queries on Zakatul Maal

Hmm, I Didn’t realize zakat harta can be very detailed, this topic is among the thinnest in Fiqh.
I was looking through some sources, couldn’t find anything addressing my blurness.

WAJIBnya Zakat setelah sempurna dua perkara:
1.Cukup Nisab (Price of 86 grams of Gold in the Market)
2.Cukup Haul (Islamic Year of approx 354 days)

Setelah cukup haul, zakat hendaklah DISEGERAKAN, ASAP. WAJIB DIBAYAR KETIKA MAMPU BERBUAT DEMIKIAN.

MAMPU BERBUAT DEMIKIAN is very relative, let us save ourselves the trouble of having to account for this, people tend to procrastinate. In Risalah Qawaid, Sidi Ahmad Ibn Idris ra mentioned that the FIRST priority is to ensure that all our actions can be accounted for, in the Good Favour of Our Lord.

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If confident and precautious, and wants to pay zakat within Haul period, then when does the next haul begin? Assuming immediately after zakat deduction, (Savings > Nisab) is Always True, ie tak putus nisab.
1) Immediately after zakat is paid?
2) Wait for that particular haul to finish, ie at the end of the Haul?

Referring to Page 399 Fiqh Manhaji, Jilid 2;

Tentang membayar zakat harta (cukup nisab) sebelum cukup haul;
Nabi s.a.w. mengizinkan perkara itu;
Zakat Harta setelah cukup nisab tetapi sebelum cukup Haul adalah Sah;
Tetapi Zakat Harta sebelum cukup Nisab adalah tidak Sah, hanya dikira sebagai sedekah


Maksudnya dia tidak wajib keluarkan zakat hartanya tadi apabila haulnya sempurna, sekiranya dia telah mempercepatkan bayaran zakat tadi kepada tempoh masih dalam haul.

tidak wajib keluarkan zakat hartanya tadi apabila haulnya sempurna…
--> Does this imply that the next haul begins immediately after the previous haul ends?

--> In other words, Does it mean that the Premature Zakat covers an entire Haul (Islamic Year)?

From Muis Website:

(Haul period begins either with the last payment of zakat or when the asset value starts to exceed the nisab)

with the last payment of zakat --> includes a ‘premature’ zakat, the zakat when haul hasn’t ended?

If YES, then my Dilemma lies here;

If a person is affluent, and continuously decides to pay zakat early, ie before haul finishes, and IF Haul Period begins with the last payment of zakat(including a premature zakat), then there could be a case of paying zakat harta MULTIPLE times in 1 Islamic Year. Can this be a possible scenario?

Where to charge the 2.5%?

1. On the Maximum savings ever occurred throughout haul period; regardless if current savings less than maximum saving occurred. (The Most Ideal) If I am not mistaken, Hanbali

2. On the Minimum savings ever occurred throughout haul period; regardless if current savings more than minimum savings occurred. (The Thrifty aka, in my case, excuse for being Miserly) If I am not mistaken, Maliki

3. On the amount currently being saved. (The Practical) If I am not mistaken, Syafie

Therefore…For convenience, can I choose to charge the 2.5% on any amount of my savings that I have that is more than the recorded Minimum throughout the Haul period?
My reason: Whatever amount I charge the 2.5% on, I will either equal or charge more than the Minimum, therefore, in the worst case scenario, I fall back on option 2. Any excess in the zakat is sedekah.

Zakat on savings is considered Harta Batin, not to be dictated or directed by anyone else other than the individual involved, as opposed to livestock or tanaman, considered Harta Zahir, which can be dictated by another person. So, moral of the story is: Take Charge of your own Zakat Harta, and take the safest option, wherever possible.

Those who refuse to pay zakat are warred upon by God and His Messenger s.a.w.

Wallahu ‘Alam, will consult my Ust for a thorough explanation; welcomes any suggestions/input ;)
Jazakallah Khair!

Haul at Rasah, Seremban

Alhamdulillah, it was more than a year ago when i last went to Seremban for majlis Haul. and on sunday 25 jan 2009, i was able to do so. started the day with my class with pergas, then solat zuhura at Sultan, and waited for Ust Hasbi.

around 230 pm we left for N9.

MasyaAllah, Sidi Faiz led the majlis and alhamdulillah, Sidi is in good health. I really miss him leading the zikir, if im not mistaken, the last time Sidi led a majlis at Masjid Mohd Salleh Maqam Habib Nuh was more than 6 mnths ago! Rejuvenating ah surely, even though it did not end very late. After the Majlis, we ate and I shopped for some kitab....

the books were affordable, very, probably because of the different currencies. and i managed to get my hands on 4 books of the Tariqah.

Admittedly, banyak khazanah Tariqah Ahmadiah Idrisiah ditulis dalam Bahasa Jawi, because the leaders of the Tariqah are from N9, and in order to access them, i need to brush up my Jawi. the last time I read Jawi was years ago! personally I find Bahasa Jawi to be inconsistent ah, especially with the vowels,eg. bagi and bagai spells the same. Whatever it is, I am thankful that i can still read, probably will falter across some uncommon words. Most of the kitabs are thin booklets, and I am really tempted to translate, perhaps not the correct word here since the language is the same, into the romanised Malay. Honestly speaking, it can be done, not too tideous.

The books i bought were: Safinatus salamah, Majmu' salamah, kitab ahzab

alhamdulillah, when i have these books, even if i do not read, at least they are with me ;)

after the haul, we ziarah the maqam of the family of Shaykh Muhd sa'id Linggi, and then we headed back to Singapore.

