Al-Hikam

Alhamdulillah, tonight we completed Chapter VII of Al-Hikam by Ibn 'Ata'illah. The major themes in this chapter deals with raising the himma, being grateful for blessings, having good adab in service, and the resolve to move from constant service to love and gnosis. When Allah wants to choose a slave for His gnosis and to move him from the toil of His service, He strengthens him by divine waridat which attract him to the Presence of the Lord. They are gifts, not acquisitions obtained by actions or devices.

Chapter VII.

And he said (may Allah be pleased with him!):

60. Were it not for the seeds of ambitious desire [tama‘], the branches of disgrace [aghsan dhull] would not be lofty.

61. Nothings leads you like suspicion [al-wahm].

62. In your despairing, you are a free man [hurr]; but in your coveting, you are a slave [‘abd].

63. Whoever does not draw near to Allah as a result of the caresses of love [mulatafat al-ihsan] is shackled to Him with the chains of misfortune [salasil al-imtihan].

64. Whoever is not thankful for graces [an-ni‘am] runs the risk of losing them, and whoever is thankful fetters them with their own cords.

65. Be fearful lest the existence of His generosity towards you and the permanence of your bad behavior towards Him not lead you step by step to ruin. “We shall lead them to ruin step by step from whence they know not.”

66. It is ignorance on the part of the novice [murid] to act improperly, and then, his punishment being delayed, to say, “If this had been improper conduct, He would have cut off help [imdad] and imposed exile [bi‘ad].” Help [al-madad] could be cut off from him without his being aware of it, if only by blocking its increase [al-mazid]. And it could be that you are made to abide at a distance [al-bu‘d] without your knowing it, if only by His leaving you to do as you like.

67. If you see a servant whom Allah has made to abide in the recitation of litanies [al-awrad] and prolonged His help therein, do not disdain what his Lord has given him on the score that you do not detect the signs of Gnostics [siyamu’l-‘arifin] on him nor the splendor of Allah’s lovers [bahjat al-muhibbin]. For had there not been an inspiration [warid], there would have been no litany [wird].

68. Allah makes some people abide in the service of Him [li-khidmatihi], and He singles out others to love Him [bi-mahabbatihi]. “All do we aid - these as well as those - out of the bounty of thy Lord, and the bounty of thy Lord is not limited.”

... Al-Hikam, ibn 'Ata'illah As-Sakandari

Twenty Cents

Several years ago an Imam moved to a new town. He often took the bus from his home to the downtown area. Some weeks after he arrived, he had occasion to ride the same bus. When he sat down, he discovered that the driver had accidentally given him twenty cents too much change. As he considered what to do, he thought to himself: “You better give the twenty cents back. It would be wrong to keep it. Then he thought, oh forget it, it’s only twenty cents. Who would worry about this little amount? Anyway, the bus company already gets too much fare; they will never miss it. Accept it as a gift from Almighty Allah and keep quite.” 

When his stop came, the Imam paused momentarily at the door, and then he handed the twenty cents back to the driver and said “Here, you gave me too much change.”

The driver with a smile replied: “Aren’t you the new Imam in this area? I have been thinking lately about going to worship at your mosque. I just wanted to see what you would do if I gave you too much change.” When the Imam stepped off the bus, his knees became weak and soft. He had to grab the nearest light pole and held for support, and looked up to the heavens and cried: “Oh Allah, I almost sold Islam for twenty cents!”

Moral: Remember, we may never see the impact our actions have on people. Sometimes we are the only knowledge of Quran someone will read, or the only Islam a non-Muslim will see. What we need to provide is an example for others to see. Be conscious, be careful, be honest, be true, be sincere - every breathing moment.

Goodbyes

"I've had to say good bye more times than I would have like, but everyone can say that. And no matter how many times we do it even when its for the greater good, it still stings. And though we'll never forget what we've given up, we owe it to ourselves to keep moving forward. But what we can't do is live our lives always afraid of the next goodbye because chances are, they are not going to stop. The trick is to recognize when a good bye can be a good thing: when it's a chance to start again."

