Once, as I was burying one of my dead selves, the grave-digger came by and said to me, "Of all those who come here to bury, you alone I like."
Said I, "You please me exceedingly, but why do you like me?"
"Because", said he, "They come weeping and go weeping- you only come laughing and go laughing."
-By Kahlil Gibran
I was fairly surprised when the Myanmar couple were not arrested when handing Yin to his respective parents. For one, the whole thing seemed to fishy to me. Myanmar couple could not read or write? How in the world were they a bookseller? (So, now we’ve solved that problem: they were NOT. The husband picks up scraps, and the wife watches the kids at home.)
My other speculation before was: Were they that oblivious towards news for 2 weeks when they have been here (assuming they’re telling the truth) for 20 years? Malaysia isn’t that big for people to be not in the know- especially with all the help from the NGOs and political parties and broadcast systems. Not to mention, a bunch of worried parents spreading the news. (It’s nice to know that Malaysians really do care about other people’s kids- minus Dato’ K who might be slapping other people’s kids to uphold his thought ASSUMING the son’s friend was on drugs. Even if he were, shouldn’t you be slapping your own kids first-to educate them not to be on drugs??)
Basically, I thought the couple were fishy, and my argument was that they only sent the boy after being heard that there was a reward. Money.
But, when I saw the pictures of both couples (Myanmar and the very-relieved looking Malaysian couple) on the front page- with happy titles such as "Yin selamat dipulangkan" and stuffs like that (note: with Yin’s grinning face on every cover), perhaps, Malaysians are different this time around. This time we don’t speculate too much, and maybe we don’t put the blame on others for a change. Usually, we put the blame on "The Others"— immigrants especially Indonesians. (Who do we put the blame on everytime there’s a robbery? Must be those illegal immigrants, right? Hoho.) It came to a point, where in the NST comments to the editor section, that Malaysians almost considered themselves to be "superior" compared to other people, that they treat people like they’re not human beings. Which I must say, is partly true. It’s almost a racism issue. THEY are always bad, WE are always good.
Perhaps, this time around, the couple were just too relieved to have their child back and were really living up to their word. Well, too soon to be said. The next day, the Myanmar couple were reprimanded.
What do Malaysians think about this? Yes, surprisingly, Malaysians are mad at the father for keeping his word-to reward and not punish. According to the news at TV3, about 50 SMSes were angry Malaysians who thought it was unfair for the Myanmar couple. Why? Well, nobody likes a person who makes empty promises. The fact is, you put the news and message- saying that you won’t punish, you don’t care what they have done, and you just want your child back. Finally, your wish is granted. Your child came home, unharmed (perhaps just some blisters on his feet and hands). The father seemed to be taking it out of his hands, saying he’s "leaving it to the police". So, where did their promise went to? Too contented to have his child back, apparently seeming that he couldn’t care less about the couple being taken into custody, leaving 5 kids in the welfare department. Not only that, they wanted to take the broken house down.
So where do they live? Where is the equality and sense of humanity in that?
Sure you want to punish the ones who sent back your kids LATE-keeping them for two weeks, leaving them worried sick.(I have the same mutual feeling.) But, this is almost too much. Forgive the Myanmar couple, let it go. To separate kids from their parents and to tear their home apart is a bit too much on their toll. If you must punish, punish fairly and live up to your promise. After all, if not for them, they might have sadder news to live with; like a child molested and raped to death. What’s that compared to blisters on foot?..
A promise is a promise. If you can’t promise, don’t make one.
I sail to you in the ocean of my dreams
To a faraway distant place
Of great beauty and tranquility
Where pain and suffering do not exist,
Where we give praise for our joy and happiness,
Where our love intertwines with a love for all things
O beloved keeper of my heart
The companion of my soul
You have reached out and touched the essence of my being
And shown me the way to a higher plane.
Your love has awakened me from my years of slumber
A beckoning call to the spiritual world
Where my body is mist in the mountains
This is where my heart belongs
This is where my soul lives…
- By Amjid Yaseen-
As I read the play ‘Waiting For Godot’ (or originally called En attendant Godot-as it was translated from French) by the king of absurd dramas, Samuel Beckett- I have long pondered the question of those who live in this world without the belief of the existence of God.
