.:Bullet Proof Read:.

** Mu’jam I’rab Alfath al-Qur’an al-Karim **

We finally got our books! Alhamdulillah! The Dictionary of Grammatical Analysis of the Holy Qur’an. Along with al-Balaghah al-Wadihah. Ahh… how the immediate feeling upon obtaining a book is a delusion of cleverness :P But yea. I’m just extra proud of this one purchase, alhamdulillah. And hey, if anything, my own teacher’s experience of only realising he owned the (same) book later on in life (a wonderful realisation at that!) gives me hope that this will indeed be more than useful one day, insha Allah. Yes, yes, am using bits now too.

Books. They’re wonderful friends… The best…

The Truest Companion

“The book is a companion that does not praise you and does not entice you to evil. It is a friend that does not bore you and it is a neighbour that causes you no harm. It is an acquaintance that desires not to extract from you favours through flattery and it does not deceive you with duplicity and lies. When you are poring through the pages of a book, your senses are stimulated and your intellect sharpens. Furthermore, your tongue will find eloquence and grandeur. Through reading the biographies of others, you gain an appreciation of common people and you learn the ways of kings. It can even be said that you sometimes learn from the pages of a book in a month, that which you do not learn from the tongues of men in a century. All this benefit, yet no loss in wealth and no need to stand at the door of the teacher who is waiting for his fees, to learn from someone who is lower than you in manners.

The book obeys you by night as it does by day, both when you are travelling and when you are at home. A book is not impaired by sleep nor does it tire in the late hours of the night. It is the teacher who is there for you whenever you are in need of it and it is the teacher, who, if you refuse to give to it, it does not refuse to give to you.

If you abandon it, it does not decrease in obedience. And when all turn against you, showing you enmity, it remains by your side. As long as you are remotely attached to a book, it suffices you from having to keep company with those who are idle. It prevents you from sitting on your doorstep and watching those who pass by. It saves you from mixing with those who are frivolous in their character, who are foul in their speech, who are base in character, and who are woeful in their ignorance.

If the only benefit of a book was that it keeps you from foolish daydreaming and prevents you from frivolity, it would certainly be considered to be a true friend who has given you a great favour.”

- Al-Jahiz

[posted here]

A love affair with knowledge will never end in heartbreak.

-
Said Michael Garrett Marino.
And what do you know?
He spoke the truth so.

_________
This post was dedicated to: Kati, my dedicated friend… with much love! And The Silent Observer (yes, with a cooler spelling), a true seeker of knowledge, hafithahullah.

اللهُمَّ فك أسراه، واحفظ دينه وأهله

آميـــــــــــــــــــن

Yesterday, at the crowded bus station, I heard a young boy crying out loudly - the sort of cry of a lost, hurt boy. Then I saw him, about 4 years old, with an elderly man trying to calm him down to no avail. So I got reminded of this video: Stranger Danger: Protecting Your Kids [originally posted here]. I was assured the kid was ok though because I soon saw some ladies coming around the two.

It just made me wonder though. That video… Us. Why do we lack the concern… the compassion? It’s not just this… Everything else. Amongst ourselves even. The irony being just before that I was answering my exam question of “What was the secret to Rasulullah’s (sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam) success in building an Islamic state?” One of the points I made was that he was a compassionate leader… And indeed he was, the best of man to show compassion, sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam.

So where is our compassion? What has happened to us? Why’re we such a cold people? When we claim to be of the sunnah of Rasulullah sallallahu ‘alayhi wasallam? Allahu a’lam. You and I could probably go on endlessly listing possibilities… but it’s just one of those moments… baffles me. Allahul musta’an…

And by His Beautiful Names, we seek His Help.
[ART: Hafeez Shaikh]

My Frozen Compassion

My compassion freezes
Lies cold, helpless
Around it apathy
Abides, a permanent address

My compassion, freezing
Lies there, ceasing
Beneath the dirt
Beyond any cleaning

My frozen compassion
Lies still, dead
Capable of resurrection
Condemned though, repulsion

My compassion, frozen
Lies invisible, sunken
Desperate to awaken
Demanding chance, the second

My compassion, it froze
Lied peaceful, alone
Eaten out, in throes
Ending… Existent-non, it goes.

Om Wareke

[Tis all a bit cheesy. But MEH. I'm posting it anyway. Salam!]

Awwww, look at the cute little fishie whose memory lasts only a mere 3 seconds! Not quite. Scientific studies have proven the goldfish can retain a memory of up to three months.

