Ulasan Buku: Kehidupan Al-Qur’an:  Dari Akar Kekal Ke Warisan Bertahan. Karya Mohamad Jebara

M. Bakri Musa

 

St. Martin's Essentials, NY 2024. 248 pp Diindeks. AS26.54.

 

Kebanyakan orang Melayu (dan orang Islam amnya), sama ada yang canggih di badar atau pun orang kampung biasa, mempunyai dua prasangka atas agama suci kita. Pertama, Islam berkembang dengan lancar sejak Nabi Muhammad, s.a.w, menerima wahyunya. Dengan sekelip mata sahaja orang Arab dibebaskan dari Zaman Jahilliyah mereka dan Islam kemudiannya mengalami zaman kegemilangannya. Kajian sejarah sepintas lalu pun akan menghapuskan khayalan itu.

 

               Kedua, kita menganggap Al-Quran bukan sebagai panduan dari Allah "untuk semua umat dan pada setiap masa hingga ke akhir zaman" tetapi sebaliknya hanya sebagai satu azimat. Bacalah ayat ini dan si penyakit akan terus sembuh, saudara yang sudah meninggal akan di masuki ke Syurga, dan kamu akan lulus peperiksaan kamu atau berjaya dengan temuduga.

 

               Sebaliknya, karya Mohamad Jebara “Kehidupan Al-Qur’an:  Dari Akar Umbi Ke Warisan Bertahan.” (The Life of the Qur’an:  From Eternal Roots To Enduring Legacy) membantu kita memahami Al-Qur’an supaya kita boleh menjadi ihsan yang lebih baik, satu prasyarat untuk menjadi seorang Muslim yang baik. Sebagai panduan, Al-Qur'an "... [adalah] hanya wahyu, bergantung kepada manusia yang tidak sempurna untuk penggubalannya."

 

               Kebanyakan penulis, pengulas, pentafsir dan juga penterjemah Qur’an berpanjang lela dengan karangan mereka, tetapi tidak Jebara. Dia memilih hanya beberapa tema sahaja dan kemudian menggunakan petikan khusus dalam Al-Quran untuk menyerahkannya. Caranya lebih dekat lagi dengan tema Utama Al-Quran karya almarhum Fazlur Rahman, kecuali Fazlur menggunakan prosa dan bahasa ketat, ringkas, dan padat, akibat latihannya dari Oxford.

 

               Jebara bermula di asas, seperti dengan akar tiga huruf semua perkataan Arab. Dia menyamakannya dengan ‘gene’ atau DNA Al-Quran. Akar huruf Islam contohnya–S-L-M (seem, lam, dan mim)–bermaksud “untuk membaiki keretakan di tembok kota.” Bagi Jebara, “Islam” kurang merujuk kepada mazhab agama tetapi lebih bermakna fikiran 'untuk membaiki dan memulihkan apa yang patah atau robok.'” Tembok itu memang sudah sedia ada sejak dari dulu lagi kecuali oleh sebab sepanjang zaman dan masa retakan yang tidak dapat dielakkan telah muncul dan ditambahkan pula dengan perkembangan dan penambahan yang mengakibatkan melemahkan tembuk itu. Maksudnya, “Al-Qur’an dengan tegas dan berulang kali menegaskan kebenaran kitab-kitab dan nabi-nabi terdahulu daripadanya.”

 

               Juga menarik, perkataan al-Qur’an berasas tiga huruf akar, bersama dengan perkataan ‘qariah,’ atau sempadan seperti qariah masjid. Ditafsirkan demikian, Al-Quran adalah panduan kepada sempadan atau batasan ke atas tingkah laku manusia yang akan diredhai oleh Allah, dan dengan itu juga sesama manusia.

 

               Jebara mengibaratkan Al-Qur’an seperti bawang. Setiap lapisan yang anda kupas menunjukkan satu lagi yang lebih segar, tebal, dan tajam baunya. Anda tidak pernah mencapai inti selagi bawang (dan anda) masih hidup, ia terus menambah lebih banyak lapisan. Ebrahim Moosa dari Universiti Duke menjelaskannya dengan lebih terang:  Jika anda merasa diri anda telah memahami sepenuhnya Al-Quran, itu maknanya anda sudah mati, jika tidak secara fizikal maka secara intelek dan fikiran. Maksudnya, kita perlu belajar berterusan dan kewaspadaan terhadap kepastian.

 

               Saya merasa meluat dan kurang senang hati apabila seseorang ulama atau ustad menamatkan pembacaan atau petikan ayat al-Quran dan hadis dengan hebatnya (mungkin dengan juga sombong) menyatakan, “Ayat (atau hadis) ini bermakna . . . !” Wah angkuhnya! Tidak ada keraguan langsung! Kepastian mutlak! Bukankah lebih sesuai dan juga berasa rendah diri jika di tambah dengan perkataan 'terjemahan ini lebih kurang sahaja, wallah hu alam.' Itu bukan sahaja menenangkan telinga pendengar bahkan mencerminkan kerendahan hati si penceramah.

 

               Al-Quran berusaha untuk mengekalkan keseimbangan antara retorik inspirasi yang menaikkan semangat selaku dengan dan kesedaran realistik bahawa dunia ini mungkin berbahaya dan tidak sempurna atau adil. Alat Al-Qur’an adalah perkataan dan ayat sahaja. Oleh itu hidanglah bahayanya. Bak pepatah Arab, luka perkataan lebih dahsyat mencerdakan daripada tebasan pedang. Bersikap melulu dengan perkataan seperti kafir dan murtad tidak kena dengan ajaran al-Qur'an!