I was amused in the journey back home, you know the entire journey was more than 4 hours, 4 hours on the road, and the wee hours timing, surely the passengers at the back will fall asleep, and of couse we did ah. Then the driver was like jokingly commenting on how shiok to just sleep for 4 hours while other people had to drive.

"Ust, dorang kat belakang sedap tido ustaz, dorang balek ni dah boleh tahajjud, saye tak boleh, saye belom tido lagi!" khekhe, terkekek aku kat blakang...

then Ustaz comforted him ah, "takper, dorang buat Tahajjud, awak dapat..." hehehe. Ustaz Hasbi pandai humour tau! hahaha

With Sidi Faiz, at Rasah

Ego-Crusher

The Ego is Evil. No amal will be accepted if one harbours any of these diseases: Ostentation, Arrogance, Haughtiness, Narcissism and of course there are more, detailed names. These diseases constitute Syirik, because they will substitute Allah which ought to be our sole purpose and intent with other things. To say ' I am better than him' is to quote exactly what the Devil said.

As with all other physical diseases, these blemishes of the Heart can be examined, diagnosed, and prescribed a treatment, of course by an expert. As such, the Mursyid is likened to a Doctor when it comes to guiding the Murid out of these diseases. The Mursyid will treat the Murid very much like a medical fashion.

One of the books that I frequently refer to again and again even after having read it through is Jila al-Khatir which is on the discourses of Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jailani Q. It is a book that has exactly the immediate kind of abasement needed to knock a person who is lost in self-admiring thoughts into realisation of the truth. If you feel that you are great, then you must read this book. It has a content page that lists the topics involved, and you will surely find the medicine most relevant to you at that point of time.

Because in this book Shaykh Abdul Qadir Q speaks from the perspective of a true Master, never shy or afraid to call out at those who think they are great with such degrading calls as "Ya Ghulam!"and "Woe unto you who have not witnessed! You lay claims to Laa Ilaha Illa Allah but your actions prove otherwise!"

Not any author/speaker can write/speak like that, most of them would be guilty of hypocrisy if they were to do so. But that is not the case with Shaykh Abdul Qadir Q who has truly attained a Maqam so close to Allah; he could call on people like that.

When you read just some of the topics, you will fall shy and feel ashamed of yourself, and force yourself to submit in humility, offering nothing to God but a request for His Forgiveness. Just exactly what is needed to knock the arrogant one into senses, in such a surprisingly effective way.

Another dramatic yet effective way of turning the tables on people who deem themselves great would be to state the fact written in the Quran with regards to Jesus pbuh when they exaggerated in their claims of Jesus' Divinity; They both ate!

The natural consequence of this would be that he will go to the toilet.

So ask the person who walks with arrogance in his chest, "Do you not go to the toilet?"
and see how anti-climatic it can get!
Just imagine Hitler, during his most fiery and fiercest speech, a boy comes up and interrupts "Do you not go to the Toilet?"

I got this witty question about going to the loo from Shaykh Nazim's book; Through the Eye of the Needle; simple, yet witty, succint and effective!

What I have stated are just information, pieces of information that can be counted with the fingers, Knowledge is from God alone and this is primarily to serve as a reminder first and foremost for my self in dire need, the rest are all secondary, and of lesser importance.

Haul for Sidi Muhammad Dandarawy

The Haul of Sayyid Muhammad ad-Dandarawi will be held on Thursday, 29th Jan after Isyak prayers at Malabar Mosque. This event will be led by Ustaz Hasbi Hassan.All are invited to attend.

About Sidi Muhammad Dandarawy:

Shaykh Sayyid Muhammad ad-Dandarawi was born in Dandara, Sa’id in Egypt.Beliau adalah antara murid-murid Tuan Shaykh Sayyid Ibrahim ar-Rashid . He was among the students of Shaykh Sayyid Ibrahim ar-Rashid . Apart from receiving authorization (ijazah) of the Tariqah Ahmadiah from his Sufi Guide ie Shaykh Sayyid Ibrahim , he also inherited the akhlak, knowledge and secrets of his guide. [1] He was highly determined to spread Tariqah Ahmadiah not only to the Arabian Peninsula but also other further regions such as India, Africa dan South East Asia.Like the other Tariqah Ahmadiah Shaykhs, Shaykh Sayyid Muhammad also received the honour of meeting the Prophet whilst awake. [2]. He then received some amal not received by his two Shaykhs. Among them includes the recitation of “La ilaha ilallahu wallahu akbar” 4 times during Initiation. [3] This amal has its merits mentioned in a sohih hadith.With that, the name of the Tariqah is thus attributed to Al-Qutb Ar-Rais Shaykh Sayyid Ahmad bin Idris and the two other Qutbs after Sayyid Ahmad bin Idris . Shaykh Sayyid Muhammad al-Dandarawi is the final main leader of Tariqah Ahmadiah. Allah, the Most Exalted, has placed this tariqah in a high station based on sound dalils which can be viewed from all aspects.There is no mursyid for he who is with Tariqah Ahmadiah other than Shaykh Sayyid Muhammad ad-Dandarawi , even after his death. He has said, “I am your guide whilst alive or dead.” This means that the relationship between the murid and his guide will still exist even after the guide’s passing away.[4] Shaykh Sayyid Muhammad bin Ahmad ad-Dandarawi passed away in Madinah al-Munawwarah on 29 Muharram 1909 (1327 H). [5]


