Thursday 27 February 2014

Personality: Spirit

Assalāmu'alaikum wa ramatullah


I cannot remember the exact date that I did this Personality Quiz. I get the link of the website from my environmental policy lecturer, Dr. Salfarina. I guess it was around April-May 2013 at the time before my father was stricken with stroke. I keep the result in my notebook just to get to know on what kind of person I am. I use to keep many notebooks for various topics and events in life. They served as records for me and to gain confidence to go on with life. The things that I tagged at the site of this site are mostly from my notebooks. I learned from my experience and even from reactions of the people surrounding me. If I do not simply be friendly to others then, it is because I found that I am not comfortable with that particular person. Either I keep my distance or just keeping my silence. Sometimes I might appear as an anti-social. I do not have beautiful children life like others. I seldom make friend with people, my family moved a lot. I have only sisters and I am not close to my own relatives. It influences my personality.

Let's see what we have in the result....

Spirit
You are a seeker. A good listener with a gold heart. You are someone your friends know they can rely on for their support and advice in good or bad times. 
 This is especially true. It makes me feel like a black sheep to be sacrificed by human-being as their sin offerings. Sin offering is especially exist in Abrahamic traditions founded in Old Testament and we Muslims perform this during the Dhulhijja month during the pilgrimage season. I personally hated this but still people come to me for counsel or just to feel comfortable with themselves or simply to test their skills such as their preaching skills in case of those involved with the mission movements. My father, my mother, my sisters, my late maternal grandmother, the Tabligh members, acquaintance whom I do not personally know or those whom I never met before, migrant workers and so on would approach me with thousands of trouble and mess in their mind to be released on me. Later, some of them when they get what they wanted i.e the peace of mind, satisfaction or confidence and they just walked like nothing happened. I have no chance to exchange about my feelings or troubles in my mind with them... So, to some of them that I have got the chance to speak out. I asked them, I am not a deva (deity)... Why do you treat me so?! This is how I refuse to make friend no more.
Kind, generous, spontaneously helping others. 
I never realize this. I always think that I am a cold and mean person, haha... I love to give offerings to my family members or those that I know. I love to treat people. But I regret that my sisters regard me as a stingy person just because I am not so much close to them. They spent less time with me but with their friends more. So how could I express my love as a little brother to them? Love could also means prayer. Personally I do not care what people out there wanted to think about me. They are strangers. When family members do not understand us, it means that there is something wrong in our communication.
You are a sensitive soul and expressive in nature.
I studied about self through Hindu and Buddhism philosophical disciplines. It has something to do with psychological and mental phenomenon. I do not simply go to certain thing because of its popularity or because it sounds modern which is ridiculous for those immature Asian kids regardless whether they are Muslims or non-Muslims who relate this matter to modern Western world, hahaha. Even some adults tend to assume the same which is pathetic. 

I could go to Christian missionaries when I protested to my family or those around me but I do not like to be baptized and I refused Christian missions who came to me several times when I was a young teenage. I put a post here about two Christian missionaries from Korea who tried to baptize me with my non-existent roommate by insisting me to visit their church during their Sunday mass and that happened in 2012. I politely rejected them. I guess this is consistent with the first notion that I am seeker. I do care about mentality rank although I believe in Justice. Sometimes I would be in silence just because I do not want to mess with the crowd. Not because I am an ignorant. I maybe looked like a migrant worker in my appearance, wearing simple t-shirt, track-suit and speaking in ordinary language without any posh words to show about my movement. I do not like to overdo things but I love simplicity.
Sometimes you love nothing more than escaping into your own dreamworld.
I have lost the talent to day-dream, lol.
Spontaneous new experience can be really inspiring for you and you like to explore your creative side time by time.  Excited with new ideas.
True, indeed. This is consistent to my Ayurvedic type of body. I have got ideas and love to learn about new things. I guess this happens to those with vata predominant element within their body.
Right now, you are probably exhausted and running on empty. Life has the way of creeping upon you.
Still is true... I depend so much on the environment. This has to do with the prana (energy) within the air. The place where I live now is not healthy in term of its air and my family condition is not so much favorable. I could manage my life better in good environment but to get that, I have to struggle hard. It makes me tired. 
You have healthy approach to life.
Yes, I believe in healthy life as part of the mercy which must be maintained by the creatures of the God the Highest. I tried and always trying!
Regular spiritual practice gives you a sense of inner peace.
Sure, I only go to mosque when I am sad. In my teenage age, I went alone to monastery without informing my parents and involved in rituals simply to forget my troubles. I took buses and walked bare-feet just to see the guide teacher. In this sense, it actually referring to historical Siddartha Gautama. He was not in those monasteries but I went there just to pay respect to him with regard to his teachings. Just after I decided my faith that I am a Muslim. I go to mosques and cry to the God there since I have no one to talk with. Right now, I went to mosques if I have the opportunities. Because my father is bed-ridden and I cannot leave him alone. 
Time for reflection will have positive effect.
Yea, I performed tapas but this term has a very wide meaning. Most people only familiar with yoga-tapa where someone sits with lotus pose and meditating on certain states, figures, deities and condition. There are four types of yoga and the yoga in the poses consists thousands of poses. Tapa means deep meditation in molding one's soul as according to ancient Indian culture. Tapa is the heat which serves for the purpose. Since we, Muslims are the people with Arabia and our own sage as the background, so we have our own concepts, practices and terms such as alāh (act of formal contact with the God), muasabah (reflections or self reckonings), khushū' (concentration), khuḍhu' (veneration), 'uzlah (solitary), muraqabah (meditation), i'tikaf (stopping by at holy sanctuaries) and so on. I perform all of these and some of them such as muraqabah which consists of various stages at a certain degree has its parallel to Buddhist's "Palace of Mind and Actions" meditation subbed under the tapa-jñāna discipline.
Important: Tap into your inner strength. Believe yourself and be confident.
Maybe I need this in certain occassion.
Take on new challenges and stay stimulated so you remain enthusiastic and inspired by life. You love original experiences. It stimulates challenges and status quo. 
My personal experience here speaks the statement. I just do not like to follow what has been dictated especially in a particular culture or customs. The same thing goes to religion. I also do not like the comparison between religions by certain scholars because they ignored the facts that human-being live in the same Earth, human characteristics in people of other faiths, the differences due to time gap, development of certain cults or religions by the differences of regions, linguistic developments, anthropology, archeological researches and parallel matters. I could still hear about the theory that Saint Paul is the initiator of the mainstream Christianity while neglecting the points from the New Testament such as the Roman soldiers themselves worshiped Jesus while they were still pagan long before the persecution event happened in Biblical timeline. Most of all the people are just echoing the researches of figures such as Ahmad Deedat, Zakir Naik, or speculating on the information which they are capable to seek on their own. I read all of Ahmad Deedat's booklets just after I returned from my pilgrimage in Holy Mecca. Before I even decided my faith in 2003-2004, I read comparative religion through Prof. Abdul Malik Karim Amrullah works. His literature is in Indonesian language which consists of more than 5000 pages. He talks a lot about Zending (Christian missions) facilitated by the Dutch colonial master and even did his own points by digging the Bible and the literature sources. On the other hand, he was a journalist educated in traditional madrasah. However, I do not take everything as final even after looking at those stuffs. The technique which those people employed was the technique employed by the Orientalists of the early 19th century. They responded with the same manner during European Imperial powers were at their peak and religion was once of their propaganda tool. Why are we turning the same like them? 