 

               Jebara memilih beberapa perkataan Arab asli dan petikan untuk menyerahkan pandangannya. Istilah "Nabi" berasal dari kaum Semit yang bermakna atau menggambarkan sumber anak air. Padang pasir yang kering dan kelihatan mandul mungkin boleh dijadikan mekar dengan adanya air. Renungkan gambaran itu! "Rasul" ialah saluran air ke tanah yang paling subur; Khalifah, seorang penjaga kebun, serupa dengan gembala yang disebut di Alkitab; masjid, tempat pertemuan dan pertumbuhan semula. "Imam" bermakna seorang pemandu yang mengheret kita keluar dari kegelapan gua kepada dunia luar yang bercahaya.

 

               Tafsiran Jebari tentang wahyu pertama (iqra’) mengulangi banyak yang telah ditulis dalam bukunya “Muhammad, The World-Changer. An Intimate Portrait (Muhammad: Penukar Dunia. Satu Gambaran Yang Mesra (2021). Makna ‘iqra’ bukan ‘baca’ sebagaimana yang difahami ramai tetapi kuntum bunga yang baru berkembang ke dunia yang luas dan bercahaya. Orang Arab pada zaman Nabi, s.a.w., dahulu buta huruf. Mereka tidak tahu membaca. Bagaimana hendak tahu makna perkataan ‘baca!’

 

               Begitu juga dengan terjemahannya Khutbah Terakhir Nabi walaupun itu bukan sebahagian Al-Qur'an. Tafsiran Jebara sangat berbeza dan menggambarkan pendekatan dan pemahaman yang baru dan segar.

 

               Cara Jebari untuk memahami Al-Qur'an mengingatkan saya kepada kursus Shakespeare yang saya ikuti semasa mahasiswa. Dalam kursus setahun kami mempelajari lebih kurang tidak lebih daripada lima peratus sahaja karya penulis termasyhur itu. Tetapi dengan mengkaji mendalam, kami cukup bersedia dan dilengkapi untuk membaca dan mengkaji dengan sendiri karya beliau seterusnya. Begitu juga dengan karya Jebara ini. Dia memberatkan kajian yang mendalam dan bukan meluas. Inilah kebijaksanaan dia. Selepas itu kita boleh mengkaji Al Qur’an dengan selesa.

 

               Jebara menjauhkan dirinya daripada kontroversi "revisionis" yang dicetuskan pada mulanya oleh penulis Orientalis tetapi kini disetujui oleh mungkin ramai cendekiawan Islam. Yakni atas isu-isu asas seperti ketika bila Al-Qur'an yang sedia ada sekarang dikanonkan atau di selaraskan dan sama ada Qur’an yang ada sekarang adalah versi yang sama disusun oleh Khalifah Uthman. Sebaliknya Jebara lebih kepada memancarkan cahaya dari sudut yang baru dan bukannya pada objek itu sendiri.

 

               Hidup di dunia ini adalah satu perjalanan; kita memerlukan panduan untuk menghayati dengan sepenuhnya supaya kita berupaya menjadi apa yang disifatkan oleh al-Quran sebagai insan solehan. Membaca Al-Quran sahaja tanpa menghayati kandungan dan maknanya tidak bermakna atau memberi berkat. Itu seumpama membaca serta meneliti buku panduan (guidebook) tetapi tidak pernah keluar berjalan. Ahli tinju Slavic Khabib Nurmagomedov memberi perhatian yang tajam. Yakni, orang bukan Islam tidak membaca Al-Quran atau hadis. Mereka hanya membaca perangai kita sebagai orang Islam! Kepada mereka, itulah Islam.

 

Book Review: Mohamad Jebara's The Life of the Qur'an: From Eternal Roots To Enduring Legacy

 Book Review:  Mohamad Jebara’s The Life of the Qur’an:  From Eternal Roots To Enduring Legacy. 

M. Bakri Musa

 

St. Martin’s Essentials, NY 2024. 248 pp Indexed. US26.54.

 

Most Malays (and Muslims), from sophisticated urbanites to simple villagers, hold two glaring misconceptions about our faith. One, early Islam was all smooth sailing. Prophet Muhammad, s.a.w, received his revelations and the Bedouins were miraculously emancipated from their Age of Jahilliyah (Ignorance). The faith then blossomed. Even a cursory review of our history would disabuse one of that delusion.

 

            Two, we treat the Qur’an less as a divine guide “for all mankind and at all times till the end of time” but more as a talisman. Recite a particular passage and our ills would be cured, dead relatives admitted to Heaven, and we would pass our examinations.

 

            Mohamad Jebara’s The Life of the Qur’an:  From Eternal Roots To Enduring Legacy helps us understand the Qur’an so we could be better human beings, a prerequisite to becoming good Muslims. As for being a guide, the Qur’an “… [is] only a revelation, dependent on imperfect mortals for its enactment.”

 

            Instead of an encyclopedic treatment, the fault of many writers, commentators, and translators then as well as now, Jebara picks only a few selected themes and then uses specific passages in the Qur’an to highlight them. His approach is closer to that of the late Fazlur Rahman’s Major Themes of the Qu’ran, except spared the latter’s terse, compact a la Oxford prose.

 

            Jebara begins at the basic level, as with the three-letter root of all Arabic words. He calls that the Qur’an’s DNA. Islam’s root letters–S-L-M (seem, lam, and mim)–means “to repair cracks in city walls.” To Jebara, “Islam” refers less to a religious sect rather a mindset of ‘arriving to repair and restore fractures.’” The wall is already there except that through the ages inevitable cracks had appeared and unneeded accretions as well as distracting flourishes added that had only weakened the structure. Meaning, “The Qur’an unequivocally and repeatedly affirms past scriptures and prophets.”

 

            Of interest, the word qur’an shares the same three root letters as qariah, boundary, as with the qariahof a masjid (area served by it). Interpreted thus, the Qur’an is a guide to acceptable boundaries of human behaviors that would please Allah, and thus also your fellow human beings.

