SUBTLY, ESSENTIALLY, PAINFULLY BEAUTIFUL

A Pen Full of Raindrops

My Love is in the falling rain,

He tells me to stay awake 

And to come out into the night,

My Love is in the sleepless twilight,

Beneath starlight eaves with

Columns of white light

From the prayers of men, 

My Love is filling my pen

With raindrops as countless

As my sins...

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

I am a rainy fellow. I love the rain, and when I heard the heavy patter of rain on the roof, I know that I cannot stay in. Not when the black night outside is suddenly alive with His Merciful rain. So much for my plans for an early night. He he he. I am sure God plans best of all.

Earlier tonight I asked myself if I know Islam. And I am quite sure I do not know anything much, if anything at all. In fact, I am beginning to suspect that Islam is much, much more vast than even my wildest imaginings can imagine. Islam is far, far more wondrous than any wonder that man has ever built. And it is beautiful. It is subtly, essentially, painfully beautiful. For it hurts your heart's eye even to glance but for awhile into Islam's forge of love, where words and deeds are hone in the white fire of Divine Love... syariat... tariqat, hakikat... makrifat...

What do these words even mean? I am stealing words from the library of the saints, knowing nothing of their meanings. 

What has meaning to me is the rain. Little pools of mercy and blessings on the ground now that the rain has left. Many people will be asleep not even realising this. God's blessing whether we are good or bad, whether we are awake or asleep. So what do we have to complain about? Nothing. And what do we have to be grateful for? Everything.

Let us discard the garbs of knowledge, thinking ourselves as 'knowing' our religion. There is no knowing or owning of anything in this world. There is only God Almighty, and there is His Beloved Habibullah (saws). Everything, and anything else are just shadows on the wall, transient ripples in the ocean. 

Don't you agree, sunshine?

wa min Allah at-taufiq

-Notrumi Embun, 8th July 2014

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

WHEN IGNORANCE IS A MERCY... grappling with death in prose

Grappling with Death
I saw Death walked through the door.
Did the nurses not see him?
As he came close to my friend
I grabbed him and held him tight.

"Do not hinder me." Death said.
"Were I come to you tonight, would you fight me?
Would you struggle to remain imprisoned in this world?"

I shook my head.

"Thus why do you stand between me and my duty?

"I have plans for us, he and I." I answered.

"But if you trade places now, would you want him 
To obstruct me in my duty?
Knowing that I am but a gatekeeper?
Knowing that I am only a servant at the threshold of the Lord?
That I am the necessary path to your Lord and His Beloved?"

"No."

Death came close to a smile as he can, and said.
"So be it. Now, let go of me. For I am not attending to him tonight.
My engagement is with the gentleman in the next bed.

You really ought not to be so emotional, Notrumi."

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

When Ignorance is a Mercy. Who knows when Death will come? People sometimes think it is a sword of doom, ever hanging over our heads, waiting to slice off our tenuous grip to life. It can be a car accident. It can be death in the battlefield, or perhaps choking on a peanut. From the profound, to the profane to the mundane, death comes to us in all sorts of guises.

But God desires to be known as the God of Mercy, not Doom. Certainly not for us human beings, after He has taken such trouble (though it is of course, no trouble at all for Him...) to create us in our skins, flesh and bones. How would it be for you, were you to know your exact moment of death? Let me tell you that for me it would be an oppressive knowledge to carry. I suspect it will drive many of us mad with paranoia and fear.

So do not fret nor fear your ignorance of your impending date with Azrail (as). Death is mercy, and the fact that you do not know when your lease on life expires is also a mercy.

And of course, the truth is not even the pen of Notrumi can hold back for even one nano-second his own time of death, much less that of his friend, however exalted or dear.  

Yet, such treasonous thoughts entered his mind last night. May Allah (swt) forgive me for even contemplating them. Happiness is only with you, ya Rabbi! Intimacy is only through Your Muhammad Habibullah (saws), Your own Sea of Intimacy for the poor humanity!

Hu Hu Hu.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

-Notrumi Embun, 6th June 2014

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

SECRET DUTIES - the Adab of secrets

Secret Duties

If God gives you a secret, keep it,

Tempted though you may be

To share it with your company,

Then you will find in Him the best of intimate,

The source of more secrets and surprises

Beyond your wildest estimate!

