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Love Is In The Air...

2008-10-19T18:54:00.000-07:00

When I was young, I used to listen to Engelbert Humperdinck's song, "Love is in the air" over the radio (if I'm not mistaken, it was him... or was it Tom Jones? Well, after all, it has been so long!) . What I'm going to write today is not about that song but on Malay (and Indonesian) love novels written lately.

Well, I guess, after the runaway success of THE novel written by Habiburrahman El Shirazy, titled "Ayat-ayat Cinta", all the other writers followed suit. Now, if you are in Dungun and you pay a visit to one of my favorite bookstores, Pustaka Seri Intan for example, there are an influx of "Cinta" books!

Now you have, among others, Muhammad Muhyidin's "Kasidah-qasidah Cinta"; Taufiqurrahman al Azizy's "Shahadat Cinta"; Anam Khoirul Anam's " Zikir-zikir Cinta"; Ramlee Awang Murshid's trilogy, "Bagaikan Puteri", "Cinta Sang Ratu" and "Hijab Sang Pencinta"; and also not to forget Ilham Hamdani's "Hidayah Cinta". If Habiburrahman El Shirazy wrote his novel revolving around Egypt and Indonesia, then Ilham Hamdani cleverly used Japan/Australia and Malaysia! By the way, it so happened that Habiburrahman was educated in Egypt while Ilham studied in (above all places) Japan!

Hmmm... That gave me an idea to write MY love story based on my student life in the USA... heh heh heh... When I mentioned this to my friend Zuraini Mat Issa, she gleefully said she will write her love novel based in the UK! So, after this, we can sort of expect an influx of love novels based in Monggolia, Africa, Europe or some other exotic places on earth ... hik hik hik...

One thing I am happy about these novels is that they all share one common thing: labelled as "novel pembangun jiwa", these novels are novels which I am not ashamed of and which I'd gladly buy for my children to read. Some how, honestly speaking, I think these writers have one common hidden purpose: to guide youngsters and the readers in general on how to love and to live their lives according to the sunnah of Ar Rasul saw (without appearing to preach too much...and that reminds me of errrr...heh heh heh...Madonna's song: "Papa don't preach"). If one reads these novels carefully, I think, one will come to the conclusion that come what may, the head that bows (or the one who kneels) to Allah, can stand up to anything! In Ramlee Awang Murshid's trilogy, the hero, Saifuddin Jalis is certainly every woman's dream. In fact, after reading "Ayat-ayat Cinta", if you are a mother like me, you'd wish to make the author your very own son-in-law! (Oooppps! By the way, it's only wishful thinking... just in case Habiburrahman's wife is saddened by my statement, my two daughters are not even 'baligh' (reached puberty) yet!).

Last week (when it comes to buying books, then I am the Sultan Of Brunei!!! I seldom hesitate to part with my money whenever I get hold of any interesting books) I bought another one more of Habiburrahman El Shirazy's string of novels titled "Dalam Mihrab Cinta". A recommended book indeed. I can only pray that Allah will some day bless me with some of Habiburrahman's creative writing ability, then surely I'll be among the happiest person on earth! One thing for sure, to be able to write like Habiburrahman, Ilham Hamdani or Ramlee Awang Murshid, one definitely has to read a lot first!

This Girl Has Turned Into A Woman

2008-06-24T20:16:00.000-07:00

"Pa, can Ma wear a saree at home?", was the question I posted to my husband not so long ago. My husband's jaw dropped... He didn't expect that sort of question to come out from my mouth, I guess... hik hik hik... I couldn't help but laughed when I saw him too speechless to answer my question. Any how, I was just testing his response. I'm too short and too clumsy to wear a saree any way!

Well... Aishwarya Rai looked so beautiful in India's traditional costumes in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Hema Malini looked so graceful in a saree when she bathed her on-screen child in the film of yesteryears, Andaz (the one with the "Zindagi ek safar ek sahana" song in it). I doubt somebody clumsy like me can do something like that without getting 'my saree' all wet.

I can still recall when I was a newlywed, the first time my husband saw me demonstrating my cooking skills in the kitchen (I was a lousy cook then and I'm still a lousy cook now... my ex-Homescience teachers in Sekolah Menengah Dato Hj Hussein, Miss Batmavathy and Mrs Ambrose must be very dissapointed to hear this), he must have had the shock of his life. I'm a shopkeeper's daughter whose sundry shop is just asross the road to that one and only one mamak restaurant in my small town called Sungai Bayor. I spent my childhood watching all the friendly mamaks cooking my favorite pasembur and fried mee mamak, with their kain pelikat raised and tied at their waist in a certain way, where you can see their hairy legs while they were cooking your orders.

So, before I started to cook, I casually raised my kain batik just like those mamaks did, like I usually do as always without realizing that it posed as a shocker to my newlywed husband. He must have thought : "Alamak... what kind of Malay wife had I got married to?" Heh heh heh... Ours was a marriage arranged by friends and we didn't know each other that much, sort of Vanraj getting to know Nandini after marriage in Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, with all sorts of shocking discoveries to be made after we got married heh heh heh hik hik hik...

Growing up with five elder brothers, I wasn't that lady-like at all. I didn't walk. I practically marched, immitating Mr Eoh Hook Kim's walk, my Standard Six very disciplined school teacher whom I looked up to a lot. I was always scolded by my fierce elder sister for playing with my brothers in the hot sun. I played games my brothers played. Rounders, badminton, hide and seek were among our favorite games. When they go swimming in the river or fishing, I tagged along and to my sister's dismay, I secretly took my sister's kain batik to 'sauk ikan'. Catching what we called 'ikan karim' (beautiful fighting fish found in padi fields), ikan haruan and ikan puyu were our favorite past times during my childhood. The only thing that I couldn't do was to climb coconut trees because I was afraid of heights! My sister nicknamed me "Tina Hangit" (my skin color was dark at that time due to prolonged exposure to the sun).

There was one incident I can fondly recall. After the wedding feast was over and all the guests had gone back, when I was left alone for the first time with my husband, we were starting to get to know each other better and some how the topic of our strengths and weaknesses cropped up. When it was my turn to talk about one of my strengths, I raised my sleeve, bent my right arm like Malek Noor usually posed for in his Mr Universe competitions and I proudly showed him my bulging biceps! My husband slapped his forehead, shook his head and gave a no no sound. That was only the tip of the iceberg, one of the many unexpected and unthinkable incidences he was to encounter after he became my husband. I guess there are not that many species like me he had met before heh heh heh... After all, he has seven siblings, all males!

Over the years, with my husband's patient guidance, and growing up watching lots of Hindi movies, I guess this girl has finally turned into a woman after all. Nowadays, blessed with also five sons, it's my turn to keep reminding my two daughters to behave like girls...

Damsels In Distress

2008-03-05T20:25:00.000-08:00

When I was a little girl, I always make sure that I didn't wear anything red whenever I wanted to go to my uncles' houses in Kampong Garok, Sungai Bayor, Selama, Perak. There were many cows during my childhood days in Kampung Garok, and I was scared by their mere presence.

These Puteris in the picture above experienced an unexpected chase (what the late P. Ramlee must have called "cubaan!!").

A Star Is Born

2008-03-02T17:17:00.000-08:00

I can't help but smile when I first watched this video clip. A Clark Gable in the making I supposed. Heh heh heh hehehe.... This baby is trained to be an actor indeed.

Masjid Kristal

2008-03-02T16:51:00.000-08:00

This mosque was officiated by the DYMM Sultan Mizan Zainal Abidin sometime in February 2008. I haven't had the opportunity to visit it yet but insya Allah I will one of these days.

Allah's Name Written In India's Sky

2008-02-29T01:48:00.000-08:00

Someone was at the right place at the right time with a camera in hand to capture this simply amazing photo.... Allah's name written in the clouds in India's clear blue sky! Subhanallah. Masya Allah. Laa haulawala quwwata illa billahil 'aliyyil 'azeem!!!

Child Abuse

2007-10-01T20:26:00.000-07:00

Sad story indeed. Who is this child basher? Who is this child? Only Allah knows.

This video clip was sent to me by my niece.

May be if you're a working mother, if you can afford it, get a cctv installed at home secretly.... just to make sure that your child is not verbally, physically or sexually abused by your maid at home.

Only Allah knows what your child had to go through while you are busy working at the office.

Nowadays there are many ways to make money from home.... by blogging for instance. How exactly, I'm not very sure yet. I'll write more about how to make money from blogging once my maestro, Dr Yusri, is able to teach me in the coming blogging session after the final exams are over, I hope.