[1] Shaykh Ahmad bin Muhammad Sa’id , 1354H/1935M. Majmuk, al-Ahmadiyah Press, Singapore, (in Jawi), pg 72 and 75
[2] Pauzi Haji Awang, Tariqah Ahmadiyyah History and Development, 2001, published by Persatuan Ulama Malaysia, pg 53
[3] Hamdan Hassan, Tarekat Ahmadiyah Di Malaysia Suatu Analisis Secara Ilmiah, (1990) published (in Malay) Percetakan Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka, pg 43
[4] Shaykh Ahmad bin Muhammad Sa’id . Faraid al-Ma’thir al-Marwiyah li al Tariqah al-Ahmadiyah al-Rasyidiyah al-Dandarawiyah, in Jawi on pg 41
[5] Shaykh Ahmad bin Muhammad Sa’id , Setengah daripada Manaqib, (Seremban: Sungai Ujung Press, 1854), in Malay pg 81

About Celebrating Majlis Haul:

The letter that was sent by Shaykh Sayyid Ibrahim al-Rasyid to his student Shaykh Ismail al-Bilyah does contain a few explanation with regards to Tariqah Ahmadiah [1].
Among them was an in depth discussion about the Majlis Hol.Shaykh Sayyid Ibrahim ar-Rasyid wrote :

“… Majlis haul is an ‘amal practiced by the people of Hijaz [2]. As for those who partake in the Majlis Haul, their intent is to send prayers and blessings to those who have passed from year to year. This Majlis would not have been done if it were not for the Love the we have for the subject, and there is no one dearer to us than Sayyid Ahmad ibn Idris [3].

The merits of those who participate in this majlis and those who help makt it possible is uncountable in the eyes of Allah. These merits can never be transcribed into books, nor can it be conceived in the mind except for a strong faith and conviction in Allah.

Those who contribute in this Majlis(either via preparation or participation), according to Sayyid Ahmad ibn Idris , have done a deed to/for him. The people of God are those who have a high esteem and great Nobility. They will recompense the people of good deeds with rewards many times greater, in accordance to each and everyone’s maqam.

"He who does one good sunnah, he will be rewarded along with all those who emulate his good deeds till Qiamah...”

The remembrance of death is one of the practices done by Rasulullah . The Prophet visited the graves of his wives, uncles and parents routinely. Imam Baihaqi narrates that Rasulullah the graves of the syuhada’ of Uhud yearly like a routine – “ ‘ala ra’si kulli hawl”. Also narrated by Imam Baihaqi that Rasulullah said: “He who visits the graves of both his parents or even just one of them every Friday will be forgiven and considered a pious child. - (Man zaara qabra abawayhi aw ahadihima fi kulli Jumu`ah, ghufira lahu wa kutiba barran) [4]. It now stands undisputed that Rasulullah himself is the most apt and most deserving of being called a pious son. In addition, al-Bazzar narrated that Rasulullah visited Jannat al-Ma’la in Mecca where Saiyidatina Khatijah was interred dan and the Prophet said : “Ni’ma al-maqbarah Hadhihi”.
Imam Ja’afar as-Sodiq narrated from his sanad from al-Hassan bin ‘Ali that Saiyidatina Fatimah (daughter of Rasulullah ) the grave of her paternal uncle Saiyidina Hamza bin ‘Abd al-Mutalib on every Friday. She had also marked the grave with a stone for easy recognition, and it was there that she would pray and cry. [5].

According to Shaykh Sayyid Soleh al-Ja’afari , hol is an ibadah that falls under the category of blessings and prayers that are presented to those who have died. And according to the majority of the ulama, such prayers reach the dead at anytime.

Saiyyiduna Sa’ad had donated his plantation with the intention of rewarding the merits to his late mother. Then Rasulullah endorsed the action and asked Sa’ad to donate water for the same purpose [6]. This matter was espoused by Shaykh Habibullah al-Syanqiti in his book Zad al Muslim.

Imam Muslim narrated a hadith about when the Prophet was asked about Solat Qasar in a peaceful situation. The Prophet said: “It is a kind of charity that Allah has given to you; so accept it.” [7]. Al-Qurtubi said: “The original topic of this issue is about charity which is unanimous among the ulama. Just like how the merits of charity reach the dead, so too does the reward of Quranic recitations reach the dead. This is because these topics are all under the broad wing of charity. Charity is not limited to physical only as explained by the Prophet when he was asked about solat Qasar in a peaceful situation.”

Ibn Qayyim (when he was discussing in depth about the question of whether or not merits of amal presented to the dead will eventally reach the dead)[8] said : “The merits of Qur’anic recitations and presentation of its merits to the dead on a voluntary basis do reach the dead just like the merits of fasting and Hajj…”

Ibn Taimiyyah said [9] : “He who believes that man will not benefit from amal other than strictly his won has gone against the consensus of the Ulama. Such a belief is invalid on various grounds …” Ibnu Taimiyah was asked about reciting the Quran for the dead and also about tasbih, tahmid, tahlil and takbir when they are intended to be presented to the dead. Do the merits reach them? And he answered like how it was mentioned in his book,“ It reaches to the dead; the merits of Quranic recitation from family members,and tasbih, takbir together will all their zikir, when they intend to present its rewards to the dead.”

