00:00 for Al-Quran?

Bismillahirahmanirrahim...



"Alif Laam Raa. A book which we have revealed to you (Muhammad) so that you may lead the people from out of the darknesses into the light by their Lord's leave to the path of the All-Mighty, the Praiseworthy." [Qur'an 14:1]

Last night there was kenduri tazkirah at my in-laws' place where they invited a 26 year old ustaz from Palestine, namely Ustaz Anas, to talk about our beloved religion.

Ustaz Anas has stayed in M'sia for 2 years and on Monday will return to his homeland. He has grasped the Malay language, though sometimes his language mistakes can be hilarious, he has successfully sent his message across that it touched me to the core.

The gist of the tazkirah...

1. The greatest nikmat in life is not the things we have, the people we know and other worldly pursuits. The greatest nikmat is being chosen by Allah to be a Muslim, embracing the right religion... Islam.

2. Now as Muslims, have we uphold ourselves to reflect a Muslimin/Muslimat? Ustaz Anas then focuses on Rasulullah's s.a.w. character and how we should emulate him because he was sent to us to be our perfect role model. Many touching stories were told.

3. Finally, ustaz Anas reminded us of Al-Quran, which took about 60% of the tazkirah. The question, "Berapa banyak masa dalam 24 jam kita guna untuk baca Al-Quran?". This question slapped me on the face. Most days, apart from the surah's I read in the prayers, its virtually 00:00 spent to read Al-Quran. Further, he also questioned... how come we can make time for work, time to eat, time to watch TV, time read newspapers, all fitting well into our daily schedule but there isn't any time made to read Al-Quran? Another slap on the face.

4. Why do we find reading Al-Quran boring? Ustaz Anas explains because most people are reading the arabic version only, which most people don't understand as well. To generate interest, one must also read the tafsir and understand the meaning. Only then what we read start to make sense and grab us... just like when we read an engrossing book.

I immediately tried it last night by only reading the tafsir and I chose the stories of our prophet Musa. See, I have this tafsir Al-Quran which list the topics and subject matter in the Quran. This way I could skip-read the Quran to the ayats related only to/about Musa, which is scattered in different surahs. Eventually, I get a complete story about Musa. I've just discovered a very enlightening and unboring way to read the Quran.

I've also discovered a website which have the same function as my tafsir. Go here http://www.al-quran.org.uk, then click "Topical Index". Very nicely done.

Go try!

CPI and value of money

Most companies in M'sia will increase the salaries of their employees in January or April. For those who just had their salary increases, how much increment did you get this time? It should be at least 1.4%, otherwise your company is naft! Go renegotiate.

As a benchmark, M'sia posted a CPI of 1.4% for 2004/05 y.o.y. (year on year). This means the value of our money has decreased 1.4% in 2005 compared to 2004. In other words, in 2005 you will need RM1.40 to buy (for instance) a kilo of sugar compared to only RM1.00 in 2004.

Well, what does all this information mean to us? First, if you're getting only a 1.4% increase, you're only breaking even. Second, it means that the 1,000 ringgit you have in your bank account has decreased in value today by 1.4%. You'll need more money to buy things in future. This also explains why a kilo of sugar was probably only RM0.10 in 1957.

CPI is calculated by Statistics Department measuring several key items in Malaysia. They are:
1. Food
2. Beverages and tobacco
3. Clothing and footwear
4. Gross rent, fuel and power
5. Furniture, furnishings and household equipment
6. Medical care and health expenses
7. Transport and communication
8. Recreation, entertainment, education and cultural services
9. Miscellaneous goods and services.

Since the money we have decreases in value constantly, why at all are we keeping them in the bank? So? What say you? Let's go shopping!!!

Bet u guys didn't have this picture... this was before we depart for the picnic in Ulu Yam.

'Jonah' month, this April

When I read Telal's & Norzuhaira's blogs, they mentioned about April being a 'Jonah' month. To be honest, I don't know what was the story behind this Jonah fellow. Well, I could deduce that it relates to bad news, sadness, despair, down on luck, dissappointments, etc... but who's this Jonah are we talking about here? What happened to 'em?

