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I started this blog for two reasons: one is to show how much I have travelled beyond the borders of Singapore and the other is to introduce to the world about my boss whose generosity has made me a traveller. You know it is difficult to maintain a family of 5 members and being the sole breadwinner. Monthly expenses will take a giant bite of the income earned. Don’t talk about savings for travelling.

I joined my boss company a year and half ago. I have to date visited two beautiful locations of the world: Bangkok in Thailand and the latest travel to Jerusalem. Initially when my boss asked me whether I will want to go to Bangkok last year I hesitated as I have not travelled outside of Singapore for so many years. I can recall I have visited Penang in Malaysia when I was 9 or 10 years old with my mother. After that due to economic reasons I did not have any opportunity to go out of the country. After my marriage in 1988, I have managed to glance a part of Medan in Indonesia. Thereafter, I had become so comfortable staying within my country Singapore. Lack of a decent income has not allowed me to see the world.

A year and a half and I have travelled two countries. It is a blessing and opportunity for me as I learned unique cultures and people during the visit to Jerusalem.

I want to dedicate this blog to my boss Haji Abdul Jaleel for making me a traveller. Travel with boss is all about my experience with the outside world with the help of my boss. May God bless my boss! Travelling with boss has enriching effect in my life.

Happy reading ...

Cheers!

[travel][boss][generous]

Surah Khaf Chapt 18 Part Two

In part one for the reason behind surah khaf we have seen an answer to the first question asked by the opponents of Prophet Muhammad (saws). In another verse of the Al Quran Allah swt answered in a different manner :

Wayas aloonaka AAani alrroohi quli alrroohu min amri rabbee wama ooteetum mina al AAlilmi illa qaleelan

They ask thee concerning the Spirit (of inspiration). Say: “The Spirit (cometh) by command of my Lord: of knowledge it is only a little that is communicated to you. (O men!)” 17:85

The question put forward by the Jewish rabbis about the ‘roohi’ had been answered to the point :

- that the Spirit comes by the command of Allah swt
- that the knowledge the Jews had was little

Insha Allah we can explore about ‘the Spirit’ at a later time. Despite the knowledge given is very little there is some knowledge about the Spirit according to the Al Quran from the above verse.

[rabbis]
[jew]
[prophet muhammad]

The reason behind Surah Khaf Chapter 18 Part One

The story of the people of Khaf is an interesting one. We have a lesson to learn from this beautiful surah. There is a hadith where our beloved Prophet Muhammad said that if a person were to recite the first 10 verses of Surah Khaf the reciter will be immune to the trials of the Dajjal.

One interesting point to note on the message of the Al Quran is that each verse was given to Prophet Muhammad for a reason. When the quraish people were annoyed with the message of the Prophet, they made a plan to destroy his credibility by throwing him questions he cannot answer. So the opponents went in search of Jewish rabbis who were living in Mecca for a solution and probable questions. The Jewish rabbis were endowed with superior knowledge of God and His messages. After much discussion the rabbis put forward 3 questions and the opponents of the Prophet went back to Muhammad with those selected questions: they asked Muhammad about the Rooh or spirit; about the young sleepers of the cave and about the personality who travelled a great deal and reached the east and west of earth.

Prophet Muhammad told them that he will answer them ‘tomorrow’. This answer by the great Prophet was not well received by God. So in order to teach the Prophet the proper way of communication, God did not send Muhammad the message next day. This went on for 15 days and Prophet Muhammad became worried why God had not answered to the questions by the opponents of Muhammad.

And do not simply say of something: “I will do this tomorrow” 18:23

“Except if God wills” And remember your Lord if you forget and say: “Perhaps my Lord will guide me to what is nearer to this in wisdom” 18:24

Answer to the first question

God answered the question on Rooh by personifying the rooh of two men. One who was given more blessings than the other. But the one who went back into his garden while he wronged himself.

