Weeding Weekend

Its coming to spring  here in Perth. SubhanAllah, the weather is nice, flowers everywhere, bees  and butterflies, also.. not forgetting.. the weeds!
After hibernating in the house, specifically.. in the  room.. more specifically near the heater..in conjunction with the winter season.. i was shocked to find a baby forest growing very healthily in front of my house. Well.. ok. shock is not the right word.. amazed would be better!
Anyhow, thats our front yard.. you leave it for a while, the weeds will come, and if you leave it a bit longer, it will turn into a big bush, then a secondary forest and so on.. (my geography teacher must be proud of me ;P)

Come  to think of it...its like our heart in a way. Leave it a while, without the remembrance of Allah, without busying ourselves with ibaadah, without talking about the greatness of Allah... then the greatness of the world will creep in. Like weeds! if you leave it longer the root of the weeds  will go in deeper, the stem will become harder, and worst.. those with thorns.. their thorns will grow more and stronger that its difficult to even touch them,  not to say to pull them!
well.. am talking from experience ok..

So yeah, we have to make effort on our imaan. Everyday..
or else, the worldly desires and temptations will definitely take a hold of us
Iman is not  something that you achieve and thats it. Its an everlasting battle...til we return to Him.
on the other hand.. worldly desires/ dunya is something that can easily come to us if we leave this effort for iman.. so dunya is exactly like weeds! and  weeding is the effort you put in  to keep your iman!

And its very difficult to  keep your iman when you're not in the right environment. Like if we go back to our garden, weeds will come out more in spring and less in summer. Simply because, Allah sends more rain  in spring and less of it in summer. So we need to look for the best environment for our iman. We need to look for the gardens of jannah in this world...Whereby  if we passed by it we need  to eat its fruits to our fill.. its none other than the gatherings of  the remembrance of Allah...

For the ladies, lets  live up an islamic environment in our houses. Lets talk about the greatness of Allah to our children in our daily conversations. an example with mus'ab, before giving him his milk we would ask him, siapa kasi rezeki? (who gives you rizq? ) siape kasi kenyang?(who makes  you feel full) and he would say.. Allah. Then at the same time.. deny the power of creations ie mus'ab would say: Bukan mama, bukan abah, bukan maya, bukan susu.. and at one time while answering, he was looking at the fan and then said, bukan fan!

Teaching tawheed to kids is very easy cause their hearts are still so clean.
InsyaAllah, if we do this- talk about the  greatness of Allah, the greatness of  the world will come out of our hearts.

Abu Hurairah Radiallahu'anhu narrates Rasulullah Sallahu'alaihiwasallam said: Renew your iman! It was asked O Rasulullah, how do we renew our iman? he said: Testify repeatedly the Kalimah La ilaha illallah. (Musnad Ahmad, Tabarani and Targhib)

Its also good if we can space out like 30 minutes or so everyday ie after maghrib/ isya/ fajr... get the family to sit together and talk about the greatness of Allah.Lets have our very own garden of jannah in our  houses! Alhamdulillah, our family has been doing this for quite some time now and believe me, its really is rewarding and nourishing for the heart. Ask the kids to take turns talking about the greatness of Allah
i remember last time when we, my husband and i started doing this, it felt awkward at first, to talk about the greatness of Allah.. even  to your own husband!  but, insyaAllah, with practise, Allah will make it easy.
A few examples would be: "Allah is the Sustainer of everything/ Happiness comes from Allah.. Not wealth/ titles/ fame/ Allah is Independent, in this world theres only 1 Allah, other that Him  are all His Creations and everythng is dependent on Him.

We do lots of conversations everyday, but how many times do we speak about the greatness of Allah?
I know a true story of a man who always talk about his land/ properties and then on his death bed, at  the throes of death, those were the things that came out of his mouth.. my land.!.my properties..!
may Allah save us all. Amin

this pic was taken when  the job was half way through... fiuh!

Paying for Insurance VS Praying for Assurance

I once heard a famous rapper who reverted to Islam, in an interview, he said that we need to pay  for the disease while the cure is free!
I know 1 job for ladies...highly insured, highly rewarded but strangely is getting more and more vacant these days. The job is.. actually not even acknowledged as a job by some people.. none other than.. housewifery!
One of the things that make housewifery difficult to be accepted by some people is the fact  that it means no salary..  and in this world, if you are salary-less you are thus dependent.. and as 'modern ladies' , we must be independent. If you're not working, dependent  on your husband,  imagine whats gonna happen if something happen to your husband? Who's gonna feed you? Who's gonna sustain you?
Ask these questions to Mus'ab and he'll give you the answer, insyaAllah, without even thinking!
Its Allah!

