The Mecca of Man

Thy Hallowed House

O’ Lord,

It is not piety that drove me to Thee,

It is not virtues that made me plead to Thee,

It is not faith that led me to Thy Hallowed Sanctuary,

Nor is it patience that allowed me to endure

What Thou has bestowed for me.

O’ Lord,

For Thou knowest best what I hide in my chest

That no other can see, and Thou knowest completely

My selfishness, hubris and vanity.

But as Thou had honoured

The dry arid desert of Mecca

To bear Thy Hallowed House

Honour my dry arid heart

And make me bear Thy name, o' Ahad

And Thy Beloved Prophet, o' Ahmad!

..................

God could have His House built anywhere, but He commanded Prophet Abraham, some 5,000 years ago or more to build it in the middle of the desert of the Arabian Peninsular in the place now known as Mecca. If God was going for accessibility of location, a temperate climate with rich forests and fertile meadows God could have chosen thousands upon thousands of other places. Instead He chose Mecca.

And He could have chosen so many others who are wiser, and more patient, disciplined and stronger than you. But He chose you. Verily, God plans best and the Prophet(pbuh) is His best!

How blessed are you, o' Mecca of Man.

Have a lovely day, sunshine

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

Celestial History, The Landlady and The Kaaba

23. Celestial History

One day,

You too will play

A small part of a parable.

So play your part well

In the unmasking

Of the Celestial History.

.................

Five days from now, five years from now, why maybe even five centuries from now (Good luck with that, the way we are abusing the planet), people may be looking back and reading about what we did or did not do as part of mankind's amazing history. So in everything that we do, we should remember that at some point in time in the near or distant future, someone is gonna be reading and auditing us. Gulp.

2. History and My Landlady

Without history,

Without stories,

What are religious canons

But house-rules whose boarders

Take illicit pleasure

In disobeying.

................

For a boy his age, Mikhail's head is rather big. I am hoping that
it must be full of something. Brains, I hope. Actually, I kinda take that
for granted and I try to treat his mind with respect. Stupid, he ain't.

You need history to give the flesh to the bones of religious laws. You cannot just be laying it on thick like butter on young kids, and expect them to obey. For they are hormonally and chemically constructed to test the boundaries of their parents' beliefs and dogmas. It is my own personal preference, but I find 'Sufi-esque' spiritual books to be much more humane and approachable, because they tend to treat the personalities of the past not as two-dimensional whatsits, but real genuine human beings with subtle nuances to their individual characters. And I think children appreciate this and can relate better. Because truth be told, they are far smarter than adults give them credit for.

Old picture of the Holy Kaaba and Mecca. The old townhouses, shops and
alleyways are now gone I am told. Some people simply have absolutely no respect
for history and sensible aesthetics. The famous new Clock Tower? A loathsome edifice.
I think that if you wanna stick God's Name on something at least make the structure
beautiful and harmonious with the surroundings and history.

1. If The Kaaba …

If the Kaaba is a diamond,

The defilers of maqams are conspiring to pry off the gemstones

That dot her ornate setting,

If the Kaaba is life,

The defilers of maqams are conspiring to choke her breath,

If the Kaaba is the sun,

The defilers of maqams are conspiring to eclipse her moons,

If the Kaaba is justice,

The defilers of maqams are conspiring to conceal her mercy,

If the Kaaba is the universe,

The defilers of maqams are conspiring to rewrite her history,

If the Kaaba is a writer,

The defilers of maqams are conspiring to be her censors,

If the Kaaba is Rapunzel,

The defilers of maqams are conspiring to cut off her golden tresses.

That is want they want.

But who can they harm but themselves?

And what can they defile but their own name?

....................

Of course, what is history is open to several interpretations. So choose the books you read, and the person you follow well. Unless of course you are one of those fuddy-duddy woolly-headed Sufi sheep that bleats on and on about love and mercy. Then you have no choice really. For like rain (and I know I have about used this phrase to death), love simply happens. You do not know how the Ocean of Mercy carried you to deposit you on some Shore of Love. One day, you simply woke up from your earthly arrogance, opening your eyes and feeling the sand tickling between your toes, your soul sighs and goes, "Oh Wow."

Have a woolly day, sunshine. See you soon at the beach.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

The Perfume of the Angel of Death and a Night of Dread- Umrah Pilgrimage Part 26

However I tried Photoshop-ing this picture, I still look fat.
Then a disembodied voice whispered, "Try going on diet."

