Chess teaches me that no matter what you face (like getting your 'men' killed) you have to keep striving forward towards your goal, and never to let go of that goal. If your goal is to gain Allah's pleasure, then don't stray from it. What other things you do (like trying to keep your own King alive or trying to get your soldier to become a Queen or trapping the opponent's Queen) should be for your one and only ONE sole goal (which is to trap the opponent's King in chess).

It also teaches me that you need to strategise well and each move must be significant. All must be in line with your ONE MAIN goal. So in life, whether you are studying/working, or having lunch with a friend, or spending time with your family, or buy new clothes etc should be aimed towards your ONE MAIN goal, we should set the right niat, may we be amongst the successful in life and the hereafter.

Each move you make, make sure you scan your environment first. Make a well calculated move. Because once you make a mistake, it may cause your direct downfall. In life, always think of the consequences of your actions. Be accountable towards your choices. Make the right choice so that you may not regret it in future. Whatever choice you make, make it for your ONE MAIN goal.

Sometimes you need to sacrifice the little things (like your soldiers) to ensure the bigger ones don't get sacrificed (like your horse or castle or pawn or worst your Queen or King). It is so in life too. Remember your goal and don't stray from it.

This serves as a major reminder to myself first, for here I am blogging after playing chess when I should be studying *opps!* :)

I think I shall leave a trace this morning...

Haiz, I was happy over the weekends, see ABIT of development in myself and suddenly on Sunday evening I started getting all disappointed with myself back. :( So sad, when will I ever change, urgh! What will ever cause me to change??? Is Ramadhan not a strong enough reason??? Is death of a close one not a strong enough reason???

This Ramadhan Ust Jamal shared with us a few opportunities that we MUST NOT fail to seize, and they are:
1. The opportunity to seek taubatan nasuha (based on the hadith that Rasulullah saw mengaminkan doa Jibril, penghulu sekian malaikat, di mimbar)
2. The opportunity to be closer to the Al-Qur'an Al-Karim (syahru Ramadhan syahru Qur'an!)
3. The opportunity to manage time better
4. The opportunity to increase in good deeds
because failing to seize these opportunities amounts to getting the displeasure (wai in Arabic or celakalah in Malay) of Allah...

Sounds harsh huh, perhaps it is, but Ust Jamal was sharing this with a bunch of leaders, a bunch of pejuang agama, a bunch of da'ie ila Allah insyaAllah. Who are we to say we are leaders/pejuang agama/da'ie if we are so full of sins at the end of this month, or our hearts are not tied down with His words, or our time management is haphazard, or our deeds are just minimal?

Today marks the 12th of Ramadhan... 8 more days before we reach the last 10 days, 18 days till we meet the end of such a blessed month.

Andai ini merupakan Ramadhan terakhirku...

Anyway, my grandaunt passed away yesterday morning. Not really that close to her, only see her once a year or so. She's been sick for the past 18 years? For as long as I can remember, I only see her on a walking stick, half paralysed, walking very very slowly with the help of the maid. And for just as long as I can remember, each time we meet she would look at my face into my eyes for a long time, and when I salam her she would hold me close and each time she would leave me with some advice. Just as my other grandaunt, I remember them for their advices. Eventhough I can hardly remember what the exact advices are, common ones: study hard, don't go around looking for relationships, take good care of yourselves; I value them...

Yesterday I saw my grandaunt's face, so pale, so serene, so still. My granduncle was the first to tabur pacai (err...?) around her head, and looking at them, I just feel so sebak. I feel for him. He's been taking good care of her and now she goes, to return to Allah... I see my aunts and uncles and cousins continue to tabur pacai and I feel for them. What if it's my own mother there? Or my own grandmother? How it feels to see their pale face one last time and never to see it again afterwards except in pictures, videos and memory... Never able to talk to them again... Never to kiss them again... Never to see their smile again...

People leave us... No matter how close we are, how much we love and care for them, one day they WILL no doubt leave us... (Or we leave them first we don't know either) It's about how much we treasure having them around, being able to talk to them and seeing them smile... And it's about remembering that nothing, absolutely NOTHING is kekal in this world. There is only ONE who is kekal. And it's about remembering what are we here on this earth for again... All of us have a predetermined limited time given to us, all of us WILL go someday. The question is, what will be our state that we leave the world in, and will our deeds be enough when it's time to go?