... Ugly Betty, Season 4 Ep 10

Wherever Your Heart Is, That Is Where You'll Find Your Treasure

“His heart was never quiet, even when the boy and the alchemist had fallen into silence. “Why do we have to listen to our hearts?” the boy asked, when they had made camp that day. “Because, wherever your heart is, that is where you’ll find your treasure.” “But my heart is agitated,” the boy said. “It has its dreams, it gets emotional, and it’s become passionate over a woman of the desert. It asks things of me, and it keeps me from sleeping many nights, when I’m thinking about her.” “Well, that’s good. Your heart is alive. Keep listening to what it has to say.”….”My heart is a traitor,” the boy said to the alchemist when they had paused to rest the horses. “It doesn’t want me to go on.” “That makes sense,” the alchemist answered. “Naturally it’s afraid that, in pursuing your dream, you might lose everything you’ve won.” “Well, then, why should I listen to my heart?” “Because you will never again be able to keep it quiet. Even if you pretend not to have heard what it tells you, it will always be there inside you, repeating to you what you’re thinking about life and about the world. “You mean I should listen, even if it’s treasonous?” “Treason is a blow that comes unexpectedly. If you know your heart well, it will never be able to do that to you. Because you’ll know its dreams and wishes, and will know how to deal with them. You will never be able to escape from your heart. So it’s better to listen to what it has to say. That way, you’ll never have to fear an unanticipated blow”

“Tell your heart that the fear of suffering is worse than the suffering itself. And that no heart has ever suffered when it goes in search of its dreams, because every second of the search is a second’s encounter with God and with eternity.” “Every second of the search is an encounter with God,” the boy told his heart. “When I have been truly searching for my treasure, every day has been luminous, because I’ve known that every hour was a part of the dream that I would find it. When I have been truly searching for my treasure, I’ve discovered things along the way that I never would have seen had I not had the courage to try things that seemed impossible for a shepherd to achieve.” So his heart was quiet for an entire afternoon. That night, the boy slept deeply, and, when he awoke, his heart began to tell him things that came from the Soul of the World. It said that all people who are happy have God within them. And that happiness could be found in a grain of sand from the desert, as the alchemist had said. Because a grain of sand is a moment of creation, and the universe has taken millions of years to create it. “Everyone on earth has a treasure that awaits him,” his heart said. “We, people’s hearts, seldom say much about those treasures, because people no longer whant to go in search of them. We speak of them only to children. Later, we simply let life proceed, in its own direction, toward its own fate. But, unfortunately, very few follow the path laid out for them – the path to their Personal Legends, and to happiness. Most people see the world as a threatening place, and, because they do, the world turns out, indeed, to be a threatening place. “So, we, their hearts, speak more and more softly. We never stop speaking out, but we begin to hope that our words won’t be heard: we don’t want people to suffer because they don’t follow their hearts.” “why don’t people’s hearts tell them to continue to follow their dreams?” the boy asked the alchemist. “Because that’s what makes the heart suffer most, and hearts don’t like to suffer.” From then on, the boy understood his heart. He asked it, please, never stop speaking to him. He asked that, when he wandered far from his dreams, his heart press him and sound the alarm. The boy swore that, every time he heard the alarm, he would heed its message. That night, he told all of this to the alchemist. And the alchemist understood that the boy’s heart had returned to the Soul of the World.“

“This is why alchemy exists,” the boy said. “So that everyone will search for his treasure, find it, and then want to be better than he was in his former life. Lead will play its role until the world has no further need for lead; and then lead will have to turn itself to gold. “That’s what alchemists do. They show that, when we strive to become better than we are, everything around us becomes better, too.” “Well, why did you say that I don’t know about love?” the sun asked the boy. “Because it’s not love to be static like the desert, nor is it love to roam the world like the wind. And it’s not love to see everything from a distance, like you do. Love is the force that transforms and improves the Soul of the World. When I first reached through to it, I thought the Soul of the World was perfect. But later, I could see that it was like other aspects of creation, and had its own passions and wars. It is we who nourish the Soul of the World, and the world we live in with be either better or worse, depending on whether we become better or worse. And that’s where the power of love comes in. Because when we love, we always strive to become better than we are.”

... The Alchemist, Paulo Coelho

Who'll Stop The Rain?

Long as I remember, the rain been coming down.

Clouds of mystery pouring confusion on the ground.

Good men through the ages, trying to find the sun;

And I wonder, still I wonder, who'll stop the rain?...

Heard the singers playing, how we cheered for more.
The crowd then rushed together trying to keep warm.
Still the rain kept pouring, falling on my ears.
And I wonder, still I wonder, who'll stop the rain?

