I was just itchy and wanted to see things from the pragmatic economist’s prespective, with a twist; with the main objective in mind to reach closer to God. If we don’t have this main objective, then economic gains are all technically speaking, material gains! So here goes nothing!
The COST BENEFIT ANALYSIS of joining Tariqah.
This by no means serves as an authoritative argumentation for and against Tariqah, just me simply crapping whatever is in my head into typed words, that’s all. Although I try as much as possible to jot down all the points relating to the subject matter, and all I hope is that as rational people, we make the right informed choice when we take the pledge.
Be default, everything has to begin with definition of key terms. In this case, I do not seek to define Tariqah, because I would only do injustice to it. Although it is related to a path to God while having an authorized guide, sets of prescribed litanies etc. but what is more relevant to laymen like me is that Tariqah is just one word: COMMITMENT
With commitment, you have consistency, and insyaAllah with that and sincerity, we can achieve the purpose of Tariqah. Whatever Turuq really is, if there is no commitment on our part, then it is pointless to be discussing it anyway. Just something to get us more committed to good deeds and seeking of knowledge.
In tariqah, there is a student and teacher relationship. Something like Jedi-Padawan relationship (of course loosely lah, nanti orang complain pulak maner ada guru mursyid ketot kulit hijau, pas tu berbual subjek and predikat terbalek, eg. Murid aku, engkau adalah). The murid has to maintain some form of adab with the teacher etc etc.
Before we begin, we must lay down some assumptions.
1. There is sincerity in threading this path, purely for God and becoming His better servant ie. Not for boast, show, dreaming to dah sampai etc Time for us to get over with such mundane matters. If you want to fly, get someone to sponsor you an air ticket. If you want to stay afloat, use a float! PRACTICAL PEOPLE, PEOPLE!
2. An authorized guide on a legitimate path.
DISCLAIMER: any ‘YOU’ that you find appearing below will refer to myself.
Just very briefly:
THE BENEFITS
1. Loving Him more.
2. Loving His Messenger more, because in all tariqahs, love for Nabi saw is central
3. You will probably end up doing more zikir/nawafil routinely.
4. You will make more salawat upon the Beloved.
5. Ever tried differentiating the sinner and the sin? Perhaps can learn how to love the sinner, hate the sin. No overlap! The story when the Prophet backed up a companion who drank, after he received some beating, saying that verily he loves Allah and His Messenger. At this point, who is to argue?
6. You learn to become more humble. Arrogance and ostentation will hinder you from paradise.
7. Simply out of knowing that in this world, you do not have the capacity to understand Paradise and Hell, and that your fate in either one is solely His to decide, not even your amal has any bearing on that, you will not bother about paradise or hell, just wanting to be with God.
8. You are under constant guidance, provided you keep the company of your guide.
THE COSTS
In general, the costs incurred are the same demands of sacrifice that God calls of us; such as sacrificing our time, effort striving to be better Muslims.
1. More tribulations and whispers. This is EXPECTED. We are all going to be tested. This can actually be viewed as a Benefit!
2. Less time for idle things.
3. Tendency to be guilty of ta’sub, although truthfully speaking, if Tasawwuf is properly appreciated, this should not be a problem. Ta’sub is when you listen to only your teacher and you deny and ridicule others. No one is asking you to do this. Seek knowledge from as many as thousands of teachers! Just that out of not overburdening yourself, you can only afford to follow one for a mursyid. Which vessel is commandeered by 2 captains?
4. People may view you differently, specially maybe? Just need to know that the path is not some special thing, I mean it is special, but not exclusive or an extravagant thing to be proud of. Ultimately, it is incumbent upon every individual muslim to be on a path.
5. You may be incited to feel like a mystic with whatever miracles/unveilings, but the truth is. LET’S GET REAL. Make the path solely a journey to rid the heart off any negative traits, and to love and obey Him and His Beloved s.a.w. even more! PERIOD
So yeah, what was described was in terms of qualitative description, not quantitative description. Hence no numerical value assigned to the points above. We will need to weigh the pros and cons.
Thursday, July 30, 2009
Monday, July 27, 2009
Melayu oh Melayu
It is disappointing that such trivial issues like 'mak cik keropok' made it to our sunday's exclusive front page; as though there are no other real pertinent issues facing the community....THIS IS REFLECTIVE OF OUR STATE OF AFFAIRS
We don't deny the existence of the unseen or the possibility that some may use magic for selfish gains, but for such reports to take up a significant portion of the front page is absurd.
Why can't someone accidentally open the door to that makcik(assuming that she is really roaming around), in the spirit of giving the benefit of doubt, and when he or she senses something amiss, recites 'bismillahil ladzi laa yadhurru ma'asmihi, shayun fil ardh, wa laa fis samaa, wa huwas samiiul bashir'?
We don't deny the existence of the unseen or the possibility that some may use magic for selfish gains, but for such reports to take up a significant portion of the front page is absurd.
Why can't someone accidentally open the door to that makcik(assuming that she is really roaming around), in the spirit of giving the benefit of doubt, and when he or she senses something amiss, recites 'bismillahil ladzi laa yadhurru ma'asmihi, shayun fil ardh, wa laa fis samaa, wa huwas samiiul bashir'?
