Answering a child's question on 'rasuk' and 'hantu'

My son sat beside me with a serious look on his face. He asked me if it is true that there are ghosts in his school. He said that some students were possessed (rasuk). I asked him if he saw it and he said no but his friends told him.

I was like..."Kau percaya la kawan2 kau tu..." (and you believe your friends!)
He was saying "Diorang kata diaorang nampak dengan mata kepala diorang sendiri" (they said they saw it with their own eyes on their own heads)
So I said with a half serious sounding voice "Ye lah. Ade ke sesiapa yang nampak dengan mata kepala orang lain." (of course, does anyone see with other people's eyes on other people's head?)
He looked slightly confused. I like teasing my kids sometimes or my students. It is cute to see their reaction and the look on their faces.

Anyway, the serious bit came. I said
"Look! these things exist. All these ghosts Pochong, Momok, etc...etc...they are all Jinn or Syaitan. They just want to disturb us and scare us but we must remember that everything that exists in this universe belongs to Allah, is created by Allah so, the only One we should fear is God."

I continued...
First of all, we must believe (have Yakin) that God is the Most Powerful. Nothing else have Power but Him.

Secondly, try to avoid all these things as much as we can. Don't look for them, don't try to find them because even though they live in this world but they are in a different dimension so, don't look for trouble but if you do come across these things then....

Thirdly, seek protection from Allah SWT. We can seek protection by reciting Ayatul Qursi.

ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلۡحَىُّ ٱلۡقَيُّومُ‌ۚ لَا تَأۡخُذُهُ ۥ سِنَةٌ۬ وَلَا نَوۡمٌ۬‌ۚ لَّهُ ۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٲتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ‌ۗ مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشۡفَعُ عِندَهُ ۥۤ إِلَّا بِإِذۡنِهِۦ‌ۚ يَعۡلَمُ مَا بَيۡنَ أَيۡدِيهِمۡ وَمَا خَلۡفَهُمۡ‌ۖ وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىۡءٍ۬ مِّنۡ عِلۡمِهِۦۤ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ‌ۚ وَسِعَ كُرۡسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٲتِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضَ‌ۖ وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُ ۥ حِفۡظُهُمَا‌ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلۡعَلِىُّ ٱلۡعَظِيمُ
  
and wherever you go, before you leave the house or in your journey or whenever you feel afraid, you can read "bismillahillazi la yadurru (arabic)..."

بِسـمِ اللهِ الذي لا يَضُـرُّ مَعَ اسمِـهِ شَيءٌ في الأرْضِ وَلا في السّمـاءِ وَهـوَ السّمـيعُ العَلـيم 
In the name of Allah, by whose name nothing is harmed neither on the earth or in the heavens. And He is the All Hearer, All Knowing.
 
then he said that even though these boys read Qur'an, they read what they knew but they were still affected by the possession.

I replied, "Don't be afraid. Always read with yakin (conviction) and you must have confidence that Allah is the Most Powerful and nothing else is more Powerful. If you fear Allah, you will not fear anything or anyone but if you do not fear Allah then you will fear everything and everyone."

However, if these things still harm you or if anyone harms you, it means that Allah SWT is testing you. It doesn't mean that these things have any power because nothing can help you nor harm you without the permission of Allah. So, don't be afraid but don't go looking for trouble either.

Besides, you are a man. You will be the protector. Men are supposed to fight against oppression, to protect their family. You cannot be afraid when you are in the battlefield. Look at the sahabah (companions of the Prophet) they were not afraid of anything or anyone. So, we want to be like them inshaAllah. 

The best part was he hugged me and said 'thank you mom' Alhamdulillah...:-)
   

Amazed by Dr Zakir Naik's talk

Last night 7th October I went to watch Dr Zakir Naik LIVE at Putra World Trade Centre, Kuala Lumpur with my kids. This was my first time ever listening to his talk. He has been on a Malaysian tour for a few weeks now.