... Courtney Jaye

Hajj - An Inward Voyage

Such a place is held in fear and awe. But in our Abrahamic religion, we move towards that place, through our fear and awe, to find love and stillness. Where the greatest crowds on earth come together, we find peace. The faces of those who have just returned from Hajj reawaken the desire for the House in all who see them. ‘And truly with hardship comes ease.’ Abraham is told this: ‘And announce the Hajj to mankind! They will come on foot, on every lean beast, from every narrow ravine.’ God commanded, and promised; and the Hajj shows how He honours His promises. The ‘valley without crops’ is sterile and austere, ringed by jagged peaks: Uqhuwana, Khandama, Thawr, Hira’. The culmination of Hajj, at Arafat, is the simplest and most ancient of rituals: simply standing ‘where tears fall and prayers rise’, with two million broken hearts. The beauty is in the rigorous ancient austerity of the rites, but also in the faces of a thousand races, all filled, as the sun sets, with the light of knowledge, and the hope for forgiveness.

The City draws in these lovers of God each year, and then sends them home, like a heart pumping blood through the body. Most pilgrims have not come before, and as they approach, chanting the reply to God’s command to Abraham: ‘At Your service, here I am!’, their hearts begin to melt at the unfamiliar sights and rituals. Stripping away all their pretentiousness, they wind on the ihram, as though ready for the grave and its questioning angels. At once, memories long suppressed bubble up to the surface. The light of the Ka’bah makes us see our sins, and as we look within we are horrified by what we see. Forgetfulness, stupidity, laziness, cruelty, and more, in sins repeated year after year. Wrongs never put right, hearts still unhealed, come to mind painfully. The entry to the City is a time of fear, for there is no fear greater than that we might go to our graves unforgiven. The forms of Hajj must be obeyed; but acceptance is God’s alone and is not in our power...

‘The accepted Hajj has no reward other than the Garden’, the hadith tells us. The Hajj is a purgation: uncomfortable and physically exhausting. Following the rules crushes the ego. Once round the Ka’bah can take an hour, but the pilgrim must circle it seven times. The crowds are immense, the heat staggering, the accommodation basic. Many who find a scrap of cardboard on which to sleep consider themselves fortunate. But at the end: a new birth, as the successful pilgrim ‘leaves his sins behind like a newborn child.’

Part of the spiritual power of the Hajj lies in its inculcation of wisdom. We may return to many of our ugly habits. But the memory of a sudden encounter with the ‘clear signs of God’, and of the power of repentance, stays with the pilgrim, as a reminder of the urgency of our need to remain pure of heart, and close to our Lord. Often, decades later, a memory of the Hajj can pull a sinful man or woman out of apparently hopeless vice. In that sense, the Hajj never comes to an end.

... Hajj - An Inward Voyage, Abdal Hakim Murad

Lesson Of Mount Merapi

Abu Huraira reported that the messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “The nearest a servant comes to his Lord is when he is prostrating himself, so make supplication (in this state)”

... Sahih al-Bukhari

... Mbah Marijan was among the victims of the recent eruptions. He was eighty-three years old, and the juri cunci of the volcano, a "guardian of the key," responsible for maintaining a relationship to the spirits of the mountain, and caring for the paths leading from the base to holy places near the summit. He was also one of the local leaders of Nahdlatul Ulama, Indonesia's largest Muslim organization...

I met Mbah Marijan only once, less than two months ago. He was a very deeply religious man in a very Javanese way. He was a pious Muslim and at the same time deeply attached to Javanese tradition. He felt that his fate was closely tied to the mountain, and that he was obligated to remain there no matter what the risk...

It is said that when Mbah Marijan’s body was discovered that he was prostrated in prayer. Many people have mentioned that this is probably how he wanted to die and that it was a good way for a Muslim to die. Many other stories are now circulating about his death. One is that the hot gases came into his house while Mbah Marijan was praying and that they could not enter his room until he had finished. Others state that he was fully aware that he would die as the result of the eruption, and that he chose to remain on the mountain so that his prayers might save others...

Despite dangerous conditions more than a thousand people including national and local political figure, one of the Sultan’s bothers and representatives of major Muslim organizations joined in funeral prayers in the village cemetery near his home. Special prayer services were also held in Jakarta, Indonesia’s capital and in cities and villages across the country. His grave will almost certainly become a pilgrimage site.

