Wasurenaide ne

"Nihonggo o wasurenaide ne... Wasurenaide kudasai."
(Please don't forget how to speak Japanese. Please do not forget)

She pled at the end of our meeting that night.
Sara-san, wife to Brother Nazeer earlier commented that my nihonggo is rusty. Brother Nazeer affirmed her claim, saying that I was a lot more fluent back in Tokyo, and while I still understood what they were saying, I had to take some time recalling words in Nihonggo before responding.

"Wasure wa dame. Dame!"
(You can't forget. No. No!)

Yes, I can understand why she feels strongly about it. One of the biggest hurdles for dakwah to Nihonjin is overcoming the language barrier. (I may not live in Japan anymore, but there are many Nihonjin currently living in Malaysia and who knows if one day I may be asked about Islam in Nihonggo?)

#####

The guests from Japan

It's good to meet up. No, I didn't make any request for omiyage (souvenir) although Brother Nazeer already asked us to let them know if there's anything we would like to get from Japan. Knowing Brother Nazeer and Sara-san, we knew that they would not meet us empty-handed. Since we were not prepared in advance, hubby and I dashed for some last minute Malaysian-souvenir shopping at Isetan (which was terribly costly and with not much choice, we might as well shopped for souvenir in Pavillion) before we met them for tea, followed by dinner at Pavilion (thank you Anira for your assistance with our order that night)

Hubby with Brother Nazeer (that Isetan paper bag contained the newly-bought Malaysian souvenirs, both edible and non-edible ones)

Brother Nazeer excitedly shared about As-Salaam Masjid in Okachimachi with Sara-san chipping in here and there. As-Salaam Masjid is relatively new - just opened in Ramadhan last year. But a popular masjid due to its strategic location, or so according to the couple.

"Benri, benri. Kaimono mo, eki mo..."
(It's really convenience as it's near to both shopping area and railway station)

In Tokyo, the more popular masjid/musolla are strategically located near the railway stations and it is a plus if it's near to shopping area (think Otsuka, Shin-Okubo, Yoyogi-Uehara...). As-Salaam is located near to Okachimachi station - which is near to both Ueno and Akihabara, two hot shopping/tourists spots in Tokyo.

"Last time, I must admit that I didn't always pray Fajr. Not anymore. Alhamdulillah, now that the Masjid is there, my wife always wake me up for Fajr. And even for Fajr, there will be about 2o people there."

Impressive. I remember it was difficult to get even one makmum coming to Asakusa Masjid for Subuh. And good for Brother Nazeer to have a strong motivation to wake up in the morning, alhamdulillah.

Nasi Bojari for dinner

"Jumu'ah is a busy day - usually we get about 50-60 people. Khutbah is in English, so it's really popular with tourists or businessmen. We can receive up to 200 congregations in one time, insya Allah."

50-60 pax for Jumu'ah congregation is no small feat in Tokyo. I assume those who used to travel to Asakusa Masjid - from Ueno, Okachimachi and all - would now go to As-Salaam Masjid. Plus the tourists and businessmen on short trips. Yeah, 50- 60 pax makes sense.

Brother Nazeer had plain rice, Otak-Otak, crispy fried chicken wings and beef rendang (not in picture)

"Insya Allah we're going to Makkah for Umrah and will do some Ziarah in Turkey. I would like to get some chandeliers for the Masjid as well as some stained glass windows. Sara-san would like to get some headscarves there as well as some nice clothing which cover the aurat."

Sara-san nodded enthusiastically.
I was happy to hear that she's going to start dressing in 'proper' aurat-covering clothes for good. It takes a lot of courage to do that and I pray that Allah will grant her the needed strength and guide her all the way.

Banana fritters with ice-cream for dessert

Banana boat which melted while we went to perform solat Maghrib for hubby and tropical fruits for Brother Nazeer and Sara-san

"When we go to Makkah, we are going to make du'a to get one son. We would like to train our son as a practising Muslim to be a multi-lingual Hafeez who can help spread Islam in Japan one day, insya Allah"

Hubby raised his hand and started making a du'a there and then. Brother Nazeer already had two sons from previous marriage. Sara-san has never said much about getting a child, but this time around it was obvious that she's looking forward to getting a child. When asked who was taking care of our children while we went out for dinner that night, I told her that we have an Indonesian helper. "We would like to hire an Indonesian helper too, one who is a good Muslimah, to help us raise our child Islamically," she confessed.

Omiyage (until then, I didn't realised I miss Karintou)

The next day they were scheduled to have a meeting with representative of RISEAP and 4 other Japanese Muslim reverts.

"We wish to get more Nihonjin Muslim active in dakwah in Japan. To be done and over with the bad publicity of Muslims and Islam and to start showing true peaceful colors of As-Salaam..."

(Brother Nazeer once discussed with the Japanese Muslim Association on his plan to develop a mosqe and then hand it over to JMA to be managed by JMA. Unfortunately his plan was not warmly received by JMA, instead he was told that they were content with the small room they rented from where they operated in Yoyogi)

Here's making du'a that his (and Sara-san's) wishes for the good of ummah will come true, insya Allah.

Some notes on Team Strenghtening Course

Ok, ok, I know that I probably should move on to another topic by now, but... I still want to share some personal notes made during the 3 days/2 nights course.

1. I'd been hoping that there would be some Islamic value-add of sort, given that it's a common knowledge among us that our Numero Uno is quite religious and the fact that all participants are Muslim. I thought there might be some Islamic elements woven into the "OBS flashback" course. Now that we are in our 30s/40s/50s, we have less time in this world to make ibadat, so we would like to ensure that every little things count, hence why we prefer engaging in value-added activities than merely doing the same old, same old.

2. Unfortunately, no such thing happened. It was a 'normal' team building course. We had lots of laughter, light moments, some dramatic and melodramatic moments - but there was no serious pondering of stuff in Islamic light.

3. I miss a'la usrah team buidling course when every activity that we did was analyzed in regards to our duties and responsibilities as "hamba Allah" and "khalifah" on earth. That the basis of team building in Islam is already explained out as 'habluminallah" and "habluminannas". That there are things that we can do as a team, but there are also things that are beyond our control, but whatever it is, following a decision after musyawarah as one team (jama'ie) is always better that following merely one's head.

4. I couldn't help noticing that while the instructors were adamant about everybody putting in effort for poco-poco as part of team building, the same instructors said it was okay to perform our solat individually. I mean, seriously, surely ensuring everybody to perform solat jemaah is one way to strengthen the team? And one way that guarantees added 'pahala' too, insya Allah.

5. What's with this craze for poco-poco? The instructor said that it's a form of exercise that is suitable for those who only exercise moderately. The steps are not that complicated, the movement not as intense as aerobic, still... never mind that we were entertained by certain individuals with their 'over' excitement in poco-poco

6. There were so many things that could be said about the activities more than stressing on mere teamwork. Stuff like building and maintaining trust, being selfless instead of selfish, giving more than taking, caring for others, emphatetic and not just sympathetic, to ponder on own weaknesses and more importantly, to be in awe of a Greater presence and when all is done - to let it go and tawakaltu 'alallah...

7. There were bruises, stiffness of joints and pain all over the body right after the course ended. Had trouble sitting properly during solat on Sunday, so much so that I almost wanted to perform solat while sitting on a chair now that I know how painful it is for those who have knee problem. And all those pain merely from attending a team building course. Wonder what it might be like to live in a real distressed situation like living in the war zone. My heart goes out to all those who live through nightmarish life and deeply humbled by my own physical weaknesses and limits (a reminder to take serious action to increase my fitness level) drive oh drive, where ever art thou?

P/S: BookXcess is having their Moving Out Sale beginning tomorrow, February 26 to March 10, 2010. There are over 200 selected titles going on sale at 3 amazing prices: RM3, RM5 and RM9.90.

Kit, let's have lunch in Amcorp, ok?

Period

"You don't want to be near him today. Abang Z tengah period!"

Huh?

"You mean, he's moody today?"

"Yup. He has PMS"

I was flabbergasted. To listen to a male making "she-has-PMS" remark about a female colleague is one thing, but to hear a female colleague describing a male has having PMS was something new.

I was shocked.

Especially so when the remark was nonchalantly made in front of another male colleague.

Double shock.

Women complaining about a bad bout of PMS is one thing. But making fun of a male colleagues allegedly suffering from PMS in front of another male colleague - well, that made me feel a tad uncomfortable.

Especially when studies have shown that in reality, men too could suffer from PMS.
Seriously.
No kidding.