....

Ayurveda: Dosha and Prakriti


Assalāmu'alaikum wa ramatullah


Ayurveda classifies two distinct but inter-related type of person. It concerns with both body and mind. Our nature is determined by this combination of body and mind types. This "nature" is known in Sanskrit as Prakriti. When we refer to the theory of creation, we identify it as the unmanifested nature of matter in the cosmic. When referring to human-being, it refers to unique physical and psychological nature displayed in them.

The knowledge about our dosha and guna provides us with an understanding of our basic physical and psychological nature. It helps us to decide on our personal diet, lifestyle that maintain optimum health and peace of mind. Each person has a unique dosha with unique nutritional needs. By establishing our dosha, we would enable ourselves to get suitable diets, exercise and lifestyles to maintain the balance.

Definition 

Dosha

The translation is quite complicated. It is often translated as "biological type" or physical constitution. This definition brings a simple and easy understanding of the concept. While, the original definition is more complex.

Sanskrit defines, dosha as dusyati iti doshah. It literally means, "that which contaminates is called dosha". The Malay language absorbed this word into the vocabulary, dosa and the meaning turns out to be "sin" in Brahman-Buddhism context where the sin taints one's karma (action). The Muslim missionaries in South East Asia later then, employed the word into their speeches and so; the word dosa remains there but to explain Islamic concepts. The same thing in Thai language, where it is used together with native word as a fixed phrase, khor thod (thod is spelled as thosh) which means, "pardon".

So, doshas may be considered the pathogenic factors, or disease-causing agents in the body. Imbalance of the vata, pitta and kapha doshas cause disease in the body. Dosha only refers to the three biological energies of vata, pitta and kapha. Imbalance of these elemental combinations is the direct cause of physical disease. The become the prime cause factors or contaminants to the body. Secondary factors in the disease process, like dhatus (body tissues), ama (toxins) and malas (waste materials) are just the product of, or, dependent upon, an imbalance in doshas.

Prakriti

Knowing our prakriti helps you to tailor a personal diet and lifestyle that can prevent disease and physical disorders, and obtain peace of mind. It provides us with an understanding of our basic physical and psychological nature, and how to keep it in balance with our surroundings. This is the key to maintaining health.

Every human usually has varying degrees of vata, pitta and kapha. The doshas are usually not present in equal proportions. In most people there is a natural uneven distribution. Very rarely, a person may have a completely even distribution of doshas.

Although we each have characteristics of vata, pitta or kapha to different degrees, one of these elemental natures will dominate and that is the “main” dosha. The secondary dosha is the one present in the next highest proportion. Every dosha type or combination is acknowledged in Ayurveda, which lists seven separate physical constitution types based on the basic three...

Basic
  • vata
  • pitta
  • kapha
Combination
  • vata-pitta
  • vata-kapha
  • pitta-kapha
  • vata-pitta-kapha
I am not so much a traditionalist. I employ both modern and complimentary health sciences. Other than Indian health sciences... I also read about other methods such as from the Greeks, the Babylonian's, the Islamic ones based from our prophetic tradition, European and even natives' herbals and remedies. Nothing rigid except that I believe... Health is an important treasure which one could ever has in his life.

Adapted, copied and modified from: jiva.com
Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Food for Wind Body

Assalāmu'alaikum wa ramatullah


Because my body predominantly consists of the wind element, so I display physical and emotional characteristics linked to the elemental qualities of the space and air. People with this kind of body are very active, mobile, restless and energetic. They have fast metabolisms, so are often thin with little muscle development and protruding joints that may make cracking noises. Their skin is dry, rough and thin with visible veins.