The mayor of the village of Umbulharjo, close to Mbah Marijan’s compound stated: “We have lost the figure who has been a ‘role model', who we could always ask for advice. We pray that the spirit Mbah Maridjan is acceptable in the sight of Allah, that his charity and worship be acknowledged and his sins forgiven."

These sentiments have been echoed on testimonials broadcast repeatedly on Indonesian television. The theme of these messages is that the nation has much to learn from his dedication to principle and simple life style. This is often contrasted with the extravagance, corruption and single-minded dedication to self-promotion of political and business elites. Even Islamist groups who normally denounce beliefs like Mbah Marijan’s as “unbelief” rushed to embrace his memory.

This is a face of Islam that people in the United States and other western countries too rarely see. News of Islam too often repeats stereotypes of violence and extremism, projecting the views and acts of a tiny minority onto approximately twenty percent of the world’s population. Mbah Marijan’s Islam was local. Few Muslims outside Yogyakarta share his concern with Merapi.

There are many, including some in Yogyakarta that regard his, and similar local interpretations of Islam as heretical or deviant. This view is especially common among modernists and fundamentalist who tend to understand Islam in global terms and as a single, unified system of doctrine and ritual practice.

There are, at the same time, hundreds of millions of Muslims for whom Islam is as much a local as it is a universal faith and for whom devotion to God and concern with local modes of spiritual and religious practice are inextricably linked.

... Religion Dispatches, Mark Woodward

Of Wasted Time

"Learn to say no to people that are wasting your time. Be polite, but say no. You have your goals, your commitments, and you still take time to be helpful. However everyone has their limits. Learn to say no to those things that are clearly out of your area: you will save time for yourself and you will let the person asking for your help move on to someone that can really help them. Time is all you have, so learn to guard it carefully and of course use it wisely. Say no to people and things when you need to."

... Sixty Seconds To Success, Edward W. Smith

"Dwell not on the past. Use it to illustrate a point, then leave it behind. Nothing really matters except what you do now in this instant of time. From this moment onwards you can be an entirely different person, filled with love and understanding, ready with an outstretched hand, uplifted and positive in every thought and deed."

... Eileen Caddy

"Waste no time on situations that aren't worth your precious time. Lord, may I recognize pettiness for what it is and move on so that my imagination doesn't take over and give pettiness more value than it deserves."

... Author Unknown

"The chief beauty about time is that you cannot waste it in advance. The next year, the next day, the next hour are lying ready for you, as perfect, as unspoiled, as if you had never wasted or misapplied a single moment in all your life. You can turn over a new leaf every hour if you choose."

... Arnold Bennett

The Fault ... Is Not In Our Stars

Why, man, he doth bestride the narrow world

Like a Colossus, and we petty men

Walk under his huge legs and peep about

To find ourselves dishonourable graves.

Men at some time are masters of their fates:

The fault, dear Brutus, is not in our stars,

But in ourselves, that we are underlings.

... Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare

The Quiet Life

Happy the man whose wish and care

A few paternal acres bound,

Content to breathe his native air

In his own ground.

Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,

Whose flocks supply him with attire;

Whose trees in summer yield him shade,

In winter fire.

Blest who can unconcern'dly find

Hours, days, and years slide soft away

In health of body, peace of mind,

Quiet by day,

Sound sleep by night; study and ease

Together mixt, sweet recreation,

And innocence, which most does please

With meditation.

Thus let me live, unseen, unknown;

Thus unlamented let me die;

Steal from the world, and not a stone

Tell where I lie.

... Alexander Pope

Angel

I need some distraction

Oh beautiful release

Memory seeps from my veins

Let me be empty

And weightless and maybe

I'll find some peace tonight

In the arms of an angel

Fly away from here

From this dark cold hotel room

And the endlessness that you fear

You are pulled from the wreckage

Of your silent reverie

You're in the arms of the angel

May you find some comfort there

... Sarah McLachlan

O Soothest Sleep!

O soft embalmer of the still midnight!

Shutting with careful fingers and benign

Our gloom-pleased eyes, embower'd from the light,

Enshaded in forgetfulness divine;

O soothest Sleep! if so it please thee, close,

In midst of this thine hymn, my willing eyes,

Or wait the amen, ere thy poppy throws

Around my bed its lulling charities;

Then save me, or the passèd day will shine

Upon my pillow, breeding many woes;

Save me from curious conscience, that still lords

Its strength for darkness, burrowing like a mole;

Turn the key deftly in the oilèd wards,

And seal the hushèd casket of my soul.

