.:Bullet Proof Read:.

I’d wanted to comment on Fiqh & King-Kong (a must-read) by Shaykh Tawfique Chowdhury but eh, since it came up to a novel-ish entry, I shall post my own thoughts here…

Great article. Precisely pinpoints the problem. A brother once aptly put it as that we’ve become “victims of specialisation”. Where we not only ridiculously separate the “deeni” from the “worldly” studies and pursue only one or the other, but even when we do choose, we confine our scope to such a small area that we hardly function to society’s true benefit. For example, a brother returns from one of the renown Islamic centres having “majored” in Hadith sciences, “specialising” in sanad. Kudos and hats off, masha Allah, but when we look up to such brothers and sisters for inspiration, we see a pending specification beyond our own reach.

This condition isn’t limited to our section of society, in fact the secular academic institutions are perhaps the major perpetrators (get it?). Instead of a quick fix “let’s encourage people to add variety to their education”, there of course needs to be further research into what’s already been tried and tested. The Islamic schools here, for example, try to include and emphasise “secular” subjects in their curricula. But word on the ground is always that it’s such a burden upon the students, with many struggling to cope.

So uhh, do we revamp the whole education system then? Again, you’d find education agencies across the globe have brought up the issue in similar form before. Locally, it’s been generally to inculcate a sense of sports and a love for the arts in children - to help develop such talents beyond pure academics. It’s always a matter of the extent of such policies actually being implemented, and how successful they are in today’s context. My point though is that, let’s not fancy ourselves overnight heroes to bring about change with just simple discussion. In the end, an effective solution still has to come at some sort of authoritative level and definitely with hard teamwork.

Unity in diversity. I think that was the other issue I saw in Shaykh Tawfique’s article. Of course the brother in example was doing his own dissertation and therefore work for the most part, alone. But generally speaking, instead of having to individually delve into different fields ourselves, how about bringing our expertise together? After all, we do often boast about having too many doctors and engineers and such. Rather than simply interviewing them for expert opinion, engage them to actively partake in Islamic research too. Such collaborations have been done before, for sure… But is it an exploited enough method?

Educate thyself. Other than that, on an individual level, as I inferred from the original article, we can of course take it upon ourselves to study further. I know what I just said in the last para, but this is if you’re able, have the means to and care enough (for the living, make it a better place for you and for me. muahaha.).

No excuses eh. Mind over (muslim)matter. The only barrier is your own self. Check out this lovely list 7 Deadly Mindsets that Hold You Back From Learning Effectively which includes the lame excuse of “I’m too old to learn”. Learning stops at the grave innit.

Help others in the quest. In the least, encourage those whom you know can. More than words, financing helps a great deal. Unfortunately, the eighth deadly mindset amongst us is often “I can’t afford this”, when true rizq comes from Allah. Perhaps taking a break from stable income is understandably too risky at this moment, what with responsibilities of a new family and all. BUT you can still spare some for someone else in a better position to take on the “academic challenge”. I’m sure many already sponsor studies for orphans and needy children, but how about our own scholars? Facilitating the path itself would be just as rewarding, insha Allah.

For the mama and papa bears. And finally, as parents, ourselves educators, we could always set our children on that path to being the gloriously multifaceted minds of the future. No simple feat either, but may Allah give us strength. Certainly, we could do better than recheck the classical works and instead reexamine the way of the classical scholars themselves, whose erudition went far beyond religious sciences.

“Even *I* can blog!” said Moose.

You must’ve read blog posts where a fellow brother/sister complains of or advises against the notion that just about anyone and everyone can talk/write about Islam as they so please. Brother Ali illustrates this problem well in his latest video The Haram Police. I especially love how he points out (around 2:10) that copy-pasting an English translation of a ‘hadith’ found on some obscure website cannot pass off as a ruling. But as much as we laugh along at how well we can relate to such encounters, it is a serious issue - that of qualification.

What I’d like to emphasise here is the oft undermined basic requisite of knowing Arabic. Does this then mean that any Tahir, Dawud and Harith of Arab descent is qualified simply because they know the language of the Qur’an and the Sunnah? Of course not, the true mark of a scholar goes far beyond that.

What we do often find though, is the average layman when he delves into studies of the Arabic language - that is, learning, understanding and appreciating its very linguistics - his nature in approaching any matter or argument becomes refined. His perception is sharpened because now he comprehends the mechanics (if you will) of the revealed Message. And as he marvels in the beauty of it all, everything else is placed in the right perspective - the important are prioritised, and the petty, left behind.

So yes, knowledge in this core Islamic field itself makes a whole lot of difference. A mere introduction to Arabic can blow you away. What more, if we were to properly educate ourselves of it.

“Whoever recites Qur’an, his value is amplified. Whoever records hadith, his proof is strengthened. Whoever learns jurisprudence, his status is ennobled. Whoever learns Arabic, his disposition becomes gentle. Whoever learns mathematics, his opinion will be copious. And whoever fails to defend his honor will not benefit from his knowledge.”
Imam al-Shafi’i*

Spoken like a true master of knowledge, and specifically, the language. Therefore, we should strive to acquire this path to a gentle disposition. If anything, take it upon ourselves as a crucially important step towards reviving the spirit of this ummah. Bi idhnillah…

* quoted in The Heirs of the Prophets.

Bookworm: This cutie was caught reading Pride and Prejudice. Such class!