Friday, July 24, 2009
Super Snakes
I had the luxury of sitting and watching one of National Geographics documentary on super snakes, in particular, the Anaconda (South America) and the Python (South-East Asia).
A few interesting facts peeking into the adaptations and capabilities of these two huge serpentine carnivores are:
1. Anaconda, being the largest serpent, can weigh more than 300 pounds growing to a length of about 30 feet.
2. Both sees a thermo-infra-red scan image of the world, putting warm-blooded animals in a contrast of red against a much cooler bluish background.
3. Both stick out their forked-tongues intermittently to pick up chemical scents in the air, smelling the odour of potential prey and thereby able to track it down.
4. The long tubular body of more than 10,000 muscles allows the giant snakes to slither in deadly silence.
5. Anacondas have their pair of eyes positioned at the upper part of the head, allowing to see while being mostly submerged in the waters
6. The jaws, are truly an amazing feat! Anacondas have 4 rows of teeth on its upper jaw! Two on the outer row, like humans, with 2 more inside, like sharks! Then the 2 rows of teeth (sharp of course) can MOVE independently of each other, mostly needed for the mouth to crawl and thereby swallow the entire length of the prey, a maneuver necessary since this serpent has no limbs to push its food down its body.
7. The lower jaw consist of 2 parts, UNCONNECTED, meaning, there is no chin. These 2 lower parts can also move independently of each other, allow the lower jaw to open up to 3 times wider.
8. Anacondas have double hinged jaws that allow an opening of almost 180 degrees.
9. Its skin at the jaw area is highly flexible, able to be stretched to 3 times its length, a scary feat when u suddenly see scales very dispersed on the skin which was once covered with scales totally!
10. A record 9000 pounds of force per square inch was delivered upon constriction of prey. Not just suffocating, also forcing bones to break and the heart to just stop under the intense pressure ( like having the entire weight of a school bus on just one inch of your body). No wonder they do not need venom!
Lastly, I was watching the documentary with my nephew on my lap. I looked at him and said, “Kalaulah Anaconda telan engkau, kenyang tu Anaconda setahun!” “If ever an Anaconda were to eat you up, it will be full for a year!”
But I cannot live up to the prospect of having my nephew being eaten up like that! NO! let me be the one to hug him as my bolster at night when I sleep!
A few interesting facts peeking into the adaptations and capabilities of these two huge serpentine carnivores are:
1. Anaconda, being the largest serpent, can weigh more than 300 pounds growing to a length of about 30 feet.
2. Both sees a thermo-infra-red scan image of the world, putting warm-blooded animals in a contrast of red against a much cooler bluish background.
3. Both stick out their forked-tongues intermittently to pick up chemical scents in the air, smelling the odour of potential prey and thereby able to track it down.
4. The long tubular body of more than 10,000 muscles allows the giant snakes to slither in deadly silence.
5. Anacondas have their pair of eyes positioned at the upper part of the head, allowing to see while being mostly submerged in the waters
6. The jaws, are truly an amazing feat! Anacondas have 4 rows of teeth on its upper jaw! Two on the outer row, like humans, with 2 more inside, like sharks! Then the 2 rows of teeth (sharp of course) can MOVE independently of each other, mostly needed for the mouth to crawl and thereby swallow the entire length of the prey, a maneuver necessary since this serpent has no limbs to push its food down its body.
7. The lower jaw consist of 2 parts, UNCONNECTED, meaning, there is no chin. These 2 lower parts can also move independently of each other, allow the lower jaw to open up to 3 times wider.
8. Anacondas have double hinged jaws that allow an opening of almost 180 degrees.
9. Its skin at the jaw area is highly flexible, able to be stretched to 3 times its length, a scary feat when u suddenly see scales very dispersed on the skin which was once covered with scales totally!
10. A record 9000 pounds of force per square inch was delivered upon constriction of prey. Not just suffocating, also forcing bones to break and the heart to just stop under the intense pressure ( like having the entire weight of a school bus on just one inch of your body). No wonder they do not need venom!
Lastly, I was watching the documentary with my nephew on my lap. I looked at him and said, “Kalaulah Anaconda telan engkau, kenyang tu Anaconda setahun!” “If ever an Anaconda were to eat you up, it will be full for a year!”
But I cannot live up to the prospect of having my nephew being eaten up like that! NO! let me be the one to hug him as my bolster at night when I sleep!
Monday, July 20, 2009
Wisdom teeth extraction, PART 1
Monday morning, 20 July 2009, I went for my Left Wisdom teeth extraction, top and bottom. The extraction was done at AH and I was given a good 6 days MC hehe.
The morning I woke up, I took my breakfast and my dad fetched me to the hospital, the morning peak hour traffic was quite bad. Anyway, I reached there and the nurses took my BP and SpO2. All was fine and she asked me several questions regarding drug allergies, medical history etc. There was no problem expect that I was a little anxious about the surgery since it is going to be done under Local anaesthesia, which means to say I will be awake hearing all the grilling and experiencing all the pulling, I tell you, it is really like wresting!
