Pillars of Faith

Assalaamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah

I had wrote several posts about this. It is also mentioned in the sacred hadith or the Hadith Qudsi where it has the report for us about the conversation of prophet Muhammad s.a.w with Archangel Gabriel a.s who was in the disguise of a man when he met Muhammad s.a.w while he sat with his companions in Medina. The hadith was narrated by Abdullah Bin Umar r.a. This orthodox creed was taught by prophet Muhammad s.a.w himself where the Archangel Gabriel a.s put the highlights on them. It is not from any imam, sheikh or cleric conclusions on the Divine Path. 

We have faith in six matters which are...

1. The God the Highest.

2. The angels.

3. The scriptures.

4. Prophets and messengers of the God.

5. Resurrection and the hereafter.

6. Divine Predestination.

Faith in the God the Highest
 

How do we have faith in Him? We have faith in Him through the process of thinking. From the basis ones such as who creates the materials around them? They were created by human-being. Who gives them the energy, power and inspiration to create the stuffs? He is the One who gives them to human-being. Later, how the universe and everything in it come into the existence? People might conduct researches or proposed Big Bang Theory or studying astronomy and sciences or technology but then everything would eventually goes back to Him when the explanation goes to the infinity.

We have faith in the God the Highest through worship. The term in Arabic for worship is 'Ibadat which means we only submit ourselves as servants or slaves to the only Master, the only Lord, the only King, the only God. We do not serve other man-kind, colonial masters who happened to be fellow human-being, nor materials around us whether stones, rocks, tress, woods, nature forces which are generated by the God Himself, nor enslaving ourselves with worship to other fellow creatures for e.g genies, ghosts, spirits of creatures, sages, angels, money, property and others. How do we worship Him? Through the prescribed disciplines mentioned by the God the Highest through our noble teacher, Muhammad s.a.w and through the highlights from his explanations whether of his daily acts, movements, speeches and his silence or the sunnah.

We have faith in Him by obeying His commandments and trying as hard as we can to avoid ourselves from evil conducts for e.g adultery, telling lies, commit murder, commit suicide, eating filthy things and others. Matters about monotheism ideology being explained could be founded in many books but please... Never force anyone to accept the ways to explain it as a new form of Creed!!! They simply are explanations by some scholars as to make it easy for public Muslims to understand. Just don't confuse our mind with scholars thesis... The thing is very simple.

Faith in Angels

In Arabic, we call the angels as Malaak which literally means the Forces. Angels are unseen creatures. Just like the wind, we can feel their presence but we cannot touch them with our dermal receptor nor being seen with our physical eyes. They are created from the elements of light so that explains why human cannot touch them nor physically feel them. They have no gender, no desires which means that they have no choice like human-being except to perform worship for Him. They are strictly commanded to be free from errors and some of them have the roles as intermediaries or emissaries between the God the Highest to sages, prophets and messengers of the God from amongst the man-kind. For Muslims like myself, we have faith in them whether as an individual angel or a group angels from the Archangel Gabriel a.s to 'Ateed which is a kind of angel who writes every evil committed by human-being and genies.

There are angels who hold the Throne of the Lord, angels who chants prayers, angels with the task to torment sinners in the hell, angels who are not mentioned in the Glorious Quran, angels who protect the creations which also includes human-being. Human-being who is born will be accompanied by the unseen companies or qareen in the form of angels or demon. However, the word qareen is more synonymous to the demon while the angels are known as the guardian angels.   

Faith in Scriptures

There are four scriptures from the same source of revelation that we have faith in namely the Torah, the Psalter, the Gospel and the Quran. These scriptures were revealed to Semites prophets and messengers in the Semites' region in the Middle East. Some Muslims believe that the previous scriptures were tainted by human words when they were recorded again in the form of writing while for me, I am not thinking in the same way because only the God the Highest has the authority to reveal it. There are people who are good in twisting the man-made law, so does in the Divine Path because it is embraced by human-being. I just don't agree with some people who use these scriptures to prove or disprove others in their arguments but later saying that they are not the original ones. I am against this attitude. It is just the same attitude with some Christian preachers who were trained in their seminaries or Orientalist scholars of colonial period. So, outdated and lame... I am not impressed at all. By the way, Torah is known as am-Miqra in Arabic which means the Reading. The Old Testament part in the Bible recited by some Christians were from the translation of Greek texts used by Jews who lived in Roman territories since before prophet Jesus a.s was born.