#####

"I was told that in Islam, menstruating women cannot pray. Why is that so? Is it because menstruating women are considered dirty?"

I took some time pondering on that question. That day I volunteered to help out at the exhibition area in conjunction with Islamic Awareness Week held at the Student Council building. I thought I was ready to help with answering common questions about Islam and Muslims - but after an incident of a Caucasian woman 'assaulted' the volunteers with scathing words on Islam (apparently because she used to be married to a kaki pukul Muslim husband), I was not so sure anymore.

Guessing from the way she asked the question, I already knew that the lady in front of me would not be pleased to be told that menstruating Muslim women are considered impure and thus not allowed to perform solat or fast.

I made a silent prayer for Allah to guide me in answering her.

"No, menstruating women are not considered dirty," I started tentatively.

"Oh, good! I am tired of hearing people saying that menstruating women are dirty. It is a natural process. Surely something natural cannot be dirty because the Maker should know better right?"

I nodded. Rather tentatively.

"So why can't menstruating women pray then?"

"Err... It's because Allah knows that women need a break. So we got our break from praying and fasting during menstruation. Allah gives us a break once every month because of the difficulty that we have to endure during menstruation. It's a privilege that Allah gives only to women. We get our break every month and every time after we give birth."

"Ooh..."

"You know - what with the bloating, headache, stomach ache, acne, fatigue, mood swings... Allah knows that we can really do without having to pray during that time of the month..."

"Oh, I've never thought of it that way. That it's a privilege for the women to have a break from prayers. And not as an inhibition that makes women a lesser being. Thank you. Thank you so much. Now I know for sure that you guys are not sexists."

I smiled.
(While silently praying hard that Allah had guided me to say something positive and true about Islam.)

Fast forward more than a decade later, alhamdulillah, I'm happy to note that my answer was along the same line of the one given here.

Wallahualam bissawab...

Salam Maal Hijrah

Picture taken from here

To all Muslim readers,

Happy New Hijri Year 1431

Ya Allah,

Most Gracious, Most Benevolent

Please forgive us for all our sins

Grant us the strength to live in accordance with the Quran and Sunnah

Grant us good health so that we may continue to make more good deeds

Grant us prosperity so that we can give more to those in need

and shower Your blessings on us

and keep us on Your guided path at all times

so that we may die in Iman and in Islam
Amin ya Rabbal Aa'lamin

Wanita materialistik?

That's the topic discussed in "Chit-chat Pagi" segment on MuzikFm this morning.

The callers on the radio seemed to basically agree that most women are materialistic - to different extent.

1. There are those "pisau cukur" type who will only fall for/date/marry rich guys because they look at the money factor first and foremost. This is the kind that most male callers talked about - the kind that give women a bad name.
2. Then, there are those who expect the guys to have more than them because they don't want to end up being the one to be the bread winner in the family. They feel that if they married those who are beneath themselves, then they are not doing justice to the future children because they fail to choose a responsible father. If they married those who do not earn at least as much as they do if not more, then they are not giving themselves much self respect because they are willing to stoop low and who knows how much lower they have to stoop later on. This group seemed to form the majority of the female callers, parents included ("Saya tak nak lah anak saya kahwin dengan orang yang pangkat dan gaji rendah dari anak saya, nanti apa saya nak jawab kalau orang tanya saya tak sayang anak ke?") .
3. Then, there are a few who believe in 'jodoh and rezeki di tangan Allah'. Yes, it is important that the guy has to be responsible and proves that he is willing to work hard to provide for the family. But who is to say that when you marry someone who doesn't earn that much, it will remain that way for the rest of your life? Who is to say that when you marry someone who earn a lot it will remain that way for the rest of your life? And if that happened, will you leave him just because he doesn't earn as much as he used to?

When Rasulullah married Saidatina Khadijah - she was a millionaire and he was working for her. In other words - she made a lot more than he did, but that did not deter her from marrying him as she fell for his sincerity, honesty, loyalty and good manners. Their marriage remained intact until Saidatina Khadijah passed away. For the duration of their marriage Rasulullah never married another. He only practised polygamy after Saidatina Khadijah passed away (a fact that many Ustaz seems to forget to include in their text when talking about polygamy in Islam) And even when he married others, his wives - including Saidatina Aisyah - were jealous of his deep love for Saidatina Khadijah.

Ah, but then he was a prophet. Maksum. Special.

Personally, I believe in looking more at the guy's attitudes than how much money he has. The attitudes go a long way insya Allah, the money, wallahua'lam. And of course, asking for Allah's guidance through solat istikharah is very important before one agrees to marry anybody. Merely using our head and heart is not enough without Allah's guide, so I believe istikharah is a HUGE factor in determining the 'one'.

I've seen some friends and relatives marrying someone who earns/earned less than themselves but alhamdulillah their marriages remain intact until today. I've seen a lady executive who married her boss' driver. Another lady executive married a clerk in the same office. The wives might be the main bread winner in the family, but both the husbands and wives don't let that bother them much. They both learned to take the meaning of "tolerance", "acceptance" and "respect" to another level compared to other 'common' couples.

So, is it true that most women are (or need to be at least a little) materialistic ?

Khatam Quran

The office's Puspanita held a Majlis Khatam Quran today. The third Majlis Khatam Quran after a 'divide & conquer' style of tadarus was conducted in all the different departments. Our department was asked to finish Juz 28-30, and we did it in a few days because the verses were further divided among the many readers as we were placed in groups of 3.

Personally, I prefer a more traditional version of tadarus. You know, a medium group of 5-7 people, each person taking turn to read while others listen and correct our reading and someoen will read the translation of the Quranic verses we just read. Sometimes there'll be a small discussion on what we've just read whether on hukum or on asbabun nuzul. But well, I have no problem with any different kind of tadarus groups. In fact I'm thrilled that I get to join one after three years of reading the Quran on my own in Ramadhan (with hubby checking on my reading every now and then...)

Yesterday we had a meeting among the department's tadarus group members and were told that some of us will be needed to help with the Puspanita's Majlis Khatam Quran, and we also need to send 2 representatives as reciter in the Majlis. The No 1 choice was unanimous - one clerk named Aju is a really good qari'ah. But I was quite surprised when my name was announced as the other reciter.

"Eh, tak ada orang lain ke?"

Apparently the meeting decided to pick one representative among the support staff and another among the officers.

I tried to nominate another more senior officer, Puan K, but she declined saying that she had to pick her son from school at 12.00 (the time of the Majlis), so I agreed.

For some reasons I find it quite funny. Long long time ago, back in my high school, my name would never be on anybody's list as the 'qariah'. Nobody would have thought that I would grow up to marry a hafiz too. Now, as an adult (and someone who is married to a hafiz) I try to improve my Quran reading by making it a habit. I usually read two pages in the morning, before I start working, in the office. Hubby once commented about seeing me picking up the Quran only during Ramadhan, but he was then not yet aware about this ritual I have every morning.

I didn't know that others actually paid attention until Encik Shukor, my next door neighbour in the office commented about it. In fact he actually thanked me for reciting the Quran every morning - as listeners also get the 'pahala' when one reads the Quran.

Hanum, who used to work in Mak's old office under Mak's supervision told me that when she first started working, Mak who was the Human Resource Manager in that Ministry reminded her to read the Quran everyday. Be it a page or two, but one must stay consistent in reading the Quran until it becomes a habit that's hard to die. Hanum recalls Mak telling her that we don't know what kind of trials, tribulations and obstacles we're going to face in our life, so having the Quran as a constant companion insya Allah will prove to be handy at difficult times.

Reading the Quran is good in Ramadhan. Joining a tadarus group is good in Ramadhan. But it would be even better if we could remain consistent about reading Quran on other days and become a life member of a long lasting tadarus group...

Islamic historical events in Ramadhan

Today, Ustaz Zamri (of "Ustaz Zamri Bercerita" & "Mari Mengaji") was the invited speaker for the office's Ihya Ramadhan program. It was my first time attending a ceramah by him, and I stayed awake throughout the program (which is a huge compliment for the speaker with my history of sleeping during lectures/class).

Just want to share about historical events in Muslim calendar that happened in Ramadhan (perhaps as motivation of sort to work hard and not being "lembik longlai" during this blessed month...)

