Earlier today I attended a sisters only session by one of my favourite speakers, Ustadha Rayhaanah Omar on Empowering Tools for Stress Management. It was an hour-long session but despite the short time, she had shared a lot of very good points, I felt compelled to share it here with everyone. And here are some of the points which I had managed to write down. Hope it will be as beneficial to everyone of you, as much as it was to me. Happy reading!
Sister Rayhaanah started the session with a guided imagery and visualisation exercise. Although I won't go into the details of the exercise here (I mean seriously, how will you be able to read my writing if I asked you to close your eyes, right?) but she did share on how powerful are the Quranic verses and how clear they are in terms of their description of the plants, animals, our organs, the people of the past and what is to happen in the future. Some verses are so full of details that you can actually imagine with clarity what the Quran is conveying to you. Among the surah in the Quran which we can refer to is Surah Ar-Rahman.
She also shared a dua'a:
للّهُـمَّ أَنْـتَ السَّلامُ ، وَمِـنْكَ السَّلام ، تَبارَكْتَ يا ذا الجَـلالِ وَالإِكْـرام
"O Allah, You are As-Salam and from You is all peace, blessed are You, O Possessor of majesty and honour."
(As-Salam means The One Who is free from all defects and deficiencies.)
Remind yourself, "Allah is enough." And ask yourself, "Am I achieving the pleasure of Allah?" In life, we have choices to make. We have to take risks and we fear losing. There are similarities between risk and rizq. Rizq comes in many different forms, and not merely in financial gains.
Ask from The One whose treasures never end. Abu Hurairah r.a. narrated that the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h. said that: "A strong believer is better and is more lovable to Allah than a weak believer, and there is good in everyone, (but) cherish that which gives you benefit (in the Hereafter) and seek help from Allah and do not lose heart, and if anything (in the form of trouble) comes to you, don't say: "If I had not done that, it would not have happened so and so, but say: "Allah did that what He had ordained to do and your "if" opens the (gate) for Satan."
Sister Rayhaanah also shared 5 dua'a life hacks that we can use in our daily lives:
1. Begin every task with the name of Allah by saying,
﷽
"In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful."
2. Sometimes you need to choose between 2 things, say,
"O Allah, destine good for me and choose for me."
3. When overwhelmed, make this dua'a,
رَبِّ اِنِّىْ مَغْلُوْبٌ فَانْتَصِرْ
"O' Allah, I am overwhelmed, so help me."
4. Ask for goodness and when something good happens, don't stop from making dua'a. Keep on asking,
"My Rabb, surely I am in need of any good that you have given to me."
5. If you want to get rid of a problem in your life, pray two rakaahs and during sujood, supplicate with the dua'a which was recited by Prophet Jonah (or Yunus) and then make the dua'a for Allah to give you a way out to your problem.
How do we deal with stress? Two ways: (1) by making dua'a, and (2) by praying and asking Allah of what you need. Keep on asking and don't stop. Recite this dua'a:
"O' Allah, it is Your mercy that I hope for, so do not leave me in charge of my affairs even for a blink of an eye, and rectify for me all of my affairs. None has the right to be worshipped except You."
When we're stressed, if we are not careful, we can lose our faith. Therefore, we should always reflect back on the concept of tawhid in Islam and affirm our belief in Allah. These dua's are affirmations of the oneness of Allah. When faced with difficulty, know that Allah is with you.
How can dua'a change from a mindset of stress to calmness?
First, know that it's okay to feel emotions. Emotions are from Allah. However, whether you choose to be enslaved to those emotions, then that is your choice to either be empowered or disempowered by the emotions.
Secondly, when going through stress, your imaan is the one that suffers. That's why when stressed, people would say, "My imaan is at a low." The heart is such that it flips. Check back with ourselves, are we neglecting our faith? Are we distancing ourself from the Almighty?
So what should we do?
Examine our relationship with Allah. In Surah Taha, it is mentioned that, "And whoever turns away from My remembrance - indeed, he will have a depressed life, and We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind." (20: 124). When we are stressed and overwhelmed, and we are not feeling joy in what we do, reflect in our relationship with Allah. Ask ourself, "What is the state of my solat/ Quran/ fasting/ charity etc?"
As the hadith of the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h. states, "Amazing is the affair of the believer, verily all of his affair is good and this is not for no one except the believer. If something of good/ happiness befalls him, he is grateful and that is good for him. If something of harm befalls him, he is patient and that is good for him."
Allah purifies you when you feel stressed, pain, overwhelmed or when any sorrow befalls you, as mentioned in this hadith, "No fatigue, nor disease, nor sorrow, nor sadness, nor hurt, nor distress befalls a Muslim, even if it were the prick he receives from a thorn, but that Allah expiates some of his sins for that."
To conclude, know that we are bound to be tested. We are made to be stretched out of our comfort zone. As difficult as it is, we all do at some point in our life. And realise that everyone is experiencing a test differently than we do. Even Maryam, the mother of Isa, lamented on the test that she was facing as mentioned in the Quran in Surah Maryam, "... She said, "Oh, I wish I had died before this and was in oblivion, forgotten." (19: 23)
In times of difficulty, things may not be as they seem, such as the tests which were faced by Prophet Ibrahim and the fire, Prophet Yunus and the whale, Prophet Musa's mother after his birth, Aisyah and the slander and Prophet Yusuf thrown into a well, left to die. Strive for that will benefit you, and seek the help of Allah. Remember that when you breath in, your breath is from Allah and when you breath out, your breath returns to Allah, as is your life in this dunya.
On this note, I'd like to share two reminders which I've set as the home screen and lock screen on my phone:
I'll put them up in my Facebook page so that you can download and use them if you like.