Rather than leaving your child at the mercy of others, better find alternative ways to be as near as possible to your child round the clock.

Thursday Versus Sunday

2007-09-22T20:16:00.000-07:00

It's Thursday vs Sunday (for us in the East Coast) .... or Friday vs Monday (for those in the rest of the other states)!!!

Since we were not born on silver plates, most of us need to go to work to support ourselves. Once in a while, something like this do happen to most of us, I guess, .... especially when we are a bit stressed. I really envy friends who chose to retire early and can afford to sit back... relax... and take it easy.

What A Wonderful World

2007-09-16T01:32:00.000-07:00

My student sent me this video clip which I'd like to share with the rest of the world... a very creative way of making various forms of shadows in expressing this particular song.

Monkeying Around

2007-09-05T01:26:00.000-07:00

This video shows exactly what the title says... a monkey monkeying around a dog!

What A Voice

2007-09-02T20:39:00.000-07:00

This boy reminds me of Prophet Daud 'alaihissalam. It's not that I've heard Nabi Daud's voice before but I was told that Nabi Daud's voice was so melodious that even birds flying in mid-air forgot to fly.

Let's pray that in akhirat, we will be granted the chance to hear nabi Daud reciting suurah ar Rahman in the biggest gathering ever held for the occupants in paradise, insya Allah.

Mat Rempit In Saudi Arabia

2007-09-02T20:06:00.000-07:00

I thought Mat Rempit exists in Malaysia only, ... until someone sent me this video .... Hah! It seems that they have Mat Rempit in Saudi Arabia too!

Hey guys... wait till I tell your mom what you did in this video... Believe me... it's simply not worth dying for.

Fantastic Advertising

2007-08-29T20:42:00.000-07:00

If I were the CEO of Air Asia or MAS, then, I think I will surely learn something from this fantastic video. Simply fantastic and amazing advertising. I've never flew in Brussels Air before but watching this video made me want to fly with them. They've got the 'human touch'.... they care about their passengers and their staff go all out to please their passengers.... errrrm...well, ...at least that's what I understand from the message being potrayed by this fantastic video!

Is The Situation Really That Bad?

2007-08-27T01:39:00.000-07:00

This morning, my heart nearly stopped as I watched the morning news. The man interviewed over tv3 said during his years, bus drivers only used heroin to keep alert. Nowadays, bus drivers use the ecstasy pills!!!

I guess, with that kind of confession, all the products of MAA Takaful, Takaful Nasional, Takaful Ikhlas and what not will be best sellers after this, insya Allah. Anybody who dares to travel using the public transportation without having any kind of Islamic insurance must be nuts! With this kind of situation, you are actually putting your life at stake once you board the bus.... Only God knows whose turn is it next.

Bus drivers should not only have enough rest before they start their journey, they should also stop at appropriate times to make sure their passengers have enough time to perform the obligatory prayers. After all, most bus drivers are Malays and Muslims too... Try travelling long journeys that involve the Fajr prayers. Notice that bus drivers never bother to stop in order to perform solaatul Fajr, for example. I pity those passengers who never got the chance to perform prayers when travelling in buses and if they get involved in accidents, they simply "mati katak".

Hopefully, after this, each time they are about to start their journeys, at least, to the bus drivers, recite doa's first... and initiate travel with basmalah. If they can do it in planes travelling for the hajj trip, why not on buses? After all, shouldn't all of us be practising Muslims?

There Must Be A 'Hikmah' For Everything

2007-08-13T02:00:00.000-07:00

Yesterday morning, as usual, I 'listened' to the Ustaz preaching over TV3 while ironing the clothes after fajr prayers. The story about a king from an unknown country somehow stuck in my mind. The story goes like this:

There was this king who one day decided to cut a fruit on his own. While peeling off the fruit, he accidently cut off his finger because he had used an extra sharp knife. When he told his adviser about it, the adviser said, there must be a 'hikmah' behind everything that happens.

Feeling angry because he had amputated his finger and dissatisfied with his adviser's answer, he ordered the adviser to be prisoned instead. When asked again about his imprisonment, the adviser calmly said, there must be a 'hikmah' for his imprisonment!

Long after that, the king went into the jungle to hunt with his men (without the adviser, of course). He went for days to hunt for animals but to no avail. One day the king's troops were ambushed by the aborigines. All his men ran off for their lives when they saw the king got caught.

It turned out that the aborigines were cannibals! Fearing for his life, the king could only pray and hoped for the best. The aborigines wanted to use the king to make a sacrifice to their idols. Before doing that, they checked him thoroughly from head to toe. To their dismay, they had to let him go because of his amputated finger. He was not deemed fit for the sacrifice to their idols.

Once freed, the king ran all the way home as fast as he could. The first person that he searched for was his very own adviser who was still in prison. After the king related everything to the adviser, he said, that must be the 'hikmah' why Allah made the king cut off his finger. If not, he would have been dead by now. As for him being imprisoned, had he not been in prison, he would surely have followed the king into the jungle and would have been caught too... Since the king wasn't a perfect choice for the aborigines, then he must be the one to be sacrificed! Aha!!! Very clever adviser.

The moral of the story, I guess, is, accept whatever your written fate with redho'. Allah always knows best. Wallahu'alam bissawab.

Cure Against Magic

2007-08-04T20:44:00.000-07:00

A very near and dear friend of mine sent me these 6 ayats for cure against magic recently. Recite them any time you like.

Beautiful scenery

2007-08-01T20:39:00.000-07:00

I love winter. I simply love taking long walks in the woods during winter. It had therapeutic effects on me each time I took those long walks in the snow.

Waste Not... Want Not

2007-07-31T20:43:00.000-07:00

An acquaintance e-mailed me this picture..... A very creative method to dispose your helmet...

Theorem On Salary

2007-07-31T20:35:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered why you don't make that much money? Heheheeheee.... an acquaintance e-mailed me this 'fabulous' and amusing theory.

Suuratul Ikhlas

2007-07-24T01:56:00.001-07:00

If you understand what this suurah means.... hmmmm... I guess Christianity will not stand a chance. Allah said Allah has no son. Prophet Isa (Jesus) is not Allah's son. Prophet Isa infact, has no father. In Islam, Prophet Isa is likened to Adam, who also has no father.

Mesmerizing Pictures of Magmas

2007-07-16T20:59:00.000-07:00

An acquaintance e-mailed me these mesmerizing pictures of volcanic eruptions.... These breathtaking views can only be taken by those who are really passionate about volcanoes. Subhanallah.

Alhamdulillah, Rejab's Here Again!

2007-07-14T20:36:00.000-07:00

To be read every morning and evening 70 times each with both hands raised:

"Allahummaghfirli warhamni wa tubb 'alaiya"

Tasbih:

To be read every day from 1st until 10th Rejab:
"Subhanallahil Haiyil Qaiyum"..............100 times per day

To be read from 11th until 20th Rejab:
"Subhanallahil Ahadis Somad"...............100 times per day

To be read from 21st until 30th Rejab:
"Subhanallahir Rauuf"............................100 times per day

Husnul Khaatimah

2007-07-08T01:40:00.000-07:00

Many friends e-mailed me this picture of a very fortunate man who died while he was in the sujood posture in Masjidin Nabawi in Madinatul Munawwarah. Masya Allah.

As Muslims, all of us hope that when it is our turn to return to Allah SWT, hopefully we will die in husnul khaatimah (good, beautiful ending). We will be the happiest beings on earth if we end our lives in husnul khaatimah.

During our last moment on earth, syaitaan will try to deviate us from the true path. Syaitan will try his very best to make sure that we die in su'ul khaatimah (the opposite of husnul khaatimah - a bad ending), na'uzubillah. He will appear in various forms, among them as our mother.... If that fails to deviate us, as our father. All sorts of tactics will be tried on us, just to make sure that we die as a non Muslim.

May Allah protect us all. Ameen.

Ron Wyatt

2007-07-04T19:03:00.000-07:00

People who care to read my blog must be wondering... why am I poking my nose in areas other than Maths... Well, to be blunt, I must say that my areas of interest are so diverse.

Ok. That explains why I want to talk about Ron Wyatt today. Have you watched Steven Spielberg's movies "Raiders of The Lost Ark" , "Indiana Jones" or "Indiana Jones and The Temple of Doom"? Heh heh he he he... If I hadn't become a lecturer, most probably I would have ended up being a journalist or an archaeologist... all due to the influence of Steven Spielberg's movies.

