Mayhem - Death

*Picture taken from the internet: Source unknown


With dirt across their face in streaks
Grimy hands and cracked feet
Shirts strewn with blood and…

Doesn’t your heart shriek
Don’t your eyes weep
They are desperate for you and I
to do something
before all and everything
that we knew to be life
is destroyed by their
bomb and gunfire speak
Age is not even a number
as their bodies are piled high
One across another
Two on top of their mother
brother sister aunty uncle
They’re all holding hands
of aged worried grandparents
stooped, then maligned and buried
beneath a ravaged son and a father
who holds his new born bundle
blown to pieces before he could
even kiss its cheek
The unborn fetus that couldn’t
even make it into this world
before it was wrenched
into uncountable pieces of a family
drenched and buried in their own blood
Lineages wiped out before humanities eyes
Havoc is hurled about
And all its creations lie asunder

Oh Lord! Please send your Mercy?

With dirt across his face
Grimy hands, cracked feet
Tears in streaks upon streaks
Tattered clothes strewn with blood!

Away From The Hubbub

                                                         Listening and watching in silence

To all that's happening; she then sighs

Questioning herself to find a balance

To not respond in angry sarcasm

Others actions remain beyond her control

Managing emotions; crushing moans and groans

Adulation of things that will die

Eternity being mocked, as if a lie

Fusion of fashions, loud and aglow

Discussion of religion 

As if at a performance or a show

The clock keeps on ticking

Days on end keep slipping

Years roll into a decade

Where is it that she is headed?

Turning to the only Steady she knows

Throws herself into a bow on the floor

Supplicating for the gaps to fill

And not let her heart escape its till

Sanctimonious worship will get no one by

The soul has to join the heart as it cries

Reaching out to a seemingly oblivion

Allowing hope to sing and be ridden

On a glorious glimmering black stallion 

To a place that can only be God’s Haven…

Insha’Allah – Ameen.

#11ElevenLive

Today is the 11th day, of the 11th month, of the year 2011. Little did I know of how this day was being celebrated all around the world, with various events being held on the very same day - all in their own ways and forms - until I was pleasantly surprised to hear of the 11Eleven Project via a TED member, Danielle Lauren. I was elated to be a part of her global venture, thus, I set out with my dad to a mosque near our house where he would pray, and I would take some pictures from the car.

The car clock tells the time, as we set out.

 

                              

   

                          

Friday, is considered a Holy day for Muslims all around the world...

It is a day when Muslim men can be seen visiting their local mosque in hoards; Muslims of different cultures, all rushing out to their friendly neighbourhood mosque to bow down in prostration to their One Lord, early in the afternoon. 

Little kids in their daddy's arms, or holding each others hands...

People who sit on a chair whilst praying, often bring their own...

Old people who walk to the mosque with the help of a cane...

People in their thawbs, their shimagh/keffiyah, their jeans and shirts, their kurta shalwars/pajamas, their lungis, their variations of topis...

All myriads of steps being walked towards the same call to prayer, to bow down together, shoulder to shoulder in prayer...

The end of their ritual brings them back, out of the mosque, off to attend to their worldly needs again. Some start right at the mosque's doorstep with the buying of vegetables, perhaps for their late lunch or early supper...

Vegetable vendors looking for customers, whilst men meet and greet in the background.

What I found most interesting was how I seemed to remember specific people on their way out, from what I had taken in of them when they were walking towards the mosque; the man whose hair could be used in a shampoo commercial, the man with a bling bling dollar sign on his topi, the man with three kids all of the same size, the man with a cane, the man with a chair, the man who ran in, the man who had waved salaam to another, the man in a lungi, the shiny bald guy with the designeresque sunglasses... you get the drift? Sadly, I couldn't get a picture of all those whom I speak of. Nevertheless, I was intrigued at how the mind chooses to hold on to specific things, whilst entirely forgetting the rest. 


And while I silently mused over this thought, we got back home...

It was time for me myself to pray, and before I got around to it, I took some more pictures of my youngest sibling while she performed her Wudu...