... To Sleep, John Keats

Hope Is The Thing With Feathers

"Hope" is the thing with feathers -

That perches in the soul -

And sings the tune without the words -

And never stops - at all -

And sweetest - in the Gale - is heard -

And sore must be the storm -

That could abash the little Bird

That kept so many warm -

I've heard it in the chillest land -

And on the strangest Sea -

Yet, never, in Extremity,

It asked a crumb - of Me.

... Emily Dickinson

Always On Your Side

Well everything was easy then, so sweet and innocent

My demons and my angels reappeared

Leaving only traces of the man you thought I'd be

Too afraid to hear the words I'd always feared

Leaving you with only questions all these years.

Is there some place far away, some place where all is clear?

Easy to start over with the ones you hold so dear?

Or are you left to wander, all alone, eternally?

This isn't how it's really meant to be

No, it isn't how it's really meant to be.

Well they say that love is in the air, but never is it clear,

How to pull it close and make it stay?

Butterflies are free to fly, and so they fly away

And I'm left to carry on and wonder why

Even through it all, I'm always on your side.

... Sheryl Crow, feat. Sting

Gravity

Something always brings me back to you.

It never takes too long.

No matter what I say or do
I'll still feel you here till the moment I'm gone.

You hold me without touch.

You keep me without chains.

I never wanted anything so much
Than to drown in your love and not feel your rain.

... Sara Bareilles

Ozymandias Of Egypt

I met a traveller from an antique land

Who said:—Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. Near them on the sand,

Half sunk, a shatter'd visage lies, whose frown

And wrinkled lip and sneer of cold command

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive, stamp'd on these lifeless things,

The hand that mock'd them and the heart that fed.

And on the pedestal these words appear:

"My name is Ozymandias, king of kings:

Look on my works, ye mighty, and despair!"

Nothing beside remains: round the decay

Of that colossal wreck, boundless and bare,

The lone and level sands stretch far away.

... Percy B Shelley

Ta'lim al-Muta'allim-Tariq at-Ta'-allum

“In traditional learning circles, the preface or forward of scholars, commentators, annotators etc. placed as addendum to the classical text being studied, are not to be neglected – as these may help to even place us in the proper frame and approach; forewarns us of certain aspects; highlighting to us important background and overview; especially linking what is in the text with relevant contemporary circumstances... Remember and be grateful, for it is there to illuminate and not merely to decorate.”

... Forward by Sheikh Hamza Yusuf Hanson

Earnestness, perseverance, and assiduity are indispensable in the quest for knowledge. This is indicated in the Quran, in the very words of God, the Exalted, Those who have earnestly striven in Our cause, We shall surely guide them to Our ways (29:69); and O John [Yahya], take the Book with power (19:12). It is said that he who seeks something and is industrious [in so doing] shall find it; and he who knocks at the door and is persistent shall enter. And it is said that you will reach what you desire [only] to the extent that you pursue it. It is said as well that the industriousness of three kinds of people is essential in [the pursuit of] knowledge and understanding: the student, the teacher, and the father, if he is among the living.

The most influential factors in [strengthening] memory are industriousness and commitment. Reducing one's consumption, [increasing] prayer at night, and reading the Quran are also factors for [improving] one's memory. It is said that nothing increases memory retention more than reading the Quran silently; and reading the Quran silently is most excellent, for [the Prophet] said, "The most excellent among the works of my community is the reading of the Quran silently." Al-Shaddad ibn Hakim saw one of his deceased brothers in his dream and said to him, "What thing did you find the most useful [for your Afterlife]?" He replied, "Reading the Quran silently." One should say when lifting the Quran, "In the name of God, and glory be to God, and praise be to God, and there is no God but God, and God is the greatest, and there is no power or strength except in God, the Exalted, the Mighty, who knows the number of all the letters that ever were [written] and that ever shall be written throughout the centuries and ages." And let it be said after each prescribed [prayer], "I believe in God, the One, the Unique, the Truth, who has no companion; and I do not believe in any [deity] besides Him." [One] should also pray much [that God send] blessings and peace upon the Prophet (peace be upon him), for he is a mercy for the worlds.

... Ta'lim al-Muta'allim-Tariq at-Ta'-allum, Imam al-Zarnuji

Of Strangers And Return To Being Strange

"Islam began as something strange, and it shall return to being something strange, so give glad tidings to the strangers." It was asked: "O Messenger of Allah! Who are the strangers?" He replied: "Those who perform good deeds while others make mischief."