Faith in Prophets and Messengers

We have faith in prophets and messengers of the God the Highest. They were appointed by the God the Highest and some of them were mentioned in our Glorious Quran while there were also prophets or sages being initiated in other regions.We have some knowledge about 25 main prophets as their names were mentioned by the God in the Glorious Quran. Some were not clearly mentioned because they were sages, prophets but not messengers of the God who constantly receive revelation and they only practice the revelation or inspiration and teaching it within their family, clan, tribe and nation. 

Faith in the Resurrection and Hereafter

We have faith in Resurrection where human-being and other fellow creatures would be resurrected by the God the Highest. There would be blows of trumpet by an appointed angel before everything in the universe tumbled upon one another and when everyone would be assembled in an extremely large place known as the place of assembly. We are not sure on the measurement of the place but it is a place and only He knows. Everything which includes the deeds while everyone was in this "world" would be calculated, scaled and measured. Human, genies and animals will be receiving the consequences of their acts. Human-being and genies will be receiving their record whether the good or evil record which will determine where they would be placed, the paradise or the hell.

Faith in Divine Predestination

This is also known as the Decree of the God. We believe that everything in the past, present and the future happens as written in the Preserved Tablet. A person's action is not caused by those written in the Preserved Tablet, however they are written in the Tablet since the God knows all occurrences since He is not bounded to any boundaries like the restrictions of time.

A person has the power of mind to choose, however the God created time and space. He knows more about the future than His creatures. What will happen has significance only to creatures, who are limited to time and space.

This faith is based on four things which are firstly by His knowledge where the God knows what His creation is going to do, through the virtue of His eternal knowledge, including in their choices that will take place. Secondly, by what has been written where the God has written everything that exists including the destiny of all creatures in the Preserved Tablet prior to creation. Thirdly, by His Will as what He wills happens what He does not will does not happen. We do not know what is His Will as we are ordinary human-beings. There is no movement in the heavens or on earth but happens by His Will. It does not mean that He forces things to happen the way they happen in the area of human beings' voluntary actions. It means that He knew what they will chose, put it down in the Tablet and lets it happen. He can always change it if He wants and it is His authority. Fourthly, by the creation and formation as the God is the Creator of all beings, it also includes the actions of His servants. Human-being, animals, machines, computer, nature forces and everything execute their actions in the sense which we can see but in the real sense, He is the Creator who Creates them and their actions. 

There are stages of what has been fated or decreed as well where the Predestination is determined and prescribed to the creation in the universe....     

1. His Decree which has been written in the Preserved Tabled before the creation of the universe is never changed and encompasses everything that will be.

2. The divine decree was there after the creation of man-kind. He took out all of the progeny of the man from the beginning towards the end of time, and asked them "Am I not your Lord?" and all of the man-kind responded "We bear the witness that You are our Lord". Then He decreed on whom shall go to paradise and whom shall go down the hell. 

3. The life-time decree as it occurs when a person is in the womb of his mother, specifically 120 days after conception. The God sends an angel to put a soul into the person, and the angel writes down the decree that the God has decided for the person such as his life-span, his gender, his sustenance or how much will he earn throughout his lifetime and whether he will be a dweller of the paradise or a dweller of hell, may the Lord makes us far away from His torments, amin!  

4. The yearly decree occurs during the Night of the Qadr just like He mentions in the simple Surat al-Qadr where He sends down His decree from the heavens to the earth. He destines the actions for e.g deeds, sustenance, birth, deaths and others of each of his creation for the next year. Qadr means something which has been destined.

5. The daily decree which refers to what He decrees in our daily actions.

These categorizations clear the idea of destiny. It is "possible" that the God sends daily or yearly decree dictating that a person will get a profit. But, due to his good deeds for e.g. maintaining the ties of kinship and Silat al-Raheem, the God sends another decree increasing the person's profit. The reversal of the two decrees is all within His knowledge and is recorded in the Preserved Tablet. A person himself has no knowledge of his own destiny nor of the God's decrees. But what he does know is that if he performs certain good deeds, then He will increase his sustenance more as compared to he does nothing or as compared to as if he commits evil deeds.

