Stranger's Reflections

Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah, Alhamdulillah ala kulli haal.

MasyaAllah! 💚

﷽ This is a sharing by a Sisterhoodie which blew away all the girls. "Salam girls. Today my sharing is about the rezeki. It was sparked by something tt happen at work and make me reflect. My class partner (a guy) bought a shoe that he thought looked like a girl's and wanted to give it away to a girl. He asked around a few girls, they can't fit cos quite big. When sch started, a colleague of mine from the opposite session was walking to the toilet and she saw me outside my class door. And she walked towards me and went like "Eh I saw you and decided to come by your class". So I chitchat for a min and I was like "Eh, Hairil has a shoe to give away, you try ah if you can fit". And she fit the shoe! (Mcm Cinderalla. Haha). And she was so happy. She was like "Wah, new shoe for raya!!!" and Hairil went like "Yah, rezeki kau (Yah, that's your rizq)". And that moment, it strucked me. Wow, this girl has NEVER popped by my class. On the day she did, she got a shoe. It's like everything fits nicely if you imagine it in a movie style, slow motion. I was at the door at exact moment she was walking to the toilet and I don't know what compelled her to drop by my class. And as result of all those small moments, Allah gave her a free shoe. MasyaAllah. I immediately got reminded of this saying: "What has reached you was never meant to miss you and what have missed was never meant to reach you." - Prophet ﷺ This is a small and trivial example. Relate this to something bigger. That job you wanted but didn't get, the class you wanted to sign but couldn't, that child you yearn to conceive or an investment that's lost. That person you intended to marry but didn't. Or getting a gift or someone tapau iftar food for you, or meeting a friend who brought you a lot of goodness. There are countless of examples. Whatever forms of rizq that you can think of in terms of wealth, spouse, children, time, good companionship, knowledge, food, shelter, clothings and many more. Just know that what you got was meant for you and whatever that has missed you, was never ever meant for you. It was a test, tribulations or maybe even a protection from harm, or a path to more goodness. Wallahua'lam. Allahu Akbar. If you trace back to pivotal moments in your life, it's really MasyaAllah. How Allah gave you what you needed, when you needed it. And how Allah bless you with some form of rizq but deny you some other form of rizq, only for your own goodness. Okay I can go on abt rizq. But MasyaAllah, I hope I never forget the shoe incident. Because it's with a trivial example like this that reminds me, if I was meant to get something, Allah will compel me to do something that make me get it and if I wasn't meant to get something, nothing I do will change it. Wallahua'lam." Amazing amazing reflection, SubhanAllah. Let me extend it into my own context: As a research student, planning of experiments is a an everyday thing. Sometimes, it works, sometimes, it is just mistake after mistakes. It is a reminder to self first and foremost, that one should not be too stressed out or worry too much when something doesn't go according to how we have planned. Everything has already been written for you in Luh Mahfuz. You have done your part in planning, tawakkal and have faith. "If you knew how Allah deals with your affairs for you, your heart would melt out of love for him." - Imam Shafi'e

﷽ Here is a compilation of amazing points about Laylat al-Qadr: - One of the meanings of Laylat al-Qadr is the night of decree or ordainment. In this night Allah decrees all things that will take place in the forthcoming year. - Good actions on that night surpass the actions of a thousand months that do not contain Laylat al-Qadr. - On this night, praying one single unit of prayer is better than praying 30,000 units on another night, and giving one dirham in charity is better than giving 30,000 dirhams on another night. - This distinct night was only given to the nation of this Prophet ﷺ. The Prophet ﷺ said: “We are the last (of the nations) but also the first (meaning we are the highest in rank).” - The Prophet ﷺ informed us that: “Whoever stands in prayer on Laylat al-Qadr out of faith and expectation (of Allah’s reward) will have his previous sins forgiven.” - Sayyidatina 'Aishah (RA) reported, "I asked: O Messenger of Allah! If I realize Lailat-ul-Qadr (Night of Decree), what should I supplicate in it?" He ﷺ replied, "You should supplicate: Allahumma innaka 'afuwwun, tuhibbul-'afwa, fa'fu 'anni (O Allah, You are Most Forgiving, and You love forgiveness; so forgive me). [At-Tirmidhi]. - The angels that descend to the earth on that night are more numerous than the trees and stones. One meaning of “qadr” is “constriction,” since the earth becomes crowded or constricted due to the vast number of angels that descend. - A narration with a good chain of transmission states: “Jibril will shake his hand on Laylat al-Qadr and if Jibril shakes hands with someone, his heart will be softened and he will weep in abundance.” - In the book "Al-Iqbal" by Abul-Fadi ibn Muhammad al-Harwi, it quoted the Prophet ﷺ saying that the gates of heaven will be opened during Laylat al-Qadr; every devotee who performs prayers during it will receive a tree in Paradise for each prostration he makes, a tree under whose shade a rider may keep riding for a hundred years without leaving its shade. And he will receive for each raka'at a mansion in Paradise of pearls, sapphires, chrysolites and diamonds. For each verse he recites he will receive one of the crowns of Paradise. - The Prophet ﷺ says Prophet Musa (AS) once addresses the Almighty, "Lord! I wish to achieve Your pleasure!" The Almighty said, "I shall be pleased with anyone who prays two (optional) raka'ats during Laylat al-Qadr." - The Prophet ﷺ informed us that it is a tranquil night and it is neither extremely cold nor extremely hot. The sun rises the following morning without any rays because of the vast amount of angels ascending. - The day which follows Laylat al-Qadr has the same status as the preceding night. The reward for acts of worship on the day are the same as they are during the night. *See more at: http://muwasala.org/tafsir-of-short-surahs-surat-al-qadr/#sthash.d0b5nsaB.dpuf http://www.al-islam.org/fast-month-ramadhan-philosophy-and-ahkam-yasin-t-al-jibouri/night-destiny-lailatul-qadr

