The Three Heroes Who Failed

 
I was browsing through an old book of mine, and found this hadeeth (from Sahih Muslim):


Abu Hurairah reports that the Messenger of Allah PBUH said:


[The first hero]
    Certainly, the first person who will be judged on the Day of Resurrection will be a Shaheed (matyr). He will be brought before Allah, Who will then list the favors which were bestowed upon him (in the world), and the Shaheed will recognize them. Then (Allah) will ask, "What did you do with them?"
    He will reply, "I fought in Your cause and die as a Shaheed."
    But Allah will say, "You're lying. You only fought so people would call you brave, and so they said it."
   Then the command will be issued and he will be dragged on his face and thrown into hellfire.


[The second hero]
    Then a person who acquired and taught knowledge and recited the Quran will be brought before Allah, Who will remind the person of the blessings (he received) and he will recognize them. Then Allah will ask, "What did you do with them?"
    He will reply, "I acquired and taught knowledge and recited the Quran for Your sake."
    But Allah will say, "You're lying. You acquired knowledge only so people would call you a scholar and you recited the Quran only so they would call you a reciter, and so you were."
    Then the command will be issued and he will be dragged on his face and thrown into hellfire.


[The third hero]
    Then a person whom Allah had made influential and who was given riches would be brought forward and informed about the favours he received, and he will recognize them. Then Allah will ask, "What did you do with them?"
    He will reply, "I donated in every cause for You would have wanted me to."
    Allah will say, "You're lying. You only donated so that people would call you generous, and so they said it."
    Then the command will be issued and he will be dragged on his face and thrown into hellfire.

To sum it up all together, which of these heroes benefit from their efforts? Sure, they gain popularity and publicity in the Earth, but is it worth it? At the end of the day, although they seem to be doing good and noble acts, fighting for Islam, taught knowledge, recite the Quran, and donate to good causes, they fail to achieve happy ending in front of Allah.

Why so? Because the intentions of these men are not solely for Allah's sake. Hence, in spite of all their efforts and time, they are not rewarded in the next life.

Let us reflect back at our own life. We study, work all day, donate our time, money and efforts on good causes, but is it really for His sake? Or do we have, hidden deep inside, a hidden desire to become popular, rich or to show off? Let us check our intentions. Check our hearts. For our actions will be useless, unfortunately, had they not been for Allah alone. Sure, you might get good positions, be world-renown in this earth, but this world is a temporary abode, and the hereafter is forever. Never forget that vital fact.


"Verily the hereafter is better to you than the present." (ad-Dhuha:4)

Here's a du'a that we should recite often, as a safety measure to protect ourselves from misguided intentions..

The Prophet (peace be upon him) taught Abu Bakr a supplication by which we can ask Allah forgiveness when insincerity strikes us unawares. He instructed him to say: "O Allah! I seek refuge with you from associating partners with you knowingly and I seek your forgiveness for what I do unknowingly." [al-Bukhari]

What steps should you take in ensuring that your intentions remain pure? Do share! I'll write more regarding intentions in other posts, insyaALlah...


Source of Hadeeth: taken from What Islam is All About, by Yahya Emerick [original source: Sahih Muslim]

Trials and Tribulations

 
Troubles come and go. Sometimes it piles up, one on top of the other. At times, it feels like one cannot take it anymore. Sometimes, one just lets everything go. Shut down. Hibernate. Call it whatever you want. This is what happens, I guess.


 
But Allah is always there. Waiting for us to get back to him. Patiently, He waits. With gentle reminders, time and time again. "Get back on track." He whispers. A sudden, unexpected question from a friend. A timely sharing of article from another. A sudden drive to do what was obviously wrong, which works as though someone had just dumped a bucket of cold water on your face (the simile is weird, but yeah, that's how it seems).


 
All along, a flashing red light keeps sending warning signals inside my head. One that would have been noticed easily, had this girl been alright in the first place. Yet she keeps suppressing them, covering her eyes from the reality. "Ignore them. You're facing too much already as it is."


 
Yeah, that was the case, till a few days ago. Hence the hiatus. From blogging, from being the old me.