So those were the points that I've gained from the talk and if I've made any mistakes, do let me know by commenting below this post and I'll make changes where necessary. Thank you to the organisers for making the talk possible and thank you to Sister Rayhaanah for sharing all the gems with us today. All praise be to Allah for making everything possible.
And for those who would like to know more on Ustadha Rayhaanah's work, do visit her website [here].
After coming back to Kuala Lumpur from Mulu, last weekend was spent learning the Tafseer of Surah Yusuf with Dr Reda Bedeir at Taylor's University lakeside campus. I have always enjoyed Al Maghrib's seminars and to date, this is my 7th seminar with them.
Here's a short summary of what I learnt in Surah Yusuf:
1. Surah Yusuf was revealed all at once.
The surah contains only one story, i.e. the story of Prophet Yusuf and nothing else. According to some scholars, the surah was revealed when the Jews wanted to test the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h. and instigated some of the disbelievers to ask the Prophet on why did the family of Prophet Yaakub moved from Palestine to Egypt. This knowledge was contained in their books but the Arabs were unaware of it. Thus the surah was revealed there and then.
2. Surah Yusuf is a surah of 3 dreams and 3 shirts.
The surah started with Prophet Yusuf sharing his dream with his father, Prophet Yaakub where he saw the sun, the moon and 11 stars bowing/ prostrating to him. The middle of the dream revealed the dream of two prisoners whom Yusuf have met in prison and they had asked Yusuf to interpret their dreams to them (the Prophet Yusuf had been gifted with the ability to interpret dreams). And the final dream was the dream of the king, towards the end of the surah.
For the shirts, the first shirt was the shirt of Yusuf whom his stepbrothers had smeared with fake blood as evidence to their father that Yusuf had been killed by a wolf. The second shirt is where Yusuf's shirt was torn by the Azeez's wife (who was running after Yusuf to entice him to engage in illicit relations with her). And the third shirt is the shirt of Yusuf which was pressed over Yaakub's face and it returned the eyesight of Yaakub.
3. Surah Yusuf is a true example of patience.
Despite being of noble lineage, (the Prophet Yusuf is a son, grandson and great-grandson of Prophets) his life is filled with trials and tribulations. From an early age, he lost his mother. And his stepbrothers were jealous of their father's love for him and it compelled them to plot against him. He was thrown into a well when he was just a child (some scholars say perhaps between 6 to 7 years of age). Thus he lost his father and his family although they are still alive.
Then, he was sold as a slave, thus losing his own freedom. As a slave, his master's wife was enthralled with his looks so much so that she plotted for him to have illicit relations with her, and when that didn't happen, she brought her friends to her house and strategised to get them to help her. Because he refused, he was thrown in jail for many years and even after interpreting the dreams of the prisoners, the prisoner who was freed forgot about him for a number of years until the king himself had a dream that had to be interpreted. Even when the king requested for Yusuf to be with him (i.e. to aid him in the administration of Egypt), Yusuf refused to leave prison until his case was heard and his innocence proven. Thus only many years (some scholars say 40 years), did Yusuf finally leave a life of hardship and went on to become the Azeez (i.e. minister who was in charge of treasury) of Egypt.
Even then, it was only much later that he was reunited with his family i.e. during the times of famine and drought.
There are many more things which I've learnt from this weekend's seminar (which I am unable to share in this short blogpost). But among the best of them is Yusuf's beautiful dua'a which is in verse 101 of the surah, "... Creator of the heavens and earth, You are my protector in this world and the Hereafter. Cause me to die a Muslim and join me with the righteous."
Such a beautiful surah and an amazing lesson on patience. May Allah grant us all patience. Ameen.
So here we are at Day 2 of the course and here's another gem that I'd like to share, something that Islam has always emphasised on us, i.e. lineage. According to a hadith, the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h. said that a woman should be married based on four (4) things, which among them is her lineage. The speaker shared many stories on the lineage of some very notable scholars and leaders of our time. Let me retell those story.
Story # 1: Caliph Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz Narrated `Abdullah ibn Zayd ibn Aslam, from his father, from his grandfather, who said: When I was accompanying `Umar ibn al-Khattab (radi Allahu ‘anhu) on his patrol of Madinah at night, he felt tired, so he leant against a wall. It was the middle of the night, and (we heard) a woman say to her daughter, “O my daughter, get up and mix that milk with some water.” The girl said, “O Mother, did you not hear the decree of Amir al-Mu’minin today?” The mother said, “What was that?” The girl said, “He ordered someone to announce in a loud voice that milk should not be mixed with water.” The mother said, “Get up and mix the milk with water; you are in a place where `Umar cannot see you.” The girl told her mother, “I cannot obey Him (Allah) in public and disobey Him in private.” `Umar (radi Allahu ‘anhu) heard this, and told me: “O Aslam, go to that place and see who that girl is, and to whom she was speaking, and whether she has a husband.” So I went to that place, and I saw that she was unmarried, the other woman was her mother, and neither of them had a husband. I came to `Umar (radi Allahu ‘anhu) and told him what I had found out. He called his sons together, and said to them: “Do any of you need a wife, so I can arrange the marriage for you? If I had the desire to get married, I would have been the first one to marry this young woman.” `Abdullah said: “I have a wife.” `Abd al-Rahman said: “I have a wife.” `Asim said: “I do not have a wife, so let me marry her.” So `Umar arranged for her to be married to `Asim. She gave him a daughter, who grew up to be the mother of `Umar ibn `Abd al-`Aziz (rahimahullah) who was called 'Umar al Thani (the second 'Umar). Story # 2: Imam Abu Hanifa It is narrated that in the first century of the Hijra Calendar there lived a pious man who constantly looked for knowledge and used to give all his time to this cause but he was poor. One day he left home due to his extreme hunger since he had found nothing to eat at home and so he ended up heading towards one of the gardens on the roadside. This garden was full of apple trees and one of which had a few of its branches hanging outside the fence on the roadside. His inner self started whispering to him to eat an apple to remove his hunger and that no one would see him. After all the apple garden wouldn't be affected by the absence of only one apple. He plucked an apple and sat down to eat it until his hunger disappeared. But when he went back home, his consciousness (al nafs) started aching him and he started to ask himself how he could do such a thing (this is always the case of a mukmin, a believer i.e he always judges and punishes his soul for the wrongdoings he does). Sitting down, he started asking himself how he could eat an apple which is of another Muslim's wealth and possession and yet he never asked his permission before plucking it. Neither had he asked the owner for his forgiveness. Getting up the next morning, he headed outdoor in search of this garden's owner until he found him. This young man then told him (the owner), "Uncle, yesterday extreme hunger got great hold of me and I ate an apple from your garden without you knowing and today I have come to ask for your permission for having taken it." The owner replied, "By Allah I will not forgive you.. In fact I am angry from you until the Day of Judgement where I will complain to Allah about you."
