NEGATIVE TALKING IS CONTAGIOUS

PERSEVERE (EVERY DAY)

Never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.
- HARRIET BEECHER STOW

A man who lived by the side of the road and sold hot dogs was hard of hearing, so he had no radio. He had trouble with his eyes, so he read no newspapers. But he sold good hot dogs. He put up signs on the highway advertising them. He stood on the side of the road and cried, "Buy a hot dog, mister?" and people bought his hot dogs. He increased his meat and bun orders. He bought a bigger stove to take care of his trade.

He finally got his son to come home from college to help out. But then something happened. "Father, haven't you been listening to the radio?" his son said. "Haven't you been reading the newspaper? There's a big recession on. The European situation is terrible. The domestic situation is worse."

Whereupon the father thought, "Well, my son's been to college, he reads the papers and he listens to the radio, and he ought to know."

So the father cut down his meat and bun orders, took down his signs and no longer bothered to stand out on the highway to sell his hot dogs. His sales fell overnight.

"You're right, son," the father said to the boy. "We certainly are in the middle of a big recession."

Has someone else's negative attitude ever changed your actions?

HADITH (pl. AHADITH)

Report of the words and deeds of Muhammad and other early Muslims: considered an authoritative source of revelation, second only to the Quran (sometimes referred to as sayings of the Prophet).

Compilers were careful to record hadith exactly as received from recognised transmission specialists. The six most authoritative collections are those of al-Bukhari, Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, Abu Daud al-Sijistani, al-Nasai and al-Qazwini.

In an authentic hadith, the Prophet (bpuh) said:

"All blessed is He and Most High says: 'O' son of Adam, indeed you will not supplicate to Me and hope from Me except that I will forgive you in proportion to what came from you (i.e. your level of sincerity), and I won't mind. 'O' son of Adam, if your sins were to reach in magnitude the height of the heavens, and then you were to ask Me for forgiveness, I would forgive you, and I won't mind. 'O' son of Adam, were you to come to Me with sins that (in their size) almost fill the earth, and you met Me without ascribing to Me any partners, I would come to you with its size in forgiveness.'"

Bukhari related that the Propet (bpuh) said:

"Indeed, Allah extends His Hand in the night to forgive the one who sins in the day, and He extends His Hand in the day to forgive the one who sins at night, and this continues until the sun rises from the west."

In another authentic narration, the Prophet (bpuh) said:

"Every one of you is constantly doing wrong, and the best of those who constantly doing wrong, are the ones who are constantly making repentance."

He (bpuh) also said in this authentic hadith:

"Truly, Allah is happier with the repentance of His slave than one of you who is on the mount, and upon his mount is his drink and food, then he loses his mount in the desert, and he searches for it until he loses hope, so he sleeps and then wakes up to find that his mount is beside him, and he says, 'O' Allah, you are my slave and I am your Lord'. He pronounces this mistake as a result of his extreme happiness."

He (bpuh) is also authentically reported to have said:

"Verily, a slave (of Allah) commits a sin and then he says, 'O' Allah, forgive me my sin, for indeed, none forgives sins except You'. Then he commits another sin, and he afterwards says, 'O' Allah, forgive me my sin, for indeed, none forgives sins except You'. Then he commits another sin, and he afterwards says, 'O' Allah, forgive me my sin, for indeed, none forgives sins except You'. Then Allah says, 'My slave knows that he has a Lord, Who takes one to account for sins, and Who also forgives sins, so let my slave do as he wishes.'"

The meaning of this is that as long as Allah's slave is contrite and repentant, then Allah will forgive him.

TUNJUKI KAMI JALAN KE SYURGA

Agama dengan syariat-syariatnya harus ditaati dan dilaksanakan sepanjang umur hidup manusia. Manusia juga diharuskan untuk selalunya bermurah hati. Hanya apabila manusia dapat menjalankan segala hal-hal tersebut dengan penuh maka manusia dapat mencapai Syurga. Mungkinkah kita hidup dengan sempurna?

Berapa tekunkah kita sepatutnya menjalankan syariat-syariat agama ataupun berapa banyakkah kita melakukan amal-amal soleh agar dapat masuk ke Syurga?

Oleh kerana manusia tidak akan pasti dapat masuk ke Syurga, maka banyak orang tinggal keragu-raguan, dengan kebimbangan dan kegelisahan. Sepanjang zaman orang selalu berdoa kepada Allah agar ditunjukkan jalan yang lurus agar dapat mencapai Syurga.

