Sacrifice?

"Hurmmmm... Am I suppose to buy this Quran mushaf? But the mosque already got lots of em..."

"Errr.. Oh no.. I thought this tazkirah won't take this long. I have tons of homework to do..."

"Ha? Walk to that faraway mosque? You gotta be kidding me. Perform prayer at the block's musolla is enough what..."

Hmmm.. What can you conclude from the dialogue (also can be a monologue) above? Yes, a lot can be concluded. Most of us might already able to guess the topic that will be discussed today.

Sacrifice. How do you define sacrifice? Do you really know what's the meaning of a sacrifice? Have you ever done any? Yeah, most of you would answer yes. What did you sacrifice? Mostly time, energy, ideas etc. But even if you'd be sacrificing your own life right now, what would it for? For what purpose? Is it worth it? How do you define worth? How do we know we're sacrificing for the right thing? All of these questions can be easily answered but don't tell me any of yours. Instead, ask yourself. HONTOU NI? (Am I really sure??)

"And of mankind is he who selleth his life even, seeking the pleasure of Allah; and Allah is Tender unto His bond men." Al-Baqarah [2:207]

Whoah, whoah. Wait a sec. Hontou ni? Even his own life? For what purpose? The pleasure of Allah. Again, hontou ni? Well, let's go deeper.

"Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties [in exchange] for that they will have Paradise. They fight in the cause of Allah , so they kill and are killed. [It is] a true promise [binding] upon Him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Qur'an. And who is truer to his covenant than Allah ? So rejoice in your transaction which you have contracted. And it is that which is the great attainment." [At-Taubah 9:111]

Whoah. You see that? Not only their lives, but also their properties! In exchange of? Yes. Eternal happiness in His jannah. Isn't that worth way more than the world and its content? Of course! But wait a minute, isn't that sounds too easy? Heck yeah it's "easy". Now let's go much deeper.

"Shaitân (Satan) threatens you with poverty and orders you to commit Fahshâ (evil deeds, illegal sexual intercourse, sins etc.); whereas Allâh promises you Forgiveness from Himself and Bounty, and Allâh is All-Sufficient for His creatures' needs, All-Knower.." [Al-Baqarah 2:268]

Wait what? Satan will threaten us? With poverty? What kind? Does it include poverty in terms of time, energy, ideas, properties etc? Then how? Wouldn't that be hard for us? Well, let's go much more deeper!

"And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruits, but give good tidings to the patient, Who, when disaster strikes them, say, "Indeed we belong to Allah , and indeed to Him we will return." [Al-Baqarah 2:155-156]

Deeper!

"Do the people think that they will be left to say, "We believe" and they will not be tried? But We have certainly tried those before them, and Allah will surely make evident those who are truthful, and He will surely make evident the liars." [Al-Ankabut 29:2-3]

Now I see. No wonder. Once we admitted to the fact that Allah is our only, the Almighty God and Prophet Muhammad is His 

messenger, we'll surely be tested. For what? To see whether you're a faithful servant of His or just a big liar.

Conclusion? Easy. It is normal to be feared of losing a bit of our property, time, energy etc but let's think about the reward in the hereafter. Isn't it worth more than you could've ever sacrifice?

Kecenderungan Hati?

“لَا إِلٰهَ إِلَّا الله”

Apakah yang kita faham dengan kalimah di atas? Secara spesifiknya perkataan “Ilah”. Pastinya ramai di antara kita menterjemahkannya kepada “Tiada Tuhan Melainkan Allah”. Ya, tidak salah. Cuma kurang tepat. Apakah sebenarnya maksud “Ilah”? Makna ilah yang sebenarnya dapat kita fahami dari kata akar yang membentuknya. Ilah terbentuk dari kata kerja aliha. Dalam bahasa Arab alihahu bererti:

1.Merasa tenteram kepadanya sehingga ia asyik dengannya dan engan meninggalkannya
2.Berlindung dengannya kerana kagum kepada kekuatan, kehebatan dan kekuasaanya.
3.Rindu kepadanya kerana keberadaanya memberikan rasa tenteram dan aman sehingga ia berusaha untuk selalu dekat denganya.
4.Sangat mencintainya dengan hati yang tulus kerana tiga hal di atas. Apabila keempat-empat perkara ini diketahui, dirasakan dan diyakini maka ia akan:
5.Menyembahnya dan siap mengorbankan apa sahaja kerananya demi cinta yang mententeramkan, melindungi dan selalu ia rindukan. 