"The Deen will shrink back to the Hijaz as a snake shrinks back to its hole, and the Deen shall find refuge in the Hijaz in the same manner that mountain-goats find refuge on the tops of mountains. Indeed, the Deen began as something uncommon and strange and it shall certainly return again to be something uncommon and strange. Therefore, Tuba (glad tidings) awaits the strangers, those who have set aright, after I am gone, that of my Sunnah which the people have corrupted."

"A people will come on the Day of Judgment whose light will be like that of the sun. Abu Bakr said: "Will that be us, O Messenger of Allah?" He said: "No, You have a great reward but they will be the poor immigrants who will be raised from all regions of the earth." Then he said: "Blessed are the strangers, blessed are the strangers, and blessed are the strangers." He was asked: "Who are the strangers?" He said: "The righteous people who will be few amongst many bad people; those who disobey them are more than those who obey them.”

Someone Alive

Dear Diary,

I couldn't have been more wrong. I thought that I could smile and nod my way through it. Pretend like it would all be okay.

I had a plan. I wanted to change who I was. Create a life of someone new: someone without the past, without the pain - someone alive.

But its not that easy. The bad things stay with you. They follow you. You can't escape them as much as you want to.

All you can do is be ready for the good. So when it comes, you're invited in because you need it... I need it.

... The Vampire Diaries

The Seventeen Benefits Of Tribulation

The 17 Benefits of Tribulation are:

01) You realize the power of Lordship over you.

02) You realize your object servanthood and your complete state of resignation and brokenness before the will and power of God.

03) Sincerity to God; one has no place of return in putting off or defending against the calamity except to Him. It makes you sincere because the muhsin is the one who call on God without any shirk. A moment of ikhlas in this world is enough to save a person.

04) He returns to God and suddenly is fervent in his desire of his Lord.

05) It leads to a humbled state before God and it leads to prayers (du’a) that you call on God.

06) You’re forbearing towards the One who has afflicted you.

07) You forgive the one who has wronged you.

08) To be patient during the tribulation.

09) To be happy about what’s happening because of those benefits.

10) To be grateful for it.

11) Purification that these calamities have towards peoples’ wrongs and sins.

12) Compassion that God enables you to show to people who are in tribulation and to help them.

13) Tribulation gives you the blessing of having true knowledge of the extent of well-being.

14) God has prepared rewards for the calamities that you’ve beared patiently or with contentment.

15) What is hidden inside the folds of these calamities are blessings.

16) Tribulations prevent you from arrogance.

17) Contentment. Tribulation afflicts the good and the evil (people), whoever doesn’t like it, it’s on Him, he’s lost the dunya and the akhira. Those who are pleased with it, it’s because he knows it, because paradise is better than anything in this world and if these tribulations are what it takes for him to get to paradise, then he’s content with it.

... The Seventeen Benefits Of Tribulations, Al-`Izz Ibn `Abdus-Salam

Le Grand Voyage

What starts out as generational conflict in this movie, ends in understanding, solemnity and grace. The movie meanders through Europe with the father and the young son cramped in a car over 3000 miles. The cramping forces lifestyles, beliefs and life skills to collide. There's really no clear winner. It all adds up in the end as experience: experience of multiple layers of life. For those interested in understanding Islam, this movie offers a generous and gentle outlook, without being pushy about the agenda. It's a coming of age story for the young son, his dismissive and rebellious nature turning to openness for receiving more ways of life.

The route taken by the father and son goes from Provence, France through Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Turkey, Syria, and Jordan before reaching Saudi Arabia. The film was actually shot in some of these countries, namely France, Slovenia, Bulgaria, and Turkey. Most scenes that were set in the Middle East were shot in Morocco. However, some scenes involving the two principal actors were actually shot in Mecca. While the Saudi Arabian government had previously permitted documentary crews to shoot in Mecca, this was the first fiction feature permitted to shoot during the Hajj. The film's director, Ismaël Ferroukhi, said that while shooting in Mecca, "no one looked at the camera; people didn't even seem to see the crew -- they're in another world."

Reda: Why didn't you fly to Mecca? It's a lot simpler.

The Father: When the waters of the ocean rise to the heavens, they lose their bitterness to become pure again...

Reda: What?