About the quote from Shaykh Sayyid Ibrahim al-Rasyid ,“… no one is dearer to us than Sayyid Ahmad ibn Idris …”,

Shaykh Sayyid Soleh al-Ja’afari explained that this is a good and truthful expression. Shaykh Sayyid Ibrahim al-Rasyid was not the only one in this matter, it was followed by Sayyid Uthman al-Mirghani , Sayyid Muhammad ibn Ali al-Sanusi , Shaykh Muhammad ibn Sulaiman al-Ahdal (Mufti Zabid, Yaman) and also those who have taken the Tariqah from Sayyid Ahmad ibn Idris and those who have taken from his awrad till the present day.

In Defence of Harun Yahya.

Bismillah, for the sake of barakah

This article is very lengthy, and honestly I have not found the best way to organize it, since it deals with so many points, It would be great if you could read it slowly so as to follow my flow, because throughout writing this article, I do encounter some difficulties in putting across the words in the most effective and comprehensible manner. I wish to engage as many of the readers with regards to points raised in this post, so do keep your comments coming! Jazakallah Khairan Jaza!

I watched a clip on youtube about a certain person unfairly criticizing Harun Yahya and accusing Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi of being a kafir. As far as possible, I do not like to mention names, but I guess for this one, out of practicality and in pursuit of effectiveness, I have to post the link here.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OhSMKAGh70

I am no one in the Islamic Academic world, but what I heard is, to the majority of us, an unacceptable pain.

1) The issue of takfeer (accusing a muslim of disbelief and therefore out of the fold of Islam) is a serious one. In legal definition, the term takfeer means to deem anything that the Prophet s.a.w had brought to be a lie, i.e to accuse a person of claiming that the Prophet s.a.w. lied.

In Imam Ghazali’s Faisal At Tafriqa, he explains that the literalists accuse the Ahlus Sunnah of claiming that the Prophet s.a.w. lied (takfeer) with regards to the verse “Yaddullah fawqa aidihim” the Hand of God is above their hands because the Ahlus Sunnah reject the idea of God having a ‘Hand’ as we know it.

The Ahlus Sunnah on the other hand, correctly point out that to accept a literal Hand, as we know it, for God would be to deem that the Prophet lied when he brought the verse “Laisa kamithlihi shaiun” Nothing whatsoever is like unto him

And so the issue boils down to language and use of metaphors in Arabic Literature (which is, as expected, rather common). Ahlus Sunnah accept the verse “Yaddullah” and other similar verses not on a literal interpretation of it, but more of a metaphorical one. That way, the Ahlus Sunnah do not deny anything that the Prophet s.a.w brought to us.

My personal take on this; why does it take so much for some square-headed people to realize the commonness in the usage of metaphors in languages? I dare say all languages adopt the use of metaphors; It is only natural and human. And with regards to knowledge that is as vast as the Islamic Tradition, surely there ought to be the use of metaphors! They need not master the field of using metaphors; they just need to realize that metaphors exist in order to be able to peacefully accept that some verses cannot be interpreted literally!

Even the most staunch of the Literalists have to concede to metaphors when an authentic Hadith says:
The heart of the believer is in between the Two Fingers of the All-Merciful
If I were to be literal, then they must surely refer to my ribs! Because literally and anatomically, my heart (perhaps not mine, if I am not yet a believer) is encaged in my ribs.

Anyway, the same is true when they belittle the Prophet s.a.w. just because the Prophet s.a.w. humbled himself. Why so inflexible and square headed?! The Prophet is just an ordinary human being…Just? What gibberish! He is the Most Beloved and the Best of Creation!

And now on to the sciencey bit first, before I go back to the specific Issue of the takfeer of ibn ‘Arabi, Muhyiddin.

2) Bilal Philips rightly pointed that the colours we see are just different frequencies of energy. And hence colours are merely perceptional and not absolute or real. But he made a factual mistake when he said Harun Yahya claimed that the material world is not real because on the molecular level, molecules are vibrating. The solid table is not real because its molecules are vibrating, therefore the appearance of the table as being solid is illusionary. (5:35 in the clip)àThis is a big factual error! The table that we perceive as a result of the input from our five physical senses is not the essence of the table, it is just a perception of the electrical signals (nervous impulses) relayed along our neurons and perceived in our brains!

What Harun Yahya is saying is that the table is illusionary to us because we perceive it and know about it only via our neurons! And definitely not because of something so superficial such as the fact that on the molecular level, molecules of solid substances are vibrating! Of course they are vibrating! All molecules/particles have Entropy unless when at the hypothetical Absolute Zero (0K or -273.15 deg cel)
*In Thermodynamics, Entropy is the positive measure of disorderliness in a system, ie. More Entropy means more disorderliness. Entropy is also positively related to temperature.

We are all insyaAllah familiar with the secondary school MCQ question depicting a frog whose sensory neuron connecting the skin responsible for the sense of touch to the brain is cut and therefore not being able to perceive heat or hotness, despite the fact that its appendages are being burnt. The same is true for the other senses. They all make copies, ie neurons, to be perceived, and hence we have no way to experience the real essence of matter. For all we know, it could very well be that matter does not exist and that Absolute Existence is Allah Alone. Laa mawjuuda Illa Allah, Nothing Exists other than God.

That is why the Prophet s.a.w. said that our life in this world is like a dream when we are asleep, we wake up only when al-Yaqin, ie. Death, comes. Notice how Transcendent Allah’s Wisdom is (Subhanallah! Allah!) when He referred to Death as al-Yaqin (The Certainty) in the verse:

wa’bud rabbaka hatta ya’tiyakal Yaqin.
And Worship your Lord until Yaqin(Certainty) comes to you.