The young lad then started crying and pleading to him to forgive him and that he was ready to do anything for him on condition that he forgives him and makes him clean of sins again through this forgiveness. He continued pleading and the owner refuses and grows more and more stubborn insisting on his point. Leaving the garden, the young lad followed at his heels pleading that he change his mind until finally this owner arrived at his own home, entered and closed the door. The young lad remained waiting by the door in anticipation of seeing him once again when Asr prayer would come when he had to leave for prayers. When at last,the owner came out, he found the lad still standing outside the door with tears streaming down his beard making his face glow with more light(noor) than the light of Iman (faith) and knowledge which had already previously prevailed on his face.
The lad, "Uncle, I am ready to work as a garden worker in this garden of yours without a salary the whole of my life or any other thing you wish me to carry out for you on condition that you forgive me."
At this moment, the garden owner stopped to think for a while and then said, "Son, I am ready to forgive you now but on one condition...."
The lad got so happy and his face once again got filled with joy and he replied, "Give me any condition you wish, uncle."
The owner, "My only condition is that you marry my daughter!!!"
The lad was shocked from this condition,got stunned and couldn't understand this condition.
The owner continued, "But son... you must know that my daughter is blind, deaf and cannot talk. She doesn't walk either and is always sitted. For a long time now, I have been searching for a husband for her whom I can trust to take care of her and accept her as she is with all her features which I mentioned to you. I will forgive you only if you accept to marry her."
The lad was once again shocked with this second disaster. He then started thinking how he would be able to live with such a burden especially that he was still young and on his first steps in his career life. How could she take care of him and look after his house when she had such defects? He then started telling himself, "Have patience regarding her and at least get saved from the Hereafter's punishment which this apple would cause you."
He then looked towards the owner and said, "Uncle, I have accepted your daughter and I ask Allah to reward me well for my intention and that He rewards me with something better than what He inflicted me with."
The owner replies, "Well then son....your date is next Thursday at my place for the Walimah (celebration) of your marriage and I will be responsible (take care) of her Mahr (dowry)."
When Thursday came, this young lad came walking with heavy steps, full of sorrow, with a broken heart unlike any other groom on his wedding day. When he knocked on the door, her dad opened the door and let him in. After they had sat and talked a bit, the bride's dad told the lad, "Please feel free to enter the room where your bride is sitted..and may Allah place His baraka (blessings) on you both and around you both. May He bring onto both of you all goodness and mercy .."
He then took him by his hand and led him to the room where his daughter sat waiting. When he opened the door and looked inside, the lad found seated a girl whose face was whiter than the moon and whose hair hang loosely on her shoulders like silk. She then got up and walked towards him with her shoulders stretched outwards and told him, "Assalamu Alaikum my husband."
Standing in his place, the lad stood staring at her as if he was in front of a hooreya (i.e one of the beautiful ladies of Paradise who have never lived on Earth before) from the hooreyats of Jannah who had instead come to earth. He couldn't believe his eyes and just didn't know what had happened or why her dad had said such bad things about her. She at once understood what was going through his mind and at once went nearer to him, held his hand and kissed it saying, "I am blind from looking towards forbidden (haram) things and I am deaf from listening to forbidden talk and I am unable to talk about forbidden things. My feet too do not walk towards haram things.... I am the only child of my dad and for a couple of years now, my dad has been searching for a good pious husband for me. So when you came to him asking his permission for an apple and weeping for its sake, he told me: 'Whoever fears from eating an apple for which he hasn't asked permission for acquiring it, then he will sure look after my daughter and fear Allah in treating her badly'......so congratulations to me for having you as a husband and congratulations to my dad for having you as his son-in-law."
(They would later have a son named Nu'man aka Imam Abu Hanifa (ra)) Story # 3: Abdullah ibn Zubayr and Umar al-Khattab A son of the Hawwariyy al-Rasul, Zubayr ibn al-`Awwam, and Abu Bakr's daughter, Asma’. He was the first child to be born of the Muhajirun at Madinah in 1 H. The Prophet (saws) placed a chewed date in the infant’s mouth when he was presented to him after birth, and named him `Abdullah. Once children playing in the street saw `Umar ibn al-Khattab coming towards them, they fled in fear – except Ibn Zubayr. `Umar asked him why he hadn’t fled. He replied, “Neither have I committed a wrong, nor is the street too narrow. So why should I run away?” `Umar was pleased with the courageous reply. So, what does this tell us? It tells us that our children are a reflection of who we are. They become our mirror. So if you want children who are good, pious, God-fearing, then make sure you are one, then your children will follow suit. Going back to lineage, wouldn't you want your descendants to be a leader like Umar ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz, a scholar like Imam Abu Hanifa or courageous like Abdullah ibn Zubayr?