Related to this faith, many of us questioned our ustads about it but only when I studied it more thoroughly that I know more. We may change our destiny through supplications and prayers. Charity and worship are a source of an increase in ones sustenance as it also banish calamities. Sins and vices result in the decrease of sustenance where it also invites calamities.

Matters Damaging Faith

What will damage our faith? They are matters such as....

1. Polytheism... Arabic term for this is Shirk. In this sense, it means associating the Lord with other sub-powers for e.g angels, spirits of sages, nature forces, or saints in terms of worship. We never prostrate before them but only before the God the Highest. We recite prayers and supplications only in His Name and the Holy Attributes which He mentions in the scripture which is the Glorious Quran.

2. Vices and evil deeds... These happens when we break off from commandments for e.g disrespecting parents or hurting their feeling or committing adultery. We can use our common sense without having to create a long-winding list with reference to scripture or prophets' sayings to get to know what are vices and crimes. We possess mind to choose on what we desire for ourselves.

3. Superstitious or khurafat in Arabic. For e.g believing chain emails as something that could affect ones life if they are not circulated as what has been written by the first person who creates that silly email. Any act or deed which has no basis in scripture related to the warding off of bad luck or bringing auspicious situation are superstitions. 

4. Rejection or kufr for e.g a situation where someone rejecting prophet Muhammad s.a.w as the seal of prophethood for this closing period of the universe. There are two definitions for rejection which are the literal and the technical one as in the Divine Law term. Rejection is divided into two kinds which are the great ones and the little ones. The great ones are divided into five branches and resulting one who commits any of it as a non-Muslim while his previous meritorious deeds are vanquished. The little ones are in the form of crime acts just like in the penal code in most courts have in the world for e.g, stealing, murdering, massacring and others. These little rejections are sinful and still counted as the sins which makes one who commits them as eligible to be thrown into the hell.

5. Apostasy... This refers to the act of breaking the covenants, promises with the God and rebellious toward the commandments of the God the Highest which actually would result ones "soul" being polluted although he is knowledgeable about everything. It does not only happens to uneducated people but also to scholars when their soul is dimmed with the ignorance which are caused by environment and the failure to maintain their self-awareness. In our Medina tradition and history, some of the Jews who lived there together with Muslims were not mentally ignorant but their souls were tainted by their egoism. Just examples and they are subjects to my weaknesses... I am not a person who curse others as according to the trend. Other example, refusing to spend some incomes for the tithe as prescribed in the Pillars of Islam and minimal obligatory disciplines prescribed in the Glorious Quran and highlighted in the Sacred Hadith.           

These are actually simple matters which many of us including myself perhaps has overlooked or missed while they are very very very important. Before we go for whatever discussion on higher matters like the Sunnah or other petty matters like how we look like or whether to look like a trendy "preacher" or whether we should eat the Biryani with three fingers in the tray or countering Christians to gain glorious names when we defeated them in arguments as for example, these are the basis of our souls. 

These are the basis of Shari'a Islamiyya or the Divine Way of Islam. All of our "people" believe that we must be well-versed with the Pillars of the Faith and the Pillars of Islam besides constantly being committal to them before we go to preach others. When we talk about these matters, of course we are also talking about the "Sunnah" as we strongly emphasize on the Hadith Qudsi. When we are committal to these, we are also spreading the da'awa without having to discuss so much in the group or using posh words. I am sticking this in treatise section so it will make everyone easy to access it whenever he or she pleases...

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

Portal to the Divine Path

Assalaamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah

Grateful to the Lord for His grace and love. I have the chance to sacrifice myself for Him this evening. I wish brothers and sisters could get the benefit of my few posts which I do not know when would they last. If brothers and sisters enjoy them, just pray for my safety in hereafter. If brothers and sisters do not like them, still I am pleading you to help me to pray may the Creator the Highest bless me with His mercy and guidance.

