Books that Shook the World series.

I just finished this biography and I think it's a very satisfying read :) . If you've been reading the Quran but like me, don't really know much and would like to know how some prominent thinkers are said to search the Quran, try this book. It's not trying to influence you, it's just informing. :)

Only after I completed reading it that I noticed it's part of the "Books that Shook the World" series. More to read, more to know and more to ponder upon Insha Allah.

A special day. Part 2.

The Academic Radiology department had a lunch before we all break up for holidays today, in the Hemsley, near Portland building.

So, after lunch, driven by a text message saying they want to perform a solah for our friend, Ariff (solat jenazah ghaib) in Portland building after Asr..I decided to do my Asr prayer there.

In the sister's prayer room, a group of sisters were discussing in a halaqah (a circle). And, I heard many questions asked and answered and discussed.

And after all this, a sister said "Hold my hand."

And a sister next to her said, "Yes, I was going to before you said it."

This sister continued to say "Ash.hadu.al.."

And the first sister followed.

Until the complete Shahadah was uttered.

I literally. froze. My Quran was lowered and I looked straight at them. And the second sister smiled at me and said " She embraced Islam." .

Allahuakbar. I have never witnessed a reversion ever in my life. It was a decision between paradise and hell and she was so.......calm.

"It's like I have been driven by a motor lately and when I said it, it's like I should have said it a long time ago." said the sister.

I should have embraced her but I was so amazed I just sat there. Instead, I just looked at her, smiled and somehow uttered "Congratulations."...........and resumed reading the Quran.

My reaction was so inappropriate to picture the myriad of feeling I felt in me from witnessing one more person in this world choosing to uphold the principle:

There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is His messenger.

My principle.

That only what He thinks of me matters. This freedom from anyone's judgement, from social pressure, from anything else.

Alhamdulillah...I had a chance to make up for it. I met her in her very first aqidah class with my teacher, Teacher Fullah at the same place as before.

I sat in a small circle of three students and a teacher.

One was me, a muslim by birth. One was Nicole. She grew up an atheist, and now a muslim. And the other was Stephanie, a christian who just reverted to Islam a few hours ago.

All from different countries, from completely different backgrounds, languages, skin colour, you name it.

Here to learn what La ilaha ilallah means in our lives. Aqidah.

Truly, Allah showed me Islam on this day.

"O mankind! We have created you from male and a female, and have made you nations and tribes that you may know one another. The noblest of you, in the sight of Allah, is the best in conduct. Allah is Knower, Aware." Al Hujurat, 13.

Like I was given a chance to be in the early days of Islam, when the only similarity between people was just La ilaha ilallah, Muhammad rasulullah.

And I felt special. :)

....

A special day. Part 1.

Today was a special day.

The day began with a news of death of Ariff. He died in a car crash on his return from saying his vows in marriage (akad nikah) this morning. Innalillahi wa inna ilaihi raa'jiun. (We belong to Allah and to Him we return).

I was shaken.

You see, it's common in our culture to want to wear hijab after marriage. to stop smoking after marriage. to pray five times a day after marriage, to finish reading the Quran after marriage. Basically, to be a muslim (one who fully submits to Allah) after marriage.

When is the wedding?

We lean our ambitions on something so uncertain. Like applying to a university that is not yet there. We don't know when it's going to exist or if it will ever exist, yet we want to be graduates of that university.

But, Allah taught me today that, in all that uncertainty..death is CERTAIN.

and it certainly comes at any time Allah wishes it.

So should we strive to be better any time we have a chance to because death, which is certain can come to us at any time or should we wait for a day (even if it isn't our wedding day) that is uncertain for us to be better...we might never see that day..we might never be better to Allah.

"Dan bersegeralah kamu kepada ampunan dari Tuhanmu dan kepada surga yang luasnya seluas langit dan bumi yang disediakan untuk orang-orang yang bertaqwa."

(Ali Imran: 133)

mr.OS

i worked hard to get to a place not everyone can reach.
i own things not everyone can own.
in fact, i can achieve much more than this if i want to.
i am undeniably better than many people i know.
-Obnokschus Subconschus.