Why is our children so important to us? This is because, based on the hadith of the Prophet p.b.u.h., when a man dies, his good deeds come to an end, except three: ongoing charity, beneficial knowledge and righteous offspring who will pray for him. Thus it is definitely in our favour to raise righteous children.
Another analogy that the speaker gave was, imagine if the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h. were to visit you in your home, would you change your tv channel? Would you change the clothes that you are wearing? Would you speak in a different manner? Thus if you want to be in Jannah with the Prophet, make sure you lead a lifestyle that befits a neighbour of the Prophet p.b.u.h.
So here I am, always ending up to find myself attending a course here and there in KL. And I think that's only because KL has all these fantastic courses with an equally impressive line up of speakers that I feel that I wouldn't be doing justice to myself if I were not to be in attendance. Today, and tomorrow as well, I am attending Al-Kauthar's Parenting Matters, The Art of Raising Righteous Children Seminar.
Okay, the seminar has not ended, but I am indeed very, very excited to write on one parenting method which the speaker, Sheikh Alaa Elsayed has shared with us this afternoon (and this explains the sudden motivation to blog, because if I don't, I might forget it). Among the various methods that we can use to nurture a child's development, i.e. storytelling, direct and open communication, encouragement, praise etc etc, is one term which is called "word association".
Children normally look up to their parents and people who are close to them such as the grandparents, maid, school teacher, classmates, cousins etc, therefore whatever we do and say in front of them would have an effect to how they perceive the world. For example, if we were awed by a stunt which we had watched in the tv or movie, and then praised the actor for doing such a good job/ stunt, children would associate doing similar activities as something praiseworthy and then try to imitate such actions. That is why nowadays we see there are numerous videos on YouTube of children as young as 2 years old being able to dance like Beyonce, do karate like Bruce Lee and retell the Red Riding Hood tale from memory. It is simply due to practice (of course) and the praise of their parents/ guardians on how great they were doing those stuff.
Children live by praise and they absolutely love to be praised (as would any other normal human beings), it's just that as adults we tend to take a more humble approach when someone comes up and gives us praise. Therefore to encourage (or discourage) them, we should be aware of the words that we use, as children would then associate those words and give them meaning. For example, if you would like your child to have a good role model (which you want them to look up to) then you should relate your praise to that role model. Let's say you want them to take on the Prophet Muhammad p.b.u.h. as an example, then associate what they are doing with what the Prophet does. If they share their toys/ food with another child, then you can say, Mashaa Allah, you are following in the footsteps of the Prophet for he also love to share his food with his companions. Then you could perhaps end the praise with a story of the Prophet. Similarly, if you want to stop them from doing an act like shouting and screaming, then if you catch them shouting and screaming (and even fighting) say astaghfirullah, and explain why we don't scream or shout to each other. The child would then associate the wordsMashaa Allah with a good actand astaghfirullah with a bad act.
Similarly, for parents who would like to encourage their child to become doctors, engineers, or even religious scholars, you could start by adding the title "Dr/ Engineer/ Sheikh etc" before their name. However, other parents might find this to be suffocating to the child or even cause excessive pressure towards the child so proceed with caution. In my opinion, it would be a good thing, i.e. positive reinforcement is always a good thing, but only if I feel that my child is comfortable with the title. If he or she looks uncomfortable, then maybe we can discuss about the matter and drop the title. Knowing kids, the girls would definitely go to various phases such as Princess, then Doctor, then Engineer, whatever. Which is not a problem. But make sure you are guiding your child towards becoming a more confident individual who knows that he or she is capable to achieving their goal and knows how to go about it (with the help of supportive parents, of course).
In regards to the parenting course, I find it to be extremely beneficial. Even just by attending half a day (I had class this morning) I have learnt a lot and I look forward to learning more tomorrow. I believe that as a parent, we all try our best for our children and often times there may be occasions that we feel guilty due to certain actions that we make (well, I know I do). There even may be people who (gleefully) point out what they deem to be "mistakes" that we are making. Believe me when I say, if you are doing you're best, Allah knows and inshaa Allah things will turn out to be the best. But when things get hard, make dua'a because a mother's dua'a for the child is the best dua'a. Imam al-Sudais credits his mom to be the cause of him becoming the Imam of the Haram and even Imam al-Bukhari (who was blind as a child) was able given back sight because of his mother's tenacity in making dua'a. Especially when you are angry at your child (due to whatever mischief that they have managed to land themselves in) that is the best times to make dua'a, and this is as evidenced by Imam al-Sudais. He mentioned that whenever he made mischief and made his mom angry, his mom would say, May Allah make you the Imam of the Haram. Mashaa Allah, her words came true.
Am definitely going to practice word association with Alexa. May Allah make her a hafiza (memoriser of the Quran), Ameen!
And (I hope), there'll be many more to come. Inshaa Allah.
I've always wanted to do my PhD and I think that this has to do with the fact that both my parents are PhD holders (in an age without google, science direct, elsevier, emerald insight *gasp*) and when I first made the decision to study at INCEIF, I wasn't able to gain more information on the university except for the university's website, official twitter and official Facebook page. So, I hope this post will help future students of INCEIF gain insight on how it feels like to study at INCEIF.
INCEIF is a university that offers programs exclusively in the field of Islamic finance (and nothing else) so it is basically a meeting point that brings together a group of scholars (professors, associate professors, lecturers, tutors etc) and students who are involved (or would like to be involved in) the field of Islamic finance. The name, INCEIF is actually a short form for International Centre for Education in Islamic Finance.