Eat More

Items that I should take more...
  • Warm, heavy, moist, sweet foods.
  • Vegetables such as avocado, asparagus, eggplant, leeks, olives, pumpkin, radish, sweet potato, spinach, zucchini.
  • Fruits such as banana, apricots, fresh figs, peaches, citrus fruits, dates, mango, grapes, berries, pineapple, plums.
  • Grains such as oats, rice, wheat or pasta.
  • Mung beans or soy beans being made into tofu or eaten with milk or cheese.
  • All nuts in moderation. Sesame, pumpkin and sunflower seeds.
  • Dairy products in moderation.
  • All nuts in moderation. Sesame, pumpkin and sunflower seeds.
  • Asafoetidea, basil, caraway, clove, cardamom, sage, cinnamon, pepper, coriander, cumin, fennel, garlic, onion, ginger, nutmeg, turmeric.
  • Most oils, especially sesame.
  • Warm drinks, herbal or spiced teas, warm milk, fruit and vegetable juice without ice.
Eat Less
  • Cold, light, dry, pungent, bitter foods.
  • Raw or frozen vegetables, peas, brussel sprouts, broccoli cauliflower, cabbage, cucumber, corn, celery, lettuce, mushrooms, potatoes.
  • Dried fruits, apples, pears, prunes, pomegranates, cranberries, melons.
  • Barley, buckwheat, rye, corn, millet, rice cakes, puffed or dry cereals.
  • Most beans: kidney, lima, navy, pinto, split peas, white beans, black beans, lentils.
  • Dry roasted or smoked nuts.
  • Powdered milk and ice cream.
  • Coriander seeds, fenugreek or parsley.
  • Corn oil.
  • Carbonated drinks, cold or iced drinks, coffee, tea or alcohol.
Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Self Development

Assalāmu'alaikum wa ramatullah


I am not sure about the topic to be displayed. To know our strength, we need to also know about our body and mind. In this way, we could reflect on the God the Highest through our environment. They are from various notes that I get from websites, my interviews with some acquaintance where I wanted them to speak the truth to me about myself and my reflections...

Note on Self

Personal Self


Job


Personal Experience
Job Interview: Receptionist 2013



Guide


Health
I divided this to three sides such as the note with my self as an example, the job and health. The job section might perhaps would be helpful for brothers and sisters who are looking for the job. You may use the ideas, opinions wherever appropriate or suggestions pointed for your self development. I know how do you feel... I feel the same as you feel and at least wish to help you by pointing you to suggestions... This is better than to brag because we feel that we had achieved great things in our life but help nothing because in the end, "we care only about ourselves" because some people just never feel the sweetness of failure in their life... Right? I use "my" self not simply in the sense of my "own" self. It could be "your" self too. I am a human-being just like everyone but I believe in the diversity of creatures in a nature. I believe in personal experience. One person has different experience to one another. Our souls are connected by a single "Great" Creator.

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Sunday 23 February 2014

Arabic: Passport Control

Assalāmu'alaikum wa rahmatullah


Well, living in an environment occupied with various kind of people and ethnicity, it sometimes makes my head a little dizzy to communicate with them especially when we have to switch codes while talking. It happens to me since I was young. 

I speak Northern Malay at home and we have sprinkling of Hindustani, Persian and Arabic in our speech that do not really exist in Southern Malay especially during my schooling times. I am not sure the words such as kutub khanah (library), gerek (bicycle), prashat (villains), bahadur (courageous act), rumbas (fight), and so on ever exist in Southern Malay. We used those words before we leave them out as the time is moving on up to now...  In term of pronunciation, I was frustrated with Quranic and non-Arab teachers who taught Islamic related sciences where they pronounced things differently to our pronunciation... The Qaf (ق) becomes Kop... The Ghayn (غ) becomes Gain... The Khaf (خ) becomes Haf... had (ض) becomes Dott.. The special glottal 'Ayn (ع) turned out to be Ain... 

I pronounced them without any pain because I am a Peranakan Arab of the Past yet I had to pretend or forced to pronounce things like non-Arabs because we are not recognized with our own ethnicity instead we were lumped into Malayan nationality during British administration era... I was so much confused back then and yes... I was so depressed... 20 years ago people perhaps were not familiar with dialectical differences as compared to now with the development of modern information technologies and the internet. 

That was just my experience. I am relieved that I could share how I feel... I am dumping some Arabic for Communication. I would only use Roman script as Arabic script would take time unless if I write everything with my hand, hehe... These are in Syrian Arabic... Not Modern Standard Arabic (MSA).

Passport Control

In this story, Sylvana had just arrived in Damascus and she has to check her passport at the passport control. Let us see how she deals with el-mowazzif (worker).

Sylvana: abā el-khayr!
Worker: abāel-khayrāt! Jawādh el-safar idhā bitrīdī.
Sylvana: Tafaḍhal...
Worker: Shukran... Shū esmek?
Sylvana: Anā ismī Sylvana.
Worker: We entī minīn? 
Sylvana: Min Iāliyā. Anā mu'allimeh.
Worker: Āh! Enti Iāliyyeh? Iāliyā balad helwe katīr.
Sylvana: Eh, bas b'ide katīr.
Worker: Ṭhayyib... Tafaḍhalī. Haī basburik, ahlaw wa sahlan fīkī bish Shām!

