NAKHODA MAT BAHAROM : FAMILY DAY 2013

On 14 Sept 2013, I helped organize a gathering of my family tree. A family tree that could be traced back to my great-great-great-great grandfather, named Nakhoda Mat Baharom. It was held in the Lost World of Tambun, a theme park in Ipoh Perak, under Sunway Group.

It was a great event with great turn out.

So, who is Nakhoda Mat Baharom?

Well to start with, the title 'Nakhoda' indicates that he was Captain of a ship. He lived in the 1870s and he was a trader from North Sumatra Province of Indonesia. He often comes to Penang and Singapore at that time to trade spices for items that he would then bring back to his hometown. On every visit, he would spend a few days to allow time for items to be loaded onto his ship.

After many visits, he soon fell in love with a local Penang girl named Noriah and they soon got married. Their union marks the beginning of Nakhoda's linage in Tanah Melayu. They were blessed with 6 children - Long Nerati, Ngah Pora, Alang Arbaayah (Mentera), Hj Ali, Andak Teh and Chu Ismail.

For me, I have direct linage to 3 of Nakhoda's children - Nerati, Mentera and Hj Ali.

See if you can follow this flow below..

1. Nakhoda's eldest child, Nerati married Aboo Kassim and got a son named Mat Selidin.
2. Mat Selidin later married his cousin, Amnah who is the daughter of Hj Ali, Nakhoda's forth child.
3. Mat Selidin and Amnah then got a son named Jamaludin.
4. Meanwhile the third child of Nakhoda, Arbaayah married Mat Akib, and got a son named Yeop.
5. Yeop then married Naemah and got a daughter named Zawiyah.
6. Jamaludin (see point #3) and Zawiyah (see point #5) later got married to each other.
7. Jamaludin and Zawiyah had a daughter named Hasnah.
8. Hasnah then married Abdul Aziz
9. Hasnah and Abdul Aziz are non other than my beloved parents!

Got it? Hehe.. It's okay if you don't. I got confused myself trying to figure out the family tree. And as you can imagine, the family tree gets a lot more complex when we include the linage of the other 3 of Nakhoda's.

On record, Nakhoda's linage has now reached its 7th generation. It is quite difficult now for everyone to know everyone within this huge family tree. So, this gathering provides a very rare opportunity to foster greater relationship among family members.

I can say that the senior generation know each other well and they often meet and chat. But as the tree grew larger, the younger generations gets further and further apart. The family gathering this time was purposely held in a theme park to attract the interest from the younger generations to continue this effort of fostering family relations. 

Juahari and I took the lead and became the emcee combo on that day. Hehe.. With no script, no rehearsal, we just jump in and get things rolling on that day!

I am very happy to see a lot of smiles and laughter and joy throughout the event. There were food, drinks, tele-match and lucky draw.

The tele-match includes:

The Orang Utan Race..........

The Mexican Wave...........

The 500 Miles...........

And Treasure Hunt..........

Till we meet again - May Allah continue to bless this ever growing family and unite our hearts where ever we may be. Amin!

Check out more photos on FB page of Keluarga Nakhoda Mat Baharom.

THE NIGHT JOURNEY - ISRAK & MIKRAJ

Someone recently asked me about Solah (Prayers in Islam). To the best of my ability and knowledge (which is not much I must say), I explained about some basics and the verses to read throughout the performance of Solah. I then suggested that she find out / learn more about Solah. And there are a lot of write-ups available even in the internet that she can easily read. 

I also recommended a book for her to read, titled 'Soal Jawab Remeh Temah Tentang Solat' by Us. Mohammad Nidzam Abdul Kadir. This book contains many simple questions about Solah, that as a born Muslim, we may be shy to ask. I would also recommend this to everyone who may have questions, simple questions or not, about Solah.

For my friend, I thank Allah for opening her heart to ask me about Solah. In my heart, I actually envy her for asking, because I know that she will not be asking if there is no hidayah granted by Allah. And Masyallah, hidayah is not given to everyone - it is given only to the CHOSEN ONE as Allah have mentioned in the Quran.

"For sure you will not be able to give hidayah to anyone you love, instead only Allah can give hidayah to whoever He wants. Indeed Allah knows best on who deserved to be given hidayah"

(Surah Al-Qashash: 56)

May Allah continue to bless her with this priceless gift!

Moving on from there, I would like to now share what I know about Solah, particularly the history of Solah.

The way the command to perform Solah was given to Prophet Muhammad was special. It was NOT given like any other commands like do not drink, do not gamble, perform Hajj and so on. Those commands were given to Prophet Muhammad by revelations through the Angel Jibril. But for the command of Solah, Prophet Muhammad was taken to meet Allah 'in person' and received the command first-hand from Allah Himself. 

This is the story of Israk and Mikraj - The great journey of Prophet Muhammad. 

It happened in the 10th year after the first revelation in Hira' Cave. In that year, Prophet Muhammad lost 2 people most dear to his heart - His beloved wife, Siti Khadijah and his beloved uncle, Abu Thalib.