Ron Wyatt is an archaeologist. Together with his wife Mary Nell Wyatt, they've done research in the middle east, discovering many wonderful things such as the Firaun's wheels in the Red Sea, Noah's Ark in Turkey, the stones from Sodom and Gomorrah's era , just to mention a few. If you click on to his website which I will write down at the end of this writing, you will be shocked and awed just like me I guess.... simply because he reminds me of Indiana Jones (acted by Harrison Ford) complete with the hat and all. Perhaps Steven Spielberg must have visualized and personified his on screen hero from the life of Ron Wyatt heh heh he he....

One thing that I respect about the Westerners is their determination, their keenness, their thoroughness, their sacrifice, the willingness to go all out when they're interested to do research in their areas of interest. If you're a fan of the National Geographic series, you can see for example, their stubbornness to live with the gorillas in Africa year in year out, sacrifice their lives to get a better camera angle of volcanic eruptions, painstakingly wait for polar bears to appear in their arctic excursions... They made our lives to see the grandeur of Allah's creations so much easier, by just sitting back, relaxing in our couch in front of our tv sets.

Back to Ron Wyatt. Please browse through the following to appreciate his works in the archaeological field. You won't regret it, infact, even though he uses the bible, as Muslims, we'll appreciate the Quran more after reading his website. Whatever he discovered only proved further that whatever Allah mentioned in the Quran is very true and there's no doubt about it.

http://www.wyattmuseum.com/ron-wyatt.htm

http://www.wyattmuseum.com/red-sea-crossing-04.htm

Mouse Mystery

2007-07-04T01:18:00.000-07:00

My colleagues from the computer science department will surely love this... heh heh he he he...

A very near and dear friend of mine sent me this. Under the title: "Mouse mystery is finally solved" , my friend's friend posed a very good and intriguing question: How does the small arrow on your computer monitor work when we move the mouse?

Heh heh he he he.... I couldn't helping laughing as I write this.... Well, through the miracle of high technology, you can now see how it is done... he he he....

Click on the link below and you will find out. Slowly move your mouse over the light gray circle and you will see how the magic works heh heh he he he...

http://www.1-click.jp/

A Real Sad Story...

2007-07-03T21:02:00.000-07:00

An acquaintance e-mailed me this story.

A woman had 2 daughters. She got pregnant again and this time, even though she was hoping for a boy, the doctor said, it's another girl for her. Feeling sad, each time she was asked by friends, she jokingly answered she was carrying 'a snake' instead.

This incident happened in a hospital in Makkatul Mukarramah. I'm relating this story not with the intention to embarass anybody but hopefully as a deterrent for all of us. If we learn from our own mistakes, we are clever... but if we learn from other peoples' mistakes, we are intelligent, Insya Allah.

Allah always knows best. Whatever Allah sends us, we must learn to accept with 'redho'. Whether it's a son or a daughter, Allah must have His very own reasons. The most important thing is, we try to educate our children the best that we can, praying that all our children will be soleheen and solehaat.

I think, it is not advisable for those who are pregnant to watch this video. I couldn't help but felt sad for this unfortunate child shown in this video. To all pregnant ladies, recite lots of du'as for your foetus and recite the Quran regularly. Obey Allah at all times. May all of you have a safe and sound pregnancy and may all of our children become obedient slaves of Allah. Ameen.

http://img531.imageshack.us/my.php?image=makkahhospitalfh8.flv

It Is Allah Who Cures

2007-07-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

Years ago, a close friend came to me, feeling distressed because she was about to get married in less than a month's time but had skin problem around the chest. She wanted to present herself to her husband with good-looking skin. She had tried various brands of cream but before she finished using any particular bottle, she tend to lose hope and would change to another.

I didn't answer her question immediately when she asked me what to do... simply because I didn't have the answer to her problem. What I did was, I related to her the story of Prophet Musa a.s. He was one of the fortunate beings who could converse directly with Allah, our creator.

It so happened that Musa a.s. once had a toothache. He asked Allah what to do to solve his toothache problem. Allah told him to get such and such kind of leaves and chew them. He did what Allah asked him to do... and, as a result, he was cured. The next time he had another toothache problem, Musa a.s. went to get the same kind of leaves and repeated exactly like what he did the last time. This time he found out that he wasn't cured. He asked Allah why was it this time it didn't cure him like last time to which Allah answered, the last time Musa a.s. had the toothache, he had asked help for the remedy from Allah, and Allah granted his wish. This time, however, he didn't ask help from Allah but depended solely on the leaves.

The leaves were the 'asbab' of his cure. It was Allah who made the cure possible. It is Allah, and solely Allah, The One and Only God who can answer all our pleads, hopes, aspirations, wishes ... call it what you may. Musa learnt his lesson well. And so did my friend. By the end of my story, she realized that she had acted like Musa a.s., putting her trust too much on the medicines and forgot to ask help from Allah.

Nowadays, each time I go to the clinic, I can't help but smile whenever I read the label written on the plastic wrappings : "Kami hanya berikhtiar. Allah yang menyembuhkan" (We can only ikhtiar. It is Allah who cures).

Budu

2007-07-02T00:48:00.000-07:00

Budu is synonymous with the east coast states of Malaysia, especially Kelantan and Terengganu. If Melaka is famous for its cincalok, then budu is the food associated with these folks over here.

An acquaintance sent me an e-mail recently about budu. Budu has gone international! Wow!! Research done at the University of North Carolina, USA has revealed that eating budu has several positive impacts, among them, eating budu can increase, believe it or not, your IQ! Eating budu can also help you to avoid heart problems and hypertension.

Budu can reduce cholesterol. It has the potential to resist free radicals besides resisting the process of aging and, amazingly, can avoid breast cancer too! Budu contains multivitamins, iron, calcium and magnesium. Too good to be true, isn't it? I sincerely hope someone is not trying to pull my legs with this budu news. If what was sent to me is true, may be that explains why there are so many students from Kelantan in our public universities.... it could be the result of eating budu. After this perhaps we should 'drink' budu just like we drink mineral water...heh heh he he he ....

I would appreciate it a lot if researchers from our local universities can verify whether this information is true or not. If it is really true, then I'll have to make it a habit to add budu to my diet...

Just in case you're interested to read more on this, please browse through:

http://ms.wikipedia.org/wiki/Budu

Kacip Emas - The New Found Remedy For Chronic Diabetes

2007-07-01T18:57:00.000-07:00

Alhamdulillah, good news are in store for those suffering from diabetes.

Kpt. (B) Yusoff Md Saad recently revealed in an Astro program, called "Bersama Anita", which was hosted by Anita Sarawak, that he had found the cure for diabetes, something which he named 'Kacip Emas'. As reported in Mingguan Warta Perdana, vol. 924, Yusoff said he founded the traditional formula since 20 years ago while he was still in the army; knowledge that he gathered from old Malay folks living in remote villages and also from the aborigines in the jungle (orang Asli).

The remedy is sold under the label of Gold Pincer Trading. Yusoff used 8 types of local herbs, among them what is known as "peria katak" and he mentioned that it takes 9 hours to process the remedy. Those who want to try out this Kacip Emas can contact Mr Zulkifli Wahab at 016 - 298 - 7878, Mr Wahab Ibrahim at 012 - 232 - 8669 or Puan Saliza at 03 - 618 - 80778.

Subhanallah. Allah has promised that there is a cure for every kind of ailments except for death. It's up to us to find them.

Why Barzah Was Created

2007-07-01T17:38:00.000-07:00

Have you ever wondered why Barzah was created? What is Barzah anyway?

Before we were sent to earth, when we were still in the 'ruh' (spiritual) form, as Allah mentioned in the Quran, we already testified that Allah is our creator, The One and Only (Ilah) God and that we will submit to Allah and Allah only (see the Quranic verses: "Qaalu bala syahidna....."). After we were born, Allah sent His messengers continuously beginning from Adam a.s. until the last messenger which was Muhammad SAW to guide us along the way.

When we die, since we were created from the soil, we will be finally returned to the soil, to fulfill a promise made by the angel Izrail to earth when the angel first wanted to take the soil from earth during the process of the creation of Adam a.s. Some of us will decompose in our graves. Pious people and those who are close to Allah will not. The bodies of the Prophets, those who achieved martyrdom in wars such as Badr, Uhud etc will remain intact until the day of Judgement.

The 'world' that we will be placed in immediately after death is known as 'Barzah'. Yesterday morning, while ironing the clothes after fajr prayers, I had the opportunity to hear a lecture by one ustaz over TV3. So, back to the question, why was Barzah created? Except for those who became martyrs, why were we not placed immediately in Jannah (paradise) or Nar (hell) after we die? Wallahu a'lam. Only Allah knows the real answer.