The human memory is far more superior obviously. Yes, seriously. We’re the creatures with that extra bit of ‘aql, right? You may say it through gritted teeth but it’s how it is, and how it should be. May Allah save us.

A quick research (goo goo gle) presents the different levels of memory: sensory, short-term and long-term.The sensory memory is what allows us to take in new information about the immediate environment but lasts less than a second. Which is a good thing because we don’t want to remember every little detail of everything we see, hear, touch, feel or taste… Do we? Well if we do want to retain particular information for a longer time, we’d have to bring it to another level.

The short-term memory, sometimes referred to as the working memory, lasts longer than the sensory memory but is able to store much less, limited information. “Short-term memory is the work bench of our consciousness, and includes our awareness of the sensations, feelings and thoughts that are experienced.”

Finally, the long-term memory would be what we’re all more familiar with. It’s the permanent storage with a huge capacity… The only catch lies in its retrieval which as we know, can be quite a chore, if not extremely frustrating, at times. Some theories have it that everything we’ve ever learned or experienced is right up there, we just have to figure out how to get it out.

Reference (and read more about it): Here.
[Disclaimer: You might get better, more accurate info from the site, really.]

So how does this information about information-storing benefit us? Well for one thing, there’re interesting facts that we can relate to (if you read further on the link):
Items in the long-term memory are richly interconnected. When new information is added to the long-term memory, it is associated with a lot of existing information that bears a relationship with it.

One way I appreciate the different levels of memory is how you can choose to lose the memory before it commits to your long-term memory. This is especially so in bad experiences where, for example, someone angers you… You could remember the experience but only in a reflective way - feelings not included.

The memory is indeed important to the Muslim. Besides Qur’an memorisation, Islamic knowledge deserves a whole lot of space in our large long-term memory. It is said that when you go further in memorisation - as you memorise surah to surah, juzz to juzz - you actually strengthen your memory. I’d read about a hafidh who said that as time went by, memorisation proved easy for him and he was memorising at a pace of 5 juzz per 2 weeks! Masha Allah.

Tips for Strengthening One’s Memory
Spiritual

• Abstain from sins
• Remember Allah much
• Supplication…
  اللَّهُمَّ اِنِّى اَسْئَلُكَ فَهْمَ الَنَّبِيِّن وَ حِفْظَا الْمُرْسَلِيِّن الْمُقَرِّبِين
  O Allah! I ask You for the understanding of the prophets and the memory of the messengers, and those nearest to You.
  More study du’as.

[Ahh, it's so the 3-step formula to everything else too]

Foods

• Raisins
• Honey
• Not eating too much! [Tis spiritual too]

Psychological

• Read it, might find it practical.

And if you’re all set for it, go ahead, take this Memory Test.

Well with that, I’m off to study! Please make du’a for my exams. Jazakum Allahu khair.

الصـــــديــــــق
The Friend فمن هو الصديق الحقيقي وهل يوجد صديق في هذا الزمان
Who is the true friend, and is there a true friend nowadays?

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الصديق الذي تكون معه, كما تكون وحدك اي هو الانسان الذي تعتبره بمثابة النفس
The true friend: He is the friend that when you are with, if is as if you are alone, meaning he is the person who you consider to be on the same level as yourself

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يقبل عذرك و يسامحك أذا أخطأت و يسد مسدك في غيابك
The true friend: He is the one who accepts your excuses and forgives you if you err, and defends you in your absense.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يظن بك الظن الحسن
The true friend: He is the one who assumes of you the best assumptions.

و أذا أخطأت بحقه يلتمس العذر ويقول في نفسه لعله لم يقصد
And if you err in truth, he seeks an excuse and says to himself, perhaps it was not indended.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يرعاك في مالك و أهلك و ولدك و عرضك
The true friend: He is the one who cares for your wealth, and your family, and your offspirng, and your honour.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يكون معك في السراء و الضراء و في الفرح و الحزن و في السعةِ و الضيق و في الغنى و الفقر
The true friend: He is the one who is with you using ease, and hardship, and in happiness, and in sadness, and openness and in constrait.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يؤثرك على نفسه و يتمنى لك الخير دائما
The true friend: He is the one who prefers you over hisself and wishes for you good always.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي ينصحك اذا راى عيبك و يشجعك اذا رأى منك الخير ويعينك على العمل الصالح
The true friend: He is the one who advices you if he sees your faults and encourages you if he sees good in you and helps you adhere to good deeds.