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

We don't want to know your scandals. But how many times have we inadvertently learn something not so good about one another? And how many times were we tempted to share it with another? And may Allah forgive us, to post it, to tweet it out into cyberspace? 

My old friend says - Keep your mouth shut, Notrumi. Instead invite Allah (swt) into your secret parlour for discourse over the ancient weakness of men (that means, you). You will learn more about human nature, and more importantly, far more about yourself, then were you to share it with your closest advisor. 

It is laughable, is it not? That a blogger can still keep secrets? But I do try. And when I do I notice God Almighty stringing a path of events that shows us just how much He loves us, and just how important is our love-link to Him through His Beloved Muhammad (saws).

I cannot explain any further. After all... it's a secret!

He he he.

Secret Duties II
Allah is the Source of all Secrets,

And we are lost without Him

In the maze of our human confusion,

But it is no secret that

Nabi Muhammad is His Beloved,

And we, the Nation of the Beloved!

Oh, the Banner of Muhammad is made of Light!

Light upon Light!

Run, shadows... run!
The secrets I have is not for you!

 wa min Allah at-taufiq

- Notrumi Embun, 3rd June 2014.

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

SAILING THE SEA OF MATRIMONY - all roads and all knowledge inevitably leads to Hu... and to you.

1. Universe Within

Galaxies swim within my veins,

Stars make home in each cell of my body,

Cosmic winds rise from my lips,

As creation mingle sweetly in my eyes.

                                                     

                                  I am the intangible vessel,                                 

The wandering soul,

Tasked to find and record,

The Speech of the One.

I am the broken vessel,

Holed below my waterline,

Sailing an unbroken sea,

With a smile and verily, a fool’s hope!

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

If you are reading this, know that you are reading the memoirs of a fool. But alhamdulillah you are with a smiling fool. 

I don't know about anyone else, but I am contented to be a fool than a morose scholar, forever crying "Oh woe! Oh sadness! Oh, the things that I know!!" . Instead I am happy to constantly be amused, astonished and struck speechless by this life, on a course set by Him., until the day that it pleases Him to take me back.

But as I am still alive and writing, I guess there are still secrets and surprises left to be uncovered. And in the entwined limbs of lovers in rapture there are secrets to know, for there is nothing of value if that thing does not take you closer in your understanding of God Almighty.

Whether you are sailing across an ocean or the stormy waters of the matrimonial bed, seek God!

Consummated passion and more importantly, safety, is there. 

He he he. And to grease the machinery of your impending marriage (assuming you are getting wed) do remember this fine line spoken by a friend of mine to his betrothed...

Dear Love,

Our contract of marriage is a strange thing,
For the definitions are waiting to be explored,
The meaning of words and names are waiting to be written...

So write me, and who I am,

For I am without meaning until you tell me

What I mean to you...  

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

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

THE HADRA... Immortals whirl and Nightingales sing!

The Hadra

You see guitars, drums, clarinets and cellos,

But I see instruments of worship with sounds hallowed,

You hear pop songs and think they sound wrong,

But I hear echos of choirs and heavenly songs,

You see kids jumping and dancing mad,

But I see bright young souls yearning

For the Hadra they never had

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

The Hadra. According to the Wiki.. "Haḍra (Arabic: حضرة‎) is a collective supererogatory ritual performed by Sufi orders. It is often held on Thursday evenings after the night prayer, on Fridays after Jum`a prayer or on Sunday evenings, and can also celebrated on special Islamic festivals and at rites of passage. It may be held at home, in a mosque, in a Sufi hospice or elsewhere. The term in Arabic literally means "presence"..."

Whirling Calling Praising

Whirling, whirling, whirling,

Words pour out of mortal hearts,

Calling, calling, calling,

Prayers stumble from human lips,

Praising, praising, praising,

While the tired pass the night in sleep

Immortals whirl and Nightingales sing,

Drinking the Ocean timeless and deep!

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

I have been out of touch with the band of dervishes that make their spiritual home not far from my house. Been busy, ya' know.... with dunya (worldly) matters. He he he.

Missing Kuching. The pictures above however are not from my neighbourhood, but was taken in Kuching, Sarawak on the island of Kalimantan/Borneo. I was there in February this year for the funeral and tahlil of a good man.

Many things in my life have turned and changed in the course of these past couple of months. I wanted to write about them now but strangely it is The Hadra that is written instead.