"Tunjukilah kami jalan yang lurus...."

(Al-Fatihah: 6)

"Tunjuki kami jalan yang lurus" bererti "tunjuki kami jalan ke syurga." Inilah idaman setiap insan. Inilah cita-cita setiap manusia yang berakal.

MUTIARA KATA

Rasulullah s.a.w. bersabda yang bermaksud:

"Takutlah doa orang yang dizalimi sekalipun ia seorang kafir kerana sesungguhnya tidak ada halangan di antara doanya dengan Allah."

(Riwayat Ahmad)

PERNAHKAH anda menganiaya orang lain? Menganiayai secara fizikal, mental atau emosi orang lain? Sekiranya anda telah biasa atau pernah menganiaya, anda perlu takut terhadap doa mereka.

Ingatlah doa orang yang teraniaya adalah antara doa yang mudah diperkenankan Allah. Mintalah maaf kepada mereka sebelum anda terlambat. Terlambat ini bermaksud sama ada anda meninggal dunia atau Allah membalas kejahatan anda di dunia ini.

Firman Allah s.w.t. yang bermaksud:

"Dan antara mereka ada yang telah membuat janji kepada Allah dengan berkata: "Sesungguhnya jika Allah memberi kepada kami limpah kurnia-Nya, tentulah kami akan bersedekah dan tentulah kami akan menjadi orang yang soleh." Kemudian setelah Allah memberi kepada mereka limpah kurnia-Nya, mereka bakhil dengan pemberian Allah itu, serta mereka membelakangkan janjinya dan sememangnya mereka orang yang sentiasa membelakangkan (kebajikan)."

(Surah al-Tawbah: 75-76)

JANGANLAH anda menjadi seperti golongan orang yang disebutkan dalam ayat di atas. Setiap janji hendaklah ditunaikan.

Sabda Nabi s.a.w. yang bermaksud:

"Allah s.w.t. sentiasa membantu hamba-Nya selagi hamba itu masih menolong saudaranya."

(Riwayat al-Bukhari daripada Abdullah IbnUmar)

"Sesungguhnya bagi Allah ada kaum yang diberikan kepada mereka nikmat untuk menolong hamba-hamba Allah, ia akan berkekalan di tangan mereka selama mereka menggunakannya untuk membantu orang lain kalau tidak ia akan ditarik semula dari tangan mereka akan diberikan kepada orang lain."

(Riwayat al-Tabrani)

HEBAT betul janji Allah kepada orang yang suka membantu orang. Di akhirat Allah akan bantu daripada diseksa dan di dunia Allah akan bantu kehidupan dunia. Nabi Muhammad s.a.w. juga menyatakan Allah akan menarik nikmat yang ada pada kita jika kita tidak membantu orang yang memerlukan.

NAMES AND NAMING

The names given to a child often reflect the religious convictions of the parents. The Quran instructs that the only "given" name is the first name. The second name is to be the father's and the third name the grandfather's. This requirement traditionally applies to both boys and girls. Naming of a child may not occur until registration, which in some cultures is delayed if the actual birthdate is considered inauspicious or important family members are absent. The family typically discusses the name and assesses the child's personality and health to determine the name to be given. Traditionally, in the interim male children are called Muhammad and female children Fatimah. Celebrations herald the decision on a child's name in traditional societies. Converts are typically given Muslim names as a sign of conversion.

NAPOLEON BONAPARTE

THE FUTURE DESTINY OF THE CHILD IS ALWAYS THE WORK OF THE MOTHER - Napoleon

"WHAT IS WANTING," said Napoleon one day to Madame Campen, "IN ORDER THAT THE YOUTH OF FRANCE BE WELL EDUCATED?"

"GOOD MOTHERS," was the reply. The Emperor was most forcibly struck with this answer. "HERE," said he, "IS A SYSTEM IN ONE WORD." - J.S.C. Abbott

DOCUMENT XXXVIII
Profession of Islamic faith by Bonaparte

When the defeat by the Ottoman army was known in Cairo, the Muslims of that town regarded it as a calamity. They were filled with bitter disappointment, and lost hope of seeing Egypt restored to the Islamic power.

"Ulemas and lords," he said to them,"I am surprised at the sorrow caused by my victory. You have therefore not yet learned to appreciate me: however I have often told you and repeated to you, that I was a Muslim, that I believed in the unity of God, that I honoured the prophet Muhammad and loved the Muslims, and you have not given credence to my words, and have believed that they were inspired in me as fear.