 

            Jebara likens the Qur’an to an onion. Each layer you peel reveals yet another fresher, thicker, and even more aromatic one. You never quite reach the core for as long as the onion (and you) is alive, it keeps adding more layers. Duke University’s Ebrahim Moosa put it clearer:  The day you feel that you have fully understood the Qur’an is the day you die, if not physically then intellectually. Meaning, the need for continuous learning and wariness of certitudes.

 

            As such I have little tolerance for scholars and ustads who after reciting a Qur’anic passage or hadith would arrogantly proclaim, “And it means this . . . !” No equivocation; absolute certainty! It would be more appropriate to add ‘approximately translated.’ That would soothe your listeners’ ears, quite apart from reflecting the reality as well as the speaker’s humility. 

 

            The Qur’an strives to maintain a balance between uplifting inspirational rhetoric and the realistic awareness that the world can be a dangerous place. Words and ayats are the Qur’an’s instruments. Hence the dangers of certitudes, for as per the Arab proverb, the wound of a word is more deadly than the slash of a saber. Being reckless with words like kafir (non-believers) and murtad (apostate) would be “un-Qur’anic!”

 

            Jebara selects a few words and passages to highlight his points. “Nabi,” a Semite term for prophet, also describes an unlikely source of water. Water makes the dry, seemingly sterile desert bloom. Evocative and symbolic! “Rasul,” a channel directing water to the most fertile land; Khalifah, an orchard caretaker, akin to the biblical shepherd; masjid, a place of re-grounding. The root-word of “imam” means a guide out of a dark cave to light.

 

            Jebari’s discussion on the first revelation (iqra’) repeats much of what is in his Muhammad, The World-Changer. An Intimate Portrait (2021). His rendition of the Prophet’s Last Sermon, though not part of the Qur’an, is also refreshingly different and illustrates Jebari’s novel approach and understanding.

 

            Jebari’s treatment of the Qur’an reminds me of my long-ago undergraduate course on Shakespeare. Throughout the year we dealt with only a few of his plays and sonnets, together with some out-of-class assignments as with term papers and reviews of local productions. In all we covered less than five percent of the Bard’s total corpus. Yet with that we were well equipped to discover at our own leisure throughout our life his other works. Likewise, Jebara’s The Life of the Qur’an also illustrates the wisdom of quality over quantity, of depth over breadth.

 

            Jebara stays away from “revisionist” controversies, triggered earlier by Orientalists but now picked up by many Muslim scholars, on such fundamental issues as when the present Qur’an was canonized and whether it is the same version compiled by Caliph Uthman. Jebara is more on shining the light from a different angle rather than on the object itself.

 

            Life is a journey; you need a guide to live it to the fullest and to be what the Qur’an refers to as insan solehan (the righteous individual). However, reading the Qur’an alone without living its message would be akin to poring over a guide book but never venturing out. The Slavic martial arts expert Khabib Nurmagomedov said it best:  Non-Muslims do not read the Qur’an or hadith. They read you!

Ulasan Buku Muhammad The World Changer

 Ulasan Buku Muhammad, The World-Changer. An Intimate Portrait (Muhammad, Penukar Dunia. Satu Gambaran Mesra) karya Mohamad Jebara

M. Bakri Musa

 

St. Martin’s Publishing, NY, 2021. 350 pp; indexed. US$26.34

 

Saya telah cuba membaca banyak biografi Nabi Muhammad, s.a.w. Saya katakan "cuba" sebab jarang saya menghabiskannya. Sukar meneruskan selepas membaca dua tiga bab kerana bosan dengan keajaiban dan petanda luar biasa yang di alaminya. “Muhammad, Penukar Dunia: Gambaran Mesra” berpisah dari yang biasa dan oleh sebab itu menyegarkan. Jebara juga tidak mencabar kepercayaan kita atau menghina kecerdasan otak.

               Di dalam mukadimahnya, penulis mengimbas kembali apa yang mendorongnya untuk menulis. Seorang Muslim yang lahir di Kanada dan berkepakaran pelbagai bahasa (Arab Kuno, Aramiak, dan Ibrani), dia dibesarkan di suasana sekular Barat "di mana nilai kebebasan, bertanggung jawab, kesaksamaan, dan penghargaan seorang hamba Allah adalah teras budayanya." Seorang hafiz, dia ingin mengetahui lebih mendalam lagi tentang insan Allah teragung ini yang mempunyai senama dengannya.

               Atas tujuan itu dia telah menunaikan haji pada tahun 2002 semasa berusia 21 tahun. Apa yang dialaminya di sana mengejutkan. Tidak perlulah saya memetik butirnya kerana semuanya mengingatkan pengalaman ibu bapa saya semasa mereka menaik Haji pada akhir tahun 1960-an. Mereka juga terkejut dan terperanjat dengan keadaan disana. Mereka tidak percaya bahawa lalat Mekah halal seperti di akui oleh orang Arab, apatah lagi apabila ibu saya hampir mati akibat keracunan makanan. Keyakinan bahawa mereka yang meninggal semasa Haji akan terus masuk syurga tidak pun memberi kesenangan hati kepada ayah saya.

               Baru ini saya bertanya kepada rakan sekerja yang sudah menunaikan hajinya. Apa yang mungkin dia buat sekiranya berasa membuang air semasa keadaan yang sibuk dan beramai? Membelek matanya. Maklumlah!

               Karya buku Jebara mengikuti aliran kehidupan Nabi, s.a.w, kecuali tidak ada catatan tentang bulan berbelah atau malaikat menyanyikan semasa kelahirannya. Hanya keinginan ibunya yang janda agar bayi itu memenuhi nama ‘Mohammad’ yang diberikan oleh datuknya Abul-Mutallib. Nama itu tidak pernah didengari oleh orang Arab.

