PERSONALITI TERSEMBUNYI (1)

Dia hanyalah lelaki biasa sahaja. Bukan VIP, aristokrat, artis, golongan profesional atau usahawan. Mungkin, dia boleh dikelaskan sebagai seorang budayawan kerana sering melestarikan nilai-nilai Melayu dalam kehidupannya. Pekerjaannya pula hanyalah pemandu kereta kepada seorang ahli perniagaan dari Jepun dengan purata pendapatan sekitar RM1k++.

Keluarganya boleh tahan besar, dengan seorang isteri dan tujuh orang anak. Kesemua mereka mendiami rumah teres kos rendah yang disewa dari seorang pemilik rumah yang baik orangnya. Alhamdulillah, mereka tinggal dengan selesa dan harmoni. Walaupun ada saatnya konflik melanda, namun penat lelahnya dalam membangunkan jiwa setiap anggota keluarga dengan iman dan amal soleh selama ini telah berupaya menghalang segala permasalahan yang timbul dari berpanjangan.

Dia akur, kemewahan dunia semakin jauh dari gapaiannya. Dia sendiri pun sudah lama melupakan keindahan dunia kerana sedar, roh yang mendiami jasad kerdil itu terlalu kuat rindunya pada bumi akhirat; dunia abadi yang mana udaranya semakin dihirup semakin wangi baunya. Yang penting baginya sekarang ini adalah bagaimana caranya untuk memanfaatkan nikmat dunia yang menjadi miliknya buat membeli kelazatan hidup di negara abadi kelak.

Dengan pendapatan yang agak sederhana, dia mampu memiliki sebuah motosikal. Kenderaan itulah yang digunakan untuk berulang-alik ke tempat kerja. Dia tidak mahu membawa pulang kereta milik syarikat itu meski pun dibenarkan berbuat demikian kerana memikirkan tanggungjawab dan amanah yang bakal digalasnya. Dia tak mahu menjadi sesetengah orang yang menyalahgunakan kenderaan syarikat untuk tujuan peribadi; balik kampung, bercuti, rewang, shopping dan yang seangkatan dengannya.

Biarlah dia susah, namun untuk mengeksploitasi sesuatu yang bukan hak miliknya demi melampiaskan kepuasan diri dan keluarga adalah antara perkara terlarang dalam kamus hidupnya. Kalau benar-benar perlu, contohnya untuk pulang ke kampung berhari raya, dia akan menyewa van sahaja.

Seorang rakannya, ahli perniagaan yang berjaya pernah menceritakan satu peristiwa yang sehingga kini akan membuatkan dirinya seolah-olah ditampar manakala jantungnya disentak-sentak setiap kali dia teringat akan kisah itu. Katanya, pada satu hari dia mendapat khabar yang kawannya sipemandu ini telah menyewa sebuah van untuk pulang ke kampung. Kebetulan, dia terserempak dengan sahabatnya itu di pertengahan jalan. Rasa simpati pantas menjalari sanubarinya sebaik melihat susuk van yang disewanya, model nissan lama dengan plat wa++++.

Segera dia melambai ke arah rakannya yang sedang memandu itu supaya memberhentikan kenderaan. Mereka pun berbual-bual sambil dia meninjau keadaan dalam van itu yang sesak dengan ahli keluarganya. Namun, pandangan matanya terpaku pada beberapa guni beras yang tersandar kemas di dalam van berkenaan.

Dihitungnya perlahan-lahan dalam hati, ada lapan guni semuanya. Dia musykil, kenapa banyak sangat? Dia ni nak meniaga kat kampung ke? Dia terus bertanya kepada sahabatnya perihal isu itu. Lantas, dengan cerianya dia menjawab, "Oh, beras tu! Aku nak bawak balik kampung, nak bagi orang miskin kat sana".

Nah, jawapan itulah yang diibaratkannya seperti penampar sulung yang dilayangkan terus ke mukanya. Manakan tidak, dia yang berjaya dalam bidang perniagaan pun tak pernah terlintas untuk menginfakkan hartanya sedemikian rupa sedangkan sahabatnya yang 'biasa' itu, dengan pendapatan dan tanggungan yang tak seimbang itu, 'luarbiasa' sekali perilakunya.

Inilah dia salah seorang personaliti tersembunyi yang jauh lebih masyhur di sisi Allah jika dibandingkan dengan personaliti dunia yang menghiasi wajah media selama ini. Pada aku, dia adalah salah seorang individu terkaya di dunia ini.

