Showing posts with label dakwah. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dakwah. Show all posts

Sunday, November 12, 2023

Demi Palestin, Usah Cepat Melatah

1. Peperangan dimenangkan dengan rancangan rapi dan pelaksanaannya yang tersusun. Ia tidak dimenangkan dengan emosi dan sentimen semata-mata.
Benar, emosi dan sentimen penting dalam memperjuangkan kebenaran:
Dengan emosi, kita terus didorong untuk berjuang. Dengan sentimen, hati-hati yang berbolak-balik mampu dibawa bersama menyertai perjuangan kita.
Namun sebaliknya, emosi dan sentimen yang tidak terkawal boleh menjadi fitnah kepada perjuangan.
2. Bukan satu rahsia lagi: orang bukan Melayu di Malaysia kebanyakannya tidak endah mengenai isu Palestin. Tidak kurang juga yang berpegang kepada pandangan bahawa orang Palestin turut bersalah dalam konflik ini.
Malah ada yang menyebelahi Zionis, mungkin kerana termakan dengan media arus perdana (mainstream media) seperti BBC, CNN, dll yang berat sebelah dalam meliputi konflik ini.
Buka saja ruangan komen mana-mana channel Youtube outlet berita yang banyak dilayari orang bukan Melayu - The Star, New Straits Times, dll - sudah tentu akan dijumpai komen-komen yang meminta Malaysia untuk neutral, “kedua-dua pihak bersalah”, dan sebagainya.
Malangnya, tidak kurang juga balasan daripada orang Melayu yang terbuai dengan emosi - membalas bukan dengan niat untuk memperjelas dan berhujah, tetapi mengugut dan mencaci. “Pindahlah ke Singapore kalau nak sangat sokong Zionis” antara sentimen yang pernah dijumpai di ruangan-ruangan ini.
Jujurnya, sebagai seorang penyokong Palestin, saya berempati dengan perasaan yang mendorong balasan beremosi seperti ini.
Siapa tidak sakit hati apabila rakyat Gaza yang tidak bersalah dibedil dan dibunuh beramai-ramai - tapi terus dipersalahkan sebagai pengganas?
Siapa tidak kecewa dengan golongan yang seolah-olah sengaja menutup mata dan telinga kepada kebenaran - dan terus memeluk tubuh walaupun beribu-ribu kanak-kanak dan wanita disembelih di depan mata mereka?
Tapi sedarlah juga bahawa jika kita cepat melatah, ia menjadi kelemahan dalam perjuangan demi Palestin - satu perjuangan yang memerlukan strategi dan visi jangka panjang.
3. Amerika kalah dalam Perang Vietnam pada tahun 1960-an bukan kerana kelemahan ketenteraan. Seperti Zionis yang bermaharajalela di Tanah Suci hari ini, Amerika dilengkapi dengan senjata tercanggih pada waktu itu serta kekuatan kewangan sebuah kuasa hegemoni dunia.
Namun Amerika tumpas akhirnya kerana sentimen rakyat sendiri yang menentang peperangan apabila melihat bilangan nyawa tentera sendiri yang terkorban dengan begitu ramainya, serta jenayah-jenayah perang yang dilakukan pihak sendiri ke atas rakyat Vietnam.
Medan perang fizikal adalah Vietnam, tetapi psikologi masyarakat Amerika adalah medan pertempuran utama. Begitulah juga keadaannya hari ini - Zionis Israel akan tumpas hanya jika Amerika menarik balik sokongan ketenteraan, kewangan dan politik daripadanya, selagimana Amerika masih berstatuskan kuasa hegemoni tunggal dunia hari ini.
Alhamdulillah, pada hari ini, semakin jelas bahawa sentimen pro-Palestin semakin kuat dalam kalangan masyarakat Amerika secara umumnya. Hanya golongan konservatif dan golongan elit terus berdegil kerana berada dalam saku lobi-lobi Zionis.
4. Perbuatan menzahirkan sokongan bagi Palestin bukan wayang semata-mata - apabila rakyat beramai-ramai menunjukkan sokongan terhadap sesuatu isu, ahli politik terpaksa akur dan mengambil kira sentimen tersebut demi kepentingan politik sendiri. Bukanlah satu kebetulan bahawa negara-negara yang pemimpin-pemimpinnya paling lantang bersuara menyokong Palestin di persada dunia merupakan negara-negara yang rakyatnya menzahirkan sokongan paling padu bagi Palestin - Ireland, Indonesia, Turki, Iran, dan ya, Malaysia sendiri.
Dengan ini, langkah bijak bagi kita warga Malaysia dalam perang saraf ini adalah dengan meneruskan momentum dan memperkembangkan sokongan bagi Palestin dalam kalangan masyarakat negara kita sendiri. Ingat, mana-mana parti atau koalasi parti yang memegang tampuk kerajaan akan lebih berani bertindak di peringkat antarabangsa jika ada sokongan rakyat.
Orang Melayu usah memperdaya diri dengan idea bahawa sokongan Melayu sahaja sudah mencukupi bagi mendorong kudrat politik (political will) pemimpin Malaysia supaya terus lantang bersuara demi Palestin. Orang Melayu perlu ingat bahawa 40% daripada populasi negara ini bukan Melayu - dan jika mereka bermati-matian tidak mahu menyokong Palestin, hal ini akan mempengaruhi kiraan politik pemimpin-pemimpin negara.