You are what makes you, YOU. ❤️

﷽ In a hadith, the Prophet ﷺ said: “A woman may be married for four reasons: for her wealth, for her lineage, for her beauty, and for her religion, so marry the one who is best in the religion and character, and you will prosper.” (Bukhari and Muslim) I'm sure many of us, if not all, have heard of this Hadith many many times. We are encouraged to marry someone who places Islam in his life as one of his priorities. Beauty may be fade away with time and wealth depleted in a blink of an eye. Insya Allah, if you choose for his religion and character, as promised in the Hadith, you will prosper. How do we even begin this journey towards marriage? Naïve me would say, do things "the right way". What ever does that mean? Kenal-kenal, seems okay, let's get married. "Minimal communication kay? Let's not be together alone without someone to avoid the company of syaitan as the third person. Let's do this, let's do that. This is the right way, if we do this, we can avoid zina hati. If we do this, it will make sure that we don't fall heedlessly in love with each other. If not, we will forget Allah." Eventually, everything becomes so rigid. It becomes about rules. It becomes about whether this is right or wrong. Full stop. Nothing else. What happened to the heart? Your emotions? Don't they matter too? Ibn Taimiyyah stated in Al-Fataawa: "It must be known that Allah is not pleased or loved due simply to torturing one's self or forcing the soul to withstand some hardship in such a way that whenever a deed has more hardship it is more virtuous. Many of the ignorant think this way, thinking that the reward is according to the amount of hardship in every thing. No [this is not so]. But the reward is according to the beneficial aspect of the deed, its goodness and benefit, and according to the amount of obedience there is to the command of Allah and His Messenger. Any action which is better and its doer more obedient and following will be more virtuous. The deeds are not more virtuous by mere number. The levels of superiority are based on the result in the hearts while the deed is performed." It is based on your heart. When you do it the "right way"? Do you feel happy? Do you feel closer to Allah? Or is it bringing you away from Him? Is it bringing misery to both parties? You may say, "But we are doing something good, in order to please Allah and get His blessings." In this aspect, Ibn Taimiyyah noted in Al-Fataawa: "When the act of worship is such that it brings about harm to the person by preventing him from performing a more beneficial obligatory deed, the act is then forbidden. An example is that of fasting to such an extent that it makes a person too weak to earn his livelihood or it prevents him from being able to think or understand in a proper manner. The same would be the ruling if it prevented him from an obligatory jihad. The same ruling is true if it would be expected that the person would fall into a forbidden situation whose harm is not equaled by its good. Such would be the case, for example, if he were to give away all of his wealth and then he would seek the wealth of the people and beg from them. However, if said act were simply to weaken him from a more virtuous act or it is expected to put him in an undesirable circumstance, the act would then be considered simply reprehensible." In a nutshell, be kind to yourself. Do good deeds with the presence of your heart. Because ultimately, only with the presence of your heart, will you be able to feel the goodness and the essence of the deed. Moderation is the key. Allah mentioned this in the Holy Quran, "Say, O people of the Book, be not excessive in your religion unjustly, and do not follow the desires of a people who have already gone astray, misled many and lost the right path." (Al-Maidah 5: 77). Striking a balance is never easy. Ask Allah for guidance as He knows best. Reference: http://www.call-to-monotheism.com/being_very_hard_and_strict_upon_oneself__by_abd_al_rahman_ibn_mualla_luwayhiq

We are only but strangers on this earth. We meet, we love, we move on. Temporary it may seem. But such is the character of this worldly life.

I pray that it has been easy for you. Know that this is not goodbye.

It has been awhile since I last posted up anything here. A recent incident, actually a series of incidents, has led me back to this tumblr page of mine. Hopefully, it will be a place where I could openly taffakur and make some sense of what I am going through. Till the next post.