Finding Strength from Above

If the previous post was dusty, then I'll need myself a giant broom to clean the inch-thick dust here. *Blows dust*

Salam everybody, and I daresay, it's been a really long time. Been cooped up in the little place down there in Melaka for SPM and they don't really have Internet services there, so that's that.

Alhamdulillah, all praises to the Almighty, I'm now in university under scholarship. It's a completely different life from school; no morning-to-afternoon classes, no strict dress codes, no uniforms, and a lot of freedom.

Now, that's what they tell you before you go to university and it sounds real great, not that it isn't true but what they left out are the dragging lectures, piles of assignments and money management.

I'm 18, haven't got an SPM certificate, still childish yet I'm in university?

Thanks to MARA for that.

See, actually, in terms of mental preparation and a firm spot in the course I'm taking, I'm in no condition to confirm it with the absence of an SPM certificate at hand. Top that with the daunting lectures and advanced subjects, I'm a kid in an adult world.

But I'm okay with that. Why? Because He chose this for me.

" ...He wouldn't burden someone unless he is capable of it. "

The Holy Quran 2:286

This is the verse that I hold on whenever a gigantic challenge is set in front of me and what more challenging to a teenager than choosing and taking the path to one's career in the future? Insha Allah, since I'm about to take up Bachelor in Medicine and Surgery (I'm taking Foundation in Science now), what is more exhausting that a medical degree?

From the verse is His promise to give out tasks and obstacles that He knows we can complete and overcome, it's just the matter of willpower. If you believe that He never breaks His promise than you'll face the challenge head on.

It's normal to face a period of time when all seems lost where everything is breaking apart, life not going the way you want and so on. This is the crucial time to judge one's iman (this is not from a hadeeth or from scholars, just a personal opinion) whether the first move is to face Him and seek His help or to give it all up.

Supplication or du'a always helps. In the du'a, remembering that I'm conversing with Him and He is listening calms me down - that is when I remember.

It's not much of a post, but to share a personal experience. Giving up must be the last and most desperate option. Life will only become more difficult as we grow older, and will only stop it's increasing difficulty only in death.

Of Ramadan and Syawal

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Eid Mubarak everybody!

Woah! There's an inch of dust since I posted. Alhamdulillah after a month of fasting we've now reached the first day of Syawal and Eidul Fitr. To me though it didn't feel like a month of fasting more like half of it, it's just not the same as it is when we were younger. Nevertheless, you can't rewind time and you gotta go on, so I was in the Eid spirit today. It was still a bit odd to eat in the day, it felt like still in Ramadan only you're not fasting. 


Okay, so Ramadan has past and Syawal has replaced it. let's just pray we have done our best in Ramadan and we have attained Lailatul Qadr and everything in the jam-packed Ramadan.
I hope I don't forget to do the six-day fast of Syawal and again;

Eid Mubarak and Selamat Hari Raya! 

Tarbiyah Inside.

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

,السلام عليكم

Alhamdulillah, I still have the chance to breath and have faith in Him. 

After 3 months at the college, I'm beginning to sink in to the culture, the culture shock is virtually gone, and suiting to the teaching style. 

I'm practically done with my exam, Alhamdulillah. I hope for the best for my Al-Aminians friends, من جد و جد, من زرع حصد and also to any of my TGBian friends if you're reading this. 

Competition here is really tough. I mean they say people there are the creme of the creme, the best of the best, everyone there scored 8As or 9As and a majority are top scorers. Man I feel timid here, I've only been top 10 only once at Al-Amin, and that was the first semester last year, I think, and I was the 9th. I don't know if I can perform here, with the teaching style, lecture, they're suppose to expose us to university life, and so they are.  For now I'm just passing by with the syllabus, not to mention ours is the compact curriculum, certain subjects from F5 we're gonna learn at F4 and vice versa. 

Culture, hmm...I can't say much here but I'll let you know it's okay for now...I'm getting the hang of it. 

Okay back to the title: Tarbiyah Inside.