The ustaz said, Allah is Forgiving. We were given the chance to beg for forgiveness from Allah for whatever sins or misdeeds while we are still alive. Once we die, the doors of forgiveness is 'partially' closed. I use the word 'partially' because, Allah, The Most Forgiving, The Most Merciful, has left another opportunity door opened for us. That's one of the reasons why Allah created Barzah. That 'door' is, according to the ustaz, through du'as made by the children of the dead persons for their parents. So, parents who have children who are soleheen or solehaat will benefit from du'as made by their children when they are in Barzah.

The ustaz said it is a pity if the descendants of the deceased don't bother to ask for forgiveness from Allah for whatever misdeeds done by their parents at least five times a day. He used the term 'anak derhaka' to those who didn't bother to make prayers for their parents. So, if you truly love your parents, you should always make dua's for them. Recite the Quran for them. Pay off their debts if they have any.

Some of us, i.e. those who were obedient to Allah when we were alive, when we are in Barzah, we will be shown our place in paradise already... so we will gladly wait for Qiyaamah to happen. Some of us, i.e. those people who were disobedient to Allah, will be shown our place in hell, na'uzubillah. So, these people whose final abode will be hell, will obviously not look forward for Qiyaamah to happen.

So, since we know all these already, we should act accordingly. Wallahu a'lam.

The E-Codes

2007-06-27T20:50:00.000-07:00

Are you perplexed with the E-codes?

By the way, what are the E-codes? Have you noticed that when you buy foods on the markets' shelves, if you read the ingredients listed on the wrapper of the foods that you are buying, they sometimes list out that the foods contain things such as E471, E140 etc. Those numbers are called the E-codes.

My friend, Puan Zuraini Mat Issa, a food technologist, brought to my attention this website to visit for those who care about halal foods and are interested to know more about the E-codes:

http://www.understandingfoodadditives.org

Sun Baby

2007-06-27T19:08:00.000-07:00

My student sent me these pictures. She reminded me to beware that there are some products in the market, in this case, children's shoes, which are made from pig 's skin. As Muslims, we should be sensitive to such matters because it involves our ibadah since pigs are najis mughallazah.

The Power of Basmalah

2007-06-27T18:22:00.000-07:00

Basmalah means saying Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem. It means in the name of Allah, The Most Benificent, The Most Merciful.

Rasulullah SAW reminded us many times to recite basmalah before we start doing anything.... before we eat, before we sleep, before we recite the Quran, before going inside our house, before we start driving our vehicle.... infact, anything or everything that you can think of, make sure you start off with basmalah.

Once there was a man whose wife had the habit of reciting basmalah before she does anything. One day he decided to test his wife. He purposely gave her some sort of jewellery and asked her to keep it safely. As usual, the wife recited basmalah before putting the jewellery in the cupboard.

Unknown to her, the husband took the jewellery and threw it in the sea. Then he came back home and asked for the same jewellery from the wife. The obedient and unsuspecting wife, reacting as usual, recited basmalah before opening the cupboard and to the husband's surprise, there it was, still wet, as if someone had put it back there....

It is very important that we make it a habit to recite basmalah. Rasulullah said, if a man goes to his wife without reciting basmalah, and never bothered to recite du'a, syaitan will have intercourse with the wife first, na'uzubillah. So, don't expect to get descendants who are soleheen or solehaat if you don't bother to obey Allah in the first place.

Rasulullah once narrated that when he was with Jibril during Isra' and Mikraj, the angel showed him his palace in paradise. When Rasulullah asked Jibril how to get in there, Jibril answered that Rasulullah has the key. Surprised, Rasulullah asked what the key was to which Jibril replied: Simply recite: Bismillahir Rahmanir Raheem!

We were told that life and things in jannah are things which we have never heard or seen before, never thought of by humans. I guess, after seeing the latest development in recent automated technologies, most probably, what Rasulullah meant was, the house answers and recognizes his voice and opens automatically... wallahu a'lam.

Lightning

2007-06-27T01:58:00.001-07:00

I've always marvelled at one of Allah's creations, i.e. the lightning. I don't know why , but somehow, lightning fascinates me. They looked beautiful to me, as long as I'm not struck by one of course, na'uzubillah.

These pictures were sent to me by an acquaintance, if I'm not mistaken, taken by someone in Sydney, Australia.

What Are These.... Genies?

2007-06-27T01:44:00.000-07:00

As we all know, genies can change their forms; they can transform to snakes, black dogs, black cats.... etc.

Some types of genies or genii can fly.

Only Allah knows what type of species these creatures are.

Naughty Postcard

2007-06-27T00:58:00.001-07:00

Still A Virgin (And Proud of It)

2007-06-26T01:01:00.000-07:00

Last night I almost choked while watching news on TV3 when I heard one of the Deputy Ministers confessed that according to a survey done recently, teenage girls in Malaysia are not ashamed anymore when they lose their virginity through sexual intercourse before marriage.

Astaghfirullahal 'azeem. I thought we wanted to be a developed country in our own mould by 2020 but look at what's happening now? I fear the retribution from Allah SWT due to our carelessness in shaping up the country's young generations' perspectives and values in life.

It seems that we are fast becoming just like the USA, where promiscuity is a way of life and rampant. Allah has said that doomsday won't happen until zina is rampant in society. It never occurred to me that this thing would happen in my own country during my life time!!! May be this is the side effects of globalization... Our teenagers tend to copy blindly whatever that comes from the west thinking that everything that comes from them is great.

Years ago, when I was studying in the USA, I had a friend by the of name of Betty Shannon. Her father is an American working in Saudi Arabia. Her mother is a Filipino. So, even though she was raised in the USA, she was brought up with eastern values. She looked like the next door American girl; tall, beautiful with model-like figure, and quite loaded. She commuted everyday from Paw Paw to Kalamazoo, Michigan in a Camarro. The only difference that I noticed about her was, her values. She didn't smoke, didn't drink and the female friends that she chose to be closed to were mostly people from the East; for example Malaysians like me, Iranians, Cambodians etc.

One day, while I was waiting for my Spanish class and she was waiting for her French class, she confessed to me that she was still a virgin. I replied: "So what? I'm a virgin too!!" She made gestures to make sure that I lowered down my voice. She explained that according to the Americans' teenagers' values (at that time), to be a virgin was a shame. It's as if nobody wants you. In Malay, I guess I should say sort of "tak laku".

Another incident that I will never forget was when I was hospitalised in the Western Michigan University's Medical Center due to diarrhoea. I had followed my seniors to an orchard for apple and plum picking. Poor me. It must have been the influence of the tv. I simply rubbed the fruits on my garments before consuming them; just like the cowboys did on the American shows that I had been watching while growing up.... and I guessed that caused me the diarrhoea! Dr Novak and another female doctor hovered over me because before I was admitted to the medical center, there were diarrhoea cases too and one of the students died. So I guess they had to be thorough in their investigation.

What was memorable over the incident was, Dr Novak asked me how many times I have sex per week which I casually replied: "Oh! I'm still not married yet!", to which I noticed that she exchanged surprised glances with the other female doctor. They were not expecting that kind of answer, I guess. Only then did I realize that the eastern values were different (I have to use the past tense mode because I think our society is fast changing and we are now almost just like them, sadly speaking) when compared to theirs, but I guessed they also understood that my answer was no, not even once...

Later on in my Spanish class, I learnt that my classmates who were American teenagers were proud to announce that they were sleeping with so and so, going out with so and so, doing all the things that's a no-no in the eastern culture, things which Allah actually forbade us. I'm glad during my years in the USA, I was like a fish swimming in the sea. My surroundings were 'salty', but luckily (alhamdulillah!) the fish was not affected.

So, to all Malaysian girls, protect and guard your virginity and chastity. Everything can wait until you are lawfully and legally married to your husband. If he truly loves you, he too has to wait and guard his virginity until he's lawfully wedded to you. That, is more favorable in the sight of Allah.

Answering Nature's Call

2007-06-26T00:45:00.000-07:00

As a Muslimah, I believe in whatever Rasulullah SAW taught us, be it the way to live, the way to behave, the way to dress up, the way to eat, and even how to answer the call of nature. Islam is actually a way of life. As the saying goes: Neither East nor West, Islam is the best!

If one were to adhere strictly to the sunnah of the prophet, insya Allah everything will be ok. It has been proven time and again that as man advances in scientific research, all those mentioned by the prophet or in the Quran are all true.

Please visit this website:

http://www.naturesplatform.com/

Sun-rainbow

2007-06-26T00:31:00.000-07:00

A friend e-mailed me this awesome photos depicting what she called the 'sun-rainbow' or 'rainbow-sun' which was taken in the Kuching (Sarawak) sky on the 22nd June 2007.

