THE TREE OF MUHAMMAD

The Tree of Muhammad

I am a tree,

And I have been created

Complete in my perfection,

You may take sustenance from 

My deepest roots to the highest

Leaf or flower that bloom from me,

You may pick my low lying fruits,

You may take shelter beneath me 

From the heat of the sun

From the wetness of the rain,

And from the hubris of men,

You may approach me from 

Any direction, and along any path,

For I am created to endure 

And for as long as the forest remains

I shall always be here, waiting for you,

Indeed, by my Most Merciful Lord,

I was created that you may be created,

And If you think your desire and longing for me is great,

Lo, You will not bear to know my desire

And longing for you!

Who will come to me?

Who will sit under my shade?

Who will rest his weary troubles on me?

Who will share my fruits and my nectar?

Who will take delight in my company?

........................ 

What is a tree? It is a living breathing organism without whom we would perish and this world would be a dead soulless planet. Yesterday morning Heche and me were buying breakfast from a street pedlar who was selling his nasi lemak under a tree by a busy suburban street. As I was waiting for Heche to complete our transaction I stood next to the tree and wondered in my wandering whim, "How many countless people have passed you by, o' Tree, barely noticing your existence, yet taking shelter beneath your rich green foliage?"

As we rush through our daily life, filled with distractions and illusions of this world, we often forget what truly matters. I thanked the tree for giving me a shade, and gently pressed my palm against its brittle grey bark. In the name of God that made you, thank you! In the name of the Prophet, thank you for your beauty!

Sarawak. When I was away in Sarawak, I was often close to tears. Not out of sadness, but joy. And a sense of overwhelming thankfulness for being surrounded by my beautiful friends, and beautiful trees. Arriving early in the town of Kuching I was brought to a cemetery near my friend's house to visit his late father, grandparents and great grandfather.

There, nestled among the shrubbery and trees, I found his ancestors's graves and the historical link to a beautiful history.  And I, Taufiq the recalcitrant sinner, playing an unlikely part in my friend's own story.  Winding through history like a path through the spiritual station of honoured ones, we find ourselves here today - somewhere in the most beautiful lore of the Prophet Muhammad (saws). Thus, our sincere prayers is that Allah (swt) shall allow us to contribute a chapter to His Habibullah's (saws) story, whether as a beautiful rose or even a fern or a humble blade of grass or moss... That is enough already.

Don't you agree, sunshine?

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

THE SYARIA AND HUDUD, The Prose (Part 1)

The Syaria (The Journey, the Garden and the Fruit)

I saw a journey,

Where I saw you, and I saw myself,

And along the path there were

Beautiful places to rest,

Restful places to ponder God,

As Love, as Life, as the Sustainer

And the Only Nourisher,

I saw goodness and kindness,

Compassion for humanity,

For the birds and the animals,

For even the rocks and water

That filled the mountains and valleys,

And above us in the journey,

Is a constant sky of guiding stars,

As we discover along the many stations,

More and more knowledge of the universe,

But always, subservient in its synchronicity

With the Universal Truth of God...

Thou Most Beautiful, Most Lovely!

And the road on which the journey

Begins and ends...

It was known as the Syaria.

I saw a garden, a paradise,

Wonderous in its colours,

Glorious in its breadth,

As if the Creator Himself

Has taken the trouble 

To paint each petal of flower,

Each pebble in a glistening stream,

With His own beauty and wisdom,
Each creature and creation,
Competing in fierce rivalry,
To best praise God...
Thou Most Compassionate, Utmost in Mercy!

And around the garden stood fences,

White as light, bright as a thousand suns,

And the fences were also known

As the Syaria,

I saw in the blessed garden a fruit,

And the fruit was nourishing,

It was delightful and tasteful

Whatever your taste may be,

It was good for you,

And it was good for me,

The inside of the fruit changes in colour

According to your needs and fancy,

Its texture can be hard or soft,

And according to your need, crumbly or fleshy,
Nourishing you from the beginning to the end,
An assurance from garden of the Almighty...
Thou Most Companionable, Thou Best of Hosts,
Thou Friend of Friends!

And the protective skin of the fruit,
Keeping the flesh pure and pristine,
Shining in the garden like a beacon
Guiding our wavering, floundering conscience,

That too was known as the Syaria.

