Nice To Meet You, Beijing

Nice To Meet You, Beijing

Fresh Home-made Story by Faz Zulkifli

Last April 2012, standing in the middle of Winter & Spring, me and my organization mates, JPK Anggerik 2011/2012 went on a tour to Beijing. We traveled by a Muslim package tour provided by al-Nameera Tour & Management. You'll have a lot of opportunity to travel if you are active in organizations in university. Even though you'll experience a lot of difficulties but the experiences gained and the bond you nurtured are priceless man. And we are still keeping our bond until the very now, staying by the name of 'adik-beradik' or siblings forever :]

So I'll story briefly the cool and the unique or strange stuffs on the go. We went during the most comfort season and weather. Still cold, foggy and cloudy with fresh, bright flowers incoming. We hit the food first after hours on airplane. The trick is, restaurants with green signboards are mostly served with Halal food. And yeah, their foods are quite tasteless but I'm good. Some of us brought sambal.

Hello, Beijing!

Green color symbolizes Halal

We went to places, The Forbidden City, Ho Chi Minh, Bird Nest Stadium, Summer Palace, acrobatic show, manufacturers of specialised items made in China such as, pearls, crystals, gems, silks, teas, etc.., and of course, we went to one of the 7 wonders of the world, Great Wall of China too.

 Money in the shell

It was raining when we were at the Summer Palace. All became Power Rangers except me and Kak Iz, we let the rain poured all over us

 Park at Bird Nest stadium

We met Westlife on the way down!

As this is an academic trip (well..most likely), we visited the Beijing Language & Culture University (BLCU) to share some new perspectives but it turned out not to be such a friendly visit. However, the surrounding is very environmental friendly. It feels as if you are really somewhere else from the outside world, so very conducive for study.

Environmental friendly much? Try imagine autumn - A-M-A-Z-I-N-G-!

A form of respect, we said hello to the Embassy of Malaysia in Beijing too. Sadly, not a friendly visit either but funny though when Kak Ju actually asked the officer in charged with a very formal language if he is married, "Sudah berkeluarga?" -zaman bile ntah orang masih guna bahasa baku sebegini. Kak Ju terpegun sbb handsome la tu. We startled for a moment and actually laughed out loud in the meeting. Well, at least it broke the unfriendly atmosphere around the meeting room.

Embassy's meeting room. Aww rindunye meeting sesama JPK

And what makes me very grateful is to pray at someplace besides Malaysia. Unexplainable though why. But it feels really great and humble. Subuh prayer is actually on 4 o'clock and there's a wake up call in our hotel service. I didn't realize there's a wake up service as me and my roommate, Kak Nani really didn't hear the wake up call most of the mornings. Dua-dua tidur mati.

Before I took off, here are some cool and strange stuffs :

• 1. There's KFC restaurant nearby our hotel. (???..?) Hahaha there's nothing strange about that! You may kill me. But KFC delivery service is delivered by bicycle.
• 2. Most kids wear ass-less pants. Details, "The pants have an intentional gaping hole in the pants. Chinese babies do not wear diapers and they urinate and defecate on the streets in China"
• 3. You can get cheap prices of branded stuffs in the market but you'll have to endure some serious mouth-fights. Stressful! I've cut down one item to about 90% of the original price and I've been scolded, I've been slap, I've been yelled, Ive been pulled over and so on. Don't be cheated by the price. Its a lot, lot, lot cheaper.
• 4. At a certain height of Great Wall, if you succeeded climb over there, you'll get a free medal.
• 5. Get a real taste of strawberries! There are all sweet and cheap.
• 6. My friend gave 100 yuan for a 10 yuan raincoat and the seller returned the balance in Russian dollars without my friend noticing as we were in a hurry to hop off from the bus to the rainy weather. She actually yelled 'GIVE ME BACK MY MONEY' to all the sellers after she noticed it. My heart dropped down hearing it. She really yelled it out loud.
• 7. We experienced taking wudhu' by a very hot water and a very cold water.

 One of the menu we've ate. Yummy!

 Maybe for the parents to watch their kids..?

