I'll Tag It!!

/* A copy from my former other notes with a bit modification*/

March 28, 2010 ,
Hari ini sy mendapat pelajaran dari seorang kawan zaman SMA dan kuliah dulu. Beberapa menit seblm sy tulis note ini, kita sempet ngobrol lewat messenger. Dia bertanya apa perasaan saya ketika sedang jauh dari keluarga dan mendapati bahwa istri sedang sakit serius. Istri memang saat ini sedang diuji Tuhan dengan sakitnya yg cukup serius yg tidak terbayang sebelumnya dia akan mendapat ini.
Dengan santai tapi sedikit berpikir saya jawab, “ya sedih, ga bisa ngapa2in pastinya. Lo aneh2 aja pertanyaannya”. Terus dia bertanya lagi apa yg akan saya lakukan ketika itu terjadi. Saya jawab, “gw bersimpuh dihadapan Allah, benar benar minta ampuuun, mohon diberikan kesembuhan dsb. Kemudian dia lanjut berkata, ini sesuai ketikan messengernya ==> “bhwa pd point2 dibalik kesedihan kita, sbnrnya ada rasa takut…. rasa takut kehilangan org2 yg kita sayangi. Cuma yg jelas, setiap saat kita hrs siap mati dan atau ditinggal mati org2 yg kita sayangi. Itu yg kadang2 blm merasa siap…. Kemudian perbincangan pun berlanjut ke topik lain.

Segera setelah kalimat itu meluncur, saya tidak mampu berkonsentrasi berpikir multitasking meneruskan obrolan di messenger. Saat itu jg saya merenung, ya Allah, kita tuh jadi manusia bener bener bodoh atau sombong ya? Kenyataan bahwa kita Allah masih mengkaruniai kita dengan orang orang yang kita cintai disekeliling kita kok bisa seringkali terlupa ya? Kita sadar tiap hari mereka selalu, setiap saat, berinteraksi dengan kita dari yang namanya berbicara normal, kesal, sedih, tertawa bersama, mengejek dan lainnya. Tapi tiap hari itu juga kita lebih sering tidak sadarnya bhw mereka ada karena Allah kasih nyawa sama mereka. Dan, bam!, pada keterbiasaan itulah kita terlupa bahwa keberadaan mereka adalah berkah Allah. Artinya, kalau Allah dengan kuasaNya mencabut nyawa mereka, baru kita tidak biasa. Betul tidak logikanya ya, hmmm *sambil mikir sendiri*).

Saat itu terasa sekali rasa syukur saya pada Allah. Rasa syukur yg murni terasa dari dalam hati. Ternyata dengan menggunakan formula “What-if” yang biasa dipakai berbagai aplikasi Decision Support bisa jg efektif, tidak hanya untuk perusahaan, tapi juga pada manusia :).

What if bila bulan depan ibu kita yang biasanya lebih sering kita tinggalkan karena alasan kesibukan luar, ibu yang sering menelepon menanyakan agar kita jangan lupa makan pagi atau menanyakan kapan pulang dan sering kita jawab dengan jawaban sekenanya, esok, 1 jam lagi tiba-tiba meninggalkan kita?

What if bila minggu depan ayah kita yang biasanya sering berdebat dengan kita karena kita suka anggap tidak mengerti diri kita, ayah yang seringkali kita pulang kita langsung masuk kamar, esok meninggalkan kita?

What if bila kakak/adik yang padanya biasanya kita tidak akur kalau dekat dengan kita karena rebutan apa pun yang ga penting, sampai orang tua sendiri pusing, lusa meninggalkan kita?

What if bila suami/istri, orang yang 24 x 7 menjadi sahabat/partner/pasangan kita, orang yang paling tau diri keinginan kita, orang yg paling tau obat2an kita dikala sakit, suami/istri yang kalau dia pergi sepekan keluar kota utk dinas kita langsung ingin cepat ketemu, orang yang setiap hari sejak bangun hingga tidur muka terjelek hingga muka terbaiknya kita tahu, orang yang paling sering jadi tempat interaksi dalam sehari, besok sudah meninggalkan kita?

What if bila anak anak kita yang kita sayangi, tanpa lelah kita cukupi kebutuhannya apa pun yang kita mau sebisa kita, yang kita selalu sepertinya tidak pernah cukup untuk memastikan that they’re gonna be alright ketika mereka masuk PG, TK, SD, SMP, SMA, kuliah, kos, kerja, menikah, hingga menjadi seorang ayah/ibu, 1 jam lagi meninggalkan kita terlebih dahulu?

What if….What if…apakah kita sudah benar benar siap? Sementara kita seperti sudah “terbiasa untuk lupa” bahwa mereka punya jatah waktu hidup, sama seperti kita. Have we been grateful for that?