Inspiring Thoughts

2007-06-26T00:26:00.000-07:00

A friend e-mailed me something which I would like to share with all of you out there:
Please go to:

http://www.InspiringThots.net/movie/best-day.php

Hope it'll make your day.

Road Accidents... Can We Avoid Them?

2007-06-24T21:17:00.001-07:00

Malaysians are lucky because, here, we don't have calamities like earthquakes , typhoons, tornadoes or anything of the sort.

Anyhow, Malaysians, even though we are well known as good-natured people, we behave otherwise when we are behind the wheels. Why? I really don't have the answer.

What to do? Brace yourself with what I call as 'defensive driving'. On your part, try to obey all rules, then watch out for others. Before you start driving, say Basmalah, then recite : "Subha nallazi sakhkharalana haza wama kunna lahu mukrineen. Wa inna ila rabbina lamunqalibuun".

Fellow Malaysians, drive carefully. Remember your loved ones. YOU can make a difference.

Remembering Allah (At All Times)

2007-06-24T20:55:00.000-07:00

These are pictures of ants' home sent to me by an acquaintance. It reminds you of Allah's name; spelt Alif Lam Lam Ha. Subhanallah.

As Allah's designated vicegerents on earth, we should remember Allah more than these ants do. We should remember and obey Allah at all times.

Laa ila ha illa anta subhanaka inni kuntuminazzaalimeen.

Towering Personalities

2007-06-20T21:35:00.001-07:00

Malaysian Prime Minister, Dato Seri Abdullah Hj Ahmad Badawi talked about towering personalities and the importance of the human capital. Hmmm.... I guess, one of the ways to achieve these two is to make sure that we go back to the most basic thing that is the family. The family institution is the most basic building block which forms the society.

A happy marriage or a happy and loving family ensures that the children produced will be well balanced and able to contribute positive things to society. I salute our Prime Minister and ex-Prime Minister for showing good examples to the country on how a happy family should be.

I guess it's still not too late to wish "Selamat Pengantin Baru" to Pak Lah and Datin Seri Jeanne Abdullah.

Start And End Your Day At Work With Du'as

2007-06-20T02:04:00.000-07:00

To obtain barakah from Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala, start and end your day at work with du'as. Hopefully, if you are a decision maker, the decisions that you make on that day will be in line with Allah's favor. If you are a teacher or a lecturer, hopefully your students will have a better understanding of whatever you're trying to teach or lecture on that particular day. So, whatever your occupation may be, stay close to Allah by reciting du'as.

Allah said "Ud'uuni astajiblakum"...so ask, insya Allah, Allah will grant your wishes.

The Importance of Emotional Quotient (And personal suggestions of ways to raise your kids' EQ)

2007-06-18T20:24:00.000-07:00

It saddens me when I read about the Malaysian student from Kampung Laut, Chendering, Terengganu, who was murdered by another fellow Malaysian student in Egypt a few days back. I can only express deep condolences and sympathy to both sets of parents.

My friends from UiTM Negeri Sembilan, UiTM Melaka, UiTM Penang, UPSI (Universiti Perguruan Sultan Idris) and I were fortunate to obtain a grant from URDC UiTM Negeri Sembilan to do a research on the modelling of causal relations between emotional intelligence (EQ), managerial intelligence and the intelligence quotient (IQ) from 2003 - 2006. I learnt a lot while gathering information in the process of completing this project.

What I can conclude here is that, while we as parents stress the importance of IQ , we should never ever neglect about our children's state of EQ. Nobody is perfect. Everybody makes parenting mistakes in the process of bringing up our own children. Hopefully we learn from our mistakes and realize them before it is too late.

In my opinion, a husband should try to provide a stable (financially, emotionally) and conducive environment when he plans to start a family. When the wife is pregnant, he should make sure that she is happy, well fed and well taken care of. This is important because whatever condition she goes through during her pregnancy will have later effects (positive or negative) on her baby. So no drugs, no smoking and totally no alchohol should be consumed before, during and after pregnancy by both parents.

Through my own experience and through reading, I noticed that if a woman is most of the time happy during her pregnancy, usually the foetus, when he/she comes out is an easy -to- managed baby ( in other words, a happy baby, a baby who cries only when he/she is hungry or wet). On the other hand, if a woman is sad or most of the time emotionally unstable or depressed during her pregnancy, then there's a high possibility that her baby will be a very trying, crying, wailing baby....

Somehow, the mother-to-be's sad emotions is transferred to the baby. I guess that's why in the traditional old Malay community, whenever a woman gets pregnant, all her wishes (especially if she desires to eat anything) are entertained even though it's something quite ridiculous to be obtained. Most probably, the old folks want to make sure the foetus is happy.

As Muslims, it's best that both parents-to-be recite the Quran regularly especially suurah Lukman, Yusuf and Maryam. When the child is born, feed him with halal foods only which should be obtained through halal means. While the child is growing up, live according to the sunnah of the prophet.... A child learns best through living examples set by the parents (they are the very first and most effective role models in the child's life) and the environment around him. Be fair to him and his siblings.

Let the children mix around with good company. Choose your children's friends. Teach your children to learn to give and take and learn to accept defeat (in sports, school exams) gracefully and graciously. Winning is not everything in anything else, but winning Allah's pleasure should mean everything to the child.

Teaching a child about moral values or about anything at all from a very young tender age is like writing on a stone. It will stick in his mind and he will remember whatever that is being preached unto him for his whole life, insya Allah. He may not seem to obey you now, but trust me, it will take effect in his later years, insya Allah.

gordevs@yahoo.com wrote this:

Give your child all the love he needs.

Give him care - continuously, consistently. It's essential for his mental development.

Give him your time. The hours you spend with him mean more than you will ever imagine.

Give him opportunities. To learn and experience new things. This enriches his mind.

Give him encouragement. In work and play. Do not limit his attempts at exploring, imitating, creating, imagining and constructing.

Give him responsibilities, starting with simple chores. It's good training, and makes him feel useful.

Give him the right to be different. He's unique- don't compare him with his brothers or sisters.

Give him praise. For all his achievements. But even more - for all his effort in trying, even if he fails.

Give him your understanding. Consider his age and temperament when you show disapproval. You may reject his behaviour, but never the child.

Give him reassurance - constantly. Never withdraw from him. Or threaten to stem your love or give him away.

Give him everything he needs. Expect nothing in return. You chose to have him - he did not choose to have you. So teach him respect for elders and filial piety.

Believe it or not, between a high IQ score and a high EQ score, employers tend to give priority to choose those with a higher EQ score (even though they have lesser IQ score). Employees with a higher EQ score can work better with their counterparts, easier to manage (they cause less problems) and perform better on the job. So, when your children are still in school or university, make sure they learn all the soft skills; how to socialize, how to communicate effectively their ideas, their feelings, how to vent their anger and disappointment through the proper channels. Children pick up these skills through their co-curriculum and sports activities without them even realizing it.

Lastly... You can't protect your children all the time. After all your painstaking efforts, pray to Allah ... a lot! Hopefully our children will be amongst those people whom Allah is pleased with them. If Allah is pleased with them, then everything else is guaranteed. Rest reassured that they will do fine in life, insya Allah. You can then walk tall. Ameen.

The Lamborghini Patrolling Our Highways?

2007-06-17T02:34:00.000-07:00

Last week, I watched the program 'Beyond Tomorrow' over TV1. Ahaa.... Do you know that the Italian's police force use the Lamborghini to patrol their highways?

It would surely boost the morale of the Malaysian police personnel (besides getting a higher wage hike starting July 1st this year) if they were given the same kind of sophisticated gadgets to perform their duty. It would make me feel like I'm another James Bond or Simon Templar ('The Saint') doing my job if I were in their shoes...

Dad.... Amarte Asi

2007-06-16T20:50:00.000-07:00

My Dad passed away in March last year. I missed him terribly. My younger sister used to tease me by calling me "Daddy's girl" because may be to her I appeared closer to Dad. Ever since I was a little girl, I had always confided to Dad each time I worry about something or anything at all... He was always there to listen and to console whenever necessary.

My Dad taught me how to recite the Quran. He patiently held the bicycle's rear when I first learnt how to cycle just like in the fast food advertisement on tv. He accompanied me to school for one whole week when I first started primary school. I can still vividly recall him holding my hand as we walked down to town after I've finished class to catch a bus ride home. He taught me to look to the left... then look to the right before I crossed the road to town.

