In the Arms of the Beloved

At last you have departed and gone to the Unseen.

What marvelous route did you take from this world?

Beating your wings and feathers,

you broke free from this cage.

Rising up to the sky

you attained the world of the soul.

You were a prized falcon trapped by an Old Woman.

Then you heard the drummer's call

and flew beyond space and time.

As a lovesick nightingale, you flew among the owls.

Then came the scent of the rosegarden

and you flew off to meet the Rose.

The wine of this fleeting world

caused your head to ache.

Finally you joined the tavern of Eternity.

Like an arrow, you sped from the bow

and went straight for the bull's eye of bliss.

This phantom world gave you false signs

But you turned from the illusion

and journeyed to the land of truth.

You are now the Sun -

what need have you for a crown?

You have vanished from this world -

what need have you to tie your robe?

I've heard that you can barely see your soul.

But why look at all? -

yours is now the Soul of Souls!

O heart, what a wonderful bird you are.

Seeking divine heights,

Flapping your wings,

you smashed the pointed spears of your enemy.

The flowers flee from Autumn, but not you -

You are the fearless rose

that grows amidst the freezing wind.

Pouring down like the rain of heaven

you fell upon the rooftop of this world.

Then you ran in every direction

and escaped through the drain spout . . .

Now the words are over

and the pain they bring is gone.

Now you have gone to rest

in the arms of the Beloved.

"Rumi - In the Arms of the Beloved",

.....Always Beautiful

"Know

The true nature of your Beloved.

In His loving eyes your every thought,

Word and movement is always-

Always Beautiful."

- Hafiz

May Allah Bless our lives

May Allah Bless our lives

with His Love and Light

so that joy, serenity and love

will always be the reflections of our lives

in the month of Muharram

and throughout the year, InshaAllah.

With love and du'as always,

Abu Hurayrah reported: "I asked the Prophet: 'Which Prayer is the best after the obligatory Prayers?' He said: 'Prayer during the mid of the night.' I asked: 'Which fasting is the best after that of Ramadan?' He said, 'The month of Allah that you call Muharram’" (Ahmad, Muslim, and Abu Dawud).

Mu`awiyyah ibn Abi Sufyan reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah say: "Concerning the day of `Ashura’, it is not obligatory upon you to fast on it as I do. Whoever wishes may fast and whoever does not wish to is not obliged to do so" (Al-Bukhari and Muslim).

Reflections of joy, serenity and love

A true muslim’s life

Reflects joy, serenity and love,

Ever loving and forgiving,

Never forgetting caring and sharing

Enduring the thorns

Returning with roses,

Seeking not human pleasure

But Allah’s redha.

In a life full of trust and sincerity

To experience the amazing love and tranquility

In a spiritual journey returning to Allah

~10pm, 17th December 2009~

Narrated Abu Hurairah: Allah’s Messenger (pbuh) said,

“Richness is not in plenty of provisions; the (real) richness is the richness of the soul.”

(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

Do not fall into despair if blessings come late,

Do not fall into despair if blessings come late,

even though you keep asking for them,

because Allah has promised to heed prayers.

Yet the wish to be granted will be granted

because He wishes it for you,

not because you wish it for yourself.

Ibn `Ata’ Allah

Happiness is a butterfly

MashaAllah...............

it's a beautiful metaphorical phrase,

wish i could know who wrote it.

Happiness is a butterfly,

which, when pursued,

is always just beyond your grasp,

but which, if you sit down quietly,

may alight upon you.

~unknown~

I looked at all friends

“I looked at all friends

and did not find a better friend

than safeguarding the tongue.

I thought about all dresses,

but did not find a better dress than piety.

I thought about all types of wealth,

but did not find a better wealth

than contentment in little.

I thought of all types of good deeds,

but did not find a better deed

than offering good advice.

I looked at all types of sustenance

but did not find a better sustenance than patience.”

[Umar (r.a)

My son, when you pray.........

My son, when you pray,

do it like a person who is bidding farewell to this world,

and don’t assume you will have

another chance to pray again.

My son, know that a believer dies in between two deeds,

one he offers for today,

where he will get immediate blessings,

and the second deed is what he offers

towards the day of resurrection,

and that is where he will gain the ultimate benefits.

Muadh Ibn Jabal (r.a)

“And that is not difficult for Allah.”