Was kind of nervous waiting for my name to be called, meanwhile I smsed Dr Ahmad about it and he told me to plug on my iPod full blast, I said ‘ But still…’. Oh well, I was in safe hands since I was operated on by Head Dept, Senior Consultant dentist.
My name was called to the surgery room, the dentist made me bite on a piece of folded gauze and she then gave me the local anaesthesia injection. Hurts a little, like having the feel of a needle piercing through your gums, but it was really bearable. Waited a little while while the nurses rinsed my mouth with chlorhexidine. They covered me entirely in blanket, exposing only the mouth area. There I was like, hey, I wanna look at how you do the drilling! But never mind, I just surrendered and remained passive throughout.
When the dentist started, I could only hear drilling, the breaking of the bottom tooth, (she didn’t break the top one maybe because it is already exposed) the intense pulling out of the teeth. But in all honesty, the anaesthesia worked so well that I did not know which side she pulled first. It is like my entire left side of the face(lips, cheeks, nose gums, jaw) couldn’t feel anything. The only working sensory perception that allowed me to experience the extraction was the louder hearing of all the procedures, in my left ear. It is like I know from hearing, that some operation is going on in my left side of the mouth. That’s all. But all these while, I was reciting the tahlil with my fingers counting under the blanket. I could feel the dentist pushing and wrestling with the lower tooth.
And after about just 15 minutes, walla! All done! And I was shown my two teeth, one intact, the other broken with a piece of my gum stuck on it. I will take a pic of it for kenangan’s sake.
The effects of the LA will go off in about 2 hours after administration, but heck, I intend to go through the pain without painkillers, just finish off the amox and metronidazole given to me.
6 days of staying at home, with the luxury of reading and watching whatever video I want, and of course spending quality time playing with and pinching my nephew’s chubby cheeks! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
the next is somewhere late September, after hari raya.
I will consume the SAF's money and MC to the max before I ORD
The morning I woke up, I took my breakfast and my dad fetched me to the hospital, the morning peak hour traffic was quite bad. Anyway, I reached there and the nurses took my BP and SpO2. All was fine and she asked me several questions regarding drug allergies, medical history etc. There was no problem expect that I was a little anxious about the surgery since it is going to be done under Local anaesthesia, which means to say I will be awake hearing all the grilling and experiencing all the pulling, I tell you, it is really like wresting!
Was kind of nervous waiting for my name to be called, meanwhile I smsed Dr Ahmad about it and he told me to plug on my iPod full blast, I said ‘ But still…’. Oh well, I was in safe hands since I was operated on by Head Dept, Senior Consultant dentist.
My name was called to the surgery room, the dentist made me bite on a piece of folded gauze and she then gave me the local anaesthesia injection. Hurts a little, like having the feel of a needle piercing through your gums, but it was really bearable. Waited a little while while the nurses rinsed my mouth with chlorhexidine. They covered me entirely in blanket, exposing only the mouth area. There I was like, hey, I wanna look at how you do the drilling! But never mind, I just surrendered and remained passive throughout.
When the dentist started, I could only hear drilling, the breaking of the bottom tooth, (she didn’t break the top one maybe because it is already exposed) the intense pulling out of the teeth. But in all honesty, the anaesthesia worked so well that I did not know which side she pulled first. It is like my entire left side of the face(lips, cheeks, nose gums, jaw) couldn’t feel anything. The only working sensory perception that allowed me to experience the extraction was the louder hearing of all the procedures, in my left ear. It is like I know from hearing, that some operation is going on in my left side of the mouth. That’s all. But all these while, I was reciting the tahlil with my fingers counting under the blanket. I could feel the dentist pushing and wrestling with the lower tooth.
And after about just 15 minutes, walla! All done! And I was shown my two teeth, one intact, the other broken with a piece of my gum stuck on it. I will take a pic of it for kenangan’s sake.
The effects of the LA will go off in about 2 hours after administration, but heck, I intend to go through the pain without painkillers, just finish off the amox and metronidazole given to me.
6 days of staying at home, with the luxury of reading and watching whatever video I want, and of course spending quality time playing with and pinching my nephew’s chubby cheeks! MUAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
the next is somewhere late September, after hari raya.
I will consume the SAF's money and MC to the max before I ORD
Saturday, July 18, 2009
Da Vinci Exhibit 16 July 2009
Been quite a while eh since I last blogged…relatively busy past few days.
Well anyway, I had a good 2 days off this week! Well spent, the first saw me going for my appointment at AH and a good rest, the next day, THUR 16 July, I actually went to see the Da Vinci The Genius Exhibition at Science Centre with 3 of my already-ORDed medical centre friends.
The exhibition was very enlightening indeed, learnt several pieces of information I didn’t know about Da vinci prior to the visit. Numerous mechanical works of Da Vinci(replicas from his notebooks/codices) were on display and it just highlighted how curious Leonardo was. He managed to make full use of the gears system, ranging from lifters to lift heavy weights, to Odometres to tanks to Machine Guns.
I supposed Da Vinci played around with cadavers and being a good visual artist that he is, was able to sketch beautiful images of the human anatomy, to the most intricate details. A perfectionist and a believer in God, Da Vinci always insisted that his works must be accurately reflective of Nature, lest he would be doing Nature and thus God a great deal of injustice.