               “Mahamadim” muncul dalam Kidung Agung (5:16), dan “M’hamudeha” dalam Kitab Ratapan (1:7), kata Jebara. Abdul-Muttalib memilih nama itu bukan untuk menghormati tetapi mencabar cucunya. Mohammad bermaksud "Jadikanlah dirimu hebat supaya dapat membantu orang lain menjadi hebat!" Dengan berbuat demikian Abdul-Mutallib juga ingin mengakui warisan Yahudi ibu nabi. Itu mungkin menghairankan pembaca.

               Bagi Aminah, kata-kata terakhirnya ketika dia meninggal semasa anaknya berusia hanya enam tahun ialah, “Ya Muhammadu kun rajula!” (Wahai Muhammad, jadikanlah diri kamu pengubah dunia!)

               Wahyu pertama Nabi diterima pada 610 CE ketika dia belum berumur empat puluh tahun. Umat Islam sepanjang zaman sudah pasti dengan peristiwa itu. Dia telah berputus asa dengan kemiskinan dan ketidakadilan yang mengerikan di masyarakat Mekah, bersama dengan ketidakmampuannya untuk mencari jalan penyelesaian. Isterinya Khatijah mencadangkan agar dia mengasingkan diri di dalam gua yang sejuk di atas bukit belakang Mekah, samalah seperti isteri saya mencadangkan saya bercuti di pantai atau di hutan kayu merah ketika saya gelisah dengan rencana saya.

               Gambaran yang di beri oleh Jebari atas peristiwa istimewa itu agak berbeza dan luar kebiasaan, dan versinya bergema dengan saya.

               “. . . [S]ecebis awal cahaya matahari terbias . . . dan dalam keadaan terseksa dan kesedihan Muhammad akhirnya membuka mulutnya. ‘Ma aqra!’ dia berseru dalam kebingungan. (‘Saya tidak tahu bagaimana untuk berkembang!’). [Dia] mengulanginya dua tiga kali lagi, …. [Kemudian] seolah-olah dalam jawapan [dia, Mohammad] mendengar lima ayat pendek bergema di seluruh tubuhnya.”

               Umat Islam memang sudah tahu itu adalah wahyu Nabi, s.a.w, pertama (Surah Al Alaq 96:1-5). Apa yang berlainan ialah tidak ada malaikat yang menyanyikan atau menyumbat ayat-ayat itu ke telinga Muhammad. Yang juga berlainan adalah terjemahannya perkataan “iqra'.” Ia biasanya diterjemahkan sebagai "Baca!" Itu membingungkan saya sebab masyarakat Arab ketika itu kebanyakannya buta huruf. Jebara menterjemahkan ‘aqra’ sebagai "saat sekuntum tunas terbuka dan membuka kepada dunia di sekelilingnya." Itu satu gambaran bunga yang endah serta padat dengan makna dan simbolisma!

               Ini, serta terjemahan lain mengenai peristiwa yang penuh bermakna serta terkenal dalam riwayat Nabi, s,a.w., agak menarik serta menyegarkan pembaca. Renungkan cara Jebara menulis tentang Pertempuran Hudaibiyyah yang terkenal di mana Nabi, s.a.w., terpaksa mengundur diri dalam suasana yang agak memalukan. Sebaliknya, mengikut Jebara, peristiwa itu ternyata menjadi titik penting yang membawa kepada kekalahan Mekah seterusnya. Komander tentera pada hari ini mungkin menyebut langkah Nabi itu sebagai "pengunduran strategik!"

               Nabi menggunakan metafora dan gambaran dari alam dunia sedia ada, seperti dengan mekarnya aqra’. Begitu juga dengan gaya kepimpinannya untuk mengatasi halangan: air yang mengalir di sekeliling batu. Satu lagi, nabi, atau saluran yang mengarahkan air ke kawasan tanah yang subur. Di padang pasir, Nabi sedar bahawa air membolehkan tanah pasir kering dan nampaknya mandul menjadi mekar dan segar. Nabi, s.a.w., juga menghormati bahawa seseorang insan itu mempunyai hak yang istimewa yang dianugerahkan oleh Penciptanya dan tidak boleh di singkil, pisahkan, permainkan, atau dipendekkan oleh manusia lain tidak kira betapa tinggi kuasanya. Sebaliknya pemimpin harus memupuk nilai itu. Nabi, s.a.w., dan pengikutnya mencerminkan nilai murni ini dengan membebaskan ramai orang hamba semasa.

               Tetapi balik kepada warisan pimpinan Nabi, s,a.w., tiga daripada empat Khalifah penggantinya telah dibunuh. Kematian khalifah yang ketiga, Uthman, amat kejam. Dia ditikam, dan pancaran darah dari dadanya melumurkan naskhah pertama Al-Quran yang dia menyusun ketika itu. Selama hampir sembilan puluh tahun penguasaannya (661-750 CE), dinasti Umayyah yang berpangkalan di Damsyik “berjaya menginstitusikan Islam sebagai agama dogmatik. Apa yang bermula sebagai falsafah pembebasan berdasarkan konsep ketauhidan sejagat, empayar Umayyah menyusun semula menjadikan ia sebagai kepercayaan formal yang dibezakan daripada agama Yahudi dan Kristian … [dan] menggambarkan jurang antara Muslim dan bukan Islam–jauh dari niat dan intisari perlembagaan Madinah atau semangat haji.”

               Itulah petikan Jebari yang paling luar biasa dan amat bermakna yang setakat ini kurang mendapat perhatian.

               Dinasti Abbasiyah (750-1517 CE) yang menggantikan Umayyah membawa Era Kegemilangan Islam. Hari ini hampir satu perempat daripada penduduk dunia adalah Muslim. Yang tidak dapat kita puji ialah terlalu ramai umat Islam yang diwakili dalam kalangan mereka yang miskin, terdesak, dan tanpa mengusaha. Kita berharap sejarah akan kembali menyerahkan balik nasib masyarakat Islam. Buku ini akan menambah dan mendorong kita ke teras itu.

