Firstly, thank you for all the ‘Eid wishes. Hamdan lillah, ‘Eid in Syam was simple yet memorable. On the 1st Syawal, we (the sisters, plus 5 Singaporean sisters who are studying in Jordan but came down to Syam to celebrate ‘Eid with us) performed the ‘Eid prayer at a “new” jami’ (we've been "jami'-hopping". to date, I think I’ve been to more than 15 different jami’s around the area I’m staying, n there are still more jami's to be "explored". hehe..), after which the Imam gave a short tadzkirah, sampai menangis2… syahdu lah sgt~
The night before, all of us Singaporean students in Syam gathered at the designated “Headquarter” (famously known as the “Embassy” -a very, very humble 3-storey typical Arabian house where almost 20 brothers (here, they are referred to as “syabab”) live. The sisters gathered in an enclosed room, while the syabab remained at the main hallway.
And then the takbir began…
and the whole room was suddenly filled with teary-eyed people… for the first time celebrating ‘Eid far, far away in a totally different country… with my new “family”… it was definitely an emotional gathering.
On the 2nd Syawal, all of us went to Toybah, a journey that took almost 1 hour. The place was… Subhanallah! Vast, calm, and there seemed to be no other people except for about 50 of us Singaporeans.
mcm padang jarak padang terkukur kan? hehe... but really, mcm dah lama gitu tak nampak padang LUAS mcm ni. there are some parts with no plants, just sand. gue & geng pun ape lagi, lari2 lah kat situ~ best sgt dpt lari. takde org pun nampak.... just the 5 of us...
We had some activities together, including one which required us to present a short performance in our assigned groups. There were 5 sisters’ groups (the akhwaat had the roof all to ourselves! Best kan? :D, while the syabab held theirs at the ground floor), and it so happened that 3 of the groups performed on “sensitive” issues. Nak tau ape? Pasal Ibu. And Ayah. And Pengorbanan Ibu & Ayah (psl mak ayah sebenarnya tak nak bagi kitorang pergi jauh2... but akhirnya rela lepaskan jugak psl kitorang yg nak sgt...etc. etc.)… aiyoo0~ Habis banjir lah the audience. Here, anything related to Mom n Dad n Family suddenly becomes among the most sensitive issues. Tersebut siket, habis banjir…huu~
Anyway, we were there from ard 9am till ‘Asar. During which we were informed of Allahyarham Akh Rafiq bin Yahya. Innalillahi wa inna ilaihi raaji’uun. If u remembered, I once mentioned about Kak Siti Khadijah’s walimah in November in one of my previous entries. They were supposed to get married on 3rd November, but…O Allah, please grant kak Khadijah, her family, and the Allahyarham’s family strength and patience to endure this Test. Indeed HE Alone Knows what’s best for us. Wallahu ya’lamu wa antum laa ta’lamuun… selalu org yg baik2 diuji kan? Kak Khadijah tu baik nah tau… she lived in the same house as me before she returned to Singapore few weeks back. Very generous with kind words and advices for her juniors. And very cheerful. Kak Khadijah nanti jangan sedih2 sangat k…
.......
On a happier note, school has finally begun! Had my first lecture on 4th Syawal. There are 15 subjects altogether for my first year in Kuliyyah Da’wah Al-Islamiyyah.
1. Qur’an (memorization +Tajwid)
2. ‘Ulumul Qur’an
3. Hadith
4. Musthalah Hadith
5. Fiqh
6. Tarikh Tasyri’
7. ‘Aqidah
8. Nahu
9. Saraf
10. Balaghah (!)
11. Ad-tadribaat al-lughawiyyah
12. Sirah Nabawiyyah
13. ‘Ilmun Nafs (Psychology)
14. ‘Ilmul Ijtima’ (Sociology)
15. English
ALL the subjects focusing on language (no. 8,9,10 n 11) are taught by ustazs. In addition to no. 13 n 14. the rest are taught by Anisahs. The most wonderful thing about the subjects is the fact that ALL the lecturers never fail to relate the subjects to al-Qur’an, Hadith n Islam. And all of them can simply recite beautiful Qur’anic verses every now and then in their delivery, without any difficulty. MaasyaAllah! I’m utterly amazed, mesmerized, and at the same time jealous of this feat of theirs. Pandainye!!!
Another plus point for this Kuliyyah is that the lecturers always emphasize on Tarbiyah (Education), and not simply on learning and then getting a certificate. It’s very heartwarming how all the lecturers congratulated us for having been selected into this kuliyyah, that we were the Chosen Ones, n reminded us to purify our niyyah, ikhlaskan diri, shared with us wonderful, motivational stories about the history of the university and its founder, Syeikh Ahmad Kuftaro, n about his du’a at the Multazam (the door of the Ka’abah) for all the students who study n the University, etc. etc.
and so my love for this course continue to bloom from day to day… O thank you ALLAH for yet another ni’mah. Allahummaj 'alnaa minasy syaakiriin~
Btw, my lectures are from Sunday to Thursday (here, Friday n Saturday are Public Holidays), 1:30pm to 6:15pm. There are 5 lectures in total per day, each 45mins long, with breaks at intervals. On Monday, we have something like a “spiritual” session, where all Da’wah students gather at the prayer hall (which is just around 30m from our lecture room) to listen to a tadzkirah given by the Mudir of Kuliyyah Da’wah. The first session was superb! In around 30mins, he reminded us about our amanah and responsibilities as Daa’iyaat (Penda’wah2), to convey what we have been taught, to practice what we learnt, and to set good examples to all. As usual, he spiced it up with plenty of Qur’anic verses and Hadiths… sangatlah menginsafkan…and very motivational. I’m very much looking forward to the next session! WeE~ in addition, there are unique rules that we have to abide. such as no pants allowed, even underneath your manteau/abaya. (but, like me, u can always wear pants, then a skirt, then ur abaya/manteau. pandai2lah~ hee..) no bright colour clothes. so we all usually wear black/dark blue/other dark colour clothes. this, i didn't find disturbing at all :)
And have I told you that, alhamdulillah, all the lectures were mostly delivered in formal Arabic language (fusha)?? Ya Allah! syukur sgt2~ that is really helpful for us non-Arabs, coming from countries like Turkey(2), China (5), Albania (1), Russia (a lot), Mali (2), Pattani (2), Indonesia (2), Malaysia (1) and Singapore (2 –Wardah n me). Most of the 207 female students are Arabs from Syria, while some are from Iraq and Somalia. The Arabs are generally very friendly and helpful. One sister from Russia even brought along her toddler for the lecture. Punyelah comel~
Ok, shall take my leave now. Dah banyak sgt type ni. Bye!
:)