I remembered an interview conducted by one of my friends, to ask this one supposed atheist boy. He’s a Malay, and born Muslim. But then, he believes in no God, but that "I am my own God". "So what happens after life?", she asked. "We just rot in our graves". True. (Our bodies do rot) But that’s it? Is it just that for those who don’t believe in the existence of a Creator? That happened last year. That boy already graduated from my university-and I wondered if he still had the same belief.
What goes on in the mind of an atheist? Is it because of decreeing God as an Unjust Punisher? Sometimes it’s just fascinating to hear- "what kind of God is this"- one who causes floods, Katrina and all sorts of tragedies affecting lives of whom they love. People during the 19th century began to question a lot of God and human lives- as the cause to Darwinism and other elements: war and mass killings. Yes. What’s the cause of our existence? Yes, why are we born into this world? We’re descendants of monkeys anyway. (If you believe in the theory of Darwinism)
Questions and more questions from the atheists. Why is God so cruel? What’s my wrongdoing until he goes on punishing me? There couldn’t possibly be God with all of these happenings!!!
To think about Vladimir and Estragon-the two characters inside the play of "Waiting for Godot", I felt a bit of a sympathy for who lack in believe of a Higher Power.
I find it extremely sad if people actually thought of the life they’re having now, is just it. Maybe they’ll think:- If you’re born into a rich and wealthy family, hey that’s the life. If you’re not, well, that’s the life man. We’re all going to die anyway. And nothing happens after that. Let’s just pass the time bro. Let’s have a booze yeahhh.
I’m not talking about the belief in One God, in which I believe is Allah.
I’m pondering on what is an atheist’s state to have the mindset that there isn’t any Higher Authority in their lives. Why do we have religion in the first place? Why do people create beliefs? Obviously it’s there for some kind of purpose-in short, some sense into it.
In my humble opinion, it is a kind of emptiness if you do not believe in anything. What is your motive and what’s your aim? If there isn’t-why not just kill yourself then rather than passing the time slowly. At least you’ll do yourself a favour. (Since you believe there’s no life after death?)
And secondly, you are the next Pharaoh to believe that you’re your own God. If you’re God,then who created your mom and dad?
Contrary to popular belief, a lot of scientists do believe in the existence of God.
Isaac Newton said that:-
"Gravity explains the motion of the planets, but it cannot explain who set the planets in motion. God governs all things and knows all that is or can be done". (taken from Wikipedia)
Louis Pasteur, a Frenchman and the father of "germ theory" and "pasteurization", also believes in God.
"…When he was asked if he believed in evolution, he said, "no". His studies showed that life only comes from life and that life comes from parents similar to themselves. Pasteur questioned the theory of evolution, because Darwin did not base his ideas on experimental proof. Louis said, "Do not put forward anything that you cannot prove by experimentation." Rather than destroying his belief in God, Pasteur’s brilliant discoveries made him humble as he contemplated the marvels of divine creation…"( All About Science: Louis Pasteur http://www.allaboutscience.org/louis-pasteur-faq.htm)
There were a lot of other scientists who believe in God- Nicholas Copernicus, Sir Francis Bacon, Johannes Kepler, Galileo Galilei, Rene Descartes, Robert Boyle, Michael Faraday- numerous others. Including Albert Einstein.
"…Firmly denying atheism, Einstein expressed a belief in Spinoza’s God who reveals himself in the harmony of what exists…" (Famous Scientists who Believed in God http://www.godandscience.org/apologetics/sciencefaith.html)
Tim Radford who wrote "Science cannot provide all the answers" (http://www.guardian.co.uk/life/feature/story/0,13026,1034872,00.html) have provided us with the several notions and stands of many scientists nowadays.
There are some who believe in God, some doubters or agnotics.
Last but not the least:- some ideas to get about an atheist from Muse’s perspective.
" Thoughts of a Dying Atheist" lyrics.
"…I know the moment is near/ And there’s nothing we can do/ Look through a faithless eye/ Are you afraid to die?/ It scares the hell out of me/ And the end is all I can see/ …"
Question is: why be scared, if you do not believe in anything at all?