There's not that many programs in INCEIF (because of its specialised nature) and all programs are postgraduate programs (i.e. they offer masters and PhD programs only). This is good (in my opinion) because the students basically already have done their undergraduate somewhere else (so they're not green out of high school), the classrooms are small and cosy (the maximum number of students in a class is about 40, but that would be rare, usually depending on the subject, there'd be around 6 to 20 students in a class), and due to the small setting, the relationship among the students and their professors are more intimate (in a sense its easier for you to develop a close relationship among your classmates and get to know each other well, and also it's easier for you to approach your professors because there's only a small group of students in the class and it's also easier for him or her to address any questions in and out of the classroom).
The university itself is located right next to Universiti Malaya at Lorong Universiti A (right off Jalan Universiti, the small road where KFC is located) so if you're a travelling student (like I was in the first semester), to get to the university you can take a cab for RM7 from University Station or wait for the shuttle (INCEIF provides free shuttle service at scheduled hours) at Taman Jaya Station.
There's only three buildings, one is the academic building (where the library, classes and academicians are located) and the other two building are for administration, bursary, and ISRA researchers.
I chose INCEIF simply because it offers only Islamic finance programs which is the area of research that I would like to specialise in (there're other universities that offer PhD in Islamic finance such as IIUM, UNITAR and UiTM which you can check out if you like) and also because I knew that because of it's specialised nature, I'd be mingling with people who already are (and are hoping to be) involved in the area of Islamic finance. Thus I would be learning about Islamic finance and also be able to network and hear on what is actually happening in the field from those who are working in the industry.
Another reason for me to select INCEIF is because the PhD research program is coupled with courses (i.e. I'd have to pass the courses and also a comprehensive exam before undertaking my PhD research), I feel that the courses would help me to enhance my understanding in the different aspects that are related to Islamic finance such as Islamic capital markets, Islamic accounting, Islamic economics, risk management, etc and this would provide me with a broader view of Islamic finance compared to if my PhD is involved strictly in research.
What have I experienced so far?
What I genuinely like about the university is the atmosphere. I love the fact that the students are always so helpful with each other and there's a certain brotherhood (or sisterhood) feeling that you get with each other.
Here are some photos of my experience at INCEIF:
New students' registration are usually accompanied by orientation day and this was my orientation day. This is Daud Vicary Abdullah, the President and CEO of INCEIF.
A typical classroom at INCEIF. This photo was taken during our Tajweed session with brother Ziyaad Muhammad.
Fiqh Muamalat class with Assoc. Prof. Ahcene Lahsasna.
A typical class discussion between students and their Professor. This one was taken during Islamic Economics class where brother Alam Asadov was discussing on gold dinar with Prof. Zubair Hasan.
Sometimes we have Professorial Lectures. So this one was taken off Prof. Abbas Mirakhor's discussion of the book by Thomas Piketty, Capital in the 21st Century.
Sometimes we also have visiting Professors giving talks to us, this one is Sheikh Prof Dr Ali Muhyi Al-Din Ali Al-Quradaghi. It was in Arabic so Assoc. Prof. Ahcene became his interpreter.
We also have bankers coming to share on what's happening in the industry. This is Dato' Mohd Redza Shah Abdul Wahid explaining to us on what's in the pipeline for investment accounts (post IFSA 2013).
We also have Fire Drills...
And visits from other universities. These are my students from UiTM and I am glad to say that one of these students will be joining INCEIF to do his masters next semester =).
PhD Colloquiums are also held once every few months.
And dedicated syndicate rooms for group discussions
For more information on INCEIF, feel free to check out their website [here], Facebook page [here] and twitter [here].
Oh well, I haven't been active lately, and there are many reasons for that. And there are a lot things that have happened the past year (2014 I mean) for me to share, so I am at lost on which news do I share first...
So just a brief update on what's been happening in 2014:
We cancelled our trip to Japan last April due to my father-in-law's passing just a day before the trip and we weren't able to reschedule our trip to another date due to many other events that happened in the second half of the year.
Our last family photo together during Eid 2013.
We traveled to Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam) at the end of August (until early September) and got robbed by a cab driver (a fake cabbie, actually). I will definitely update a blog on that so that all you out there will be able to recognise the signs of a fake cabbie. That is the first time we've been robbed on our trip overseas and it got me spooked because Alexa was also in the cab with us and I was afraid that the cab driver would harm her. However, on the bright side, inshaa Allah I will post a blog on halal food in Vietnam soon =).
I've enrolled as a student again! Weehooo! It's always been my dream to pursue a PhD and I've enrolled at an institution called INCEIF (will do a review on INCEIF soon) and have been approved to pursue my studies full time by my organisation (the institution at which I am employed) and inshaa Allah will be at INCEIF until September 2016. Do wish me luck in my studies ya!
With Prof. Zubair Hasan after our final class for Islamic Economics.
I've bought another apartment (I don't know what is it with me and real estate, but I do love owning properties and the rental in Kuala Lumpur is so high that I guess buying an apartment is a better alternative for me). So this apartment (it's nothing fancy, just a studio apartment that suit my current needs as a student) is for me to stay while I'm doing my PhD and unfortunately for privacy reasons, I won't be able to disclose the location of this apartment until it's ready to be rented out in the future =).
Attended the Divine Speech seminar by Ustadh Nouman Ali Khan. His talks are even more impressive live and if given the chance, I would love to attend future sessions with him as the speaker (the only other speaker that I would love to listen live would be Dr Zakir Naik, inshaa Allah).
The venue, PICC, was filled to the max, wow!
I have also enrolled as a student of Al-Maghrib Institute and this is one of my personal development goals and one of the ways I would be able to enhance my knowledge in Islam. Considering Al Maghrib's courses are only conducted once every three to four months, I don't think this course will in any way interfere with my PhD inshaa Allah. Here's a post on the first program of theirs that I attended [click here].