Ibn Ata'llah wrote in his hikam:

Do not leave the remembrance because of your lack of presence of heart with Allah therein, because your heedlessness of the remembrance of Allah is more harmful than your heedlessness during the remembrance of Allah. It may well be that He take you from remembrance in which there is heedlessness (ghaflah) to remembrance in which there is consciousness (yaqadhah); and from remembrance in which there is consciousness to remembrance in which there is presence of heart (hudoor); and from remembrance in which there is presence of heart to remembrance in which there is obliviousness to all but the One Remembered,

“And that is not difficult for Allah.”

How utterly amazing is someone who flees from something he cannot escape

by Ibn Ata'llah

How utterly amazing is someone who flees from something he cannot escape
to seek something that will not last!

"It is not the eyes that are blind,
but the hearts in the breasts are blind."

Do not travel from phenomenal being to phenomenal being.
You will be like the donkey going around at the mill.
It travels to what is set out from.

Travel from phenomenal beings
to the Maker of Being.

"And the final end is to your Lord."

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

by Ibn Ata'llah

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when He is the One who is manifest by everything?

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when He is the One who is made manifest in everything?

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when He is the One who is manifest to everything?

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when He was the One who was Manifest before there was anything?

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when He is more manifest than anything?

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when He is the One with whom there is nothing else?

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when He is the One who is nearer to you than anything?

How can you imagine that something else veils Him

when if it had not been for Him, there would not have been anything?

A marvel!

See how existence becomes manifest in non-existence!

How the in-time holds firm alongside Him whose attribute is eternal!

A feeling of discouragement when you slip up

by Ibn Ata'llah

A feeling of discouragement when you slip up

is a sure sign that you put your faith in deeds.

Your desire to withdraw from everything

when Allah has involved you in the world of means

is a hidden appetite.

Your desire for involvement with the world of means

when Allah has withdrawn you from it

is a fall from high aspiration.

Aspiration which rushes on ahead

cannot break through the walls of destiny.

Give yourself a rest from managing!

When Someone Else is doing it for you,

don't you start doing it for yourself!

“Love is the only flower that grows and blossoms without the aid of the seasons."

(photo taken in Cameron Highlands, Malaysia)

This is Hibiscus rosasinensis or bunga raya, the national flower of Malaysia. It is widely grown as an ornamental plant throughout the tropics and subtropics. The flower has also medicinal properties, some local believes the roots and its juice can be used as a cure for fever, other ailments, relieving skin eruptions and glandular troubles.

I was truly amazed when my eyes set on the Hibiscus rosasinensis which has a unique size which is as large as the palm of our hand, MashaAllah, watching the bloomed flowers really moved my heart. The flower seems like a soul blooming in beauty capturing the heart which cannot bloom without water, soil and sunshine, just like human cannot live with joy, serenity and love……………the flower is like a blooming soul revealing to the nature that each of Allah’s creation has its own attributes and unique features………………..

Kahlil Gibran, a Lebanese born American philosophical essayist, novelist and poet once said:

“Love is the only flower that grows and blossoms without the aid of the seasons.”

How long will you ramble on the shore of the ocean, close your eyes to the wonders of the Quran?

How long will you ramble on the shore of the ocean, close your eyes to the wonders of the Quran? Was it not your duty to sail to the midst of the fathomless ocean of these meanings in order to see their wonders, to travel to their islands in order to gather their best produce, and to dive into their depths so that you might become rich by obtaining their jewels? Do you not feel ashamed of being deprived of their pearls and jewels by your persistence in looking at their shores and outward appearances?
[Imam Abu Hamid Al-Ghazali]

Being steadfast

Imam Al-Ghazali said, "If you see Allah, Mighty and Magnificent, holding back this world from you, frequently trying you with adversity and tribulation, know that you hold a great status with Him. Know that He is dealing with you as He does with His Awliya' and chosen elite, and is watching over you, have you not heard His saying, "So wait steadfastly for the judgment of your Lord - you are certainly before Our eyes.[At-Tur 52:48]

The Rose

What Allah said to the Rose

And caused it to laugh in full blown beauty,

He said to my heart

And made it a hundred times more beautiful.