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

This is a longish tale, so forgive the sinner if he spreads his wings over a couple of postings. But I think it is worthwhile expanding our contemplation a little... Hope you are all having an awesome Ramadan Kareem...

wa min Allah at-taufiq

-Notrumi Embun, 14th July 2014

Hate has no place in Islam
Love will show the Way

THE HOUSE OF A FRIEND IN JANDA BAIK... and the Reality that you choose, and that has chosen you

"It is so green here, Papa."

After 2 weeks of no-holiday-holiday (according to Mikhail), we finally managed to break the grip of endless tuitions (for him) and work (for myself) to escape the city and make our way up to Janda Baik, that idyllic little village nesting in the hills outside Kuala Lumpur.

Nothing to do but lie in bed with the laptop. But to be honest we just spent a short time
in the room before heading out to explore the resort.

There is a small balcony fronting the lake which is actually pool-sized. But the fishes
make a happy company, coming under the balcony hoping to be fed whenever you
venture out. Can they see us from down there, or do they have another sense
that alerts them to the presence of an obliging human?

The flowers are in full bloom up here in Janda Baik.
This giant yellomindus blimeyidontknowthenamus
is at least 3 inches long from stem to petal.

We headed to a nearby house of a Friend. Another friend is caretaker but he was not
at home. Mikhail tried to make friends with the many(many) cats of the house. But
he observed, "These village cats are different. They are not so friendly." 

We got lost looking for the family retreat of another friend, Sheik Feisal Bajrai. With
almost zero network in some parts of the village, it was difficult going. But next morning
we woke up early and found the house. The gate was shut, but Mika opened it and we happily
trespassed in. I walked around the back and found Feisal's mum and dad and a Singaporean
relative having early coffee. Uncle Bajrai invited us in, and they fed us fried rice.
This is what you call Hadramaut hospitality. He he he.

We brought our bow and arrows, so after breakfast we set for some serious play at archery.
For almost 2 hours, I reckoned, we shot arrows, together with Feisal's relations from
Temasek. Balqies, his daughter also joined in the fray. I am happy to say that the new
45 pounder bow excelled! Feisal showed me his 60 pounder whose strings I could
barely budge. What a beautiful morning in their 1.4 acre estate... lovely.

After the easy archery exercise, we bade our gratitude and farewell to the Bajrais
before heading back to the House of a Friend. And again, we missed our custodian
friend, Tutak. But we did not mind much. We sat around under the ancient house and
Mikhail made friends successfully this time with his cats. Nothing better than a little
bribe to seal a friendship, I always believe. He he he.

It seemed a sin not to stop by the streams that run through the village.
So on the way back we took a break by a nice bend of river and Mikhail played
in the shallows. Unfortunately the shorts he wore was not meant for such
aquatic fun and kept dropping down. He was mooning everyone there. And I
was constantly shouting to him without any effect, "Pull your pants up, Mika!!"

Well, that's my short record of our road trip, sunshine. My final observation is the many, many sightings of moths, butterflies and dragonflies through out the trip. They were everywhere, hovering and buzzing about, their wings flapping energetically in the breeze. With each flap of their wing, a dzikr (remembrance) of Allah's (swt) name can be heard, but even more, can be seen. You just need a little of that God-given imagination of yours to realise the manifestation of love that is welling up in your heart. And of course, if you have asked God for your firstborn to be a tasbih (rosary) to ever remind you of Him and His Beloved Muhammad (saws), it is no mere imagination. 

It is the Reality you choose, and the Reality that has chosen you.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

-Notrumi Embun, 12th June 2014

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

HAPPINESS & THE SWEETNESS OF SERVANTHOOD -being a slave to God all-Eternal vs being a slave to logos

Happiness & the Sweetness of Servanthood
Why pursue happiness,
When happiness itself will pursue you
If you devote yourself to
The sweetness of servanthood?
.......................

Slave to the Logos. I have been selling myself short, sunshine. The fool that I am, to be hoodwinked by this world, and by the wasteful consumer society that we have become. To become a slave to the logos, brands, trends, fads, and the illusion of human progress. 

A very, very smart lady who has written a best-selling book on
advertising and consumerism. Worth a read, I reckon.

The Meaning of Happiness. So we seek happiness by buying whatever Madison Avenue advertising companies are selling, and by voting whatever faddish trends are being promoted by politicians. But what is the happiness we find? Is the happiness being sold by the corporations and politicians permanent and completely fulfilling? Or is it really a temporary form of self gratification?