Ternyata karunia Allah sungguh real, tunai di depan kita, tiap hari, tiap detik. RahmatNya ada pada wujud orang orang yang kita cintai yang ada dihadapan kita saat ini, yang masih bisa hidup berbicara, bergerak, berlari, berlompatan, dan berlaku lainya. Kita saja yang harus sering sering berlatih untuk memelihara rasa takut kehilangan orang orang yang kita cintai. Tepat sekali bhw kematian itu mendidik kita jadi lebih bersyukur.

-special thx for kores-

I sincerely wish you the best for the upcoming and most wanted moment for all of us, the Ramadhan. The fasting, better worship and tilawah, more training on physical fitness, the joyful of doing good deeds, and many more we expect to do in the Ramadhan. May we all be purified and successfully go through the whole month with divinity without any flaws.

To my family, please apologize that I can not be with you all this year. But above of all, we have God that unites us within our hearts. I wish you Bunda, the best for the whole month, getting better and always in healthiness. To teteh Runi, you’ll make it this year girl, I know you can. To ceu2 Naila, I hope this would be your first time practicing the fasting. And to the little one Sarah, happy all the time. I miss you like crazy here. I love you all so much. (BIGG HUGGSSS AND KISSESS)

Mohon maaf semua kesalahan kami sekeluarga. Atas nama Ritchi, Ocke, Runi, Naila dan Sarah kami mengucapkan selamat datang Ramadhan!

The following verse I find very interesting as it mentions man and women repetitively so much so that it looks appealing to me to reveal more what the tafsir/interpretation could be. This verse explains what sort characteristics of human are real worth in the sight of AIlah. Guess will be better to share it, just make it my first. I also add the Indonesian version. (Sourced from quranenglish.com).

Surah Al-Ahzab verse 35:

Most surely *53 the men and the women who have surrendered themselves to Allah; *54 who are believing, *55 obedient, *56 truthful, *57 and patient; *58 who bow down before Allah, *59 practise charity, *60 observe the fasts, *61 guard their private parts *62 and remember Allah much: *63 Allah has prepared for them forgiveness and a vast reward. *64