The Father: The ocean waters evaporate as they rise to the clouds. And as they evaporate they become fresh. That's why it's better to go on your pilgrimage on foot than on horseback, better on horseback than by car, better by car than by boat, better by boat than by plane.

The Father: When I was a child, my father, God rest his soul, set out on a mule. He was a brave man. Everyday, I'd climb the hill so I could see the horizon. I wanted to be the first to see him come home. I've learnt a lot from this journey.

Reda: Me too.

Alicia de Larrocha

I am so pleased to have finally found a recording of Alicia de Larrocha performing the Adagio Assai of Maurice Ravel's Piano Concerto in G Major. This is by far my favorite version of this wonderful score. Previously I have posted versions of the same by Martha Argerich (which remains my second favorite and who first introduced this haunting score to me years back when I was still in middle school). Leonard Bernstein is out of his league amongst these talented ladies.

Alicia de Larrocha y de la Calle (23 May 1923 – 25 September 2009) was a Spanish pianist from Catalonia. Reuters referred to her as "the greatest Spanish pianist in history" and Time called her "one of the world's most outstanding pianists". The Guardian called her "the leading Spanish pianist of her time". She won multiple Grammy Awards, a Prince of Asturias Award for the Arts and is credited with bringing greater popularity to the compositions of Isaac Albéniz and Enrique Granados. In 1995, she became the first Spanish artist to win the UNESCO Prize.

Born in Barcelona, she began studying piano with Frank Marshall at the age of three. Both her parents were pianists and she was also the niece of pianists. Beginning her career at the age of three, she publicly debuted at the age of five at the International Exposition in Barcelona. She performed her first concert at the age of six at the World's Fair in Seville in 1929, and had her orchestral debut at the age of 11. By 1943, she was selling out in Spain. She began touring internationally in 1947, and in 1954 toured North America with the Los Angeles Philharmonic. In 1969, de Larrocha performed in Boston for the Peabody Mason Concert series.

Alicia de Larrocha died on 25 September 2009 in Quiron Hospital, Barcelona, aged 86. She had been in declining health since breaking her hip five years previously. Her husband, the pianist Juan Torra, with whom she had two children, died in 1982.

... wikipedia

To complete the piano concerto, this is the 3rd movement entitled, Presto, played live by her accompanied by the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra.

Desert Rose

I dream of rain

I dream of gardens in the desert sand

I wake in pain

I dream of love as time runs through my hand...

Sweet desert rose

This memory of Eden haunts us all

This desert flower, this rare perfume

Is the sweet intoxication of the Fall

... Sting

Brighter Than Sunshine

Tied up in ancient history,

I didnt believe in destiny,

I look up you're standing next to me,

What a feeling.

What a feeling in my soul,

Love burns brighter than sunshine,

Brighter than sunshine,

Let the rain fall, I don't care,

I'm yours and suddenly you're mine,

Suddenly you're mine

and it's brighter than sunshine.

... Aqualung

Introducing Me

I never trust a dog to watch my food

And I like to use the word "dude" as a noun or an adverb or an adjective

And I, I've never really been into cars

I like really cool guitars and superheros

And checks with lots of zeros on them

I love the sound of violins and making someone smile

I'm trying to do my best to impress

But it's easier to let you

Take a guess at the rest

But you wanna hear what lives in my brain,

My heart,

Well you asked for it.

For your perusing,

At times confusing,

Possibly amusing,

Introducing Me.

... Introducing Me

And although I am now back living in the tropics on the equator, I do miss being with my buddies on road trips across the country living the summer in the wild, wild, west.

And grab your guitar

Sit by the fire

Cause we all need a song

When we're tired

We'll sit here together and sing it out loud

This is our song that's all that matter cause

We all belong right here together

There's nothing better than singing along

This is our summer and this is our song

... This Is Our Song

The One Who Has All These Four Attributes In Him...