Meaning

Sylvana: Good morning!
Worker: Good morning! Passport please.
Sylvana: Here you are...
Worker: Thank you... What is your name?
Sylvana: My name is Sylvana.
Worker: You are from?
Sylvana: From Italy. I am a teacher.
Worker: Oh! You are an Italian? Italy is a beautiful country.
Sylvana: Yes, but it is so far.
Worker: Great... Here you are. Your passport, welcome to Syria!

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Persian: I Like ...

Assalāmu'alaikum wa rahmatullah


A : Salām, chitor asti? 
      Peace, how are you?

B: Ma khob astom, tashakor!
     I am fine, thanks!

Sentence

Ma khoshem maya ...
I like ...

Vocabulary

Sag Dog
Seb Apple
Pishaq Cat
Kelār Banana

Example

Ma khoshem maya seb.
I like apple.

Ma khoshem maya kelār.
I like banana.

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Friday 21 February 2014

21 Rabi' al-awwal 1435

Assalāmu'alaikum wa rahmatullah


My father was admitted twice to the hospital since the last two weeks. I cannot sleep day and night because I took care of him in the hospital. These recent, he was infected with pneumonia because of the feeding system turns out to be inappropriate to his condition... I contemplated that if I feel so much tortured, then I wonder how much tortured my father feels? He has a crippled, paralyzed body and he cannot speak because his articulation tool has been taken by the Lord of Powers. I am sure that it must be unbearable for him but this is already fated within the Guarded Tablet in the highest region. How could we relate our past and integrate it with the current situation in the process of "self" identification? Whether we cling to the phenomena and identify it as our "ego" or we just remain unattached but going through it with perseverance and right consciousness? These are my personal insight based from the Sutra of Right Conducts: Discourse between Brahmin Kottatha and Brahmin Śariputra. It is not Islamic nor Arabic in its cultural essence because these figures were the foremost disciples of Siddartha Gautama. The philosopher of Śakya tribe from Lumbini.... They discussed psychology and sub-conscious mind...

That is the reason on why I could still go on with the situation and do not try to run away. In Buddhist phenomenology as per my previous lessons learned, the term sasāra refers to the cycle of birth and death. When the time passes then a creature would move on to other phases of the life in the universe. This is the meaning of the word. The life and death is flowing within the temporal universe. We gain our life experience and getting the enlightenment in term of our mental faculties while wandering throughout these cycles of life and death. I am not sure whether this is also being discussed by the ancient Greek philosophers but I guess the same thing was also echoed by Aflaūn (Plato). We are going throughout these phases with few types of devotion such as services, knowledge, wisdom, consciousness and trying to get a focused mind.

I had got a phone call on Tuesday while my father is in the hospital. It was a call from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for a job interview. I did not have much time for preparation because the interview was scheduled yesterday. Anyhow, I am not confident that I could secure the job on my part but I have no regret. I had at least tried my best by sending the applications and attending the interview despite of my condition.

I am so sad. Two of my Rohingya brothers had moved to other areas. The other Bangladeshi brother, Muhammad Habib is the only one left working part-time in the nearby restaurant owned by my father's office mate from BH. I could not make friends with my neighbors. They are "rich" people. I only can sit with migrant workers even in the mosque or the musalla... I am afraid to taint them with my ugly presence...

Prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Tuesday 11 February 2014

Job Application 2014

Assalamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah


I think since now I am typing here, I had applied few jobs only for this year. The last year applications are all not counted but I am just telling you out there especially those takabbur guys who already got their position secured in companies or agencies around but bitching around like there is no God watching or listening to you that you boast on everything is due to your own hard work! I am not giving up simply to see you laughing at unfortunate ones!!! You are worse than those who killed little kids and elderly people in the battlefield! 

I used the word takabbur last time to describe 'Amr Diab (Egyptian pop singer) when I talked about Arabic entertainment with 'Emad who was my classmate. He told me the word is so appropriate, haha... Anyway, sorry friend. I do not really care about geopolitical issue in the Middle East. Our ancestral land (Yemen) too faced many problems yet nobody gives us a shit. People are killed and treated like animals around the world. It is not only the issue of Muslims but a global issue which also related to other inhabitants of the world known as, the human race!  The angels had already talked before the God about us as recorded in the Glorious Quran (Surah al-Baqarah 2:30) but many of us still forgot this.

Firstly, in the beginning of this year... I applied for a government servant position. I was not so much knowledgeable about how to apply into government agencies but one of my Yemenite acquaintance known as 'Abdullah told me to apply for government position and not to waste our position as the sons of the soil although we are not Malays but because we are here since 300 years ago. Well, many of my cousins from my father side work as police, soldiers, guard or watchmen. They are the sons of my Hassan and Hussain uncles. Some of them do business especially the ladies and they do not really care about "jurisprudence" regarding halal business. Their mother is different to my father's mother. My father's mother is a Malay woman. Their mother is North-Indian Arab just like my grandfather. Many of those acquaintance from Mokalla in Yemen also asked me to join our government service. Well, I am interested to serve our government but it is not easy to apply even when we hold the passport and citizenship. I applied a post in the Foreign Affairs Ministry. I am not sure whether I would pass because they have tests before I could go for the interview.