Perhaps there is a reason that I am unaware of. But sometimes it is okay not to follow too closely the clouds that pass through our thoughts... after all, we are just sinners here.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way 

NOT EVERY EYE CAN SEE. NOT EVERY EAR CAN HEAR

Assumptions

Not everyone who is breathing is living,

Not everyone who is reading is learning,

Not everyone who is hearing is listening,

Not everyone who is talking is sharing,

Not everyone who is bent down in prayer is praying,

Not everyone who is smiling is happy,

Not every eye can see,

Not every ear can hear, 

Not every success is sweet,

Not every failure is bitter, 

.........

Think long. Drink deep your wine of contemplation. Every person you meet, every happenstance in your life, each breath, each moment is worthy of an infinity of reflection. 

So put down that iPhone. Shut down that Samsung. Disconnect for awhile and show courtesy to your friend and family, to your dinner companion, to the stranger sitting next to you in the bus. They are looking to you for a little mercy, a little compassion. And mercy is often heralded by sweet human courtesies. 

Many people assume themselves to be part of humanity, but they are often away, Lost in the distractions of Twitters, Instagrams, emails and Whatsapp. "I am here, I am alive and real.", their companion is beseeching them for attention and empathy, but alas they hear but do not listen.

So let us disconnect for awhile, and reconnect with each other. There is still so much goodness in this world to give, to receive and to share.   

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

GOD HIDES. YOU HIDE. WE ALL HIDE. - mortal faith, love and hope in the promises of an unseen God.

Hiding

Lovers embracing, hiding in an old chestnut tree,

Children playing, hiding under stairs and in broom closets,

Thunder rumbling, hiding in an overcast sky,

My soul is praying, hiding in unspoken gestures,

My spirit is with my Lord, hiding far from you and I,

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

Hiding Humans. We all hide. Such is the nature of things. We hide in our clothes, in our makeup. We hide in our wallets, we hide in our credit card accounts. We hide behind our beard and our veils. We hide behind our academic qualifications and in our office title. We hide behind our smiles and charity. Sometimes the form betrays the true reality of our inner selves. But often they are disguises. I am not saying hiding is necessarily a bad thing. It is just how we are wired.

God Hides Too. Indeed, He is the best player in hide and seek. He is perhaps comparable to Time and Sound. For both natural events, like God, cannot be seen, but can be indirectly observed through the movement of the hand on a clock, and experienced by our sense of hearing. And God? Well it is that good feeling you have when you find your lost wallet. The descending calmness of acceptance in the demise of a brother. The smile from a stranger. The encouraging word from a colleague at work. So God is hidden, but He is also felt in our heart. For what other reason would He have made Man with a heart? 

Revelation is a created thing too, an expression of the Divine Will. God is hidden in this world and also in the hereafter. It is only by His choosing that He elects to reveal Himself. But what is true revelation when He is the Creator of revelations and the divine presence? Can the Uncreated One manifest His desire and will in a created thing? A created event? He can of course. It is up to Him. He sets the rules of Creation, He sets the script and the music. He can unbend anything and unmake anything. So in such circumstances are we constantly made aware of His presence and His Goodness. But what direct evidence do we have of His existence? 

Only in our hope upon His assurances... that He is Most Loving, Most Powerful, Most Compassionate and Merciful to us. The All-Knowing, All-Seeing and All-Hearing One. Such is the form He deigns to wear for our sake. What is the Essence of the form? It is beyond our conjecture, for such question is an existential rabbit hole that will break our mind and may possibly drive us blinking mad. I am not going speculating in that direction, for I see only emptiness and madness.

So all we have is in truth, Hope in His Promises. And I guess this is what is called faith (iman) that dwells in the heart of a believer. No one will understand this logic if he or she is not A Student of Love.

Thank God we all are!

Have a beautiful evening, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

INDEPENDENCE!! - independence for what purpose?

Wearing the Rain

I wear the rain like a dress,

And I drink the golden Sun

From a cup of love.

Whither the worry for tomorrow

When this day is not ended yet?

I wear the dusky sky

Like a bridal train 

Through the aisle of a church,

A mosque, a temple

And a synagogue.

Whither the sorrows for tomorrow

When this day is not ended yet?

................................ 

It is unfashionable to talk about submission. Not when the entire world is motivated towards independence, freedom of choice and individuality. 