Me, mum and my sis-in-law, Izzah attending our first Al-Maghrib seminar =)
We got our paper published in a journal, a collaboration effort of three academicians, my friend Erimalida aka Ayon, yours truly and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Song Saw Imm. All praise be to Allah for the opportunity =).
So in a nutshell, 2014 have been a very interesting year and am looking forward to an exiting 2015. Here's a sneak peak of what's in store:
So far my plans are only up to January and February so I still don't know what's in store for the other ten (10) months in 2015...
January - a short trip to Penang to visit my Pakistani friend Azima followed by attending Al-Maghrib's Fiqh of Chillin' course the following week. Then a weekend trip to Singapore to attend another of Al-Maghrib's course: Deception, Study of Shaytaan. This month will end with a much-anticipated holiday to Xi'an, China with hubs and lil' bub, Alexa =).
February - we'll be back from Xi'an in early February and I've bought tickets to attend a Marriage Conference on the 14th of February (which I'm excited to attend due to the impressive line up of speakers who are scheduled to speak in the conference).
So here's my plan for 2015. There's not much activities/ events planned out as I plan to focus on my studies and would need time for my coursework and research. But I am hoping (if possible) to present (my papers/ research) at two conferences this year, one in March and another in June, inshaa Allah =).
So here I am post-ILMFest enrolling myself at yet another of Al Maghrib's programs. I registered as a student and this is my first of their weekend seminars, Denial, Tafseer of Surah Ar-Rahman and Yassin taught by Dr Reda Bedeir.
Okay, before you start reading, let me just warn you that this is a very, very long post. Oh okay, now that we've got that cleared, do continue.
So, how does Dr Reda teach? In a good way (which I find to be extremely beneficial) he teaches from the beginning. Now the thing is, where is the beginning? In teaching religion, there is no A B C to indicate the beginning. Even the first verse that was taught, "Iqra' bismirabbi kallazi halaqa" (which means "Read O'Muhammad in the name of your Lord, Who has created) is not the first verse in the Quran (it's actually in Surah no. 96, Al-'Alaq). So, the beginning could simply mean anywhere and everywhere.
He started by explaining the first sentence that we would recite before we start reciting any Quranic verses, the ta'awwudh, "A'udhu billahi min ash-sharitani r-rajimi," meaning I seek refuge with Allah against Shaytan. So, he started by questioning us, why do we seek refuge with Allah against Shaytan? (Note in Surah Sad 38: 82-83 Shaytan said, "I will try to ambush and take them away from the straight path. Except those who are sincere.") As Muslims, we know that Shaytan have made an oath to bring us to Jahannam with him. We say it because Allah is the only resort and there is none more powerful than Allah. So we seek refuge with Allah against the whispers of Shaytan.
Dr Reda then proceeded to explain the meaning of basmala, "b-ismi-llahi r-rahmani r-rahimi," meaning in the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. To elaborate, as we are servants of Allah, Allah gives us temporary control in the dunya (this life on earth) and Allah will take it away in the akhirah (hereafter). Thus this statement is indicative that we would do everything to please Allah. So this statement could be elaborated as in the name of The One who gave me all of these things that I could not live without, who gave me ears so I could hear, who gave me eyes so that I could see, who gave me my tongue and mouth so that I could speak.. He also differentiated between Ar-Rahman and Ar-Rahim (in the basmala that we recite). Ar-Rahman means the all merciful while Ar-Rahim is the act of being merciful or the nature that is merciful all the time.
Our student's kit by Al Maghrib consisted of a barcode (which is to be scanned before the morning lecture for attendance purposes), a student ID with lanyard and a workbook.
Dr Reda then followed by explaining that the Quran is divided into three parts where one-third consists of stories, one-third is on Allah and mono-theism and the remaining one-third on the rules that we should follow. (Note that in Surah Yusuf 12:111 Indeed there were lessons in the stories for those who want to learn and reflect). He also told us that there are actually two books where we can learn and reflect, the closed book (or physical book) which is the Quran and the open book (metaphorically) which is the universe. Indeed there are verses in the Quran that mentions the universe and signs of The Creator if only man would take heed.
The word Quran in itself stems from the word qara'a which means to recite. And the word Quran means recitation. Indeed the Quran was revealed through the Angel Gabriel to our Prophet Muhammad pbuh in oral form and was only compiled into the written form after the death of the Prophet pbuh during the time of the first Caliph, Abu Bakr. (Note: Abu Bakr was persuaded by Umar to compile the Quran into a book and he finally gave in after the Battle of Yamamah where a great number of the Quran memorisers had perished). It was compiled by Zayd ibn Thabit and verified against two companions who heard the verses directly from the Prophet pbuh. All the verses in the Quran were verified against two companions except for one verse in Surah no. 33 Al-Ahzab verse 23 which was only verified by one companion, Khuzaima ibn Thabit. This exception was allowed due to a transaction involving the Prophet pbuh and a Bedouin where Khuzaima had spoken up to bear witness of the transaction between the Prophet pbuh and the Bedouin. Due to this, the Prophet pbuh said, "if Khuzaima is your witness, you don't need a second witness."
So let's go to the first surah that we studied, Surah Yasin. Surah Yasin is the 36th surah in the Quran. It was revealed in Mecca, thus it is also known as a Meccan Surah. (Note that the revelation of the Quran covers a period of 23 years, 13 years in Mecca and 10 years in Medina. Thus surahs that were revealed in Mecca is known as a Meccan surah while surahs that were revealed in Medina is known as a Medina surah. Surahs that were revealed in Mecca are mainly on who is Allah and stories of the people before the people of Quraisy while Medina surahs are themed on rules and regulations to be applied by Muslims). It is among one of the most widely recited surahs in the Quran (it is usually recited to the dead thus during funerals you would normally observe the guests to a Muslim funeral reciting Surah Yasin to the deceased). However despite this, please do not think that other surahs are not as widely recited because in the Quran, there are 114 surahs, some are recited more frequently due to many reasons (like the first surah in the Quran, Surah Al-Fatihah is recited at least 17 times in a day by each individual Muslim as it is included in their daily prayers, and this surah is also frequently recited at the beginning of a du'a and also at the end of a du'a).