Yep, its difficult to accept the answer, when our hearts are so far away from deen. When our hearts  are so polluted by the deceptive worldly desires and temptations. When everyone else around us are striving for the world, everyones talking about this  world, when sins are being committed everyday,  and we didint even realise it. How can we expect our hearts and mind to accept the fact that, Allah is our sole provider, that our rizq  has been preordained by Him, that its not our effort/ husbands/ qualifications that can promise  our rizq.. its Allah!

Being a housewife gives you a free training course on this subject. It really gives you the opportunity to  test your trust to Allah. Always remind ourselves that, Allah is The Provider, Allah is The Sustainer. If anything happen to your husband? Another opportunity to come closer to Allah.

And for him who fears Allah (observes taqwa) Allah Ta'ala ever appoints a way out; and He provides for  him from quarters from whence he has no expectation; And whosoever puts his trust in Allah, He will suffice for him. (At-Talaq: 2-3)

I remember those days when i was a medical student, each time when big exams were  approaching, solat was sweeter, prayers were longer cause you know that whether you're gonna go through it or not is in His hands. You  may  study all day and all night  thru but Allah willing,  a disease that you had never came across may appear in your test and thats it.. see you next term! Thats why in anything that we do, always remember  to pray  1st then do it. A common misconception in our  society is to give our all first and then, lastly.. make doa and tawakkal..

some people may say that by leaving your job, you're like digging your own grave..
well.. even if you did dug your  own grave.. you would never be buried until the time comes..
dont you think?!

strange people would rather risk their deen than their wealth..
may Allah save us all from this..

i mentioned  just now, housewifery is highly insured.. why?
For ladies, yes, because being at home means- no mixing with the non-mahram, no make-up or dress issues and most importantly.. no fitnah..

it was narrated in a saheeh report that  The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him)said, “Beware of this world and beware of women, for the first fitnah (trial) that befell the Children of Israel had to do with women.” And he (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said: “I am not leaving behind me in my ummah any fitnah that is more harmful for men than women

yes you may not have the capacity to pay  for the worldly insurance if you're a housewife but in return, insyaAllah you'll get your deen..insured!
Housewives dont pay for insurance but they pray for assurance!

Verily Allah loves those who  put their trust in Him. ( Ali Imran: 159)

A reminder for the strangers...

Australian Election

Yesterday was the election day here in australia and weeks before that, i got the chance to 'experience' the campaigning atmosphere here  for the first time. why the inverted commas?!
well.. because, theres not much  of a difference at all!(.. more junkmails i suppose ;P)
probably because i came from a very politically-atmosphered-country, i was expecting a bit more posters and flags, and a public holiday for the polling.. but no. NO flags, posters were put up at appropriate places..only, trees were untouched, no demonstration, or cars honking each other.
and worst.. no polling holiday.. but, wait, do we have it back home?! anyhow.. if we dont we should have it  you know, i mean to make the decision is a big task!

anyhow, back to the topic, as a whole i would say that the campaigning here was done very professionally. No such thing as insulting each other, unbiased media, debates were on real country issues NOT on personal issues. so yeah, theres a lot to be learnt here.

one party caught my attention.. family first!
yep, thats  the official name of the party.

when its becoming very difficult sometimes to convince people the importance of having a good family structure, this party here is fighting for it! one of the things that they fight for is for full time mums be rewarded! when more and more ladies prefer to work outside, have a career of their own, be at par with the men, this party acknowledge/ appreciates those who choose to stay at home to take care of the family. on the other hand, sad to say, many of us now look down on those ladies who choose to be at home. Come, lets have our principles right. am not asking you to vote for family first, polling has ended anyway. Am just asking you and myself of course to devote to our deen. Get our priorities right! Know what we should do! Whats our true responsibilities! some people may say that this is the right way and that is old fashion.. in the end, those are peoples words/ ideas.. everyone will be held accountable with what they do/say.

Lets  turn to Allah, cause finally, we shall all return to Him.. alone!
May Allah guide us all! Amin.

BiZARRE RAMADHAN

No..its NOT bAzaar ramadhan ok..pay attention to the spelling! though ya, bazaar ramadhan, come to think of it, is really one of the things that can make your ramadhan a bit bizarre!