In an exchange on Facebook on Malaysia's 56th independence day, a good friend asked me, "Are we really independent?" The question can be answered at many levels of course. The sovereignty of our country, and also the independence of our thoughts, words and actions, as a community and ultimately, as an individual. But to turn the question around, I began to ask myself, independence for what purpose? Freedom of choice and sovereignty to what end?

An ancient friend shared his two pennies worth and said that independence is only worthwhile when one uses one's independence on the path to submission to God. And this is regardless whether they are choices you make while grocery shopping, or as a diplomat in a multilateral summit on international trade. As a common man, minister or a King, we all have our decisions to ponder over.

I guess it is paradoxical... this independence in the path towards submission. But as God Himself revealed in the Holy Quran through divine revelations to the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.)... 

Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil 

and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. 

And Allah heareth and knoweth all things. (Quran 2:256, Yusuf Ali)

Something to think about, sunshine, on this wet Sunday here in Kuala Lumpur. So don't bother about tomorrow, it hasn't happened yet! 

He he he.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

NO FAITH WITHOUT WONDER

The Created and the Uncreated

The perfume cannot comprehend the perfumer,

The arrow cannot comprehend the archer, 

The created cannot comprehend the uncreated,

Yet the scent of the perfume excites the maiden, you can smell it!

And the arrow is flying on its trajectory towards the deer, you can see it!

Thus all of God's creatures sense their own created beings,

But what lies beyond our physical senses...?

Oh Wonder! You are a wondrous thing!

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

Physical Senses. If you stop wondering, you stop living. Oh, you can live physically, since all of our senses are geared towards the purpose of continuing our own life and existence - Hungry? Eat. Thirsty? Drink. Horny? Procreate. 

Inner Senses. But the problem with physical senses is that  they act at a very basic animal instinct. And unless we are prepared to live as animals, we must address the substrata of our conscious existence, that is our emotions and thoughts that is beyond our base desires. And once we explore our inner consciousness, we are in a different world altogether, a world of flux often pulled by opposing forces of love and hate, generosity and greed, attachment and detachment, companionship and loneliness, humility and hubris. 

Such things we 'sense' within ourselves according to our mind and our heart. And it is in this horizon of intangible feelings, that we find the need for assurance, hope, redemption, knowledge and contentment. This is the hidden form of this world, and the door of exploration that God has laid in the well of our conscience. 

The Outer World and the Inner World. For however wondrous is a storm at sea. However mysterious and beguiling is a night sky full of stars, however maddening is the beauty of a human child, it is our inner understanding, our inner self that is reacting to all these physical expressions of this world and giving meaning to them.

And so religious faith is all about that really. It is our natural inclination towards the inner uncreated reality that is God, helping us towards finding the true meaning of our deeds, our emotions and ultimately, this world and our purpose in life. This is the basic tenets of all religion whatever faith you may be dressed in.

The Inner Uncreated Reality is More Real Than Our Physical Created Reality,

Giving understanding and meaning to it all.

And though meanings find their expression through our actions (and omissions), it is essentially our inner reflections through which we may find our happiness  and success in this life and in the next, towards that One uncreated Being, the incomparable Absoluteness, that is God the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate, the Lord of Mercy and the Giver of Mercy...

All about You

When I contemplate life, 

When I listen to you,

When I consider myself,

When I read the books of the wise,

When I look at the world,

The birds flying in the sky,

When I listen to the world,

The dogs barking in the night,

When I dip my feet in a cool forest stream,

When I see a candle light 

And the near wandering moth,

In truth,

It is God that 

I wonder of.  

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

So you see. If you have stopped wondering, where is your faith? For faith is not about the certainty by which you judge yourself or other people. It is faith in the certainty that God Almighty does not discriminate between one person to another save by our good deeds, good thoughts and helpfulness to others. 

God. The True Wonder of all, beyond wonder, beyond all!

Don't you agree, sunshine? Even if I do tend to ramble on? I wonder...

He he he.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

HE HU NEVER LETS US SINNERS DOWN - The Ramadan Story, Part 12

Uh oh. That's a lot of candles!

Numbers. Numbers are important. Especially to God, for it is through bearing witness to His Absolute Oneness and Utter Uniqueness (which is even beyond our bare estimation of what is common and what is unique), that makes you a believer in Him, in our One God. What makes you on the way to be a Muslim (for it is of course a journey), is to bear witness that Muhammad bin Abdullah (s.a.w.s.), is His Messenger.  

