The King is Dead, Long Live the King

So Saddam's dead.

Somehow, I dont rejoice in his execution. It has come too late to change anything. Does it help at all the situation in Iraq now? If it does not, why kill him then? So it will satisfy the lusts of vengeance burning in the hearts of some people? So how is that different from throwing some people to lions in a stadium? Does it matter now that it is proved that he committed his crimes? I mean, was that ever in question that it needed proof?

I know that he was an evil, evil man, and he earned this come uppance, but do we have to stoop down to his level and kill him? Why couldnt he be tried in the Hague instead for crimes against humanity, like Milosevic? So many questions surface in my mind at this time.

Whatever it is, no matter how evil he was, I hope that he had time to reflect and repent before he left this world. The alternative would be too terrible to imagine. Indeed from Allah we come, and to Him we shall all return.

Allah humaghfirlahu warhamhu wa affihu wa'fu'anhu,
Allah humaghfirlana warhamna wa affina wa'fu'anna.

One door closes, another opens.
Question is whether it will be a better door.

Omar and Xmas tree

Omar and Xmas tree
Originally uploaded by LilMudPie.

There is still a leftover Chritsmas mood here in KL, so here's one of Omar with a tree in our hotel restaurant.

Hotel room view

Hotel room view
Originally uploaded by LilMudPie.

The Mudpie family stayed in a hotel in Petaling Jaya, and our rooms overloooked this building. Omar thought it was a mosque. Ibrahim couldnt understand why there is a dome on a building that is not a mosque. Come to think of it, I dont either.

Wedding dinner

Wedding dinner
Originally uploaded by LilMudPie.

The malaysian weddings I've been to in KL always have this big silver tray in which the dishes are displayed. It is quite cool. Most of all it is neat. I wish we had this contraption here in Singapore instead of having messy plates all over the place.

Eating Up the Miles

Eating the miles
Originally uploaded by LilMudPie.

Mudpie family drove up to KL for a wedding invite - Zil's youngest brother Azril, was getting married to an American lady named Jennifer. Mrs Mudpie was wonderful. She drove at least a third of the way. Alhamdulillah we arrived safely. We could see some parts of Melaka and Johor that was still under water, though. May God bless the people affected and give them patience. After druiving through some really heavy sheets of rain in Johor, the weather cleared up in Melaka onwards, and we were blessed with a smooth and safe drive the rest of the way.

KL

Family and I are driving up today to KL for a few days to attend a wedding. It stared downpouring in the late morning, and it looks like we would be driving in the rain. To add salt to it, my car started to make a little rattle sound. I am already a little tired, as I have been busy all of yesterday at IKEA pushing around big pieces of furniture. I hope insha Allah to reach KL safely and without hassle so that I would be able to chill a little. Will post some pics when I get back, insha Allah.

Shrouds

Wife and I have been attending a course on sickness, deaths and funerary issues for the last several weeks at a somewhat far away mosque, and I must say I enjoy it tremendously. The class is well attended, and the teacher was eloquent, clear and attractive. He uses Sabil ul Muhtadeen by Syeikh al-Banjari, an ancient book that nobody uses anymore nowadays. In fact I was so impressed by it that I went on a queest to look for the book (the course only provided a few photocopied pages) around Singapore. It was not available in Latin script, so I bought the Jawi version. It is really old style Jawi that does not follow the present spelling conventions, and the words do not have spaces between them, so a sentence is like a very long word. Like how the Quran is written. Gave me a headache. Of course one door opens another in matters of religion, so when I discovered Syeikh al-Banjari, I also discovered about al-Batani and the more colourful (read controversial) al-Fansuri. I then bought and read Islam and the Malay-Indonesian World by Riddell, and discovered a host of other great ulama whom I now realise that I have neglected - such as the late great Hamka. I of course went out and bought Hamka's Di-Bawah LIndungan Kaabah (which to my surprise is different from the movie of the same name) and Tasawuf Moderen. Leafing briefly through the latter book, it struck me how all the Muslims in the Malay world are indebted to him, because he singlehandedly dragged the oldfashioned and superstitious Sufism, that was in danger of being discarded by the more educated post independence generation, into the 20th century, while at the same time demolishing the then ascending modernist movements sweeping through South East Asia. If every century produces a mujadid, he certainly was ours. May Allah bless his soul, Rahimahullah.

Pilgrims' Progress

25-12-06_2240.jpg
Originally uploaded by LilMudPie.

My wife's aunt and cousins and their spouses and in laws are making the Grande Voyage. It is a repetition of the same ritual every year - the prayers, feasts, get togethers, gifts, airport sendoffs at midnight - but I just love it all. Wife has booked for me and her and the kids to go in 2008, Allah willing, I am beginning to build up some excitement towards it, seeing other people going.