- Battle of Badar took place on 17 Ramadhan, Year 02 Hijri, in which 313 Muslims, of whom only 60 were armored, faced 1000 well-armed and equipped Musyrikin.
- The Opening of Makkah happened in Ramadhan, Year 08 Hijri
- Battle of Al-Qadisiyyah was won in Ramadhan, Year 15 Hijri. The battle is regarded as the decisive battle in the Islamic conquest of Persia, and a key to the conquest of Iraq.
- Opening of Andalus under Commander Tariq bin Ziyad happened in Ramadhan, Year 92 Hijri
- Construction of Al-Azhar Mosque, which later became the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt commenced in Ramadhan, Year 361 Hijri
- Salahuddin Al-Ayubi led the Muslims in evicting European Crusaders from Syria in Ramadhan 584H
- The Battle of Ain Jalut was won by the Egyptian Mamluks against the Mongols (Tartar) in Year 658 Hijri. The battle is considered by many historians to be of great macro-historical importance, as it marked the highwater point of Mongol conquests, and the first time they had ever been decisively defeated. After previous defeats, the Mongols had always returned and avenged the loss, but after the Battle of Ain Jalut they were unable to do so. The Mongol Ilkhanate leader Hulagu Khan was not able to advance into Egypt, and the Khanate he established in Persia was only able to defeat the Mamluks once in subsequent expeditions, briefly reoccupying Syria and parts of Palestine for a few months in 1300.

Notes on puasa

Some notes taken from an "Ihya Ramadhan" program yesterday

Q: Is this fast valid?
1. One who fasts while undergoing hemodialysis
Valid.
Among what can deem one's fast invalid is when anything enters a person's "rongga" (including but not limiting to one's nose and mouth). Hemodialysis is not considered to be inserting something into one's "rongga"

2. One who fasts and uses inhaler for treatment of asthma
Invalid.
Unlike rinsing out the mouth or putting drops in the eye, using inhaler is considered as inserting something (usually salbutimol) into one's "rongga".

3. One who fasts and get an injection for medical purposes
Valid.
An injection in the muscle is allowed during fasting but not an intravenous nutritional injection. Likewise, getting an IV drip will render one's fast as invalid because it can act as a substitute for food, yet fasting is to abstain from taking food in any form.

Q: When should I stop fasting?
1. "I started fasting in Country A which started fasting earlier than Country B by one day. I then moved to Country B before Eid and the Ramadhan that year lasts for 30 days. Should I stop fasting earlier than others?"
Yes.
One can only fast for up to 30 days and no more. So in this case, the person could not fast on the 31st day although it was the 30th day for others in Country B.

2."I started fasting in Country X which started fasting later than Country Y by one day. I then moved to Country Y before Eid and Ramadhan that year lasts for 29 days in Country Y. When should I stop fasting?"
In this case the person must not fast on the day Eid is celebrated in Country Y as fasting on Eid is prohibited. However, he or she must make up the days lost by 'qadha' the fast on other days. It is recommended that he or she to make up the days lost until the total day of fasting amounts to 30 days.

#####

Hope this is of benefit to those who were wondering...

Hopes for this Ramadhan

I hope that Muslims will make the most out of these especially blessed 29/30 days...
to repent for all kind of wrong doings
to apologize and grant forgiveness to others
to increase all kind of ibadah and good deeds

I hope that Allah will make it easier for those in places experiencing summer to fast throughout the month.
The long day, the heat, the humidity...
I'll pray that Allah will make it easy for them
And that those who have it easy and still refuse to fast to learn a lesson or two from their Muslim counterparts in those countries experiencing hot sultry summer...
(yes Ju, you are in my prayer...)

I hope that Allah will grant those who have just learn to fast the strength and patience needed.
Be them small kids, new reverts or adult born Muslims who have just started to fast after failing to do so before this.
Let their start be a fruitful one that will lead them to be closer to Allah...
And I hope that there will be less born Muslims trying not to fast during this holy month and drift further away from Allah AlMighty...

I hope that those who are venturing into new areas - wearing tudung, trying to quit smoking, nibbling on food all the time - will be granted strength and self-discipline needed to keep continue doing the good things even after Ramadhan is over

I hope that there will be less Muslims who claim that they fast but missed the real significance of fasting in Ramadhan...
Like those who overspend at Pasar Ramadhan (PaRam) and waste a lot of food at the end of the day
Or like Muslims who 'fast' yet break her/his fast with alcohol
Or like that Muslim couple who asked in an Aunt Agony column, what is the 'kifarah' for an unmarried couple who fornicated during the day in Ramadhan
Or like those Muslim girls (tudung-clad or otherwise, but especially the tudung-clad ones) and their partners who continued all sort of 'ringan-ringan' activities despite not eating or drinking during the day
I pray that Allah will guide them to learn and understand the real meaning of fasting and not continuing getting simply thirst and hunger in their endeavour

I hope that all the great not-to-be-missed bargains in Ramadhan -
the night of 1000 months,
the super extra blessings,
the promised rewards in the hereafter
will entice all Muslims to do good and do better.
And that we will keep the momentum going even after Ramadhan leaves...

Ahlan wa sahlan wa marhaban ya Ramadhan

It's tragical (Marwa Al-Sherbini - syahidat al-hijab)

She was called "terrorist", "Islamist" and "slut" by her 28 year old Russian-German neighbor in a public park as she was playing with her 3 year old son just because she donned the hijab.
She lodged a complaint against him.
He was fined Euro780 and appealed the fine.
She went to the court in Dresden, Germany to state her case.
She was stabbed 18 times in the courtroom in front of her 3 year old son.
A pharmacist, she was four month pregnant with her second child.
Stabbed
18 times
Witnessed by her 3 year old son
In a courtroom during a judicial session

When her husband sought to protect her from the xenophobic attacker, guess who got shot by the court security?
The husband, not the attacker.
The husband (who was in Germany on a research fellowship) was critically wounded as he was stabbed by the attacker and shot by court security.
("The guards thought that since he wasn't blond, he must be the attacker so they shot him," or so said the deceased's brother to an Egyptian television station.)

*****
When Theo van Gogh, a Dutch film director who had deliberately and contemptuously belittled Muslim culture, was killed by a Muslim in 2004, it was hugely dramatised in the European media.

Why the brutal stabbing of a pregnant woman, who was the victim of a religious slur, who had not done anything that could be construed as an act of provocation, has received so little publicity in the same media?

Because she's a Muslim?
Because she wore hijab?

Sad
Unbelievable

*****
Al-Fatihah for Marwa Al-Sherbini.
May Allah bless her and her family always
(My heart really goes out for her son. Huzaifah is not yet 4 and I can't imagine how traumatized a child his age would be to witness such horrifying scene)

Prayer for a friend who became a sister...

Was 'godek-godek'ing an old private blog of mine, and found an old poem I wrote for Emi, a close friend who reverted to Islam in 2004. (Throughout my life so far, I've been blessed with lots of good friends named Emi/Amy - some for a fleeting moment, some for life) When I re-read this - and now that I am a wife of an Imam who led several reversion sessions - it struck me that what I wished for my dearest friend back then, is similar to my hopes, wishes, and prayers for every new Muslim...

Once, we received a torn-into-2-pieces Muslim Certificate, and similarly torn Nikah certificate sent to the mosque (the lady converted in 2003). Just seeing the torn certificate was enough to make me and hubby 'mengucap panjang'... It got us both thinking about irresponsible Muslims who ask others to convert just for the sake of marrying, but do not help in guiding their partner towards the right path. While not every new Muslims get shunned from their family, relatives and friends, it is known to happen quite often - so if their trusted partner shun them too - where else can they go to?

If they have known Allah, at least they would know that Allah will never forsake them, but to most Japanese who have never believed in God for the most part of their life - this is a foreign concept. The concept of one Al-Mighty God is too deep, too complicated. A Japanese girl once asked me - "why are we not equal if Allah loves us all? Do you think we are equal?".

A simple question, yet it required a long detailed and thoughtful answer...

Doa (untuk teman yang kini menjadi saudara)

Tanganmu kugenggam erat
syukurku tidak terhingga
takdirNya kita sama memilih ad-deenul haq
tunduk pada Khaliq yang Esa

Satu persatu aku ungkapkan
hasrat, harapan dan doa
untuk seorang yang dulunya teman
kini sudah menjadi saudara

Pintaku
semoga hatimu disimbahi cahaya
rasa dilimpahi kebenaran
jiwa dihiasi ketenangan
bahagia berkekalan

Harapanku
agar kau sabar menempuh dugaan
tabah mengharung kesukaran
tekad dalam keputusan
nekad dengan pilihan

Doaku
mudah-mudahan kau tidak akan
rasa keseorangan dipinggirkan
rasa keasingan disisihkan
rasa kejauhan ditinggalkan
mudah-mudahan kau tidak akan
lupa bahawa betapa
selangkah kau mendekati Tuhan
seribu langkah kau akan didekatiNya

Saudaraku
mudah-mudahan kita sama-sama
dilindungi dalam rahmah dan barakahNya
sentiasa

Haizra Azida
4 Rabiul Akhir 1425
Kuala Lumpur

Islam Inspires Meme

Tagged by Kak D

Rules:

1) Answer the following questions

2) Post on your blog with link to who tagged you

3) Tag a minimum of three other bloggers and include links to their blog in your tag. Make sure to let them know you’ve tagged them too.

