Palestine Israel conflicts

The Hamas attack on October 7, 2023 was an unprecedented sudden attack. This is not single event to picture the overall conflict that has going on for almost a decade.

 Hamas said they attacked Israel in response to the injustice suffered by the Palestinian people for 75 years, and in response to the blockade that occurred in Gaza for 17 years.  Hamas also said that this attack was to free the holy land of Al-Aqsa from Israeli occupation.

How should Muslims respond to this attack?  I don't think there is the same answer for all Muslims, because everyone has different views and positions.  However, I will try to give some general views that can be considered  based on the unfolding events.

 First, Muslims must respect the right to life of every human being, regardless of religion, race, or ethnicity.  Muslims must reject all forms of violence that kill or injure innocent people, both in Israel and in Palestine.  Muslims must condemn attacks that violate international humanitarian law and human rights.

 Second, Muslims should be fair and objective in assessing the situation and the reasons for the conflict.  Muslims should understand the history and background of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, and not be easily influenced by propaganda or slander.  Muslims should look for credible and quality sources of information, and not just rely on social media or sensational news.

 Third, Muslims should strive to find a way of peace and dialogue in resolving conflicts.  Muslims should support diplomacy and mediation efforts involving interested parties, including Arab and Muslim countries, the UN, and the international community.  Muslims should push Hamas and Israel to stop hostilities and return to the negotiating table.

 Fourth, Muslims should pray for the safety and well-being of the Palestinian and Israeli people.  Muslims should pray for God to give guidance to both sides to make peace and come to an agreement.  Muslims should also pray for God to provide a just and lasting solution to this conflict.

This may not be a popular view, but as a Muslim, I share the anger of other Muslims on the brutality that Israel has inflicted on the Palestinians for this prolong asymmetrical war. However, as Muslims, we ought to uphold the true teachings ans principles of Islam, which we will be accountable for in front of Him on the day of judgement.

A Foreign Traveler of Dunya

1. The theme of life has remained consistent since the creation of human beings, regardless of the century in which we live. It revolves around humans losing their way by neglecting and disregarding the commandments of the creator. Prophets are sent to guide humanity away from this heedlessness and help them reconnect with their souls and their Creator.
2. The concept of "dunya" causes humans to become heedless of their life's purpose. It keeps them away from understanding the true reality of life and blinds them when they prioritize worldly pursuits over their humanity.
3. The Dunya blinds us to the true nature of human life. It's as if we are travelers in a foreign land, captivated by the allure and adornments of this place, causing us to forget the real purpose of our journey. This temporary stopover, the Dunya, has stolen our hearts, and we have developed an intense longing for it. However, the Dunya was never meant to be the ultimate goal of our journey; it should have remained foreign to the eyes of our hearts from the beginning.
4. We don't belong here in this dunya. Before embarking on this journey, we made a covenant with the almighty creator, confessing that HE is worthy of worship and obedience. The only way to find peace of mind in this life is by living in accordance with those confessions throughout our journey. Taking the dunya as our purpose in life is akin to building a sand castle that will soon be abolished by the sweep of tiny waves.

The 10 Days of Dhul Hijjah

Most scholars agree that the ten nights mentioned in Surah al-Fajr [89:1-2] refer to the first ten nights of Dhul-Hijjah. The Prophet Muhammad (sallallaahu alaihi wa sallam) emphasized their importance, stating, "No good deeds done on other days are superior to those done on these days [meaning the ten days of Dhul-Hijjah]."
 
The highly recommended deeds during these ten days include voluntary fasting, sincere repentance, recitation of the Quran, and observance of the night prayer. 
 
Hafsah reported, “There are five things that the Messenger (saws) never abandoned: fasting the day of Ashura in the month of Muharram, fasting the [first] 10 [days of Dhul-Hijjah], fasting 3 days of every month and praying two rak’aah before the dawn prayer.” [Related by Ahmad and an-Nasa’i]
 
The Prophet (SAWS) commanded us to recite a lot of Tasbeeh (“Subhan-Allah”), Tahmeed (“Al-hamdu Lillaah”) and Takbeer (“Allaahu akbar”) during this time. ‘Abdullaah ibn ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him and his father) reported that the Prophet (SAWS) said: “There are no days greater in the sight of Allah and in which righteous deeds are more beloved to Him than these ten days, so during this time recite a great deal of Tahleel (“La ilaaha ill-Allah”), Takbeer and Tahmeed.” (Reported by Ahmad, 7/224; Ahmad Shaakir stated that it is saheeh).
 