Clingy. Numbers are important to me too. Especially yesterday, when I crossed the threshold of 42 into the brand new me of 43 years old. I don't know why, but since hitting 40 I feel like time is accelerating, and I am being flung across the time-space continuum when I am still barely getting over not being a 30-something. Dismayed by the ever increasing numbers of candles on my birthday cake, I am becoming more and more attached to the number One, a.k.a. Allah (s.w.t.), the Most Loving, Most Assuring One. Perhaps not just attached... perhaps even clingy... Oh God! Don't leave me to these distracting and confusing numbers! 

Clingy. You get this way with age. He he he.

One. But numbers can also be good fun (and a good read). For instance, do you know that the number of words that make up The Hobbit bestseller by J.R.R. Tolkien? It is 95,694 words according to Wiki.Answers.Com. And from this same source, I also found out that the number of pages of The Hobbit depends on what edition you have, but they tend to be somewhere in the range of 270 to 330 pages. The reason why I am sharing with you this oh-so-interesting information (wait, wait, don't fall asleep yet!) is because last night Heche gave me my birthday present. It was the entire book printed on a single poster. For a Lord of the Rings acolyte, this is considered Tolkien-nirvana.

You can't read it from this small jpeg, but it's all there... the entire book. The poster is jusr
below 4 feet tall and more than 2 feet wide I reckon. When framed it must be mounted
on a wall in a library. And just when I was thinking of ending my tenancy at the Hermitage in
the Sky, Heche gives me a reason to stay on. There is a library, you see, in the Hermitage.

One But Any Number and Beyond Infinity. We had my (second) birthday dinner at my neighbourhood Mamak (Indian-Muslim) restaurant which is well known more for its location and service than its food or drink (I am being honest here). It is a bare spartan establishment, but I have had many a cuppa there and for this birthday I just wanted something friendly and familiar. So myself, Heche, Fifi, Efa and Kamarul purchased some food from the Ramadan Bazaar and enjoyed a cheerful break-fast there, thanks to the flexible interpretation of the no-outside-food rule by Iqbal the manager. So you see, the number 6 made me very happy yesterday too. For God is indeed the One, but when it comes to blessings, His measure is any number and beyond infinity.

HU. Allah (s.w.t.) is Hu (He). And Hu is He Hu never lets us down... masyaAllah, even if I am just a dog barking at the door of the Master.

Woof Woof!

That is sinner talk to mean "Right now I am simply happy. Thank you."

I was alone in the rain. Then You came and said You were my Friend.

Have a lovely day today, sunshine, and while you are at it, have a nice life too. For only God can truly compensate you for finding a place in your heart for an incorrigible sinner like me. Woof woof!

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

THE COMFORTER, THE MOON AND THE ANSWER - three mirrors of contemplation...

The Comforter. I am most comfortable with my Love for He knows me and my answers. He misses not one nuance in my words, though I may miss it myself. So while others may judge me too quickly, He would not. "Ah, Taufiq... " my Love would say, "I know you too well..." That is my God. How is yours? Is He not one and the same?

The Moon. Tonight the moon is so close to Earth that I think I may find someone sitting under it, holding a rope to the Moon. The man I imagine would smile and say, "Speak BismillahirRahmaniRahim* and climb."

The Answer. To most questions that you may ask me tonight, I may reply yes or no. Stay or go. Do or do not. And both types of answers are valid and feasible. For I cannot create your world for you. So marry her or leave her! Migrate or stay put. Choose the coffee or the tea! Choose envy or choose me! For in this journey the end is not as important as me! Who am I? Let the speaker be clear... for I am 'Me' - the Delight of your Soul if you but knew a little of you. There is the beginning of your journey.

Have a lovely Wednesday, sunshine. The air is a little clearer today, alhamdulillah (God be praised!).

wa min Allah at-taufiq

*In the Name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

A Cup Full - the importance of not knowing, to be desired by the Knower and He Who is Ever-Aware!

Knowing Nothing

I don't know,

I don't know,

I don't know,

That should be your constant refrain,

Your continuing recitation,

In your every waking moment,

And as you fall asleep.

So that the Lord might take pity on you,

O' empty vessel, o' hollow shell...

This is Who I am,

This is who you are,

This is Who I am,

This is who you are...

O' you who knew nothing

Until I came and filled your cup of life

With meaning!

