengan maksud yang ingin kita gunakan.

4) Begitu juga dengan gelaran 'Al-Hafiz' yang telah disalahgunakan secara meluas oleh kebanyakan masyarakat Malaysia. Adakah sesuai digelar para penghafal al-Quran pada hari ini dgn gelaran 'Al-Hafiz'? Sedangkan menurut ilmu hadis ia digelarkan kepada mereka yang menghafal 100,000 hadis berserta sanadnya. Bukan kepada mereka yang lengkap hafalan 30 juzuknya.

Kami diberitahu di Darul Quran dahulu, bahawa istilah yang lebih tepat ialah (حامل القرءان) bukannya (حافظ القرءان). Berapa ramai agaknya yang sanggup menggunakan istilah al-hamil pada nama mereka? ;p

p/s: Oh, gambar di atas tu gambar hiasan je.. Gambar David Archuleta berbaju Melayu. hehe

Hopeless End or Endless Hope?

2010-07-27T07:46:00.004+03:00

One day, some villagers decided to pray for rain. On the day of prayer, everyone gathered and there was a boy coming with an umbrella. That's CONFIDENCE!

When you throw a baby into the air, he laughs because he knows that somebody will catch him.. That's TRUST!

Every night we go to bed, but we're not sure that we will wake up tomorrow. But still, we have plans for the coming day. That's HOPE!

So, be a strong Muslim who has confidence and trust, and never lose hope in Allah (^_~)

Some see a hopeless end.. While others see a endless hope (^_~)

Video Collection of a Pedophile

2010-07-24T15:08:00.013+03:00

Well, i don't usually do a blog post like this one.. But this video is just too cute to not share it!

Oh, i was normal before i watched this.. Now i'm all pedophilic.. (-_-)

Soo.. Watch out kids!
(^_~)

I've considered being a pediatrician.. Or a neonatal surgeon perhaps.. But everything's kinda blurry now.. Let's just see how my pediatric subject goes in my final year.. But i dunno.. I'm kinda not very good with kids ;p huhu

Here's some other videos that i think is soooo cute.. and my threshold for cuteness is very high, if u must know ;p hehe

Charlie bit me, of course.. Almost 213 millions view and counting (^_^)
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I'm gonna kick his 'ask' (ass)~ Over 15 millions view and counting~
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"I love you too but i don't like you all the time." Almost 50 millions view.
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Blood! Not funnyyyy~ (^_~)
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Say, "Fire truck." (^_~)
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This is a kid interview on marriage. It's actually a compilation of some clips from the TV series - Til' Death.

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Well, i'm not the only pedophile after all now, am i? hehehe

Dr. Jerome Groopman M.D

2010-07-21T12:12:00.007+03:00

Alhamdulillah, today i got 3 of my favorite author's books; Dr. Jerome Groopman M.D, which are The Measure of Our Days (1997), Second Opinions (2000) and Anatomy of Hope (2004). And now waiting for another one, How Doctors Think (2007) to arrive, to complete the series.

I have sis Dayang Nur Hadziah to thank for being kind enough to purchase the books from Amazon.co.uk and then bring 'em back to Malaysia and then post 'em to JB.

The books are insanely cheap. They cost only (drumroll please).... £0.01 each!! That's like, RM0.05 only! Crazy, i know rite. They are used ones, but still in a (very) good condition. But for each book there's postal charge which is £2.75 which makes the total of £2.76 each. But still. It's super affordable.

That's probably why people in the UK is far more civilized than us. It doesn't cost them a fortune to read books, unlike for us. Similar books in Malaysia cost almost RM200, which is a lot for most people, making them think twice before purchasing books. Subsequently making reading a very expensive habit.

Quoting my friend Bro. Ahmad Naeem, "How are we to build a civilized and critical thinking society when all the books are extremely expensive, even books that are sold at second rate prices? Reading has become a very pricey hobby/habit. Is that the message they are getting across?"

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I recommend all medical students to read this kind of books. Not only they shape your mind to be a well-prepared and better doctor in the future, they are very fun to read too. Leisure and medical related at the same time. I got an epiphany every step of the way.

Also I strongly urge all muslims to specialize in their respective fields FIRST, and then produce SIMILAR books in QUALITY & PUBLICITY. It's very hard to find a well-recognized book written by a muslim nowadays. I dunno why. Sigh~

But the truth is that, people will listen to u better if u have certain level of achievement and credentials. People won't listen to mediocrity. That's why we have to be at the top of our game to be heard; making dakwah a whole lot easier. Agreed?

Nak jadi surgeon?

2010-07-21T02:40:00.004+03:00

Nak jadi surgeon kena berlatih kawad dari sekarang.. Sebagai persiapan berdiri berjam-jam di dalam OR sampai dapat DVT.. A simple cardiothoracic surgery takes about 6 hours, at least. Let alone neurosurgeries. Then surgeons will end up on the operating table undergoing surgery. And as we all know, doctors make the worst patient.