In the beginning, I was becoming a bit worried as he started to explain the meaning of Jihad in Islam. He talked about the Arabic definition of Jihad coming from the root word 'Jahada' meaning to strive and struggle. I agree with what he said but I was becoming concerned that he might be one of those 'apologetic' Muslims who restrict the meaning of Jihad to the struggle against one's own nafs...something which all human beings MUST do all the time as we struggle against our inner desires. That struggle for me is never ending until our last breath...

As the talk progresses however, I was completely amazed by his quotation not just of the Qur'an but also of the other scriptures. He went on to quote many Ayat in the Qur'an which talks about fighting (Qitaal) and giving examples on how he explains the command of fighting in Islam to non-Muslim by quoting their own scriptures on fighting. Fighting in the battlefield is undoubtedly a command from Allah SWT (Qur'an 2:216; 2:246; 9:5 and many others) and has been one method of striving and struggle to make the Truth prevail over the Falsehood (Qur'an 9:33). All men are obliged to be part of the army of Jihad under the Khilafah and to fight for Truth and Justice; and to fight against oppression; to observe all the rules and laws of fighting and NOT to oppress others.

Alhamdulillah Allah SWT has given Dr Zakir such a strong memory in memorizing the Qur'an and other scriptures and being able to explain very eloquently about the Deen and being able to answer questions thrown at him in a very sharp and clear way. However, Dr Zakir's message last night is that all Muslims are daie i.e. da'wah carriers and we have a duty to convey Islam to all people but I would like to add that da'wah is also to Muslims, to remind one another and the seeking of the knowledge of Islam is an obligation on all of us. Not everyone is given the talent to be an orator as Dr Zakir but there is no argument that is better than the Qur'an so even if we are no good at public speaking but inshaAllah with the knowledge of Islam, we will always hold the Truth and we can always convey the Truth.

May Allah reward Dr Zakir for his efforts and thank you for coming to Malaysia!

Thoughts to the family of Babar Ahmad

I am truly saddened to hear of the extradition of Babar Ahmad to the US. He lost his 8-years legal battle against the extradition since the time I was still in London. However, I am inspired by not just the brother himself but his entire family and especially his father Mr Ashfaq Ahmad who stood by him and worked tirelessly to clear his name and to keep him within the security of his family. He is a true Muslim father MashaAllah, May Allah reward you.

For more information on the entire story of Babar Ahmad go to www.freebabarahmad.com


I see myself here and how often we find ourselves preoccupied with trivial matters. I have seen how Muslims in this country hurt other Muslims, how they cheat and lie and rob and harm their own brothers and sisters in Islam (not all Alhamdulillah but it is happening) and I feel saddened and ashamed of what our society has become. I have now been back in Malaysia for only 3 years and I have experienced liars, cheaters, con men, even know friends who have been 'sihir' (black magic) and I never saw any of that in my brothers and sisters in the UK. No doubt the society in UK is no better or even worse than here but I'm talking about the Muslims in Britain. In UK, they were my family, they looked after me, protected me, helped me when I was alone with no family members to rely on. May Allah SWT reward the brothers and sisters in the UK with continuous strength and Iman.

Anyway, it really doesn't matter because the only thing that matters is the Mercy of Allah. There is no need to feel hurt or pain or vengeance because whatever harm that happens to us even if it is done by someone else be it a person, an individual, a state, the corrupt man made system...nothing ever happens without the Knowledge and Permission of Allah SWT. It is Allah SWT who puts us where we are.

I read on my friend's FB page that a brother Sh Muhammad Abdul Maqsoud of Egypt said "When I was placed in solitary confinement. I found that the brother that was in there before me had written on the wall: "Know that you have sold your soul for Allah.so if He wished, He can place it in a palace and if He wished He can place it in a cell. So do not become weak nor saddened and you will be superior if you are indeed believers."

He SWT says surah An-Najm: 42 "And that He is the One who makes (one) laugh and makes (him) weep". In fact, read the entire surah because it is beautiful and it makes us think and understand what we are or what we are not and why we are here. 

So, it is not about other people. Whatever happens to us and whoever hurts us or say whatever to us; it is never about that person or those people but it is all about our relationship with Allah SWT. 

May Allah SWT give strength to the family of Babar Ahmad and the 4 other brothers extradited with him.