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

Labels. My dear friends. Do not be deceived by the classification and labeling of knowledge. For however that knowledge is clothed, it comes from the single source of all knowledge, the Creator and Knower of all things, that being Allah (s.w.t.). It may be dressed in the physical sciences, it may be dressed in the art of beauty and form, it may be mathematical, it may be astronomy, music or the economy. But however and whatever you may have experienced in life, to the Ocean of God do all human knowledge and experiences flow to and from.

A Cup Full. To know nothing is all about adab (good manners). If your cup is full, who will fill it? Oh no, you have already seen and read it all. What is there left to teach you, when your ego has taught you well already? Oh Allah the Most Compassionate, may You support us to reject the hubris of our own thoughts and ego.

For some people, there is no need for the presence of anyone else to illicit and provoke their ego. Even alone, humility is hard to grasp as they struggle and wrestle with their ego. And their ego is laughing, "Ha ha ha! You fight me as if I am tangible and real!"

Alone or in a crowd, we seek shelter in the Love and Compelling Power of Allah (s.w.t.), and we seek support from those who love us more than we can ever love ourselves... our Beloved Prophet, Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), His Companions and His Saints. In truth, if there is any real substance, they are our substance, our guide and our meaning, the dictionary and the grammar by which we seek to speak the Language of the Soul, the Language of Love of Allah (s.w.t.), a Love Compelling and Certain beyond human reckoning.

God bless you, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

I AM LOOKING FOR 'I' - a sinner in a hermitage in the sky

I looking for 'I'

I am looking for 'I',

Leaving my home to look for home,

I am looking for 'I',

Leaving myself to find myself,

I am looking for 'I',

So God shan't sigh,

"My dear old chum, 

You never even tried."

I am looking for 'I'

And leaving my 'I'ness behind,

So look for me, my friend,

At the Hermitage in the Sky.

Hermitage in the Sky. Over the past couple of weeks, the sinner (that is me, a regular old sinner, nothing extraordinary) was considering taking an apartment in the area of Damansara Damai which is, I reckon about 1 hour plus drive (during rush hour) or a mere 15 minutes away (at any other time) from my lifelong neighbourhood of Bukit Damansara. So after much thought, I have decided to take the place for one month trial period. Most landlords would balk at such a proposal, but I have no landlord, for it is a she, and the landlady is my good friend, Rina.

Early this morning I went over to sweep and mop the first floor before going to the office. Let me tell you that mopping is no joke. Mop, rinse, mop, rinse, mop, rinse. And it was initially annoying because the floor was dusty and wet, so wherever I mopped I would leave a trail of mucky foot prints all over the place. So I would wipe the foot prints, again and again and again until there was no more trail of dirt on the marbled floor.

Adab of the Mop. And this mop story is important to me because it is a reflection of life. Often we look at other people and see dirt and stains on their character, and we are resolved to rehabilitate these poor sinners, without noticing the trail of debris and muck we ourselves leave behind in 'helping' them. Because we are not helping actually, but in truth, judging. When you are alone with a mop your mind wanders. He he he.

I brought Mak Ndak, my late mum's elder sister to see the place last weekend. She said it was kinda far, but she thinks it is pretty. That is good enough for me. As my mother is not around anymore, it is important that I have her blessings, albeit my stay may only be a while...

About this transition, I am both happy and sad. Which, when you think of the state of the world, ain't really too bad.

See you at the hermitage, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

Missing you, remembering you - under a sky rent asunder by the light of love

Missing you, Remember you

When I cry,

It is not me alone crying,

But the Earth, the Sky and the Moon,

Missing you.

When I remember you,

It is not me alone remembering,

But the Earth, the Sky and the Moon,

Remembering you.

When I collect beautiful memories,

It is in reality Truth that I collect,

And the most beautiful memory

That I possess is you.

Love, what be the reasons

For our separation?

Save that I might yearn for you.

And from a distance 

That I might remember you.

Knowing that

You would never forsake me.

No matter how far my sins or piety may take me. 

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

It is May Day today, a public holiday celebrating the contribution of workers the world over. I reckon that most workers are taking the opportunity to sleep in this morning. But for me my real passion continues - remembering and writing - Taking ink from the velvet blue sky, rent asunder by the light of love that touches the nib of my pen.

Have a lovely holiday, sunshine. And remember me in your prayers please, for the sake of Him that we adore above all else.  

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way