 
I snapped out of it, Alhamdulillah, with Allah's help. He pulled me through. Though everything is not completely over, it is indeed a much needed start. Have had a lot of damage control that needs to be done, though. A heart in need of repair. Thoughts to sort out, priorities to be set. And a multitude of repentance to Him, for time wasted, for neglecting to turn to Him in healing my wound.

 
But Alhamdulillah. Thank You Allah. For giving me the opportunity to go to the meet in that house up the hill. Where they had, unintentionally, reminded me, again and again, of my little heart that had been neglected. Thank You, Allah. For sending my old pal to hear me out. To tell me everything will be fine. Even though she had to lend her ears at midnight, when everyone else was asleep. When she had to wake up extremely early the next day. Most of all… thank You, Allah. For showing me the way, guiding me, puling me back, again and again, to the right way, when I stumble and fall.


 
Trials and tribulations come and go. Hopefully, the next time they come, I won't break down like I had this time. Hopefully, the next time they come, I turn to Him first, instead of wasting a whole lot of time dealing with them with my emotions. Next time, hopefully, I checked my connections with Allah in my heart first, before dealing with it any other way. 

Need to check my heart... how is its connections with Allah??

Next time anything comes up, I hope, I can remember this verse:

"Or do you think that you shall enter the Garden (of Bliss) without such (trials) as came to those who passed away before you? They encountered suffering and adversity and were so shaken in spirit that even the Messenger and those of faith who were with him cried: "When (will come) the help of Allah?" Ah! verily the help of Allah is (always) near." (al-Baqarah: 214)

Yeah, life in this world is full of tests. Otherwise, how will we be able to gain Jannah?

Allah knows what's best for us. Always.  And He knows, what is going on with our life.  More than we do, actually.

 This time round, Allah had shown me, again and again, that He is most Merciful. Apparently I forgot that, too… (yeah, it is so easy to say them. But when it boils down to the need to understand them in my heart, I forget, sometimes.)

"Say: "O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful." (az-Zumar: 53)

 
Sharing this for anyone who is going through the same thing. May Allah guide us, and help us all remain in the right path, no matter what comes our way. Writing this down, so that I can be reminded again in the future, too. If there comes a time when the going gets rough. And sharing this, so that each of us are reminded. That we have an important duty as a friend: to help our friends out when they face with difficulties. No, not in terms of money, but even lending an ear to listen to their woes helps a lot. If you are far away, or when you are nearby, send them a prayer once a while. It makes a whole lot of difference to a person. Indeed.

  
May Allah guide us all. For without His guidance, we are nothing, nothing at all…



I might be talking in a riddle, today. But I hope the message got through, anyway.

May Allah bless.

~ English: Pronunciation Test and some... ~

Assalamualaikum everyone...


First of all... forgive me for leaving this blog in a hiatus for so long.. will try and update some stuff soon, insyaALlah.  I'm currently writing up an article, so it will be posted soon, insyaAllah.  


Meanwhile, to all Muslim friends, blog readers and followers, here's something for you:

and here's something a senior of mine posted on facebook the other day, which I found to be very interesting. An English pronunciation test, which was first found on a British newspaper (no credits goes to me, evidently! I'm just sharing it with you..)

I take it you already know

Of tough and bough, and cough and dough?

Some may stumble, but not you,

On hiccough, thorough, slough and through?

So now you are ready, perhaps,

To learn a less familiar traps?

Beware of heard, a dreadful word

That looks like beard and sounds like bird.

And dead, it's said like bed not bead;

For goodness' sake, don't call it deed!

Watch out for meat and great and threat.

(They rhyme with suite and straight and debt.)

A moth is not a moth in mother, 

Nor both in bother, broth  in brother.

Can you pronounce the bold-ed words correctly?

If so, hurrah for you!

If not, check the dictionary for further explanation.

Haha, enjoy.!

Hope you enjoyed that. I had. ^^

May Allah bless

Count Your Blessings!