My name is Lisa al-Ehe and I’m a readaholic. Not really, I suck at reading… Maybe more of an upcoming bibliophile, in that I just love to buy every book I’m interested in but I may not necessarily read them immediately… or ever :-/. Sigh. I’m always mediocre in everything. Jack of all trades, master of none (except maybe Literati where I really kick a$$ - *nudge* if you wanna play).

Anyway, the point is I joined Good Reads after reading Sunni Sister. And I love it! So please join, add me (username in previous para), and let’s book brag! Leave a comment here so I’ll know to approve your add.

Something else I wanted to mention. If you read the comment I made on Sunni Sister’s post, turns out Akismet has been devouring my comments in more places than I thought. So I’d like to officially thank brother Abu Ilyas for his effort in clearing muslimpad.com from Akismet’s hitlist. I believe it’d affected those of you on MuslimPad too. So on behalf of fellow MP-ers, jazakallahu khair, Abu Ilyas. *hāt (ōn vōwÄ“l) típ*

[voted post with most clichés]

I love this nasheed.

Watch the video.

Allah Knows
by Zain Bhikha

When you feel all alone in this world
And there’s nobody to count your tears
Just remember, no matter where you are
Allah knows
Allah knows

When you carrying a monster load
And you wonder how far you can go
With every step on that road that you take
Allah knows
Allah knows

CHORUS
No matter what, inside or out
There’s one thing of which there’s no doubt
Allah knows
Allah knows
And whatever lies in the heavens and the earth
Every star in this whole universe
Allah knows
Allah knows

When you find that special someone
Feel your whole life has barely begun
You can walk on the moon, shout it to everyone
Allah knows
Allah knows

When you gaze with love in your eyes
Catch a glimpse of paradise
And you see your child take the first breath of life
Allah knows
Allah knows

CHORUS

When you lose someone close to your heart
See your whole world fall apart
And you try to go on but it seems so hard
Allah knows
Allah knows

You see we all have a path to choose
Through the valleys and hills we go
With the ups and the downs, never fret never frown
Allah knows
Allah knows

CHORUS (x2)

BRIDGE:
Every grain of sand,
In every desert land, He knows.
Every shade of palm,
Every closed hand, He knows.
Every sparkling tear,
On every eyelash, He knows.
Every thought I have,
And every word I share, He knows.
Allah knows.

This Northern Saw-Whet owl is too cute. Awww. Got it here.

I was just reading an article about keeping the flame alive in relationships and not getting too complacent - where one of the recommended acts was to regularly compliment each other, even on mundane matters. It said we could never hear enough good about ourselves. True that.

And praising someone is generally good, as long as you avoid excessiveness, and you know it’ll have a positive effect upon the person. See the following reconciliation between the two extremes:

Abu Musa Al-Ash`ari (May Allah be pleased with him) said: The Prophet (PBUH) heard a person lauding another person or praising him too much. Thereupon he said, “You killed the man,” or he said, “You ruined the man.”
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

[source]

Salim bin `Abdullah bin `Umar bin Al-Khattab (May Allah be pleased with them) reported, on the authority of his father, that the Messenger of Allah (PBUH) said, “What an excellent man `Abdullah is! If only he could perform optional prayers at night.” Salim said that after this, (his father) `Abdullah slept very little at night.
[Al-Bukhari and Muslim].

Commentary: This Hadith points out the excellence of `Abdullah bin `Umar (May Allah be pleased with them) as well as the merits of Qiyam-ul-Lail. It also tells us that it is permissible to praise someone in his presence if one is sure that he will not become proud due to that praise. Another aspect of this Hadith is that it induces one to wish for others’ welfare and happiness.

[source]

What happens these days is that a lot of hard work, skill and talent goes unrecognised and unappreciated, whereas the undeserving receive praises ad nauseam. Unfortunately this creates the imbalance between layperson and authority. It’s like what Hawkings said: The greatest enemy of knowledge is not ignorance, it is the illusion of knowledge. But this is a different subject for a different someone to dwell upon eh.

So give credit where credit is due, but with caution. After all, we ourselves know that the finest form of flattery is that heard via a third party. So-and-so said you’re lovely, great, wonderful, marvellous. They absolutely adored your work, thought it was excellent, magnificent! Ahh, how sweet to the ears. We’d be on cloud nine instead of on our feet, working.

But tell me, seriously, who ultimately would be best to receive mention from? Whose utterance is actually worth it? Who should we really desire to say our names? That’s right, smartykins, only our Lord, Most High. And He, subhanahu wa ta’ala, has promised us such in a hadith qudsi:

I come up to the expectations of My servant. I am with him when he remembers Me. When he makes mention of Me in his heart, I make mention of him to Myself. When he mentions Me in a gathering, I mention him in a better gathering (of the angels).
(Al-Bukhari and Muslim)

When you *try* measuring that against worldly compliments from insignificant human beings… Whoa. A world of a difference. Pales beyond comparison. And what’s really special here is that you’d know very well that to fit into the above description, you need to not only observe the quantity but more importantly, the quality of your dhikr.

And ’tis the lesson for today, my friends.

So erm what does the poor owl have to do with anything eh? Well, uhh, be wise in how you view things. If previously, I’ve mentioned to look to what’s being said and not who’s saying it. Now, I shall advise to look not to what others are saying (about you), but to what you are saying. Especially in such a dark time as ours. ;-)