I am now trying to compile everything that I have within myself or within my notes into simple treatises. By the way. Before we begin to know the Divine Path dear brothers and sisters, there is one thing that a person needs to testify as a pre-condition to be a Muslim. 

 أشْهَدُ أن لا إلَهَ إلَّا الله وأشهد أنَّ محمدً عبدُهُ ورسوله

Which means:

I bear my witness that there are no gods except the God the Highest. And I bear witness that Muhammad s.a.w is a servant and a messenger of the God the Highest.

I proclaimed these two words again when I decided to "return" to Islam as my Divine Path. Not merely an ancestral path nor a traditional custom. After that, I performed the ghusl which is almost similar to baptism in order to banish spiritual ignorance within myself asking for the "angels" and fellow creatures around me to be my witness. I am already a committal Muslim and I just don't understand why some Tabligh trainees came by to me to "reconvert" me by asking me to recite the testimony before them as their tone is harsh. I consider that as offensive, boastful and rude. There are some gaps that we need to consider before we just rush into others' boundaries. The same thing too when we talk to someone we do not know for the first time. There are several options to be chosen when communicating with people. That is why the lesson of manner is important besides the lessons of sunnah.

These two testimonial sentences are known as the "Portal to the Divine Law" in Arabic and a term in Hanafi jurisprudence. Those who are "converted" by Shi'a Muslim brothers would recite the proclamation for loyalty to imam Ali r.a. That is not a necessity because it is not mentioned within the Glorious Quran and sacred hadith. It has in the same time, a sufi origin and political origin. The additional proclamation on loyalty towards imam Ali r.a would invalidate ones salat services to recite more than these two words in them and based from the questions posed to Shi'a Muslim Marja'. Please contact qualified and knowledgeable Marja' instead of listening to some religious zealots because they are not qualified. 

The objective of this post is not convert anyone nor to be rude to others if they already know about this. No worry, as I understood the feeling of those who were offended by some people. Just forgive them, they do not realize that they were "learning". I am also a student and would never consider myself a teacher. I believe in the mentor and protege system.

Symbolization

These testimonies symbolizing two conditions for a person to have their acts being accepted by the God the Highest. These first testimony consists of Monotheism ideology and the Faith in His Oneness in our worships and creed. The second testimony symbolizes our humility toward the teachings transmitted through Muhammad s.a.w and the proclamation that we are following his path and his righteous ancestors' path, namely Abraham a.s and Isma'el a.s. What I mean by humility could be founded in his life biography. If I have enough time by His Will, I would also put them here. I am writing this as a committal and practicing Muslim. Learn about Islam only from its original sources. Not from "researches" made by people who do not testify these two matters. We recite these two sentences daily in our worship during the daily obligatory salat services and also in optional salat services as it is a commandment. Please refer further down here...

Philosophies

As according to Arabic language, where we recite these testimonies... There are several meanings as the language contains our values and everything related to our scripture...

It denotes the knowledge where a person must expose anything that he knows to fellow beings especially in knowing the God the Highest, knowing the prophet Muhammad s.a.w and sciences about the Divine Path which is Islam. This is what I am doing now as an ordinary practicing Muslim. I am just providing information from my limited mind and ability to please Him.

These testimonies signify a proclamation where a person proclaim and affirms the "Truth" which he witnesses. The "Truth" comes from the knowledge that we have got.

Then through these testimonies, we are entering a contract with Him where we only serve Him as our Master and never serving others who are not the real Creator of the Universe. It is a promise! We are promising Him to keep His commandments and being within His commandments as what have been symbolized by our testimonies. We have to recite these everyday. It is not only at the day we "revert" or "converted" to the Divine Path.

Then, when we recite these testimonies; It is because we are confident by our heart in the validity of matters related to these two figures mentioned within the testimonies namely the God the Highest and the transmitter of His revelation, Muhammad s.a.w. This is why the God mentions in the Surat al-Kaafirun or in the al-Baqarat verse 256 about there is no compulsion in the Divine Path. It is just a simple matter but many human-being who should use their mind never consider to sit down for a while and think, musing or pondering above all.

