Stephen Hawking, the Universe & God

In a letter to the Editor [NST - 9 September 2010], one Rueben Dudley from Petaling Jaya commented on the world-renowned British physicist Stephen Hawking's conclusion in his new book i.e. 'God was not necessary for the universe to come into being."

Hawking's argued as such & summarises as follows: "Because there is a law such as gravity, the universe can and will create itself from nothing. Spontaneous creation is the reason there is something rather than nothing; why the universe exists, why we exist."

The gentleman, Rueben Dudley concluded his disagreement to Hawking's view by writing: " We should thank God for creating our universe and us, and faithfully seek to serve Him with gladness by showing love and respect for all and being diligent and honourable in our endeavours.

The answer to Hawking's argument could be found in the Holy Quran ....

On the creation of the Universe & its contents, amongst others:

Surah Al Baqarah - 2:[21-22];

" O Mankind! Worship your Rabb who created you and created those who came before you; by doing this you may guard yourself against evil. It is He Who has made the earth as a floor for you and the sky a canopy; and it is He Who sends down rain from the sky for the growth of fruits for your sustenance. Therefore, do not knowingly set up rivals to Allah."

Surah Al Baqarah - 2:[116-117];

" They say: 'Allah has taken to Himself a son;' Allah is above such things! Rather, to Him belongs all that is in the heavens and in the earth; all are obedient to Him. He is the Creator of the heavens and earth! When He decrees a thing, He needs to say, 'Be,' and there it becomes."

Surah Al Baqarah - 2:[164];

" Surely, in the creation of the heavens and the earth, in the alternation of the night and day, in the sailing of the ships through the ocean for the profit of mankind, in the rain which Allah sends down from the skies, with which He revives the earth after its death and spreads in it all kinds of animal, in the change of the winds and the clouds between the sky and the earth that are made subservient, there are signs for rational people."

Surah Al-A'raf - 7:[54-58];

" Surely, your Rabb is Allah Who created the heavens and earth in six Yome (days or stages) and then He established Himself on the Throne in a manner that suits His Majesty. He makes the night cover the day and the day follow the night automatically. He created the sun, the moon and the stars, and made them subservient to His will. Take a note: His is the creation, and His is the command. Blessed is Allah, the Rabb of the worlds!. Call on your Rabb with humility and in private; for He does not love transgressors. Do not create mischief in the land after it has been set in order. Pray to Him in fear and hope. Surely the mercy of Allah is always close to those who do good to others. He is the One Who sends the winds bearing good news of His blessings, so when they lift up heavy clouds, We drive them along to a dead country-side and make the rain fall upon it and bring forth all kinds of fruits from the dead land. Likewise We raise the dead to life; this example is given so that you may learn a lesson from this observation. The good soil yields rich produce by the permission of Allah and barren soil yields nothing but poor produce. Thus do We explain Our revelations over and over again for those who pay thanks."

Surah Al-Anbiya' - 21:[30-33];

" Have not the unbelievers ever considered that the skies and the earth were once one mass, then We split them asunder? And We have created every living thing from water. Will they still not believe? And We have planted mountains on earth lest it should tilt to one side with them and We left between them open passages so that they may find their way. And We have made the sky a safe canopy; yet, they are heedless to signs. He is the One Who has created the night and the day and the sun and the moon; all (the celestial bodies) move swiftly in orbits of their own."

There are other verses which Allah again and again stressed it is He who created the universe in the Holy Quran...

To Stephen Hawking & of course to myself, the answer is right in the Holy Quran!!

Allahhu Akbar ...

Apak The Story Teller @ With a "Bribe"!!!!

Remember Apak? - Allahyarham Apak was a primary school teacher ... Apart from his hobby "menjaring ikan", he had this hobby of narrating folklore stories to us - his children ...

He would normally narrated stories like "Awang Kenit", "Pak Pandir & Mak Andeh", "Lebai Malang", "Sang Kelembai" and the like in the late afternoon - all these were narrated to us at our 'rumah kampung/papan" in Kota Bahru, Gopeng, Perak...

Of course Apak had something up in his sleeve i.e. he would ask us - my 2 elder brothers (Asri & Endi), my elder sister (Kak) & myself to "picit" him. So there we were massaging his body - Kak would "picit kepala" and my brothers & i would "picit" his body ....