Book Review: Mohamad Jebara's "Muhammad, The World Changer. An Intimate Portrait

 Book Review:  Mohamad Jebara’s Muhammad, The World-Changer. An Intimate Portrait. 

M. Bakri Musa

 

St. Martin’s Publishing, NY, 2021. 350 pp; indexed. US$26.34

 

I have attempted to read dozens of biographies of Prophet Muhammad. “Attempted” because I finished only a few. For most, I found it difficult to go beyond the first few chapters after reading yet another miracle or felicitous sign. Mohamad Jebara’s Muhammad, The World-Changer. An Intimate Portrait is a refreshing departure. He does not challenge readers’ credulity nor insult their intelligence.

 

            In the epilogue the author recalled what prompted him to write the book. A Canadian-born Muslim and multi-linguist (Classical Arabic, Aramaic, and Hebrew), he grew up in the secular West “where principles of freedom, accountability, equality, and merit were core parts of the culture.” Also a hafiz (one who has memorized the Qur’an), he wanted to learn more about his namesake.

 

            To that end he undertook a Hajj in 2002 at age 21. The experience shocked him. I need not quote the specifics but they reminded me of my parent’s own pilgrimage back in the 1960s. They too were shocked. The remnants of pagan rituals aside, they did not buy into the prevailing belief that Meccan flies were halal, more so when my mother nearly died of food poisoning. Nor did the conviction that those who died during their Hajj would end up in Heaven give solace to my father.

 

            Have things changed? I asked a colleague who recently went for Hajj what he would do if he had to go the bathroom during one of those prolonged rituals. His eyes rolled!

 

            Jebara’s book follows the Prophet’s life, except that there are no accounts of the moon splitting or angels singing, heralding his birth. Only his widowed mother’s wish that the infant would live up to its name ‘Mohammad,’ given by his grandfather Abul-Mutallib. It was then an unheard of name.

 

            “Mahamadim” appeared in the Song of Songs (5:16), and “M’hamudeha” in the Book of Lamentations (1:7), Jebara noted. Abdul-Muttalib chose that name not to honor but challenge his grandson. Mohammad means “Be great to help others be great!” Abdul-Mutallib also wanted to acknowledge the Prophet’s mother’s Jewish heritage. That may surprise many!

 

            As for Aminah, her last words when she died when Muhammad was just six were, “Ya Muhammadu kun rajula!” (Oh Mohammad, be a world-changer!)

 

            Muhammad’s first revelation came in 610 CE when he was not yet forty. Muslims are familiar with that singular event. He had been in despair at the appalling poverty and inequities of Mecca, together with his impotence in coming up with solutions. His wife Khatijah suggested that he sequester himself in that cool cave above Mecca, the equivalent of my wife suggesting a few days at the beach or in the redwood forests when I am struggling with my writing.

 

            Jebari’s rendition of that first revelation departs from the usual accounts. His version resonates with me.

 

            “. . . [A]t an initial sliver of refracted sunlight . . . [i]n anguish Muhammad finally opened his        mouth. ‘Ma aqra!’ he exclaimed in confusion. (‘I do not know how to blossom forth!’). [He] repeated it twice, . . . . [Then] as if in an answer [he, Mohammad] heard five short          sentences echoing through his entire being.”

 

            Those are Surah Al Alaq (96:1-5), familiar to all Muslims. What is novel, apart from no angels singing or stuffing the verses into Muhammad’s ears, was Jebara’s translation. Iqra’ is traditionally rendered as “Read!” That has always puzzled me as Arab society then was largely illiterate. Jebara translates iqra’ as “a moment a bud unfurls and opens to the world around it.” Powerful floral imagery!

 

            This, and other novel renditions of well-known incidents, makes the book refreshing and engaging. Consider Jebara’s account of the famous Battle of Hudaibiyyah where the Prophet, s.a.w, was said to have been forced into a humiliating surrender. Instead, that battle turned out to be pivotal that later led to the defeat of Mecca and the end of its Jahilliyah (Ignorance). Today’s commanders would term the Prophet’s retreat during that battle as “strategic withdrawal!”

            

            The Prophet used metaphors and imageries from nature, as with the blossoming forth of iqra’. Likewise his leadership style on overcoming obstacles:  a stream flowing around a rock. Another, direct your deepest channels to your most productive areas. Water could make the dry and apparently sterile desert bloom. It is of interest that the Arab word for water channel is rasul. Rasul Allah is the Prophet of Allah. Note the parallel imagery!

 

            The Prophet’s central message and the respect he placed on it is that each individual has certain unalienable rights endowed by his Creator, not to be trifled with or abridged by mere mortals no matter how powerful. Leaders should instead nurture them, hence the Prophet emancipating slaves.

 

            As for his immediate legacy, three of his four companion successors were assassinated. That of the third, Uthman, was particularly brutal. He was stabbed, with the gush of blood smearing the pages of the first copy of the Qur’an that he was then compiling.

 

            The succeeding (661-750 CE) Damascus-based Umayyad dynasty “managed to institutionalize Islam as a dogmatic religion. What had begun as a liberating philosophy based on universal monotheistic concepts, the empire recast it as a formal faith in contrast to Judaism and Christianity . . . [and] delineated a divide between Muslim and non-Muslims–a far cry from the constitution of Medina or the spirit of hajj.”

 

            That is Jebari’s most powerful and startling passage, thus far receiving minimal attention. In his subsequent The Life of the Qur’an:  From Eternal Roots To Enduring Legacy (2024), Jebari ‘credited’ state-sponsored scholars of the Umayyad Dynasty for falsifying thousands of hadith in order to solidify the regime’s Islamic credentials and legitimacy. Thus the cautionary hadith:  Heaven is full of rulers who befriended scholars; Hell, scholars with rulers! True or manufactured, that encapsulates great wisdom.