Learnt a bit or two about Mona Lisa’s history. I must admit that while I was growing up hating the visual arts subject that was compulsory from P1 all the way to Sec 2, a freaking 8 years in total, I’ve never thought of beautiful art/paintings as truly something very magnificent. Yes I do not deny that these great artists and painters have superb skills, but at the end of it, I was like always asking ‘So What?’ I grew up in a world where paint is easily accessible, all colours of them, in the form of crayons, poster colour, felted pens etc. But in the Medieval times, vastly different items were used to produce different colours. And then I remember watching the Discovery Channels documentary on the evolution of the paint industry.it explained how difficult it was in the past to obtain paint colours such as red, blue etc. and I realized I was naïve to assume that medieval artists had easily accessible factory-made poster colours in tubes of tiny glass bottles.
So their art of painting will most of the time include chemistry as well, they were using compounds of lead for colours such as white and the expensive intense blue lapis lazuli. Then comes all the varnishes and oil coatings. Painting an artwork in several layers also create a sense of depth, something truly amazing and mesmerizing about a piece of painting. In short, it truly and undeniably takes supreme mastery to produce an artwork with an indelible and everlasting influence such as the Mona Lisa.
Before the exhibit, we toured around science centre for a little while, reminiscing our primary school days as kids in white uniform running around and marveling at all the displays. The place hasn’t changed much; I could still remember most of the displays.
One thing that struck me was what imam Ghazali said about the different kinds of knowledge.
First we have the sensory knowledge, the kind of knowledge we obtain via our senses, in which the sight is the most far-reaching. Then we have rational knowledge, the use of logical and rationan thinking to come to Truth. We also have divine revealed knowledge, Wahyu.
Imam Ghazali cautioned against sensory knowledge as being used to ascertain Absolute Reality and Truth. Imam Ghazali knew about the non-absolute nature of this world. Will not go into details but the exhibits at science centre will show you just how badly your eyes can deceive you! It may be that we are sleeping in this world, and that we wake up only when we die.
And finally, of course, we had food after all of us were hungry admiring the exhibition for 4 hours. And we had a good chat session, catching up with all the updates ever since those three people ORDed. My turn is in NOV…..less than 4 months away….less than 100 working days…
Well anyway, I had a good 2 days off this week! Well spent, the first saw me going for my appointment at AH and a good rest, the next day, THUR 16 July, I actually went to see the Da Vinci The Genius Exhibition at Science Centre with 3 of my already-ORDed medical centre friends.
The exhibition was very enlightening indeed, learnt several pieces of information I didn’t know about Da vinci prior to the visit. Numerous mechanical works of Da Vinci(replicas from his notebooks/codices) were on display and it just highlighted how curious Leonardo was. He managed to make full use of the gears system, ranging from lifters to lift heavy weights, to Odometres to tanks to Machine Guns.
I supposed Da Vinci played around with cadavers and being a good visual artist that he is, was able to sketch beautiful images of the human anatomy, to the most intricate details. A perfectionist and a believer in God, Da Vinci always insisted that his works must be accurately reflective of Nature, lest he would be doing Nature and thus God a great deal of injustice.
Learnt a bit or two about Mona Lisa’s history. I must admit that while I was growing up hating the visual arts subject that was compulsory from P1 all the way to Sec 2, a freaking 8 years in total, I’ve never thought of beautiful art/paintings as truly something very magnificent. Yes I do not deny that these great artists and painters have superb skills, but at the end of it, I was like always asking ‘So What?’ I grew up in a world where paint is easily accessible, all colours of them, in the form of crayons, poster colour, felted pens etc. But in the Medieval times, vastly different items were used to produce different colours. And then I remember watching the Discovery Channels documentary on the evolution of the paint industry.it explained how difficult it was in the past to obtain paint colours such as red, blue etc. and I realized I was naïve to assume that medieval artists had easily accessible factory-made poster colours in tubes of tiny glass bottles.
So their art of painting will most of the time include chemistry as well, they were using compounds of lead for colours such as white and the expensive intense blue lapis lazuli. Then comes all the varnishes and oil coatings. Painting an artwork in several layers also create a sense of depth, something truly amazing and mesmerizing about a piece of painting. In short, it truly and undeniably takes supreme mastery to produce an artwork with an indelible and everlasting influence such as the Mona Lisa.
Before the exhibit, we toured around science centre for a little while, reminiscing our primary school days as kids in white uniform running around and marveling at all the displays. The place hasn’t changed much; I could still remember most of the displays.
One thing that struck me was what imam Ghazali said about the different kinds of knowledge.
First we have the sensory knowledge, the kind of knowledge we obtain via our senses, in which the sight is the most far-reaching. Then we have rational knowledge, the use of logical and rationan thinking to come to Truth. We also have divine revealed knowledge, Wahyu.
Imam Ghazali cautioned against sensory knowledge as being used to ascertain Absolute Reality and Truth. Imam Ghazali knew about the non-absolute nature of this world. Will not go into details but the exhibits at science centre will show you just how badly your eyes can deceive you! It may be that we are sleeping in this world, and that we wake up only when we die.