 Some of the mosques we have performed prayers in

Look out for our birthmark we left on the Great Wall's wall ;]

 谢谢.再见

Anggerik Nite Live'11

Anggerik Nite Live'11

Fresh Home-made Story by Faz Zulkifli

Hey..Hey..Heyya! -Gila-

You guys wanna know something? Come closer. Hihihi. -Gila Lagi-

Nothing..it just that, on the 7th & 8th of October 2011, I just SUCCEEDED in holding a program at UiTM Shah Alam :]

The poster. My design :P -Poyo-

It is called 'Anggerik Nite Live'11'. As the Program Director, I have much appreciation to give to my CREWS. Quite fast, effective, obedient, respect, punctual, trustworthy, responsible..even though I am the 'Budak Kecik' in the committee but holding the post as a Boss..sbb tu sampai saya belanja SUBWAY kannn ;] -Poyo-

Section 7 Subway. 30 October 2011.

Certain unfavorable things that happened have been forgave :] Coz you guys did so much BETTER elsewhere. I want to ask for forgiveness oso on the things I didn't notice I've wronged. Sorry ;[

The Stage. Lawa kannn Anggerik ;]

Continue with the brief about the program,

This event took 2 nights. First night, the Official Ceremony. Owh, this event, festival-like, was being conducted to celebrate the 20th Anniversary of Anggerik College. Yeah..Anggerik dah 20 TAHUN tau. Mawar tak silap baru 7 TAHUN (Yekew? My principal said it :P Saya tak bertanggungjawab). Haha.

 

Official Ceremony Cake.

Big cake made by King's Section 7 (Suppose you sponsored the cake bcoz I promoted your company in my blog) -Poyo-

After the Official Ceremony, the competition, 'The Queen Of Anggerik' took place. It is a fashion show using recycled stuffs. Odddyyyyy my friend, won the competition, the one wearing red plastic roses on her chest. Even her shoes was made up of BOTTLE! Krak..krak je bunyi time jalan.

After, 'Movie Nite Live' continued the event. A drama competition. Ganas dak2 nie berlakon. But I didn't even have the time to watch the drama. I runner sana sini. I just heard them screaming so suddenly but dono the cause or the plot of the story. It's quite sad because the audiences were awed watching the drama and they wrote positive responses on FB. SEDIH!

 Positive support!

Some sanggup layan hujan tgk drama while others took shelter under the canopy. Luckily the rain wasn't pour heavily. SEDIH TAK PAT TGK [T_T]

Okay..night one ended. Night two followed.

Started with the acoustic performance from the local band, D'HANDS of Meranti. They were AWESOME :] Because they play trumpet. So it makes them unique. Even though I didn't get the chance to totally feel the music. Ape nie tak habis-habis 'didn't get to'? Haha. Nervous & perfectionist sgt bhai..

Last competition, 'Anggerik Idol'. Karaoke competition between boys' colleges except Teratai because they didn't send any contestant. Yeah..boys only were allowed to enter this competition.

That's it. Alhamdulillah, the trust to hold a program finally being put off from me. Thanks for Anggerikans who support this event by joining the competitions even though it's quite hard to get cooperation from everyone, congrats to Ketua Blok because you managed to organize your block residents, to Exco Kebudayaan of boys' colleges who sent contestants for Anggerik Idol, to all who came and appreciate this event!!! Thank you :]

Besides the events above, we also held Sales Carnival ala night market along the foyer.

Finding Laylatul-Qadr

Finding Laylatul-Qadr

Fresh Home-made Story by Faz Zulkifli

10 Things You Can Do On The Night Of Laylatul-Qadr

Laylatul Qadr (the Night of Power) is described in the Quran as, "better than a thousand months" (97:3). Any action done on this night such as reciting the Quran, remembering Allah, etc. is better than acting for one thousand months which do not contain the night of Qadr.

Allah's Messenger used to exert himself in devotion during the last ten nights to a greater extent than at any other time." (Muslim). Allah's peace and blessings be upon our beloved Prophet.

Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, related that the Prophet said: Look for Laylatul Qadr on an odd-numbered night during the last ten nights of Ramadan (Bukhari).

The Prophet said: "Whoever prays during the night of Qadr with faith and hoping for its reward will have all of his previous sins forgiven." (Bukhari and Muslim recorded from Abu Huraira).

Here are some tips of things we can do on the Night of Power and the time before and after it.