Alhamdulillah Malaysia telah dikurniakan setakat ini dengan pemimpin-pemimpin seperti DS Anwar Ibrahim dan Tun Mahathir yang konsisten memperjuangkan isu Palestin dengan aktif dan sistematik di pentas dunia. Namun kita tidak boleh leka dan menganggap bahawa situasi ini akan berterusan jika 40% daripada populasi Malaysia terus enggan memihak dengan Palestin.
Janji Allah itu benar - Dia akan menangkan Palestin, sama ada dengan pertolongan kita atau tidak; tetapi jika kita mahu negara kita terus berada di saf hadapan perjuangan ini, perlulah ada usaha untuk memperkembangan perjuangan Palestin untuk merangkumi semua lapisan masyarakat - Melayu mahupun bukan, Islam mahupun tidak.
Bukankah demonstrasi jalanan dan boikot ekonomi di negara ini akan lebih efektif jika Ah Kao dan Muthu berganding bahu dengan Ali dalam memperjuangkan Palestin?
5. Maka timbullah soalan seterusnya: apabila kita melihat demonstrasi pro-Palestin yang disertai beratus ribu orang bukan Islam di New York, Washington, London dll, terlintaskah di fikiran kenapa orang bukan Islam di Malaysia liat hendak sokong Palestin?
Dalam erti kata lain, pernahkah kita cuba mendalami psikologi orang bukan Melayu-Islam di negara ini? Atau adakah kita mengambil jalan mudah dan memukul sama rata dengan alasan bahawa “orang kafir memang tidak akan redha dengan kita”?
Soalan yang lebih direct: pernah tak terfikir bahawa mungkin liatnya orang bukan Melayu hendak sokong Palestin adalah akibat daripada politik kita sendiri yang selalu memburuk-burukkan mereka sebagai pendatang, komunis dan kafir harbi?
Pelikkah kalau, sebagai reaksi, mereka memegang kepada prejudis bahawa dalam apa-apa konflik yang melibatkan orang Islam, orang Islam secara automatik adalah pengganas? Pelikkah kita jikalau, dari perspektif orang bukan Melayu, perjuangan Palestin hanya dilihat sebagai perjuangan si Melayu menentang ‘si pendatang’ semata-mata?
Bukan saya nak maafkan orang bukan Melayu daripada kesalahan - kerana mereka juga malas. Malas membuat kajian, senang tertipu dengan media arus perdana, atau lagi teruknya hanyut dengan mengejar duit dan status sehingga tidak mampu melihat penderitaan manusia lain.
Dan pastinya, orang bukan Melayu juga ada prejudis terhadap Melayu dan Islam, sepertimana Melayu punyai prejudis terhadap bukan Melayu-Islam.
Inilah penyakit yang telah lama berhinggap di jiwa masyarakat Malaysia - dan isu Palestin telah mendedahkan isu ini dengan sejelas-jelasnya.
6. Maka apa langkah seterusnya? Sebagai orang Islam, jawapannya mudah: betul-betul praktikkanlah sirah Nabi mulia kita.
Apabila baginda berhadapan dengan mereka yang degil walaupun dihadapkan dengan kebenaran yang jelas dan nyata, apakah yang baginda lakukan?
Adakah baginda berputus asa dan memukul sama rata - melabel semua yang menentang sebagai kafir harbi yang tidak mungkin akan bersama perjuangan yang benar?
Jikalau begitu, mungkinkah Saidina Umar berubah daripada seorang yang lantang menentang Islam kepada salah seorang Khalifah Ar-Rasyidin? Mungkin hari ini, ada dalam kalangan rakan-rakan bukan Melayu kita seorang ‘Saidina Umar’ yang sedia berjuang bermati-matian demi Palestin, cuma belum diberi kesedaran oleh rakan-rakan Islamnya.
Saudara-saudara kita di Palestin memerlukan kita. Semangat dan usaha Malaysia selama ini patut dibanggakan - kita telah konsisten dengan doa, demonstrasi, perjuangan di sosmed dan boikot.
Namun rakan senegara bukan Islam juga satu amanat yang telah Allah berikan kepada kita. Siapa lagi yang akan memujuk mereka ke pihak yang benar jika bukan kita - jiran-jiran, rakan sekerja dan rakan senegara sendiri?
Memujuk dan berbincang dengan mereka yang bukan Islam bukanlah apologetik. Ia Sunnah Nabi.
Jadi marilah kita bermuhasabah dan berhujah dengan ikhlas. Dalam jihad propaganda ini, korbankanlah ego dan prejudis. Cuba fahami mengapa orang bukan Melayu mempunyai prejudis terhadap Islam dan Palestin. Buatlah kajian sendiri mengenai konflik Zionis-Palestin, sejarahnya dan statistiknya, supaya hujah kita diperkuatkan semasa berbincang dengan mereka yang belum yakin.
Jadikanlah ini sebagai sebahagian sumbangan kita kepada saudara Palestin yang menjadi barisan hadapan perjuangan kita di sana.