I did not go to my practical clinic session today.  I had a headache. Some sort of fever, and very runny nose.  It's been on and of for a while, around ten days, perhaps.  But some days are indeed worse than others.  Well, today seems like one of the bad days...

With my head pounding, it gets me thinking of the days.  The days when I am healthy and energetic.  Well, looking back, I feel bad.  Because I often forget to thank ALlah for the many days I am well.  I did not utilize the time He gave me being healthy, to its maximum.  Caught guilty, indeed.

In a way, although being sick is not nice, it serves as a sharp reminder.  A reminder to utilize time to the fullest.  A reminder, to count your blessings, and really thank The Most Gracious for them.  A reminder, that we are indeed so fragile, and so weak, that we do really need Allah at every step of the way.

I'm reminded of a hadeeth (not the exact translation):

 Remember five before five: the times you are healthy, before you are sick.  The times you are young, before old.  When you are rich, before you are poor. The times you are free, before you are busy. And life, before your death.

 I actually have a lot to do...just to reflect for a while.   Hoping for your du'as.

Going back to my piles of assignments and study (exam is coming up!).

May Allah bless.  Assalamualaikum...

Jamuan Raya... Do forgive me!

Assalamualaikum....

I didn't go. so sorry to let you guys down. I know, it is indeed the last year we'll enjoy Hari Raya together as students, hence the last jamuan Raya as a class, too. But can't go. Because to me it didn't seem right.

Lasting memories..
Thanks a lot everyone!
Love u all, for HIS sake...

Yeah, it does not seem right.  To my principles, at least.  Of what I understand of how Allah allows me to deal with different genders.  Yes, I know, my views might be rigid.  Yet this is what I hold on to, since I was in school.  What I try to uphold, despite failing to do so, many times these years in university.  

What is it that I try to hold on to?  That Allah s.w.t.'s words "do not come near zina" entails me to limit my communication with the opposite gender.  No, not that I cannot be friends with men, but I try to deal with men, when required.  This does not mean that I don't care what happens to my classmates of the different gender. I do care.  But it means limiting unnecessary talks, discussions, and laughter.  This is how I understand, from my teachers and parents, since form 3.  This, is where I learn and draw my own guideline to my social rules.

As I said, I failed so many times already.  No one else's fault but mine, of course.   The chatterbox who enjoys chatting to people, and laugh quite often, too.  Yet I tried my hardest to stay true to this principle.  Truth be told, each time I realized I went way overboard (in my own view) I was sad.  Really sad.

Thus I decide not to come.  Not because I care not.  Not because of the many loads of assignments (oh, I know, you have as much as I do, if not more!).  I love all of you, a lot.  I wish to spend time with you guys too, share and build up memories of the times we have together as classmates.  But to me the Jamuan is against my principles, and I believe that Allah does not allow me to be part of it.   I have so many faults, that I dare not pile them up, and get Allah angry. 

Forgive me!  and I love you all, and I pray, that Allah will give all of us, you and me, happiness and blessings, here and in the next life.  

Let us try our fullest to live the way he wants, and love HIM, above all else.

May ALlah bless!

Remember Them??

 Reminded. About them again.  I had wanted to do so much, but sometimes time just keep flying by. So now I managed to wirte something, alhamdulillah... for me to remind MYSELF, first of all, and also for you.  For us to ACT, not just talk.  As a brother once said... let's walk the talk. Yes, as you have seen from the picture below, let us remember them. The Palestinians, and the siege imposed on them.

On Gaza crisis:

"it's far beyond humanitarian. It's much more serious. You can address a humanitarian crisis with medicines and food; this is far more serious. It's a crisis of the economy first of all -- people are very poor. It's a crisis of the institutions and it's a crisis of the infrastructure. This requires years to fix." - Filippo Grandi, commissioner-general of the UN agency for Palestine refugees (UNRWA)

Don't forget them.  Not now, when we are happy celebrating Eid (still).  Not when we are blessed with happiness.  Neither when we are busy with our day-to-day activities of classes or work.  Nor when we are faced with difficulty and challenges.  For in reality, they are suffering more. So much more.  Do your part!