I had a posting due at 10.30am. I fell asleep while doing it, only to wake up and realise that it was already 10.26am! I finished it up quickly and manage to submit by 10.42am, ish ish ish.

I've spent the next hour commenting on two of my friend's posts, which is the homework for this week. So, that one done!

Now now, I have 3 tutorials to finish up, 2 halfway through... Wonder if I have the willpower to finish them up by Asar. Then tomorrow I can work on my presentation for FOC. Need to improve my presentation skill! Guess I'll work on that this year, while still working on my leadership skill. It's been quite some time since I was in a leadership role, and I'd forgotten how freakingly intimidating it can be, yikes!

Oh, I'm at home. Finally, after 6 days at hostel! I'm so happy both classes are cancelled today! But since the sahur committee wanna have a dinner gathering after so long, I would be heading back to hostel after Asar insyaAllah.

Anyway, I'll be registering to take up a motorbike license at BBDC on Tuesday. *sucks in deep breath!*

And I have decided not to take up the Arabic class at Zuhri afterall. I'm not willing to sacrifice my Saturday afternoons! I wanna look for short modules, preferably on Monday nights in the West maybe? I'll see how it goes...

Motorbike license, car license (which I have officially put on hold, perhaps till after I get a motorbike license) and Arabic class are the 3 things I was considering on taking up for this year. I forgot to do one thing during my decision-making: istikharah. Nevertheless, I hope what I'd decided is still the best for me. Tawakkaltu ala Allah...

Oh, btw, there're two good books I wanna document the titles here.

1) Dzikir pagi petang dan sesudah shalat fardhu menurut al-Qur'an dan as-Sunnah yang shahih oleh Yazid bin Abdul Qadir Jawas - zikir amat amat penting dalam hidup kita, untuk selalu mengingatkan kita dan juga sebagai benteng bagi diri kita.

2) Offline dengan Syaitan oleh Zulkifli Khair - syaitan mempunyai pelbagai macam cara untuk mencapai tujuannya di dunia, dia tidak akan pernah berputus asa hinggalah roh kita telah meninggalkan jasad...

I hope I'd have some time to share about some of the things I learn from Ustaz Kamsani in Tazkiatul Nufus. It's interesting. The way he deliver is very good, can evoke fear in your hearts while you ask, "What can I do???" and pray silently in your heart, "Ya Allah, please protect me! Please save me!"... then he'll make you laugh at his jokes, and sometimes even at yourself.... And he can make you smile thinking about what he just say, knowing hope is not lost :) Yet he is a very humble man...

Today... I went to madrasah... We started the first lesson of this year (FYI: my year 3 sem 1 term 1) with a discussion within 4 groups. 1) female youths, 2) male youths, 3) female adults, 4) male adults. We were to discuss what we think people our age out there generally envision for themselves within the next 10 years... And we talked about 4 aspects. 1) career, 2) community, 3) religion, 4) community. It was an interesting discussion. Unfortunately, we did not have access to internet and such to back up what we say with survey findings etc.

Ustaz gave an insight (it was like a tazkirah) about how is the world like now. he reminded us, that with the passing of another year, we are one more year nearer to returning to Allah swt. Yet, the world nowadays are guiding us away from Allah instead of towards Allah. The older generations are putting their hand on the youths of today to be the leaders (be it political, spiritual etc) of tomorrow yet our youths nowadays are more concerned about glamour, about money. Sadly, the mindset now is such that, what is ma'aruf is viewed as mungkar, not only by the youths btw, while what is mungkar is viewed as ma'aruf (memang dasarlah sekarang ni aku confuse sangat2 dan sedang mencari apa yang haq).

Ustaz directed a question towards us, students of the DPI program, year 3 and above... "Apakah peranan aku dalam agama?" We are ambassodor of Islam everywhere we go. We are da'ie ila Allah, whether we like it or not. It is our role, our responsibility, our amanah as students of this program...