Nak jadi surgeon juga kena berlatih buat kerja kemas2 dari sekarang.. Orang yang buat kerja selekeh dan ala kadar tak boleh jadi surgeon. Kena juga belajar jahit benda kecik2 macam butang baju.. atau batu seremban ke ;p Kalau benda simple pun tak boleh jahit, macam mana nak jahit badan orang?

Orang kata, surgeon ni hati keras. Buat kerja tak boleh teragak2. Kalo kena amputate kaki on the spot, tak boleh kesian2. Kalau fikir, "Kesianlah dia nanti tak boleh jalan." Alamatnya tak selesai la kerja.

Orang kata lagi, surgeon ni takde life. Most of the day duduk dalam OR sahaja. Takde kawan melainkan orang2 hospital juga.

"A physician knows everything but does nothing. A surgeon knows nothing but do everything."

Apa2 pun, setiap kerja ada pros & cons.. Ikhlaskan niat. Do what we love, and love what we do. If u think you wanna be a surgeon one day, set your path so that it'll be easier. Start sacrificing yourself for the sake of others. Because that's what surgeons do.

And today's word of wisdom: We make a living by what we get, but we make a life by what we give. Sekian.

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*OR - operation room
*DVT - deep venous thrombosis

Anjakan paradigma?

2010-07-16T17:20:00.009+03:00

Anjakan paradigma.

Dahulunya masa baru-baru tukar tema blog, cadangnya nak menulis post2 yang mampu menganjak paradigma. Tetapi tak tahulah berapa banyak post yang telah berjaya berbuat demikian setakat ini. Harap-harap kalau tidak banyak, sikit pun jadilah.

Tapi post kali ini saya jamin mesti paradigma anda akan teranjak! (or not! ;p hehe)

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Yang pertama ni mungkin ramai yang dah tahu. Bila kata 'ibarat melepaskan batuk di tangga', ia bermaksud membuat satu-satu pekerjaan itu tanpa kesungguhan, atau ala kadar. Namun selama lebih 20 tahun saya menyangka bahawa 'batuk' yang dimaksudkan ialah batuk = cough.

Rupanya bukan itu maksudnya. Patutlah tak masuk akal langsung. Tiada kena mengena. Batuk (atau batok) ialah sejenis pencedok air diperbuat daripada tempurung kelapa yang diletakkan dalam tempayan di hadapan rumah, digunakan untuk membasuh kaki sebelum naik ke rumah. Maka sesetengah orang yang buat kerja ala kadar hanya akan 'melepaskan' 'batuk' tersebut 'di' atas 'tangga' rumah; bukan di tempat asalnya = dalam tempayan.

Maka itulah asal usul peribahasa tersebut.

Gambar batuk/batok di dalam tempayan, digunakan untuk mencedok air basuh kaki.

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Yang kedua ialah kata-kata hikmah, 'syurga terletak di bawah tapak kaki ibu'. Saya pernah membuat survey apakah yang difahami daripada kata-kata ini. Saya terima banyak jawapan. Antaranya:

"Kalau nak masuk syurga kena cium tapak kaki ibu (sanjung/hormat ibu)."

"Ibu lebih mulia darjatnya daripada syurga.."

"Kalau nak masuk syurga, suruh ibu kita terajang atau pijak kita.."
(okeh yang ini melawak je)

"Di mana ibu berpijak, di situlah syurga bagi kita.."

Tapi cuba fikir begini. Bagaimana pula jika it simply means "Ibu tempat tinggalnya di syurga"? Kerana jika saya kata, "Midvalley berada di bawah tapak kaki saya," bererti saya nak kata yang saya sekarang ni sedang berada di Midvalley.

Atau"Istana berada di bawah tapak kaki Sultan." Bererti, sultan tinggal di istana. Atau "Mesir terletak di bawah tapak kaki keldai." Bererti, keldai tinggal di Mesir. Maka jika "Syurga terletak di bawah tapak kaki ibu"? Bererti ibu sedang berdiri di dalam syurga! = Ganjaran ibu = syurga. Simple, kan?

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Yang terakhir, kebiasaannya kita selalu menggunakan peribahasa 'masuk bakul angkat sendiri' untuk menggambarkan orang yang memuji diri sendiri. Saya tak pasti sama ada versi saya ini versi yang lain, atau sekadar penjelasan terhadap peribahasa 'angkat bakul'..

Tetapi sahabat saya (orang kuat bahasa) pernah memberitahu saya ia berasal daripada perihal penjual2 kuih yang 'mengangkat' 'bakul' kuih dan pusing satu kampung sambil menjerit, "Kuihhh kuihh.. Beli kuih sayaa.. Kuih saya sedaapp.." = memuji kuih sendiri = memuji diri sendiri.

Maka terhasillah peribahasa tersebut.