Tafseer:
*53 Presentation of this theme immediately after the foregoing paragraph contains a subtle allusion to the fa[c]t that the -instructions given above to the Holy Prophet’s wives are not exclusively meant for them but the Muslim society as a whole should reform itself in accordance with them.
*54 “Who have surrendered themselves to Allah : Who have accepted Islam as a code of life for themselves, and have decided to follow it in their lives, and who have no wish to resist the Islamic way of life and thought, but have adopted the way of obedience and submission to it.
*55 “Who are believing”: Whose obedience is not merely outward nor unwilling but who sincerely regard the guidance given by Islam as based on the truth whose faith is that the way shown by the Qur’an and the Holy Prophet Muhammad (upon whom be Allah’s peace and blessings) is the only right and straight way in following which alone lies their true success. That which has been declared as wrong by Allah and His Prophet is certainly wrong even according to their judgement and that which has been declared as right by AIlah and His Prophet is certainly right even according to their thinking and sense. Psychologically and intellectually also they do not regard as improper any injunction that has been enjoined by the Qur’an and Sunnah, and do not remain on the lookout to change it somehow to suit their own desire or mould it according to the current trends of the world, avoiding at the same time the blame that they have effected a change in the Command given by AIlah and His Prophet. The Holy Prophet has described the true state of faith in a Hadith in these words: “He who reconciled himself to Allah as his Lord and to Islam as his Way of Life and to Muhammad as his Messenger, has the true taste of Faith.” (Muslim) In another Hadith, he has explained it thus: “None of you becomes a believer until the desires of his self become subordinate to what I have brought.” (Sharh as-Sunnah)
*56 That is, “They do not rest content with mere belief but are obedient practically also. They are not the sort of the people who would honestly believe that what Allah and His Messenger have commanded was true but would violate it in practice: that they would sincerely regard what Allah and His Messenger have forbidden as bad but would go on following the same in practical life.”
*57 That is, “They are truthful in their speech and honest in thou dealings. They do not deal in lies, deceptions, frauds and forgeries. They utter with their tongues only what their conscience approves as true. They practise and perfom only what they honestly find to be in accordance with righteousness and truth, and they arc honest in all their dealings with others.”
*58 That is, “They patiently and steadfastly bear and face all the obstacles, dangers, difficulties and losses that they might have to encounter in following the right way taught by Allah and His Messenger and in establishing Allah’s Religion in the world; no fear and no temptation and no lust of the self can succeed in diverting them from the right way.”
*59 That is, “They arc free from pride, vanity and haughtiness: they havc full understanding of the reality that they arc servants and they havc no other position than that of servitude. Therefore, their hearts as well as their bodies remain bowed before Allah, dominated by fear of Him. They never display the attitude which is the hall-mark of the lives of those who are fearless of God and arc involved in arrogance. ” From the sequence it appears that the mention of Khushu’ (expression of humility) in particular along with the general attitude of the fear of God implies the Prayer, for the mention of the practice of charity and fast has been made just after it.
*60 This does not only imply payment of the obligatory Zakat, but it also includes general charity. It means to say that they spend their wealth freely in the way of Allah and they are not at aII niggardly in the matter of helping the servants of Allah as much as they can. No orphan and no sick or afflicted person, no weak or disabled person, no poor and needy one remains deprived of their support in their dwelling; and if there arises the need for monetary help for promoting the cause of Allah’s Religion, they arc never miserly in expending their wealth for that purpose.
*61 This includes both the obligarory and the voluntary fasts.
*62 This has two meanings: (1) They refrain from adultery; and (2) they avoid nudity. One should also note that nudity dces not only mean being naked but it is also nudity to put on a thin dress which shows the body, or is so tight-fitting that it reveals aII the outlines of the body.
*63 “Remember Allah much” means that one should mention Allah’s name in one way or other at aII times in every business of life. Man cannot develop such a state of the mind unless the thought of God becomes deeply embedded in his heart. When this idea has passed beyond his conscious mind and settled deep in his subconscious and unconscious mind, then only he will remember and mention God’s name in whatever he does and in whatever he says. He will begin with bismillah when he eats and say al-hamdu lillah when he finishes; he will remember Allah when he goes to bed, and mention Allah’s name when he gets up. In his conversation also he will again and again pronounce bismillah, al-hamdu-lillalh, insha-Allah, ma sha Allah, etc. and ask for Allah’s help in every matter, and thank Him for every blessing. He will seek His mercy in every affliction, and turn to Him in every trouble. He will fear Him on encountering every evil, and ask for His forgiveness when he happens to havc committed an error and will pray to Him for fulfilment of every need. In short, in every state and in every business of life his function will be to remember Allah.
This. In fact, is the essence of the Islamic life. For all other acts of worship there is a prescribed time when they are performed, and one is free when one has performed them. But this is the worship which has no special time; it has to be performed constantly so that it links up the man’s life with Allah and His service permanently. The other worships and religious acts themselves also become meaningful only when the heart of man remains inclined to Allah not only at the time when the act is actually being carried out but at aII times when the tongue is uttering Allah’s name constantly. In such a state as this worship and religious acts develop and flourish in a man’s life precisely in the same manner as a plant grows in a congenial climate and environment. Contrary to this, the example of the religious services and worships which are carried out only on special times and occasions in the life which is devoid of this constant remembrance of Allah is of the plant which has been planted in an un-congenial climate, and which is growing only due to the special attention and care of the gardener. This very thing has been explained by the Holy Prophet in a Hadith, thus:
“Mu’adh bin Anas Juhani relates that a person asked the Holy Prophet of Allah. who among those who fight in the way of AIlah will get the highest reward? He replied: The one who remembers Allah the most. The man asked: Who among the observers of the fast will get the highest reward? He replied: The one who remembers Allah the most. The man then asked the same question about the offerer of the Prayer, the payer of the Zakat and charities and the performer of Hajj and the Holy Prophet in every case gave the same answer, saying: He who remembers Allah the most.” (Musnad Ahmad)
*64 This verse plainly tells what qualities and characteristics are of real worth in the sight of AIlah. These are the basic values of Islam which have been compressed into one sentence. As regards these, there is no difference between the man and woman. However, as for their life-activity, the two sexes have separate spheres to function. The males have to function in some particular spheres and the females in some others. But if they possess these qualities and characteristics equally, Allah will raise them to equal ranks and bless them with equal rewards. It will in no way affect their rank and reward if one carried out household chores and the other performed the duties of caliphate and enforced the Shari’ah injunctions; one reared children in the house and the other went to the battlefield and fought for the sake of Allah and His religion.

Indonesian version (wikisource.org)
“Sesungguhnya laki-laki dan perempuan yang muslim, laki-laki dan perempuan yang mukmin, laki-laki dan perempuan yang tetap dalam ketaatannya, laki-laki dan perempuan yang benar, laki-laki dan perempuan yang sabar, laki-laki dan perempuan yang khusyuk, laki-laki dan perempuan yang bersedekah, laki-laki dan perempuan yang berpuasa, laki-laki dan perempuan yang memelihara kehormatannya, laki-laki dan perempuan yang banyak menyebut (nama) Allah, Allah telah menyediakan untuk mereka ampunan dan pahala yang besar.”