To fellow Muslims, Happy 1428. May we’ll all be blessed. Have faith in whatever you do. Wassalam.
0f all things
the deliberate circumstance of serenity
lives, and dies again like breath
immortality is not wise
as it is crude facet of decades
of underlying signature of scars
cries cries deathly cries
your soul twice removed.
could not withstand agony
of rotting skin. diluted pupils. wrinkling sights.
could not withstand a millennia
of dissatisfaction
your beauty is a probability
of sickening lies
as your thick pocket flows.
nothing is worse than growing old
"growing old is an entropy"-
or is it fear i hear in your last words?
to be taken
away from here.
Dearest.
I am not sure of whether you’ll get to read this or not, since you’ve been out of touch with Friendster. At this point of time, I’m just wondering of how you’re doing, and when will you be back to the humble abode of E 1.8.
It’s been ages since I’ve last seen you, and being a Turd, we always acknowledge each other’s existence by noticeable insults and friends for life honesty. I’ve insulted you and you’ve insulted me, and that’s how the process of our bonding goes. Somehow or rather,
I’ve kind of missed those insults, and I miss tormenting you as well.
The Turds would know that I love to bully you with the pelamin talk, the French vs Germans talk, the soya, and everything which relates to being you really.
I’ve missed Herr Mann (geraldine? i’m not sure. Is this split personality of yours comes with another Split Personality?!) and the Lion. And besides that, I miss the loyal Tolkien fan. Eventhough I’m not as excited as Israr might be in talking about the characters and the movie LOTR (I’m not sure whether he is a purist or not, I think he might be?!).
Because I know you’ll never read this, I know of the fact that you perhaps, are one of the kindest-without-really-knowing-it to me. haha.
Thanks for ganging up with me against Yanna. ;p
Thanks also for letting me barge into your lovely compartment.
Thanks for a lot of things-I don’t think I can mention it all.
Truth is, your room might be occupied with people at all times of the day, but it’s never the same without you.
Hopefully you’re managing well, and you know that deep inside we do miss you.
Although we’ll never admit it when you get back. Hehe.
If you’re reading this, well, that’s when you know.
Akhirnya ku menemukanmu
Saat hati ini mulai meragu
Akhirnya ku menemukanmu
Saat raga ini ingin berlabuh
Ku berharap engkaulah
Jawaban segala risau hatiku
dan biarkan diriku
mencintaimu hingga ujung usiaku
Jika nanti ku sanding dirimu
miliki aku dengan segala kelemahanku
dan bila nanti engkau disampingku
jangan pernah letih tuk mencintaiku
akhirnya ku menemukanmu
saat hati ini mulai meragu
akhirnya ku menemukanmu
saat raga ini ingin berlabuh
This blog does not have to make sense.
But to me it does.
I think you need to
Come back soon
And sooner is better!
=)
Cepat le balek Malaysia..
I’ve been following the news updates on the Rufaqa’ and the Arqam groups. Two headhonchos of the Rufaqa’ productions have been arrested today-proclaiming their innocent and have nothing to do with Ashaari’s undercover agendas. Maybe. Okay, I’ll leave that for the officials to investigate whether the two senior members of the Rufaqa’ are guilty as charged or perhaps really innocent in doing their business.
Not touching with their business agenda, I’m just going to touch on the "Sins Cleansing" day that has been done recently during Ramadhan by this deviant movement.
I don’t know which is funnier..Ayah Pin-Kerajaan di Langit or this "Sins Cleansing Day" organized by the former Al-Arqam leader-Ashaari (but still reviving the teachings anyway) busted by undercover cops during the ceremony. (Tipped off by Zul Aznan-former Al-Arqam-former Kedah Al-Arqam secretary)
Surely, a man with brains knows that Islam does not need any intermediary to communicate with God to forgive their sins? Islam is easy to understand and follow-but surprisingly hard enough for certain people to even make a ceremony to forgive their sins…and what is worse..the faith of relying your sins to be forgiven through a man. What? Does that mean that that man has no sins? What kind of man is without sins and professes himself to be "ma’sum?". Isn’t Ashaari a man-like any of us?