Pendek kata, “Ilah” bermaksud kecenderungan hati.

* * * * * * *

Saban hari, pasti kita sudah bertemu dengan pelbagai jenis ragam manusia di atas muka bumi ini. Setiap di antara mereka mempunyai minat atau kesukaam mereka yang tersendiri. Ada yang suka melayan musik; pop, rock, metal, rap, RnB, jazz, balada etc yang datang dari pelbagai sudut muka bumi; Barat, Jepun, Korea etc. Ada pula yang suka menonton drama bersiri television dari yang tempatan (Playboy itu suami aku, Ariana Rose etc) hinggalah drama antarabangsa (The Walking Dead, Games of Throne, Big Bang Theory etc) termasuk jugalah drama bersiri dari Korea, Jepun dan sebagainya. Ada pula yang minat bermain permainan video (DotA, Call of Duty, Grand Theft Auto etc). Tidak kurang juga mereka yang banyak melayan cerita panggung wayang (Iron Man, The Hobbits, LoTR, Harry Potter, X-Men etc). 

Selain daripada itu, ada juga mereka yang menjadikan seseorang personaliti atau artis sebagai orang yang mereka minati dan menjadikan mereka sebagai ikutan atau dalam bahasa mudahnya idola. Laman sosial seperti Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, WeChat, Whatsapp!, Youtube etc juga sudah menjadi trend kebanyakan manusia di masa kini. Semua ini pasti kita dapat lihat pada diri orang terdekat kita; rakan sebaya/sebilik/sekelas/setempat kerja, keluarga bahkan diri kita sendiri. Persoalannya, apa pula kaitannya dengan tajuk yang ingin dibicarakan pada kali ini?

* * * * * * *

Suka saya memberikan sebuah analogi berkenaan sebuah cerita. Bayangkan anda berada di dalam sebuah kelas, seorang guru bertanya kepada semua murid-muridnya, "Murid-murid, apakah jawapan bagi lima campur tiga?". Dengan penuh keyakinan anda tahu jawapannya. Di dalam hati anda terdetik jawapan "Lapan". Namun pada kemudiannya semua murid-murid menjawab, "Tujuh cikgu!" dengan penuh semangat. Anda terkesima. Bahkan guru tersebut mengiyakan jawapan tersebut. Kini anda menjadi pelik. Kenapa?! Anda terasa ingin memberontak namun anda juga tidak terlepas daripada perasaan ingin menjawab dengan jawapan "tujuh". Kenapa? Sebab semua orang menjawab dengan jawapan tersebut dan anda tidak ingin diasingkan apatah lagi dipandang pelik dengan jawapan "lapan". Persoalan timbul semula, apa pula kaitannya dengan tajuk yang ingin dibicarakan pada kali ini?

Kenapa saya memberikan analogi di atas? Secara mudahnya saya ingin memberikan anda gambaran terhadap keadaan masyarakat kita sekarang. Trend-trend yang muncul tidak kisah datang daripada timur, barat, utara mahupun selatan bumi ini pasti terdetik di hati kita untuk berbuat yang sama. Apabila semua orang ada Facebook, kita mula terasa untuk mempunyainya. Apabila ramai orang membuat video "Harlem Shake", kita pun terasa ingin buat juga. Apabila semua orang buat video "Gwiyomi", kita pun terasa ingin melakukan perkara yang sama. Apabila semua orang memakai gajet-gajet canggih, kita juga tidak terlepas untuk memilikinya. Semua ini kita lakukan tanpa berfikir secara rasional mahupun logikal adakah apa yang kita ikuti mampu membawa faedah kepada kita, ataukah hanya memberi mudarat semata-mata.

