When Two World Collides
''قادر عل الكسب’’ Self-reliant. Being able to live without depending on others. The ability to take care of one-self when in distance with his families. Clothing, food, work and studies. To solve problem of their own. To make decisions of their own. To able to generate money of his own. Chasing success and benefiting others. Self-reliant as we know is own of the 10 characters of a successful Muslim everyone must fulfil. However, self-reliant can signifies way much more than we imagined. It is not just about living matters. But it includes ones identity. The way of life and self-integrity. As the plants need soil, water and sunlight to grow, we all need an encouraging surrounding for self-building. But when the surroundings gets tough, when Islam and its values are strangers to the people. Or when it teachings are known but left forgotten and abandoned. Self-reliant means he is not the one influenced, yet he is influencing.
The culture in Egypt :
Alhamdulillah,
all praises to Allah. The most gracious and most merciful. Alhamdulillah Egypt
has been kind to host Islam in the hearts of its people. Most obvious during
the month of ramadhan. The Quran is a culture. It is not weird to see people
reciting in the public. Where the adhans are heard all around the neighborhood.
And the nearby mosque is never too far from a walking distance to reach. This
nation is rich in Islamic values. Unselfish and friendly. Living their live for
the good of others. Though it is true that not all Egyptian are of this
quality. Some of them only live with Islam in rituals. But never to be denied,
its teachings are raised high. Deeply embedded in their belief. Egypt as we
know is the land that gave birth to arguably the most biggest Islamic movement
in the 19th Century. ‘’The Brotherhood of Islam’’ or better known as
‘’Ikhwanul Muslimin’’. A land where prophet Musa, Harun, Yusoff, Soleh were
send. The land that recently gave birth the man who ‘’rock the cradle’’ with
Islam. The man who strikes fear in the hearts of the west. His name is Al-Imam
Hassan Al-Banna. Notice that this very land have been praised in the Quran :
آمِنِينَ اللَّهُ شَاءَ إِنْ مِصْرَ ادْخُلُوا وَقَالَ أَبَوَيْهِ إِلَيْهِ آوَى يُوسُفَ عَلَى دَخَلُوا فَلَمَّا
Then, when they came in before Yusuf (Joseph), he took
his parents to himself and said: “Enter Egypt, if Allah wills, in security.”
(Yusoff verse 99)
Egypt is a
blessed soil that breeds Islam in people from all over the world. Our Malaysian
student community has benefit greatly from this fertile environment. Absorbing
Islamic values and custom. Somehow, it makes learning Islam, and the effort to
be a better person much easier. An advantage that our communities in Malaysia
do not taste. And we all know the importance of a supportive environment.
‘’The believing men and believing women are allies of
one another. They enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong and establish
prayer and give zakah and obey Allah and His Messenger’’
(At-Tawbah verse 71)
‘’The Prophet SAW Said : A believer is a mirror to other believers’’
(Reported by Abu Daw’ud)
The Silent Assassin
Approach and come closer. Take a
look at reality. Slowly this healthy environment is being taken away from us. A
smooth criminal. A silent assassin.
It is not
strange no more to see two people of the opposite gender walking together.
Sitting closely to one another. Enjoying their time in cafes, parks and along the
beach. When the boys prefer to pray at home rather than having to walk a few
steps to the mosque nearby. And the girls prefer more stylish dressing without
covering properly. When entertainments exceeds the normal dosage. And people
prefer hanging out with friends outside rather than attending religious
classes. When selfish breeds into the society. And people become more
unfriendly. Diseases in our own people all of our own doing.
Make no
mistake my friends. If we are not careful enough, the community and culture we
are so proud of may become no different than the community in Malaysia. We are
experiencing normalization between Malaysia and Egypt. Egypt may one day no
longer be known to bring back good people to the country. It seems that we are
being influenced by negative values and action, instead of influencing. So
where have ‘’قادر عل الكسب’’ been?
''And spend in the way of Allah and do not throw [yourselves] with your [own] hands into destruction [by refraining]. And do good; indeed, Allah loves the doers of good''
Al-Baqarah verse 195
yet it all pass by unnotice
yet it all pass by unnotice