 

            Of interest is that the first syahadah (declaration of faith) states only “There is no God but Allah.” Only much later following the prophet’s death was the editorial enhancement, “And Mohammad His Last Messenger.” Not to be outdone, the Shiites later appended, “With Ali his Rightful Successor.” Ali, the fourth and last of the ‘Rightly Guided Caliphs,’ was Mohammad’s cousin and son-in-law.

 

            The succeeding Abbasid dynasty (750-1517 CE) brought the Golden Era of Islam. Today nearly a quarter of the world’s population are Muslims. Less laudatory is that we are overrepresented among the dysfunctional and desperate. One hopes that the momentum of history would again turn in our favor. By elucidating afresh the Prophet’s life and key moments, this book adds to that thrust.

Sultan Ibrahim's Crusade Against Corruption

 Sultan Ibrahim’s Crusade Against Corruption

M. Bakri Musa

 

In having the Head of the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) Azam Baki for an audience at Istana Negara, the new Agung, Sultan Ibrahim, signaled his earlier declared mission to combat Malaysia’s top scourge:  corruption. That royal audience was not the usual protocol-driven one as the Agung later gave a press conference with Azam Baki alongside. The Agung also presented a jar of honey to the MACC Chief, with instructions to catch those wily bees who had been sucking up the nation’s nectar.

 

            Honey is a familiar metaphor in Islam. The Qur’an exhorts us to be like bees, gather nectar (ilm–knowledge) from varied sources and turn it into honey (hikmah–wisdom) to benefit mankind. As a child, the Prophet used to be lowered by a rope down the cliff to gather honey, hence the metaphor. Here, the Agung’s metaphor has the very opposite meaning:  to catch those corrupt bees and flies.

 

            In his press conference back in December 2023 shortly after being chosen by his peers to be the 17^thAgung, Sultan Ibrahim stated that combating corruption would be his top priority. It was significant that he gave that exclusive interview not to a Malaysian media but Singapore’s The Straits Times, and with a seasoned interviewer. He wanted a wide audience. Being close to that Republic’s leaders and seeing what they had achieved made him even more intolerant of corrupt, incompetent Malaysian officials.

 

            It is worth reminding that Sultan Ibrahim remains the only sultan who did not honor Najib Razak. Sultan Ibrahim has a good nose for corrupt leaders.

 

            He also earlier suggested that MACC report directly to him and not as presently, the Prime Minister. There is considerable merit to that. However, the needed enabling legislation would take time even if there were to be overwhelming political support. However, by singling out the MACC Chief to be the first top official for a royal audience, the Agung has effectively achieved that same end. 

 

            Now it is for Azam Baki to rise to the royal challenge. Should there be any political or other interference, he has the palace backing.

 

            That should prevent a repeat of the fate of one of Azam Baki’s predecessors, Abu Kassim Mohamad (2010-16), as well as former Attorney-General Gani Patail. They were forced into quiet early retirement by that same notorious Najib Razak for being too diligent in their 1MDB investigation. Thus far the pair has remained silent. Understandable, considering the fate of one public prosecutor, Kevin Morais, whose mutilated body was found encased in cement in an oil drum. Now that Najib is safely incarcerated, the pair should go public with their findings. As former public servants, they owe that to the nation.

 

            Sultan Ibrahim had also made clear that he would not tolerate the circus of parliamentarians lining up at the palace gate, their statutory declarations in hand, to demand a new government. To Sultan Ibrahim, you change government only with elections, either with the statutory ending of Parliament or a formal vote of no confidence.

 

            Had that principle been adhered to earlier, Malaysia would have been spared the political blight of the hopelessly incompetent Muhyiddin Yassin and Ismail Sabri.

 

            Azam Baki should now recruit the best forensic accountants and investigators. Hire from abroad if necessary. Appoint seasoned outside lawyers as lead prosecutors in the manner of the late Datuk Gopal Sri Ram. Push for new laws to discourage corrupt officials from parking their loot abroad. Emulate America where citizens have to declare their world-wide assets annually, with their lowest and highest values during the year, and pay taxes on them.

 

            Recommend a “Confess and Redress” Royal Commission on corruption, modelled after South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission on past human rights abuses. Thus for a specified period if you were to voluntarily declare your past corrupt deeds, you would be granted amnesty, and the evidence you volunteered could not later be used against you provided that you pay taxes on your illicit gains. You have to be specific with individuals involved, dates, and amounts. That would create a prisoner’s dilemma of sorts among the corrupt. Confess now and you would be spared subsequent prosecution; keep quiet and you risk being exposed by those who had been in cahoots with you.

 

            Such a commission would yield invaluable data and insights as to the magnitude and modus operandi of the corrupt.

 

            With the Agung now publicly backing MACC, it would be spared the leadership scourge of such slimy characters as Dzulkifli Ahmad. He was the rogue civil servant, who while in the Attorney-General’s office, tipped then Prime Minister Najib of the ongoing 1MDB investigations. Najib later appointed him MACC Chief, with approval of the previous Agung. True to his character, Dzulkifli was later spotted holidaying in Bali with a woman who was other than his wife. Not to be outdone, he was also asked to give a Friday sermon on (yes, you guessed it!) the evils of corruption. That’s the perversion of Islam in Malaysia, another long saga!

 

            Now with Sultan Ibrahim’s commitment and Anwar Ibrahim’s determination, Malaysia may yet get a handle on corruption. That would be the best ever Hari Raya gift to Malaysians!

Petunjuk Halus Dari Majlis Berbuka Puasa DiRaja

 Petunjuk Halus Dari Majlis Berbuka Puasa Diraja

M. Bakri Musa

 

Satu rakaman video Kerajaan Madani menunjukkan majlis berbuka puasa diraja dengan Yang Di Pertuan Agong Sultan Ibrahim sebagai tetamu kehormat (atau mungkin tuan rumah). Rakaman itu tersebar luas di media sosial. Perhatian saya tertarik ke atas beberapa pemandangan yang agak luar biasa.