Daripada Abu Hurairah r.a, Nabi S.A.W bersabda: "Bukanlah kekayaan itu dengan banyaknya harta benda, tetapi kekayaan yang sebenar ialah kekayaan jiwa." (HR. Al-Bukhari & Muslim)

KITAR SEMULA

Entah kenapa sejak kebelakangan ini, timbul satu perasaan yang sukar untuk ditafsirkan. Mulanya, aku ingatkan ia hanyalah satu mainan jiwa kosong yang minta diisi. Aku pun buat 'dek' jer dengan sentuhan yang datang tak pernah dijemput tu. Namun, semakin dibiarkan...semakin jauh pula hati ini tenggelam ke dasarnya. Ish....takkanlah semudah ini aku ditewaskan oleh anasir-anasir dunia.

Aku kembali menilai kehidupan kebelakangan ini. Rasanya, semua 'cantik' sahaja walaupun ada beberapa kes dimana langkah tergelincir walaupun berjalan di permukaan 'tiles' yang kasar. Kenapa agaknya ia datang pada masa aku begitu ingin sekali menikmati cintaNya? Aku dah mencuba sebegitu banyak kali untuk meraih perasaan ini...tup tup....ada pulak yang ingin berlari seiring dengannya. Kenapalah ia hadir pada masa aku begitu asyik dengan kehidupan baru yang 'best giler' sekarang ni. Mmmmmm.....lemah sangat ker aku nie? Aku ukur dan turas iman yang separas buku lali ni.....dan konklusinya memang tak patut pun aku hanyut dalam arus yang berpusar 'sedikit' bawah dari paras iman tu.

TETAPI......MASALAHNYA.......aku leh tergolek 'dog' pulak dalam arus kecil ini? Adakah kerana aku terlalu memandang enteng dugaan yang mengalir bersamanya.....atau barangkali lumpur dunia yang menepui arus ini telah berjaya menjerluskan aku sedikit demi sedikit hinggakan akhirnya aku terjerat dalam larutan nafsu yang dinginnya telah berjaya mematikan deria rasa imanku.

CUMA.....aku tertanya-tanya sendiri, bolehkah aku mengitar semula situasi yang sedang aku lalui ini? Menerusi pemeriksaan yang aku jalankan sendiri dengan kanta minda, aku ingin sangat keputusannya memberi jawapan positif.....bukan sekadar teori tanpa hipotesis. Kebarangkaliannya memanglah besar ke arah membenarkan tindakan itu atas alasan dunia memerlukan wira setiap tika dan masa. Tapi, kanta minda 'power'nya amatlah diragui. Kalau setakat nak pastikan corak yang terdapat atas 'rama-rama hitam' bolehlah. Lebih dari itu, samalah seperti solat secara hakikat tanpa syariat. Mana taknya, memanglah solat itu zikrullah...mengingati Allah. Namun, tanpa syariat yang menggariskan terbangunnya solat itu dengan takbirnya, rukuk, sujudnya dan lainnya, tidaklah bersolat individu itu walaupun ia bertafakur menghayati wujudnya Allah. Senang citer, dia sesat dalam beribadah.

Sekarang ini, aku masih lagi memikirkan jalan penyelesaiannya. Aku arif benar, hakikat mesti bersatu dengan syariat. Justeru, tindakan penyudah dan penamat cerita ini mesti ada kedua-duanya. Soalnya, mampukah aku meneruskan perjuangan yang baru bermula ini? Perlukan masa lama? Kalau tengok dalam filem, pasir jerlus ni kalau kita bergerak banyak lagi cepat dia serap kita ke dasarnya. Tapi, dalam kes ni...aku rasa lagi lama aku berdiri statik kat situ.....lagi pantas aku larut ke dalamnya. So.....nak buat ape ek?

WE WANT A CHRISTMAS TREE! (2)

The children ate their tea then did their homework. They had just finished their homework when they heard the sound of a car in the driveway -- daddy was home! The children rushed to the doorway and waited for their father. Soon they heard his footsteps coming nearer so they opened the door but as they rushed to give him a big kiss and hug they knocked his brief case out of his hand. "As-Salamu alaykum" their father said, "what's all this?" Both children started to speak at the same time and their father could not understand a word they were saying. "Just a minute, let me take my coat off and warm up." He took his coat off and hung it up and Sarah raced to bring him a pair of nice warm slippers to put on. "Now children, tell me one at a time what you were saying." Abraham said: "Oh daddy, today we put up decorations in our classroom, and Mrs. Short brought a Christmas tree and we decorated it with lights and lots of pretty things -- can we have a Christmas tree, please daddy, please!"