In this month, I applied some jobs in the United Nations Development Programs. I saw that there are lots of vacancies in the United Nations High Commission for Refugees in Kuala Lumpur but I have to stay away from the agency because I only served for less than a week. I had to quit because of responsibility to my family. I afraid that they would blacklisted my name since my name was also sent to Bangkok at the headquarters for Asia Pacific region. However, I cannot find any suitable job as according to my qualifications that made me have to fight tooth and nail to survive. I sent two applications for Policy and National Institutional Expert which is based in Quezon city, the Philippines. The other one in this agency is the Communication and Advocacy Officer based in New York. I do not know on how I would be engaged with the interviews or even reaching those places. Well, for the Philippines perhaps I can manage to reach there. 

The second one was the European Communications Associate. It is in the Open Society Foundation. The place is far too which is in the United Kingdom. I do not know how I would reach there say if it is for the interview. Maybe they have Skype interview or maybe phone interview? Do they accept non-national who live abroad applications? I do not know and I do not know. I am just dependent to Him as the Provider of the Sustenance.    

I lament my stubbornness last time when I wanted to stay true to myself that I cannot be a robot to fulfill the labor needs in the country by refusing to go for pharmacist training, refusing to study culinary art which was proposed by my mother or going for technical training. Because I am not a machine kind of person. I am more to humanity. Those people like the late Salam el-Masdusi which I posted in few posts below are humanity kind of person. I am identified as that kind of person. 

I do not think that I am going to succeed with my applications because of several factors such as the lack of experience, the due date which is so much close since there are so many online job openings and we might lose the pace when we feel tired looking at the monitor but at least I tried. 

For those who are studying, make sure you really sure on what you are doing. Do not simply do things because you see that others are doing so. Follow your own necessities. Sometimes we already planned things but obstacles come such as unfortunate incidents. It happens because this world is a test for faithful servants of the God. Some people live so smoothly that they know no hardships at all. Some who realize that the world is temporal such as lord Siddartha Gautama went out and being a "silly fool" leaving behind his luxurious palace to live like beggars bearing humiliation. I am not trying to compare myself to this great teacher or other great teachers but their life portray what most of us are experiencing around down here.... 

I think I get some idea on doing some part-time jobs. Maybe working in the cinema which is a good start for a jobless loser like me. I could get some money as tool for me to move say if I get another secured job. I get to know few Bangladeshi or perhaps Myanmar migrant workers from the musalla where we prayed together. They are so kind to me that they offered to help me to find part-time jobs as cleaner and road sweeper. I would never forget their kindness. They are at least better than my own selfish relatives or country men. They deserve to be treated like angels. I believe that they are the unknown living saints for me... May He bless them always and may they live a blessed life forever and ever :'(      

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Sunday 9 February 2014

Part-Time Job Guide

Assalamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah


I have still got no idea about what kind of "part-time" job that I should do. Now, I think I should also think about myself next-time instead of others especially when I am not yet established. I bet that everybody hates to go again and again for interviews and having to change the resume all the time looking for new job. The employers do not like to see over-qualified employees because they are afraid of the commitment of the job-seeker. And the job-seeker needs quick money to move on.

I get to know that there is an advertisement for part-time jobs everywhere but I am thinking on how should I apply the job? Should I give out my resume? It is frustrating to change over and over and I did the resume for serious job and I end up having to give up the job to be a companion for my depressed mother. I quit to give way for her to join her old citizen activities either at the mosque or in the neighborhood society while I have a paralyzed "stroke" father to be taken care. My sisters refuse to give up their life and I have to be the "Jesus" for them... "Crucified" in trade for their life. This is real life facts. I tried to do researches before getting any job to avoid losses in term of time and doing things in vanity.  I have no one to refer to so I have to do the research and trial an error.

My mother had introduced me to a Quranic society which is an NGO but I cannot go on with the society because I do not take tithe as my sustenance and I need financial support to keep the maintenance of our house, to pay for the national loan because my parents did not help me to pay for my undergraduate fees like my younger sister's, to move on to the next level of my life while I am reaching 30 years old and for my parents. I had explained many times to my mother that our paternal clan could not receive anything related to tithe as not to commit the sins of the "priests" but my mother do not understand it. She introduced me to the job because she think that I would be close to her while my sisters are off with their life. I have to live in disguise as a public as according to our vows and not to appear in public as "religious" figure in order to be equal with the laymen. It is not easy to live in a women-dominated space and most of the times people do not understand the "functions" of different genders! Male and female function differently... Many of our people fail to frame the explanations of the technical terms such as the "fitrah" and the "sunnatullah" that makes the world go haywire. These involves mystical explanations as well as the technical ones.  

Questions for Part-Time Job

Examples roughly look like these....

Q: What days/hours are you available to work?

  • I am available during school hours while my children are at school, maybe at 9:00-15:00, Monday through Friday and I can work some weekends.
  • If you are a student, you will need to share the class schedule, any labs, to avoid confusion for supervisor, "I have classes Tuesday and Thursday until 16:00 and a lab that meets every other Wednesday from 17:00-19:00, but I am flexible about working any other hours you have available".
  • I am flexible and available just about any time you need me to work.
  • I have another commitment each Monday, but I am available the rest of the week.
  • I am available after school and evenings and weekends.
Q: Do you have any activities that would prevent you from working your schedule?

Employers want to know, especially with part time employees who have other commitments, whether you will be able to work your scheduled hours. The interview question "Do you have any activities that would prevent you from working your schedule?" A way to verify that you have the time to commit.