Dan bersabarlah. Bukankah Allah bersama mereka yang bersabar? 

Saturday, December 1, 2018

Have We Perverted the Meaning of “Rahmatan lil ‘alameen”?

“I was made victorious by the winds of as-Saba’ and ‘Aad were destroyed by the winds of ad-Daboor” [Sahih Muslim]

This was what the prophet Muhammad s.a.w. (peace be upon him) said after the miraculous victory of the Muslims in the Battle of Al-Ahzab (The Confederates), a battle in which they were vastly outnumbered by a combination of forces inside and outside the city of Madinah.

With no hope of a military victory, a sandstorm the likes of which many had not seen in their lifetime suddenly swept in and forced the retreat of the army surrounding the Muslim city. The battle was over with less than 10 casualties on the side of the Muslims.

But none of the disbelievers died in that retreat.
Why were the disbelievers not destroyed completely by Allah? After all they were clearly enemies of Islam - opponents on the battlefield, ready to kill the Muslims!
Why did Allah not send the wind of ad-Daboor, with which He had destroyed previous stubbornly unbelieving nations?
Why, instead, did He send the more merciful wind of as-Saba’?

Ulama’ comment that this is because of the rahmah (mercy) that the prophet s.a.w. felt towards his enemies, that they would one day enter into Islam.
And sure enough, in a few years the majority of that army which surrounded Madinah, ready to kill the Muslims off, had themselves become Muslims. And today, a millennium  and a half later, their descendants are also Muslims.

This is one of the many examples of the rahmah of the prophet s.a.w. (another famous example being the mercy he showed towards the people of Ta’if, who stoned him for his da’wah. Today the descendants of those people of Ta’if are Muslims).

In other words, the prophet Muhammad s.a.w. truly deserves the title Allah bestowed upon him in the Qur’an - “rahmatan lil ‘alameen” [Surah Al-Anbiya’: 107]
(Translated very roughly to English as “a mercy to all the worlds”.)