I don't think I can match him when it comes to teaching my own children the values of life. Every waking moment of his was spent on doing da'wah to his children, his relatives... even his customers (my dad owned a sundry shop) were not spared! He reminded to me remember Allah at all times and not to forget syaitan's eternal promise to deceive human beings.

To me, Dad is still alive and will always live because I never got the chance to see him buried on the day he died. When I reached home, everybody had just got back from the graveyard... If only they had waited just a little bit longer. So, each time I go back to my home town, I still feel as if he is still around. As a Muslimah, I know, insya Allah, I'll meet him again in Mahsyar... hopefully both of us will be among those people whom Allah is pleased with them.

Happy Father's Day, Dad! I pray that Allah is pleased with you in Barzah. Amarte asi.

Friends

2007-06-13T19:34:00.000-07:00

Friends matter a lot. Friends can make your life happier, merrier and more cheerful.

If you're not selective enough, friends can also destroy you. Ever heard of the famous phrase : "Tell me who your friends are... and I can tell you what sort of a person you are" and also "Birds of a feather flock together"?

A good friend is likened to a perfume seller. Even though you don't buy her perfume but the sweet nice scent will stick to you somehow. A bad friend is likened to a blacksmith. Even though you stay away from him, the black smoke will find its way to you and will dirty your clothes somehow...

Good caring friends are those people who would stick with you through good times and bad times. Always there for you when you needed them the most. Their words of encouragement lift you up when you are down. They are beside you to remind you whenever you err or forget... They lend their shoulders for you to lean on when you are weepy. Blessed are the lives of those who are lucky enough to have sincere, caring and kind friends.

Allah Is Everywhere

2007-05-31T23:06:00.001-07:00

We cannot see Allah, but Allah is everywhere. Only in Akhirat, will the fortunate ones amongst us be able to see Allah. They are the ones who, while on earth are obedient to Allah.

Allah said in the Quran, Allah is nearer to us than our jugular veins. We must always remember Allah in whatever we do. Everything that we do or don't do is for Allah's pleasure and we try to go all out to make sure that Allah is pleased with us.

We don't practice usury because Allah hates oppression. We spread love, goodness and kindness because Allah loves peace on earth. We care about others because we seek harmonious relationship among mankind (hablumminannas) so that our relationship with Allah is in harmony too (hablumminallah).

We try to be obedient and good at all times because we know Allah, the One and only One God who is never tired, the One who never sleeps, is watching us and Allah is everywhere.

Little Porcupines

2007-05-31T23:05:00.001-07:00

Mind you.... These are not cacti but baby porcupines!!

They look cute aren't they? I just wonder how the mother porcupine must have felt when she delivered these baby porcupines... whether the sharp needle-like thorns hurt her or not.

Most probably it's just like mother hen's case. Her eggs are soft while they are still inside her, but once they come out, they harden and appear as eggs like we see in our everyday life.

(I got this picture from an e-mail sent by an acquaintance. So, regrettably, I don't know who the real owner of this picture is.)

The Problem With Maths...

2007-05-31T23:03:00.001-07:00

When I was young, one of my teachers commented that among all the subjects taught in school, Mathematics IS the easiest... He said , the subject will become easier if I were to think positive and psyche myself up saying that "I CAN DO IT... I CAN DO IT !" all the time.

Looking back now, I think he is right. I notice that, my students, once they have what I call as a 'defeatist mentality', they tend to easily give up and stop trying such that even if they were given simple problems, they won't be able to solve them.

So, each time I encounter students like these, the most important thing that I try to do is build up their self-confidence first. Something must have happened in their history of learning Maths so much so that they've become so negative towards Maths.

I once had a student who repeated her class for MAT xxx. When she was in my class, surprisingly, I noticed that she understood whatever that was being taught in class and could answer all the assignments given correctly. I asked her what exactly happened when she took the course the first time. She said, whenever she asked her previous lecturer, she was always rebuked with the phrase, "Don't tell me you don't even know a simple thing like that?", which made her feel so turned off and rejected. So, she stopped trying and stopped asking.

I can understand her plight. My own son who was in primary school years ago once came home and told me that when he asked his teacher how to solve a particular Maths problem, was given this answer instead: "Go back and ask your mom!" The teacher was lucky he wasn't in front of me at that time.... for if not, I would have strangled him!

Sunsilk Lady

2007-05-31T23:00:00.001-07:00

There was a big flood last weekend in
Kuala Lumpur, the capital city of Malaysia.

I pity those unfortunate residents living in Kuala Lumpur. It's a heavy price to pay in the name of development.

It's times like this that one tend to feel fortunate to live in Dungun... a quiet, serene, scenic town with azure blue skies and in the afternoon blessed with turqoise blue sea. Dungun is a town situated in Terengganu, one of the east coast states.

In times of adversity, I guess one should always do istighfar to Allah and always look at things from a positive perspective. The picture attached above was sent to me by an acquaintance. Children are blessed with the ability to easily adapt to good or bad situations, infact they can still enjoy having a good bath and playfully shampooing an elderly's hair!!!

Wrath of Allah

2007-05-31T22:58:00.001-07:00

Allah is Al Jabbar. Al Qahhar. Allah is able to do all things Allah desires. With mere "Kun".... It will be "Fayakoon".

The oppressed Muslims in Iraq and Afghanistan may not have technologies as advanced as the kuffars. The one and only one thing that they have is their du'a. Supplications were and are still being made to Allah so that Allah will somehow torment their oppressors just like in the Ahzab war during ar Rasul's times.

The American soldiers and President Bush's administration showed their might in the Middle East.... but lo! Allah showed His might too. Allah gave them Katrina and Rita in the states near the Gulf of Mexico. Allah gave them big forest fires in California. Allah gave them tornadoes in the mid-eastern states. Allah gave them floods in the eastern states. What more are they asking for?

Which of the favors of Allah are they denying?

The Splitting of the Moon

2007-05-31T22:54:00.001-07:00

In the movie 'Devdas' which was directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Devdas acknowledged that Paro is beautiful, as beautiful as the moon. The only thing that he didn't like about Paro was that, to him, she was arrogant. He mentioned that even the moon is not arrogant as Paro is. What touched me was Paro's answer . She said, she can afford to be arrogant because she has no scars. The face of the moon is full of scars.

The moon has no atmosphere like the earth. Its surface is full with craters made by bombardments of passing meteorites and whatever debris flying in space which were and are attracted by the moon's gravitational pull.

It is common knowledge that since man first landed on the moon, they discovered that it showed symptoms of having been split into two . Tests done proved the theory to be true. What Muslims knew all along as mentioned in history books is that, during the times of the prophet Muhammad SAW, he was asked by the musyrikoon to prove that he is a prophet.

What Rasulullah did was, he pointed his finger to the moon and the moon was split into two. He then moved half of the moon to one side and the other half to another. Finally, he made both parts of the moon to gather as we see the moon today. There were witnesses among different Arab tribes to testify this astounding occasion as recorded in the history books. Praise be to Allah, the one and only God. Lord of all the worlds.

(I got this picture of the moon e-mailed to me by a friend, most probably this picture was provided by NASA)

Bush Can Never Win

2007-05-31T01:48:00.000-07:00

I got this superimposed picture from an e-mail sent by an acquaintance.

I guess no matter how hard President Bush tries to manipulate the war in Iraq, he could and will never win.

Muslims are die-hard people...willing to die for the sake of Islam. The American soldiers fight to live, while the Mujahideens fight with all their might to die.... surely the results won't be the same. Dying as a martyr is the best and most glorious form of death seek by Muslims.

Once during Ar Rasul SAW's days, there was this Muslimah who had three sons who went for jihad. When news came that one of her sons died during the war, she was silent. When news came that another son of hers also died as a martyr, she was still silent and kept her composure. Finally... when she was informed that the third son also achieved martyrdom, only then did she cry.

When she was asked the reason why she cried, she said she was sad not because of her sons' deaths but because she no longer has sons to offer to fight in the path of Allah! Masya Allah....

History usually repeats itself. Perhaps President Bush and his administration should take heed of past experiences from the previous wars in Korea and Vietnam. Moreover, the story cooked up by the president about the existence of WMD (weapons of mass destruction) proved to be a mere hoax. One certain fact that should be embedded in the Americans' minds is that Osama Ben Laden's threat is for real.... Osama is SBD (silent but deadly).

Visit Malaysia Year 2007

2007-05-31T01:47:00.000-07:00

I got this picture from Mr Hassanul Firman who is now attached to UiTM Kelantan.

This picture was taken at the airport in Kelantan. Now, this is the kind of creativity that all of us would love to see... and foreigners too. Something different and unexpected.