Their father sat himself down in the chair near the fire and told them: "Children, when we came to America, we noticed that lots of things were different from back home. We are Muslims and Christmas is a Christian celebration and we don't celebrate it." "But daddy!" Abraham protested, "its the birthday of Prophet Jesus, why can't we celebrate it and have a Christmas tree?" "No, Abraham, Christians say it is the birthday of Prophet Jesus, but it is not." "But daddy, Mrs. Short at school said it is!!" said Abraham. "Well, I am afraid she is wrong this time."

Sarah and Abraham were very upset, they wanted a Christmas tree more than anything. Sarah started to cry, Abraham forgot his manners and started shouting. In fact they were so naughty they were sent to bed early and they didn't even say their prayers!

As their mother tucked them into bed she reminded them of the lovely time they had at Eid, but this did not help, they could not understand why their father would not let them have a Christmas tree with lights that flashed on and off.

At last they dropped off to sleep, but as Abraham slept he sobbed. Suddenly, Abraham's bedroom was full of light. Abraham sat up in bed, rubbed his eyes, blinked and stared. There, sitting in the corner of the room on his prayer mat was something, or someone very, very unusual. "Who are you, what are you, go away or else I will scream!" said the bewildered Abraham. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startled you. I am a jinn, you have heard about my kind in the Koran," he replied. "Do you remember the story of Prophet Sulayman and the jinn who brought the throne of the Queen of Sheba to him in the twinkling of an eye?" asked the jinn. "Yes," replied Abraham, "Well, my great-great-great, I can't remember how many greats, but one of my great-grandfathers was there!" "Really," blurted Abraham, "That's really awesome," said Abraham, "but what are you doing in my bedroom?"

The jinn smiled with a smile that spread from ear to ear. "I was on my way to the Californian desert, when I popped down your chimney to warm up, and overheard you and your father talking about Christmas, I also heard all the fuss you were making. I know it's hard for children to understand about Christmas, especially as people make it look so nice. That is why I decided it was my duty to tell you children two stories," said the jinn. "Go and tell Sarah to come here and I will tell them to you."

Abraham went to Sarah's bedroom and woke her up -- she was still upset but when Abraham told her about the jinn she was very excited, she had never seen a jinn before. She jumped out of bed, put on her dressing gown, and together the children crept quietly back to Abraham's bedroom.

As the children peered around the bedroom door they saw the jinn still sitting on the prayer mat and as he looked up he gave them one of his big smiles that stretched from ear to ear.

"As-Salamu alaykum," said the jinn. "Wa laykum as-Salaam," replied the children. Although Sarah was excited, she was also a little bit shy. The jinn told the children that his name was Arafat ibn Jabel Arafat which means Arafat, the son of the Mount of Arafat. He told them that he had been given that name, because like his father he had been born not far from Mount Arafat, however, because he had grown to be rather big, his friends called him Jabel. Sarah asked: "Is that the mountain people go to on pilgrimage?" "Yes," said Jabel, "I am glad you know about it. Come and sit down by me and I will tell you two stories."

"The first story," said Jabel "is about Christmas celebrations and the decorations you have been talking about and making at school. I know you have been wondering why Muslims don't celebrate Christmas even though we love Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him. Well, I am going to tell you the reason why we don't celebrate it, and how the idea of Christmas and its celebrations all started. You are going to be quite surprised with what you are going to hear!"

"It all started a very long time ago, way before the time of Prophet Muhammad, praise and peace be upon him, and many years after Allah had taken Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him, to the heavens.

At that time, Constantine was Emperor of Roman. He became so famous that a city in Turkey was named after him, it was called Constantinople, but today it has been renamed Istanbul.

When Constantine became Emperor of Rome many people envied him because they wanted to be the Emperor, and so there were always uprisings somewhere in the Roman Empire.

Most Romans were pagans, they worshiped lots of false gods carved out of stone. Some of these gods, the Romans said, had sons and daughters. Other Romans, like Constantine, worshiped the sun or even the moon." "That's silly," said Sarah, "didn't they realize that the statues were useless and made by people? "You are right Sarah, I am glad you realize that," said Jabel. "To get back to the story, Constantinople was full of temples to those pagan gods. There were lots of very big statues everywhere but like I said, the god Constantine worshiped was the sun and on December, 25th each year there were special celebrations in honor of its birth.