Actually, I do want to know more about what it is like out there. I realise that I have been closing one eye all these while. I'd been living in my own bubble, oblivious of what's happening out there. I say I want to outreach to the community, yet I do not know what is really the situation in the community. I realise that I had been assuming all these while, never really going out there to find out for myself, never really observing, opening my eyes wide to everything around me...

But how do I find out???

For BILL camp, we did a survey on the general public in Tampines. That was interesting. I like what Sufyan's group did. Sufyan, gangster like as he is, can be an asset to us actually. Hmmmm....

Anyway, the module title was actually 'Pengajian Tazkiah Nufus', which actually means 'membersihkan jiwa daripada sifat mazmumah, yang tak elok, kepada sifat mahmudah, yang mulia', which is actually wajib in our lives. Ustaz talked about our purpose in life, yakni: Tidak Aku menjadikan jin dan manusia melainkan untuk mengabdikan diri kepada Aku (Surah 51: ayat 56). It is 100%, no less, obedience to Allah.

Ustaz elaborated further about ibadah umum and ibadah khusus, and bring us to reflect how many of us, even us who learns about the religion, do not prioritise our ibadah khusus, like solat, zakat, puasa, selawat etc, when in fact it is much much more important than our ibadah umum, which is anything good that we do, that is halal, that gives benefit to others such as whatever we do for our job, our volunteer work etc...

Ustaz went on to talk about 2 syarat amalan kita diterima... 1) ihklas, which is beribadah semata-mata mencari keredhaan Allah s.w.t. 2) mengikut landasan syara'.

Woah... That's just the first lesson... 4 more lessons to go!

*Turns on reflection mode*

Well, I had been doing a lot of reflections lately. Reflect on my poly days, reflect on my journey in Fityan/NI, reflect on my contributions to each of these organisations, reflect on my roles in each and how little I'd carried out my responsibilities, reflect on my role as a daughter, reflect on my whole self how I'd changed in terms of mindset over the years, reflect on things like failures and hikmah and alot alot more.

Indeed my life has been a fruitful journey, despite the many downfalls, so to speak, along the way...

If you ask me what I'd achieved over the years, I would say: understanding. Alot of things seem to have a different meaning to it and lately, as I reflect, I begin to understand. It is priceless to understand, to someone like me who puts alot of value on knowledge. To understand is to process bland information into tasty knowledge. I ever attended a talk at Masjid Sultan by Ustaz Zhulkeflee in which he said, "Knowledge is only information until it is understood." Well, something like that. And understood here in terms of developing a deeper meaning.

For example, when you point out to a small kid, "This is a shoe." The kid, whose mind has yet to develop to think of the deeper meaning of words would probably be thinking, "That is a shoe." and nothing more. If you were to say the exact same thing to an adult however, the first thing that the person would say is probably, "DUHH! Do you think I'm stupid?". But that's ego, and that's beside the point haha.

My point is, the adult has knowledge (not just information) on shoes. He/she could probably be thinking, maybe without realising, "A shoe is something worn on the feet to protect the feet from injury caused by stepping on hot cement floor, or spiky road etc and from dirt on the ground as well. That particular shoe so and so is pointing to is a pair of fashionable red high heels, worn by ladies to look taller and more elegant." I'm not sure if I've put my point across clearly to differentiate information and knowledge... But nvm, following is the meaning of knowledge:

knowledge
  /ˈnɒlɪdʒ/ Show Spelled Pronunciation [nol-ij]
–noun
1. acquaintance with facts, truths, or principles, as from study or investigation; general erudition: knowledge of many things.
2. familiarity or conversance, as with a particular subject or branch of learning: A knowledge of accounting was necessary for the job.
3. acquaintance or familiarity gained by sight, experience, or report: a knowledge of human nature.
4. the fact or state of knowing; the perception of fact or truth; clear and certain mental apprehension.
5. awareness, as of a fact or circumstance: He had knowledge of her good fortune.
6. something that is or may be known; information: He sought knowledge of her activities.
7. the body of truths or facts accumulated in the course of time.
8. the sum of what is known: Knowledge of the true situation is limited.

Information is just facts, while knowledge is when a deeper meaning is injected into the facts... Something like that.