Meme Questions:

1) What Qur’anic verse do you find most inspiring and why? What does it mean to you personally?

The first verse that comes to my mind is verse 256, Surah Al-Baqarah

لَا يُكَلِّفُ ٱللَّهُ نَفۡسًا إِلَّا وُسۡعَهَا‌ۚ لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتۡ وَعَلَيۡہَا مَا ٱكۡتَسَبَتۡ‌ۗ

"On no soul does Allah place a burden greater than it can bear; it gets every good that it earns, and it suffers every ill that it earns"

Time and time again, whenever I faced some obstacle, I found solace in reading this ayah, knowing that I am only tested with what I am capable of handling.

Every time I felt I was ill-equipped for a particular position, I read this ayat to find the strength to give it my best try - be it when I was 19 and asked to be the Vice President of Islamic Student Council in my college, or when I was in my early twenties and asked to lead the Muslimah in my vicinity, or later in my mid twenties and asked to be the Penghulunita for my fellow DPA attendees. I felt reluctant to fill important positions because somehow I've always fared better as a follower than being in top leadership position. This verse propelled me to give my best because it is Allah's promise that I would never be burdened beyond my limited capability...

So every time I felt weak and helpless- like when I had to leave Huzaifah in Malaysia and came to Japan 11 days after I gave birth, or when I had my miscarriage earlier this year - this verse comforted me like no other.

It is a very empowering verse - to know that one is only tested with what one could handle, to be reassured that any test sent one's way is always never beyond one's capacity to handle...

2) What Hadith (Qudsi or Sunnah of the Prophet salallahi alaihi was salam) do you find most inspiring and why?

Okay, I found this to be a little bit difficult, because nothing hit me immediately like the answer to question no 1. But after giving it some thought - among the hadiths that I found inspiring is the one on giving salam;

Abu Hurairah (ra) related that Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wassalam said, "Let the one who is on a vehicle give salam to the one walking, let the one who is walking give salam to the one sitting, let those who are small in number (or alone) give salam to those who are in a larger group, and let the younger one give salam to the elderly"

Salam normally refers to the greetings Muslim shower upon each other, meaning "May peace be upon you". It is a sign of love and brotherhood, as Muslims pray for Allah's blessing on each other. This hadith went further to explain the etiquette of giving salam. And 'giving salam' here is not limited to just the greetings "Assalamualaikum", but also in giving salam by other ways.

Here in Japan (or in the UK for that matters) drivers slow down or wait patiently for pedestrians to cross the road at traffic lights and zebra crossing - the one who is on a vehicle give salam to the one walking. Sadly, in Malaysia - pedestrians often get honked at for crossing the road a little bit slowly, as if they are in the wrong if they try to cross the road when there is a car passing by (with the bonus of "oi butakah?" yelled out the window by the driver/passenger of the car)

There are priority seats for elderly, disabled, pregnant ladies and people with small kids on buses and trains - so that the one who is more able of walking can give salam to those who deserve the seat more. There are also priority queues in certain governmental offices - especially for the elderly - perhaps so that the younger one can give salam to the elderly.

So the hadith is not only about showering each other with greetings of peace as a sign of love, but also a lesson on giving priorities and good manners...

3) Other than the Prophet himself salalahi alahi wa salaam - what Muslim man do you find most inspiring and why?

I checked Kak D's and Nadia's (the one who tagged Kak D) answers and they both chose a companion of Rasulullah for this. I guess I will go along with them, and one sahabah that I found most inspiring is Ikrimah bin Abu Jahl.

Why?
a. He proved that sometimes it doesn't matter who your parents are - you and your parents are not necessarily of the same kind. Abu Jahl was a staunch opponent of Rasulullah, Ikrimah became a staunch companion of Rasulullah. When Ikrimah approached Makkah to say his syahadah, Rasulullah advised his companions; "Ikrimah ibn Abu Jahl shall come to you as a believer and a refugee. Do not insult his father. Insulting the dead causes grief to the living and does not reach the dead."

b. He always gave his all - as a non-believer he was instrumental in obstructing the spread of Islam, but as a Muslim, he spent twice as much and fought twice as much too in Allah's way. Ikrimah, despite Khalid ibn Al-Walid's advice against it, penetrated deep into the ranks of the Byzantine in the Battle of Yarmouk. "You have fought with Rasulullah earlier. Leave me now to atone for what I have done in the past. I fought Rasulullah on many occasions, shall I now flee from the Byzantines? This shall never be!" Under Ikrimah's leadership (without the leadership of Khalid), this daring Muslim attack paved the way for a decisive victory

c. He was a selfless friend. At the crucial time in the Battle of Yarmouk, there were three warriors lying on the battleground, one of them Ikrimah bin Abu Jahl. Someone offered him some drink, but upon noticing Suhail bin Amar lying next to him and looking, he asked the war aide to pass the water to Suhail first since Suhail might need it more than him. When Suhail was offered the drink, he noticed Haris bin Hisham lying next to him and looking at the water, so he declined the drink and asked for it to be offered to Haris first since Haris might need it more than him. When the drink was offered to Haris, Haris asked for it to be offered to Ikrimah since Ikrimah might need it more than him. All of them refused to drink before the other, insisting that their friend might be more in need of the water - until in the end all of them became shahid before taking a single sip.

(update)
d. Because I am a sucker for 180 degrees changes - and Ikrimah was a great Fighter against Islam who turned into a greater Fighter for Islam. Too often people are quick to judge another - "oh, he is a terrible person, he is so rough, no manners blah blah blah", never stopping to think for a moment that we never really know the inner hidden qualities of a person, and we never know the extent of Allah's mercifulness... Who knows if the so-called terrible person might change into a religious, gentle and generous being the next day?

4) Who is the most inspiring Muslim woman to you and why?

Sharing the sentiment with Kak D and Nadia, for all the reasons that they had already stated in their respective blogs, I agree that Saidatina Khadijah is the most inspiring Muslimah. Thus, I'll take this question as "Other than Saidatina Khadijah - who is the most inspiring Muslimah to you and why? "

There are so many prominent figures to choose from - Saidatina Aisyah, Saidatina Fatimah, Rabiatul Adawiyah, Zainab al-Ghazali.... but I'll go with someone close to me - my Mak.

Mak gives her all to support Ayah all the way.
Mak gave her best in attending to both her late mother and mother-in-law.
Mak gives her best for her siblings even when it is not reciprocal.
Mak gives her best for her kids even when we broke her heart time and time again, and even when we know she gives more selflessly and generously than our own biological mother.
Mak gave her best to the rakyat when she was a civil servant - never afraid of any political master, not even when she was demoted of sort.
Mak is still giving her best to the society by voluntary works.
Mak gives her best to Allah by giving her all

5) What CONTEMPORARY (i.e., living) Muslim do you find most inspiring and why?

Well, it's hard to name just one person since I get inspired by lots of different people with lots of different things for lots of different reasons.

A new Muslim revert is inspiring - the courage to change, the risk they take, the willingness to study and adapt to a new way of life. A practising Muslim in a non-Muslim country is inspiring.
Any Muslim - reverts or otherwise - who could inspire others to turn to Allah is inspiring too.

Muslim philantrophists like Yusuf Islam who build Islamic schools in non-Muslim countries are inspiring; so are those who take time off and devote their time and sweat for such school (like Brother Abdullah who spend his summer holidays annually organizing Islamic summer school in Gyotoku, Chiba). Wealthy Muslim businessmen who provide scholarships are inspiring, just like not-so-wealthy Muslims who support students by giving their zakats to them.

Muslim scholars and thinkers like Harun Yahya aka Adnan Oktar and Dr Zakir Naik is inspiring, so are Muslim musicians the likes of Dawud Wharnsby , Sami Yusuf and Zain Bikha.

A stay-at-home mother who homeschools her children is inspiring, but so is a working mother who is successful in raising up good children by conventional means.

Since I get inspired by so many people for so many different reasons - if you are a Muslim and you ask me this question in person, I might answer "you" and I'll find some reasons to substantiate it too...