As one servant to another, help me...

Transient Nature. By the nature of everything conceived in Creation, it is all transient. So your feeling of joy at getting the latest iPhone, or satisfaction by voting in the most attractive candidate into office are both transient, temporary emotions. 

In this World and in the Hereafter. If we seek contentment (as opposed to gratification), it is useless to try and plant our hopes on our turbulent emotions and feelings. For they rise and ebb according to our circumstances at any given moment. That is why, our Beloved Prophet Muhammad (saws) has brought the ideal of servanthood into our central core of living - servanthood to humanity, animals, the natural world and ultimately, to our One Creator, God.

As a typical consumer, I am greatly distracted from servanthood by my own selfish need for gratification. But then, I am not the sort to leave 'civilization' and bunker down in some cave up some lonely mountain. So a sense of proportions and balance must be achieved. This, I cannot do alone...

Help me and pray for me always, sunshine. I am in need of your good wishes and good examples.

I ask this of you, as one servant to another...

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

THE CANVAS OF LOVE UPON WHICH GOD PAINTS AND PAINTS AND PAINTS...

You Cannot
You cannot find me here,
I am a lost soul, drowning
In the Sea of His Mercy,

You cannot speak to me here,
I am deaf to everything that speaks
Save for those who extol His Majesty
And the virtues of His Prophet of Mercy,

You cannot hold me here,
My spirit is ever seeking to free itself
From this worldly body,

You cannot understand me,
For I am bereft of understanding,
Knowledge of my true self being
With my One King,

You cannot see me,
For I am the veiled light,
I am the forgotten wanderer,
And I am veiled from myself
Lest my mind becomes my teacher,

You cannot make me despair,
For I am neither here nor there,
I am in a place without time or space,
And I wear many secret names 
And faces.
......................

Beginnings and Endings. This is not the end of a conversation, and neither is this a beginning. Whether it is yesterday, today or tomorrow, we are all part of a story devised by God Almighty for His pleasure. Thank God for God, that in whatever He may have planned for us, He plans with a love beyond mortal words to utter, with the certainty of a goodly beginning and ending, though God's divine plans are not encompassed by mere human concepts of beginnings and endings as we think them to be.

The Assurance of Muhammad. The assurance for humanity is that His own Beloved, Muhammad Habibullah (saws) is the epicentre and catalyst of His creation... the canvas of love upon which God paints and paints with unimaginable mercy, kindness and utter beauty.

And happily, despite what the news, world history or your weighing scale may suggest... you are a beautiful part of it, sunshine! 

alhamdulillah!

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

THE DESERT IS COMING UNLESS WE CHANGE. BEGINNING WITH THE MOSQUE - The Ramadan Story, Part 10

My Paradise is My Mosque

There is no desert in my heart. 

For my land is a rainforest, full of tropical trees, flower and fauna. 

Green rivers and streams meander across my heart from the hills that dot my land. 

Valleys and ravines follow the water, clean and pure like the rain 

That showers regularly on the emerald roof of the jungle. 

Birds and mousedeers, tigers and elephants co-habitat, flowers, leaves 

And fruits of wondrous variety, colour and benefit hang from the branches 

Waiting for my eye and ministration. 

For I am not only the master of my heart and my land,

I am also its custodian and servant. 

My eyes takes rest and pleasure gazing on this Earth, 

Its riches spilling over into the tenuous civilization raised by Man. 

And were I to build a mosque here, a House of God, 

I would not build high walls to separate the mosque from the forest, 

Nor find the need to decorate it with the pictures of paradise. 

For my land is both my paradise and my mosque 

And wherever I am praying, 

I want to see heaven all around me.

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

God...?

From the Desert I Came. The religion of Islam is often associated with the desert. For it was in the desert dunes of Arabia that the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.) completed the message and deen of Islam, thereby completing the comprehensive beliefs and rites that make up the faith. There is an old saying, which I cannot remember who said it, that God created the forest for Man, but created the desert for Himself. And I guess when you are thinking of setting the atmosphere for contemplation of Man's vulnerability and insignificance, nothing beats a night in the desert, alone with a billion stars twinkling in the heavens above. Questions like "Who am I?'', "Why am I here?" and "Who is out there?" will come to your heart as naturally as breathing.