"Dan jika kamu menuruti kebanyakan orang-orang yang di muka bumi ini, niscaya mereka akan menyesatkanmu dari jalan Allah. Mereka tidak lain hanyalah mengikuti persangkaan belaka, dan mereka tidak lain hanyalah berdusta (terhadap Allah)" [Al-An'am 6:116]

Kebanyakan kesukaan tersebut hampir tidak ada memberi manfaat kepada kita. Membuang masa, duit, tenaga, pemikiran, potensi dan daya upaya kita yang sepatutnya boleh dimanfaatkan untuk benda yang lebih besar. Padahal kita adalah orang Islam, padahal kita adalah hamba Allah SWT, Pencipta Semesta Alam, padahal kita adalah umat Nabi Muhammad SAW. Bukankah sepatutnya semua itu kita sumbangkan untum agama Islam? Dahulunya Islam amat terkenal dengan tokoh-tokohnya; Al-Khawarizmi, Al-Jabrun, Ibnu Sina (Avicenna), Ibnu Batutta etc atas sumbangan mereka terhadap dunia. Namun sayangnya umat Islam sekarang hampir tidak menyumbang langsung terhadap kemajuan dunia bahkan umat Islamlah umat yang paling ditindas, ditakuti, dipulaukan, di boikot bahkan dihinakan! Apalah erti doa yang selalu kita lafazkan selepas solat kita jika tiada langsung erti kita menganuti agama Islam? Hendak menjaga perintah Allah pun tidak mampu, apatah lagi yang Allah larang, terlalu asyik berfikir untuk memuaskan hawa nafsu semata.

"Dan di antara mereka ada orang yang berdoa: "Ya Tuhan kami, berilah kami kebaikan di dunia dan kebaikan di akhirat dan peliharalah kami dari siksa neraka"." [Al-Baqarah 2:201]

Setelah mengetahui keburukan bagi apa yang kita perbuat itu, namun masih juga terasa berat untuk melepaskannya. Apakah sebabnya? Pastinya disebabkan ia sudah menjadi sebuah kecenderungan dalam hati kita. Buktinya, ada di antara kita yang pasti merasa tidak keruan apabila tidak melakukan perkara yang disukainya tersebut. Ada juga yang menjadikan "melepas tekanan" sebagai alasan kukuh untuk terus-menerus secara istiqomah melakukan perkara-perkara lagho. Pendek kata, mencari ketenangan katanya. Beberapa persoalan baru kini muncul; bukankah syarat untuk menjadi seorang Islam ialah mengucapkan dua kalimah syahadah dan juga memenuhi syarat-syarat yang kita ucapkan? Bagaimana pula kita boleh mempunyai banyak kecenderungan hati sedangkan sepatutnya hanya Allah lah yang menjadi "Ilah" kita? Dan bukankah ketenangan itu hanya datang daripada Allah?

"Dan diantara manusia ada orang-orang yang menyembah tandingan-tandingan selain Allah; mereka mencintainya sebagaimana mereka mencintai Allah. Adapun orang-orang yang beriman amat sangat cintanya kepada Allah. Dan jika seandainya orang-orang yang berbuat zalim itu mengetahui ketika mereka melihat siksa (pada hari kiamat), bahwa kekuatan itu kepunyaan Allah semuanya, dan bahwa Allah amat berat siksaan-Nya (niscaya mereka menyesal)." [Al-Baqarah 2:165]

"(yaitu) orang-orang yang beriman dan hati mereka manjadi tenteram dengan mengingat Allah. Ingatlah, hanya dengan mengingati Allah-lah hati menjadi tenteram." [Ar-Ra'du 13:28] 

Jadi, apakah konklusinya? Mudah sahaja. Ayuh kita selami beberapa ayat al-Quran:

"Dijadikan indah pada (pandangan) manusia kecintaan kepada apa-apa yang diingini, yaitu: wanita-wanita, anak-anak, harta yang banyak dari jenis emas, perak, kuda pilihan, binatang-binatang ternak dan sawah ladang. Itulah kesenangan hidup di dunia, dan di sisi Allah-lah tempat kembali yang baik (surga). Katakanlah: "Inginkah aku kabarkan kepadamu apa yang lebih baik dari yang demikian itu?." Untuk orang-orang yang bertakwa (kepada Allah), pada sisi Tuhan mereka ada surga yang mengalir dibawahnya sungai-sungai; mereka kekal didalamnya. Dan (mereka dikaruniai) isteri-isteri yang disucikan serta keridhaan Allah. Dan Allah Maha Melihat akan hamba-hamba-Nya. (Yaitu) orang-orang yang berdoa: Ya Tuhan kami, sesungguhnya kami telah beriman, maka ampunilah segala dosa kami dan peliharalah kami dari siksa neraka,". (yaitu) orang-orang yang sabar, yang benar, yang tetap taat, yang menafkahkan hartanya (di jalan Allah), dan yang memohon ampun di waktu sahur." [Ali-Imran 3:14-17]

Cinta?