~Rumi~

Love's Call

At every instant and from every side, resounds the call of Love:
We are going to sky, who wants to come with us?
We have gone to heaven, we have been the friends of the angels,
And now we will go back there, for there is our country.
We are higher than heaven, more noble than the angels:
Why not go beyond them? Our goal is the Supreme Majesty.
What has the fine pearl to do with the world of dust?
Why have you come down here? Take your baggage back. What is this place?
Luck is with us, to us is the sacrifice!
Like the birds of the sea, men come from the ocean--the ocean of the soul.
Like the birds of the sea, men come from the ocean--the ocean of the soul.
How could this bird, born from that sea, make his dwelling here?
No, we are the pearls from the bosom of the sea, it is there that we dwell:
Otherwise how could the wave succeed to the wave that comes from the soul?
The wave named 'Am I not your Lord' has come, it has broken the vessel of the body;
And when the vessel is broken, the vision comes back, and the union with Him.
~Rumi~

Subhan'Allah....a sign of LOVE..........

(the 3rd photo is a rotation of the 2nd photo)

These photos were taken on my birthday last year on the 16th of December 2008, the time was 5.48pm, and i was with my family by the sea side at Melaka, which is at the Western Coast of Peninsular Malaysia, waiting for the sun to set, as I truly love watching the sunset. My children took many photographs as the day began to set. By looking at the sky on that day i felt the joy and serenity overflowing but no words to heave to express the tranquility, ya Allah. After a year, that's today, when we went through the photos, my youngest daughter rotated one of the photos and said: "Subhan'Allah!! Ummi look!! there a sign of LOVE on the sky" .............................Subhan'Allah , that's LOVE, it's there, but we did not notice it, but where there is love, hearts can feel, though eyes can't see.................just like love for Allah.................

"Love for Allah envelopes the heart,

it rules the heart and it even spreads over everything."

~Imam Ghazali~

Mahabbah (love) is a condition which man feels in his heart, too subtle to be expressed in words. This subtle spiritual state leads the worshipper to recognize the greatness of God, instills in him the desire, above all things, to please God, makes him unable to tolerate God’s absence, induces in him constant excitement at the thought of God; he finds no rest without God and feels an intimate comfort in continual thought of Him. Yet the idea of the love of man for God does not imply physical attraction and possession. How could it do so—since the true Infinite is too holy to be fully attained or reached or comprehended. It is more to the point to describe the man who knows mahabbah as being completely lost and overwhelmed in the beloved, than to refer to the relationship as one of possession. If the lover were described as submerged in the beloved, it would be more adequate than if they were described as being together.~Shaykh Abū al-Qāsim al-Qushayrī

Imam Ghazali's Last

Imam Ghazali woke up one early morning and as usual offered his prayers and then enquired what day it was, his younger brother, Ahmad Ghazali replied,"Monday." He asked him to bring his white shroud, kissed it, stretched himself full length and saying "Lord, I obey willingly," breathed his last.

And underneath his head rest they found the following verses; composed by him, probably, during the night.

"Say to my friends, when they look upon me, dead
Weeping for me and mourning me in sorrow
Do not believe that this corpse you see is myself
In the name of God, I tell you, it is not I,
I am a spirit, and this is naught but flesh
It was my abode and my garment for a time.
I am a treasure, by a talisman kept hid,
Fashioned of dust, which served me as a shrine,
I am a pearl, which has left it's shell deserted,
I am a bird, and this body was my cage
Whence I have now floron forth and it is left as a token
Praise to God, who hath now set me free
And prepared for me my place in the highest of the heaven,
Until today I was dead, though alive in your midst.
Now I live in truth, with the grave - clothes discarded.
Today I hold converse with the saints above,
With no veil between, I see God face to face.
I look upon "Loh-i-Mahfuz" and there in I read
Whatever was and is and all that is to be.
Let my house fall in ruins, lay my cage in the ground,
Cast away the talisman, it is a token, no more
Lay aside my cloak, it was but my outer garment.
Place them all in the grave, let them be forgotten,
I have passed on my way and you are left behind
Your place of abode was no deweling place for me.
Think not that death is death, nay, it is life,
A life that surpasses all we could dream of here,
While in this world, here we are granted sleep,
Death is but sleep, sleep that shall be prolonged
Be not frightened when death draweth night,
It is but the departure for this blessed home
Think of the mercy and love of your Lord,
Give thanks for His Grace and come without fear.
What I am now, even so shall you be
For I know that you are even as I am
The souls of all men come forth from God
The bodies of all are compounded alike
Good and evil, alike it was ours
I give you now a message of good cheer
May God's peace and joy for evermore be yours."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YvtI0YPhTGA

