The Victim

I am no longer happy to play the victim.
At best, helpless victims of discrimination; at worst, adherents of a twisted ideology bent on death and destruction -
this is how we Muslims are viewed today
especially in societies where we are in the minority.


But
I am no longer happy to play the victim.
For we have for too long been on the defensive,
happy at most to condemn acts of terror
in reaction to those who carry them out in the name of our religion.
And yes, condemn we must, but is that enough?


No!
I am no longer happy to play the victim,
to be the person who says
“Terrorists do not represent me”
but go no further,
happy to wait while society dishes out either
abuse or sympathy.


I am no longer happy to play the victim,
I am no longer satisfied with mere sympathy;
because sympathy runs out eventually,
and my religion has never taught me to be dependent
on others' pity.


I am no longer happy to play the victim,
and so
we must go on the offensive, armed with Islam
and to do so with a proper understanding
of what being “armed with Islam” means in today’s context:
To engage society NOT with
guns blazing,
bombs exploding, or
cries for the heads of "the infidels";
But with acts of reforming society with deeds of civic responsibility – Islamic fundamentals like
feeding the poor,
caring for the elderly,
and inviting to spiritual enlightenment;

In short, our presence in any society should be a blessing –
to whatever society that is.


I am no longer happy to play the victim,
and I commend my British Muslim brothers and sisters
who share this thought
and have actually done something about it:

I am Independent

"I am independent"

It is the lie we are taught to believe in

as we travel through life;

and as we start 

moving out of our childhood bedroom,

becoming more educated,

and making more money,

it is a lie

we start to believe in.

"I am independent",

because I pay my own bills,

I make my own decisions,

I am my own man.

But what a delusion it is

when

it is not food that gives us nourishment, 

it is not an education that gives us knowledge, 

it is not friends or family that make us feel loved, 

but it is God who does..

even if He does it via 

the food, education, or friends and family 

that He grants us.

"I am independent";

the falseness of this delusion 

lies naked for all to see

at those points in our lives when

we are starving,

ignorant,

or unloved;

and the fragility of the human

body, mind, and heart

is laid bare.

You are not independent.

Where does your dependence lie?

Of Peace and OSCEs

Peace, funnily enough, 

can come in the knowledge

that you have a test coming up.

Because

when there is a test coming up,

it takes first priority;

everything else comes second,

allowing you to focus your time and energy 

on that one thing - the test.

Perhaps this is one way

we can say

that Islam brings peace:

not necessarily because

there is with it

an absence of conflict;

but because with it

one finds peace in oneself - 

the peace of knowing 

what the real test is,

and freeing you 

to focus your time and energy on it.

#tadabburOSCE

(Please make du'a for me...!!)

Papa's Doa

My memory is a bit fuzzy on this,

for it is after all a childhood memory..

but

I remember 

after solat maghrib 

Papa letting me sit on his lap

as he makes doa.

He says it out loud deliberately

(I suspect)

so I could hear him say:

"Ya Allah, 

make my children good people,

grant them success 

in this world and the next"

Sometimes we feel that our success

comes from 

our own intelligence,

our own effort,

or just being at the right place

at the right time.

Forgetting that all help comes from Allah

and that help came via

the help of friends,

a 'lucky break',

or the sincere doa of a father.

Thanks pa :)

What Sort of Budak Surau?

But what sort of budak surau?

One who doesn't only frequent the masjid

but is also able to

argue his stand in an intellectual debate,

jog a few miles without a problem,

and lead society with the principles of Islam.

For, after all, 

Islam itself is holistic, perfect, and synergistic.

Should we not, then, question the state of our tarbiyyah

if our tarbiyyah is not consistently churning out

the main ingredient of a strong ummah: 

the well-rounded individual?

Shall We Let Them Win?

Manifestation of khalifah?

Shall we let them win?

They;

who are enemies to

non-Muslims and 

Muslims alike.

Enemies to non-Muslims

as they in the name of Islam

behead, bomb, and gun down

innocent souls.