Cinta - By: Mujahid Pingu 

Love; a natural tendency for every living things in this world. 

Love; what most people seek in their everyday life. 

Love; not many does know what it is but still blindly seek it in many forms (spouse/partner, work, materials, gadgets, games, hobbies etc.) 

Love; can bring you to eternal peace or damnation. 

Love; only The Creator of Love is worth to be loved the most. 

 "And [yet], among the people are those who take other than Allah as equals [to Him]. They love them as they [should] love Allah . But those who believe are stronger in love for Allah . And if only they who have wronged would consider [that] when they see the punishment, [they will be certain] that all power belongs to Allah and that Allah is severe in punishment." [Al-Baqarah 2:165]

Penguins - Lessons to learn

Penguin. Who doesn't love them? Very elegant in water, with torpedo-shaped body, they often play and show off their skills in the water even if the weather is bad. But as soon as they spring up from the water onto the ice, they suddenly transformed  into an awkward waddler. <(=)"

But hey, they're cute anyway. <(^)

Many people did ask me, why penguin? Why not angry birds? Why not cats? Err.. That's too mainstream. Well, it is quite long to answer the question, but I'll do my best. I have many reasons to love them. So, I better make it in numbered list to make it easy for the readers.

1. The first thing I'm able to draw

This story goes back to year 2006, when I'm still Form 2. From that moment up until now, the drawing of my penguin have evolved so many times in order to have the best form of it; cute and adorable. You wouldn't want to see the first version of the penguin I drew. It is quite embarrassing, it looked much more like a monkey rather than a penguin, with the Doraemon Take-copter. Yeah, Doraemon + monkey. Can you even imagine?

2. Cute and adorable!

Legend has it that my gravest weakness is anything that is cute! Well, let's just say that the only cute and adorable thing that I like now is penguin. Yes, only penguin okay. For now...

3. Their characters

What are the qualities that you know about a penguin? That they are monogamous(has only one spouse during their lifetime)? Yeah, but that's not entirely correct. Most of them will change their spouse for every mating season, still we can call that a 'serial monogamy'. But that is not the character of them that gets me. FYI, for every breeding season, all of them will gather in one place making their total number reaches 7000!

For me, penguin is the most patient, toughest, determined, disciplined, respectful, cooperative, brave and most loving animal in this world! Well, even if it is not, in my heart, they're still no 1. <(^)

Why patient, tough, brave and determined? You did know that Antarctica is the coldest place on Earth, the only place that can get as cold as -89.2°C(−128.6 °F)!! Ever wondered how they breed? Can they breed underwater? Do they go to any tropical island to breed? No! They have to gather at a place that is safe, strong and stable enough deep within the Antarctica in order for them to get the best place to breed, which is safe from bad weather(blizzard) and also from their enemies(sea lion etc). And the journey to get there is about hundreds of kilometers which require them to walk! Yes. They can't fly, remember. But sometimes they slide on their bellies. That makes them more adorable.

Why disciplined and respectful? When the penguins are marching towards their breeding place, each penguin will form a line and no penguin will ever cut the line. They will always follow the steps of the penguin in front of them. Also, when a penguin starts to sing(they do this to attract female penguin or to call their spouse), the nearby penguin will remain silent! And they will make sure every penguin got their chance to sing. Wow, so many to learn from them. 

Cooperative and loving. Why? After reaching their breeding destination, they'll huddle together in a formation called 'turtle'. This turtle will hold up as many penguin as possible in order for them to survive the blizzard and also the horrible temperature of the Antarctica. No penguin will be excluded from this turtle, every each of them play important role to keep the turtle stable. After the female penguin lay their egg, the egg will then be taken care by the male penguin. They'll place the egg in between their short legs and their tummy. If they don't do this, the egg will be frozen. So, for many months they will face this situation, without having the chance to rest, eat or play. The food they've collected before the marching is the only food stocks that they have. Why they do this? It's for the love towards their children. They are willing to sacrifice themselves in the coldest weather that no man can ever face in order to raise their children.