Proud of their language and culture, the Kelantanese dared to be different and demonstrated it in this sign board.

Marriage Made In Heaven

2007-05-31T01:44:00.000-07:00

I got this picture from an e-mail sent by an acquaintance through the internet.

Years ago, someone wrote in the New Straits Times that marriage is like a revolving door. Those who are in wants out... and those who are out wants in.

I later read in the Reader's Digest about a mother's advice to her daughter on the day she got married. The mother warned, if the daughter has any arguments with her husband, don't ever mention it to her.

Surprised, the daughter asked why. The mother said, "You might forgive him... I may not!"

It really takes two to tango. A fairy tale wedding is only the tip of the iceberg. What lies ahead after that day depends on how the couple react and make adjustments in their lives accordingly. Some are lucky enough to survive but a whole lot couldn't make it last. It's quite a gamble so one has to think thoroughly before really deciding to tie the knot and settle down.

It's best that one chooses one's companion according to the values laid down by Allah. Hopefully one will be bestowed with "sakeenah", "mawaddah" and "rahmah" in one's household. If one gets married in order to seek "mardhatillah", insya Allah, hopefully one's wishes will be granted by Allah.

One thing I must mention here is that, each time a son of Adam ties the knot, one of Iblees' children by the name of Daasim is assigned to wreck the marriage and tear it apart.... Dasim works 24 hours a day.... day in day out. One must always remember to seek refuge in Allah and remind each other about syaitans' wrong doings and bad intentions.

The one and only way to be sure that one is on the right track is by always checking and reminding each other to live according to the rules set by Allah. Perform all the wajib deeds, leave without question all the haram deeds, live according to the sunnah of the prophet Muhammad SAW.

Even the very first marriage made in heaven between Adam and Hawa was not spared from trials and tribulations ordained by Allah.... so what the heck. Just get on with it and pray that the person whom you chose to marry can withstand all the pressures of a married life and keep to promises made through good times and bad times... till you breathe your last.

Learning From Mistakes

2007-05-30T21:53:00.000-07:00

Years ago I read from somewhere this phrase :

"If you learn from your own mistakes, you are clever... but, if you learn from other people's mistakes, you are intelligent!"

I suppose, intelligent is cleverer than clever.

Just now, I met a colleague. He asked me whether I've been blogging for quite sometime already, to which I answered no. To be frank, I learnt about blogging only last week, under the tutelage of my three gurus : Dr Yusri, Mr Wan Nazif and Madame Farhah.

They taught us only the basics of blogging... the rest, we were supposed to explore and venture on our own. Being an old timer myself, I can understand the insecurities felt by the older generation. I must confess. Even though we didn't mean to, 'old' folks like me are not so 'open' and tend to tread cautiously when it comes to using new sophisticated gadgets and new technologies. It's human nature, I guess. The older you are, the more sceptical you become and you possess lesser ability to adapt to new changes.

He he he.... I once read that Tun Dr Siti Hasmah (Tun Dr Mahathir's wife) herself felt odd and reluctant when the hand phone was first introduced to her. Her children had to cajole her into learning how to use the new technology because if not it would be a problem for her when it comes to answering her children's short messaging services (sms).

My advice is ; just give it a go. You learn from your own mistakes as you go along the way. If you were to repeat them... ahaa... just laugh at yourself and sing like Britney Spears: "Oooops! I did it again....". For example, I've just discovered that once we've typed whatever material we have in mind, it's best that we save it first. Preview it many times as we please and, until we're really sure that basically there is zero unintentional error, then only click the publish button. If not, hmm... there might be a problem in adjusting the paragraphs. The worst part is, even though you take extra precautions to adhere to whatever I've mentioned above, the problem still persists.

So far, I still can't solve this problem.... any suggestions?

संजय लीला Bhansali

2007-05-30T01:24:00.000-07:00

संजय लीला भंसाली दिरेक्टेद अत लीस्ट तवो मोविएस ठाट ई क्नोव ऑफ़ :

१। हम दिल दे चुके सनम
२। देवदास

ई'वे वात्चेद बोथ मोविएस ऎंड ई थिंक हे इस अ प्रोलिफिक दिरेक्टोर।

बोथ मोविएस मके यू क्रय ओवर थे हिरोइन'एस फटे (अच्तेद ब्य एश्वर्या रे)

ही हे हे ....हाउ'एस ठाट? ई'म जुस्त टेस्टिंग मय व्रितिंग इन हिंदी।

Writing In Hindi

2007-05-30T01:07:00.000-07:00

Are you aware that we can write in Hindi even though we don't know Hindi nor can read in Hindi? Ahaa... I've discovered that by clicking to 'Settings' and after you scroll down to the question whether you want the transliteration button available for you or not, if you answer yes... hmm... you can then go back to your posting ; start typing some English words...and voila... you have Hindi writings instead.

Errr... the only problem that I can think of for now is that.... I myself couldn't read what I wrote once everything that I've written is converted to Hindi... Not to mention whether it's grammatically correct or not in Hindi...

What ever it is.... let's give it a try.... My next posting will be in Hindi, insya Allah. Bollywood... here I come!

P/S If only some genius can convert my writing fom English to Arabic.... or English to Spanish

Test of Endurance

2007-05-29T23:50:00.000-07:00

The Quran, suurah Al Kahfi , verse 46:

"Wealth and children are an ornament of life of the world. But the good deeds which endure are better in thy Lord's sight for reward, and better in respect of hope".

(translation done by Muhammad Marmaduke Pickhtall)

Life on earth is not meant to be permanent. We were sent here to be tested who among us all are the most obedient and subservient to the rules set down by the Almighty Allah, our Lord, the one and only God. Allah has promised that those who obey will be rewarded accordingly in the hereafter.

Some of us human beings are tested by Allah by having fame, wealth, lots of children... Others may be tested by poverty, sickness, catastrophies or things of the kind. What ever tests we are given by Allah, we must be steadfast and not lose sight of our ultimate goal in life i.e. seeking mardhatillah.

If and when we finally understand how things work, we will finally be able to succumb to the will of Allah, the real owner of this great universe. Remembering part of verse 286 of suurah al Baqarah:

"Allah tasked not a soul beyond its scope. For it (is only) that which it hath earned, and against it (only) that which it has deserved...."
(translation by Muhammad Marmaduke Pickhtall)

Being a knowledgeable Muslim means come what may, we, insya Allah, can cope with this test of endurance and it is our greatest hope that finally when it's our turn to return to our final abode, we are able to answer and fulfill Allah's invitation as stated in suurah al Fajr, verses 27 - 30 (translation by Muhammad Marmaduke Pickhtall):

27 : "But ah! thou soul at peace!"
28 : "Return unto thy Lord, content in His good pleasure!"
29 : "Enter thou among My bondmen!"
30 : "Enter thou My Garden!"

(Acknowledgement: All the photos (the Lamborghini, the picture of the lava flowing down from the volcano etc) laid down in this blog do not belong to me. I got it from e-mails sent to me by friends and acquaintances.... so the real source is unknown. The photo of Mawi and Dato' Siti Nurhaliza has nothing to do with this article, it is posted just as an attraction for blog surfers to read my writings)

Learning Spanish

2007-05-27T21:36:00.000-07:00

Learning Spanish is fun and easy. It is even much easier to learn if one already knows English and Bahasa Malaysia and a mish mash of Arabic. This is because Spanish lies in the same family tree as the French and Italian languages. Learning Spanish is a whole lot easier when compared to learning French because, in Spanish, except for a few words (especially involving the alphabets j and h), what you see is what you pronounce.

A new learner can actually 'guess' what the particular Spanish word means once one gets the hang of it. The following are examples of some familiar words to an English/French/Italian speaking learner:

Spanish - English

mucho - much

hola - hello

tengo - have

desperado - desperate

estudiante - student

mi - my

persona - person

muy - very

bien - good/well

y - and

tarde - late/later

bueno - good

buenos dias - good morning

buenas tardes - good afternoon

buenas noches - good night

gracias - thank you

dinero - money

si - yes/ if

palabra - word

amor - love

silencio - silent/silence

oportunidad - opportunity

capacidad - capacity

por - for

preparar - to prepare

amigo - friend

tipo - type

maestro - teacher

coche - car

pobre - poor

selectivo - selective

paz - peace

promesa - promise

pronto - quick

educacion - education

hambre - hungry

vida - life

loca - mad

Dios mio - my God

hombre - man

mujer - woman

hermana - sister

hermano - brother

abuela - grandmother

abuelo - grandfather

madre - mother

padre - father

algodon - cotton

Ojala - hopefully (originated from Oh Allah)

uno/una - one

paloma - dove/pigeon

blanca - white

zorro - fox

arriba - above, high

esposa - wife

marido - husband

leccion - lesson

cuando - when

ser - to be

que - that, which, who, whom, when

and so on and so forth.