The Prophet s.a.w. made specific tafsir of this verse and in this context, Yaqin/Certainty definitely meant Death, and not a conviction; because if it meant conviction, then a person can say “I am convinced/certain/yaqin God exists and therefore I can stop worshipping Him.”

3) This reality about matter, increasingly being affirmed by modern science, is not Wahdatul Wujud like what Bilal Philips claimed in the clip.

The extreme in Wahdatul Wujud claims that God did not create, how can this be? He is Al-Khaliq(The Creator)! The only answer is the reality that Creation is different from Creator.

He wrongly attributed Wahdatul Wujud to Muhyiddin Ibn ‘Arabi, the term never appeared in the writings of Ibn ‘Arabi!

In fact, Ibn ‘Arabi had a perfect understanding of this reality which is now being confirmed by sciences of Physics and Biology, an unlikely combination in schools, since it bypasses Chemistry but yet it reveals a transcendent Reality. Allah…Just that of course during Ibn ‘Arabi’s time (13th century), there was no such advance understanding in science, so it was difficult for Ibn ‘Arabi to relate to the general masses.

Ibn ‘Arabi once declared that anyone who claims he Exists, if he knew the truth, then he is a kafir. Today, this is not difficult to comprehend, since science can now tell us that matter as we know it is not Absolute Existence, therefore The only Absolute Existence is Allah. Laa mawjuuda Illa Allah.
To put a claim on Absolute Existence would be to wrestle from Allah His Rights and to associate (syirik) Absolute Existence with something other than Allah.

Read: http://us2.harunyahya.com/Detail/T/EDCRFV/productId/4352/THE_SECRET_BEYOND_MATTER_IS_NOT_WAHDATUL_WUJOOD

4) The Takfeer of Ibn ‘Arabi

Those who charge Ibn ‘Arabi of Takfir do not know.
And in authentic Orthodox Islamic Tradition, Muslims abstain from takfeer as much as possible, especially when there can be ambiguity or multifarious interpretations. If Takfir does not go to the accused, it about-turns and returns to the accuser.

Just take this learning point from the life of the Companion Abu Hurairah ra, who was granted long-life and a close relationship with the Prophet s.a.w. Sayyidina Abu Hurairah was given many secrets, many of which would be misunderstood by the masses, about which he said something like this. “Some of the knowledge I received from the Prophet s.a.w. I deliver them to the masses, others I keep them to myself, for if I were to reveal, they would surely sever my head.”

From this, we should expect to encounter issues that would be vastly differently interpreted by people, perhaps even diametric opposites! And Ibn ‘Arabi’s case was just one of them, so was al-Hallaj’s.

So, as people who know little about the religion, we ought to accept that confusion arises only because we lack knowledge, whereas these people are speaking at a higher level.

How can Ibn ‘Arabi be labeled a Kafir when the rest of the Islamic World hail him as Muhyiddin?!

Shaykh Abdul Qadir Jailani Q commented on the executions of Sufis who made “extravagant” claims:
“The Scissors of Syariah are being used to trim the extent of their sayings” for the benefit of the masses who would otherwise be burdened by confusion.
Nevertheless, these Sufis enjoy a high position in their God’s Sight!

Do not fall into the error of accusing Ibn ‘Arabi a kafir, God forbids.

On a more personal take, the fount of the Ahmadiah Idrisiah Order, Sidi Ahmad Ibn Idris ra, debated with a Wahhabi at Sabya, and guess what? One of the points of contention was the takfir of ibn ‘Arabi.
To which, of course, Sidi Ahmad Ibn Idris made it clear he did not see Ibn ‘Arabi a kafir, rather a Muhyiddin! And Sidi Ahmad Ibn Idris gave a practical advice;

If you see in the writings(of Ibn ‘Arabi) matters that to you constitute disbelief, then you can say that the writing constitutes disbelief, but do not accuse the author of disbelief.

4) Atlas of Creation and the big hoohaa surrounding it, and other Harun Yahya books.

MasyaAllah, Harun Yahya has recently published a massive tome proving the truth of creation and fallacy of Darwinism. The Atlas of Creation, consisting several volumes, printed on glossy paper, with quality printing and colourful graphics, is a pictorial collection of millions of Fossils from hundreds of millions of years ago of organisms that have not changed, or evolved. Those fossils from eons ago, are exactly the same as their living counterparts, indicating no evolution took place and that organisms were created fully formed. The fact is, despite all the claims Darwinists make about evolution affecting all organisms in their vision of the tree of life, they so far have only a few specific case-studies in their attempt to show gradual evolution, the more famous ones would be like the dino-bird intermediary, Archaeopteryx. Even so, claims about its evolutionary evidences are heavily disputed in the Biological World. If they were right, then there would be many, many cases of intermediary organisms!

The Atlas of Creation has been sent to Universities all over Europe, creating a shock among Darwinists lecturers. You can read various news reports on the Atlas of Creation at http://www.harunyahya.com/

The Atlas does show many, perhaps even more than enough pictures of various organisms, all with the same pattern; the million-year old fossils being similar to living counterparts. The point to take note is the reaction of universities in Europe to the Atlas. They discredit the Atlas and other Harun Yahya books for a few reasons, the fact that Harun Yahya has no formal accreditations in the realm of science, and that his books are all not typical of academic university-level texts.

Perhaps many do not know how Harun Yahya works; he has a pool of contributors who contribute materials to his books, so they are more like anthologies. These contributors are mostly anonymous to the public. After reviewing and editing, the appropriate materials are then published as books.