Yet today there are quarters who claim that when we promote an inclusive image of Islam in which Muslims are willing to engage with those of other worldviews and to discuss and debate in a healthy manner as a way to show the beauty of this deen, we have somehow perverted the meaning of “rahmatan lil ‘alameen”.

How narrow-minded those accusations are!
After all, did the prophet s.a.w. himself not show a willingness to engage with those around him throughout his life, Muslim or not? Indeed, never did he force the conversion of others to his Message, preferring to let them see the Truth with their own hearts and minds.
Such was rahmatan lil ‘alameen.

Yes, I am aware that there are those out there who abuse the meaning of rahmatan lil ‘alameen, and use the phrase to promote a blind pluralism in which all religions are equally correct with Islam.
That is indeed a perversion, because Allah says very clearly:

“Indeed, the religion in the sight of Allah is Islam. And those who were given the Scripture did not differ except after knowledge had come to them - out of jealous animosity between themselves. And whoever disbelieves in the verses of Allah, then indeed, Allah is swift in [taking] account.” [Surah Ali Imran: 19]

And thus, it is upon Muslims to believe so.

But at the same time, let us not go to the opposite extreme and deny the right of other religions to exist. Believe it or not, the existence of religions other than Islam is an ayat (sign) of Allah:

“And had your Lord willed, those on earth would have believed - all of them entirely. Then, [O Muhammad], would you compel the people in order that they become believers? And it is not for a soul to believe except by permission of Allah, and He will place defilement upon those who will not use reason.” [Surah Yunus: 99-100]

Put simply:
Islam does not recognise the TRUTH of other religions,
but it recognises the EXISTENCE of other religions
(and the RIGHT for human beings to choose what to believe).

To me, one of the signs of the truth of the prophet s.a.w. was his vision. Although he was born and raised in the middle of the Arabian desert, he had a mission which traverses the space and time he was in.
His Message was not limited to his tribe or race, in a society which was bitterly tribalistic; nor was it limited by time, traversing generations and millennia.

He wanted everyone to receive, and to accept, the Truth - to have as many people and peoples as possible to enter heaven, not limit heaven only for his tribe or race.

That’s the sort of fighters for Islam that Malaysia (and the world) needs today. Those who can see past racial sentiments and lead the way to a better future for all. To offer the God-given solutions within Islam to everyone.
To thus follow in the footsteps of our prophet s.a.w.

Contrast that to the noisy voices in Malaysia today who claim to fight for Islam but limit their fight to the rights of one race only.
In the process they become arrogant, and mock those of a different race to themselves with the excuse of upholding Islam.
How contradictory that is to the ayat:

“O you who have believed, let not a people ridicule [another] people; perhaps they may be better than them; nor let women ridicule [other] women; perhaps they may be better than them. And do not insult one another and do not call each other by [offensive] nicknames. Wretched is the name of disobedience after [one's] faith. And whoever does not repent - then it is those who are the wrongdoers.“ [Surah Al-Hujurat: 11]

Who, then, is perverting the message of rahmatan lil ‘alameen?

Thursday, January 5, 2017

Muhammads Everywhere

Today at the masjid I overhead a very Muslim conversation:

Man 1: Assalamualaikum..I've forgot your name..
Man 2: it's Muhammad 
Man 1: ah..Muhammad
Man 2: and you..Hussain?
Man 1: no..it's Muhammad 

I chucked under my breath (the irony, I know..a Muhammad snickering at a conversation between two other Muhammads).

But then the scene brought me to contemplate the legacy of that man named Muhammad (peace be upon him) born over 1400 years ago in the middle of the Arabian desert. 

His legacy: that today in this masjid in a former factory in Manchester there are people from African, Arab, south Asian, south-east Asian, and European origins carrying out the teachings which were revealed to him over a millennium ago.

Legacy.

None of us will live forever in this world. 
Should it not be that that very mortality pushes us to leave something behind after we're gone?
For, after all, a legacy is a sort of immortality.  Innit?

Muhammad (peace be upon him) has long left this world - but Muhammads live on to this very day (and I am quite sure, will do so until the End of days).