Any how, beware... there are always exceptions.... My Spanish professor warned us not to generalize things. For example the phrase : " Tengo embarazada" does not mean "I am embarass" (even though it sounds like one), but , "I am pregnant"!

Writing this piece reminds me of my Spanish Professor's class years ago. Profesor Jorge Febles was trying to introduce to the class the phrase " Si tuviera dinero..... que compraria usted?" (which means : "If you have the money... what would you buy?"). When it came to my turn, I answered like this : "Si tuviera dinero, compraria un coche" (If I have the money, I would buy a car).

Professor Febles then asked me again: "Que tipo (del coche)?" - which means what type (of car?)

I answered : "Un corvette!" (A corvette - it's a type of sports car but not as expensive as the Lamborghini...) , to which there was complete silence before the class broke into uncontrollable guffaws... The professor slapped his forehead and unable to contain his laughter, laughed together with the class.

Perhaps it was because I looked like a nun (to them) that made them so taken aback by my answer. Nuns are not supposed to have any desires of having any worldly things, I supposed. Any how, that incident stuck in my mind... until today.

Managing Anger

2007-05-27T18:53:00.001-07:00

When I was taking Physical Geography lessons years ago, I didn't pay much attention when my Geography teacher at Sekolah Menengah Dato Haji Hussein, old Mr M. Mahendran, taught the whole class about volcanoes.

Any how, I remember him talking about the two kinds of volcanic eruptions and lava flows.... The first one is called the 'pahoe- hoe' flow (like the ones found in Hawaii) and the second one is called the 'aah-aa' flow (like what happened to Mount St Helens, located somewhere in the west coast, in the northern part of the American continent.... or, as the history books wrote, the famous eruption of the 'Krakatoa' i.e. a volcano which is no longer existent in one of the Indonesian islands).

The conclusion that I made after hearing his lecture was that, it's better to have the pahoe-hoe flow rather than the aah-aa flow because it's not that 'dangerous'.... As I get much older I tend to associate anger with these two kinds of lava flow: the easy to handle kind of anger (the pahoe-hoe flow) and the volatile and disruptive kind (the aah-aa flow).

It's normal to get angry. Everybody gets angry once in a while. People get angry if things don't turn out as expected or things happen not up to their expectations. It's how one handles one's anger that makes a difference.

Some people vent out their anger and sadness by talking it out to friends or someone whom they can trust. It's good that we let the frustration go out in little packages. It's a lot less harmful when compared to keeping it all to oneself and the moment you can't keep it any longer...burst it out on innocent people (like what happened in the shoot out in one of the campuses in the USA last month).

When one feels angry, if you're standing up.... try to sit down. If one is standing up, try to lie down. If one still can't shake off the angry feeling, go and perform the ablution. Better still, take a good long bath. That's what my late Dad did each time my siblings and I got into a fight when we were small. He didn't ask what the matter was. The first question he always ask was that if we had taken a bath yet, which we answered in the negative.... So, following his orders, we paraded obediently to the bathroom and, since we were cool headed after that.... all the fighting was quietly resolved.

Syaitaan love to make mischief and cause agony to human beings. Iblis himself has asked permission from Allah SWT to sway us from the right path. He had vowed to bring us with him, the descendants of Adam a.s., to hell, which will be his (iblis') final abode. These mischievous unseen beings can travel through our blood system. When we get angry, our blood is pumped (and travels) faster in the blood system and hence we have a tendency to raise our hands and legs to hit out at others or to trigger the M16 or do things of the kind.

Knowing the history of the creation of mankind helps to put us in the correct state of mind. Better still, pardon all your enemies. You will live a more comfortable and easy life once you've done that. Ar Rasul SAW said it's not those who have a good physique that are considered strong but those can actually control their anger....

Naming Your Child

2007-05-26T19:28:00.000-07:00

One of the first responsibilities of being a parent is to provide a name to your child. As a Muslim parent, the name has to be a name with good meaning because calling your child is like making du'a.

Choose your child's name wisely... Nowadays there's a lot of books in bookstores providing various choices of names with good meanings. You surely wouldn't want your child to be jeered at or being made fun of by their friends just because the name of your choice sounded 'different' to a layman's ears.

The best choices are names which have the meaning of 'the slave of God' . Such names are like : 'Abdullah, 'Abdul Quddus, 'Abdur Rahman, 'Abdur Rahim etc. Next are the names of the prophets such as : Muhammad, 'Isa, Musa, Ibraheem, Ismaeel etc. Next are the names of the sahabas such as : Abu Bakr, Omar, Ali, Osman, Mu'az, Mus'ab just to name a few.

Naming your child after a pious person is also considered as a good choice. You can then tell your child how that name originated, to whom that name belonged to once upon a time , how that pious man/woman lived, how he/she behaved, what positive contribution he/she gave to the world and so on and so forth. At least your child has someone in his mind that he can associate himself with. Someone that he can emulate and be proud of.

Hmmm... For all your trouble in finding beautiful and well thought out names... alas.... you discovered that your precious son " 'Abdullah" is called only "Dolah" or your precious "Ahmad" is called "Mat" among their friends.... If only this piece of knowledge can be spread out to more people out there....

Black Magic

2007-05-26T18:13:00.000-07:00

Black Magic was introduced thousands of years ago by Haaruut and Maaruut (refer to surah al Baqarah below) as a test for human beings.... It's a sinful deed. Those who practise it, be sure to bear in mind that not even the best lawyers on earth can answer for all your deeds on judgement day...

Surah al Baqarah ayah 102 - 103 : translation by Muhammad Marmaduke Pickhtall:

102 - "And follow that which the devils falsely related against the kingdom of Solomon. Solomon disbelieved not; but the devils disbelieved, teaching mankind magic and that which was revealed to the two angels in Babel, Haaruut and Maaruut. Nor did they (the two angels) teach it to anyone till they had said: We are only a temptation, therefore disbelieve not (in the guidance of Allah). And from these two (angels) people learn that by which they cause division between man and wife; but they injure thereby no-one save by Allah's leave. And they learn that which harmeth them and profiteth them not. And surely they do know that he who trafficketh therein will have no (happy) portion in the Hereafter; and surely evil is the price for which they sell their souls, if they but knew".

103 - "And if they had believed and kept from evil, a recompense from Allah would be better, if they only knew".

Those who have been 'fortunate' enough to be struck by black magic and lived to tell can verify that black magic is for real and how terrible life can be. Husbands can be separated from wives. To others, the victims look normal, but in actual fact, he can only live like a zombie and see life floating away, wasted just like that....Worst of all, children of the victims of black magic suffer silently.

After years of suffering, I have only this to say....If one does not feel well, and medical doctors (even experts) one after another simply can't detect what's wrong with you....ahaaa......most probably, one has to revert to spiritual healing techniques.

Thanks to a caring friend, I was introduced to 'Manzil', a book arranged by Sheikhul Hadith Maulana Muhammad Zakaria, published by Perniagaan Jahabersa (browse through http://www.jahabersa.com.my/ if you would like to get a copy of the book).

This Manzil is good for those under attack from black magic, disturbed by genies or problems of that sort. All you have to do is to recite with 'tawajjuh' all the selected verses of the Quran including the seven verses of the Quran known as the 'Munjiyat' ...and the 'Syifa' ' verses. Insya Allah, you'll finally and hopefully be able to see that at least there's a light at the end of the tunnel for all your woes....

Allah SWT has said that there's a cure for all kinds of diseases (except for death)...so never give up hope.

OLD FRIENDS...NEW FRIENDS

2007-05-25T01:28:00.000-07:00

I wasn't born with this name..Taaherah. The name given to me by my parents was Zuraimi. I hated that name since I was a little girl. Years later, when I met Ustazah Fuzla Suria Hamid, she looked up in the Arabic dictionary and informed me that 'Zuraimi' has a bad meaning....

So, those who knew me by my old name are my old set of friends....and those who call me by my present name are those whom I knew post my US days...

My mother tongue is Pattani...so, from 'raimi', my siblings called me 'Reming'.....and that's how my blog got this name....

Alhamdulillah ....I now have my own blog

2007-05-23T00:08:00.000-07:00

Assalamualaikum.

I am Taaherah Zainuddin.

Looking forward to interact with all of you out there...wherever you are....