Finding Peace

by with No Comment emotionsIslamthoughtsTravel

I was listening to the radio one day during a rather funny incident (a story for another time) and they were interviewing Nora. She was talking about her…transformation? and journey to becoming a better Muslim. And something she said struck me. It was something like,

“Orang selalu fikir, kalau ber-hijab susah nak cari makan sebagai artis etc2, tapi kita kena ingat, rezeki tu bukan datang dari manusia. Rezeki tu dari Allah. Dan kalau rezeki tu Allah dah tentukan kita yang punya, tak kisah lah jauh mana pun rezeki tu, akan sampai jugak kat kita. Dan kalau rezeki tu Allah tak maksudkan untuk kita, walau depan mata pun, kita takkan dapat rezeki tu.” 

A rough translation is,

People always think that it would be hard to make a living as an artist (singer/actor etc) if you wear the hijab. But you have to remember that rizq doesn’t come from people, it comes from Allah. And if Allah has determined that the rizq is meant for you, then no matter how far away it is, you will get it. And if Allah deems that the rizq is not meant for you, then even if it’s right in front of your eyes, you won’t get it.

It struck me because I’d been thinking about all my offers to study overseas. The ones I applied for while clinging to hopes that maybe a miracle would happen and I’d land a scholarship that would let me go and further my studies overseas. And as the university offers rolled in, I’d get excited, and then disappointed because I couldn’t go. As time went by, I didn’t let myself get excited as much. but the disappointment still came. I tried to be all blasé about it, and I thought I’d accepted all of that. But every time I’d hear about people flying off to continue their studies I’d get a sharp jab of emotion and a spell of sadness. Maybe it was jealousy, although I’ve been told that not the right word. It’s not that I hated those who could go or that I wish they didn’t get to, not at all. I just really really wished I could go as well.

But listening to the radio interview made me realise that if I’m here, that means here is where I’m meant to be. And There is not my rezeki. And when I realised that, a sort of peace planted itself in me. I think I might definitely still feel those pangs of emotion whenever I hear of people flying off, or hear about their stories, or see their pictures, but I know that that is their rizq, and this is mine. And I’ll grow to accept that, Insha’Allah. After all, God knows what’s best for me.

How could this have happened?

by with No Comment Islamworld

On the 11th of July 1995 an estimated 8000 Bosnjaks were massacred in Srebrenica in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Serbian Army. The region of Srebrenica was assumed to be a safe area as it was under protection by the UN Forces. However, even in the presence of armed Dutch peacekeepers, the genocide continued right under the UN’s noses. Although those killed were predominantly men and teenage boys, the massacre also included instances where preteen children, women, and elderly were killed. They targeted for extinction the forty thousand Bosnian Muslims living in Srebrenica, a group which was emblematic of the Bosnian Muslims in general. They stripped all the male Muslim prisoners, military and civilian, elderly and young, of their personal belongings and identification, and deliberately and methodically killed them solely on the basis of their identity

Some questions that arose from this incident include “Can the UN be brought to court, and who has the power to do this?”
Some things to ponder

Taking the UN to court
Timeline: Siege of Srebrenica
Verdict

Thank you to the organisers of todays enlightening and thoroughly informative event.

three out of eight

by with No Comment eventsfamilyIslamopinion

…managed to do 3/8 of the things on my to-do on Saturday list.

First went to KLCC Convention Center with my older brother to the Post grad Asia fair. Not much there really. Then helped my little brother with his gift shopping. Then went to KLPAC to fetch my sister, and while we were there we hung around for a bit.

Let me tell you something about KLue Urbanscapes that maybe the starry-eyed failed to notice, just didn’t care about, or closed one eye to.

There were loads of people. Many of them were smoking. You’re thinking, big deal, yeah? Well not only that.

A lot of them were guzzling Heineken and Tiger Beer which was readily available. Tiger was also one of the Main sponsors of the event. I don’t know about you but even though I was born and lived in the West for almost half my life, I’ve never been to an event where people drank in the midst of everyone else, and thank God.