It's really simple actually, the only thing I want to say here is you must have tarbiyyah, anywhere, any when, whatever the situation is. Here, there is very little people who're willing to tarbiyah you. So who is going to tarbiyah you? Yourself. Every night before going to sleep, muhasabah, recall the day and find what can be improved tomorrow. Whenever in doubt refer to the right source, if it's about al-hikam, refer to the al-Qur'an or Ahadith, or to a teacher, never make your own complete assumptions about the Laws of Allah.

All in all, I hope and pray to see you guys in the mid-year holidays, InshaAllah He will reunite us.

السلام عليكم

Hayya 'Alal Falaah !

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Salamualaikum warahmatullah,

Alhamdulillahi rabbil 'alamin, I'm at home after a fortnight at the college. Now I realised I've got tons and tons of homework, some finished, but some I need to consult with my friends.

To my Al-Aminian friends, I'm sorry I can't visit you all, with all my heart, it's a great desire of mine to visit you guys but it's just difficult to find a date that I'm on a holiday and you're not.

The holidays were much spent on my trip to Hong Kong. Truly, I say, Hong Kong is an entirely new experience. Urban life has been redefined to me. Skyscrapers are everywhere to accommodate the lack of sprawl space. Light effects are essential to every building, and there are always an individuality to each building. After 3 days at Kowloon City, I moved to Hong Kong Disneyland. Simply to put it, the magical part their after, they excelled at it. The "Disney in the Stars" show, was simply, magical and it was all worthwhile.

Okay, I guess you guys must be puzzled with the connection of the title and the story about HK.

Here it is:

Hong Kong is primarily populated by ethnic Chinese, and their food is...well...haram. Their culture is different to that it is to Islam's...so we need to take care. 

Hayya 'Alal Falaah, a phrase we hear everyday, of our entire Islamic life. But, what have we done in order to achieve it?  Success can be achieved in here, the world and in the hereafter. For a Muslim, the success of hereafter is something that he or she aspires and in order to succeed is to succeed in this world. 

How?

I guess you already know it by now. Ibadah, and Allah's blessing. One thing to bear in mind when think of ibadah, it's not just the prayers, it's in everything we do. 

As for me, going to the MJSC is my step to achieving the success. I may wear the cape of religious studies for the past 9 years, but now I'm wearing the armour of academics too. I'm not putting away the religious studies I've spent my whole previous life, just maintaining it, meanwhile focusing on worldly studies. 

By excelling in this world and grasping firmly to Islam, we can achieve a balance and wala! Falaah. I'm not saying Al=Amin doesn't provide excellent academic studies, it's just MJSC does better at it. 

So don't forget to succeed in this world as well in the next. Stack up on provisions, and make your way.

So can we do it? 

Hayya 'Alal Falaah!

Finally Living It.

In The Name Of Allah the Most Merciful and Most Beneficent

May peace and Allah's blessing be with all of you.


Alhamdulillah after a week or so, I lived the boarding school life. MashaAllah, the week I lived there felt like a month. It wasn't boring or anything, in fact it was a very busy week getting around (the campus is huge, even other MARA Junior Science College students admit it, I could've gotten lost if we weren't going in groups). Tun Ghafar Baba MJSC is packed with activities, from our day one till the end of the year, so it's definitely not boredom, maybe it's because the adaptation to the new environment, but then I asked my ex-MJSC friends whether they felt like a month and they said yes, so that's a cross for that.


Okay, let's set that aside.
So far, Alhamdulillah, my days there aren't stressing, and it's flowing like the way I wanted it to be. 
Boarding school, surprisingly isn't as tough as I thought it would be, for now...
Sure, you have to manage yourself, by yourself, but the rest is like being back at Al-Amin.
I pray that this keeps on. 


A surprise for me came on the second last day before I went home for the Maulud. It turned out that one of the warden was a teacher at SRIAAKL, for 3 months in 2008. So we're on good terms now....(got a friend who's a warden is a great thing....hehehe....).


Hamdallah, I got a batch of new friends there...credits to having to give a speech on the first day (...huhu), and all of them are nice guys, even the big, tough ones.


So I'm going back on Sunday, around 3 the most. Signing off.
May Allah's blessing and peace be upon you.