الصديق الحقيقي :هو الذي يوسع لك في المجلس و يسبقك بالسلام اذا لقاك و يسعى في حاجتك اذا احتجت اليه
The true friend: He is the one who makes room for you in a seating, and hurries to greet you with peace if he meets you, and hurries to help you if you are in need of help.

الصديق الحقيقي :هو الذي يدعي لك بظهر الغيب دون ان تطلب منه ذلك
The true friend: He is the one who prays for you, without you knowing, without you asking for it.

الصديق الحقيقي :هو الذي يحبك بالله و في الله دون مصلحة مادية او معنوية
The true friend: He is the one who loves you for the sake of Allah, and not for the benefit of material goods or support.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يفيدك بعمله و صلاحه و أدبه و أخلاقه
The true friend: He is the one who benefits you with his actions, and excellence, and morals and manners.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يرفع شأنك بين الناس و تفتخر بصداقته و لا تخجل من مصاحبته و السير معه
The true friend: He is the one who raised your esteem between the people and boasts his friendship and is not embarrased with his friendship and his walking with you.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يفرح اذا احتجت اليه و يسرع لخدمتك دون مقابل
The true friend: He is the one who is happy if you need him, and rushes you serve you, not wanting anything in return.

الصديق الحقيقي : هو الذي يتمنى لك ما يتمنى لنفسه
The true friend: He is the one who wishes for you what he wishes for himself.

Translated by Ibn El-Sheikh.

Posted here.

A job that slowly kills you.
(yea, everyone tried to get that coffee stain off)

So I bought this book and after having read just a few pages, I made so many mental nods (of agreement), I know I’m gonna love it… It’d be a great help, insha Allah.

I found out about it from this article though:
The Obnoxious Co-Worker: Is it you?

Read it yet? Ok. So how do you if it’s maybe you who’s annoying people out of their minds? As Muslims, we should make frequent self-checks and have the best of humility… and the ulama have advised us to view ourselves as worse off than the next person. (That’s really easy if you’re even part honest)

Al-Qurash said, Idris informed me on the authority of his grandfather
Wahb b. Munabbih, that Luqman said to his son, Oh my son! A man’s ‘aql
is not complete until he possesses ten characteristics; he is safe from
arrogance, he eats only what is necessary and he spends his excess
wealth.  Modesty is more beloved to him than nobility, and humility is
more beloved to him than prestige.  He is not bored by searching for
knowledge throughout his life, nor is he wearied by people asking him
[to fulfill] their needs.  He considers what little others do to be
great, and he considers what much good he does to be insignificant. The
tenth characteristic, which distinguishes him, and is worth the highest
mention, is that he regards everyone on earth as better than him, and
that he is the worst amongst them. If he sees someone better than him,
he rejoices and hopes that he may follow his example, and if he sees
someone worse than him, he says, ‘Perhaps this man will be saved,
and I will perish.’

At this point is his ‘aql complete.

Beautiful.It’s always about how the other person sees things, and views you. You say potato-ish business, you know? You might be smiling to your brother in such great hopes for that reward (sadaqah) but if all your brother sees is a frown, it DOES matter. Or try the way you compose an email… You may think it’s polite (hey as far as you’re concerned, you minded your Ps and Qs!) but the recipient might beg to differ. So on top of the self-evaluation, get others to give you feedback.

As ‘Umar al-Khattab radiyallahu ‘anh said, “Be grateful to the one who points out your defects.”

While we may have knowledge, our implementation is always weak. It’s worst though when we excuse this fact (for ourselves) to advise someone else because it’s always enjoin good and forbid evil, right? Teach even if all you know is one ayah. Correct someone even if you may be committing the same wrong. Yea, the works. But please, have extra care when it comes to applying a hadith you just learnt on an individual. Often times, the admonitions are for the masses and are in general. You may remind people and quote these statements but to make it sound like you’re reducing and condemning that person to that statement alone is not only wrong… But will backfire on you.

We so desperately need to learn the adab of enjoining good and forbidding evil.

And at the end of it all.
Since it starts off with a book and all. I just noticed how some articles would have a line at the end telling the writer’s designation and such. So you’d start off reading an article by some majhool (unknown to you), it’s interesting then bam! You see what the author does for a living and your perception is changed! Well, it influences me at least… sometimes. Like, you know, a fab article on the women in Islam written by an atheistic professor of engineering.

No, I’ve never come across one.

Point? In relation to the above bit, “Look to what’s being said, not who’s saying it.”