It's important to be be honest about what your availability is. If you have activities what come up suddenly - a commitment as a substitute teacher or bus driver for example, you should be honest about that. Otherwise, this is an opportunity to show that you plan things well in advance.
  • I participate every year in a 10K run to raise money for my favorite charity, but I will know the date well in advance, and would let you know I need that day off.
  • I am on the crew team at school, but our practices are typically early in the morning or later in the day, so they should not impact my schedule.
  • I spend a week during the winter vacationing with my family in Florida every year, but I can schedule that based on the busy times at work.
  • I volunteer at the hospital every Saturday morning from 9:00 - noon, other than that my schedule is flexible.
Q: Would you prefer full-time employment to part-time if a job were available?

Would you prefer full-time employment to part-time if a job were available? Can be a tricky interview question. 

On the one hand, if you are hoping that the job will turn into a full-time position, you want your prospective employer to consider you first should the opportunity arise.

On the other hand, you do not want to raise the doubt that should a full-time position present itself, you would walk out of your part-time commitment.

Be cautious when you respond and keep your answer general, so you are not committing to one type of employment or the other.

  • Right now, my education/family/children prevent me from considering full-time employment, but I would not rule it out at some point in the future.
  • What is important to me is that I enjoy the work and the people I am working with. I have many interests, and having a part-time job allows me the time to pursue them.

Continued....

Saturday 8 February 2014

Uncle Aron's Eldest Daughter

Assalamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah

Urm, I am not so much close to them. I used to live in Jitra in Kedah state once my father was offered a job as a press secretary of the Kedah Chief Minister, Mr. Osman 'Aroff. My mother loves to visit her niece who also lives in the town at that time. She was married at that time with this guy from Perak. Her father is my mother's elder brother. My mother only has one brother and his name is Aron (Arabic; Harūn). Uncle Aron lives in Tabligh center in Beseri, Perlis together with his wife and his son, Joseph (Arabic; Yusūf). This cousin sister's mother has the origin from Thailand. That suggests the fact that they look, Chinese.


My maternal cousin is the one with the purdah (veil). The guy is her husband and from the right are their children. I do not know their name. I do not introduce myself to younger people except if I feel that if they are "special" kind of people. I introduced myself to brother Idris Xian and brother Yunus Huang because I feel that they are special kind of people, haha.

These cousins are all Tabligh-i-Jama'at members which begins with my maternal uncle, Aron. Uncle Aron tried to "convert" me several times into the movement but my father refused to give me to him. As to say, I have history with Tabligh members so I am not so much having no knowledge about the movement. I just do not tell people when people do not ask but sometimes people treat us like we know nothing. I do not have to join any movements. My paternal family already is in the lineage of mission circles. They became "out-castes" because they failed to maintain unity with the larger clan. And they are Arabs with Indian mothers, the same as those in pre-independent India and Pakistan. The difference with the Penang Indian Muslims is that we are of North Indian maternal stocks and they are the Southerners. North India is identical to Āryā Vartta, the abode of the ancient Indo-Persians

Lately, I heard the fuss that they had conducted a trip from the UK to Malaysia here. To tell the truth, I do not really care on whatever that they do. They had been living in the UK since 15 years or maybe longer than that. Before, her husband studied in Japan. They look so... Mongoloid like the Jacky Chan's face Hazara refugees who speak Persian in Quetta except that they are Sunni Muslims, hahaha... I am closer to my paternal side more than to my maternal side. I mean in term of customs and heritage. In amity term, I am so much individual.  

They came twice to visit my mother and of course my bed-ridden father. Relates their past in this country. I do not really pay the attention because I have my own problem to deal with so yeah I do not care whether they traveled in Southern Russia, Central Asian countries, China or Indochina, haha... Anyway, good luck for them. That is all that I could say. 

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin! 

Score of BnMT

Assalamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah


I scored as a vata (wind) body and kapha (water and earth) mind.... I am vata-kapha person...


Body

Vata: 25
Pitta: 16
Kapha: 20

Mind

Vata: 23
Pitta: 23
Kapha: 25

I am not sure whether these would change. Maybe the minority elements would change as according to situation. I have equal substance of fire and wind in mind but the dominant one is the water and earth. 

Balance

The second part of the question that I answered in Deepak Chopra Quiz is actually a snapshot of my current mind and body state. The mind body principle that scores the highest number of points in each section, is the one requiring most attention at this time.

Inner Pharmacy

The first step to regain balance is to recognize that the environment around me has a profound influence on how I feel. I tried to tell people around me these since long but most of all they do not understand what am I talking about. I do not know their non-technical terms because they were in Pali-Sanskrit. Siddha and Buddhism always talk about these and I learned the sciences of meditation from Buddhist teachers. Paying conscious attention to what I hear, touch, see, taste, and smell can help create peace, balance, and vitality in mind and body. A harmonized daily routine that engages with the five senses (pancha-indra) with nourishing impressions is one of the most important steps towards achieving Perfect Health.

