The secret of happiness

Smile a lot. Always relax. Don't mess it up. Have faith in God.
Prophet Ibrahim(AS) declared 4000 years ago,"La uhibbul aafileen" ie "I do not love the things that go down" (Quran 6 : 76)
That is the secret of the happiness. Do not love the things that go down. Could you find a thing which does not go down? Could you find a thing which does not terminate? Nothing. Everything has to come to an end oneday. Name, fame, money, honey, home, job etc etc. Even life will end one day. God alone remains. Hold on to Him. He will guide you to the straight path.

Jaipur blasts

‘Terror fails to rip secular fabric’ Muslim Leaders Condemn Blasts, Seek CBI Probe P J Joychen

If terrorists behind the serial blasts in Jaipur wanted to create communal disaffection and take casualties by planting bombs at crowded places, including places of worship, they have only partly succeeded.

What the serial blasts did instead was to trigger a wave of humanism among those who survived at the blast sites and send Muslims to aid Hindus and vice versa. Take Afrar Khan, who within minutes of the blast, was soaked in blood. Not his own, but of those injured at the Hanuman temple attack. He was one of the first among the volunteers to reach the SMS Medical College with the injured. Till dawn, he helped police ferry people to hospitals. “I got about 50 injured to hospital,’’ he told TOI.

Another youth Niraj said, “I was sitting at the nearby liquor shop when the blast took place at Sanganeri Gate. I rushed to the spot where a dozen people, including women, were lying in a pool of blood.’’ He rushed them to the SMS Hospital in autorickshaws and hailed ambulances.

Muslim leaders in Jaipur have condemned the attack. Jamait-I-Islami Hind president Mohamad Salim called it “highly condemnable’’ and an attack on humanity. Quazi Khalid Usmani, the chief cleric of Rajasthan, demanded a CBI probe so that the Muslim community isn’t blamed for the attacks. “Devils masquerading as human beings have done it. No Rajasthani can commit such an act; it’s a handiwork of foreign elements.’’

Mahant Sri Narayan Sharma of the Hanuman Mandir in Sanganeri Gate said, “Terrorists want to disturb the social fabric of society. Fortunately, people see through their game and don’t fall prey to it.’’

Jaipur blasts : who cares?

The serial bombs has shattered the nation.
I was moved to see the pictures of the victims. Particularly the photograph published in the first page will haunt me for days to come. The tell tale picture says it all. Look at the way the gentleman has clutched his bag with his bare hands. It conveys lot of things. He must be in a hurry. That is why he has hired the rickshaw. He must be carrying some precious things for his near and dear. He must have been immersed in deep thoughts. He must have been visualising the delight of his daughter or wife or mother or some xyz when he gives the precious thing to her. There is no end to the thoughts in my mind. Suddenly a thought flashed. It could have been me too! Yes. Anybody could be the victim. If the culprits behind this heinous crime are not booked anything could happen.
I was shocked to see the tell tale pictures of the gory scenes. We should do something to stop the shenanigans of the culprits behind this heinous crime. Rather it is sheer crime against humanity.
Jaipur is not new. Before that we saw the same gory scenes in Bombay, Hyderabad, Moradabad, Meerut, Maliana, Bhiwandi etc. etc. Above all who could forget Gujarat? It is a fact that not a single soul has been punished for these crimes.
This has emboldened these merchants of death. The merchants of death are roaming free. The merchants of death decide the venue. The merchants of death decide the time. The merchants of death decide the device. The government has failed to punish the merchants of death. What a pity!
It is a painful irony that on the one hand we are able to launch ten satellites at a go. On the other hand we have utterly and bitterly failed to save our own citizens.
But who cares? Does anybody care? We have plenty of things to cheer about. IPL, Rahul Yuvraj, Katrina-Saif adventures, Dasavadaram....the list goes on.
Who is there in this country of one billion people to bother about the safety of Aam Aadmi? Don't forget, we have launched ten satellites in a go. So don't bother about Aam Aadmi seems to be the line of approach of the government. God bless India. God bless UPA.

Flight of fancy

This refers to your editorial ''Flight of fancy?- Advani's version based more on fiction" (The New Indian Express, 01 April 2008).
You are right that Mr. Advani's account in the book of Kandahar episode was based more on fiction than fact. A Congress leader has more aptly renamed the book as 'My country, my life and my lies"
Jokes apart, one is tempted to ask ''where is the need for such a book?" As a prime minister in waiting Advani should have focused his energy, vision and imagination(which he seems to have quite a lot) in needling the government. The list of pressing problems viz Rs 60,000 crore loan waiver, price rise, nuclear deal, dwindling agricultural production etc etc. is endless. But driven by an impulsive urge to project himself as a soft leader Mr Advani has opened the pandora's box and nation is discussing the Kandahar tragedy instead of pressing problems. Mr Advani finds himself in a pathetic situation. This proves that he lacks foresight and strategy.
His attempt to become another Vajpayee has once again boomeranged. It seems that he has not learnt lesson from the "Jinnah episode". He should realise that wearing masks is not his cup of tea. You cannot become a Tagore by sporting a beard. Similarly you cannot become a Vajpayee by wearing a mask.
Thanking you.
T. Azeez Luthfullah

