In Search of Eternal Happiness

In The Name of Allah

Most Gracious and Most Merciful

Besides sharing the verses in the Quran that I have benefited much from, I am also going to start sharing what I've learnt in each tazkirah conducted by my beloved teacher Dato Dr. Fatma El-Zahrah al- Ramadan after each attendance. Not only so I remember and practise what I've learnt but also to share with others who may not have the opportunity to attend her classes.

My guru of almost ten years now.

I will start with a special one-off session which was hosted by a friend, the beautiful (inside and out in that order) Kak Shahariah which was held at her gallery at The Forum in Jalan Tun Razak just yesterday, the 13th of December 2015. Dr. Fatma always starts her tazkirah with a muqaddimah (introduction) and this session was no different. She had stressed upon the importance of knowledge, and also the importance of passing on the acquired knowledge to others. Her reminder concurred with my intention to start this blog, and I take this as a guide from my Master that I am doing the right thing and that I should make it a priority.

Three beautiful women masya Allah, from left, Nabila (Kak Shahariah's daughter, Dr. Fatma and the gracious hostess herself) 

The topic for this session was Hayatan Thoyibba which means a Good and Happy Life. Dr. Fatma cited ten steps towards a wholesome, fulfilling life that we all should aim for; in this post I shall write about the first two as they are the very pertinent points and those which we will be questioned on in the hereafter. 

Number One
HabluminAllah -  habluminAllah means our relationship with Allah. This is first and foremost, and it is the epitome of our aqeedah (matters of our faith). This entails a solid and unwavering belief in the existence of life after death, and that Allah is constantly watching us whatever we do. Ulama' say that there are three celebrations for a true Muslim:
- the day we repent
- the day we have successfully performed the compulsory solah with khusyu', reading the Quran and making sadaqa
- the day we die in khusnul khatimah 

Number Two

Habluminannas -  which means our relationship with people. Our attitude, behaviour and responses towards people is a huge part in Islam for this is our akhlak. There is absolutely no point in worshiping Allah Azza wa Jalla if we do not develop and improve on our relationships with others. 

With some of the jama'ah

Feelings of jealousy, resentment, hostility, revenge and anger towards others is totally unacceptable in Islam. We often hear of this as it is a major part of Islamic teachings, but in this particular session, there was a new facet to it which has not been touched by many ustaz/ah. Dr. Fatma mentioned that we have to be really careful in our choice of words: they (the words we speak) by no means must hurt others even when we have no intention to do that. For example, when visiting the sick, we shouldn't make remarks on how badly they look or frighten and sadden them with stories of deaths and such. Also, body language and facial expressions must be watched so they do not offend or slight others. 

These two criteria weigh heavily during evaluation after our deaths so we must make serious and untiring effort to ensure our relationship with both Allah and people is at its utmost best. Coincidentally, I wanted to study what the factors that made women successful in life were. I observed a few women who had some things in common among them: they are always happy, cheerful and enthusiastic, they are healthy and energetic, and they are blessed with abundance. Through my observation, I saw that these women are extremely altruistic and beneficent. They would go out of the way to help others, and their genuine, sincere, congenial nature is outstanding, masya Allah. Even though they are affluent, they are never condescending or patronizing. They are those who portray the best of both habluminAllah and hablumminnas. 

Even in this life we are able to see the blessings bestowed on them, I cannot imagine the rewards they will receive in the hereafter. I am sure if we seriously focus and work towards this, we all can lead happy and fulfilling lives too, dunya and akhirah, insya Allah. No doubt they have problems like everyone else too, but we don't normally hear them whine or lament about it. I am so syukur to know these women, and may Allah swt continue to bless them and their families with love, baraqah and happiness.

Make Allah happy, and surely, He will make us happy. Aameen.