He said “I do not think that this will ever perish” 18: 35

“And I do not think that the Hour is coming. And if I am indeed returned to my Lord, then I will surely find even better things for me” 18: 36

His friend said to him while discussing with him: “ Have you disbelieved in the One who created you from dirt, then from a seed, then He evolved you into a man?” 18:37

“But He is God, my Lord, and I do not place any partners at all with my Lord.” 18:38

“And if you enter your garden, you should have said: “This what God has given, there is no power except by God.” 18:39

The parable of this story is that the rooh or self that belief with certainty that all that occurs are within the power of Allah will reach success in the end. We should say:

Masha allahu la quwatta illa billahi

At the end of the parable God destroys what he had given the man who wronged his soul.

[surah khaf][rabbis][soul]

Hebron

We visited Hebron. Hebron means ‘friend’. Prophet Ibrahim (may peace and blessings upon him) in Islamic theology had been known as the friend of Allah the Most High. He was known as “Ibrahim Al-Kalill’ – Ibrahim the friend. He was the Kallilullah- Friend of Allah The Most High.

The streets of Hebron were quite narrow and our bus had to stop at the outskirts of the valley of Hebron. The resting place of the holy prophet was located down the valley. In fact most parts of Jerusalem are a place of mountains and valleys. So we went to the resting place by foot.

After about 15 to 20 minutes of walk in the hot afternoon we reached the resting place of Prophet Ibrahim alaihis salam.

As you enter the mosque you will be screened by Israeli soldiers. It is the practice in Islam that when you enter any mosque you have to pray ‘Salathul Tahiyathil Masjid’ or prayer of greetings.

After a brief explanation by the tour leader we glance the most auspicious and holy site of Islam – the resting place of our leader’s leader Hazereth Prophet Ibrahim alaihis salam and his family. The tomb spread was covered with emerald green as you can see in the picture. You can sense the peace surrounding their abode!

You can also take a taxi back to the uphill as walking back to the bus can be a tiresome effort. One our way there you can see Palestinian children requesting for a dollar.

[Hebron]

Dead Sea

Initially the plan was to go to the dead sea and stay in the hotel next to it on the first day of our trip. Our bencoolen Imam said that the dead sea is a cursed place by God and should be avoided. So my boss changed the plan and decided not to rest at dead sea. So my boss decided to shelf this tour and leave it at the end of the trip. He wanted to see something more holy!
The dead sea is the exact location in history where the people of Prophet Lut were destroyed according to the Holy Quran. Those people were practising homosexuality and the news of the destruction had reached to Prophet Ibrahim by the Three Angels.
“So when our command came, We turned it upside down, and We rained on it with hardened fiery projectile” verse 82 of Chapter 11 of the Al Quran
On the last day we decided to glance the dead sea. It was a kilometre walk through the grand hotel into the sea. The water is like it had been mixed with 99 percent of salt! I took some water into my hands and went into the waters of the dead sea knee deep. Despite the presence of the sea which is below sea level, the location is really hot and there is hardly any wind – proof enough that it was a cursed location on earth!

[dead sea][cursed]

Jerusalem Gate Hotel

The trip to Jerusalem is going to be my memorable tour as it is the Holy Land for all muslims. After the short tour in Jericho we reverted to our hotel at the Jerusalem Gate Hotel. It had acquired a 4 star quality - well according to Israeli standards!. It looked like a run down hotel. Hotel 81 in Singapore could have been a better choice. The food in this hotel is all vegetables!

But the lack of cosiness in the Jerusalem Gate Hotel did not deter me or my brother Feroj from wandering the outside life surrounding this hotel. We did not explore that far because of the fear of Israeli soldiers who are actually in plain casual clothes.

We took some pictures here. The air was really fresh and clean. We cannot see any vehicles outside as it was a holiday for most of the people.

One architecture that captured our eyes is a small bridge which looked like a giant prawn in the midst of the city. It is actually a bypass road costructed to clear traffic on a busy day. The bridge is held by iron ropes supported the one and only pillar. Take a look at the picture below.