Excerpt: On the Remembrance of Death, and an Encouragement to Remember it Abundantly

Know that the heart of the man who is engrossed in this world
and is given over to its vanities and harbours love for its appetites
must certainly be neglectful of the remembrance of death.
Thus falling to recall it,
when reminded of it he finds it odious and shies away.
Such are the people of whom God has said:
Say: Lo! the death from which ye shrink will surely meet you,
and afterward ye will be returned unto
the Knower of the Invisible and the Visible,
and He will tell you what ye used to do.
’Now, men may be either engrossed [in the world],
penitent beginners, or arrived gnostics.
The man engrossed does not remember death,
or, if he does, it is with regret for his world,
and he busies himself with disparaging death.
The remembrance of death increases
such a one in nothing but distance from God.
The penitent man recalls death frequently,
so that fear and apprehension might thereby
proceed from his heart, making his repentance complete.
It may be that he is in fear of death lest it carry him off
before his repentance is complete
and before his provisions for the journey are replenished;
lie is excusable in his aversion to death,
and is riot included
in the saying of the Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace): ‘Whosoever would abhor meeting with God,
God abhors meeting with him’.
Such a man does not abhor death and meeting God,
but only fears the meeting with God passing him
by as a result of his deficiency and remissness.
He is like the man who is made late for a meeting
with his beloved by busying himself with preparations
for the encounter in a way that will find approval:
he is not deemed to be reluctant about the meeting!
The distinguishing mark of thepenitent man
is his constant preparation for this matter
and his lack of any other concern.
Were he to be otherwise he would associate
with the man engrossed in the world.
As for the gnostic, he remembers death constantly,
because for him it is the tryst with his Beloved,
and a lover never forgets the appointed time
for meeting the one he loves.
Usually such a man considers death slow in coming
and is happy upon its advent, that he might have done
with the abode of sinners and be borne away
into the presence of the Lord of the Worlds.
’ Such was the case with Hudhayfa,
of whom it is related that when death came he said,
‘A dear friend has come at a time of poverty.
Whoever repents [at such a moment as this] shall not succeed.
O Lord God! Should You know that poverty
is dearer to me than wealth,
and sickness more beloved to me than health,
and death more dear to me than life,
then make my death easy for me until I meet You.’

AL-GHAZALI - The Remembrance of Death and the AfterLife

Teacher vs Preacher

Below is my reply to a forum discussion on Teacher vs Preacher:

http://www.alifmusic.net/group/poems/forum/topics/teacher-vs-preacher

Assalamualaikum

Thank you brother for bringing up this very interesting topic for discussion. I believe both is important. Both is equally important because we need to seek knowledge whether its secular knowledge from the teacher or religious knowledge from the preacher. In Islam there is no dichotomy between secular or academic knowledge and religious or spiritual knowledge. This philosophy is practiced by true muslim teachers and true muslim preachers.
Below are a few quotes to support this philosophy.

“An essential prerequisite is that religious and secular subjects should be made an indivisible whole. The compartmentalization of religious and secular education, based on a factitious division of life into spiritual and temporal, is not sanctioned by Islam.” (Rauf, 1988, p. 63)

The characteristics of a good Islamic teacher have been defined as thus:
Love for children; love for the profession of education; humility without weakness; health and vitality of the body; psychological health and emotional balance; neatness, cleanliness and good appearance; eloquence and good pronunciation; intelligence and deep understanding; understanding students and their needs; strong command of the subject; broad and deep reading and knowledge; punctuality and respect for time; co-operation with the school system and policies; being courteous with students and fellow teachers; socialization with people and no isolation; knowledge and practice of Islam; to stay away from questionable sayings or deeds, even if it is lawful to do so; and sincerity.
- ISNA handout, 1994, quoted in The Purpose of an Islamic School and the Role of an Islamic School Teacher

In one of his addresses on the topic of a new education system, Mawdudi once said:
“If you teach history, geography, physics, chemistry, biology, zoology, astronomy, economics, political science and other social sciences without any reference to Allah ... a student will be unable to synthesize the conflicting ideologies into a unifying whole. Because of this intellectual polarization, his religious faith gradually weakens. Under the circumstances, he cannot remain totally committed to religion, however strong his faith may be.” (Rauf, 1988, p. 64)