As for his books being atypical of university texts, well that is true, which university text is printed on 100% glossy paper with those fanciful pictorial frames on their covers? And because of this, many discredit Harun Yahya, even among muslims. My take is this, let us accept truth for what it is, without so much bothering where it comes from;
al-Haqqu min rabbika, falaa takuunanna minal mumtareen,
Truth is from your Lord, so do not be among those who Doubt.

Arguably the most compact Harun Yahya book against Darwinism is Darwinism Refuted, which I have read from cover to cover. The points raised in this book are wide encompassing, with scientific evidences to back up. Some of the points are even thought in my A-Level Bio. Some of them expose factual falsification and forging of reports especially the one on Ernst Haeckel’s drawings showing evolution in embryology. Mind you, why would the scientific world unreservedly believe in drawings??

Many condemn Harun Yahya as not having credibility, possibly because of the physical nature of his printed books that are atypical of university texts. Why don’t we take the effort of going through all his references, and in Darwinism Refuted alone, there were more than 400 references! If Harun Yahya is concocting his own stories out of fantasy, then we can unanimously denounce him. But many have not even bothered to check his references, which quote from places like Yale, Harvard and John Hopkins, and can be verified on the Internet!

Even if you abhor him out of a strictly personal feeling, then use his books as a collection of references that refer to academic materials that refute Darwinism.

Louis Pasteur, a key figure in biology, also often referred to by Darwinists, is a staunch attacker of Darwinism, and a believer in God. Many of us do not know this, why? Because the university texts generally do not reveal this about Louis Pasteur, but Harun Yahya brings it forth for us to see. The same is true for geneticists Gregory Mendel, from whom came Mendelian Genetics. Francis Crick, the one who co-founded the structure of DNA with James Watson, upon knowing the structure of DNA had confessed that such a complex molecule like the DNA can never be a product of chance.

Pasteur said:
The more I know, the more does my faith approach that of the Breton peasant (i.e., the faith which is serene, complete, unquestioning)

Little science takes you away from God but more of it takes you to Him.

I guess for now I will end here, my eyes are fatigued after an entire evening of typing, but Alhamdulillah the beautiful music of qasidah by Shaykh Fakhrudin Owaisi kept up my spirits. If there is anything further, I will add on InsyaAllah.

Speech by Orthodox Jewish Rabbi

May our words be pleasing to the Creator and cause His Great Name to be sanctified.

Assalaam Aleikhum:

The world stands aghast as the atrocities being committed by the Zionist regime in Gaza, becomes known in ever greater and shocking detail.

Mere words are insufficient to express the pain that all mankind feels at the plight of the Gaza and Palestinian people.

For over one hundred years, they have been subject to a carefully conceived plan, to drive them from their homes and their land.

Throughout their history, the Zionists have resorted to intimidation, war, ethnic cleansing and state—sponsored terrorism to achieve their goals.

This is, has been and continues to be, the criminal agenda of the Zionist movement. But among this movement’s greatest crimes, is that it has claimed to carry out these nefarious actions in the name of holiness, in the name of the Almighty, in the name of Judaism and the Jewish people !!

This is a wicked and monstrous lie !!

It is a desecration of our religion !!

Judaism forbids and rejects Zionism and the existence of the State of “Israel”. We have been expressly commanded by the Almighty that we are forbidden to have our own sovereignty in this heavenly decreed exile, we are also forbidden to rebel against any nation. Torah believing Jews, under the leadership of the most esteemed rabbis of the 20th century have always opposed and fought against Zionism and ultimately the State of “Israel”.

Unfortunately in recent years the Zionists have succeed in seducing and co—opting members of the religious community and some rabbis into support of not allowing the return of the rightful owners, the Palestinian people, to their land, by fear mongering, by appealing to their worst fears, that there is a religious conflict and that the Arabs always have had an ingrained hate for the Jews. Especially, they claim, that because of the many years of the existence of the State of “Israel”, if the Palestinians where to return to their land, they would massacre the Jews, may the Almighty protect us.

Anyone familiar with the ploys and techniques of the Zionist State is aware of this fact.
Before the advent of Zionism, Muslims and Christian, Arabs and Jews, lived peacefully together in the Holy Land, as in all the Muslim lands, — Ask your grandparents! — They remember those peaceful days! And in fact it is here the opportune time to thank all the Muslim countries for their extraordinary friendship, hospitality and safe haven that they have provided to the Jewish people throughout the ages!

The Zionists rely on the Bible, the Torah, for their imaginary right to ethnically cleanse the Palestinian people and to subjugate them. This is a pathetic joke! The Zionists have always been heretics and rejected all the fundamental tenets of our faith, and yet they have the nerve, the arrogance, the audacity, the chutzpa, to pretend to base their behavior on our holy Torah.
We know what our holy writings and our great rabbis have taught us — that we are forbidden to subjugate or oppress anyone or to desecrate the holiness of the Holy Land with paths of violence, ethnic cleansing, discrimination and military power. Our religion teaches justice. It teaches peace. It teaches compassion. In fact, the greatest and ultimate hope and prayer of the Jewish people is, that when the Messiah comes that then “Nation shall no longer lift up sword against nation, and they will make war no more.” All nations will serve God together in peace.
To the governments of the world, it is not through your support of the Zionist regime — the State of “Israel”, that the Jewish people are being helped! On the contrary, this tragic historical mistake has led to the killing of Arabs and Jews alike. The governments of the great powers, by supporting the State of “Israel” are not only harming the Palestinian people but they are also unwittingly contributing to the growth of hostility towards Jews worldwide!