Bismillah
Album : Senyum
Munsyid : Raihan
http://liriknasyid.com


Dimulakan dengan bismillah
Disudahi dengan alhamdulillah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah

Dimulakan dengan bismillah
Disudahi dengan alhamdulillah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah

Mulakanlah kerja dengan niat yang satu
Untuk mendapatkan keredhaannya
Moga segala urusan dipermudahkannya
Agar sentiasa dalam kebaikan
Barulah hati kita kan terasa tenang
Dan bersyukur dengan apa yang ada

Dimulakan dengan bismillah
Disudahi dengan alhamdulillah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah

Buruk dan baik itu ketentuan Allah
Kitalah jua yang memilihnya
Amal yang baik akan membawa syurga
Amalan buruk menempah neraka

Hanyalah iman, amal dan juga takwa
menjadi bekal dalam hidup kita
Hanyalah iman, amal dan juga takwa
menjadi bekal dalam hidup kita

Dimulakan dengan bismillah
Disudahi dengan alhamdulillah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah

Dimulakan dengan bismillah
Disudahi dengan alhamdulillah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah

Ilmu pelita menerangi kegelapan
Darilah ilmu datangnya amalan
Dari amalan lahirlah kasih sayang
Saling membantu dan bekerja sama
Rezeki yang ada hulurkanlah derma
Agar hidup harmoni bahgia

Dimulakan dengan bismillah
Disudahi dengan alhamdulillah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah

Dimulakan dengan bismillah
Disudahi dengan alhamdulillah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah
Begitulah sehari dalam hidup kita
Mudah mudahan dirohmati Allah

Allah knows best, indeed, indeed...

I just dreamt that I was at a workshop/camp observing 3 people racing (I think with chairs) in a game infront of me. Somehow, weirdly, I realised I had a school desk on my head, with my neck stuck between the tabletop and the metal grill under it. But I managed to get it out. As I was laughing at the stupid situation and trying to stand up at the same time, I suddenly felt dizzy, saw the room in a blur, called Kak Yati's name as I try to reach out for her chair beside me and then I fainted. And I woke up, with my eyes still closed, about a minute before Nassier called.

This morning I dreamt that I swung myself out of bed and hit the stool beside my bed with both legs. When I woke up to the sound of the Subuh azan from my laptop, which I forgot to switch off, I felt a bruise on my left leg and right toe. Apparently I wasn't dreaming that. Heh.

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Actually I miss blogging about my life here. And I'd been wanting to update. I thought I'd do it today, but I spent time doing my vision board instead (as shown below)...



Inspired by ITQAN NEMC Camp

Hopefully it's not just another Mat Jenin story... Pray for me yea?

You know it's been quite awhile since I last updated about how I'd been doing. Well, partly I was lazy, partly I was busy and partly I just had no idea what to talk about.

Actually there's alot to share. ALOT ALOT. I'd been doing alot since SIP ended, my time was surely not wasted down the drain, alhamdulillah. May Allah reward the time and efforts I spend in this 'Journey of Purpose', for that is all I look for. At least that's what I want my heart to look for. That and nothing more.

It isn't easy to keep the right niyyah. There's distractions tsk tsk. But I'm human, and I can't stop myself from these distractions. Just that, I have to constantly renew my niyyah, and sometimes I fail to do so.

At the very least, I do my best to fill up my time by attending majlis ilm', be it for dunya or akhirah. To me, nothing is wasted in learning. The money used up is not lost, but invested. There's always something new to learn! This world is full of knowledge, those in the light and those that are hidden. Never would I be able to learn about everything.



Whatever knowledge I obtain is only what Allah allows me to know. InsyaAllah this knowledge will be useful for myself, for my family, for my circle of friends, for my community, for my country, for my religion.

I may not be able to contribute directly as a teacher. I downright believe I am not made out to be a teacher. I'd have other ways to contribute.



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Going Ubin was a really interesting trip for me. The peacefulness and simplicity of the island calls me forth. I would certainly like to go there again. Time seems to slow down and it's a great place to reflect. Most of the time I kept to myself. It was nice you know, keeping quiet. Allah's creation is like all around you! Observe! At one point of time while I was cycling, leaves falling to the ground caught my attention as I was reminded of Allah.