 

            Seperti biasa tetamu kenamaan serta bangsawan Melayu berpakaian rasmi Baju Melayu congak Belanga yang berwarna-warni, dengan butang emas dan perak (mungkin berlian) yang berkilauan. Samping kain songket mereka bersulam benang emas yang berseri memeluk baju dan seluar. Pakaian ini sudah menjadi resmi di majlis tertinggi.

 

            Yang menarik perhatian saya ialah pakaian Sultan Ibrahim. Baju Melayunya congkak musang dan berwarna biru sederhana, serta samping ringkas kain pelekat kapas Madras. Sampingnya di bawah baju dan bukan seperti yang biasa di mana ia meliputi baju dan seluar.

 

            Gaya congkak Musang yang dipakai oleh Sultan Ibrahim memanglah adat Johor. Tiada kejutan di sana. Tetapi mengikut adat resam Johor juga, congkak Musang itu adalah pakaian orang biasa sahaja sementara kerabat diraja menggunakan congkak Belanga. Tetapi pada semasa ini cara itu sudah selalunya digunakan oleh kerabat diraja Johor. 

 

            Sultan Ibrahim memakai sampingnya di bawah atau di tutup oleh baju Melayunya dan tidak seperti tetamu Melayu yang lain. Di Johor, gaya sedemikian ialah untuk rakyat biasa dan kerabat diraja menggunakan samping menutup baju dan seluar. Walau bagaimanapun, gaya samping menutup baju dan seluar sekarang sudah menjadi kebiasaan kepada semua rakyat Melayu.

 

            Hanya Perdana Menteri Anwar Ibrahim sahaja antara tetamu Melayu yang sedar atas adat resam pakaian Baju Melayu Johor. Baju Melayu congkak belanga yang dipakainya berwarna sederhana, dan samping kain pelekatnya tertutup di bawah baju Melayu seperti gaya marhaen di Johor. Tetamu Melayu yang lain dengan pakaian mewah mereka serta samping songket mereka di luar tidak sedar langsung yang gaya dan pakaian mereka melebihi Sultan Ibrahim! Mungkin mereka buta terhadap kiasan halus yang di tunjukkan oleh Yang Di Pertuan Agung pada malam berseri itu.

 

            Terdapat dua lagi isyarat yang halus tetapi tidak kurang ketaranya yang saya lihat dalam jamuan diraja itu. Pertama ialah Agung berbual mesra dengan tetamu wanita. Biasanya dalam perhimpunan di Malaysia kaum wanita terkumpul di sudut sahaja. Begitu juga dengan aturan di meja makan. Kebanyakan daif kenamaan bercampur lelaki dan perempuan. Gambaran ke dua ialah Agung duduk bersila di atas lantai bersama tetamunya ketika berbuka puasa. Mereka juga menggunakan tangan jari dan bukan dengan sudu dan garfu. Isyarat kampung ini tidak mengganggu para hadirin yang berpakaian formal dan di suasana yang berseri itu.

 

            Gambaran paling ketara ialah apabila tetamu beratur untuk menjalankan solat Maghrib selepas berbuka puasa. Menjelaskan maknanya tentang apa yang berlaku memerlukan saya menyimpang sedikit.

 

            Beberapa hari selepas Abdullah Badawi mengangkat sumpah sebagai Perdana Menteri kelima pada Oktober 2003, pejabatnya menyiarkan video di mana dia mengimamkan solat berjemaah dengan ahli menterinya serta pegawai tertinggi kerajaan. Tetapi Imam masjid berdiri di belakang kononnya Imam Baru Amat Tertinggi Abdullah. Nyata atas simbolisme yang ingin di sebarkan oleh Abdullah sama ada dia berbuat dengan sengaja atau dia membenarkan dirinya di gunakan untuk menggambarkan dia sebagai pemimpin duniawi dan rohani, seperti juga Nabi Besar kita Muhammad, s.a.w., serta empat Rashidun Khalifah.

 

            Adegan Abdullah menjadi Imam itu sudah tentu dirakam untuk ditayangkan secara meluas. Apa yang sepatutnya satu masa bersolat yang penuh bermakna itu dijadikan bakal sumber iklan pilihan raya. Inilah perangai seorang pemimpin yang juga cuba mencerminkan dirinya sebagai ketua agama serta negara. Bahkan Abdullah cuba menubuhkan satu jenama Islam tersendiri, yakni Islam Hadhari. Hari ini tidak seorang pun ingat apa itu Islam Hadhari.

 

            Pemimpin menunggang agama adalah kebiasaan, terutamanya mereka yang tiada berbakat atau berkebolehan memimpin. Lihatlah Hadi Awang, pemimpin Parti Islam PAS. Ia masih berjaya, sekurang-kurangnya di kalangan orang Melayu Kedah, Kelantan, Trengganu, dan tempat lain yang mundur. Pemimpin kosonglah yang beres menggunakan agama sebagai tunjang mereka. Itu sudah tentu tidak terhad kepada pemimpin Melayu atau Islam.

 

            Pada majlis berbuka puasa diraja yang saya sebutkan di atas, Sultan Ibrahim atau Perdana Menteri Anwar tidak mengimamkan solat Maghrib. Sebaliknya Imam yang sedia mengambil tanggung jawab itu dengan tetamu Islam berbarisan di belakangnya.

 

            Bayangkan Imam itu bila dia balik ke rumahnya lewat petang itu. Ceritanya kepada anak dan isteri, “Saya teristimewa mendapat kehormatan luar biasa! Mengimamkan solat berjemaah bersama Agong Sultan Ibrahim dan Perdana Menteri Anwar Ibrahim.” Satu kenangan yang tidak terhingga kekal dan manisnya! Satu warisan istimewa untuk anak dan cucunya!