Anyway, I initially thought that the Jonah does not apply to everybody. I mean, I just got a raise when I read about the Jonah thingy. So, I'm in no position to be miserable. But then on Wednesday I remembered that Dil had stone and was admitted to the hospital...Jonah 3 (Telal 1 & Nor 2), then my wife's Getz was hit from the back by some punk kids last 2 weeks... Jonah 4. It wrecked the back of the car and is in the workshop now. Thank Allah the RM3200 cost was claimable through the kid's insurance. Then, the biggest 'Jonah' (for me, at least) was yesterday's accident...Jonah 5. For the sake of making co-relations and coincidence, it is Jonah month, this April.

Here's the pic...


Now, can somebody tell me the story of Jonah?

a father's love...

Yesterday an accident happened in my house that made a major impact in me. :(

I was lying on the floor with my wife in the living area watching TV at about 3pm and Lyana was playing and walking about doing her thing. Then, while playing she tried to cross over my legs which was extended to the TV. Suddenly she caught her legs unto mine and fell forward...

PANG!!!

Her head hit the edges of the TV cupboard which were sharp as knives. Lyana immediately cried out loud from the pain. I quickly stood-up to pick her and to my horror there was a split and dent in her forehead with blood coming out of it. My heart stopped and then raced - I was so scared that I cried and cried and cried non-stop. I am crying now while writing this... ;(

I switched off the TV and carried Lyana to our room, while hugging her and still crying. Yanti was the tough one, where her 'doctor-mode' came into action. She applied ice and calmed Lyana and made her smile and played with her. Shortly after that Lyana was already playing again and chuckling eventhough there was a split in her forehead... and I was still crying and I cried and cried so hard like I never cried before.

It hurt me so bad that I was dazed and stayed in my room until 10.30pm - not doing anything but just lying on the bed - sometimes asleep. Yanti then said she was hungry at 10.30pm, that's when I went out to refuel my car and bought some bread for Yanti to eat for supper and some to bring to work. I didn't have anything until this morning.

Taking the blame that Lyana wouldn't have fell if I had moved my legs, I felt that I had caused her to fall. A father should protect her daughther, not hurt her. I know, it's qada' and qadar and I believe Allah has allowed that to happen for reasons.

But the incident has traumatised me. It kept playing in my head again and again and still send shivers down my spine. I pray to Allah to protect Lyana and not allow any mishaps to happen to her again - I don't know if I can handle it anymore.

Lyana, abah sorry Lyana. Abah sayang Lyana. :(


There... the cut on her forehead.

kenduri aqeqah Lyana

Alhamdulillah, yesterday was Lyana's kenduri aqeqah at Kg Paku, Alor Gajah. The kenduri was bundled with Amir Ariff's (Lyana's cousin) aqeqah as well. We slaughtered two black male goats.

There are several things that I want and must do as a muslim father, and this aqeqah is one of it. I feel that it is my duty to ensure that my daughter grow up in the Islamic environment and is guided in the Islamic way of life. With fatherhood comes great responsibilities as ordained by Islam. I'm sure raising a daughter has many challenges on its own. Of course, when they are still babies, they are a joy to be with... playing, cuddling etc. But what lies in future is still unknown. I

hope and pledge to be a good father, instilling the Islamic faith unto my children and family. Ya Allah, grant me strength and guidance to do my duties as a Muslim. Amiin.

Lyana, Abah saaayang Lyana.


Me in action trying to subdue the goat... feisty, this one.


This was the black goat slaughtered on Lyana's aqeqah.


There you are Lyana, with mama and nen.

Money?

Finally have some time to mess around with this blog again. So many things have happened since I last 'blogged'.

Was busy doing the 2005 Compensation Program for Talisman. This is the time when employees receive their salary increase and variable pay bonus.

Most people don't know that their annual salary increases, though sounds pretty straight forward, has plenty of variables being taken into consideration. Ok, let's assume the HR department is up-to-date and developed in terms of compensation structure and pay technology. In that case, the salary increases will consider the followings:

1. Cost of Living : usually derived from the Consumer Price Index (CPI). This would also reflect the inflation rate.
2. Merit : employees gain experience and increase in skills throughout the year.
3. Market adjustment : HR will usually run surveys of the similar jobs in the employment market to determine the salary usually paid for the particular job.
4. Incumbent : the incumbent's characteristics are also taken into consideration. i.e. performance, maturity, etc.
5. Position : the responsibilities and accountabilities that come with the position.

There are many tools in the market to derive the formula and methodology for salary increase and there's no one 'right' way of doing it. In absence of a formal methodology, a 'cin-cai' company can simple pluck a percentage or amount from the air and implement the salary increases.

Aaa.. boss, gaji naik lebih sikit boleh ka?