As one of the most frequently recited surahs, there are many da'if or weak hadith (sayings of the Prophet Muhammad pbuh) on Surah Yasin and some of them are even untrue (false hadith). The thing about hadith is that the types of hadith is divided into which is sahih or authentic, hasan or good and da'if or weak. The hadith in the photo above are weak hadiths related to Surah Yasin (except for the last one, which is in bold, that is a false hadith).
So could da'if or weak hadith be used as a reference? Weak hadith can be accepted on three (3) conditions:
1. The hadith should be slightly weak
2. Use it when it comes to the virtues of deeds, to motivate something good or to stay away from something bad. However, it should not be used for matters relating to Aqidah.
3. If used, it must be mentioned that it is a weak hadith.
Surah Yasin starts with the story about Allah, then it continues forward with the message and ends with the messenger. It is divided into an introduction (verse 1 - 12) and three parts (1) the historic argument (verse 13 - 32), (2) the rational argument (verse 33 - 68) and (3) the moral argument (verse 69 - 83). The introduction describes the status of the believers and non-believers and the nature of Quranic revelation while the following three (3) parts provides a proof of the authenticity of the Quran.
Among the gems that I could share on Surah Yasin (there are so many but I won't be able to share them all so those who are interested to learn tafseer, do sign up for Al Maghrib's seminars or any other similar organisations of your choice):
1. The meaning of Ya Siin (the first verse in the surah, which incidentally is also the name for the surah). Do note that the meaning is unknown, thus these are simply opinions by various scholars. Some scholars say that ya siin is similar to the beginning of Surah no 2, Al-Baqarah or Surah no 20, Taha, letters of the Arabic alphabet. Some scholars are of the opinion that ya siin could be Arabic letters that refers to either a person or something, i.e. due to the third verse in the surah (Truly, you are one of the Messengers) it could be the name of a Prophet. Another scholar mentions that it could be a nickname for Prophet Muhammad pbuh meaning the Master of Humanity while another scholar says that it could refer to man, ya siin - ya insan (oh man!).
2. Usually when the beginning of a surah starts with separate letters like ya siin in this surah (or other surah like alif lam mim in Surah Al-Baqarah) the following verse would be talking about the Quran. The letter waw in the beginning of this verse is used as an oath, "By the Quran."
3. In the third verse, Allah personified the Quran as if it is a man (note: messenger or in this case the Prophet pbuh) that will teach us the Quran.
4. In the fourth verse, the path refers to the sirat (the bridge over Jahannam) that is carrying us to Jannah (heaven).
5. In the fifth verse, it refers to the Quran which was sent down to us from Allah.
6. In the eleventh verse, the reward that is generous refers to the reward which will come to those who act as Muslims even though we cannot see Allah. (Note: as quoted from Ali who said, "How do you define sincerity? It means to act exactly the same whether you are among people or you are alone.")
7. The verses 13 - 32 tells a story about a city who was sent with two messengers whom they rejected. The messengers were reinforced with a third but was also rejected (not only were they rejected but they were also threatened with stoning and torture). The city itself is not important in the story, for what is important is the message it conveys. However, Dr Reda informed us that the city in this tale is the city of Antioch and if you'd like to read more on the tale you may want to click [here]. The story then follows with a man (Habib Al Najjar or Habib the carpenter) running towards to non-believers saying that the messengers are indeed true. Unfortunately, the people of the city stepped on him and killed him. So he died a martyr and the verse continues with the man (Habib Al Najjar) entering Paradise.
8. The verses 33 - 40 starts with signs of the Creator for the disbelievers. Verse 37 talks about the day and the night. In Islam, we believe that the night starts first followed by the day. (Example: during Ramadhan, Tarawih prayers starts the night before, after Maghrib prayers, for the fasting that is to be conducted the next day). Thus in this verse, it indicates that the default is the night, Allah sends the light to cover the darkness, and the way the verse is written is to indicate the changing of the day to night as if Allah peels off the light and then everything goes to darkness. As you may see during sunset, the changing of the day to night is as if the light (the setting of the sun) is peeled off (similar to how the skin of an orange is peeled off from the fruit) from the sky as the day turns into night. Verse 39 refers to an analogy of the moon and the dates, where the dates starts growing until the branch withers and dies when the dates mature. This is similar to the situation of the moon which is also in stages. Verse 40 talks about the sign of the day and night, and the position of the moon and the sun against the earth's hemisphere. Thus it could be seen that the signs of the Creator that is mentioned in Surah Yasin does not only cover signs on earth but also signs in the sky (the universe).
9. The verses 41 - 46 refers to the Prophet Noah who built a ship on top of the mountain (and he was ridiculed by his people for that) and the flood that killed everything except for the pairs that were carried on the ship.
10. The verses 47 - 54 starts with Allah telling us that he is The One that showers us with wealth. And Allah tests us by giving, He would expect us to share our wealth with the unfortunate and poor. (Note: when Allah gives, he is testing us with gratitude and when Allah takes, he is testing us with patience). The following verses then details with the Day of Judgment and how we will be resurrected from our graves with one blow of the trumpet. It is only on the Day of Judgment will the non-believers admit that the messengers were indeed telling the truth but by then it would be too late.
11. The verses 55 - 58 then describes the lives of the people in Jannah (paradise) and in verse 58, Allah swt shall greet us in Jannah.