1. Boycott!!

- movies (Hollywood ones, esoecially)

- Fast food chains (there are listed elsewhere)

- Bags, clothes, accessories

- Food and other stuff associated with Zionists

2. Pray!! (Du'aa) 

Pray for these innocent kids... who face difficulty every day, 
studying with the lack of papers... of books.  

Pray for the toddlers who are forced to stay thirsty due to the lack of clean water

Pray for the babies, who lost their fathers and mothers in bombings and prisons

Pray for them, the Palestinians.  

That they may be freed from the open prison of endless walls

They are human beings too, with dreams, families, love, and a hope for peace

Most importantly, they are our brothers and sisters.

Pray for the safety of the third Masjid, Masjidil Aqsa

To be safe from the hands of Zionists

To be sturdy through the deceit and lies

The bombs, and tunnels they plan.

3. Spread the words. 

The fight against Zionists, and the cruelty faced by Palestinians which is blatantly, inhumanely done.  Write. Tell your friends. Organize campaigns in your area.  

4. DONATE! what you can. 

Use the money you usually spend elsewhere (for Starbuck coffee or the movies, perhaps?) and donate to humanitarian aid fighting to end the Palestinian siege.  You can donate to:  

Lifeline 4 Gaza: Second Freedom Flotilla

Account name : “TABUNG PALESTIN HALUAN”
Account number : 5644 9020 8528
Bank : Maybank Berhad

Read more on the upcoming mission on: 

a. Press Release LL4G

b. FAQ on Second Flotilla

Eid Mubarak Everyone!!

To the followers and blog readers...
Eid Mubarak! (sorry for the late wish)

and forgive me for the lateness in updates, and any other mistakes I made.
btw... feel free to comment so that I can improve my writing.

may Allah bless you all....

~humayra_solehah~

Favorite Hadeeth

In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

Tonight is already 27th Ramadhan.  How time zoom past, so very fast.  Tonight is another night.. another night to at, date with The Creator. To search for the special night that is better than 1000 months, lailatul qadr.  not only that, but also to utilize the last few days of Ramadhan to its maximum, and attempt to gain its full benefit.  

Today I would just like to share a lovely hadeeth, regarding our relationship to ALlah.  Indeed, it is one of my favorite hadeeth, for it shows how much Allah, our Creator, Benefactor and Sustainer loves us, even though we had done so many mistakes.  He loves us, and is willing to be close to us, if only we attempt at getting close to Him. 

Hadeeth Qudsi: 

 I treat my servant as he hopes that I would treat him.  I am with him whenever he remembers Me.  If he remembers Me in his heart, I remember him in My 'heart'; if he remembers Me in a gathering, I remember him in a gathering far greater than that gathering; if he draws near Me a hand's span, I draw near to him an arm's length; if he draws near Me an arm's length, I draw near to him a fanthom's length; and if he comes to Me walking, I go to him running.

(Bukhari, Muslim)

a superb hadeeth, isn't it.  So why hesitate?  why is it so hard to take the first step towards gaining Allah's love?  InsyaAllah, He will be there for you, if only you make ready a place for Him in your heart.  The highest, most important spot in your heart.  

Let us all attempt, seriously try to ensure, that that top, priority spot in our heart, belongs to Him. So that we love Him, more than all else.  Yes, only He deserves it, no one else does.

Try aiming for that, especially for the few days left of Ramadhan. Let's be true servants, loving Him, above all else.

May Allah bless.

Technology Anyone??

Just thought of this...  

Technology is nice, makes a lot of things easy for us.  But then again... 

Now we need to rely on handphones to call our friends, cause we almost never memorize thir numbers.

Now we keep in touch via emails and social networking sites, but they require so little effort, and less personal, too, compared to letters.

Now every spare second we have, we spend in front of laptops and PCs, what happen to other hobbies and interests?  

Now we can go to so many places and not get lost, due to GPS and all, but I'm very much afraid, soon we would surely be lost without them.

Sometimes technology helps.  But at times, they make things too easy, that we use our brain less.  

Ever wondered, what would happen if  our handphone is lost?

Now would we survive if the laptop crashed?