This is a continuation of my report on my Umrah Pilgrimage which took me to Jerusalem, Medina and Mecca in end March to early April this year. My last posting was about food on 22nd July 2011 entitled Dead Camel and Dhab Lizard, Guava and Zam-Zam - Umrah Pilgrimage Part 25 (Click Here). The journal continues on Wednesday, 30th March 2011.

PERFUME OF DEATH. There are a couple of things which is mandatory to be purchased in Mecca, and one of them is perfume. It can be very, very cheap or extremely expensive. I was at one particular stall when I saw a man sniffing away, and pleasurably commented, "Hmm, very nice, Haji..." To which the proprietor said, "Yaa... masyaAllah, this is scent is called the Malaikat Subuh (Angel of Dawn)!" The man then asked, "Good, good... but do you have perfume of the Malaikatulmaut (Angel of Death)?" The old shopkeeper looked offended and did not reply, although in his face I could see his thoughts... "Crazy, crazy Malaysians."

Journal extract

Talking about crazy Malaysians... During one of the many times we chilled in Mecca, a friend confided in me his night of dread - My friend is a particular man with a particular taste for the night life. One night in Indonesia he was out partying when one of the girls overdosed on some heavy 'shit'. They hurried her to the hospital and fortunately she was saved. But while waiting outside and smoking, he felt an overwhelming sense of shame and confusion, wondering who he is actually, why is he here and what is his purpose, and oh boy, what if the girl actually dies? Musing sullenly about his present circumstances, a cat walked by and he found himself asking, "Oh my God! Will this be the last cat I shall ever see in my life?!" He hurried off to find a mosque and found a small one nearby, but it was closed. He climbed over the fence anyway, completed his ablutions (wuduq - physical and spiritual cleansing with water pre-prayers) and started praying, all the time asking God to allow him to complete the prayers, beseeching God not to take away his life before he can complete each recitation, gesture and movement in his prayers. Now in hindsight, I think he was a little OD-ed himself.

I don't think you need to do serious drugs to OD. People can overdose and lose themselves in anything. It is wise to take everything in moderation. Perhaps even in what people consider to be the pursuit for spiritual excellence. After all... 'excellence' and 'spiritual' by whose definition? Find a spiritual master, become a pupil (a good one, not like me!) and you will not have to travel your path alone. You need not face the Enemy alone...

136. The Enemy

Wine for the mind,

Ghouls and wraiths,

Honey for money,

Face and faith,

Whatever your passion,

He has your poison.

May you have a moderately satisfying day, sunshine.

The Eagles of the Kaaba.

Pax Taufiqa.

Standing in front of the Holy Kaaba and thinking 'Hmm. Not so big after all.' - Umrah Pilgrimage Part 22

FROM MEDINA TO MECCA

After my last posting entitled "Medina is all about Muhammad and his Nation - Umrah Pilgrimage Part 21", this is logically Part 22 and long overdue extension of the Umrah story. The tale continues from the day the sinner and friends are leaving Medina, City of the Prophet, to make our way to Mecca, the City of God - From Soft Love to Hot Love (or so I thought). The notes below were written at 8pm in Mecca, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the night after I arrived in the Holiest City of Islam. Texts in brackets are my insertions to make sense of my abridged notes. What was I thinking?...



Athos, Porthos, Aramis and D'Artagnan - 7 hours to Mecca

- Trip from Medina to Mecca – Delayed for 2 hours - Left at 4.30pm and arrived about 10.30pm - Grouchy and tired (but on the way to Mecca, stopped by) a Lay-by (along the highway) and had roast chicken and rice...


Where is that damn chicken?

Before that we stopped by Bir Ali (Mosque) the place for Miqat to pray the sunat umrah ihram (supererogatory prayers to confirm our intention to perform the umrah / small pilgrimage and comply with the rules of the umrah, including inter alia, the wearing of the ihram, which by the way, was very comfortable)...

That doesn't look like an easy walk, o' Prophet!

Massive no. of Iranians and Turks and to a lesser extent Indonesians (at Bir Ali) - Dry and barren route (to Mecca). Imagine the tribulation of M + AB (Muhammad and His companion, Abu Bakar) making their secret way to Medina from Mecca (the famous Hijra / migration ordered by God for the Prophet and his followers to flee their enemies in Mecca and reinvigorate His prophetic mission in Medina, then known as Yathrib)

Bus was comfortable.