And finally, of course, we had food after all of us were hungry admiring the exhibition for 4 hours. And we had a good chat session, catching up with all the updates ever since those three people ORDed. My turn is in NOV…..less than 4 months away….less than 100 working days…
Ah Chong, me and Yun Kai
me, Fariz and Yun Kai with the Tix
Which is more sane? Fries with Garlic Chilli Sauce or Fries with Vanilla Ice Cream??
ANS: ONION WITH CHOCOLATE
Wednesday, July 8, 2009
Haul of Shaykh Sayyid Ahmad bin Idris
We would like to inform everyone that there will be a congregational zikrullah at Haji Mohd Salleh Mosque (Palmer Road).
Everyone is invited, both men and women.It will be led by a scholar from Seremban, Malaysia, educated from al-Azhar, Shaykh Faiz bin Ahmad bin Muhammad Sa'id al-Linggi.
Date: Sunday, July 12, 2009
Time:8:30pm - 11:30pm
Location:Haji Mohd Salleh Mosque (Palmer Road)
This time round, it coincides with the Haul of Shaykh Sayyid Ahmad bin Idris, the first founder of this Tariqah.
The Event will commence after Isyak Prayers at the prayer hall, insya Allah
Unlike the regular weekly congregational zikir, the Haul zikir will be quite different, so you are encouraged to attend to find experience it 'live' and immerse yourself in zikrullah. A Hadrah is pinnacle of such majlis led by Sidi Faiz.
Insya Allah, Ustaz Mohd Hasbi Bin Hassan will also be present for the congregational zikrullah.
Everyone is invited, both men and women.It will be led by a scholar from Seremban, Malaysia, educated from al-Azhar, Shaykh Faiz bin Ahmad bin Muhammad Sa'id al-Linggi.
Date: Sunday, July 12, 2009
Time:8:30pm - 11:30pm
Location:Haji Mohd Salleh Mosque (Palmer Road)
This time round, it coincides with the Haul of Shaykh Sayyid Ahmad bin Idris, the first founder of this Tariqah.
The Event will commence after Isyak Prayers at the prayer hall, insya Allah
Unlike the regular weekly congregational zikir, the Haul zikir will be quite different, so you are encouraged to attend to find experience it 'live' and immerse yourself in zikrullah. A Hadrah is pinnacle of such majlis led by Sidi Faiz.
Insya Allah, Ustaz Mohd Hasbi Bin Hassan will also be present for the congregational zikrullah.
Saturday, July 4, 2009
Al-Gharrawain
An offshoot practical problem encountered when dealing with Inheritance(Faraid).
Gharrawain literally refers to two bright stars, and in the context of this, the Father and Mother of the Deceased (the highlight of the problem).
This issue of Gharrawain is also fondly known as Al-Umarain as it was the Ijtihad of Sayyidina Umar that ingeniously solved the problem, as shall be mathematically shown later. This ijtihad of Sayyidina Umar Ibn Khattab r.a was with the consensus of other sahabas such as Zaid Ibn Thabit, Usman ibn Affan and Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud, God be pleased with them all!
The reason why I am typing this out is that I believe, typing/writing and or teaching will indelibly leave an impression in our memory, such that we are less likely to forget even after years of loss of contact with the subject matter. Sayyidina Ali karramallahu wajhah said that ‘Ilm is unlike money in that when shared, it increases. As for studying in general, I am more inclined to the appreciation with understanding approach instead of mere memorization. May God bless us all!
I also intend to make this as crystal-clear and as unequivocal as possible, for the sake of perfection of presentation.
In Faraid in general, at the outset there must be 3 conditions:
1. When a deceased has inheritance after settling all his debts and burial expenses, using the deceased’s own money.
2. There are legible Inheritors (via bloodline, or marriage, adherence to the same religion, not a murderer of the deceased, intentional or otherwise).
3. The deceased’s death is real.
Al Gharrawain only happens in two scenarios:
1. The inheritors are ONLY the Husband of the Deceased, Mother of the Deceased and Father of the Deceased, strictly no other legible inheritors. In this case, the Wife died.
2. The inheritors are ONLY the Wife of the Deceased, Mother of the Deceased and Father of the Deceased, strictly no other legible inheritors. In this case, the Husband died.
Therefore Al Gharrawain only pertains to inheritors that strictly included ONLY Spouse, Mother and Father.
We now let X be the original amount of inheritance to be inherited.
According to Default Shares explicitly mentioned in Quran, in the case of no children as inheritors, only those mentioned above strictly:
A. Husband gets ½ of Original Amount to be Inherited = ½X = 6/12X
A. Wife gets ¼ of Original Amount to be Inherited = ¼X = 3/12X
B. Mother gets 1/3 of Original Amount to be Inherited = 1/3 X = 4/12X
C. Father gets 1/6 of Original Amount to be Inherited = 1/6 X = 2/12X
There are two points labeled A because either A is for the respective two scenarios in Gharrawain.
I’ve made the denominators to be 12 because 12 is a common multiple of 2,3,4 and 6.