To our Jewish brethren, we beg! Do not be intimidated by ruthless Zionist bullying and violence!! — Proclaim loudly and clearly your outrage, pain and sympathy for the people of Gaza and that those who show contempt for the Torah, the teachings of our rabbis, and disregard the ethical and moral basics of our faith, have no right to speak on behalf of the Jewish People or Judaism!

We must tell the world that self rule, sovereignty and ALL the rights of the Palestinian people, must be restored throughout historic Palestine! This is a requirement of Jewish ethics and values! Jewish justice demands the return of the Palestinian refugees to their homes, towns, villages and cities throughout Palestine! Tell the world, loudly and clearly, that you support Palestinian statehood over the ENTIRE Holy Land —— not despite your Jewish identity, but because of it.

To our Islamic brethren – let us speak up for the people of Gaza and please do not judge the Jewish faith or its people, on the basis of this passing lunacy of Zionism. The Jews have always been your friends and cousins. Do not allow your understandable anger to be directed at those who are innocent of wrongdoing, regardless of whether they reside in Occupied Palestine, Europe, or anywhere around the globe.

Together, people of all nations, may we be worthy, with God’s help, speedily and peacefully, without further suffering and bloodshed of anyone, be it Arab or Jew, to witness the peaceful end of the Zionist occupation over every inch of Palestine.

And may we yet merit to see, in the very near future, the revelation of the One God, over the entire world, with all mankind in His servitude, in joyous brotherhood.
AMEN

Let’s Proclaim Together: FREE GAZA – FREE PALESTINE
JUDAISM YES ZIONISM NO !
from nkusa.org

فَآَمَنَت طَّائِفَةٌ مِّن بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَكَفَرَت طَّائِفَةٌ
As-Saff, 61:14.
And so [it happened that] some of the children of Israel came to believe, whereas others denied the truth.

In the Quran, just like for every other community, it is related that some of the Jews believed while others rejected faith. Here in Surah Saff ayat 14, God mentions the believing Jews first, then the disbelievers among them; a clear indication to us muslims to not fall into the falacy of hating someone or some community on account of their race/religion, or in this case, the passing felony of the nationalistic Zionism. Racism is not acceptable in Islam; anti-semitism is a form of racism but anti-zionism is not.
Let not your hatred for a people lead you into transgression, God loves not those who transgress.

In Solidarity with our oppressed Brothers in Gaza

سَلاَمٌ عَلَيْكُم بِمَا صَبَرْتُمْ فَنِعْمَ عُقْبَى الدَّارِ 13:24

I've decided to change the title of my blog to a verse from Ar-Raad ayat 24

Which means "Peace be upon you, because you have persevered!" How excellent, then, this fulfilment in the hereafter! "

We can only speak about their sufferings, but we've never tasted. God reward them, forgive them and raise their stations because of this, amin!

The Prophet said, he who does not bother about the affairs of my community is not from my community. May we be excluded from such a group, amin!

To those who may not fully fathom the plight of the Palestinians, please just do not let your opinions be tweaked by agenda-driven bias. Until lately the media has always potrayed the Palestinians as bad people, but we now see even in the International media, headlines criticising and condemning the atrocities perpetrated by the zionist regime.

I am not into unjustly being biased against anyone, because that is a transgression Allah does not like. But in such a scenario, you cannot be called just if you are defiant to the whole world's call for immediate ceasefire. Why so arrogant and defiant? This, not to mention the fact that offensives have escalated, despite International condemnation. This only begs to have the word "hypocrisy" properly defined.

The Mufti of N9 has advised us to make dua for our brothers. In our Qunut ,before the ending salawat, recite:

رَبَّنَا لاَ تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِن نَّسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لاَ طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَآ أَنتَ مَوْلاَنَا فَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ

"Our Lord! Condemn us not if we forget or fall into error; our Lord! Lay not on us a burden Like that which Thou didst lay on those before us; Our Lord! Lay not on us a burden greater than we have strength to bear. Blot out our sins, and grant us forgiveness. Have mercy on us. Thou art our Protector; Help us against those who stand against faith." 2:286

and,

رَبَّنَا لاَ تَجْعَلْنَا فِتْنَةً لِّلْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ

وَنَجِّنَا بِرَحْمَتِكَ مِنَ الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ

O our Sustainer, make us not a plaything for evildoing folk; and save us, by Thy grace, from people who deny the truth!" 10:85-10:86

Also, to recite as many times possible, both in and out of solat:

وَمَكَرُواْ وَمَكَرَ اللّهُ وَاللّهُ خَيْرُ الْمَاكِرِينَ

And (the unbelievers) plotted and planned, and Allah too planned, and the best of planners is Allah. 3:54

وَيَمْكُرُونَ وَيَمْكُرُ اللّهُ وَاللّهُ خَيْرُ الْمَاكِرِينَ

They plot and plan, and Allah too plans; but the best of planners is Allah. 8:30

This one, is powerful...InsyaAllah.

Need I mention Why?!

Recently, there have been quite a few modifications all over my house. I shall restrict usage of words and just post pictures to explain them, since, as they say, pictures speak a thousand words.

Mod. No. 1

Mod. No. 2

Mod. No. 3

Mod. No. 4; This one's a little more primitive

NOW, NEED I MENTION WHY?!

Cause this abang-to-be now has 3 Gigi already! khekhe, He can now visit the dentist!