Siti Khadijah is a well-respected business lady at that time. She is also the FIRST believer in the true teachings of Islam. When Prophet Muhammad received his first revelation in Hira' Cave, he came down from the cave shivering and told his wife what has just happened. Without any hesitations, she accepted the revelation and she has always been the pillar of strength for Prophet Muhammad - financially and spiritually, until that year when she passed away.

Not long after the passing of his wife, Prophet Muhammad suffered another great lost when his beloved uncle, Abu Thalib also passed away.

Abu Thalib is a well-respected public figure at that time. All tribes have leaders of their own, but Abu Thalib from the Bani Hashim tribe is considered the head among them. During his life, when the people of Quraisy were angry at Prophet Muhammad for bringing a 'new religion', Abu Thalib defended his nephew from any harm from the people. Although Abu Thalib himself never accepted Islam, but his love for his nephew made the beginning of Islam much easier, until that year when he passed away.

During this sad period, Prophet Muhammad was taken on a great journey to meet Allah - The journey known as Israk and Mikraj.

'Israk' is the journey from Masjidil Haram in Mecca to Masjidil Aqsa in Jurussalam. 

'Mikraj' is the journey from Masjidil Aqsa on earth to the Arash of Allah. 

Masjidil Haram in Mecca

Masjidil Aqsa in Jurussalam

But honestly, Israk and Mikraj is a huge topic by itself. Insya-Allah, given the opportunity, I will elaborate about this great journey in more detail in another write-up soon. For now, I will fast forward the story to emphasize more on the receiving of the command for Solah.

During this great journey, Prophet Muhammad was accompanied by the Angel Jibril. They were together until they have passed the highest heaven. Then, Jibril said to Prophet Muhammed that he now need to continue alone to meet Allah in Sidratul Muntaha. And so he did.

As Prophet Muhammad entered, he gave praises to Allah:

"All praises, blessings, peace and goodness are Yours, ya Allah"

Allah responded:

"Peace upon you, ya Nabi, as well as blessings and barokah for you"

And Prophet Muhammad said:

"May peace be upon all of us, your faithful servants"

This conversation is now repeated in our every Solah during Tahiyyatul-Awal and Tahiyyatul-Akhir.

Allah then commanded the Solah be made compulsory for the people 50 times a day. Prophet Muhammad accepted the command and was on his way down, when he met again with Prophet Musa. Prophet Musa asked what was the command by Allah. And Prophet Muhammad answered 50 times compulsory Solah in a day. Prophet Musa feel that it will be too heavy of a duty for the people and recommended that Prophet Muhammad ask for the amount to be reduced.

And so Prophet Muhammad went back up to meet Allah and requested for the amount to be reduced. Allah granted the request and reduce the amount by 5, making it only 45 times compulsory Solah a day. On the way down, Prophet Muhammad met with Prophet Musa again and he told about the reduced amount. Prophet Musa feel that it is still too heavy of a duty for the people and recommended that Prophet Muhammad ask for the amount to be reduced.

And so Prophet Muhammad went back up to meet Allah and requested for the amount to be reduced. Allah granted the request and reduce the amount by another 5, making it only 40 times compulsory Solah a day.

This process repeated many more times, until the amount of compulsory Solah was just 5 times a day. Even that, Prophet Musa feel that it is still too heavy for the people and recommended that Prophet Muhammad ask for the amount to be reduced. But at this point, Prophet Muhammad feels so ashamed to meet Allah again to ask for the amount to be further reduced. And so it is, the compulsory Solah for Muslims now remain as 5 times a day.

In a hadith by Anas bin Malek, he said:

"Five times daily prayers have been made compulsory to Prophet Muhammad on the night of Israk and Mikraj for 50 times daily, then it was reduced to 5, then Allah said "Ya Muhammad, indeed my words will not change and the reward for that 5 times is the same as 50 times for you""

May Allah give us guidance and blessings always!

LET'S SOLAT!! :)

PEOPLE OF THE CAVE - ASHABUL KAHFI

Have you heard about the story of Ashabul Kahfi before?

Well, I often go for coffee sessions with Johari, a friend from work. During these coffee sessions, sometimes we talk about movies, another time we would talk about politics, other times we simply talk about things, which is also famously known as 'Sembang Kedai Kopi'. Hehe.. 

Recently, Johari brought up the story of Ashabul Kahfi - (Arabic words meaning 'The Cave Men' or 'People of the Cave'). Not really a new story for both of us. We have heard of this story many times before because it is one of the famous stories from the Quran. After that talk with Johari, I went on to find out more about this story and I am now interested to share this story with the world - My World!!
(Hint: That's the name of my Blog) :)

Now, let me start with a little intro on why this story was mentioned in the Quran.

One day, there was a non-believer who have just heard about a man named Muhammad (S.A.W), claiming himself to be the Messenger of Allah. The non-believer then approached his friend, a Jew living the city of Madinah to ask for his advise on how to prove that Muhammad is a liar.

And the Jew advised him "Ask him about Ashabul Kahfi". And so he did as advised.

This is when Surah Al-Kahfi was revealed to Prophet Muhammad by the Angel Jibril.