My elder brother Endi - yeah, the one whom I narrated in my earlier posting re: "Pelita Panjut @ Malam 27 Likur" - came up with his "brilliant" idea. He always has a "brilliant" idea almost all the time anyway...

What he did was this .... every time when Apak asked us to "picit" him, Endi would created so many excuses e.g. he had homework to be completed or he had to go to his friend's house etc ... Actually, he wanted to skip the errand but at the same time he wanted to hear the stories. Apak was a good story teller indeed!!!

Now Endi did not actually go to his friend's house or doing his homework... Instead, he would just went down "bawah rumah" & sat at the pillar "bawah rumah' - it's a "kampung" house with pillars - exactly at the spot opposite to the spot where Apak & us were at the living room 'di atas rumah" .....Endi would sat there and listened attentively to Apak narrating stories upstairs - of course without having to endure "picit" Apak like what we had to endure!!!!

The funny thing is all of us - Apak, Kak, Asri & myself could see him sitting at the "tiang bawah rumah" through the gaps of the "lantai papan" of our "kampung house"!!! Apak being so understanding purposely narrated the stories in a loud & high volume - just to let Endi heard them I guess....

Almost immediately after Apak finished his story telling - voila - Endi would suddenly appeared out of the blues pretending that he had either completed his homework or had gone to his friend's house!!! Apak just smiled .... I guessed he was satisfied that all his children managed to hear his story telling sessions.

Those were the days & it was so enjoyable with Apak around ....

Errata On My Last Posting @ Raya TV Adverts

As I am only a mortal, I have to post this as an errata to my last posting re: the advertisements on TV during the recent Hari Raya Eidl Fitri festival ...

It's either I am getting old or due to "terlebih makan lemang & rendang" or perhaps "overdose" with Dato" Siti Norhaliza appearing on every TV channel during Hari Raya.

I made an inadvertent & unintentional error re: the advertisement of a car broke down & being towed by "dua ekor lembu". It's not a product by our local car manufacturer. It was a product by our local fast food chain instead - the only thing is that of course, the said particular food chain Company could not afford "torturing" hundreds of chicken to tow the car, right!!! It's cruelty to the animals....

The local car manufacturer came up with an advertisement of an old man in a bus with "mangkuk tingkat @ "Sia" having a conversation with a young guy who is sitting behind him. The old man is apparently telling the young guy that he visits his "Alzheimer" wife every day without fail .... The only issue I have with this particular advertisement is that it failed to "gain" my sympathy ...

I do not know about you but I find the old man gesture & the way he talked to the young guy is rather stiff & at the border of being arrogant!!! It would be better if he were to "soften" his appearance by being more relax - not being too stiff. Perhaps with a little smile but there is a bitterness & sadness in that smile ... Well that old man is a good actor anyway & who am I to comment on his acting ...

In conclusion, the mistake is mine & I stand to be corrected... as to rest of the posting contents, I stand by what have been written ....

Selamat Hari Raya Eidl Fitri again .....

TV Adverts - Raya TV Advertisements

Every time when we celebrate special occasions - Eidl Fitri, Chinese New Year, Deepavali, Christmas or even Merdeka Day - there would be advertisements specially created "creatively" to commemorate such special occasion ....

Let's look back at the recent TV adverts during the Eidl Fitri celebration.. This is not a judgmental posting but my view on the adverts.

The best advert to me should go to that Maxis Raya advert where it depicted a lady (she looks like a Chinese or rather Sabahan/Sarawakian - presumably our "Saudara Baru"). She was on an express bus "balik kampung" and she "travelled back in time" when she was with her husband together in a bus going "balik kampung" for Hari Raya. That's was when her husband was around.

The said Maxis advertisement is so honest, unpretentious and obviously not artificial. You could feel the honesty, the warmth & love when the mother in law hugged the lady while greeting "Selamat Hari Raya" to each other!!! This is what "love" is all about - being honest & unpretentious. Those 10 - 15 minutes of the Maxis Hari Raya advertisement put in a nut shell what being Malaysian is all about ....Last but not least, Maxis did not even "promote" its product. There is not a slightest hint of the advertisement being a product of Maxis until the last part i.e. "Selamat Hari Raya dari Maxis"... So kudos to Maxis for not being too capitalist on the auspicious day ...