6) How has Islam inspired you in your daily life?

Being a born Muslim, raised in a practising Muslim family, and now married to an Imam of a mosque in a non-Muslim country - I have to admit that while I may not be a good Muslim, Islam inspires me in so many ways. Islam is about love and compassion, faith and trust, good manners, hope, strive for excellence, care for the environment, world peace, etc, etc, etc...

7) If you could do anything at all to inspire others through Islam, how would you do it?

The truth is I wanted to answer "by being good at what I am" - but then I am very ordinary - average student, average officer, average wife, average mother, average daughter, average sister... But one thing I know is that I intend to get involved with some charity/voluntary organisations, and I hope it could provide me a way to inspire others through Islam, insya Allah...

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Tag 3 persons? This tag has gotten me thinking long and hard, so this might not be the best time to pass it over to the super-busy-with-her-PhD Rad - but Rad, I don't mind waiting until after July to read your take on this, hehehe. Anyway, I hereby tag:

1. Mrs Jemain - an ex-schoolmate

2. Zarin - another ex-schoolmate

3. Theta - an articulate blogger

Kobe

It was one very long day - we started very early in the morning, to catch the first bus to Tokyo at 6.03 a.m., so as not to miss the second earliest Shinkansen Hikari at 7.03 a.m. In a touch-n-go manner, we stopped at Kyoto and went to Kinkakuji, then took a few trains to go to Universal City, in Osaka, followed by a few more to go to Sannomiya, from where we boarded a taxi to go to Kobe Mosque.

Kobe Mosque is the oldest mosque in Japan. It was built in 1935, three years earlier than the old Tokyo Mosque (1938 - 1985), and it remained standing, surviving two historical moments when all the buildings next to it were completely destroyed. It first survived the bombings in 1945 during World War II, with destroyed windows, and some cracks in the outer walls, all blackened by smoke. During World War II, the mosque was used by Japanese Military as a shelter during Allied bombing raids, but later returned to the Muslims after the war was over, and oil-rich nations like Saudi Arabia and Kuwait helped to restore it.

The mosque also survived The Great Kobe Earthquake in 1995 in which about 180,000 buildings were damaged, 5,000 people died, 35,000 were injured and 300,000 were left homeless. The fact that the Mosque survived was widely covered in the media back then and it became a refuge for Muslims survivors.

It was not a surprise to note that this mosque is popular among tourists. When we were there, we met non-Muslim Nihonjin tourists from Tokyo, Malaysian tourists from Beppu, Kyushu, as well as non-Muslim foreigners - all fascinated with its beautiful architecture and amazing history. (The locals also go there to shop at the halal shop located right across the mosque. Halal Kobe beef is a huge hit, and halal Kobe chicken is far superior in size and taste than the normal halal Brazilian chicken found in most halal shops throughout Japan)

Happy New Year

My first post in the new year - it's already maghrib here, so makes that for both Gregorian and Hijri calendar...

So, what's up huh?

During the two-weeks new year break, apart from what I'd written in previous entry, I 'd managed to

• finish reading "Judges & Jury" and "London Bridges" by James Patterson, "The Broker" by John Grisham and "Number 10" by Sue Townsend. I know, I know, I should be reading academic books, not story books, but old habits die hard and all that...;

• take advantage of New Year bargains offer to buy Kose Sekkisei stuff for myself, a pair of glasses for hubby, as well as won a small Kaeru-chan toy for my baby and an "Ai Nori" mug in two separate lucky draws. "Ai Nori" is a Fuji TV reality-show involving a "love wagon" which goes around the world, and when they were ready, players were supposed to ask one player of the opposite sex who they were interested in, to return with them to Japan. Some ended as happy couples, some left devastatingly alone, and some simply retired after being in the game for some time without finding anyone they could be interested in.

• visit Asakusa area on New Year. It was already after Asar - so it was quite surprising to see the line for people to enter Sensoji (one of the oldest temples in Tokyo area) was still very long (think about 500 meter) and growing. The place was still crowded, most of the shops on the main streets closed, the streets opened only for pedestrians and we took some pictures in the middle of the usually busy main street a'la "ini jalan bapa kami yang punya" style. I should have not been that surprised though, after all most Japanese only pray once or twice a year. There were plenty of Christian missionaries all over Sensoji neighboring areas, both nihonjin and gaijin, holding placards urging people to learn more about the eternal life of Jesus, the death of a savior, with loud speakers repeating some recorded messages about Christianity again and again. I told hubby, maybe we should suggest to AMIR or IPIJ to invite those who are free and their Muslim nihonjin friends to come and distribute brochures about Islam too in this crowded area next year. There is so much that we still need to do to right the misperception most nihonjin seem to have about Islam and Muslim, and maybe we should learn a thing or two from those Christian missionary who stood up all day long holding their respective signboard.

• visit the Imperial Palace on January 2 (the only other day the Palace inner ground was open for public was on December 23, the Emperor's birthday). Very tight security. Do not bring any liquid in cans or plastic bottles - they had to be thrown away or else you will have to keep your bag in safe keeping at a counter manned by police officers. I was first asked by a young lady officer to either finish up or throw the content of feeding bottle for my baby. I tried persuading my baby to finish the bottle up; but another elder gentleman officer said that it was okay to enter with the bottle still half full, since baby might cry without his bottle. Oh, and no plastic container of any kind - the police inside the palace compound checked on Humaidi's toy twice to ensure that it was just a toy and not some explosive or something. Those with baby stroller and wheelchair get privileged treatment - so even though we were rather late, we were ushered to the front line. Hubby who wanted to take a better shot of the Emperor's family exchanged place with Faizly who had been manning the other stroller for a while just so he got to be on the front line. Granted, the Emperor is not my king, and I earlier thought that the place would be crowded with old people who are known to be more loyal to the Emperor than the younger generation - so I was surprised to see lots and lots of young people - singles, in groups and with families, all together chorusing "banzai" and waving the Japanese flags (freely distributed before we entered the security check area) oh-so-proudly and happily right after the Emperor made one of his hourly appearances and gave ultra-short new year greetings speech that day.

• visit Palette Town in Odaiba after the visit to Imperial Palace ended. Oh, we had a long, long walk that day... and Faizly must be very exhausted playing baby sitter for the kids while the parents berhoga-hoga, especially at Toyota Mega Web. I tried out the rally racing simulator machine and oh my - it was really difficult to handle compared to real life driving. Despite the "gelong-gelong macam mabuk" bumpy ride, I managed to finish it before the 3-minute-limit was up, so was pretty satisfied (it took a 30-minute wait after all). Hubby asked me to join him entering the simulator theater - and it was much, much better than trying out the simulator machine. No dizzying experience, and we managed to have a 'feel' of how one racer overtook not one, but four cars, to emerge the winner of the competition. Huzaifah had some fun in Venus Fort, very much mesmerized by the ever changing sky scenes - from twinkling blue and green stars in a dark-dark night, to the yellowish evening sunset and clear morning sky. The only "down" side to the trip is that dogs were allowed to be unleashed in the first floor of the mall. It's not that we don't like dogs, it's just that we have to go through some hassle of special cleansing ritual if the dog lick us, or if wet dogs make contact with us. When I was in UK, I really hated it when a dog suddenly appeared in front of me and the owner would casually say "It's okay love, he won't bite, he just wants to play...", always made me felt like replying - "I don't care if your dog wants to play - but I can't, okay?"

• watch all 17 episodes plus "the making of" Korean drama "Coffee Prince". I don't usually watch Korean drama, but my cousin Firdhaus loves them, and had in the past influenced me to watch "Full House" and "Wonderful Life". Zyrin's musings on "Coffee Prince" kind of prompted me to watch it - and yup, I enjoyed it. I still sometimes hum to the tune of the song the lead hero sang over the phone to the boyish-looking heroin (believably so too, unlike the heroin in J-drama Hana Kimi who still very much looked like a girl) just before they were supposed to be apart for 2 years.

Okay, now that the holiday is over, I should be concentrating on my thesis now. I mean, seriously...
Oh by the way, Kit, thanks for your do'a (winks).
Note to Kak Lela - "ada masa cecair merah yang dikeluarkan oleh jasmani wanita boleh menjadi tanda gembira, dan saya telah mendapat petanda itu! Syukur, alhamdulillah..."

Happy New Year 1429 Hijriah to my Muslim readers
May it be a better year, and may we be blessed by Allah always.

Kahwin, kawan-kawan, jalan-jalan

The last 9 days of 2007...