Not to sound all preachy, but aren’t we not supposed to have anything to do with alcohol consumption? It’s bad enough that our local super/hypermarkets have a section and I know I’m not fully free from guilt myself since newspapers and magazines also run lager-related ads, but to parade it off as the cool thing to do? (Urbanscapes is supposed to be where all the cool people hang out – the ones in the loop and all that)

On a lesser note, they held the acoustic sessions upstairs, while the head-banging, booty shakin’ party music was played downstairs, right next to the Surau. So anyone wanting to go pray (i.e. me and my brothers) would have a thumping headache from the deep and loud beats emanating out the open door.

I wasn’t there long so I might have missed a lot of things, but anyways, this is what I experienced. Had to walk with extra caution, scooting and squeezing myself small trying to avoid the drinking throngs. Blinking through all the smoke and rain(not that I’m complaining about the rain part, it lessened the smoke effect slightly) Marketplace was nice if not for the crowd, smoke (it was covered so no rain) and again, alcohol.

Just my humble opinion.

Read my sisters more glowing review here

i should come down this road more often…

by with No Comment familyfriendshomeinspirationinternetIslammusicopinion


so i was using the net, like always. and i felt like listening to i’m callin you by outlandish and then i went on a whirlwind of wikipedia, google, and youtune scouring them all for interviews etc etc. i get obsessive quite often. this morning it was mike rowe (of dirty jobs fame)

then i stuble upon this interview by the islam channel and this guy named hamza robertson was being interviewed, so i check out his music. then in the same interview the host says dawud, and i check up dawud wharnsby ali‘s music. and stuff about him. i knew he was Canadian but apparently he was born in kitchener ontario! thats where i was born! so my i’m thinking, what if my parents knew him? unlikely, since he reverted to islam in 1993 and we moved to the us in 194 and even before islam he was a singer person so he wouldn’t have stayed in small town Kitchener i guess. but that is cool. he came to Malaysia i think, ilham went with ala if I’m not mistaken. he should come again, like have this mega nasheed concert with outlandish, sami yusuf, zain bikha, hamza et al.
yup they should definitely come.

look into my eyes – beautiful song!!!
also our creation by hamza robertson

*yes, i am a late bloomer. i know. that isam phase was like, 2 years ago for everyone else. but this is a good phase, no? need to get my act together…*


Yeah!

by with No Comment inspirationinternetIslamworld

Malian Muslim footballer Frederic Kanoute, the striker of Spain’s Seville FC, has saved the only mosque in the southern Spanish city of Seville from closure.

Kanoute has paid 510,860 euros (some $700,000) so that fellow Muslims in Seville would not find themselves without a mosque, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP) Thursday, December 13.

The privately owned mosque was due to be sold after a contract to use the premises by the local Muslim population had expired. But Kanoute stepped in to purchase the building. The 30-year-old striker has not made any comment on the matter.

But city authorities have confirmed that the property has been registered in Kanoute’s name, according to the BBC Sport. It is estimated that Kanoute has spent almost a year’s salary to buy the mosque.

Kanoute, , one of the finalists for the 2007 BBC African Footballer of the Year award, moved in 2005 from French champions Lyon to Seville FC, the 2006-07 Spanish league’s third and the holder of last season’s cup championship.

Grateful

Spanish Muslims said they really appreciate Kanoute’s moving gesture. “If it had not been for Kanoute then we would not have had a mosque on Fridays, which is the most holy day of the week for Muslims,” a spokesman for the Islamic Community of Spain was quoted as saying by BBC Sport.

Kanoute, who has also created a foundation in his motherland Mali to help orphans, reverted to Islam 10 years ago. Last Ramadan, he impressed Spanish football fans by his unique performance though he was fasting.

Kanoute was crowned last year the league’s top scorer with 20 goals, outperforming football legends such as Brazilian Ronaldinho.

Kanoute, a practicing Muslim who regularly performs his prayers even in the locker room, refused last season to wear a jersey advertising for an internet gambling site, because gambling is forbidden in Islam.

His team had to give him a brand-free jersey until he accepted wearing the sponsored jersey in return for money to an Islamic charity.