Finally, these two testimonies are not bounded only in our speech. It should be reflecting in our acts and attitude when we are conducting our daily life. Nowadays, I do not really see these in our society. People behave as if they are godless. Sometimes they do wrong things, and they admit it in their heart but never apologize to those they had wronged because of egoism. I am saying this to fellow Muslims and later to non-Muslims.

Body Parts Involvement in Promises

When we recite these testimonies, there are parts of physical or spiritual body involved within our promises as framed by these sentences. They are the tongue, the heart and all of our body parts such as hand, eyes, head, brain, legs, nose, ears and etc. Everything in our body are submitted to Him and directed by His Divine Path.

There are few points in this post which could be memorized. I tried to find a way which everyone could keep these in their memory and heart. Just consider this as an entertainment even if viewers disagree or not in the same belief. I am not craved to convert people at all as I believe in His guidance, love and mercy. It would eventually reach everyone as He pleases and I just consider myself as a fortunate person to be a follower in the Divine Path transmitted through prophet Muhammad s.a.w. so. This humble post also serves as my da'awa treatise for everyone including myself. 

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

Tribute to Kedah : Some History on Administration in Late 19th Century

Assalaamu'alaikum wa rahmatullah

Introduction

I am a bumiputera (native) of the state of Kedah but I am not a Malay. Our people during British period were registered as Malayan Arabs and divided between immigrants Arabs who came after British double administration and Malayan Arabs who were invited by the Sultans to serve the court and nobility in term of religion and others during the period of 15th to 17th centuries. Immigrant Arabs in our olden days state mostly were from Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Syria. Malayan Arabs originally were Yemenis who came from Yemen and India/Pakistan. Today the word Arab is omitted from our identification as to make it easier for them so people are calling us Malays and grouping us as Malays. It is not correct.  In other Malay states, we were not considered as natives. That is why we lived like 19th century immigrants and having to live like poor people in our federal territories. When some Malays are talking about this rights and that rights, we understood how immigrants feel. We tell some Malay brothers that we are also non-Malays and why must you talk like that? But they called us as Melayu tak sedar diri or Malays who deny themselves as Malays.

We are not Malays. My throat sore each time I talk with people from other states including with non-Malay compatriots who keep asking me.... wo kan ni bushi huaren, ni yinggai shi malay ren (It seems like you're non-Chinese, you must be a Malay) : S It is so frustrating. Only people from our state and from our state's palace know about us and our ethnicity. I do not prefer to be grouped as Malays because we are already the natives of our states. I don't hate Malays and many of my relatives are married to Malays but why we are forced to be something which we are not? We speak in the language because it is our state's national language. It is in the form of Kedah Malay with smattering of Arabic and Persian words as compared to other natives like Malays of Kedah because they speak in another form of Malay. We do not speak in the southern Riau Malay (Indonesian island next to Singapore) which was chosen to be the slang and the national language of Malaysia. Actually when I speak in Malaysian Malay, my Malaysian Malay sounds more like Thai slang which is mistaken by some people who never mingle with Thais as Chinese Malay slang and I am only fluent in my state's Malay.  

We still call Kedah state as the Sultanate of Kedah. Last time I talked with a Phd student from China at our level. I did not get the chance to ask his name because he was so eager to know about Malaysia. He asked me whether I am a Chinese or a Malay? I just answered him I am not a Chinese nor a Malay. I am not an Indian also. I am an Arab descent and only a Muslim. Our state traced its history since first century. The sultan today traced his ancestry from previous Hindu rajas. We have gone through a very long history in Malayan Peninsula and we were not yet apart of Malayan Federation until 1948 and later forming a state in Malaysia until 1957. Not all people could have access to museums right? So this site is also serving the people as a museum. It is more interesting than European studies, hahaha.  

Brief History

In the end of 19th century, while we were suppressed as Siamese vassal state in the south, we already have our own developed administration system. The system was quite modern. Beginning in the era of Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin (1853-1879), Kedah sultanate become a modern state and increasingly developing.

This situation goes on until the exchange of vassal authority from Siam Empire to British Empire in 15th of July 1909. Our 25th sultan, which was Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah (1882-1943) in the beginning of his rule had managed to visit few countries such as Thailand, India, Burma and Europe in order to get some ideas on how to manage the country. Yes, we were a country, not a state like today. These efforts was initialized by his father before it becomes more stimulating when Sultan Abdul Hamid Halim Shah assume his throne.  