Allah knows, Allah knows, subhanAllah...

Then when we were sitting at Chek Jawa, Liyana pointed out to be an insect which walks on water. And it just reminds me of what Ustaz mentioned in class. One of the two ways to know Allah is by studying His creations. SubhanAllah...

Check out this interesting link about "Wonders of Allah's Creation". Reminds me of the Bunayya '07 camp. Wonders of Allah was the theme. Amazing ain't it that we tell these young kids that one way to know Allah is through studying the wonders of Allah yet we fail to remind ourselves that very same thing.

At Chek Jawa too we met with an American professor with his Japanese students and we actually made friends. It was our dakwah to them. Nothing heavy. Nothing 'preachy' and boring. But we were just showing who we are. We are Muslims, and what we're doing are just some the things what Muslims do. Normal things! Fun things! Even crazy things like capturing a picture of us jumping in the air. We were just sharing...

Hmm... I think I've talked alot today. Lemme just end of with a poem I found:

Whatever You See...

Whatever You See...
Whatever you see, wherever you go,
Was created by Allah, be sure to know.

The sun by day, the moon at night,
The glittering stars; three kinds of light.

Plants, flowers, trees so tall,
Roses, lillies, ivy on the wall,
Deserts, jungles, mountains high,
The book of Nature, `tween earth and sky,

All this, the wonderful creation,
Of Allah. His Might beyond estimation

Taken from Islamicpoem.

Hope you learned something from this.

The book that I was reading during lunch and on the way back, that fell when I got hit, that I continued at hospital, that I continued on the car ride back and that I finished last night instead of resting haha. (Couldn't rest initially 'cause was scared I wouldn't wake up, and because of the sting. But it's so nice to sleep hehe. Glad I didn't dream of the accident, I think. And I slept on my arm, and when I woke up there was like no pain. want sleep somemore later hehe)

Anyway, this is the book talking about filial piety, about true love, about how hatred and greed destroys the heart, soul and body and many more amongst the fantasy twists of the tale. As much as it is ridiculous, about witches, about friendly bears, about cats turning to man, about man being able to swim through earth like a faery tale, it is as true as the lives some of us go through.

Who says Muslims can't read what some people term 'non-Islamic' books, especially fantasy ones? I'm not giving hukum here of course, who am I seh... Belajar agama pon part time je. But in my opinion, it is not wrong AS LONG AS you know what's right and what's wrong, and you hold strongly to your faith and your principles and don't let it sway with what you read, and you take the positive values you can learn from it!

And the book shouldn't distract you from your routines as a Muslim, requires self-discipline and which I rather lack. Once I put my face into a book, I can read it back to back till it's finished and sacrifice sleep and food. Books bring me to a different world and I get so absorbed in it, I dunno what happens around me. I ever read till I missed Buona Vista station and not just once I pulled myself away from the book in time at Commonwealth ish ish.

Back to the book.. It's interesting how the author fits faery tales, as they call it, inside. Little Red Riding Hood, Cinderella, Rapunzel, Hansel and Gretel, Jack & the Beanstalk, Goldilock's and the Three Bears, Sleeping Beauty, Snow White and the Seven dwarves and Rumpelstiltskin. But they're mostly twisted. It's a different tale from what we heard off. For one, it all shows that humans are bad creatures, which is sometimes true in reality!

Two 'messages' I gathered, which I didn't expect, is what the book says about greed, the failure to feel satisfied with what one has and about protecting your name. The greed one is more obvious, but the hidden part is how the author fits it nicely into the story on how when you've seen love, you want more love, when you've seen wealth, you want more wealth and when you've seen true beauty, you'll go to all means to see something like it again. And about the concept of protecting your name is totally different from how a Muslim view it la. But what do lit people call it? Can't really remember the terms... Metaphor is it? Haha I dunno.

I'm loving lit again! Taking my own time and embracing the concepts in my own style. Hehe, makes me feel like opening my lit books again, but maybe later... Haha. I've got my SIP logbook and MP workbook to fill in! Which would take more than a day I'm sure! Okaes, I've fulfilled my promises here, now I shall do what I'm supposed to do!