It is too preposterous-it’s almost like an reincarnation of the Catholic sect of the Christians of making confessions to a Priest! And do not forget, even Protestants felt that it was wrongly manipulated by the Catholics. (That’s when the Christians were divided into sects- Catholics and Protestants. And Protestants came about with all sorts of other minor sects-Prebysterian and so on. Does the name Martin Luther, or Zwingli ring a bell?).
Even the Prophet himself does NOT profess himself to be sin-free!!!
If we look through closely to his life, never once has he felt that kind of "perfection"-even though he is ma’sum-or sin-free. Of the coming down of Surah Dhuha when he thought he had not received an ayat for a long time-and the Quraysh said that he has been left astray…he didn’t went around and say "Hey, I am ma’sum..how could you say that?!". No, instead he went out and prayed and found himself His Divine Guidance. In fact, he is so careful with what he does, and why? Because he is humble in his ways and never thought himself of being as something MORE than others. When he came to a ceremony, he does not ask to be sitted in front. If he came late, he sat at the back. When he walks, he does not ask for his friends to walk aside him..but he walked behind. It is enough he said, for the angels to be with him.
Of course, citing the Prophet examples are more than that. It’s hundreds of it.
From the Prophet Muhammad SAW:
" O Allah! Thou art seeing me in my place and hearing my words-knoweth my open and secret-nothing remaineth concealed from thee. I tremble and frighten-and my own weakness and confess it.
I am plaintiff and seeker of thy refuge. I submit to Thee as a beggar-
cry like a mean sinner- call for help like a frightened blind person.
My calling like the person whose neck is bent and tears rolling out of eyes-
the body hath bent and he is rubbing his nose on the ground.
O the worthy of worship do not let me be deprived- be Forgiving and Merciful to me. O Lord! Thou art Most accessible to present grievances. Thou art Most Generous and Grantor of all others."
That is the prayer of the Prophet and his none-existent pride as a Prophet sent to all nations.
So, like I’ve said before, it doesn’t hurt to use your brain and be humble. Ashaari’s statement of being "ma’sum" says everything about NOT being humble.This "Abuya" concocting fanciful details of himself being "A Prophet but not the Prophet" sounds fishy enough. There’s no more Prophets after Prophet Muhammad…
An excerpt from the Last Sermon of the Prophet "Hajjatul Wada’":-
"Ya Ayyuhan Nasu Innahu La Nabiyya Ba’di Wa La Ummata Ba’du kum. A La Fa’Budu Rabbakum. Wa Sollu Khamsakum Wa Sumu Shahrakum Waddu Zakah Amwalikum Tayyibah Biha Anfusukum Wa Hujju Baita Rabbikum Wa Athi’U Uliyu Amrikum Tadkhulu Jannata Rabbikum"
Translation: O People! Verily, be it clear to you that neither there is any Prophet to come afterwards nor there will be any other ummah raised hereafter. Worship your Creator, offer 5 times Sallah daily, observe one month fasts during Ramadhan in a year. Pay Zakah to your assets pleasantly and perform Hajj. And obey your Ameer (leader) and religious authorities. As a reward, you will get entry into the Paradise of Allah.
A man is still a man. In fact, a man which is most closest to God will feel as though none of his doings are never enough. And will continue to feel that way.
Another reason besides not using the brains and lack of humbleness, maybe people who actually attended the ceremony were to "hasty" for their sins to be forgiven.
"Man was created hasty…" (Al-Anbiya’:37)
Maybe, they truly believed that they had incurred the wrath of Allah-regretted it, and wanted to repent. But however, where is the sense of "Nasuha" in that? Where is the sense of LOGIC in that? By committing syirik twice?
Sins are not like cheques that you could put in and withdraw anytime you like. To repent, it has follow ups, it takes moderation-to be good at all times..not just one time repentence, then hey..back to square one with Kerajaan di Langit. And how do you know whether God has forgiven you or not when it’s that one time you’ve had taubat? Nobody knows. Nobody knows if God accepted your prayers. You see, there’s where wasatiah comes in. Because with moderation of doing good, then comes the feeling of humbleness and hopefulness. For you to rely on God, and to hope for the best. At all times until the day you finally die.