It is quite close to what Yasmin Ahmad's lovely advertisements had achieved before. I believe most of us - if not all - really missed Yasmin Ahmad's unique advertisements...

The rest of the advertisements? I have no comments some of them might either be too cliche or too artificial.

For example. a certain Housing Developer - State owned that is - came out with an advert of a son gave a house as a present to his parents. Well and good but it's too artificial & too capitalist - promoting your product in a Hari Raya advertisement...

There is an advert by a local car manufacturer - if I am not mistaken - depicting a kid who was asked by his grandfather where were his parents when he alone suddenly reached the old man's house. It happened that the kid's parents were a bit late as their car apparently broke down - Yes!!! Broke down , an advert by a car manufacturer - & being 'towed" by 2 ekor lembu!!! What a joke ... Helen Veloo who popularised the song entitled "Kereta Lembu" in the 70s would surely laughing if she watched the advert, I guess....

The bottom line is we need more "Yasmin Ahmads" around .....

Note: Hari Raya advertisements apart, on a lighter note that is, at least this year is the year for the hardcore fans of Dato" Siti Norhaliza - she seems to be everywhere at every channel - what a day , me included!!!!

Happy Birthday Malaysia - 16 September 1963

After years of somehow being 'overshadowed"/"sidelined" by the Merdeka Day (31 August 1957), at last we Malaysian officially celebrated the MALAYSIA DAY ...

As a primary/secondary student, I do not recall any emphasis being made on this date , 16 September 1963 - the year I was born in March. Not even in the History books at school during those days.

Of course I have heard of it along the way but I was only became really aware of the importance of this date was when I was in Year 2 when Allahyarham Prof. Azmi Khalid stood at the front of the lecture hall that 16 September 1986. He asked the students re: the significant of the date & he proudly as a Malaysia he was - "today is the date on which Malaysia was born!!!"...

We had Sabahans (William Mojilip & gang)and Sarawakians (Allahyarham Rosli & gang) in that class & we looked at each other - as a Malaysian I supposed ...

It's a sad thing actually and with this move, I really hope the importance & significance of this day would be treasured and cherish by every Malaysian. It was secured through hard negotiations & "give and take". Hard way due to the strong objection from Phillipine & of course Indonesia , with Indonesia declaring "confrontation" via 'ganyang Malaysia" campaign.

Well, Soekarno had his own "problem" & agenda at that time and it just happened that the new born Malaysia was a "good" punching bag in diverting Indonesians from her own domestic/political chaos at that point of time.

The sad thing was that Singapore - read Lee Kuan Yew - broke away from Malaysia in 1965. Some historians were of the view that the severed tie was actually a blessing in disguise for both parties. What I could gather from my readings is this - Lee Kuan Yew grabbed the opportunity to be in the federation of Malaysia on this august date due to him not being able to fend off the Socialist Front - led by the charismatic and "youthful" Lim Chin Siong!!! Singapore under Lee Kuan Yew was just waiting for "stability" and the right time to leave Malaysia ....

Life goes on anyway for Malaysia & we have progress leap and bound.

Happy Birthday Malaysia ....

Good Luck to Duke Aziz - Bon Voyage Myrtle Adie

I have actually stopped reading the newspaper lately - there were so many sad stories/news...

The only good news - partially actually - apart from the Malaysia Day celebration was a report at page 36 of NST... It's regarding 2 turtles, female turtle by the name of Myrtle Adie & a male turtle known as Duke Aziz...

Both of them were kept at the Aquaria KLCC after a day old hatching 4 years ago. Since then they were kept in "captivity" at the Aquaria and were only released last 28 August from the Cagar Hutang turtle sanctuary with a satellite transponder on their back.

The good news is the female turtle, Myrtle Adie had reached Vietnam waters on 9 September - that's more than 1000 km away!!!. Our dear male turtle, Duke Aziz is still circling Pulau Redang and this worries the expert as it shows that the years in "captivity" has somehow or rather made Duke Aziz unable to adapt to life in the wild.

As for Myrtle Adie, she might be exposed to the poachers as Vietnamese are known to consider turtle as a delicacy ....