Last note: Iqra'! Iqra' bismirabbikallazikhalaq! Read! Read in the name of your Lord who has created!

Al-Alaq (The Clot)

1. Read! In the Name of your Lord, Who has created (all that exists),

2. Has created man from a clot (a piece of thick coagulated blood).

3. Read! And your Lord is the Most Generous,

4. Who has taught (the writing) by the pen [the first person to write was Prophet Idrees (Enoch)],

5. Has taught man that which he knew not.

6. Nay! Verily, man does transgress all bounds (in disbelief and evil deed, etc.).

7. Because he considers himself self-sufficient.

8. Surely! Unto your Lord is the return.

9. Have you (O Muhammad ()) seen him (i.e. Ab� Jahl) who prevents,

10. A slave (Muhammad ()) when he prays?

11. Tell me, if he (Muhammad ()) is on the guidance (of All�h)?

12. Or enjoins piety?

13. Tell me if he (the disbeliever, Ab� Jahl) denies (the truth, i.e. this Qur'�n), and turns away?

14. Knows he not that All�h does see (what he does)?

15. Nay! If he (Ab� Jahl) ceases not, We will catch him by the forelock,

16. A lying, sinful forelock!

17. Then, let him call upon his council (of helpers),

18. We will call the guards of Hell (to deal with him)!

19. Nay! (O Muhammad ())! Do not obey him (Ab� Jahl). Fall prostrate and draw near to All�h!

From the holy Qur'an as translated in http://www.dar-us-salam.com/TheNobleQuran/surah96.html.

Oh, just another note to add o to that last sentence:

Ayats (verses) Requiring Sajda-e-Tilawat

1. Surah Al A'Raf (7) Ayat 206
2. Surah Al Ra'd (13) Ayat 15
3. Surah Al Nahl (16) Ayat 50
4. Surah Bani Israil (17) Ayat 109
5. Surah Maryum (19) Ayat 58
6. Surah Al Haj (22) Ayat 18
7. Surah Al Haj (22) Ayat 77 (Shafi)
8. Surah Al Farqan (25) Ayat 60
9. Surah Al Naml (27) Ayat 26
10. Surah As Sajdah (32) Ayat 15
11. Surah Sa'd (38) Ayat 24 (Hanafi)
12. Surah Hamim Sajdah (41) Ayat 38
13. Surah Al Najam (53) Ayat 62
14. Surah Inshiqaq (84) Ayat 21
15. Surah Al Alaq (96) Ayat 19


HOW TO PERFORM SAJDA-E-TILAWAT

Sajda Tilaawat will be performed like a normal Sajda. Wudhu is a condition.

There is no Sajdah Tilaawat when the Aayat of Sajdah is heard on tape.

Face the Qiblah and without raising the hands, recite Takbeer (Allaahu Akbar), going down in the Sajda position. In Sajda, recite Subhaana rabbiyal a'alaa at least 3 times. Thereafter, reciting the Takbeer if you wish to. If you wish, you may arise from the Sajda position into the Tashahhud position. The Sajdah Tilaawat is now complete. There is no need for Salaam.

From http://www.tariqjamil.org/Forum/quran/ayats-(verses)-requiring-sajda-e-tilawat/0/

Good day all! May peace be upon us all :D

Missing archery...

Nak ubatkan sikit rindu tu, tulislah some lessons to draw...

Archery teaches us to always have our target/goal in sight. If I blindfold you, it'll be hard to hit the target unless you're really very pro or it's really just sheer luck.

You know, in archery you still need the equipments before you can start. Definitely you need the bow and the arrows and the target board. Not to forget the arrow catcher sheet and the armguard. This shows that before you do something, you must first be equipped. Not only equipped with the necessary tools, but also the necessary knowledge, cause if you have no knowledge, you can easily hurt yourself as well as others, and most likely you won't hit the target.

In archery, we see that we can hit the target at any angle from the board (your body has to be 90 degrees from it though) as long as you are not behind the board or something, which shows that as long as you have the target in sight, you can hit it.