Tonight, is the 10th night of Ramadhan already  and Alhamdulillah.. for me its been quite rewarding.
Not to say that i've been sooo good at keeping my time and sooo busying myself with amal but relatively, compared to my previous Ramadhan, insyaAllah, so far, this year is the best for me, Alhamdulillah.
All praise  be to Allah, for surely, its not our effort but its His taufeeq that can give us the strength to push ourselves to the limit/ beyond the limit in worshipping  Him.

As i was praying my taraweeh just now, i thought that, wow how fast time goes by..
its the 10th night already! AllahuAkbar! please dont let me waste this Ramadhan..
for i dont know, if i would be able to see this month again..
make this ramadhan the best ever!
and please o Allah.. dont let this feelings of yearning and craving for your pleasure ends with the end of Ramadhan.. may this Ramadhan be our iman booster til the next Ramadhan, Amin.

About the topic, well, just want to invite my self, firstly, and dear readers to realize how precious Ramadhan is.. lets have this eagerness in our hearts to do as much amal as possible for the sake of Allah..
whats a bizarre ramadhan?
-when Allah's great promises are there for you to grab..you just dont bother...thats when your ramadhan turn bizarre.. ie-shopping/ baking/ sewing/ exhausting your self with worldly activities by  day, and eating/ eating/ eating/ sleep by night!

Remember that whoever intends drawing near to Allah by performing any virtuous deed, for such person shall be the reward like the one who had performed a fardh in any other time. And whoever perform a fardh,  shall be blessed with the reward of 70 fardh in any other time. we're not just looking at rewards here, its the fact that, Allah  will promise more rewards for things that He likes more..insyaAllah

check our hearts.. is there any difference compared to other months..?
do we have that urge of wanting to please Allah.. wanting to ask for His  forgiveness?
do we have that of feeling of looking forward to perform taraweeh, to complete the reading of Quran, keeping in mind how Allah  will  boast in front of His angels whe He look at His servants worshipping Him?
do we feel that closeness to Allah?

or.. na'udhubilllah.. is it just another month to us?!
has our hearts turned so hard and blackened as a result of our sins?
that we just dont care!
Allah.. bring us back o  Allah! Dont leave us for we need you o Allah!

so, muna ,  readers..
come lets do istighfar abundantly!
ask Allah to forgive us all, clean our hearts.
come push ourselves to the limit! in its true  sense!
pray longer rakaat, more nafl solat, more Quran, more time in zikr..more than usual
insyaAllah, with a bit extra sacrifice, a bit more  effort,
Allah will give us the true spirit of celebrating ramadhan and thus let our hearts discover the sweetness of loving Him..

Ya Allah.. A'ab nak..., please..

Alhamdulillah.. thats mama's boy! Muhammad Mus'ab bin Mohd Khairi. I usually call him by his full name including his fathers name when he's naughty/ when i'm showing him my disapproval. so the fact that the first 2 statements are next to each other is a bit weird..
Anyhow, Alhamdulillah, the pleasure, the satisfaction,  the happiness.. i dont know if theres any word can describe the feelings of having a child of your own. its truly is  a grrreat gift from Allah no money  can buy!

of course..as the reality goes.. a great gift usually comes with a great price to pay..
and when it comes to children.. its not money/ toys/ great holidays etc
a hadith mentioned that the best gift a father can give to his child is good manners
after more than 2 years of becoming a mother, i realise that the most difficult part of disciplining  your child is in disciplining  yourself!

Actually, they can be disciplined very easily, insyaAllah..
Mus'ab for example.. just recently we taught him to ask from Allah each time he wants something..
the prayer goes: Ya Allah, A'ab (as he call himself)  nak... please..
so then, SubhanAllah, now he understands that each time he wants something, he has to ask Allah for  it.
so just last weekend, Mus'ab was with his Abah,  as I and maryam were out.
he was sleeping when i left  him but 5 minutes after that, he woke up, crying and screaming for his dear beloved mama..;P
his abah didnt know what to do when suddenly Mus'ab said, while crying intermittently: Ya Allah, ya Allah, ya Allah.. A'ab nak mama tido layi,  please..
Abah couldnt reply better than falling into tears too!