THE UMRAH IN MECCA


Finally. Hmm... Not so big after all.

- exhausted, made my way with Arjuna to the Masjidil Haram (the Holiest Mosque of the Faith, wherein sits the majestic Kaaba) - was still very busy at 11.45pm – Did the Tawaf (7 orbits around the Kaaba) – Mind Blank – Can’t think – Followed AA(Ariffin), Arjuna and Ijan from Tawaf to Saei - By this time my cracked skin of my sole painful and even considered wheelchair – but changed mind bec I wanted to walk – Tho each step I pray God will give me health and protect my feet, which is no joke for a diabetic – after one 1 hour – by 3.30am finally finished! – Couldn’t have done it without support of AA, Arjuna and Ijan (my heroes) – Cut my hair and finally I have completed the Umrah – dragged myself back to hotel but wandered first with Arjuna and had chai (tea), murtabak (imagine Pratha bread with meat inside) and kebab which we found – ate at hotel – fell asleep in my ihram – just too tired to even change …

4am... Don't these people sleep?

- I remember talking with AA, saying – if Nabi didn’t do this and ask us to do it, for sure I wouldn’t do it – Kaaba – BLACK SQUARE BUILDING – but I ‘feel’ emptiness – and I said I do not love you, but I love your Lord – a bit presumptious and rude – but I felt that…

People always say that it is 'easier' in Medina than Mecca - See earlier posting 'Dzikr & Salawat, Hot & Cold, Mecca & Medina, New York & North Dakota - Umrah Pilgrimage Part 5'. So I had my own preconceptions as to how my stay in Mecca would turn out to be. Surely nothing can trump Medina, I mused. Happily, I will be proven wrong, as you will later read.

Each day, is in essence a spiritual pilgrimage. So have a beautiful day, bright light.

Pax Taufiqa.

Footnote - Correction: 'Ben Ali' to 'Bir Ali' (Sorry, my handwriting is appalling during the trip!)

You Are The Qiblat To Your Children

TEACHING MIKA TO PRAY. I tried teaching Mika how to pray. I placed the sejadah (prayer mat) in the direction of the qiblat (the Muslim direction of prayers toward the Holy Kaaba, Mecca). He keeps furtively glancing at me, giggling, and when we prostrated together, slowly but surely, he started to turn towards me.

YOU ARE THE QIBLAT TO YOUR CHILDREN. It is a heavy responsibility, to be the qiblat for our children. But it is true, especially at that young age of about 2 – 10 years, when in the eyes of your children, you appear to do no wrong, you are the wisest and bestest mother / father that they, in their limited experience, can imagine. I am not a great dad, of this I am sure. I hope to be conventionally an 'okay' father. Wish me luck!

SUPERMAN AND WONDERWOMAN. The truth is less pure, and we know we have our weaknesses, we have made mistakes and every day is a constant struggle to let our hearts lead us towards love and compassion for all living creatures. But for this brief decade which shall pass faster than a blink of an eye, you are your children’s Superman and Wonderwoman.

I know we all share the same feelings for our own father and mother. Praise to God and the Most Praised, how can we not be brothers and sisters?!
.

Have a nice day, sunshine.

Pax Taufiqa.

The Defilers of Maqams

1. If The Kaaba …

If the Kaaba is a diamond,
The defilers of maqams are conspiring to pry off the gemstones
That dot her ornate setting,

If the Kaaba is life,
The defilers of maqams are conspiring to choke her breath,

If the Kaaba is the sun,
The defilers of maqams are conspiring to eclipse her moons,

If the Kaaba is justice,
The defilers of maqams are conspiring to conceal her mercy,

If the Kaaba is the universe,
The defilers of maqams are conspiring to rewrite her history,

If the Kaaba is a writer,
The defilers of maqams are conspiring to be her censors,

If the Kaaba is Rapunzel,
The defilers of maqams are conspiring to cut off her golden tresses.

That is want they want.

But who can they harm but themselves?
And what can they defile but their own name?

(No.1, from 'The Nineteen Verses'. 'maqam' in this context means the grave and tombs of the Companions of the Prophet and the Saints that dot the earth like bright pearls of divine grace)

I am not diverting from love and the theme of love. This is what we call tough love. It is still love, but this embodiment of love has sharp cutting edges. It is the opposite of hate and is gamely waiting to give the defilers of maqams its gentle loving attention.