I remember my first time doing archery at Aljunied. If I'm not mistaken, I hit the board! Because I was equipped with the tools and knowledge. After a few tries, I hit the center mark beb. Such a satisfaction I felt! Well, this just shows that sometimes we miss our target. Most likely it will land nearby though (still on the board within the radius of the center mark). And if you never give up, you will hit that target one day..

I enjoyed a lot a lot yesterday, but not without relevant takeaways!

Climb I.G.M by Saff Perdaus

Lessons from rockclimbing
-hold onto the rope of Allah
-one problem, many ways of solving it
-support from friends
-teamwork allows you to achieve greater heights
-you tend to fall many times along your life journey, but as long as you get up back after that, you would be able to reach the top
-sometimes when you need to let go of certain things you've been holding on too tightly in order to advance
-sometimes you just need to take a step back to see the bigger picture before moving on again
-sadly sometimes you're too focused on your given task that you sweat all your sweat out for it and forget to have a look around you, that would probably make you smile

I love rockclimbing! Even if it means I'd have a very much aching body the next day! Ya my arms and ankles hurt. I strained my right wrist and right ankle during bouldering but I wouldn't miss climbing the high wall for anything. I'm glad I went for it. Kalau tak... Nyesal tak sudah tauu! Great to see some old peeps there! Missed you guys. Was hoping Kak Huda and Kak Nas were there...

Night Cycling 08 Appreciation Night

Sungguh cantik deco nye! A wonderful night. A very happy night.



Reflect: Muadz Bin Umair tetap menegakkan bendera Islam walau telah terpotong kedua-dua tangannya hinggalah beliau rebah di medan peperangan Uhud itu. Cukupkah 'pengorbanan' kita selama ini untuk menegakkan bendera Islam di tangan kita?

Random pics

I'm really so envious of those brothers and sisters yang soooo rapat. Tak kisah lah sama mak sama bapak ke tak. The ties of ukhuwwah that holds them strongly together and that strengthens each other sungguh mengkagumkan. Salang my brothers (se-mak, se-bapak) pon I don't think are as close as them.

Ok, moving on to KPR! I'll only jot down the lessons learnt. Kalau nak tahu tentang inti perbincangan, hege, silalah join kelas KPR ni every Saturday 8-10pm at Masjid Darul Ghufran Bilik Al-Khawarazmi 1 :D

Lesson 1 (JAN): Hijrah by Ustaz Ahmad (err, I don't think I jotted down anything on paper)

Question raised: "What would you tell someone who approached you at a bus stop and asked you to tell him/her about Islam. He has heard about some of the good things about Islam. Do you have something that could deter him from heading towards a church and instead make his/her way to a mosque?" Something like that... Sham gave an impressive answer about Islam's basic words of salam which means peace...

Lesson 2 (JAN): Sirah Nabi by Bro Helmy

We watched the first 2 episodes of "Muhammad: Legacy of a Prophet" a documentary on youtube. That's all I remember.

Lesson 3 (JAN): Before Prophethood by Bro Helmy

-Only when we know him would we love him. To show our love to him, we would like to please him and to do so, we would have to follow him.
-Revelation was received at Gua Hira' Jabal Nur.
-3 marks of prophethood Salman Al-Farisi was looking for (we have to find that out ourselves).
-Jahiliyah period: bad qualities
#Arabs don't believe in life after death
#bury girls alive (Saiyidina Umar did that to his daughter before he reverted to Islam)
#girls/women live to be owned
#shrewed businessmen
#materialistic people: earn and enjoy
-Jahiliyah period: exemplary qualities
#committed
#loyal
-Towsfolk vs Baduin/nomads = weak vs strong = oppose Islam vs accept Islam
-As a youth leader:
#Nabi s.a.w. was trusted, accepted & respected
#you don't have to be appointed to be a leader
#good akhlak
-Nabi s.a.w. appointed as Allah's messenger:
#sometimes when we get appointed, there are people who don't like it
-Nabi s.a.w. as shepherd & as a trader.
-Nabi s.a.w. always going up to Gua Hira' to retreat & the fact that at Gua Hira' you can get a view of Mekah (Ka'abah):
#sometimes you need to retreat and reflect yet still maintain a certain view of the community