1. The Wedding

We got a call a few days before Eidul Adha, from an acquaintance who shared similar name with hubby. Brother Amin, a Jordanian married Naoko-san, a Nihonjin through civil ceremony in October 2007. Naoko-chan had not formally converted to Islam yet at that time, and Brother Amin told her that until she become a Muslimah and they go through a proper Islamic nikah, they could not live together or have normal life as married couple. Nao-chan agreed .

Brother Amin tried getting some help from the people at his Embassy, but they advised him to return and bring Nao-chan with him to Jordan for the formal conversion and Islamic marriage, since no such arrangement could be done at the Embassy. Since Brother Amin knew that they could not afford to go back to Jordan, he started looking for other alternatives.

It was then when he remembered that he actually knew a non Arab Imam who could speak Arabic, so he called us. Understandably, he was very excited upon learning that we could help him with both conversion to Muslim and Islamic nikah. "Thank you brother, thank you sister. I didn't want to bother you, but Allah had answered my prayer by guiding me to contact you..."

After he received the list of necessary documents/preparation needed, he called us again, to make appointment to see us on Saturday, 22 December 2007, for both conversion and nikah ceremony. Hubby quickly agreed, since it also happened that the Nihonjin kids he usually teach on Saturday had earlier asked for leave that day. We asked if he could bring two Muslim guys to act as witnesses for the wedding ceremony, but he could not, so hubby promised to help him on that matter.

Thus, when we were at the Embassy for Eidul Adha celebration, hubby asked around, to get some volunteers to act as witnesses for the coming wedding in Asakusa.

Saturday saw me preparing the 2 kg of qurban beef hubby collected from the Islamic Center in Setagaya the previous day. I was not sure what to cook at first, but somehow I ended up making Nasi Minyak, with Khuzi Daging Lembu and Acar Timun/Carrot. For dessert, I just peeled some mandarin oranges, diced some apples, sliced some kiwi and mixed them all with sugar and yoghurt, ala Pakistani style dessert minus the masala/chilli powder. (I still have trouble understanding why our Pakistani brothers always finish preparing the yoghurt-and-fruit dessert by adding a dash of masala/chilli powder...)

So, alhamdulillah, Basharan, Hadyan, Lutfy and Shahreeza came to help out with Nao-chan's conversion and Brother Amin-Nao-chan's wedding. Since there were four of them, two acted as witnesses for the conversion while the other two for the wedding.

Funny moments include - our surprise to see photos of various poses cut into passport size instead of the official passport-sized photos we needed to stamp on the respective certificates; how one of the witnesses excitedly posed for a photo with a wedding certificate; and how the same witness admitted to feeling rather nervous just before the wedding ceremony, although the groom himself had no such trouble whatsoever. Oh, by the by, the same witness is darn good in imitating the groom explaining stuff to his wife about Islam using Level 1 Nihonggo - "kore wa dame... kore wa daijoubu... kore wa Allah ga suki..." Although hubby had asked those who are fluent in Nihonggo to explain this and that during the conversion ceremony, Brother Amin took it upon himself to do it, using simple Nihonggo - which even to my not-so-jouzu ears sounded not quite right, yet the main points were there. So while Brother Amin acted as interpreter for the Imam; the rest of us glanced at each other, thinking similar thoughts, "Ok... that's right, but, but...". Thus, the nervous witness sometimes helped in interpreting hubby's word to Nihonggo, when words seemed to fail the enthusiastic husband.

After some deliberation, Nao-chan chose Sara to be her Muslim name. Brother Amin was obviously interested in naming her Nur, " you will become Nur Amin, the light of me", he grinned as he persuaded her. I told her it would be okay for her to use Nur Sara as her Muslim name, but Brother Amin asked her to choose one or the other. Sarah is what her mother-in-law wishes to call her, and since Sarah/Sara is a common universal name, Nao-chan finally chose Sara.

There was a break between the ceremony and getting the official certificates ready since the newlywed needed to get some official passport-sized photos first. The witnesses were invited to our home for late lunch/2nd round lunch (two guys arrived earlier and had already lunched at our place). Must be the berkat of qurban, the khuzi was a big hit that day. I received plenty of compliments such as "lembutnya daging ni" (it was on slow heat for ages, plus the beef was rather fresh), "akak masak macam mana ni, sedap betul," (my guess is khuzi is not something most single guys would cook. curry maybe, even kurma, but I have yet to see khuzi instant seasoning by Adabi) etc. I smiled as the boys kept adding the rice and beef, feeling really pleased to witness them enjoying the food thoroughly.

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2. Jalan-jalan ziarah kawan

(Another version of this could be read at Faizly's blog)

On Sunday, 23 December 2007, together with Faizly, we went to Gyoda, Saitama on Kak Ita's invitation. Spent most of the 1-hour ride on Takasaki line being glared in between flipping pages of her novel by one obachan sitting opposite us. Then, not long after we arrived in Gyoda, one hit-and-run incident happened involving the Nissan Serena we were in.

It was sunny in Gyoda as opposed to rainy and chilly morning in Tokyo. At first we thought of visiting the Emperor at the Imperial Palace (23 December is the current Emperor's birthday, one of the two days the Imperial Palace inner ground is opened to the public, apart from January 2, for New Year Greetings) but changed our mind upon reading the weather forecast. We ended up watching the Emperor and Empress greeting the visitors flocking the palace on the television in Kak Ita's living room.

Hubby had a great time mikan gari (mandarin oranges picking) under the sun, while I tried to ensure that Huzaifah was not leaving any permanent damage in Kak Ita's house, or should I say Kak Ita's hubby's rumah warisan. Kak Ita prepared lots of food, since she was also expecting other guests. We were served with mouth-watering mee rebus, rice with telur masak rempah and acar rampai, puding roti bakar, dango and freshly picked mikan.

Kak Ita's dad used to stay and teach in Mak's hometown, Pontian. She called him up while I was there, asked me to talk to Tuan Haji myself and what do you know - he knows my Mak, and Mak's elder sisters - all of them used to be in the teaching profession too. Small world, eh?

We left after Asar, after a brief introduction to Yan and Walid who had just arrived then. Kogure-san, Kak Ita's husband agreed to drive us to the eki, but not without having to make a U-turn first because I'd forgotten Humaidi's bottle. Oopss...

Next destination - Ageo, to Kak Pah's house. Fetched by Lutfy on his Honda Fit (Jazz in Malaysia), we were taken to Kak Pah's impeccably clean and organized home. Really enjoyed Kak Pah's, her son and her husband, Mura-san's (aka Abang Din) hospitality. Okay, maybe not just hospitality - but also the laksa, kuih seri muka, Kedah-styled asam pedas keladi (aka asam rebus by those from southern part of Malaysia). Even Humaidi enjoyed the beef soup tremendously. Huzaifah tried to "help reorganize" stuff at Kak Pah's kitchen, all of his efforts smartly thwarted by the well-experienced Kak Pah.

We joined Lutfy and Shahreeza leaving Kak Pah's home after Maghrib. Instead from Ageo, we returned to Tokyo from Omiya, where Lutfy dropped the rest, driving back alone to Higashi Omiya. We bid farewell to Shahreeza who took Saikyo sen to go back to Toda, while we took Takasaki line to Ueno.

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3. Christmas visitor

Koseki-san, the detective who is almost a frequent guest of ours now, came by on Christmas to drop two Disney-themed 'christmas stockings' filled with snacks and cookies for Huzaifah and Humaidi. We already told him earlier that we do not celebrate Christmas, but he insisted on bringing a cake for us. Turned out he was late in ordering a cake, and he couldn't buy any suitable cake by the counter on Christmas Eve, so he ended up buying the snacks and cookies instead. I told him that he shouldn't have, but he said it's his pleasure. Nothing religious - it's just that Christmas cake has became part of Japanese culture in the past 30 years or so.

Christmas is not a national holiday here in Japan - but yes, it is definitely celebrated here, simply because as Koseki-san put it "we Nihonjin like to party and Christmas is a good excuse to party"

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4. Kodomo no Kuni

This deserves an entry on its own. Initial verdict - a great place for kids, definitely a Kids' Kingdom!

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5. Unexpected visitor

AMIR held sort of winter gathering in this Mosque, from 29 - 31 December. (The girls even stayed back for an extra night - cool way to usher in the new year, if you ask me.) Then on 31 December morning one Nihonjin guy suddenly entered my house without knocking first (which was really rude) which caused me to shout "don't come in, wait outside!" in half-surprise half-irritated tone.