 

            Lebih mengharukan saya ialah pakaian Agung yang sederhana. Ternyata bahawa sultan serta pemimpin tertinggi tidak perlu mengunjungi warung kopi yang tidak bersih di tepi jalan dan dengan itu mempertaruhkan kesihatan dan keselamatan mereka hanya untuk menunjukkan bahawa mereka kononnya bersemangat marhaen atau bersama dengan rakyat. Orang ramai akan melihat gerak isyarat sebegitu rupa, merendahkan "foto-op", atau lebih teruk lagi, sengaja berpura merendahkan diri. Selain daripada itu, tidak perlu untuk pemimpin pada hari ini untuk bersiar-siar di sekitar inkognito seperti Khalifah Omar ra untuk mengetahui keadaan rakyat. Jabatan Perangkaan moden yang cekap boleh memberikan gambaran yang lebih tepat dan bermakna.

 

            Pada majlis berbuka puasa diraja itu, Sultan Ibrahim sekali lagi menunjukkan bahawa baginda sangat serasi dengan rakyat. Dia menunjukkannya dengan cara bernas serta keagungan.

Subtle Signals From A Royal Iftar

 Subtle Signals From A Royal Iftar

M. Bakri Musa

 

A recent video of a royal iftar (Ramadan’s breaking of the fast) with the Agung, Johor’s Sultan Ibrahim, as guest of honor (or possibly host) posted by the Madani Government and making the rounds in social media drew my attention. The scene was a refreshing departure from the norm, symbolically as well as in so many other ways.

 

            Begin with the guests. The Malay dignitaries were as expected in their finest formal attire of collared colorful Baju Melayu, with glittering golden and silver (or perhaps diamond) collar studs, together with exquisite gold-embroidered kain songket samping (wide cummerbund). That is a common sight at official functions. What drew my attention with this one was the Agung’s attire. He was in a plain deep-blue, collarless baju Melayu worn over his plebeian kain peleket samping of simple cotton, locally referred to as the Madras pattern.

 

            Two sartorial points. One, the collarless style (congkak Musang) worn by the King is uniquely Johor. No surprise there. Traditionally the congkak Musang style is for commoners except that members of today’s Johor royal family have increasingly adopted it as their own. Two, and of special significance, was that the Agung wore his baju over instead of under his simple kain pelekat samping, a striking contrast to the Malay guests. In Johor that particular style of dressing is for commoners while the samping over baju and pants style is the exclusive preserve of royalty. For the rest of Malaysia however, that samping over baju is the accepted style for everyone, as reflected by the Malay guests.

 

            Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim was the only Malay guest that evening sensitive to this uniquely Johor tradition. He donned his long Baju Melayu in a pale subdued color, letting it hang loosely over his samping. I doubt very much whether the other Malay guests in their splendored attire were aware of their glaring social paus faux, or the subtle message that the Agung and his Prime Minister were imparting at that glittering evening. Anwar’s baju however, was not the congkak Musang (collarless) style.

 

            There are other non-sartorial subtle but no less significant signals I gleaned from that function. One was of the Agung chatting amiably with the female guests. In most Malaysian gatherings the women would be clustered in one corner. Likewise with the dinner table seating; most of the tables had mixed (with respect to gender) seating. The other was of the Agung sitting cross-legged on the floor with his guests when breaking fast. I do not know whether they were using their fingers. That plebeian gesture was not at all jarring with the formally-dressed attendees and amidst the elegant ambience.

 

            The most significant symbolism from that formal evening was the obligatory Maghrib prayer immediately after the breaking of the fast and before dinner. Elucidating that necessitates a brief digression.

 

            Soon after Abdullah Badawi was sworn in as the nation’s fifth Prime Minister back in October 2003, his publicity office put out a video of him leading a small congregational prayer with his ministers, top civil servants, and the mosque’s usual Imam standing behind him. No mistaking the symbolism there. Abdullah was attempting to or allowed himself to be portrayed as both temporal as well as spiritual leader, in the grand tradition of our great Prophet Muhammad (May Allah be pleased with him) and his four Rightly-Guided Caliphs. 

 

            That scene of Abdullah being Imam was of course video-taped and shown widely. What should have been a private personal moment of meditation was turned into potential campaign and publicity fodder. This was the man who also attempted to establish his own brand of our faith, Islam Hadhari, with him being the head, of course.

 

            Today few can even remember Islam Hadhari. That was all crass grandstanding using our great faith as the backdrop. That is not a surprise with leaders who have nothing else to show. Hadi Awang, leader of the Islamic Party PAS, is still using our faith for his political ends. It still works, at least among backward Malays of Kedah, Kelantan, and Trengganu. Inadequate leaders exploiting religion or using it as their prop is of course not unique unto Malays or Muslims.

 

            At that royal iftar neither the Agung nor Anwar led the Maghrib prayer. Instead it was a young Imam, with the Agung, Prime Minister Anwar, and other Muslim guests behind in an egalitarian row, as is the tradition.

 

            Imagine that Imam going home later that evening and telling his dear wife (I am presuming that he has only one) and children, “Honey, I had the privilege and honor of a lifetime earlier this evening. I led a congregational prayer with the Agung Sultan Ibrahim and Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim.” What a memory for him and his family! What a legacy!

 

            What touched me was the Agung’s sensitivity to symbolisms, as demonstrated by his plebeian attire while maintaining his regal bearing. As can be seen, sultans and other leaders do not have to patronize unhygienic roadside warung kopi and thereby risk their health and safety just to show that they are with the rakyat. People will see such gestures for what they are, condescending “photo-ops,” or worse, slumming. Besides, there is little need for today’s leaders to go wandering around incognito a la Caliph Omar to know how their subjects are doing. A modern efficient Statistics Department can give a better and reliable picture. 

 

            At that royal iftar the Agung, Sultan Ibrahim, again showed that he is very much in tune with his subjects. And he demonstrated that with class and majesty, which made it even more impactful.

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