Lesson 4 (FEB): Saiyidina Umar Al Khattab by Fatayaats and Ustaz Ahmad

-Gelaran=Al-Faruq:
#tegas membezakan yang hak dan yang batil
-His conversion:
#Don't hate a person, instead hate the wrong character/deed.
#Don't be judgemental.
#By understanding that everyone makes mistakes, you may be able to change someone.
#Lead others by example.
#Do not be ashamed of past mistakes. It's in the past.
#Once, a person's character may be bad, worse than us but you cannot condemn the person, as you do not know if one day that person would be a better person than you are.
#Berani kerana benar-> maju.
-The story whereby he reverted after he heard his sister reading the Qur'an:
#Even as a younger member of the family, you can still show something exemplary to those older than you.
#Dakwah begins with your own family. Do it slowly, bit by bit.
#You contribute to the mosque/society, yet always remember about your family.
-Applying to this generation... How do you react to smokers and how should smokers react:
#Quite a lot actually, but I was engrossed in the discussion to be writing them down. They're mostly opinions anyway...
#You do not do something because you respect your parents/elders, not because you're afraid of them.
-When he became a Khalifah:
#Khutbah point 1: bring everyone to the right path.
#Khutbah point 2: based on Al-Qur'an and As-Sunnah.
#As a khalifah/leader, sometimes you need to 'go down' to your subjects to ask them their state yourself. Do not just get reports and trust them to be complete or true.
#Touch your subjects'/followers' hearts.

Lesson 5 (FEB): Saiyidina Hamzah Bin Abdul Mutalib by Syababs, Ustaz Ahmad and Bro Helmy

-Does Islam change a person?
#Islam stops ill-habits, especially those that are againstt the teachings of Islam
#Islam does not take away a person's natual characteristics. These natural characteristics may even be used for kemakmuran Islam.
#Some lost their riches/families because they insist on becoming Muslims. They sacrificed those for Islam. Us Muslims?
-His conversion:
#Berani membela Islam. Have confidence in Islam/Nabi s.a.w.
#Gelaran (eg. Singa Allah) should not be a pride to show off to humans, not just for name.
-Quraisy's response to the teachings brought by Nabi s.a.w. and why?
-3 types of non-believers:
#Don't embrace Islam, yet are not against Islam and may sometimes even help Islam eg. Abu Talib.
#Don't embrace Islam and are strongly against Islam, will fight to see Islam brought down eg. Abu Jahal
#Variations... Those who don't embrace Islam just because of economic reasons, social reasons etc.
-Similarity/Differences of Nabi s.a.w. period and Singapore now:
#Muslims make up only a small proportion (14% in Singapore)
#Emulate Nabi s.a.w.'s attitude towards the 3 types of disbelievers: dengan rahmah?
#Alhamdulillah, in Singapore, if there are people like Abu Jahal that threatens the existence of Islam, they'd be persecuted by law.
#There are more people like Abu Talib.
#Tolerance.
#Dakwah through example.

Lesson 6 (FEB): Next up! Hijrah to Habsyah by Fatayaats and ???

Do join us yeah! Check out Fityan Blog (with new skin!!)

And just a reminder/advice to all. Received it from someone once. It's time I pass it on I suppose.

Perjuangan ni tak mudah. kdg2 kita jatoh tp yg penting kita bgn semula dan terus lawan. jgn putus asa ya! Allah tak janjikn perjalanan yg mudah tp Allah janjikn perjalan penuh dgn hikmah.

Take care my brothers and sisters. Till we meet again, insyaAllah. Maintain your iman, or even better boost your iman!

Rabeetah sry kita ade kerja sekolah sikit nak kena habiskan ni. InsyaAllah tmr Ill update this post about today's KPR k :)

Saiyidina Umar Al-Khattab...
Gelaran: Al-Faruq yang bererti tegas membenarkan yang benar dan menyalahkan yang salah

Lessons learned from his conversion:-

Lessons learned from his perlantikan as a Khalifah:-

There is a song by far East on the Khulafa' ar-Rasyidin and this is what it says about Saiyidina Umar...

Khalifah kedua Umar Bin Al-Khattab
Khalifah berani berjiwa mulia
Diberi gelaran Amirul Mukminin
Panglima agung orang mukmin

[unfinished]