Once, there was an argument between Abu Bakr and Umar Farooq, and Abu Bakr's comments were somewhat impolite. It was very unusual of him and he realized it a little later. Repentant, he went to apologize to Umar Farooq, who refused to accept the apology. Disappointed, Abu Bakr then went to the Prophet (saw) and submitted the whole story to him. Addressing Abu Bakr, the Prophet (saw) said three times: “May Allah forgive you.” Realizing what had happened, Umar Farooq rushed to see Abu Bakr at his home, but he wasn’t there. Umar then went to see the Prophet (saw). Seeing Umar, the Prophet (saw)’s face mirrored his inner displeasure and his eyes turned red. Suspecting Prophet (saw)’s displeasure may jeopardize Umar, Abu Bakr sat down meekly on his knees and in all humility submitted: “Ya Rasul Allah, it is but me, who had done wrong.” Addressing Umar, Prophet (saw) said: “Verily Allah (swt) sent me as a Messenger towards you, and you told me that I am a liar, but Abu Bakr affirmed and said: “You said the truth.” And Abu Bakr supported me with his heart, soul and resources. Wouldn’t you forgive my companion even for that reason?” Prophet (saw) repeated this last sentence twice. No one ever hurt the feelings of Abu Bakr as-Siddique after this incident.

Once Prophet (saw) was in the company of his companions, he (saw) inquired: “Who among you is fasting today?” Abu Bakr said: “I am fasting today Ya Rasul Allah.”

The Prophet asked again: “Who from among you participated in the funeral today and followed the bier?” Abu Bakr replied: “I did that, Ya Rasul Allah.”

The Prophet (saw) asked the third time: “Who fed the hungry from among you today?” Abu Bakr submitted: “Ya Rasul Allah, I did.”

The Prophet (saw) lastly asked: “Who from among you visited a sick person today?” Abu Bakr replied: “I did, Ya Rasul Allah.”

The Prophet (saw) said: “The one who has all these four attributes in him will surely enter Paradise.”

... Sahih Muslim

Endlessly

Endlessly

I'm counting down the days

When you will come my way

Endlessly

I fall asleep to dream

And you're here again it seems

Endlessly

I'm looking for you everywhere that I go

In all of the things I do

Still I'll keep looking

'Till I find you

'Till I find you

Endlessly

I turn to every door

And It's you I'm hoping for

So endlessly

I'm looking for you everywhere that I go

In all of the things I do

Still I'll keep looking

'Till I find you

'Till I find you

'Till I find you

'Till I find you

... Duffy

If Talking And Remaining Silent Are Of Equal Benefit

"O you who believe! Avoid much suspicion, for some suspicions are a sin. Do not spy on one another, nor backbite one another. Would one of you love to eat the flesh of his dead brother? Nay, you would abhor it, [so similarly, avoid backbiting]. And fear Allah. Indeed, Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful." Qur'an, [49:12]

"And do not follow that of which you do not have knowledge. Indeed, the hearing, the sight and the heart - [you] will be asked about all of those." Qur'an, [17:36]

"He does not utter a [single] word, except that there is, with him, [an angel] ready and waiting [to record it]." Qur'an, [50:18]

Imam Nawawi says "It is obligatory for every sane adult to guard his tongue against talking, except when it contains a clear benefit. If talking and remaining silent are of equal benefit, it is sunnah to abstain, [emphasis added] for permissible talking might lead to something undesirable or forbidden, as in fact is very often the case, and nothing matches safety."

On the authority of Abu Hurayrah :

"Whoever believes in Allah and the Last Day should say [something] good, or he should keep silent." [Bukhari, Muslim, Ahmad, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah]

... Mukhtasar Minhaj al-Qasideen, Ibn Qudamah

Shade With His Shade On The Day When There Is No Shade Except His

"On the Day of Resurrection, the sun would draw so close to the people that there would be left a distance of only one mile. The people will be submerged in perspiration according to their deeds, some up to their ankles, some up to their knees, some up to the waist and some would have the bridle of perspiration and, while saying this, the Messenger of Allah put his hand towards his mouth." (Sahih Muslim)

“There are seven whom Allah will shade with His shade on the Day when there is no shade except His: a just ruler; a youth who grew up in the worship of His Lord; a man whose heart is attached to mosques; two men who love each other only for Allah’s sake, meeting and parting for that love; a man who resists the call of a woman of noble birth and beauty to commit fornication, but he refuses and says “I fear Allah”; a man who gives charity secretly so that his left hand does not know what his right hand has given; and a man whose eyes flood with tears whenever he remembers Allah in private.” (Sahih Bukhari)

Afgan

esok ataukah nanti

ampuni semua salahku

lindungi aku dari segala fitnah

Kau tempatku meminta

Kau beriku bahagia

jadikan aku selamanya

hamba-Mu yang selalu bertaqwa

ampuniku Ya Allah

yang sering melupakan-Mu

saat Kau limpahkan kurnia-Mu

dalam sunyi aku bersujud pada-Mu