12. In verse 60, the term worship Shaytan refers to the obedience to Shaytan (or in simple words, following the footsteps of Shaytan). Dr Reda then continued to explain this term by associating it with ibadah, referring to terms such as part-time Muslims, full-time Muslims or all-time Muslims. He then related this to the verse in Surah no. 2, Al Baqarah verse 85, "... would you believe some parts of the book and leave some parts of the book? ..." Definitely the best is an all-time Muslim (you are a Muslim when you are around other people and when you are alone). "... and Allah loves those who are in a constant state of purification," Surah Al Baqarah verse 222. If you notice, in verses 60 and 61 of Surah Yasin, I and Me (singular) is used to describe Allah swt, while in the verses 65 - 68, We and Our (plural) is used. Some might question, why is there a difference? You might want to note that when talking about worship, I or Me (singular) is used to refer to Allah, for example, "... worship Me" while when the Quran describes the attributes (act or creation) of Allah the royal We is used. (Note: an example is when the Queen of England speaks, she does not use I or me to refer to herself, she uses we or us, it refers to her, but since she's the majesty, a plural we is used).
13. In verse 70, it states that Yasin is a book to remind the living (quite dissimilar to certain customs who associates recitation of the Yasin for the dead). Here living refers to those with a living heart and the Quran is the message to bring life to the hearts of the living. Similarly in Surah no 8 Al-Anfal verse 24, "... and know that Allah has the power to change or to hinder anything between a man and his heart..." This verse talks about us answering the call of Allah swt and the call of the messenger.
14. In verse 75, the word they refers to the idols which the non-believers have taken besides Allah swt. The idols will be used as witnesses in the hereafter to testify to the deeds of the non-believers. In Surah no 66 At-Tahrim verse 6, "O believers! Guard yourselves and your families against the Fire (of Hell) whose fuel is human beings and stones..." here the stones refers to the idols which are worshipped by the non-believers, it will be used in the hereafter as fuel to Hellfire.
15. Verse 78 refers to a man who came to the Prophet pbuh with a bone and he crushed it in front of the Prophet pbuh and threw it to the Prophet pbuh. He then asked the Prophet pbuh, "Does your Lord can bring life back to this decayed body?" This is then answered in verse 79 where it shows that Allah swt created man (Adam) out of the earth, how easy it would be for Allah swt to bring life back to the crushed bones held by the man.
Surah Ar-Rahman is the 55th surah in the Quran. Ar-Rahman is one of Allah's names which means the unimaginably merciful. It refers to the nature of Allah swt to be exceedingly merciful. During the time of the Prophet pbuh, the people of Quraisy had a problem with the name Rahman, to the point they even questioned the basmala and denied the word Rahman. In the first four (4) verses of the surah, it goes like this:
Ar-Rahman. He has taught the Quran. He has created man. He has taught him articulate speech. (Al-Quran, 55: 1-4)
In this four verses, it shows the importance of the Quran over man's creation (thus the mention of Quran's creation comes first in the surah). This indicates that the purpose of our creation is more importance the our creation. And it also uses the word 'teach' indicating that Allah swt teaches. Man is the student. To whom did Allah swt teach the Quran? It is left open, indicating that Quran is not only for humans (either believers or non-believers), but also to Jinn.
Among the gems that I could share on Surah Ar-Rahman are:
1. The second verse indicates that the Quran is created first before the creation of man.
2. In this surah, similar to Surah Yasin, Allah swt talks about the Quran and this is followed by the universe.
3. The word mizan (balance) is repeated three times (in verses 7, 8 and 9). Mizan literally translated means scale, it is also a symbol of justice and also represents balance in the universe.
4. In verse 13, "Which of the blessings of your Lord will you both deny?" You both refers to both man and Jinn. The blessings refers to all that Allah swt has given us, our health, our family, our wealth, our partner, our offsprings etc. This verse is repeated 31 times in the surah. And each time it is repeated after a verse that talks about the gifts and blessings that Allah swt has bestowed upon us. The Prophet pbuh recited this verse to the Jinn and every time he comes upon this verse, the Jinn would reply, "None of the blessing o' Lord that we deny."
5. In verse 17, it talks about the two easts and two wests. This refers to the daily rising and setting of the sun. The point of the rising of the sun is different every day (due to the earth moving in its own orbit and the sun moving also in its own orbit) and the sun asks for permission from Allah swt everyday whether it should rise. Allah swt would give permission until the day of judgment, where the sun would then be commanded to rise from the west.
6. In verses 19 and 20, Allah swt creates the seas where the seas meet but they do not mix. This refers to the meeting of fresh water seas (and even rivers) and salt water seas and indeed you can see from the video below how the two seas meet but there is a noticeable barrier between them. And in verse 22, from both seas come out pearls (indeed we do have freshwater and saltwater pearls).
Unfortunately we were running out of time, there were too many to share that I guess Dr Reda felt compelled to share as much as he can (and we couldn't fit all in the two days seminar that we had) and I also had to leave the auditorium at 6.45pm to catch my 9.15pm flight back to Kuching. Thus I only learnt up until verse 25 of Surah Ar-Rahman. So I am still waiting for the team from Qabeelat Ihsaan for the notes that they promised to comply and share with us. So in the same spirit, I am sharing my notes (up until verse 25 of Surah Ar-Rahman unfortunately) with everyone. Hope my notes will benefit you as much as the seminar with Dr Reda have benefited me. Subhanallah.
To those who are interested to learn and join seminars organized by Al Maghrib, do visit their website and register as a student [here].
To love of our Allah and our religion, Islam.
xoxo Mrs Fashionista
Ps: In the midst of writing this post, I stumbled upon an interesting page related to the verses in the Quran on the hereafter. If you're interested, you can visit the page [here].