***

In the 3rd verse of Surah Al-Asr, 
Allah describes the characteristics of those people saved from khusr (loss).
One of those characteristics is "...tawassau bilhaq..." - translated often as "...exhort each other to follow truth..."

But (as always), some things are lost in translation: 
The word "tawassau" doesn't merely mean to exhort. 
The Arabic word shares the root letters with the word "wassiyyah" - meaning a will (in Malay: wasiat), that document we leave when we die.

So it is not merely to "exhort" to the truth. It is to do so with the same sincerity and determination that one has when leaving a will knowing s/he is on the verge of death.
(As, actually, we all constantly are - on the verge of death.)


All that being said; you know what..I think tawassau bilhaq is an awesome way to leave a legacy 🤔





(I'm aware that this post is weeks after maulidur rasul. But hey, takkan nak sayang nabi time maulid je eh 😬)

[Picture: the muazzin of Masjid Al-Furqan sunbathing by the window of the mosque on a sunny winter afternoon]

Tuesday, November 29, 2016







the da'ie should be like the autumn tree,

who through her pain of falling leaves,
brightens the world in orange hues.

Sunday, March 20, 2016

In a Masjid in Puchong






I distinctly remember my mind being blown,
as I opened that book 
picked off a shelf 
in a masjid in Puchong
over four years ago now -
a Chinese translation of the Quran.

Immediately I turned the page
to one of my favourite ayat,
and as I often did back then 
took a picture, put on a cheap filter, and posted it on Insta 😓

But why did the image of Chinese letters
side by side with the Quran's Arabic words
have to blow my mind so?
When we have been taught in school
that the message of Islam is universal,
for all peoples of the world?

Perhaps it's because we have forgotten 
this unifying message of the deen,
and replaced it with the sentiment of racism and nationalism;
a sentiment taught implicitly in our Muslim homes, 
and lived out in our everyday lives.
All under the guise of 
Us Muslims, versus Them kafirs.

Until eventually we come to believe 
that Islam is Arabic,
or Malay.


How sad, how ironic
that we Muslims are the ones who hide the universal beauty of Islam
on a shelf in a masjid in Puchong:

"O mankind, 
indeed We have created you from male and female and 
made you peoples and tribes that 
you may know one another. 

Indeed, the most noble of you 
in the sight of Allah 
is the most righteous of you. 

Indeed, 
Allah is Knowing and Acquainted." 

- Surah Al-Hujurat:13

Monday, March 14, 2016

Possibly the most dangerous disease to affect a da'ie is that of self-righteousness.
Afflicted, he/she begins to think him/herself as pure,
belittling others and being rough to the very people
he/she is supposed to call to Allah.

Na'udzubillah..


Monday, February 8, 2016

CNY with the Grandkids

It's a yearly tradition which I've been missing for the last few years: 
the Chinese New Year Eve reunion dinner with family and friends. 
A price to pay for living so far from home.

This year was little different:
I didn't have dim sum or shark fin soup at a Chinese restaurant (Taiba pon boleh la..),
and no we didn't do 'yee sang' with the half chicken with rice
nor 'yam seng' with the mint tea,
but this year I had a chance to dine with my cucu2 usrah.

Yes, a sincere da'ie should put hopes of reward for his efforts 
first and foremost from Allah in the hereafter,
but SubhanAllah, sometimes Allah lets us see 
the fruits of dakwah blossom even in this world.
Those fruits are my cucu2 usrah.

Good job, Irfan..I'm impressed! 😉
*muka x impressed* :p

Anyways, from my clan to all of you...
Gong Xi Fa Cai!!! 



With love, 
Kong Kong (atuk) usrah 👲🏻

P.s. special thanks to uncle Wafi for joining us and making the reunion complete!


Thursday, December 17, 2015

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:


Wednesday, August 6, 2014

I'm Keeping the Beard

So many judgemental people out there
when it comes to non-hijabis

"What's wrong with her??"
"Showing off-lah tu"
"Astaghfirullah...HARAAAMMM!!!"

I wonder how these judgements were made..
what was the basis of their comments?
Do they know these non-hijabis personally?
or at least TRIED to understand them -
their personalities,
their backgrounds,
their knowledge of the Deen?