[gate][hotel]

Jericho

Jericho is a one of the place where Palestinians are being kept under the watchful eyes by the Israeli militia. Jericho is the ‘city of palm trees’. After the exodus by Prophet Moses, his successor Joshua instructed his people to ‘Go, view the land especially Jericho”. Jesus walked through Jericho and cured the blind people according to the Bible.

Jericho looked like a town in the aftermath of a war. It is basically deserted and barren in most part of the location. Well we did find a comfortable place for our lunch – I loved the food in Jericho. Vegetables and rice with barbecued chicken parts and some slices of meat sticks- the lunch was great here in Jericho. The color of the food matches the color of the panaromic view of Jericho – blends of brown everywhere.

[jesus][Joshua][palestinians]

Amman To Allenby Bridge

The journey from Amman to Israeli border was quite a tedious one. I understand from one of our colleague that there was a bomb scare while checking in to cross over the Israeli border. The tourists were to run for their lives and take cover. As I visualise I saw that there was no to place to hide there. All I saw was flat land and the place is quite simmering with heat.

As we are from Singapore we can take a short stroll around the area. But we need to turn back to our bus to get the breeze of the air condition. But to run around in that heat had been a torment for anyone.

Luckily with the help of God there was no such trauma during this trip to Jerusalem. But the screening was very meticulous.

The Israeli check point were run by mostly young teenagers. And they seemed to be very beautiful people. A few of my colleague were called-in to a room for a detail screening. The screening took many hours and i was really exhausted. Finally, my name was screened and the beautiful Israleli girl behind the counter let me pass the border. I was so relieved as I wanted to see Israel. The above building is the check point and the picture was taken from our coach bus after the stringent screening. My strong advice to tourist who wants to visit Israel to take some isotonic drinks and some biscuits or some magazines to spend your time while waiting for your turn to be screened.

But despite the cautious screening It was worth waiting to see the most beautiful country in the world - Israel.

[tight][bridge][bomb scare]

Jerusalem

The trip to Jerusalem is the best thing of my life. It is undoubtedly a spritual journey for me. I could remember at the age of 19 when i purchase a copy of the Al Quran by Abdullah Yusof Ali for my reading and understanding. The story of Prophet Ibrahim alaishisalam, Prophet Musa (Moses) alaihis salam, Propeht Isa (Jesus) alaihis salam.... the story of People of Thamud and so on. All of those stories have somehow influenced on my way of thinking and living.

The good thing about travelling is also mentioned in the Al Quran :

Do they not travel through the earth, and see what was the End of those before them(who did evil)?god brought utter destruction on them, and similar (fates await) those who reject God. 47:10

The trip to Jerusalem is therefore an awesome and educational journey for me. I take this opportunity to thank my boss Haji Abdul Jaleel and pray to Allah subuhanallah for his good health and long life. May Allah subuhanallah shower the choicest blessing upon him. Ameen!

[jaleel][Prophet Ibrahim][Jerusalem]

Dubai Airport

We took a flight from Singapore to Dubai airport. It is a 7 hour journey. Dubai airbort is a beautiful rectangular place and it is very busy even at 2 in the morning.

When we were at Dubai, we had about 5 hours to have a glimpse of dubai- not the surrounding sites but dubai airport itself. A request to see the outside of dubai airport is rejected by the security there as we are in transit from dubai to Amman. But no regrets. I and my brother Feroj took a stroll within the airport.

We went to the department store where you can find electronic goods. The price is almost the same in singapore.

After the window shopping, we decided to take a bite at the macdonalds. Well as expected the Macdonalds , i believe, is very popular among the people of Dubai. It had a good crowd. We sat and filled up our rumbling stomach.

After the morning prayer in one corner of the airport, our colleague were found chatting among themselves. Some of them were found mingling among the shoppers of dubai.

[dubai][macdonalds][electronic][amman]