Sallu ala Rasulillah, Habibil Mustapha
Peace be upon the Messenger, The Chosen One
Khairu-khalkiillah
Madinah is a peaceful place. The people are friendly, courteous and always smiling. The shop owners would greet us with ‘Malaysia baguuzzz!’ and 'Lihat dulu' in all the glory of their Arabic tongues and slangs. The weather was cool – wonderful, for Madinah was about to enter its cold season. Madinah wasn’t humid – the air was dry. It was however, pleasant to walk in the vicinity of Masjid Nabawi. There was hardly any cars during the day and the peace and splendor of Masjid Nabawi beckoned one always, enticing and drawing hujjaz to its blessed courtyard and even more blessed occupants, Prophet Muhammad s.a.w, Saidina Abu Bakar r.a. and Saidina Umar r.a. One goes about one's daily live always with the consciousness that one is within the presence of Allah’s Chosen One and his blessed, trusted Companions.
We would wake up at about two in the morning and walked to Masjid Nabawi, a mere five minutes’ walk and it was safe – for there were already throngs of other pilgrims making their way there too. We would be greeted as usual, by the lady guards – and they were fastidious in searching our bags, looking out for camera handphones. My Blackberry more than once was to be sent for ‘Titip amanah!’ (safekeeping), of which I promptly went out and went in through another gate. These lady guards were something – I always wondered who they were behind their black veils – they were very thorough in their work – so trustworthy were they that no ladies could go by them without our bags being searched. Some were task-oriented but some were very kind and apologetic. These ladies could speak a splattering of Malay phrases albeit in the Indonesian slang. They would address us with ‘Ibuk! Ibuk! Jalan Ibuk, jalan!’ or simply pushed us if we failed to understand them! Their voices were shrill and high-pitched and my room-mates remarked that if I were to put on the dark veils, I could pass as one of these guards easy enough!
When we visited Jabal Uhud, I fell in love with it all over again. Jabal Uhud never fails to fill me with awe and inspiration. Truly, the Prophet Muhammad s.a.w has spoken that Uhud loves us, and we love Uhud. How true! To be there, reliving the Uhud battle, internalizing the sacrifice of our early Muslim brothers is an indescribable experience. To look upon the graveyard of the martyrs, to feel the reality of their existence even in death, was a motivation for me not to be so consumed with the humdrum of trivial daily living. Allahu Akbar!
Above all, I could feel the presence of our beloved Prophet s.a.w in Madinah, as if he is gazing down upon us. Throughout the eight days there, I could visit him only thrice and later found out that I was lucky to visit Raudhah for that many times. To visit the Prophet s.a.w’s Maqam, you have to wait and wait and wait – obeying instructions from the lady guards and when you finally are allowed in the Raudah, it became a mad rush to be near the Prophet s.a.w and to do solat at the pillars. There were several deaths at the Raudah towards the end of my week in Madinah. A lady hujjaz was crushed as she lay prostrated at one of the pillars. I was able to perform solat during my first and second visit, but on the third visit, we were packed literally like sardines that I did my solat standing. The emotional euphoria was overwhelming there – the thought that the blessed jasad of our Prophet s.a.w was behind that iron grill would send any believer into a surreal existence, of going back into time and imagining our Prophet s.a.w there, at the Raudhah praying, walking, talking to his Companions, receiving guests, being with Aisyah r.a, imagining him smiling, radiant – a leader, a husband, a friend, and above all, Allah’s Chosen one, Habibil Mustapha. Ya Allah! Please accept us, our children, our family, our friends and relatives as the Prophet Muhammad s.a.w ummah who will receive his shafaat – Ameen Ya Rabb!
To visit Madinah is to know that what you read of Prophet Muhammad s.a.w, his family, his companions - his live, his sacrifices - are all REAL. May Allah let us visit you once again, Ya Rasulullah s.a.w. ! Ameen..
(Five days into our ziarah in Madinah, just five days of separation from our family back in Singapore, when I was still grappling with the emotional bliss of being in Madinah and the pining for those I left behind, one of my room-mates, Kak Mas, burst into the room crying, “Kenapa dia pergi dulu! Anak saya dah meninggal!” Shocked, I was by her side when she tearfully recounted that she had just received news that her youngest child, an 18-year old boy, had passed away suddenly on his first day of work in Singapore. He was breathless, fell unconscious, and passed away. Just like that. Innalillah… All four of us, her room-mates, were speechless. I felt numbed and could only sympathized with her – as any mother would -imagining how she felt, how it would be for her to go back only to be greeted with one family member less.How strong she and her husband were to continue with their hajj ibadah in all humility and acceptance and still believing in the goodness of Allah's Will - all for the redha of Allah s.w.t! I felt ashamed too, again, and thanked Allah no end, for at least, insyaAllah, my separation with my children was for 44 days, not for eternity until Qiamat. Ya Rabb! How You teach this silly servant of yours the Greatness of Your Will and the beauty of Your Mercy…)
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