And then stood up to pray in the privacy of her room...

The women in our house, in Saudi Arabia, mostly stay at home to pray by themselves - albeit this is not a norm, simply a matter of preference.

I decided to take pictures of how the Holy day of the week is spent in the life of an Indian Muslim in Riyadh - Saudi Arabia, as luckily Friday happened to fall on 11/11/11!

Why Do We Jump To Act God?

I am not a leader, so I cannot imagine what it is like to be one. Having said that, I am a Muslim who believes in The One Lord; Most Merciful, Most Forgiving. If I expect of Him to have mercy on me, forgive me, then as a follower I sure feel obliged to at least practice that which I ardently hope to in the end myself receive. At the end of all discourse, Allah swt remains Knowing Best... SubhaanAllah.

Somalia; In Allahá Maá Saábireen!

For every sip we take and every bite we eat, For every moment of peace we sleep and every commodity we buy unnecessarily - May we watch and weep, for how can we not be heavily moved by all the blessings that surround us from so afar unto so very deep, in every moment and in our every heart beat!

Alhumdulillah-e-Rabbul-Al-Ameen!
Alhumdulillah-e-Rabbul-Al-Ameen!
Alhumdulillah-e-Rabbul-Al-Ameen!

That Finger That Points At Others...

... Yes it irks me!

For every piece of news we seem to get hold of, in these globally advanced times of ours; every discovery has to be glamourised, or at least hyped oh so much, that the listener in response either gapes, hates, or cries. Yes, interpret those reactions as you may!

Every nation, culture, and religion has one thing in common. They're all comprised of human beings. These human beings, based on the beliefs of the Abrahamic scriptures (I won't claim to presume about other religions, for I have not read of them enough), are designed in such a fashion that renders them susceptible to erring; the very reason for man to be set down on earth. If humans were mistake-free, or the epitome of perfection, then the very connotation of angels would be moot or void.

The fact that human beings are not perfect, leaves the door open to one, two, or few going astray - perhaps some more yet, having a mean streak stretched beyond what is comprehensible by the majority. The general good all of mankind collects to agree upon, regardless of creed and sect, just as they mostly do over the general bad. But offlate, the trend seems to be name calling; in the name of religion, country, groups, etc. 

-If one person belonging to your group goes astray, does that make the entire group lost? 

-If one person from a specific sect claims to say something that is disagreeable, does that bound everyone from that sect to the same thought/rigidity/stance? 

-If one person from 'x' country does something one way, does that make all citizens of that nation duty bound to do things that very same way? 

-If one person (or even 10) from religion 'y' interpret their rituals and duties as doing certain things in a certain manner, does that mean that all who claim to be under the umbrella of this faith will, and do, every thing that very same way?
Why are communities, nations, and a people being stoked and stroked by a quick smearing of the same brush? Why are we confining ourselves to the limitations of a single story, when what we really need to do is expose ourselves to the possibility of something more that may -and often does- exist beyond our myopic exposure? Why does it have to come down to either Muslims being terrorists, or Americans being Conspirators, while all Indians and Pakistanis being doctors and IT people, and all Arabs owning oil wells and camels, not to forget that all Brits have to have horrible dental hygiene, and everyone in Antarctica lives in Igloos! 

I guess by now, the ones reading who have a working grey matter would have caught on my drift, and woe.

One can only hope so much... and pray, if you're thus inclined...

*sigh*

Sabr! E-Illahi !!!

Sense pervades... silence resonates... the within is amassed into confusion... the system ignites... the body it fights... resilience begins to administer, but doesn't always succeed. Some fights are fought, some battles lost, some victories stand hollow despite succeeding. Emotions at loss, pains that last, families are stricken yet standing. Generations mean nothing sometimes, all gets wiped out, and nothing remains... no one to even remember.Your battles with in, you fight fear, you wont let it creep in, but disease listens only to Allah, and to Him we must surrender. In hidden signs, lies the better good. In resilient faith stands the test of time. In patience hides real strength. All things Good or Bad in this lifetime are but for so long...Tomorrow, is but a breath away from not happening, and yet - Tomorrow is but a breath away from how we choose for it to become. It all depends on how we see it, and how much we are blessed to see. It all hangs in the balance of how much we open our hearts, minds, eyes, ears and souls to accept.