The Arabian Heaven. The Umayyad Mosque in Damascus is not one of the three Great Mosques of Islam (the Masijidil Haram in Mecca, the Masjid Nabi in Medina and the al-Aqsa in Jerusalem), but in context of the End of Time sequence, it will play a significant role because it is here that Muslims anticipate the Second Coming of Jesus (Isa a.s.). But my interest in the Umayyad Mosque is not about its prophetic relevance, but the design. In particular, the interior walls on which is engraved with green and gold depictions of Paradise, of palm trees overflowing with dates, clear blue rivers of Jannah running through the gardens, and mansions and palaces on the hills for the believers. It is a religious propaganda (and I mean this well) and a spiritual assurance for the believers, as they pray, rest and learn beneath the pillars of the Mosque, a visual persuasion playing upon the Arab's ideal of paradise... "Ah, lovely, beautiful, inspiring..." they must be thinking.

The Tropical Paradise. But it is a little different here. For in Malaysia, as in most tropical and equatorial regions, there is no desert. There is no sand dunes or far-off desert horizons to inspire us. The forest and the jungle is right next door. And some of us ethnic aboriginals even live in the jungle. Tall rain forest trees of hundred years old tower over dense undergrowth. And through them run gentle streams and rivers full of fish, turtles and even alligators. Is this not paradise (well, sans the mosquitoes, alligators, tigers and leeches!) already? So even if you are expelled from your village, in days of yore, you would not starve to death. You will undoubtedly be inconvenienced, but you will live. (My little caveat here is that this might not be the case now for soft, fleshy city folks like me... I would probably misstep and fall into a ravine within hours. And get eaten by tigers. But you get the picture)

An Architectural Proposition for the Mosque. I am not an architect, so all I can venture is a proposition for an open concept Mosque which sits in sympathy with its tropical surroundings. It can be of any size, but the surroundings must be a tropical garden and a running stream drifting around the mosque and perhaps even through it. And the view from inside the mosque must rest upon the bountiful brilliance of the rain forest however far the congregation can see. The mosque must be built with wood and stone, with river pebbles shining darkly from the lower part of the walls while timbered pillars rise up to the wooden beamed roof. But from within the mosque, one ought to be able to see and hear the surrounding garden with its crickets and frogs. Especially at night. After all, the sound of nature is the sound of dzikr (recitation and remembrance of God's Names)

Shutting out Paradise. One of the reason why the proposition encompasses the outside surroundings of the mosque is because the truth is Muslims have been too lazy in caring and nurturing the environment. The mosque should not be a building to shut out the world and dream for paradise. Especially not in this tropical country. Not when just outside most mosques and suraus (small mosques), we find litter, pollution, environmental destruction and ecological disasters staring in the face of the Ummah (the Muslim nation). 

The Desert is Coming. So in reality are we shutting out the outside world because we cannot now bear to look upon the handiwork of our modern society on this paradise garden that we have been given? Are we turning our beautiful forests and jungles into deserts? If so, then we need not wait too long. The desert is coming if we do not change our ways.

Beginning with the Mosque. I reckon we can begin to accept our responsibility for the Earth this way - From the mosque, and if we believe in Allah (s.w.t.) and the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), from our conscience which must always be in sympathy for all of creation and all of God's creatures that we share this planet with. 

I think that this makes more sense than all the political and often violent upheavals that are presently besieging the Ummah. After all, what is the point of Islam in a world already despoiled and destroyed..? 

Don't you agree, sunshine?

Wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way  

BIG FAT CLOUDS - clouds, kittens and a 9-years old son seeking a restraining order against his mother

Distant Thunder
I hear the rumbling of a distant thunder,
Light is veiled behind a plume of cloud,
But rain is come
The seeker is now the sought
The lover is now the loved
Woe that I was ever in doubt!

Big Fat Clouds... this is the skyscape that was sorely missed by me and my
countrymen during the choking, bitter hazy days a couple of weeks ago when some
parts of Malaysia hit 400 on the API (Air Pollution Index). Back then we saw no
clouds, in fact not even the Sun, as a blanket of smoke blocked our view of the sky...
I felt like the haze descended on my very spirit and felt physically and
spiritually lethargic.

I guess telecommunication towers are a necessary evil in a developing country like
mine, but it does make one hill look the same as the next. 

The clouds drifted so close to the Hermitage in the Sky that I felt like I could
simply lean over the balcony and touch the wispy white water particles. 