What about if the earth's natural resources are finished?  Would we survive then?  What would we do with our time? (that is spent so much in front of computers, play station, i-pads and i-phones, handphones...) 

Is technology everything to you?

Will we be able to lead a normal life without technology?

BEWARE if you think you can't.

Be careful if you depend on technology, rely solely on technology.

For you've to be careful, that reliance you have, might be more than reliance to the Creator of man

The owner of all knowledge, including technology.

I'm not an anti-tech, but one does have to find ways to navigate life, so that technology doesn't become everything.  It is alright if Islam be everything for us, and we will perform outstanding in life.  But if, instead of Allah, we rely on technology more - then beware.  For if technology breaks down, or disaster strikes, we will break down as well.   Check our thoughts and iman, which matters more in ourselves.  If you hold on to technology only as another tool in life to become a better servant to Allah, then it is alright.  But if you see that everything MUST revolve around technology, then do re-think and set your mindsetting again, for Allah can take all the superb technology away from is in a matter of seconds if He wants to.  He had proven that He can do so, again and again.

And how many a generation We have destroyed before them, who were stronger in power than them, and (when Our Torment came) they ran for a refuge in the land! Could they find any place of refuge (for them to save themselves from destruction)? [Qaf: 36]

Nations of the past have been destroyed because they defy Allah's orders, and made partners to Allah.  Never think that with technology, we are getting so advance, that we can rely on technology alone.  For no matter what, Allah is always more powerful.  No matter what, at the end of the day, mankind still needs Allah to turn to, for his problems, for guidance.  Most importantly, at the end, we will still return to Him. 

~random thoughts.. but i guess, it is worth to ponder.  and do find ways to exercise the brain, though.  By memorizing the Quran, studying and learning new things [learn new skills, try variety of things too, for they sharpen numerous skills - not just sitting in front of the laptop].  Be thankful for the benifits of technology, but don't get carried away with them.  On top of that, do re-check our heart.  Is Allah at the top list, or technology, or.. other people?


sorry for the un-organized post.  first i decided to make this short, but it suddenly expanded, and expanded some more...


May Allah bless...




pic source: 
1. http://www.usfst.com/media/focus-area-images/FSTUS/issues-9-1/Technology_management_LG_FOC.png
2. http://www.usyd.edu.au/images/content/cws/news/newsevents/articles/2005/sep/petra.jpeg

Assignment and Reflection

In the name of Allah, the most Gracious, most Merciful,

A short post this time round... but something, I hope, that would be worthwhile to ponder, process, and condition our hearts to.

I was writing my assignment regarding patient-practitioner relationship.  I typed in: "A vital ingredient in any successful relationship is trust..." and suddenly thought of the most important relationship of my life. Not only mine, but everyone's, actually.  Our relationship with our Creator and Sustainer, Allah.  

Hence a vital ingredient of success in our relationship with Allah is trust.  Trust, that He is the One, who we can always rely on, ever second of the day.  Trust, that Allah, with His never-ending love for His servants, would never give us any tests we are unable to face.  Trust, that Allah is always ready to assist us through everything that happen in our sometimes-complicated life.  Last but not least, trust that He will always protect His servants, and He is the best protector at all times.


Let us check our hearts, and question ourselves...  how is our relationship with Allah?  Do we trust Him?  Do we trust Allah most, or do we trust people more than Him?  Do we rely more on our parents to grant us happiness, or do we rely on Allah to give happiness?  Or... do we hope for happiness more from that special someone in our lives?  Who do we hope for security and protection?  Do we hope He will save us from harm, or do we trust more on the locks on our doors, grills on our windows, or that CCTV down in the hallway? 

Let us instill this trust in ourselves, just like the Prophet and his companions had in the past.  When Abu Bakr r.a gave all of his money for Allah's sake, to be spent for the preparation of a battle between the kuffar and the Muslims, the Prophet PBUH asked him: "what have you left for your wife and children?" what is his answer?  I left Allah and his angels to protect my family".  This is the answer from a true believer.  His trust in Allah is so much, that he leave his family solely to Allah.