Whichever the case, either husband died or wife died, the Father will get only half as much as the Mother, since 1/6 is half of 1/3, or 2/12 is half of 4/12.
This is not in agreement with the general commandment in the Quran regarding inheritance in that males ought to get twice as much as females, and not the other way round.
Sayyidina Umar made two proposals in his Ijtihad:
Proposal 1:
So the ingenious Ijtihad of Sayyidina Umar was to propose that the 1/3 share of the Mother be applied to the BALANCE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SPOUSE HAS TAKEN HIS OR HERS. So the order of who takes the inheritance first is important in this Gharrawain case. IT IS STRICTLY SPOUSE FIRST, THEN MOTHER, THEN FATHER.
Proposal 2:
Sayyidina Umar also proposed that the Father takes his default 1/6 share of the Original amount of Inheritance, and in addition to that, ASABAH as well. Asabah is whatever remains of the Original after all inheritors have taken their respective proportioned shares. This can happen as you can see that the fractions mentioned in the Quran do not always add up to 1 whole.
By default, whatever fraction of inheritance mentioned is the Quran is of the Original amount of Inheritance. Umar’s Ijtihad is that in the case of the Mother, the fraction 1/3 or 4/12 remains, just that it is now applied to the BALANCE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SPOUSE HAS TAKEN HIS OR HER SHARE. This is emphasized in Ust Firdaus Yahya’s Faraid book as Baki Pertama on page 39-39.
So essentially, there are only two Summaraised-Template scenario:
THE FIRST CASE OF: WIFE IS THE DECEASED
Inheritors: Husband, Mother and Father ONLY
Step 1: Husband takes ½ of Original = ½X = 6/12X
Step 2: Mother now takes 1/3 of REMAINING/BALANCE AFTER HUSBAND:
= 1/3 of (1-1/2) = 1/3 * ½ = 1/6 of ORIGINAL = 2/12X
Step 3: Father takes 1/6 of Original = 1/6X = 2/12X AND (according to Sayyidina Umar’s Proposal 2) ASABAH
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH.
Let us calculate ASABAH to see it as a fraction in terms of the Original.
12/12 – 6/12(Husband’s Share) – 2/12(Mother’s Share) – 2/12(Father’s Default Share) = 2/12
ASABAH in the FIRST CASE of WIFE IS THE DECEASED is FIXED AT,UPON CALCULATION AND SIMPLIFICATION, 2/12 of ORIGNINAL = 2/12X
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH = 2/12X + 2/12X = 4/12X
THEREFORE Father takes in total; 4/12X
To Summarise the First Case:
Husband takes 6/12X
Mother takes 2/12X (from 1/3 of Remaining after Husband took his share)
Father takes 4/12X (from 1/6 of Original PLUS ASABAH)
Father’s share is now twice as Mother’s.
It is fair enough that Husband takes more than the Father since Husband has more rights to the Wife than a Father has to his Daughter, where the Wife is also the Daughter.
Settled!
THE SECOND CASE OF: HUSBAND IS THE DECEASED
Inheritors: Wife, Mother and Father ONLY
Step 1: Wife takes 1/4 of Original = 1/4X = 3/12X
Step 2: Mother now takes 1/3 of REMAINING/BALANCE AFTER WIFE:
= 1/3 of (1-1/4) = 1/3 * 3/4 = 1/4 of ORIGINAL = 3/12X
Step 3: Father takes 1/6 of Original = 1/6X = 2/12X AND (according to Sayyidina Umar’s Proposal 2) ASABAH
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH.
Let us calculate ASABAH to see it as a fraction in terms of the Original.
12/12 – 3/12(Wife’s Share) – 3/12(Mother’s Share) – 2/12(Father’s Default Share) = 4/12
ASABAH in the SECOND CASE of HUSBAND IS THE DECEASED is FIXED AT,UPON CALCULATION AND SIMPLIFICATION, 4/12 of ORIGNINAL = 4/12X
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH = 2/12X + 4/12X = 6/12X
THEREFORE Father takes in total; 6/12X
To Summarise the Second Case:
Wife takes 3/12X
Mother takes 3/12X (from 1/3 of Remaining after Wife took her share)
Father takes 6/12X (from 1/6 of Original PLUS ASABAH)
Father’s share is now twice as Mother’s. It is fair enough that Wife takes the same amount of inheritance as the Mother as both are Females.
Settled!
I marvel at how Ingenious Umar was to propose just 2 simply solutions to solve an entire problem perfectly! Subhanallah!
Heal the World, Make it a Better Place, For You and For Me and the Entire Human Race...
Gharrawain literally refers to two bright stars, and in the context of this, the Father and Mother of the Deceased (the highlight of the problem).
This issue of Gharrawain is also fondly known as Al-Umarain as it was the Ijtihad of Sayyidina Umar that ingeniously solved the problem, as shall be mathematically shown later. This ijtihad of Sayyidina Umar Ibn Khattab r.a was with the consensus of other sahabas such as Zaid Ibn Thabit, Usman ibn Affan and Abdullah Ibn Mas’ud, God be pleased with them all!