Funny, too, that many of these Haram Police are men

How can they know what a woman goes through
when she first wears the hijab;

The wordless protests of family and friends,
the discrimination at work,
the hateful looks from strangers,
or at the very least
the disapproval of a culture
which views the hijab as
"conservative"
"fundamentalist"
"Melayu" (if she's not Malay-lah)

The closest to this woman's experience
that a man can go through
(in my humble opinion)
is if he suddenly chooses one day
to grow a beard.

(And no, not those Robert Downey Jr.-type goatees
but a full-fledged beard.
As the Prophet (peace be upon him) said
when it comes to beards:
"Let it flow")

And no I am not justifying the act of not wearing a hijab
(or not wearing a beard ;) )
Because its true..the Quran DOES tell you to wear the hijab (24:31)

But the Quran also tells you to do dakwah with hikmah - wisdom (16:125)


Me?
InsyaAllah
I'm keeping the beard ;)

Thursday, February 6, 2014

Batch Pemutus Dakwah

Here's the deal:
There's a vehicle to be driven, and no one's there to drive it.

"So, siapa nak drive Jengkaut tahun depan?"

The awkward, unanswered question for this batch - my batch.


'Jengkaut'
The name of the red Estima which is the kereta kawasan for Manchester.
Oficially it is named 'Al-Adiyat' - The War Horse.
But its loud diesel engine and sluggish swagger found more often in vehicles on the construction site then on the road have given it a new name:



'Jengkaut'- The Excavator

Last year Capek was the driver operator.
This year it is Syak.
Next year...?

"So, siapa nak drive Jengkaut tahun depan?"

*                    *                    *

The Jengkaut was the vehicle which brought us to our first car boot sale.
But at a deeper, more profound level, it has seen us discover something more amazing than cheap books and novelty items;
over the past year it has witnessed us discover the sweetness of tarbiyyah...

Now it is witnessing us realise how much we really have on our shoulders.


Because last year 50% of the ikhwah graduated, leaving Manchester for good.
At the end of this year even more are leaving.

What will happen to dakwah and tarbiyyah at Manchester then?
In the Northwest?
In the UK?

"So, siapa nak drive Jengkaut tahun depan?"

In the past few weeks, I feel like this question has taken a more symbolic meaning.

Jengkaut mengangkat beban dakwah


Relax, they say.
Allah will take care of dakwah and tarbiyyah, they say.
After all, did He not promise in His Book and via the Messenger that there will always be a group of people on this Earth calling to the Deen?

True.
But did He not say also, in a chapter of that Book named after his Messenger:

"...And if you turn away (from Islam and the obedience of Allah), He will exchange you for some other people, and they will not be your likes." 

Dakwah?
It doesn't need us. Rather, it's the other way round.

Hidayah?
It isn't something that's merely 'found'. Rather it's to be fought for.

Somehow the chain that is dakwah, stretching back to the Prophets of yesteryear, have reached us;
mere mortals halfway across the world from home, at a place cold and dark.
And with that the responsibility to keep that chain going...for future batches to also feel the sweetness of tarbiyyah.

Or
will we be the batch pemutus dakwah..?





"When we live only for us, life is so very short.
It starts from when we start and ends at the end of our limited lives.
 
But if we live for something other than us,
live for an ideology,
then verily life is long and meaningful;
starting from the start of mankind and ending with the end of mankind on this Earth.
 
If we feel like we start this struggle,
we will feel constrained facing death
 (because the struggle has not reached its goal yet). 
Remember, it is not us who start this struggle neither is it us who end it.
It was started by the Prophets and goes on until the end of time.
We are links on a chain of a long struggle"

- Sayyid Qutb


Here's the deal:
There's a vehicle to be driven, and there's no one to drive it.

And no, that vehicle isn't the Jengkaut.
that 'vehicle' is dakwah itself.

Ikhwah, we better start driving.


Jengkaut operator at work

Monday, August 5, 2013

An Open Letter: Ramadhan Greetings for the Bak Kut Teh Couple

Dear Alvin and Vivian,

I hope this letter finds you in the best of health. :)

I am a Muslim.
But I love eating bak kut teh myself, a dish which Mama used to cook up every once in a while for my family.