Well, that's what life is about anyway - taking risks. I am just wondering whether the news of these 2 turtles of the opposite sex reflect the "adventurous" side of the females or rather their ability to adapt to new environment. Or is it they are ever ready to take the risks? This is what I would call "female power"....

I just hope Duke Aziz would find his way off to the deep sea far away and 1 day they - yes both of them - would come back to the Malaysian water to hatch .....

To both of them - Good Luck!!!!

Gold Dinar & Silver Dirham @ Islamic Currency/Mint

It was a breaking news with lots of hue & cry when the PAS led Kelantan State Government introduced the Gold Dinar & Silver Dirham recently... Everybody - politicians from opposing sides obviously are at odds & gave their worth of views, and of course statement issued by the Bank Negara...

It was reported that the move by the Kelantan State Government to create a "new currency" is illegal under the relevant Act & could not be accepted as a legal tender. The only legal tender recognised under our monetary system is the "Ringgit Malaysia" i.e. the paper currency.

The Kelantan State Government on the other hand said it is not a currency but would be used as a "barter trade" tool... So there's nothing illegal about it since it is not an alternative to the currently recognised paper currency. Moreover it is based on a voluntary basis on the part of the consumers/those who want to participate in this "new trade"....

I would leave the legalistic of this issue to the financial/legal experts in finance/banking laws...

This post is merely meant to trace the history of the Islamic currency/Islamic Mint i.e. the Gold Dinar & Silver Dirham as there is a saying " Tak kenal maka tak cinta"....

There was a Musnad of Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbali which goes as follows:

" Abu Bakr Ibn Abi Maryam reported that he heard the Messenger of Allah (pbuh)said: A time is certainly coming over mankind in which there will be nothing (left) which will be of use save a dinar and a dirham."

It was recorded that Caliphate Umar Ibn al Khattab first ascertained the precise weight of dinar vis a vis dirham i.e. "the weight of 10 dirham is equivalent to 7 dinars". Muslims used gold & silver coins by weight which were made by the Persians.

As to the weight, Islamic Dinar is equivalent to 22K gold (4.25 grammes) while Islamic Silver is equivalent to specific weight of pure silver of 3.0 grammes.

It was then continued was during Caliphate Uthman (ra)with Arabic inscription of "In the name of Allah" found in the observe margin.

The Dinar was first introduced in 75 AH (695CE) by Caliph Abd Malik Ibn Marwan when he ordered al Hajjaj to mint the first Dinar. The word "dinar" derived from "denarius", a Roman currency. In 76 AH (696 CE)Caliph Abd Malik ordered the Dirham to be minted in all regions of Darul Islam and stamped with sentence "Allah is unique, Allah is eternal". With this gone were the images of human and/or animals on the coins used then.

The gold & silver coins remained as the official currency of Darul Islam until the fall of the last Caliphate of Ottoman. The coins were used mainly as a savings, to pay zakat & Dowry as well as in buying & selling.

There is currently a move to introduce the Islamic mint amongst the 1.1 billion Muslims in 51 countries and even Malaysia at one point of time through Tun Dr. Mahathir said (when he was still the PM) that Dinar would be introduced in Malaysia by 2003. It was somehow "halted" when he resigned and Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi took over... There was not an iota of hue & cry/objection then when Tun Mahathir came up with the idea as opposed to what the Kelantan State Government faced recently .... Is the idea/concept different? I do not think so ....

Those who propagate the Islamic Dinar argued on the following main reasons for the advantages in introducing the Dinar as a currency:

1. Stability - there would be zero inflation. It is said that during the Prophet's time, a chicken would cost 1 Dirham and it remains the same today i.e. 1,400 years later.

2. Reliability - it could not be manipulated/inflated as it could not be printed more as opposed to the paper currency.

Lastly but not least, it is opined that Islamic law does not permit the use of promise of payment as a medium of exchange as in the usage of paper currency ...

Lest I might be wrong I would leave it to the expert to analyse & have an intellectual discourse on this issue ... But my limited expertise & knowledge as a lay man on this issue is the following:

Where is the logic of not using the gold Dinar as a tool of trade when the paper currency itself is being "guaranteed in its value" by the solid & stable gold reserves a country has in her "possession"!!!! ......

Till we meet again ......