In this efforts of developing our sultanate, the sultan was assisted by few able leaders who among them are the member of royalties themselves such as : 

1. Tunku Abdul Aziz (Young King)

2. Tunku Ibrahim

3. Wan Muhammad Saman

People with the title wan were aristocrats of Arabian ancestry but absorbed into the court. I found that the same thing also happened in Brunei and Sarawak in Borneo Island. In 1870, during the era of Sultan Ahmad Tajuddin Mukarram Shah, Wan Muhammad Saman was appointed as the Prime Minister of our country (Kedah). Malaysian historian such as Khoo Kay Kim emphasized that Kedah had developed its political system in a more systematic way as compared to other Malay nation-states in Western coast of the Malayan peninsula. Before British interfering in our country affairs, Kedah already posses few experienced government officials who played significant role in the administration and management system of the state. Because of that too, Kedah Sultanate did not have to depend on many British officials in the more southern countries such as Perak and Selangor.     

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

Around the Corner

Assalaamu'alaikum wa Rahmatullah!

I am not really a poem type of person because my writing isn't so good. But sometimes I do love to browse on others' poem and reading them for pleasure. Although I do not really have close friends around in my neighborhood as I am a 'gypsy,' and I don't really mingle closely with people around me due to that I have this feeling where I am not going to maintain any close relationship with others due to that every meeting would also be accompanied with farewell.

I would assume the Lord as my foremost important friend amongst all. Our patriarch Abraham had also been known as the companion of the Lord, so we as his few thousand years descents would also try to approach the Holy Lord so may we get His assistance when we are in difficulties. However the Lord would never be a vanished friend because He is living without any changes.

This poem is titled Around the Corner written by Henson Towne. It tells us about a vanished friend. Let us enjoy his writing, maybe it could inspire us in our daily life. And if we have a good or close friend, be sure to appreciate him or her when they are around. We would never find such a good friend like him or her if we lose them.

Around the corner I have a friend
In this great city that has no end.
Yet the days go by and weeks rush on,
And before I know it, a year is gone.
And I never see my old friend's face,
For life is a swift and terrible race.
He knows I like him just as well
As in the days when I rang his bell,
And he rang mine.
We were younger then,
And now we are busy, tired men.
Tired of playing a foolish game,
Tired of trying to make a name.
"Tomorrow" I say "I will call on Jim."
"Just to show that I'm thinking of him."
But tomorrow comes and tomorrow goes,
And distance between us grows and grows.
Around the corner!-yet miles away,
"Here's a telegram sir-"
"Jim died today."
And that's what we get and deserve in the end.
Around the corner, a vanished friend.  

This poem reminds me of my only friend during I was in standard four in Ahmad Tajuddin, and he is known as Saiful. He was the one who approached me and talked with a silent boy from KL who had just registered into the school and alone. I could say that he was my best friend after that but as I had implied before maybe time is changing us. 

This friend of mine is still alive anyway trying to establish connection with me again and maybe had been engaged to someone now because he messaged me last time. He even invited me to his engagement but I have no time to attend the engagement ceremony at his house.  I would like to express thanks to you for not forgetting me in your important matters.

And I am sorry friend for not congratulating you, even now I do not know what happened to myself after long. Maybe I am feeling down due to that I do not live like others and thinking that I am not normal. I had even thought that I had something wrong in my head too but I guess that, it is just us who makes it feels like that. 

Maybe it is the environment around changing me too or I am afraid of saying farewell to others so I would just feel comfortable not being attached to anyone except for the Lord. Many would say that this is an act of a coward, but I would never care now. There are many factors but what I could say if I hurt you, dear friend? It is my fault, not of anyone. I am just a guy feeling down of myself. Anyone would feel like this when they are facing unstable circumstances in life anyway. And I hate facebook or other social network sites.

May the Lord bless people around me no matter if they know me or not. No matter they are my fellow muslim brethren or non-muslims. Sealed with my prayers for peace and love.