After I was properly attired, I went and asked what was it that he wants, and he said that he would like to ask some questions regarding Islam. Hubby was not feeling well, so I brought him to the mosque, asked him to wait for a while and went down to ask for some help from the AMIR program participants. Baim and Kuchai volunteered. Upon entering the mosque floor, I saw the Nihonjin smoking, so I asked Baim to advice him that the mosque is a 'no-smoking' zone.

I am not one who usually dislike someone on first meeting, but there was something about the guy that just didn't sit well with me right from the very beginning - the entering without knocking, then smoking in the mosque without asking for permission...

Turned out he was not really interested in finding out what Islam is all about. He was more interested in confirming his own belief. One of his first questions was "is it true that Muslims are allowed to kill Christians?". Followed by other questions/discussion on the creation of the universe, the "love" message in Islam, the differences between commandments in religions, et cetera.

Hubby reported that he was kind of arrogant, that he was not really sincere in asking questions, but more to put forward his own views, as he cut in while others were speaking and sometimes he just refused to listen to what others had to say.

There were a lot of twisted statements here and there, some self-contradictory points made by the Nihonjin. Baim and Kuchai were very gentle and careful in answering questions, as hubby assisted with getting evidence from the Quran. When the AMIR slot was over and more people joined the 'discussion', one guy named Halim could not control himself but provoked the Nihonjin, by referring to his own twisted statements, to which he had no real answer, but just showed the "peace" sign instead.

Hubby said if he had known Nihonggo, he would have done the same himself. It is one thing to treat a non-Muslim who wants to find out the truth about Islam from Muslims gently and politely; but here was someone who openly showed his arrogance (and ignorance about Islam) to Muslims in a nearly provocative manner in a place considered holy by Muslims. That was why Halim was rather perturbed and could not wait to be given a chance to 'tembak' the Nihonjin guy a little.

Definitely an interesting 'latihan amali' in discussing comparison of religions for the AMIR guys.

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Shinnen akemashite omedetou gozaimasu.
Yoi otoshi wo.

(Happy New Year and wish you a good year ahead)

Halal formula milk in Japan - revised

Sufi from Chiba had asked me to share some info she got by calling up manufacturers of infant formula in Japan

According to her, the only two infant formula which contains no traces of animal substances would be Meiji's Elemental Formula and Meiji's Mirufi-HP. Her latest finding confirmed that there is no infant formula for newborn babies in Japan with no traces of animal substances used during the production process.

According to this blog referred by Aida-Kyushu, there is no halal formula for 0-9 month old baby readily available in Japan, including Mirufi HP, as it contains taurine, and according to the author of that blog, taurine is derived from ox bile, hence the name taurine (from Latin taurus). The author though lists Tsuyoiko (Bean Stalk), Chirumiru (Morinaga) and Gun Gun (Wakodo) - all of them formula for babies aged 9 months onwards, to be halal for consumption.

Somebody left a comment in my previous entry, claiming that only Bean Stalk formula is halal - and coincidentally, from my personal observation, Bean Stalk products, Sukoyaka (0-9 month) and Tsuyoiko (9 month plus) seem to be the choice brand for many Japanese muslim mama.

There is no confusion regarding Meiji's Hohoemi (0-9 month) and Steppu (9 month plus) though, since pork related substance was listed as part of the ingredients, making them both clearly haram.

While no other brand lists pork-related substance as part of the ingredients, Sufi found out that in Morinaga's products (Hagukumi, Chirumiru, E-Akachan) case, while soy-based emulsifier and lecithin are used as part of the ingredients, pork-based enzyme is used in protein hydrolysis.

She also claimed that similarly, pork-related substances may form part of the process in infant formula production by Wakodo, Bean Stalk and Yukijirushi.

So, what is halal and what is haram then?

I am not an expert on fiqh matters, neither is hubby, so when Aida-Kyushu first told us about the above-mentioned blog, we quickly referred to another Ustaz who is more well-versed in fiqh and qaedatul fiqh matters.

That was when we learned of istihlak and istihalah.

Istihlak (assimilation) happens when a prohibited substance is diluted in a lawful medium to the extent that none of the known properties, be it color, taste or smell, of the prohibited substance are noticeable in the lawful medium, then the prohibited substance can be ignored. For example, most bread contains yeast, which produces alcohol during anaerobic respiration, but the amount the alcohol is so small, and further decreased during baking, that no amount of ingested bread could cause intoxication, then the bread is halal.

Istihalah (substantial transformation) is changing the nature of the defiled (najis) or prohibited substance to produce a different substance in name, properties and characteristics. This includes transformation through chemical reaction, burning, cooking, etc. Thus, when a najis or prohibited substance have been completely transformed that it no longer carries the properties and characters of the original substance, then the ruling of haram does not apply to the new substance because it is something different.

There are other fatwa which ruled differently regarding pork-related substances, saying that pork should be exclusively treated in that its substances never really changes under what ever conditions.

Since this is khilaf, I guess it is up to individuals to choose which fatwa to follow, while respecting others who choose differently. The concern with what is halal and what is haram is a good thing - it shows that we Muslims are not willing to sacrifice Islamic principles easily. However, to prohibit or label a certain product haram should not be done without sophisticated knowledge of fiqh and qaedatul fiqh. Those in Muslim countries are lucky to have organizations that could identify halal products with all the necessary knowledge and know-hows, but excessive prohibition on products in non-Muslim countries where no such halal-identifying agents are available, might cause undue hardship and frustration. (Imagine if no halal infant formula is available for Japanese muslim mamas who are unable to breastfeed for long. They don't really have the option of 'importing from home' like us gaijin muslim. )

Try googling istihalah and istihlak, and one will discover in no time that these principles are adopted by the Islamic Organization for Medical Sciences, based in Kuwait. I do not seek to marginalize the issues of halal and haram, but just to highlight some Islamic principles used in determining halal and haram which might be unknown and unfamiliar to others.

Since there is no Jakij here in Japan (as there is Jakim in Malaysia), personally, I am going to apply the istihalah principle in choosing the infant formula for my kids. I will not however take responsibility for others who choose to do the same - instead I would urge others to do their own homework and seek opinions from more learned scholars before making up their mind regarding this, because one should not have doubts regarding her/his choice.

So, there, my two yen on this matter.
I should be concentrating on my PTK notes (many thanks to Marha and Syah), the exam is going to be held this coming Wednesday and Thursday, but I had trouble concentrating this dawn, hence this entry. Please pray for me (to do okay in the PTK exam), ya?

Bad Muslim?

Whenever we went out with a bunch of non-Muslim friends, they would ask us;

"Why is it that A.Z. cannot eat this, but you do?", or

"Why is it that A.Z. cannot drink wine, can't even help us passing the glasses around, but you can drink?"

He would smile sheepishly and answered, "because A.Z. is a good muslim, and I am a bad muslim".

True, he has no qualms eating non-halal meat so long as it is not pork. He doesn't drink beer, but told me that he could handle his wine well. He prays when he feels like it. He is fully aware that these are all considered sins, but for him, it is a private matter between him and Allah.

On the other hand, he sort of portrays good image of Muslim to others. He is one of the best students in the faculty, getting mostly A+ in whatever subjects he took up. He is highly regarded by most sensei. He gets along well with many - not only he could speak English, Nihonggo and Bahasa well, but also is on the way of mastering Mandarin. And he is not 'kedekut ilmu', willing to share his knowledge with those who ask for his assistance.

He is a good husband and a great father - in that he shares household chores and childcare duties almost equally, if not more (since he only goes to school three days a week, while his wife works four days a week). He is a concerned friend too, as he would take care to ensure that Muslim friends and guests are only served halal meat whenever they visit him even though he normally eats non-halal meat bought in the local supa.

He labels himself a "bad muslim".

How I wish he is not...

Virtually emptying his account...

Mohammad, 38, runs an Asian grocery store in Tsunashima, Yokohama. The Sri Lankan had 520,000 yen in savings, and was thinking of donating 300,000 yen towards the purchase of the mosque. He changed his mind and donated 500,000 yen, virtually emptying his account.

He says: "When you make a contribution to a mosque, God prepares a house for you in heaven. It's thanks to God that I've been able to make my way in Japan up to now. And God will continue to help me in future."

Full story here

Masya Allah...

Post open house...