Alhamdulillah, we manage to reach this stage.  Entering into this factory called Ramadhan.  A valuable opportunity to be processed to become better people, better servants to our Lord, and increase our sensitivity to the poor and needy.  Let us use the opportunity to be in this Ramadhan University, to learn to trust Allah more.  Condition our hearts to improve our relationship with Him... so that His redha will be with us, until we meet Him in the next life...  

Ramadhan Kareem everyone! may this Ramadhan brings all of us closer to Allah, and increase our imaan and taqwa.  Welcome to the month full of barakah and rahmah!  


pics credits to: http://xeniagreekmuslimah.wordpress.com/ , http://iloveallahandrasulullah.blogspot.com/, http://theultimatestanding.blogspot.com/

Books and Me

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, most Merciful

Source: bookshelves.com

When I was younger, way back in Primary school, everyday, one lucky student would have to share regarding the book he/she was reading.  Be it fiction or non-fiction.  My love for books tripled then, i think..  Another contributing factor is the fact that my classmates and I have the opportunity to go to the school library and borrow books, each week, plus every morning's half hour reading session.  There, I learnt to enjoy English fiction books, and numerous non-fiction books as well, regarding sports and astronomy.  

Yet.. my love for books did not began there.  A huge contributing factor to my reading passion are my parents.  They spent so much of their money on books.  Be it school books, story books, encyclopaedias,  Islamic books, seerah of the Prophet and his companions... the list goes on.  

Now as the wheel of time turns, my love for books did not diminish.  Perhaps they change, in types of books, and also the time available to spend on my favorite pastime.  But I still try to find time to read, and to go to the bookstore every once in a while to increase my stock of books.  

Why share of books all of a sudden?  Actually, I just want to share a great book I am currently reading: Bumi Cinta.  Yep... another book by the author Habiburrahman el Shirazy.  But to me, this book is different from all his other books, for it tells of the challenges of Nafs when being a Muslim is gharib (strange).  When holding on to faith is scorned upon, and when free mixing, intermingling of different genders is a norm.  Another bonus point is, this book also tells of a place I've never been to before, Russia.  So my love to see different places and my imagination travels along with the characters.  I'll try write a full review of the book when I finished reading it, insyaAllah..

The Sealed Nectar is another book I am reading... I had read the Malay version years ago, but being a kid at the time, I think I did skip some parts, and read others.  Plus it was also a couple of years ago, and I have not read it since.  I am reading this, because I feel that I need to refresh myself of the most loved servant of Allah, the Prophet PBUH's life story.  Yeah, I learnt of his life ever since small. But this time, I try to read, and learn to implement his life story to my own.  Also to increase my own love to the person who sacrificed his life for our sake, to spread Islam.  So far I've read the intro, 1st and 2nd chapter.  I hope I can finish this in Ramadhan or Syawal, insyaAllah..

I haven't started on this book yet, although the target is to read it so that I appreciate the Quran more, and to ready myself for the Ramadhan.  But I'm hoping to find time to start soon, insyaAllah.. Al-Quran is Allah's love letters to His servants, so we should all try our best to delve into understanding and appreciating the Quran.  A Mu'min's heart should be shaken every time he hears of Allah's name, and much more when al-Quran is recited.  But we are so far from the Quran, at times.  In our day to day activities, in our interactions and emotions. Trying to get my heart closer to Allah and His love letters, hope this book will help.

Oh yes... I'm also currently reading heaps of journals, covering numerous topics, in order to do my proposal.  I feel like I enjoyed those too, for the more I read, the more curious I become.  Alhamdulillah, I found a new passion for journals, now. (^_^)

Well, that's it for now... I might write some book review if time permits, insyaAllah..  What books are you reading currently?  May all that we read increase our imaan and humbleness to Allah, al-'Aleem... He knows so much, and our knowledge is still so little...




** Upon writing this, I suddenly remembered the song: Afraid to Read by Dawud Wharnsby Ali.  So... I decide to share it here.  A simple song with deep meanings, indeed. Enjoy!

Wallahu'alam... May Allah bless..