Last weekend was the only weekend that the mosque was on holidays! So, it was a perfect time to go for a trip. We went to the Lake District, to be specific, we stayed at Langdale near Ambleside, visited Windermere and Kendal. The accommodation was cheap and comfortable but the weather was horrible. I only get to climb a hill on the first day and the next day was raining the whole time from morning till night to the last day, even on our journey home. It was only when we drove near Manchester that the weather changed to sunny day, urgh! But anyway, we planned but ALLAH plans better than us. Probably this is the best that we can get. Alhamdulillah.
One thing I learn a lot in this trip is the speech of En Nazri, the Director of MSD (Malaysian Student Department). I always thought that those who hold high position in the government usually are corrupted people with 'cables' to climb the ladder without much in their brains. Astaghfirullah, I should have more good opinion on them. En Nazri appears to be a very intellectual person. He knows what is he saying and doing. He gave good advice and talked with all the correct facts and figures. I was really impressed at his speech that night.
Through this trip, there are some people that I gain more respect for them and there are some that I completely, utterly, loss all of my respect to them to the point of disgust. It is so true a hadith by the Prophet Muhammad (saw). We will not know a person (the real side of the person) until we did 3 things with him/her. 1. Stay with him/her; 2. Travel with him/her; 3. Doing business (muamalah - any kind of interaction or transaction) with him/her. Through this trip, I obviously have done all these 3 with them. The thing that really disgusted me is the fact that a sound, healthy, knowledgeable, able adult muslim who has been reminded to make prayer on the journey did not want to do so but chose to delay it and miss it even until we had arrived home after maghrib then had a meal until after isha! I wanted to give good opinion and lots of excuse for the reason of not carrying out the basic duty of a muslim. I just can't scratch anything out of my brain anymore to give any excuse except to say that the person must have prayed somewhere along the journey that I wasn't presence.
Now I have realised the verse in the Qur'an about ALLAH will not change the state of a nation until the nation changes their own state. There appears to be a lot of muslims who know that prayer is obligatory and there are a lot of facilities in Malaysia to accommodate this form of worship like mosque, prayer room, wudu area in toilets, adhan in public, etc. But many 'muslims' choose to ignore these. Those saying about even if a nation prayed 5 times a day and didn't work hard to build a nation will never be able to change the state of the nation - is a completely rubbish statement! This is a paradox! It doesn't make sense at all for a nation which observe the obligatory act of worship will not gain success because by being perseverance in keeping the daily prayers sincerely, the nation is perseverance in doing anything - from business to government - sincerely. It's like saying muslims are extremists when real muslims are those on the middle way (ummatan wasatan). Many so-called muslim countries, if there are half of the nation who know the compulsories choose not to please ALLAH by fulfilling the obligatory duty, how on earth that ALLAH will change their state?
All these while I thought that Malaysian muslims aren't that bad. If they don't wear proper attire that cover their awrah, they still at least pray 5 times a day. I was wrong. And that's why ALLAH has yet to lift the difficulties, ignorance and poor state of the country because this nation with 60% muslims who have been educated since young that prayers are obligatory upon sound, healthy, knowledgeable, able adults, many of them choose not to fulfill it, how will ALLAH change our state?
All these while I thought that why we still need to put up signboards saying - pray before you are prayed (means make your prayers before you die and get people to make a funeral prayer for you). Now I have realised how important that signboards are. And this is the last thing that the Prophet Muhammad (saw) said before he breathed his last - ummati ummati salati salati.
As for other nations which have yet learned about Islam and come to Islam, they are still non-believers (they are not kafir because kafir means one who rejects after truth has come to him/her), there is no obligation upon them. So, keep the argument of that verse of Qur'an out of the realm of non-believers.
ALLAHU'alam.
Wassalam.
2 comments:
Salam Fatin,
I hope you enjoyed your trip. Speaking of Manchester, there's a final year medical student - a born Kuchingite like you - on the links of my blog, by the name of Minci. Just thought you'd like to know.
Anyway, reading your very last sentence, I remember the story of Umar Mukhtar, the Lion of the Desert.
When he was captured, he supposedly told his Italian captors "First you invade my country, then take the riches. Now, you want to teach me about my religion".
The only thing I can say to your statement "MasyAllah! May there be more of you out there! Syabas!"
Wassalam, will check out inshaALLAH. Thanks!
I was like many people in Malaysia when said about Kafir until I came to UK and learn the real meaning of Kafir. Again, more work on educating people is needed, inshaALLAH I'll try my best to do my part in this.
Wassalam.
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