For OS to be telling the truth that he(or she, if you like) has the right to claim posession of the trophy for his success and more to come, he needs to at least be able to prove that..

he has been breathing self-made air to arrive at success :) no?

OS can be us in our good days. Feeling so proud being at the top (of whatever little bumps, even). Subconciously feeling better from people we (ever so subtly sometimes) perceive as being non-bump members.

The fact is though, look around...our bumps arent all that big anyway. Not putting ourselves down, but we are dependent for air, resources from the soil and water we can't make from scratch, the most basic things for us to succeed.

And yes, just like OS, we do not have full control over life neither are we self-sufficient in our journey to success. We cant guarantee anything.

It's almost embarassing then, for a moment to think of the times (hopefully not all the time) we feel ..simply put, better than others.


-talk about being thick =P

I didnt get to choose families.

Let's talk about the picture.

This was in a dusty classroom. Those were the walls and the door.
The classroom's desks were made into operating tables.
Electricity isnt an affordable luxury too.

Improper? very much.

But it had to be done. Just so they wont need to consult "doctors" who offer a cheaper-than-hospital price for their "service", which has caused life-threatening bleeding in the past.

One of those days I was in Cambodia, I realized that instead of being fated to be born into my family...I could've easily be one of these poor malnourished children. It is COMPLETELY out of my control, in which country, let alone in which family I was born into.

So, then do they deserve a different treatment from the doctors than the kings, who with all due respect happen to be chosen to be born into their families?

Absolutely not =)

May we all be doctors with a GOLDEN standard of care to all. Insha Allah.

What clever people keep saying about clever things.

This morning, I was sitting in my developmental neuroscience class, listening to the lecturer..

"Aristotle claims that the brain is the organ of thought but not the basis for thought.

Does this make sense to you?

Well,let me explain. In today's world we talk about the brain being mainly tissues and we talk about brain functions. Now,not all brain functions can be localized neuroanatomically..many many networks and parts of the brain can be activated during a certain task.So,we know there is a function but where exactly is it performed in the brain? we cannot tell."
said my lecturer.

And he continued,
"What's also amazing is that we know that for example oligodendocytes make myelins for the axons and astrocytes maintain the environment in the brain. But it seems now, there are some evidence of these cells exchanging roles...And I mean oligodendrocytes taking the role of astrocytes and vice versa."

And I thought, "Amazing, Subhanallah."

And then he said "But is there guidance for brain development?? Of course there is! It is guided by NATURE."

...................at this point i thought. "What??"

I mean, if I lay out all the ingredients to make a cake on a table, but never go on to make it..would it be a cake?

Every simplest thing has got to be MADE into what it is. The ingredients of a simple creation cant spontaneously come together to become it no matter how abundant these ingredients are in nature..

I've never heard of even little minute creatures in nature like bacteria to ever spontaneously come into existence on a lab table.

It only makes sense to me therefore that there is the Creator who creates and makes.

Then comes the question, so how can nature guide something that isnt known to it...since it is made by Someone else?

Then can the development of the complex brain that has been studied for yeaaaarss and yeaaarsss yet is still VERY VERY much one of man's most intriguing enigma be guided by..nature?..

It just doesnt seem to me like a valid statement, what more logical..what more true.

Allah knows best.


Mammalian brain wiring seen in technicolour.
Source:Chemistry World

Why stop hoping?

Sehanyut-hanyut manusia, dia takkan hanyut melebihi lautan Allah,

Sesesat-sesat manusia, dia takkan sesat melebihi bumi Allah,

Sebagus-bagus manusia, dia takkan terlepas dari ujian Allah,

Sehebat-hebat manusia, dia takkan pernah mampu berhenti mengagumi kehebatan Allah.

No one is too far from Allah, yet no one can ever be too close too.

"Dan apabila hamba2Ku bertanya kepadamu(Muhammad) tentang Aku, maka sesungguhnya Aku dekat. Aku kabulkan permohonan orang yang berdoa apabila dia berdoa kepadaKu. Hendaklah mereka itu memenuhi (perintah)Ku dan beriman kepadaKu, agar mereka memperoleh kebenaran" 2:186