“This can be used to further highlight the necessity for a Muslim teacher to put subjects in the context of Islam. If subjects are not Islamized, the indication is that the resulting pupil, through not viewing God to be the author and controller, assigns the latter to something other than God. He will therefore suffer a weakness in faith. Mawdudi also believes that students should consolidate their knowledge in Qur’anic Studies and thereafter ‘be offered a course in comparative religion so that they can assess for themselves how mankind went astray.” (Rauf, 1988, p. 67)

A more comprehensive definition of Islamic education was composed at the First World Conference on Muslim Education where participants were of the following view:
“Education should aim at the balanced growth of the total personality of man through the training of man’s spirit, intellect, his rational self, feelings and bodily senses. Education should cater therefore for the growth of man in all its aspects: spiritual, intellectual, imaginative, physical, scientific, linguistic, both individually and collectively and motivate all aspects towards goodness and the attainment of perfection. The ultimate aim of Muslim education lies in the realization of complete submission to Allah on the level of the individual, the community and humanity at large. “(Ashraf, 1985, p. 4)

Education (tarbiya), Al-Ghazali states in Ayyuha l-walad is like "the labour of the farmer, who uproots the weeds, trims wheat so as it grows better and gives a better harvest." Every man needs a teacher to guide him in the right direction. To try and do without leads to worst illusions. In Ayyuha l-walad the pupil’s outward respect for his teacher is evidence of esteem for such in one's heart.

In ‘Ihya ulum al-din’, Al-Ghazali states eight duties of a teacher. First and foremost he is a father for his pupils. He must teach for the sake of God. He would advise the student with prudence, fight the excessive urge to learn too quickly, and to overtake his peers. He would reprimand with moderation, in private, discreetly, not in public. To blame too much is to make the pupil too stubborn in his way of seeing and doing things. And one other duty of the teacher is to make sure that what he teaches he pursues in his life, and that his own acts do not contradict what he is trying to inculcate.

Thus we can conclude that a teacher and a preacher are both equally important as long as they have the true characteristics of a true muslim teacher and a true muslim preacher. According to Al-Ghazali, "knowledge exists potentially in the human soul like the seed in the soil; by learning the potential becomes actual."

Wallahualam

Still struggling to be a true muslim teacher.

References:
1. Ashraf. S.A. (1985), New Horizons in Muslim Education, Cambridge: Hodder & Stroughton.
2. Ayyuha l’walad by: Al-Ghazali
Al-Ghazali, Ayyuha l’walad: UNESCO, Beyrouth 1951 (Arabic text).
3. Ihya ul’Ulum by: Al-Ghazali
Al-Ghazali, Ihya ul’Ulum, part I, book 2, section 2.
4. Rauf. S.M.A. (1988), Mawdudi on Education, Karachi: IslamicResearch Academy.

Life is nothing but an accumulation of many breaths.

Life is nothing but an accumulation of many breaths.
So every breath is just a precious diamond
which cannot be purchased with anything in the world.
It is a priceless jewel which has got no substitute in value.
So in movements and talks, and in sorrows and happiness,
such a priceless breath should not be spent in vain.
To destroy it is to court destruction.
An intelligent man cannot lose it.
When a man gets up at dawn,
he should enter into an agreement with himself
just as a tradesman contracts with his partner.
At that time, he should address his mind thus:
O mind, you have been given no other property
as precious as life.
When it will end, the principal will end
and despondency will come in seeking profit in business.
Today is a new day. Allah has given you time,
that is, He has delayed your death.
He has bestowed upon you innumerable gifts.
Think that you are already dead. So don't waste time.
Every breath is a precious jewel.
Man has got for each day
and night twenty-four treasure houses in twenty-four hours.
Fill up these then find them filled up
with divine sights in the world next.
If they are not filled up with good works,
they will be filled up with intense darkness
where from a bad stench will come out and envelop them all around.
Another treasure house will neither give him happiness nor sorrow.
That is an hour in which he slept, or was careless,
or was engaged in any lawful work of this world.
He will feel grieved for its remaining vacant.

[Taken from al-Ghazali: Meditation and Introspection,
The Book of Constructive Virtues, Ihya Ulum-id-din.]