The reason why I am typing this out is that I believe, typing/writing and or teaching will indelibly leave an impression in our memory, such that we are less likely to forget even after years of loss of contact with the subject matter. Sayyidina Ali karramallahu wajhah said that ‘Ilm is unlike money in that when shared, it increases. As for studying in general, I am more inclined to the appreciation with understanding approach instead of mere memorization. May God bless us all!
I also intend to make this as crystal-clear and as unequivocal as possible, for the sake of perfection of presentation.
In Faraid in general, at the outset there must be 3 conditions:
1. When a deceased has inheritance after settling all his debts and burial expenses, using the deceased’s own money.
2. There are legible Inheritors (via bloodline, or marriage, adherence to the same religion, not a murderer of the deceased, intentional or otherwise).
3. The deceased’s death is real.
Al Gharrawain only happens in two scenarios:
1. The inheritors are ONLY the Husband of the Deceased, Mother of the Deceased and Father of the Deceased, strictly no other legible inheritors. In this case, the Wife died.
2. The inheritors are ONLY the Wife of the Deceased, Mother of the Deceased and Father of the Deceased, strictly no other legible inheritors. In this case, the Husband died.
Therefore Al Gharrawain only pertains to inheritors that strictly included ONLY Spouse, Mother and Father.
We now let X be the original amount of inheritance to be inherited.
According to Default Shares explicitly mentioned in Quran, in the case of no children as inheritors, only those mentioned above strictly:
A. Husband gets ½ of Original Amount to be Inherited = ½X = 6/12X
A. Wife gets ¼ of Original Amount to be Inherited = ¼X = 3/12X
B. Mother gets 1/3 of Original Amount to be Inherited = 1/3 X = 4/12X
C. Father gets 1/6 of Original Amount to be Inherited = 1/6 X = 2/12X
There are two points labeled A because either A is for the respective two scenarios in Gharrawain.
I’ve made the denominators to be 12 because 12 is a common multiple of 2,3,4 and 6.
Whichever the case, either husband died or wife died, the Father will get only half as much as the Mother, since 1/6 is half of 1/3, or 2/12 is half of 4/12.
This is not in agreement with the general commandment in the Quran regarding inheritance in that males ought to get twice as much as females, and not the other way round.
Sayyidina Umar made two proposals in his Ijtihad:
Proposal 1:
So the ingenious Ijtihad of Sayyidina Umar was to propose that the 1/3 share of the Mother be applied to the BALANCE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SPOUSE HAS TAKEN HIS OR HERS. So the order of who takes the inheritance first is important in this Gharrawain case. IT IS STRICTLY SPOUSE FIRST, THEN MOTHER, THEN FATHER.
Proposal 2:
Sayyidina Umar also proposed that the Father takes his default 1/6 share of the Original amount of Inheritance, and in addition to that, ASABAH as well. Asabah is whatever remains of the Original after all inheritors have taken their respective proportioned shares. This can happen as you can see that the fractions mentioned in the Quran do not always add up to 1 whole.
By default, whatever fraction of inheritance mentioned is the Quran is of the Original amount of Inheritance. Umar’s Ijtihad is that in the case of the Mother, the fraction 1/3 or 4/12 remains, just that it is now applied to the BALANCE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE SPOUSE HAS TAKEN HIS OR HER SHARE. This is emphasized in Ust Firdaus Yahya’s Faraid book as Baki Pertama on page 39-39.
So essentially, there are only two Summaraised-Template scenario:
THE FIRST CASE OF: WIFE IS THE DECEASED
Inheritors: Husband, Mother and Father ONLY
Step 1: Husband takes ½ of Original = ½X = 6/12X
Step 2: Mother now takes 1/3 of REMAINING/BALANCE AFTER HUSBAND:
= 1/3 of (1-1/2) = 1/3 * ½ = 1/6 of ORIGINAL = 2/12X
Step 3: Father takes 1/6 of Original = 1/6X = 2/12X AND (according to Sayyidina Umar’s Proposal 2) ASABAH
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH.
Let us calculate ASABAH to see it as a fraction in terms of the Original.
12/12 – 6/12(Husband’s Share) – 2/12(Mother’s Share) – 2/12(Father’s Default Share) = 2/12
ASABAH in the FIRST CASE of WIFE IS THE DECEASED is FIXED AT,UPON CALCULATION AND SIMPLIFICATION, 2/12 of ORIGNINAL = 2/12X
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH = 2/12X + 2/12X = 4/12X
THEREFORE Father takes in total; 4/12X
To Summarise the First Case:
Husband takes 6/12X
Mother takes 2/12X (from 1/3 of Remaining after Husband took his share)
Father takes 4/12X (from 1/6 of Original PLUS ASABAH)
Father’s share is now twice as Mother’s.
It is fair enough that Husband takes more than the Father since Husband has more rights to the Wife than a Father has to his Daughter, where the Wife is also the Daughter.
Settled!
THE SECOND CASE OF: HUSBAND IS THE DECEASED
Inheritors: Wife, Mother and Father ONLY
Step 1: Wife takes 1/4 of Original = 1/4X = 3/12X
Step 2: Mother now takes 1/3 of REMAINING/BALANCE AFTER WIFE:
= 1/3 of (1-1/4) = 1/3 * 3/4 = 1/4 of ORIGINAL = 3/12X
Step 3: Father takes 1/6 of Original = 1/6X = 2/12X AND (according to Sayyidina Umar’s Proposal 2) ASABAH
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH.