Origin of Seremban

Initially, Seremban was better known as Sungai Ujong because it is the largest and oldest district compared to other districts in Negeri Sembilan.  Based on sources from Malay History, Sungai Ujong is said to have existed since the end of the 14th century AD. This is proven by Sejarah Malay which mentions that when the King of Singapore was defeated by Majapahit, he fled to Muar and then to Sungai Ujong and left a minister to rule there.  With this statement, Sungai Ujong existed before the state of Melaka was opened again. In addition, Sungai Ujong is known by other names such as Sang Hyang Ujong' in Javanese Kertagama.  In Malay History it is referred to as 'Sening Ujong' and the elders refer to it as 'Semujong'.  Although there are various names referred to as Sungai Ujong, but the original form of the name is Sang Hyang Ujong, where this name appeared in Javanese poems at the end of the 14th century AD.

Meanwhile, for the Chinese, they call it 'fuyong'.  The story about the origin of the name Sungai Ujong has various stories.  Among them, the story that is said to be quite reasonable states that the word 'Ujong River' comes from the 'end of the river' which is the source or upstream of several rivers such as Sungai Beranang, Sungai Pajam, Sungai Batang Benar and Sungai Linggi.  All the ends of this river are said to originate from one area that can be considered as the original area of   Sungai Ujong.

From the origin of Sungai Ujong, Seremban is a new name to replace the name of Sungai Ujong.  The word Seremban was never mentioned in its early days or before 1874. Although the origin of the name Seremban cannot be ascertained, there are two stories about the word Seremban.  'Seremban' was born when the Chinese came to Sungai Ujong.  These people work as tin miners.  The Malays were hired by the Chinese to build and repair water dams from the river, but these 'beremban' always collapsed due to heavy rains leading to major floods.  Over time this place was named Seremban which comes from the word 'beremban'. Gullick stated that the origin of the Chinese word for the word 'beremban' was called 'selemban' and later became Seremban.

The second story tells that the origin of the name Seremban is from a type of traditional game 'sarimban'.  This game is very popular among Chinese people to play in their free time near the Seremban train station.  Due to its fame, this place has been named 'Seremban'. Therefore, although there are various stories about how the word Seremban came about, historians have not yet been able to decide which story is more true and reasonable about it.

apa tujuan kita hidup

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Pray and Guidance

Life is full of assumptions. Good or bad something or someone, only God knows. Sometimes people we think are good in our eyes are otherwise to Allah SWT.

Life is a quest. We often seek God's way. And we also seek what makes God pleased with us. Even though we are already Muslims, we always need guidance. So we will always repeat our everyday prayer  "Show us the straight path". Allah mentions, in Surah Al Mulk, that " are those who walk with their heads down are more guided than those who walk on the straight path." There are people who cannot see the straight path with their heads down.

According to Umm Salamah, the prophet never left the house but raised his eyes to the sky while saying, "O God, I seek refuge in You from being lost or being led astray, from me slipping or being tripped over, from doing injustice to others or from being oppressed, from being ignorant or being fooled. It is important that we invoke God's guidance in various aspects of life, both to make decisions and to do things. This is because life is full of crossroads and full of human drama.

Indeed, the true guidance is ALLAH SWT. ' Indeed, it is God who gives guidance, and no one can lead him astray when Allah guided them. We are in dire need of prayer and guidance from God. Whenever you wake up in the middle of the night, ask and pray to Him for guidance, it does not mean that when we have accepted Islam, we have received the guidance. In life and living a godly life, we constantly need guidance from Him. We all sin, but we cannot run away from guidance no matter how bad our sins are. We will always return to God and repent of the sins we have committed. Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.

Ashabul Ukhdud (The People of Ditch)

 

Zunuwas, Hassan and Amr were all sons of  Tuba As’Ad that reigned the state of Himyarite. This side of history explains how the existence of Christianity in the Arab world. When Zunwas held the empire, the clergy inform them that they need to prepare for a successor to inherit the noble teaching of Christianity. They appointed a boy to study with their grand clergy. Then this boy has not shown any interest to get knowledge besides meeting another man in silence to study Islam. Eventually, he was killed in front of a large crowd when the crowd witnessed how he was conveying the truth of his belief. The king gets furious and orders all the people to be burned in a large firing pit. This story is known as Ashabul Ukhdud (People of the Ditch) where the witness to the killing of the boy made the people instantly become believers. This story also related how Najasi or a place called Najran had a king name Aryan and Abrahah said in Surah Al -Fill where the king with his soldier and elephants try to overrun Makkah.