Enemies to Muslims

as they behead, bomb, and gun down

innocent souls

in the name of Islam.

Shall we let them win?

The trick they play is the

exploitation of ignorance,

to sow fear and hatred,

for the purpose of causing division;

in a misguided jihad for the khilafah.

And 

we are letting them win

as governments  "declare war" on them

when that is the very thing they want:

a reinforcement of their narrative

that "the West" is at war with Islam,

and so Muslims must kill the Westerners.

President Hollande announces the French declaration of war on ISIS

We are letting them win

as we discriminate against Muslims even more,

making them even more alienated in European society.

We are letting them win

as we keep Syrian refugees out,

leaving them vulnerable to the allure of violence.

In so doing,

we are serving them new recruits on a silver platter;

we are letting them win.

Shall we let them win?

We shall not;

but only if ALL of us

Muslim or non-Muslim,

reject the idea they are selling:

the idea that

Islam is a religion of violence,

eternally at war with the West.

To the non-Muslims of Europe,

I advice you to have sabr

and hold on to your principles of

justice, freedom and tolerance.

To the Muslims of Europe,

I advice you to hold on to the Islamic principles of

justice, freedom and tolerance

and have sabr.

Do not let them win.

This, actually, is the manifestation of khalifah

Redefinition

Perhaps we don't find peace in our solat

not because we have forgotten "how"

but because we have forgotten "why".

The irony being 

that the answer to the question "why solat?" 

is, actually,

"Why"

You see,

it is the nature of the dunya 

to make us fixated on 

the "how"s of life:

how to get a girlfriend,

how to raise our kids,

how to graduate from uni;

so much so that

we start defining ourselves 

by those "how"s: 

"I'm a lover,

a mother, 

a student."

Against this background,

the solat is, actually,

a redefinition of self

prescribed 5 times a day;

because, you see,

it is the nature of the solat

to make us remember 

the "why" of life:

"I'm an abid of Allah."

But it can only be so

if we stop misperceiving it as

as a mere ritual,

and stop the "how"s of life

from intruding into it.

Perhaps then

we shall find peace in our solat.

Credit

On niat:

credit

it can make
the smallest of acts
big in the sight of Allah,
or
the biggest of acts
small in the sight of Allah.

Even something as big
as a hijrah.

#letshijrah1437

Meetings

As we change through Life
constantly
from one moment to the next,

every one of those moments is a meeting
between the past you
and the future you

at a time called Now
and a place called You.

So
how will you change today?

The Iman System

The body's defence is the immune system;

the heart's defence is the iman system.

Just as the immune system has to be maintained by

eating well,

stopping smoking, and

exercising;

so the iman system has to be maintained by

doing ibadah well,

avoiding sins, and

doing da'wah.

✌🏻😎

Team Islam

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We shall
support Islam
like we support a football team:
We shall
bully into submission
people who have views we don't agree with;
to show you just how powerful we are.
We shall
yell bigoted slurs
in public places and social networks;
to show you just how un'apologetic' we are.
We shall
not shy away
from slander and labeling others;
to show you just how righteous we are.



But,
said a wise friend of mine (paraphrased):
"If you can't find answers to the questions against your faith,
then you should question what sort of faith you have"

For
in Islam, iman (faith)
doesn't just embrace a person's heart,
it also engages the person's intellect.

In other words,
we do not support Islam
like we support a football team;
blind, emotional support
merely because we were born into the religion.

We cannot support Islam
like we support a football team;
because if we do we will be far from
being warriors of Islam,
and closer to being hooligans.

And hooliganism is a symptom
of a lack of self-esteem;
itself a manifestation
of a lack of knowledge;
brought about
by a lack of asking questions.



Your questions will not
'ruin' Islam somehow;
this God-given Deen is complete enough
to always have an answer.

Have faith in that.

Muhasabah Rusholme

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It's easy to walk down the street
and complain.

Complain about
the litter on the ground,
the inconsiderate drivers,
the unsmiling faces of passers-by.