Accumulated Wind

When wind is out of balance, change and movement agitate the physiology resulting in a sense of instability. Balancing wind requires introducing more grounding and stabilizing influences. Think routine and consistency. Few tips to encourage balance and well-being:         

Body
  • Perform gentle yoga and connect with our own body.
  • Perform daily abhyanga (anointing) with relaxing herbal oil.
  • Take deep breaths throughout the day.
  • Eat three meals per day and favor sweet, sour and salty tastes.
  • Drink relaxing tea.
  • Enjoy hot bath with relaxing oils.
  • Stay warm. 
Accumulated Water and Earth

Out of balance related to water and earth leads to heaviness, sluggishness and congestion. Stimulation and movement help overcome the resistance of accumulated water and earth. Think activation and invigoration. Tops to maximize balance and well-being:

Mind
  • Meditate at least twice a day to clear the mind and rejuvenate the body.
  • Wear invigorating fragrances.
  • Listen to up-beat sounds to invoke natural energy.
  • Organize the clutter in your environment as outer world reflects inner world.
  • Awaken at sunrise and create an invigorating morning routine.
  • Diffuse invigorating fragrances into your environment.
  • Favor bright, strong, bold colors with vivid shapes and designs.
  • Look for opportunities to be more spontaneous.
  • Embrace uncertainty.
Daily abhyanga would be the anointment of the olive oil. I perform it as according to our prophetic tradition because I am a Muslim. My grandmother used to anoint my head with sesame oil back then. We call sesame oil as lenga and it is packed in the bottle available in Indian department stores because they perform the anointing too as according to their religion and customs.

Invigorating smell could be the sandalwood, myrrh, frankincense. They were also mentioned in the Old Testament. I burn these in my room and my colleagues or roommates thought that I worship the satan which is nonsense! So, how else I could be more spontaneous in front of the public?? The key for a healthy life either psychologically (spiritually) or physically is to know what is our body consists of and how it functions. I tried to tell my parents and my siblings. They did not listen to me. These are actually ancient sciences which had also been acknowledged by the inhabitants in Mesopotamia and Sumeria lands in nowadays Iraq also in the Near East. They are not so much sophisticated in their soundings like today's sciences which are the products of early European Enlightenment. I think I need to tag these for my own reference.

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!

Friday 7 February 2014

Body and Mind Type

Assalamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah


I am extremely happy that I waited so early in the mosque. I managed to recite surah al-Haqqah several times and pondering about the facts of the universe. 

Nothing so interesting in Friday sermon today. The preacher only talked about the socio-economical issues such as the role of Federal Territories Islamic Council in  managing endowments, tithe and their achievements in accumulating piles of treasures. However, I would like brothers and sisters to know. I do not believe in their management system. I feel that it is safer for me to manage my property with my own capacity. I wanted to see my donations, tithe and endowment reaching the right places! I had seen how the people in the religious authority behave. This is not an over-generalization because I had came across with them for so many times. I was educated within the religious circle itself. I strongly believe in the practices prescribed in the articles of the path and the articles of faith highlighted in the Hadith al-Qudsi through the question-answers between Muhammad s.a.w and archangel Gabriel a.s. But I cannot accept the people in the authority! I turned to Buddhism-Brahmanism customs last time not because I have problem with Islamic teachings. 

In fact, I always love the God the Highest, Islamic teachings, prophet Muhammad s.a.w, his trustworthy companions, all the noble prophets sent by the God to nations throughout the history as they are the brothers of our noble prophet Muhammad s.a.w and the Ahl Bayt as they form parts of my "self" identity. I have problem with people who call themselves as "Muslims" even until today! I believe in the Justice of the God the Highest and so many people disrespect His Justice to His creatures and the universe!

Mind and Body Type 

I had made some checking on my body and mind type as according to ancient Indian system of sciences. Even I chose Islam as my permanent faith in contrast to those who chose Islam as the faith because their parents are Muslims but I have a strong respect to ancient Indian knowledge and philosophy. It represents the traditions of my paternal grandmothers' heritage since they were from Indian sub-continent. I am grateful to the God the Highest since He directs me to the Path of Islam but I am proud to share some crossed heritage with ancient Indians. I even studied Sanskrit and Pali along with Arabic as our ancestral language though I speak mostly in English, Malay and Chinese.

Some questions that I answered could give me some ideas about my self. I am aware that I have to know about my self before I could eliminate other obstacles in my path. I made notes too about myself. Even I tried to get feedback from friends around about my personality because I was afraid that I hurt their feeling when I deal with them.

Frame

I am thin, lanky and slender with prominent joints and thin muscles.    

Weight

I have low weight. Yeah, this is especially true since I could fly when heavy wind flows me. I guess I am now perhaps 47 kg (103.6 pounds). I always fast since I was five years old and I avoid meat including fish and beef. I took only chicken in small pinches. I prefer to take fresh green vegetables. Nowadays I have to turn everything as pickles as to save the money for other services. I may forget to eat or have a tendency to lose weight. Next week I would have to fast again because I am afraid that the Quran would leave me behind if I exceed the limit and the food nowadays are not so clean as compared to last time. We can find halal foods but not all of those halal foods are "clean". By taking greens in limitation, I could reduce the risk of the meat which came from animals that had been brutalized before being slaughtered or caught with diseases because of antibiotics injection to the chickens. Fishes in the sea are facing extinctions too because of human greed. If others do not care about other creatures, then I do not want to be among them!

Eyes

I have small eyes and active. I wear spectacles and I guess the power of my spectacles' focus is increasing to 1000 +. I love to read and still love to read.    