By now, most who read this blog would know that I am a huge believer in "hikmah" behind everything. Those who have read my entry on our Open House, would know about the ‘incident’ involving a group of girls. Surprisingly, some of the readers responded with various emotions – anger, sympathy and so on. Truth is, I was not angry at them, more worried in fact, as to their future dealing with the community at large…

Well, last Friday saw me receiving two visitors. They came to apologize on behalf of their juniors. They came with explanations –

• that the seminar was organized by some juniors and the girl who said that they might help after the seminar was over at noon was present in the capacity of a “speaker”, not organizer;
• that they were both ignorant of the fact that I asked for their help (albeit half jokingly) on the phone; and later (quite seriously) when I was passing by near their congregation;
  
• that (perhaps influenced by Japanese well-know diligence,) they were so absorbed in their own program, trying their best to make the most of their limited time with juniors from far away, that it just didn’t occur to them to check if I needed any help despite knowing well that I was holding my open house the next day;
  
• that they were sorry some of their juniors who attended the open house did not greeted me properly before eating.

One of the girls confessed she felt so guilty that when she went to school on Monday, nothing seemed right and nothing went right. Friends at the lab were alarmed to see she, who is usually jovial, looking pretty much miserable. When asked what the problem was, she confessed that it is a ‘relationship’ problem, and she was quickly told to try fix whatever it was that bothered her because it is so unlike her to be down in the dumps. That was why she decided to see me at the end of her school week, accompanied by another fellow ‘senior’ friend.

I am glad that something good came out of the incident – that some of the girls were at least ‘awaken’ by the fact that they would never be in the safe ‘cocoon’ of their own limited company for the rest of their life. They said that part of the reasons they ‘terlepas pandang’ to check whether we needed any help that night was because they lack experiences in socializing with more ‘adult’ society. It somehow did not occur to them that with my two small kids and all, that I would most appreciate their help, even for a short while. Somehow they thought that I must had had all the help I needed, since I did not specifically ask them for their help.

What happened that night really opened their eyes – that there is a more ‘complex’ life outside their small usual ‘group’; that half of the religion – the hablumminannas part – could be actualized in simply helping out in the kitchen; that their doings or un-doings could speak louder about them than their words or beliefs.

Open house is not an end in itself. It is a means to an end. There is more to it than merely providing an avenue to eat and chat. Open house is a tool for silaturrahim, for ukhuwwah. It is a place to get to know others, to meet different people, to broaden one’s horizon as we listen, learn, exchange thoughts and opinions – and all these could be done not merely while eating, but also while dicing nasi himpit, stirring soup, pouring gravy into bowls, cleaning up used plates, even while holding up a baby for a tired mommy…

So, there was a "hikmah" behind the incident after all – at least some girls learned their lessons about socializing with more ‘adult’ community here in Japan, while they are still students, before they get exposed to a larger society back home in Malaysia. Like I said, they are good girls, with good religious background – so I really hope that their doings would not, in any way, cause ‘fitnah’ to others like them. “It is a lesson I would never forget,” one of the girls solemnly vowed.

Ah, but of course, since a true Mukmin is not bitten by a snake twice from the same hole...

Open House Eidul Fitri 1428H

Date: Sunday, 4 November 2007

Time:
Official: 2.00 – 6.00 p.m.
Reality : 1.00 – 9.00 p.m.

Menu: Nasi tomato (tomato rice), Ayam masak merah (spicy tomato chicken), Kari dalca kambing (mutton dhal curry), Mee bandung, Nasi himpit (pressed rice), Kuah lodeh (mixed vegetables in coconut milk), Sambal kacang (peanut sauce), Pulut tanak (glutinous rice cooked with coconut milk), Serunding ayam (chicken spicy floss) , Mixed fruits pudding

Chef: the first 3 items – Faizly, the rest – yours truly... (with exception of the serunding ayam, which was bought from Giant, Kelana Jaya)

Invitees: A lot, from all over Kanto area, but we expected around 80 people to show up. Around 80 people showed up, alhamdulillah. Thank you to all who “memenuhi undangan”, and thank you for bringing menu sampingan – karipap, wajik, various sweets, beverages, cakes, fruits, etc. Special thanks to Brother Telat Pasha, for 4 dozens of 1 liter Apricot Nectar juice from Turkey, and Brother Ehsan for sending them to us.

Photographers:
Official: Lutfy
Unofficial: Che Lee

Thanks a million!

Helpers:
Before: Basharan, Hubby, and 2 musafir from India, Hassif and Ajeed, who insisted on helping. Masumi Emi came earlier too, helped vacuumed my house and took turn looking after the kids as I bathed the boys and changed them into their respective Raya clothes. Arigatou ne, Emi...

During: Kak Pah, Kak Ita, Kak Zah, Baim and co. who helped cleaning the used pots and pans, Apid who helped with refilling, plus so many others who helped looking after Huzaifah and Humaidi

After: Shah Reza, Shahreeza, Dean, Lutfy, Zaimi (the last visitor, from Yokohama)

Thank you, thank you, thank you – may Allah bless and reward you for all your contribution. Special thanks for all who ‘tapau’ed stuff back home, for without them, we might have to eat the left over for 7 days and 7 nights…

Preparation time:
Started working from around 7.00 p.m. Saturday. Chef Faizly did not sleep all night long on Saturday. Basharan napped in the train when he went to fetch his ‘kawan’ from Haneda Airport early Sunday morning. Hubby too, slept at around 6 a.m. on Sunday morning. Yours truly napped for about three hours, 6.00 – 9.00 a.m. on Sunday.

Side notes:

• Brother Ehsan promised to bring the large rice cooker on late Saturday night, but he fell asleep and did it on Sunday morning around 9.30 a.m.

• Nasco sent our order in 2 parcels, but we only received the cold one on Saturday morning. We called them to enquire about the other box – containing rice, ghee and dry stuff. They said that they had already sent it and it should be arriving anytime soon. What about the beef (which I bought in another shop because they ran out of beef at that time, but asked them to include the beef in the parcel they were supposed to courier to me)? Oh, the guy who was supposed to do it forgot all about it – so could they send it to us later? It would reach me first thing on Sunday, they assured me. But the parcel containing rice and everything did not show up by the time we reached home (from Ichikawa Ono, where we attended Green Heights open house/open block) at around 6.30 p.m. After numerous calls to and fro Nasco, a guy from the courier called us up, saying that they were sorry, there seemed to be a mix-up, but since it was impossible to send the parcel that night, could they do it first thing on Sunday morning? Chef Faizly was like “Haaaahhhh? Sempat ke???” Since there was nothing esle we could do about it, we said okay. They kept their promise too – as the courier guy arrived even before 9.00 a.m., with both the dry stuff and the forgotten beef.

• There were about 15 girls attending a seminar on the 2^nd floor from Saturday to Sunday. When one of the organizers asked for permission to use the place earlier, I half jokingly mentioned that maybe I could use their help with the cooking, but the girl replied “eh, bukan jemput open house ajak kitorang makan je ke?”. A senior girl was a little bit more diplomatic; said that they would be finishing the seminar by noon on Sunday and they would assist me after that before the open house started at 2.00 p.m. They knew I was busy because I needed to rummage through the small kitchen in the 2^nd floor while they went on with their seminar. At one point, when it seemed like they had reached the last portion of their program on Saturday night, I mentioned loudly “kalau korang dapat tolong, amatlah dihargai”. Somebody replied meekly, “tapi kitorang dah bukak tudung…”

Their seminar did not finish at noon on Sunday, but around 2.00 p.m. The girls came up to attend the open house, but sadly, some did not even greeted me earlier before started eating (tak kenal tuan rumah ke?). Upon learning that Faizly and I did not sleep all night long (Faizly napped for a while on the train on his way back to Saginuma to refresh himself since he forgot to bring a spare change of clothing), some of the senior girls among the organizer came to see me, and apologized, “Kalau tak kerana program ilmu, kami mesti tolong Kak Azra punyalah”

Truth is, even when they did not help me, we still managed to do everything on our own – but the real loss is theirs. While Rasulullah s.a.w taught us the importance of knowledge, he put more emphasis on adab (manners). Adab with neighbors, adab with those who need help (like the Jewish granny as sung by Dawud Wharnsby), adab with the host. The girls were on the 2^nd floor while we were busy cooking on the 4^th floor; that made us almost neighbors for the night. They knew I was cooking for many, and it would possibly be more afdhal if the girls had spent one hour of their time to help out a bit, then went on with their program. There were 15 of them – one hour of 15 assistants could have meant a lot of difference to us back then.

It was sad really, what with these girls having quite good religious background. Maybe my expectation was too high, but this ‘elitist’ attitude – it will do them no good in the long run. There will be more encounters with neighbors/acquaintances who might need their help in the future; which might require them taking some time off from their “seminar/program jamaah/etc”, and I wonder how they would react then…

Wallahualam…