Society.
It's society's fault,
all of this. Always.

It's easy to complain;
difficult to actually DO SOMETHING.
Like pick up that litter,
or drive properly
or smile.

But how can you complain about the problem
when you are not part of the solution?

‪#‎muhasabahRusholme‬

A Note on Racism

The Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary's definition for the word 'Racism' is:
"Prejudice, discrimination, or antagonism directed against someone of a different race
based on the belief that one’s own race is superior."

The correlation of this 'modern' definition with the saying of a man in a desert 1400 years ago is amazing:
that man, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said that there are 4 characteristics of jahiliyyah (ignorance) which will stay with the Muslims.

The first two he listed are:
1. Boasting of ancestral nobility
2. Finding fault in other's ancestors


After reading this hadith it is less of a surprise to me
how supposed adherents of a religion which is fundamentally anti-racist,
can themselves act so racist
(to both non-Muslims and fellow Muslims)
when Islam came to abolish racism 1400 years ago!

The Prophet's prediction (as always) has come true;
racism is well and alive in today's ummah.
But
I am quite sure that the Prophet didn't just mention the above as a mere 'fun fact',
because a central part of the beautiful Deen he taught
is that of continuous struggle against jahiliyyah.
He, peace upon him, was warning us of the evil of racism.
And to STRUGGLE against it.

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Selfie

These days we are happier

to smile at a camera

than to each other

#thebestselfieismuhasabah

Xgi Masjid

"Beriman kepada qadha' dan qadar":

rukun iman ke-6.

Kenapa aku x gi masjid?

Dan kalau pergi pon,

lambat?

(Dapat tangkap rakaat terakhir je?)

Sebab ak busy study la bro..

Study tu penting jugak..amanah kot..!

Sebab ak penat la bro..

Klau x cukup tido..x sihat la..!

Sebab ak nak jumpa kawan la bro..

Hubungan baik dgn kawan2 penting..baru boleh dakwah..!

Sedangkan kita percaya

(kononnya)

bahawa results exam,

kerehatan,

dan persahabatan

semuanya ketetapan Allah?

Na'udzubillah min zalik

Mungkin aku xpegi masjid

atau lambat gi masjid..

Na'udzubillah min zalik 

..sebab ada sekelumit perasaan dlm hati

xpercaya rukun iman ke-6.

Na'udzubillah min zalik

(Maaf klau berat.

First and foremost,

peringatan kepada diri sendiri)

😔

#jomgimasjid

Complain

I've got a feeling that
the act of complaining
is very much
human nature.

After all,
do we not do that from an early age
to our parents?
"Mama..Adik has a better toy than me..!" [said with eyes tearing up]

To everybody on Facebook via our status updates?
"I love her so much..why can't she love me back..??" [typed with eyes tearing up]

Heck we have departments in most of our institutions dedicated to handling complaints
"Why did I not get any chips with my cheeseburger? Where is your manager?? I AM GOING TO SUE THIS PLACE TO THE GROUND!!!" [no teary eyes..just lotsa expletives]

There is something comforting about just being listened to;
whether the person you complain to
can help or not..is not the point, really.

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Hence the context of why I find the following to be such a sweet ayat:

"He [Zachariah] said, "My Lord, indeed my bones have weakened, and my head has filled with white, and never have I been in my supplication to You, my Lord, unhappy.""
[Surah Maryam, 19:4]


Through the act of his servant Zachariah, God gives us a tip on how to call to him (du'a):

Complain.
Plain and simple.

But do it sincerely..from the bottom of your heart.
Of course God knows what you are going through. Duh. He is God kot.
But complain anyways..
and yes, let your eyes tear up ;')

I guarantee it will feel much better than complaining to
mere mortals, or
to Facebook, or
to a (probably hugely ineffective) complaints department.

True peace will come
when you complaint to the One
who can actually do something about it.
He does not tire in listening to you.

So what are you waiting for?
Start now. Complain.
But this time..
do it to the right department ;)

Wallahu'alam

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