And don’t worry about that, as long as you do it with sincerity, His Mercy would come along.
"Inna Rahmati Ghalabatu Ghadabi"
"My Mercy is larger than My Wrath"
To demonstrate the vast Rahmah of Allah:-
Diceritakan bahawa pada zaman Musa ada lelaki tidak pernah sudah dalam bertaubat. Jika bertaubat dia terbuat dosa lagi. Demikianlah sampai dua puluh tahun. Lalu Allah memberi wahyu pada Nabi Musa:
"Katakan pada hambaKu si Fulan: Aku murka padanya."
Lalu Nabi Musa katakan hal itu padanya. Hingga dia bersedih dan pergi ke padang luas seraya berkata,
"Habiskah rahmatMu atau Engkau bakhil pada hambaMu?
Jika dosa lebih besar dari pengampunanMu, padahal kemuliaan itu sifatMu yang Qadim
Sedangkan cela itu sifatku yang hadis.
Adakah sifatku mengalahkan sifatMu?
Jika Kau tutup hambaMu dari rahmatMu, siapalah yang diharapkan mereka?
Jika Engkau tolak siapakah yang mereka tuju?
Ya Tuhanku jika rahmatMu telah habis dan mesti menyeksaku,
maka bebankan padaku seksa semua hambaMu.
Aku tebus mereka dengan diriku."
Lalu Allah berfirman:
"Hai Musa, pergilah dan katakan, meskipun dosamu memenuhi bumi, tetap Ku ampuni, setelah aku tahu kesempurnaan qudrah, ampunan dan rahmatKu."
Just to show how Compassionate He is. No human could be as compassionate as He. and nobody in the right mind would see Ashaari as an "eliminator of sins".
Cats: my chatte Kasturi has been affecting me dearly. I’ve been following her steps: eat and sleep. Or is it, vice versa? (I’d rather think that I haven’t been setting a bad example for my cat. So, it’s me.) Comparing cats has never been easy. Kasturi, to many of my friends, is "HUUUUGEE" and "PREGNANT". Well, I wouldn’t say that she’s THAT huge, and for the pregnant part..she does look like it, I suppose. The thing is: I don’t fancy her looking like the skinny cats I see at my hostel. They’re so anorexic. I could feel BONES when I pet them, it’s almost scary. For example, that orange cat (not to be mistaken for its demure look: it’s so mianggg). What’s up with all these skinny cats? They sleep like Kasturi, but never grow fat. I try to fatten them up with selected pizza bits and cheese. I avoided the milk though, because not all cats are proned to digest milk. (Some may be allergic to milk-like my roommate Herr Mann. Used to be anyway.) Kasturi doesn’t drink milk. When I finally gave up my experiment of "fattening cats up", I realized that maybe it’s just in the genes. Or maybe they’re having some certain "worries, anxieties or perhaps, guilt?!".
I know somebody who has been "getting thinner and thinner" yet people wonder why. For months, she has not been dieting, and she has not been sick either. Wahida explained to me that sometimes a person could be really thin but eats a lot. How does that happen? According to her, the doctor explains it as the "mood" factor. What you eat is not enjoyable to you, and therefore, does not affect your body. Unlike people who are happy, whatever they eat, no matter how less they eat, would be taken into the body volume. In theory, I suppose it’s true. Knowing somebody really well, I think it is, based on that person. She’s been getting a lot of comments on the "thinning part". Needless to say, she’s perfectly healthy only that she is with the "mood" syndrome: missing someone badly to be exact.
So, people must realize that sometimes people are not just getting thinner because they’re anorexic, bullemic, diabetic, or worse pancreatic cancer or something like that.
Moods perhaps, do play a part in daily life.
Thus, perhaps colours do play a role in making a happy person. Songs, aromatherapy, exercising and muay-thai etc. may also help you exert your stress and anxiety. I’m always thankful to have friends around to "bully" and talk to. So, for those around me who doesn’t know that, thanks. =)
I would know just leave the "anorexic" cats around my hostel as it is. As long as it breathes, sleeps and play tag with the people passing by the corridor, I think the cat will be happy leading its life with its family. And still, I love Kasturi all the same.