Provocative, eh? :D


But before an angry mob is whipped up by the above statement, with the purpose of lynching a bak kut teh-eating kid such as myself (and/or his Chinese mum) for "insulting Islam", let me first clarify:
It was more like chi kut teh than bah kut teh, since it had chicken in it instead of pork.

Duh. I am Muslim kot -.-


Maybe I should be careful, though, with the "B" word.
Since the "incident" which occurred in the past month involving the mild-mannered dish comprising of soy sauce, herbs, and coincidentally pork ribs, it seems a civil war can be started by just mentioning the name of "the-dish-which-must-not-be-named".

No surprise...we Malaysians are an infamously reactive people.
(This post itself is a reaction to the whole event. Lol -.-")

The real surprise, in my opinion, is that all this is happening in Ramadhan; a month of patience and forgiveness.
Or at least, that's what it's supposed to be.

*               *               *

Once upon a time, about 1400 years ago, a Bedouin man entered a mosque.
He found a corner and started urinating.
(Pretty provocative, I would say).

The companions of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in the mosque were not very pleased, and quite understandably, not too far off from beating up the rogue tinkler.

But before chaos could ensue Muhammad told his companions to calm down and let the Bedouin finish his "business" in the corner.


*               *              *


Funny what qualifies as "insulting religion" nowadays.
An invite to buka puasa with "the-dish-which-must-not-be-named",
a video of a lady celebrating Raya with her dogs;
are so easily taken as insults to the faith.

Calls for the heads of errant bloggers come next.



*               *               *

After the Bedouin had fulfilled the call of nature at the corner of the mosque, he was called over by Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) and was told:

"In these Mosques it is not right to do anything like urinating or defecating; 
they are only for remembering Allah, praying and reading Quran," 


Then Muhammad (p.b.u.h.) commanded a man who was there to bring a bucket of water and throw it over the urine, and he did so.

Simple.

Which is why we Muslims follow the sunnah; take Muhammad as a role model. 
Not as a blind cult following; but as a rational guide to life.


Eh...a rational guide to life?

Then why did so many Muslims act in such irrational ways to the bak kut teh issue?




*               *               *

And therein lies the real problem.

For me, the question:
"why in the world would these bloggers post such a stupid thing in Ramadhan??"
has an obvious answer:
"they do not know".

Just like the way the Bedouin did not know enough about Islam when he "confused" the mosque for a toilet,
Alvin and Vivian do not know enough about Islam.

Admittedly, they must have already known the fact that the consumption of pork is prohibited for Muslims, but my guess is that they did not know enough of why;
such as why we can't eat pork, and
why the prohibition means so much to us.
Or, more fundemantally:

Why be Muslim?


And therein lies the problem.

Whose job was it to let Alvin and Vivian know the answers to the above questions?
Our schools?
JAKIM?
The Internet?

No.
The task falls on the shoulders of every able-bodied Muslim.

We pride ourselves on following the sunnah, but the biggest sunnah of all is dakwah. Calling people to Islam.
That was Muhammad's lifelong undertaking.

But we don't do enough dakwah, do we?
And suddenly we jump at the chance to punish people for not knowing enough about our way of life.


If you ask me, that is the real insult to Islam.


*               *               *


Dear Alvin and Vivian,

I will do the unthinkable here, and apologise.

No, I'm not apologising for the fact you got punished.
That is out of my jurisdiction.

But I apologise because the situation you find yourself in,
and the actions you took to get yourselves in that position,
are both proof.
Proof of how little you know of my way of life, my Deen.
Of Islam.

For if you knew, you wouldn't have done what you did.
Of that I am sure.



After Ramadhan and Eid, I am planning to learn how to cook a few dishes from my Mama...
it goes without saying that bak kut teh is one of them ;p

I understand, Alvin and Vivian, that the circumstances are not in the favor of us meeting up. 
But I would really love if we could an enjoy a bowl of bak kut teh together one day.

Oh, but it'll be pork-free though. 
Maybe while we eat, we can have a chat as to why that is so :)