To Him we belong and to Him is our return. May it be smooth, may it be bountiful, with Right on our side through this ragged, jagged, mysterious journey. And while on this traipse, we beg: Sabr - E - Illahi !!!

Protests & Discord

Death by bomb, rifle, or stone
Injustice and crime we must condone
Lives at stake
No one will be 'forsaked'
Your brother, mother, 'et al' they'll take
They will pester and break
Till they muster enough ache
And let all fester with hate
Until all that exists
Perishes beyond a requitable state.

The Goods in the Bads

Perched on my window, I watch from the inside as all things transpire. Some things feel like they are running in slow motion before me while I stand watching; a non participant - and at other times things that happen do so too fast for me to be able to stop and comprehend them in all their entirety; I am left humbled and sometimes also rather stupefied. Emotions have to be one of the extremes, the middle ground screaming of monotony there by not piped about with fervour - for now at least. Restless souls that we undoubtedly are, are moved by the words and thoughts of some participating few that exist around us...

... Why?

Perhaps because of the very nature of them, pleasant words and thoughts that is, being totally unexpected! Such little humbling happy moments are but ones to be wholesomely treasured for they are the little blessings that this life has to offer. We more often than not, pass them on by in a skip of a heart beat, never finding grace with in us to stop and appreciate or be thankful! May such moments never stop unfolding, every now and then, as reminders of the little gifts that we ought to revel in.

Thank you Allah swt for blessing my life with people of hearts, people with a conscience, people who know kindness and use it, people who don't just preach but live with honesty, people who stop to show they care when all else around is chaos personified manifold!

          Alhumdulillah!

All Has Drowned [Sab Doob Gaya Hai...]

* Inspired by the song, 'Doob Gaya Hai' , which was composed in the after math of the recent floods in Pakistan , by a Pakistani band called, Laal.

He, She, They, and Them
Little eyes fogged
Be-swept and torn by the mayhem
Futures on hold and today's unsure
A past barely long enough
To be in a story told...

Begging, pleading for a salvage of sorts
Unheard voices gone limp and cold
Morsel like shreds of dignity
Perhaps their died out hearts behold
Old and able, scared and torn
Restlessly await their rationed turn

Assuaging whatever little
Their hands can gather
In their hearts memories scattered
Lips listlessly begging and praying
Eyes scoping darkened space
All lives searching for a place together

Help arriving in bits and pieces
But not enough; time medic aid or peaches
To have saved the people or places
That now in stillness show their faces
And remains of those who gave up...
Yet still the few it did manage to reach out to
In their reprieve are small graces

Compassion for ones own kind
Human bodies surpass shrines
Doctrines politics currency or borders
Nothing seems like a tall order
When lives remain wanting at stake
Statistical data recording their fate

What will it take for us to wake?
What will it take for us to wake?
To be finally awake?
To be finally awake?
Before everything breaks
To be finally awake...



**I'd also like to share another great effort by Lyricist/Rapper, ''Sabotage'' , called United We Stand (Pakistan Charity Single) . For more information check out their official Facebook Page .

***UPDATED (7th September 2010, Tuesday - 4:52 am)
Another heart wrenching compiliation:

'Hear Your Call' a charity single released by Sami Yusuf. All profits will go towards Save The Children's emergency relief efforts in Pakistan. Please help donate to the cause.

Support the cause here: www.samiyusufofficial.com/pakistan

Also available on http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/hear-your-call/id389697385.

Copyright of ETM International. All rights reserved.

Outraged in the Fold of Islam?

OUTRAGED by the disbelief, questions, disagreements, differences, deeds/acts, planned efforts/intentions, etc. of those who do not ''follow an Islam that you do''?