1. Take a vacation for Allah

We take a break from our jobs for almost everything in life. Why not this time to focus on worshiping and thanking our Creator.

If this is not possible at least take a few days off if you can. This can make it easier to stay awake at night to do extra Ibadah, not having to worry about getting to work the next day.

It will also facilitate doing Itikaf.

2. Do Itikaf

It was a practice of the Prophet to spend the last ten days and nights of Ramadan in the masjid for Itikaf.

Those in Itikaf stay in the masjid all this time, performing various forms of zikr (the remembrance of Allah), like doing extra Salat, recitation and study of the Quran. They do not go outside the masjid except in case of emergencies, therefore, they sleep in the masjid. Their families or the masjid administration takes care of their food needs.

Itikaf of a shorter period of time, like one night, a day or a couple of days is encouraged as well.

3. Make this special Dua

Aisha, may Allah be pleased with her, said: I asked the Messenger of Allah: 'O Messenger of Allah, if I know what night is the night of Qadr, what should I say during it?' He said: 'Say: O Allah, You are pardoning and You love to pardon, so pardon me.' "(Ahmad, Ibn Majah, and Tirmidhi).

The transliteration of this Dua is "Allahumma innaka `afuwwun tuhibbul `afwa fa`fu `annee"

4. Recite the Quran

Perhaps you can choose Surahs or passages from the Quran which you have heard in Tarawih this past Ramadan to recite.

If you attend a class where the recitation of the Quran is taught, this is a great time to put your knowledge into practice.

5. Reflect on the meaning of the Quran

Choose the latest Surah or Surahs you've heard in Tarawih and read their translation and Tafseer. Then think deeply about their meaning and how it affects you on a personal level.

6. Get your sins wiped out

Abu Huraira narrated that the Messenger said: "Whoever stands (in prayer) in Laylatul Qadr while nourishing his faith with self-evaluation, expecting reward from Allah, will have all of his previous sins forgiven." [Bukhari and Muslim].

Don't just pray using the shorter Surahs that you know. Try to make your prayers longer, deeper and meaningful. If you are familiar with longer Surahs, read the translation and explanation and then pray reciting these Surahs, carefully reflecting on the meaning while you pray.

Even if you are only familiar with the shorter Surahs, read the translation and explanation beforehand, and then pray reflecting on the message of the Surahs.

This is a good way to develop the habit of concentration, even in regular prayers, where many of us tend to be fidgety and/or easily distracted.

7. Make a personal Dua list.

Ask yourself what you really want from Allah. Make a list of each and everything, no matter how small or how big it is, whether it deals with this world or not. Allah loves to hear from us. Once this list is ready, you can do three things:

• Ask Allah to give you those things

• Think about what actions you have taken to get those things

• Develop a work plan to get those things in future.

8. Evaluate yourself.

Ask yourself those questions that need to be asked. Do an evaluation of where you are and where you are going. Let this evaluation lead you to feel happiness for the good you have done and remorse for the bad you have done. (see a short and a long evaluation guide) This latter feeling should make it easier to seek Allah's sincere forgiveness when making the Dua mentioned in tip number one above.

9. Make long, sincere and deep Duas

One of the best times to do this is during the last part of the night.

Abu Huraira, may Allah be pleased with him, related that the Prophet said:"When the last one-third of the night remains, our Lord, the Glorious One descends towards the heaven of the earth and proclaims: Who is that who supplicates for Me, and I grant his supplication? Who is that who begs Me for anything and I grant it to him? And who is that who seeks My forgiveness, and I forgive him?"(Bukhari, Muslim).

That means for instance, waking up one hour before Suhoor time to ask Allah for anything and everything you want that is Halal. This can be done using the Duas of the Sunnah, but also Dua in your own language, with sincerity and conviction.

For some tips on making Dua please see the article some personal Duas you can make.

10. Memorize a different Dua every night

They don't have to be long. They can be just one line. And be sure to know what they mean generally at least, even if you don't know the exact translation in English.

You can put them on index cards (or and keep them with you during the day, glancing at them during work, while driving, waiting in line, etc.) Then practice them at night in prayer.

 

Source: www.iluvislam.com

To my friends whoever reads this, I am here taking this chance to ask for forgiveness if I ever done any wrong through my speeches or doings. Zahir & Batin k? Hehe ;]