Let us calculate ASABAH to see it as a fraction in terms of the Original.
12/12 – 3/12(Wife’s Share) – 3/12(Mother’s Share) – 2/12(Father’s Default Share) = 4/12
ASABAH in the SECOND CASE of HUSBAND IS THE DECEASED is FIXED AT,UPON CALCULATION AND SIMPLIFICATION, 4/12 of ORIGNINAL = 4/12X
So Father takes 2/12X + ASABAH = 2/12X + 4/12X = 6/12X
THEREFORE Father takes in total; 6/12X
To Summarise the Second Case:
Wife takes 3/12X
Mother takes 3/12X (from 1/3 of Remaining after Wife took her share)
Father takes 6/12X (from 1/6 of Original PLUS ASABAH)
Father’s share is now twice as Mother’s. It is fair enough that Wife takes the same amount of inheritance as the Mother as both are Females.
Settled!
I marvel at how Ingenious Umar was to propose just 2 simply solutions to solve an entire problem perfectly! Subhanallah!
Heal the World, Make it a Better Place, For You and For Me and the Entire Human Race...
Thursday, July 2, 2009
updated!
Insyallah , Sunday, 12 July 2009, after Isyak at Masjid Mohd Salleh Mqm Habib Nuh, Sidi Faiz will be leading a majlis zikir.
The ideas mentioned by Shaykhul Akbar are not simple ideas. Learning him must be under the guidance of someone qualified; lest we thread on deep sea water perilously.
Again, knowing and experiencing is not the same:
It is said Die before you die.
It is said You are part of Divinity
It is said all actions are His
How to approach and appreciate these?
Alhamdullilah, the material sciences have progressed to the extent that we are more receptive to Ibn Arabi’s ideas.
I could think of several possible ways of how to appreciate that all actions are His.
1. the fact that whatever actions we experience are mere perceptions, and that God gave us these perceptions, sight and hearing etc. a classic example would be that only God dictates why humans see 570nm wavelength of light as green and not red etc. Similarly, our perceptions of us throwing a stone is because God allowed us to perceive as such. Although this by no way means that God is accountable for our actions as His Being Supreme and Having Control over All Things holds no bearings whatsoever that is affecting our freedom/will to choose. We are judged ultimately based on what we chose to do, and God does not coerce us into doing.
2. through cause and effect. Eg. when i type, i can do so becaue i have energy, i have energy because i ate, i ate because there was food, there was food because there was photosynthesis, and on and on until God is the First Cause. Allah as Al-Musabbibal Asbab.
3. Just plainly, GOd is the Doer of All Things. we listen and we Obey.
4. Or is it through unveiling of the veil? kashful hijab? Ladunni? About which this is totally up to the discretion of God, His Grace and Mercy.
5. Qada and Qadar?
6. Simply because there is no might other than His? Hauqalah?
or a combination of all these and more?
I really don’t know.
But this question always lingers on:
If Ibn Arabi’s ideas can be understood scientifically, then where is its spiritual value?
So verly likely, if you found his ideas easy to comprehend, then in all likelihood that is just some superficial material way of understanding. (not what was originally intended)
May Allah guide us all,
Let us only study Ibn Arabi when there is a guide.
Again, knowing and experiencing is not the same:
It is said Die before you die.
It is said You are part of Divinity
It is said all actions are His
How to approach and appreciate these?
Alhamdullilah, the material sciences have progressed to the extent that we are more receptive to Ibn Arabi’s ideas.
I could think of several possible ways of how to appreciate that all actions are His.
1. the fact that whatever actions we experience are mere perceptions, and that God gave us these perceptions, sight and hearing etc. a classic example would be that only God dictates why humans see 570nm wavelength of light as green and not red etc. Similarly, our perceptions of us throwing a stone is because God allowed us to perceive as such. Although this by no way means that God is accountable for our actions as His Being Supreme and Having Control over All Things holds no bearings whatsoever that is affecting our freedom/will to choose. We are judged ultimately based on what we chose to do, and God does not coerce us into doing.
2. through cause and effect. Eg. when i type, i can do so becaue i have energy, i have energy because i ate, i ate because there was food, there was food because there was photosynthesis, and on and on until God is the First Cause. Allah as Al-Musabbibal Asbab.
3. Just plainly, GOd is the Doer of All Things. we listen and we Obey.
4. Or is it through unveiling of the veil? kashful hijab? Ladunni? About which this is totally up to the discretion of God, His Grace and Mercy.
5. Qada and Qadar?
6. Simply because there is no might other than His? Hauqalah?
or a combination of all these and more?
I really don’t know.
But this question always lingers on:
If Ibn Arabi’s ideas can be understood scientifically, then where is its spiritual value?
So verly likely, if you found his ideas easy to comprehend, then in all likelihood that is just some superficial material way of understanding. (not what was originally intended)
May Allah guide us all,
Let us only study Ibn Arabi when there is a guide.
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