What are the core values of Islam? The 5 Pillars... Agree? Yes, and I do mean CORE (as taught to us by the Last Prophet -pbuh-).

If your answer is in agreement, then what is WITH this ''outrage''?
 
Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) did not react in outrage to the people who drove him away from his home, mistreated him, bad mouthed him, fought against him, etc... then what gives US the right to be outraged by such things/events when we are treated similarly?

He (pbuh) was the best example set for his entire Ummah that lived when he (pbuh) did, and the one that followed his demise, thereafter.

I see no excuse or justification for our behavior when we go against the examples set by him!

We are either in denial (as ''followers'' of Islam), or we are hypocrites (to some extent or another), or we simply do not believe!

I believe: Leave the outrage to the disbelievers (kafiroon) or to the hypocrites (munafiqun), and instead stand strong and patient alongside those who follow the same CORE values that make Islam; praying to The Maker of all that exists (known or unknown to us and His creation) to show His light and mercy upon them, and grant us patience and direction straight from Him. Ameen!

For without an iota of a doubt, for those who ''believe'', only Allah (swt) Knows All; Knows Best!

(*Link credits belong to the websites they were taken from. Any errors in translation or interpretation are my own, as used in the writing of this post and for that, may Allah (swt) forgive me.)

To Have Lived?

When you allow yourself to be touched by the mist of misery that exists around you - the misery that you feel entirely helpless against, to do anything to help abate it from around you - that is when your hope to live in this ruthless brutal world diminishes... Your dreams to live long enough to see the beauty that this world and its people have to offer, start taking the form of clouds... Clouds full of hypocrisy, ephemeral facades comprising of divine mirages that are not the longed for oasis one needs to quench their thirst with; rather just clouds that are ready to burst upon you - else cocoon you - based on which state your spirit is in, in that moment.

To go back into the vacuum of the mind where in just you exist, or to live with your eyes and ears open - all senses alive and functioning - allowing you to see the realities that exist beyond your self?

To have catered to your own needs; is to have lived?

Or...

To feel for another, their pain, grief, happiness; is to have lived?

Relentless Ignorance

I was reading The Huffington Post online, when I came across an article written by Asif Shahzad, an Associated Press writer. On reaching the end of the article my mind went into a reaction of torrid anger mixed with utter disbelief over some of God's creatures that sadly fall under the guise of 'mankind'... I quote the said words as follows,

''... Since the floods first swept the country, the Taliban and al-Qaida have been relatively quiet. But on Monday, three bomb attacks rocked the northwest, one of which killed the head of an anti-Taliban militia on the outskirts of the main city of Peshawar.'' 

When one reads an article about natural disasters resulting in human crisis and grief, end on a note such as above - One is rendered speechless for some time, thinking about the absolute blindness of some men who have dug themselves SO INTRICATELY deep into a hole of ignorance and sheeple mindset, that they are unable to save themselves from a darkness which has folded them and their being into an infinite evil grasp!

Such are the people who have stripped themselves of their rights to be identified as one of mankind.

There is not a shred of kindness, or its like, that remains in them. They are a ''condition''  which he who is flabbargasted by it, can only leave in the Hands of a Maker of us all to deal with them in True Justice as can only be deemed appropriate by Him Alone.

And Allah (swt) Knows Best...

May he send down from His infinite mercy and Blessings, a cover and relief to his creatures so desperately and morbidly grief ridden...

Ameen!  

Humanity Drowned?

In glitz galore they lived on oblivious
While voices of gored shrilled rampant
In a world assuaged with grief and trials

Deaf were the ears of those around
And their eyes reverted away in defiance
Care not they to lend a hand of aided alliance

Lives lost in numbers growing ever more
Useless in price to the big guns of show
Alas what remains is a hapless facade of families no more

Washed away their cores, their hopes before being formed
Their voices unheard remain lost in an endless storm
In glitz galore the others function on unharmed;
Oblivious, unmoved, entranced with their worldly trysts.