A Letter Which I Forgot to Write

By: T. AZEEZ LUTHFULLAH

You might have known Dr. Hameedullah. He was a world renowned Islamic scholar. Born in Chennai, he was an illustrious son of brother of Qazi Ubaidullah, the first Chief Qazi of Tamil Nadu. He grew up in Hyderabad, then migrated to France and spent most of his life in Paris. Allah bestowed him the honour of translating the Holy Qur’an into the French language. Besides, he did extensive research on the life history of Prophet of Islam. He wrote innumerable articles on Seerah. His work on the battles of Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless and greet him) is his magnum opus. He is revered as the most authentic voice on Seerah. As a writer on Seerah literature, he could well be called another Sulaiman Nadwi. I would like to share a bit of information on Seerah that Dr. Hameedullah has presented in one of his works. It is a piece of statistical information. Dr. Hameedullah has written the following: “During the years that followed the Hudaibiyah Treaty, the Prophet sent emissaries to the Roman Emperor, the Persian Emperor, the Ruler of Egypt, the King of Abyssinia, the chiefs of ash-Sham and the leaders and chiefs of various tribes and clans. In this way the Prophet had written more than 250 letters.” Read this piece of information once again. Repeat it. What is the most significant information does it highlight? How many letters? 250 i.e. two hundred and fifty letters! This is just a number, you feel. It straightaway reaches your head. It does not affect your heart. Does it? Come, Ponder over this piece of information, once again. Letter writing at the period of Prophet Muhammad was not a joke. First of all, when you sit down to write a letter you would need paper. Paper was not a commodity which was easily available. Next, you need a pen. You didn’t have a gel pen or jotter pen or even a fountain pen in that era. It would be a finely carved stick, which you would dip into the manually prepared ink to make indelible marks on the paper. So you would need an ink bottle too! Even if you had paper, a pen and ink, you could not accomplish the task unless you had the services of a katib (writer). In those days finding a katib in Makkah was no ordinary task. Katibs were very few. The situation in Madinah too was no better. So Prophet Muhammad understood this need and immediately assigned certain sahaba to learn the art of writing. In this way the Holy Prophet groomed more than 42 katibs. He assigned different tasks to different sahaba. Somebody was delegated to maintain accounts of the Baitul Mal. Somebody else was appointed to write and keep important documents. Some senior sahaba were assigned to write the Qur’anic verses as and when they were revealed. Some others were assigned to write letters. Now coming back to the point, even if you had written a letter, the job was not over. The biggest challenge was to dispatch the same to the addressee. Over 14 centuries ago you didn’t have postal service at all. There was no Professional Couriers or Speed Post. You would need a qasid – a messenger – to deliver the letter. Someone, who was reliable, able and dynamic. You would have to make arrangements for his journey. You would have to provide him with a horse or a camel. You would also have to provide him with food, money, weapons as zad-e-rah for him. The task does not end there. You didn’t have Highways, Super Expressways linking the major cities in those days. The roads were not laid. There were no milestones, etc. And you needed the services of the guides. They only knew the route. You would have to hire them. Remember, when Prophet Muhammad made Hijrah from Makkah to Madinah he had hired a non-Muslim as his guide. Above all the qasid should be prepared to face any kind of eventuality. He should be ready to face bricks as well as bouquets. So, writing a letter 1400 years ago was not a joke. You needed a paper, a pen, ink, writer – katib, qasid – messenger, provisions for the journey, mode of transport, guide, etc. You have to read that piece of information given by Dr. Hameedullah in this perspective. You will realise the significance of that data then. Your heart would get mellowed. You would realise the magnitude and greatness of the effort of the Prophet Muhammad. He accomplished so much in such a short span of time. Subhan Allah! Tail piece: Today writing a letter is not a gigantic task. It is as easy as having a cup of tea. Your letter reaches the destination within minutes. It is faster than the inter-continental ballistic missiles. Just touch the button. And it’s gone. Nowadays courier service has spread throughout the country. Not a single village is left out by the courier people. Besides, you have the Indian postal service with post offices throughout the length and breadth of this vast nation. And above all there is this S.M.S which is undoubtedly the toast of the day. But, Let me ask the pertinent questions. Have we ever written any letter to our friend, colleague, and comrade inviting him to Islam? Have we ever written any letter to our friend, colleague, and comrade, disseminating the message of the Qur’an? Have we ever written any letter to any newspaper or magazine, disseminating something about the religion of Allah?

Terrorism cure : needle or bullet?

This refers to the article ''Terrorism cure: needle or bullet?" by Mr. Sudarshan (The New Indian Express, April 25, 2008). I was shocked to read the lines,"But couldn't we have given him a parting gift: AIDS, for instance? Something that crops up four months later and causes mysterious deaths? Who would have known? That way we'd have the last laugh, wouldn't we?"
This is pure fascist thinking. 0% regret and 100% fascism. This line of approach is more detrimental to the nation than Narendra Modi's mass murders and fake encounters.
There is not a single problem in the earth which could be solved through bullets or needles. Not even a single problem. Even Praveen Mahajan who thought otherwise and murdered his own brother could not find a solution through his bullets. He is still languishing in the dark corridors of jail.
Those who resort to bullets and needles perish with them. What happened to that encounter specialist ACP Rajbir Singh who used to kill for pleasure? His end came through his own gun. The killer, a real estate dealer used ACP's gun to eliminate him.
Think about the so called 'war on terror'. The three trillion war has led nowhere. The Americans are bleeding everyday. Did the 'shock and awe' yield any worthy results?. Nothing. Even Israel, which is notorious for such tactics has achieved nothing. It is living in the shadow of terror. Every day. Every minute.
And lastly, take the case of Osama and his alqaeda itself? What have they achieved? Nothing. The solution lies in adopting peaceful, constructive and productive means. End cannot justify the means.

Here is an heartening news from Tamil Nadu. A wall of untouchability was pulled down on Monday.