Skin

My skin is rough, dry and thin. I have olive yellowish skin. I am not white as compared to Northern Arabs or those with the ancestors from Northern Egypt, Syria, Northern Iraq or Lebanon. My old neighbors were North Arab descents, their skin is mostly pale and fair like Middle Eastern Jewish. I think we are yellowish because we have some genetic crossing with Mongoloids. Sometimes people would mistaken me to a Nepali or a Central Asian. Most of Chinese nationals in my university thought that I was from Western China provinces namely Xinjiang (Turkistan) or from the border of China-Pakistan-India. I tried to explain to them and even to Malay compatriots that I am an Arab descent with North-Western Indian grandmothers but we are not recognized with our identity instead being lumped into "Malay" nationality and we are not united because we were too tiny. The same thing which happened to ancient Jewish people in China who were lumped into "Muslim" identity.

Hair

My hair is dry, brittle and frizzy. I think I do not have much hair.

Joints

My joints are thin, prominent and have a tendency to crack.  

Sleep Pattern

I am moderately sound sleeper, usually needing less than eight hours to feel rested. 

Body Temperature

My hands and feet are usually cold. I prefer warm environments. 

Temperament

I am lively and enthusiastic by nature. I like to change. 

Under Stress

I become withdrawn and reclusive. I guess in most of the time. An example for this is when I served only for a week in the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) like six months ago before I have to quit. The problems and troubles came at once jumping on my head. 

Firstly, my sisters think that I am a male and I should be responsible for my father who is bedridden or moving with my own feet because they think that only they faced difficulties in their life while I live like a "king" since I am a male. This is fine, but I cannot do that alone. I am the only son in my house with five female siblings. I have no close companions and I hardly make friends with people because I am a loyal type of person. The burden dealing with them is like I am a stranger man who live among the women. I cannot talk or discuss anything with them. They would not listen to me but they only think about their feelings and care only about their life. One of my younger sister accused me that I am a spoiled brat where my mother never ask me to do anything while in fact is that she did not live with me all the time although we are a family. We have different events in our life and we do not know about each others life for real. We seldom communicate because of gender differences and it also lead to the differences of opinions, beliefs and worldviews. They are very judgmental. I could see that in our society here, people tend to believe that all brothers (sons) in a sibling would be a commander and bullying their family based from the news headlines like "a son stabbed a father or kicking a mother for not listening to his material demands" while in fact now I am the one who is bullied and still is bullied because I consider their feelings, giving a high value for their life and respecting all genders or souls. I am a minority at home. After my father is bedridden, I am even more vulnerable! Not everyone is the same! Stop over-generalization!

My sisters do not even know that I went for Buddhist temple and seeking refuge from Buddhist community (Samgha) because of their attitude and I ended up a layman Buddhist boy for five years before being forced by my mother to go for pilgrimage in Holy Mecca and I have to decide my faith myself without any support from Muslim community! 

Secondly, I had no transportation, no support from my own father and my parents are from unsettled families themselves. They would deny it but I am aware about that since I observe the psychological phenomenon. I do not just lay idle but I keep thinking and study. I was not settled yet with my job settlement in the UNHCR and my mother asked me to take emergency leaves just because she wanted to see me walking on the stage taking an empty file for my postgraduate ceremony in Penang. I had to deal with hundreds of refugees file and asylum seekers and in the same time; I had to attend trainings and examinations related to war-field. They gave the time-frame that I should finish everything only in a week! All of these happened in the same time. So, I quit as not to affect other team members in my office and I am holding to working ethics.

Right now, I have to apply again for a secured job and again I have to plan and plan before executing the plans. It is not easy to secure a job nowadays and family members could really be mean to us. Although many people would believe that a family could be supportive to each others, but they could also be mean! The plan would be in other sections. I am sharing this with brothers and sisters out there who also face family conflicts and who are unfortunate. I have no one to speak or to share about anything so I also believe that you are in the same situation with me. Better stay away from your family members if you have problems but try to find other sources to protect yourself from destruction. Just talk with the God the Highest. Nobody gives a shit to our problem if they are occupied with they are full with their ego! We have to deal everything with our own capacity and seeking help from Him!

Score

So, I scored mostly in Vata or Wind element. I have got eight Vata, one Pitta (Fire) and one Kapha (Earth and Water).   

General Characteristics

Mind:               Creative, quick and imaginative
Body:               Thin and light frame 
Skin:                 Dry
Hair:                 Dry
Appetite:          Delicate, spontaneous, often miss meals
Routine:           Spontaneous, variable
Temperament: Welcomes new experiences, friendly, excitable, energetic.
Shopping style: Buy... Buy... Buy... 
Conversation style: Loves to talk.
Stress Response: Questioning myself what did I do wrong? Tendency to blame myself. 

In the part of loves to talk, I did love to talk but I learned that I have to keep everything filtered when I am talking with different levels of people. So, I appear to be a quit person in the public. I asked some Tabligh brothers to come and tell me about their movements in personal because people are of different level of understanding, reception and so on. Because of these, we have hierarchy and social ranks in a society. Society is a very complex creature! It is not like we are studying the machine. The machine would follow what human programs it but human-being and society is a part of the larger universe! I respect all movements but I have my own reasons to avoid religious movements. If I see that it is destructive for unity then I prefer to be known only as a layman Muslim without any title rather than known to public with movements' tag. 

Vata Type

Wind or Vata is a principle of movement and change. People who are naturally dominated by wind element tend to be thin, light and quick in their actions and thought. Change is a constant part of life. When the wind-dominated person is balanced, they are creative, lively and enthusiastic. When imbalanced, they would face insomnia, develop anxiety, dry skin and having irregular digestion. 

I have got to check this in detail too. Would return after the 'Asr prayer service. Need to get ready with purification.

Sealed with prayers for mercy, peace and love, amin!   
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