As it goes.. when you do da'wah to others you're actually giving a chance for yourself to improve..
in everything that we do, we have to turn to Allah.. thats the principle that we're trying to inculcate here..
but, yeah.. when the world is very deeply rooted in your hearts, its very difficult to get this very high state of iman..
children..they've got clean hearts.. and its our duty as parents to make sure that  they have the correct iman..
that everything that happens in this be world can only occur by Allah's will
that its not milk/ food that makes you full.. its Allah..
theres 1 illness where a gene called ob gene (if i'm not mistaken) is  defective, one can not be satiated/ cant feel full.. people always tend to blame it on the genes and thats it! we seldom go a bit further, we seldom remember The One who control these genes, and thus The Cause of everything.

in the Holy Quran, we are being reminded again and again to put our trust to Allah
to ask from Him
never did Allah say anywhere that to have happiness you have to work for money
never did Allah say to have a long-lasting marriage, look for a lovely wife..
never did Allah say to be successful, you need to have good education/ abundant wealth..
NEVER!
Allah NEVER put His promise in our wealth/ certificates/ fame..
but Allah put His promise in 'amal (good deeds)..NOT maal (wealth)..

for your rizq.. solat dhuha
for  your tasks to be completed.. surah yaseen..
for success.. even in this life.. is in the religion..
how much you can uphold Islam in every aspects  of your life..

strange, huh, whats the relationship between rizq and solat dhuha?- most people would think..
only strangers do these things..
Ya Allah, guide us all.. Amin!

Ghuraba - The Stranger

the stranger?!

i can't say that i am a stranger now, but, insyaAllah, am working towards becoming one, insya Allah.. very, very hard and believe me, i  got a long way to go man!

A stranger to this world because her heart doesnt belong here..
she knows that this life is nothing but a test, a temporary abode..
though everyone else around her is busying themselves looking for fame, wealth,titles etc..
she doesnt care, shes not interested the least..
she firmly believe  that shes got a far bigger mission.
though people around her look at  her with disgust
though they call her a weirdo/  terrorist/ extremist/ batman..
she doesnt  bother.. in fact, all their words will only make her stronger..
in living up the way of life of her beloved!
she leaves her job, her fancy clothes, her make-ups
and stay at home to take care of her family.. when everyone else is climbing up their career ladders..
shes ok, confident of her decision, putting all her trust to her Creator..

may  Allah choose  us all to be strangers
and raise us all with the strangers..insyaAllah, Amin

strange huh.. you have a beautiful face but you cover everything..
strange.. theres so many  beautiful dress out there but ur always in black
strange.. you  have the chance to work but you leave it
strange.. very strange...
its The Stranger..

intro..

Alhamdulillah.. finally!.. after a few months of wanting to have a blog of my  own, at last! Tonight is the night!
basically, my aim of having a blog is just to share my views about life. happenings in my  life that i think i can share with  the readers at the same time giving myself the opportunity to reflect upon it.
Life is a precious gift from Allah, and every second of it is invaluable. The thing with us, humans, is  that we tend to overlook the importance and value of every second of our lives. We tend to think superficially about stuffs, assume that this is right and thats wrong and then suddenly.. thats it.. game over!
Allahu Akbar.. reminding myself as well!
One of the things which i like about writing is that, somehow, it allows me to stop, drop everything, ponder, think and slap my face and say wake up, muna! what are you doing.?!
plus, when you're a housewife, theres no such thing as KPI (key perfomance index) etc., no monthly assessments/ test whatsoever, no one is there to monitor you.. except, of course, once in a while.. your husband, parents or mother-in-law, but really, most of the time..
your day is yours (and  the children's, of course) and at the end of the day.. u have to judge yourself!
is today better than yesterday..?
that brings us to another aim of this blog thats to motivate me to use my time wisely!
not to end up being just another house Maid.. from morn to evening -chores here, chores there.. tired, sleep and the cycle continues..
housewife is  NOT  a housemaid! and a grade A housewife is not just any housewife..
so, yeah with the thought of wanting to share reminders/ beneficial stuffs with the readers, insyaAllah, hopefully it will encourage me to seek knowledge which can help me understand life, how to please The One who gave me this life, so that, insyaAllah He will raise me up among those whom He was pleased with.
as u probably have noticed.. most of the aims is basically for myself..
one very important principle of da'wah, our scholars used to remind us.. is to do it for the sake of Allah of course, and, for yourself..
with these in mind, insyaAllah you wont yearn for fame/ for people to accept your views or praise your blog, you  wont be  despair if no one reads it or u have no followers..
what matters is the pleasure of Allah..
may Allah guide us all.