I was bewitched by the evening clouds, and I thought I have never seen anything quite as lovely and reassuring as they floated near and around me. The haze and smog was a memory and perhaps a lesson that we ought not to take nature and its manifest beauty for granted. I reckon that is what God wants to remind us of. Don't you?

Before I left from the office, I detoured at the coffee shop beneath my
office. And there was a kitten, wandering around looking about in the
curious way that kittens do. It climbed on my lap and gazed at my face
with that pleading hungry cat's eyes.

Where is the mommy? That is what I would like to know... And I think
it is also asking the same question... "Have you seen my mommy?"

I am actually writing this at the very same coffee shop. But I haven't seen the kitten since that day, I hope it is alright... though doubt shadows my heart. Kittens have such a high mortality rate. *Sigh*

Mikhail (my 9 year old son): Papa... I can't stand doing revision with Mummy!
Me: Why is that? Mikhail: It is worse than school!! She would tell me to read this, do that... and
then she would go to sleep, or watch TV or play on her iPad! 

Mikhail: Do you think I can get a Restraining Order

against Mummy on the Internet?

Me: Hmm... you can try.

I don't know where Mika learned about Restraining Orders! But he has the mechanics of the judicial order correct and said that he wanted to restrain his mother from coming within 100 metres of him.

Setting Sun on the Hermitage. The low clouds have mostly marched
eastwards, and in the distance I could hear thunder. 

Have a pleasant Friday, sunshine. And if you are where the air is fresh and clean, count your blessings with each breath... Allah... Allah... Allah... 

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

ON THIS DAY WHEN THE SUN IS RED - farming, the haze and our greed and consumerism

Nothing seem to us more natural than farming. After all, our ancestors have been doing it since the first time they noticed how the sapling shoot out of the ground. With attention and care, they manage to replicate what mother nature does, but on a bigger scale.

Management of a Disturbed Eco-system. But truth be told, farming is anything but natural. As a professor cousin of mine once said, "Farming is the management of a disturbed eco-system". For you see, nature (naturally) doesn't want to create a mono-crop valley or meadow. Nature wants all sorts of crop and plants to grow, wherever and however it wants to. Nature doesn't need to answer to an annual general meeting of its shareholders, and explain why its profit has not increased this year. 

The Haze. One day perhaps, we shall look into the intensive farming industry and how it is generally affecting our world. But for today my focus is on The Haze. No, nature did not intend this for it is wholly man-made. The Haze has become an annual event here in south east asia, but most affected countries are Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia. I have to focus on it because the acrid smell is everywhere. And if you can smell the smoke even in your washroom, you know that it must be very bad outdoors.

The Haze appears to be coming from the slash and burn clearing of forests in Indonesia, commonly in Sumatera and Kalimantan. And while we understand the Indonesians placing some of the blame on Malaysian and Singaporean multinational oil palm companies operating in the republic, ultimately the issue resides in the sovereign country of Indonesia and involves legal enforcement of its local laws. 

Indonesia. At the end of the day, Indonesia often considers itself the big brother of the south east asian region. Largest and most populated country here. But there is little point being touchy or sensitive about The Haze, when there is little doubt where The Haze originates from. Malaysian and Singaporean firms operate in Indonesia because Indonesia has a lot of land and labour, and I guess is relatively cost-effective to develop compared to other countries. If there are environmental laws that govern the problem of slash and burn clearing of forests or plantations, there is no other authority that can enforce the law but the Indonesian government.

A Symptom. The Indonesians are correct in that there must be some blaming finger pointing at the multinational mega-corporations. But the truth is that under the fiat (paper) money system and the overwhelming usurious global banking and credit system, megacorporations are animals bred to maximise profit, at whatever the cost to the environment. And the government of Indonesia, just like the governments of Malaysia and Singapore, are willing participants in this credit-consumer driven casino.

The Haze is a reflection of the human spirit, and in this context should we be surprised that we are reaping the firestorm of our greed and ostentatious consumerism? 

Something to think about, sunshine... on this day when the sun is red.

May Allah (s.w.t.) not leave humanity to our caprice. We seek guidance and support always from the Prophet of the Middle Path, Muhammad Habibullah (s.a.w.s.),

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

THE VERSES OF THE KING - my Liege with limitless reach and my Liege Love

Life is a journey in the understanding of His Love. And however far
we may drift, help is always at hand. Don't worry.