* * *

Well, it seems like that's the main reason why I love penguins. Mostly because of the lessons that they provide from their story of life. But isn't it disturbing? Because, these lessons should already be the parts of every human. We human should have known this. We should have practice this much better. Aren't we? Or are we?

That's the question. Theoretically, yes. These qualities should already be parts of human culture. But practically, you know the story, don't you? We don't have to go far. Just look at the society of our own country, Malaysia. What do you see in this "Islamic" country? For me, I can see many Muslims, but without Islam. 

Wow. Look at that statistics. And who do you think contribute the most numbers for this statistics? Is it the non-Muslims? Ha ha. You gotta be kidding me. It is non other, by the Malay-Muslims. Okay, hold on, this is not written to lower or insult any race in this country. I'm a Malay-Muslim too. I only wants to show you the REALITY! This is the bitter-truth of what is actually happening in our country. And it keeps on getting worse. We really need to stop this!

Have you ever wondered why there are lesser headlines in the news regarding the abortion of babies? Is it because it's not happening anymore? Or is it because it's happening too often that the society are getting tired of it?? Why is this happening? I mean, if this is the case, I think penguins are better than humans! Is it because we don't have the knowledge? Didn't we all got good grades for "Pendidikan Islam"? Or is it because we learn Islam only for knowledge and refuse to understand and practice it in our life? Well, I thought Islam is a way of life, isn't it? Then why aren't we practicing it?

"We have indeed created man in the best of moulds, Then do We abase him (to be) the lowest of the low,- " [At-Tin 95:4-5]

Actually, these phenomena had already occurred in the times of our Prophet Muhammad pbuh. Well yeah, during their time, the jahiliyyah society only buried their daughters alive, unlike now where both genders, not buried, but thrown away like trashes. It is obvious that we have it worse. But let's look at how our Prophet manage to solve the problems. Did he make any programs or campaigns called "Tak Nak Buang Bayi"? Or maybe "Stop Zina"? Or even "Jom Tinggal Arak"? Or did the Prophet tried to take over the highest position in Mecca and ordered all people to stop maksiah even if Abu Suffyan did offer him the position? Why didn't he take it? Then what did our Prophet do? 

We all know the stories behind the house of Al-Arqam ibnu Abi Al-Arqam. We do know what Rasulullah sallahu alaihi wasalam did back there with the sahabah. They didn't organize any fancy programs, campaigns or anything nor they want to rule the place. Instead, what are they doing?

"It is not (possible) That a man, to whom Is given the Book, And Wisdom, And the Prophetic Office, Should say to people: "Be ye my worshippers Rather than Allah's On the contrary (He would say): "Be ye worshippers Of Him Who is truly The Cherisher of all: For ye have taught The Book and ye Have studied it earnestly." " [Ali 'Imran 3:79]

Yes, "Tu'allimun al kitab, wa bima kuntum tadrusun". Tarbiyyah. Halaqoh. Usrah. You can call it anything. Everything that includes the process of "studying The Quran" and at the same time "teaching The Quran". That is the solution of our problem. That will make Islam conquer not only 2/3 of the world like we did before, but the whole world instead. We are the generation that will make Islam raise again. So please, do not ever let our desires defeat us. Do not make ourselves lower, as we have already being created as the best of creation.

"We are the best Of Peoples, evolved For mankind, Enjoining what is right, Forbidding what is wrong, And believing in Allah. If only the People of the Book Had faith, it were best For them: among them Are some who have faith, But most of them Are perverted transgressors," [Ali 'Imran 3:110]

Doesn't have/belong to any "Bulatan Gumbira"? Better find it now <(^)v

* * *

I guess that's it for this post. I know, I know, kinda weird,  from penguin tale to the reality of this world we live in. Well, next time, look at the title first. <(^)" But hey, better give someone a sweet chocolate before giving him a hot volcano-like coffee isn't it? By the way, I will explain more of the things in this post throughout the time. So stay tuned! 

And before I forget, yay! My first post! <(^)v

"There is not an animal (that lives) on the earth, nor a being that flies on its wings, but (forms part of) communities like you. Nothing have we omitted from the Book, and they (all) shall be gathered to their Lord in the end." [Al-An'am 6:38]