Uncle Wan had to force him to get an elusive shot of his Gigi...

To the extent that he...urm...stressed out! muahahahaha

You Will Love Your Uncle Wan when you grow up! ;P

Actually he now can understand what people are saying, for example, I can ask him "where are your eyes?" And he will blink in such a mentel-miang way!

Verily, You truly understand the meaning of fii kulli lamhatin hehe.

Another thing I like about him is that when I come back from work, after I salam him and kiss his tiny hand, I will ask him to salam me and guess what? He will take my hand and place it on the spot i like most! His Cheeks! aku aper lagi ah, kerennyam and tenyeh and romos! And then he will shout at the top of his voice, Padan Muke Kau dalam hati aku! Khekhekhe. This will be a daily routine ;P

Ziarah Seremban 01 Jan 2009

لاَ إِلٰهَ إِلاَّ اللهُ مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُوْلُ اللهِ فِيْ كُلِّ لَـْمحَةٍ وَنَفَسٍ عَدَدَ ماَ وَسِعَهُ عِلْمُ اللهِ.

Alhamdulillah, I am so thankful and grateful for being able to go to N9 as a convoy with the Ikhwans of TAI, with none other than the intention to visit Sahibus Samahah Tuan Mufti Dato' Shaykh Murtadha bin Shaykh Ahmad. I was fortunate that I did not have any duties around that time ;)It was a rather short notice kind of thing, I was told only a few days before, but Alhamdulillah still.

We gathered first at An-Nur Mosque for Fajar Prayers, that would be about six plus in the morning, and given where I stay, my only option was to cab there, but thankfully Bro Lukman messaged me the night before offering to pick me up since it was on the way. Alhamdulillah, that saved me a lefty sum for the cab fare, Bro Lukman, if you are reading this, my many thanks to you. hehe. Then we fetched Ust Hasbi from his place in Woodlands before heading to An-Nur.

At An-Nur, I did Tahiyyatul Masjid and waited for the rest of the Ikhwans to arrive. In a way I played cheat because I did my fajar at home. Anyhow, at around 7, Ust gathered us in the musolla for a mini briefing. He reminded us of the purpose of the visit and in accordance to the sunnah of the Prophet, made some changes to the arrangements of the convoy such that each car now carries 4 people. The Prophet said the best musafir is in fours. Ust highlighted that although we may not know the full wisdom behind Nabi s.a.w's advice, we ought to know that surely there is some good. And true enough, we required one less vehicle and we managed to establish better silaturrahmi with our Ikhwans.

Before we left, Ust reminded us to perform the Solat Sunnat Musafir, a simple 2 Raka'at prayer.

And then we are off to Seremban...

The new CiQ is definitely much better than the old customs, it is much more modern. We first stopped by at Kampong Majidee for breakfast. Had some Roti Canai and Teh Tarek that never fails to deliver ;P

Then we hit the highway, close to 1 1/2 hours on the road and we stopped at Ayer Keroh for tea break. I had 2 servings of fruits and a glass of Teh-o-Limau. Then it was straight to Masjid Negara in Seremban.

Masjid Negara

There we had Ust hasbi as our Imam for Jama' Taqdim Zuhr and 'Asr qasran. And then we head off to the abode of Tuan Mufti Shaykh Murtadha, the nephew of Sidi Abdul Rasyid.

Rumah Shaykh Murtadha

The Ikhwans stand while waiting for Shaykh Murtadha

Shaykh Murtadha speaking to the Ikhwans



At-Tahlil hanging on the wall

Where the guests ate

A picture of Masjid Kassim, the Singpore Zawiya, in Mufti's house.

MasyaAllah, Tuan Mufti shared with us quite a lot of updates, about the passing of the Sultan of N9, Tuanku Jaafar among others. When Ust Hasbi asked how the Ikhwans from Singapore can help strengthen the tariqah, he reminded us to step up on our 'Ilmu and 'Amal, and zikir because this is the time of tribulations, especially calumny.

After that, we were trated to lunch, delectable macaroni stew ;P

And then we visited the home of Sidi Faiz, which was nearby. Alhamdulillah, Sidi Faiz's health is much better now, and he would be leading a zikir here in the near future, InsyaAllah, Amin!

Ust Hasbi with Sidi Faiz

At-Tahlil and Salawat 'Azhimiyyah

We ate mee soto at Sidi Faiz's place. Sidi shared from his multiple trips to Brunei, that the situation in Brunei is good and promising; for now it has been established as a Negara Zikir. Alhamdulillah, I suppose this is the result and barakah of the efforts put in by the authorities in their inviting of people like Shaykh Nazim and Shaykh Hisyam to grace official events in the Blessed country. And they have a pious Sultan.

Sidi Faiz then led one round of the Awrad with the Ikhwans, made a closing dua and invited us to a Majlis Hol of Sidi Muhammad Ad-Dandarawy at Rasah on Sunday 25th Jan. For now, I am free on that date, and I pray that I am able to attend the Majlis at TAI HQ in South East Asia.

And then we visited the Maqam of the family of Shaykh Muhammad Sa'id al-Linggi. In this Maqam also lies interred the jasad of Sidi Abdul Rasyid, who led the Ikhwans in Singapore for so many years. We recited the litanies, before leaving straingt, non-stop to Singapore. A whole 2 hours drive and finally we are back. Again I am thankful to have our Ikhwan send me direct home, Thank You.

The Maqam of the Family of Shaykh Muhammad Sa'id