My Liege With His Limitless Reach

Does being a sinner mean that I cannot talk of You?

Do I need to be good to yearn for something good?

But if I am already good why would I need You at all?

And if I am already strong to whom would I need to belong?

You made me and you call upon me to talk to You...

So why do they say that I cannot talk of You?

Why do they say that I don't know what I am talking about?

That in truth I am a fool and a sinner and that

I don't know You at all...

But I know You. You made me. 

And I know that You love me and will forever 

Listen to me whenever I call You, 

Wherever and however my state may be. 

I was made to adore You and sing Your praise... 

You, in Your absolute oneness and beyond comparison 

Of anything known and unknown. 

You in the constancy of affection for me, 

You in Your untroubled ministration of me. 

So if I am to be forever known as a sinner and a weak believer, 

Then I am forever pleased to be known as Your sinner and Your weak believer. 

You, and Your love and mercy is without compare,

Of your doubters why should I ever care? 

Hide me, my Liege! 

From the doubters and from my own recklessness. 

I know there is no limit to Your reach!

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

Words. We shouldn't need to distinguish our words from our own selves. But sometimes there is a little bridge for us to cross. A little journey for us to undertake. To set sail our soul upon this ego-world full of trials and tribulations. Yet, we should not fear this world at all, but fear instead of falling away from His Love and Pleasure, from His Presence and Ministration.

Our misspoken words often lead us astray, but Muhammad is the Lord's Mercy
to all the worlds - and this includes rescuing the straying sheep. 

But honestly. If we hear a fool, a wretch of of man, a person of dubious appearance talking of God and His Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s.), so we should stay our judgment and permit him to say whatever he wishes. And if what he says is good and sincere, where is the wrong in his conduct? Yes, perhaps he is not the best representation of what a Muslim can be, but honestly, are we?

My Liege Love,

I know You send me 

A little sorrow, a little pain

To make this nightingale sing

His need for You in his

Nightly refrain,

Then You send me

Great joy and unimaginable pleasure

To make this nightingale sing

His cosmic happiness with

Reckless certainty!

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

The Way of the Prophet is the way of nature, to make humanity  a good
trustee of this world and all of its inhabitants, both seen and unseen.

A Love in Form and Essence. To love Allah(s.w.t.) and His Muhammad Habibullah (s.a.w.s.) sometimes appear to us as a challenge, some great crusade jihad for us to perform. But the truth is Islam, this greatest Gift of Adab (good manners) offered to humanity through the subtle hand of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.s) is the most natural thing for our soul to accept - Like rain falling, like the ants running up the bark of a tree, like the wind carrying the scent of spring flowers, like the cry of a newborn child, like the first kiss upon your bride's velvet lips... to accept Islam is to accept the embrace of the universe in its zahir (form) and batin (essence).

A universe born upon the Love Eternal between God Most Compassionate and Most Merciful for His Beloved (s.a.w.s.), to whom we all belong.

Have a lovely day, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way

DEATH AND THE DIVINE INTERCESSIONS - karma, trees and this wonderous kaleidoscope of creation...

Death and Divine Intercession

Death is not a veil,

Life is,

And to pass away is

To lift the veil for that

Long-awaited union with

God the All-Beautiful and

Most Desirable above all,

Winning through with the intercessions 

Of Muhammad Habibullah,

The most cherished hope glittering

In the crown of hopes bestowed by God

To humanity, God's Own anointed

Mercy to all the worlds...

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

There is no better way. No more fitting manner by which we can live this life - with the unbelievable varieties of plants, animals and living beings, all forms of tests, trials and tribulations, an infinite scope of happiness, joy and unadulterated rapture, with all of the vast expanse of humanity, friends, families, peers and lovers... There is no better way to journey through this kaleidoscope of creation, than by preparing oneself for the lifting of the veil that Man calls death.

Hidden in a prophetic quote (that I have used before) is the explanation to this preparatory and transient nature of this world, for God's Beloved, Muhammad (s.a.w.s) once shared that...

"There are no trees in heaven. You must plant them yourselves..."

So may God bless all gardeners, farmers and greenthumbs.

My late mother loved gardening. On the 10th anniversary of her
lifting of the veil last year, we arranged this ornamental water-pail
with bright yellow roses to decorate her maqam.
al fatiha

Have a perfectly nice day, sunshine.

wa min Allah at-taufiq

Hate has no place in Islam

Love will show the Way