THE TIME FRAME: This is a story after Prophet Isa (Jesus) and before Prophet Muhammad S.A.W.

THE LOCATION: The cave is believed to be located about 7 KM from Amman, Jordan.

Ok, actually there seems to be some disputes on the actual location - some say that it is in Syria, some say that it is in Iraq, while some others say that it is in Turki. Wallahualam! But the strongest claim is the one in Jordan. The area where this cave is located in Jordan used to be called Ar-Raqim because there was an old archaeology site there named Khirbet Ar-Rqim. And the word 'Ar-Raqim' can also be found in the Quran in this particular surah.

NOW, THE STORY: There used to be a state ruled by a king. Its people have always been believers and followers of the teachings of Prophet Isa (Jesus) and they have been prosperous. But all these changed during the time of King Dikyanus. At this point, people have already started to associate Allah with other idols, which is a grave sin. King Dikyanus is one of those who worship idols and he ordered all of his people to do the same. He even threatened to kill whoever disobeyed him. So, everyone obeyed.

Everyone, except for seven young men among them. They remained steadfast with the teachings of Prophet Isa - There is no other God besides Allah!

Their names are Maksalmia, Martinus, Kastunus, Bairunu, Danimus, Yathbunus and Thamlika. And this is their story.

Before I proceed any further, I think it is worth for me to mention that there is a dispute with regards to the total number of Ashabul Kahfi. Some say 3 people, some say 5 people and some say 7 people. But Allah reminded us not to prolong the dispute because it is considered part of ghaib. Only Allah knows the actual number of Ashabul Kahfi. With that, let's continue with the rest of the story.

King Dikyanus was extremely angry when he heard of their refusal. He ordered for these seven disobedient men be brought before him for questioning. And Allah mentioned their bravery facing the king in the Quran:

"And We strengthen their hearts when they stood (in front of the king) and they say - Our god is the god of heaven and earth. We will never worship any other gods (idols) beside Him, because if we do, indeed we have strayed very far away from the truth. The people have associated Allah with these other idols, but why have they not given clear reasonings (for worshipping idols)? Who are more cruel than those who have created lies against Allah?"

(Surah Al-Kahfi : 14-15)

The king got very angry and gave those seven men a few days to reconsider on their beliefs. After that few days, they either have to submit to idols worshiping or they will be killed. Once back home, they discussed on what would be their next course of action. And Allah have given them the idea of hiding in a cave as mentioned in another verse of the same surah:

"And because you have disassociate yourselves from them and from what they worship besides Allah, so go now and take refuge in that cave, and your God will give blessings upon you and provide you with means to make your dealings successful with help that are useful"

(Surah Al-Kahfi : 16)

So they went to this cave in the hill of Nikhayus. On the way to the cave, they found a dog named Kithmir, which also followed them to hide in the cave. Allah gave them peace and tranquility in the cave and they soon feel sleepy... sleepy... sleepy... and they slept.

How long did they sleep?

Well, that is the peak of this story - They slept for 309 years!

Before Islam, people of the book followed a calender, the Gregorian calender as we know it today. Based on that calender, these young men slept in the cave for 300 years. But Allah corrected the number of years to be based on the Islamic calender when this story was revealed to Prophet Muhammad, as mentioned below:

"And they slept in the cave for three hundred years, and you must add another nine years"

(Surah Al-Kahfi : 25)

When they finally woke up, they didn't realize how long they have slept. They thought that they must have slept for a day or half a day only. And they soon feel hungry and they voted for one of them to go to the city to buy food. Thamlika was selected to carry out the task. So, he went to the city with the silver coins that they had brought with them to the cave earlier.

Once in the city, Thamlika noticed that the city is not how he remembered it to be 'just a day before'. He also noticed the wordings of "There is no other God besides Allah" displayed openly in the city. He got curious, but still very careful as to not raise any suspicious, because if the king found out about them, they will be killed for sure. But when he wanted to buy food, the shop owner was surprised to see old coins handed to him. Those coins are now considered as valuable treasures. The news about a man with treasure coins spread quickly and Thamlika soon found himself accused of hiding a treasure chest somewhere, which he vehemently denied. He was then brought in front of the king to be tried.

Thamlika was surprised again to see that the king is no longer the king he knew, who wanted to kill them earlier. This new king is a just person and one who follows the true teachings of Prophet Isa, just like him. So, he told the new king of what has happened to them and why they went to hide in the cave. What Thamlika remembered as 'yesterday', is actually an event that happened centuries ago. Upon hearing this, the king and his men went with Thamlika to the cave. But not long after arriving at the cave and Thamlika were re-united with his brothers, the Ashabul Kahfi drew their last breath and died.

The story of Ashabul Kahfi became an immediate reminder to the people that Allah is always true to His words and there is no doubt about after life (Kiamah). May Allah give us knowledge and guidance from their story.


OTHER STORIES (click title to read):

• The Great Migration - Hijrah.
• The Night Journey - Israk & Mikraj.
• History of Aidiladha and the Kaabah.
• Campaign to Smear and Discredit Islam.