However, not all the people living in the Roman Empire were pagans, there was another group, people who refused to worship the pagan gods. They were called Christians. But, there were two kinds of Christians. One group followed the true teachings of Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him, and worshiped One God and knew another prophet would be sent later on, these people were called Nazarenes." "Oh, I know," said Abraham, "they were waiting for Prophet Muhammad, praise and peace be upon him." "Yes, that's right Abraham," said Jabel.

Jabel continued, "the other kind of Christians followed a man called Paul who never met Prophet Jesus and claimed, that God was one of three persons; may Allah forgive me for repeating this, it is a terrible thing to say," said Jabel. "You see, when Paul first went to Greece he had difficulty preaching. The Greeks worshiped three gods, joined them together and said they worshiped one god.

Now Paul had an idea, if he referred to Prophet Jesus as being the son of God and then added the Holy Spirit there would be three in one, and that would make his preaching easier for them to accept. His idea worked, and people started to listen but he made a very big mistake, because we know that Prophet Jesus always taught that God, Allah, is One and does not have a son or any other one or thing else with Him.

Constantine was a very confused man, he saw the true followers of Prophet Jesus as a threat to his power. As for the other kind of Christians, they could be tolerated, because, like I said before, their idea of three gods in one, was similar to the religions of Roman. However, there were more true Christians than the other kind."

"Why did Constantine think the true Christians or should I say Nazarenes were a threat to his power," asked Abraham. "Well, like I mentioned, their numbers were growing, and he was afraid they might rise up against him -- there had already been twelve emperors in recent years and on average, each one only ruled for three years -- all of them died in a mysterious manner. Neither the Nazarenes nor the followers of Paul had anything to do with these mysterious deaths, the Emperors were murdered by greedy people, some of whom wanted to become the next Emperor. Needless to say Constantine wanted to be the Emperor of Rome for a long time!"

Jabel continued: "The Nazarenes were people who obeyed Allah and didn't much care about the Emperor. Emperors of Roman before Constantine had trouble accepting the two parties as well and would throw them to hungry lions because they refused to worship the gods of Rome." "Oh, how cruel!" said Sarah. "Yes," said Jabel, "those emperors were not nice people at all, however, they were dedicated to their beliefs and refused to give them up and would rather be martyred than become pagans.

Now, Constantine was determined to stamp out the Nazarenes, so he devised a plan. Both parties had books which they called Gospels, some of them reported the true sayings of Jesus, whereas others contained the teachings of Paul and others who followed his false teachings of three gods in one which they called the trinity.

Constantine had an idea, so he pretended to convert. The next thing he did was to declare that it was time that both parties be united and share the same belief, and it was through this declaration that Constantine set his plot in motion.

Not long after, Constantine invited all the arch-bishops, bishops and notable clergy to a council meeting at a place called Nicea. He ordered them to bring their gospels with them so that they might debate with one another and then he would determine who was right. He also told them that once the matter was decided their gospels would be made into one book, which is what Christians today call the "New Testament".

The most influential arch-bishop who taught the true teachings of Prophet Jesus, peace be upon him, was a man named Arius. He was a very good man and knew the teachings of Prophet Jesus well. Needless to say the bishops welcomed Constantine's proposal and journeyed from far and wide to attend the great council over which the Emperor was to preside.

Arius wasn't too happy about Constantine presiding over the council as he wasn't thoroughly convinced about Constantine's conversion. However, Arius was a truthful, convincing speaker and felt that the truth he was about to present would be very clear and simple for all to understand and that through it he would unite them all in the worship of One God.

The day of the great council arrived. The bishops and clergy with their books sat down before, Constantine, Emperor of Rome. There were more Nazarenes at the council meeting than the followers of Paul, and when arch-bishop Arius spoke it was clear that he spoke the truth.

Now this bothered Constantine, he had hoped that the followers of Paul would win the day, but now he realized it wasn't going to turn out like that, however, he was too clever to show his true feelings.

It was time for Constantine to fall back on another plan he had devised just in case things did not go in his favor. He ordered the bishops and clergy to leave all their gospels on top of the conference table and told them he would let God decide overnight which were authentic. He told them that he would ask God would remove the false teachings from the table and that the books remaining on the table the following morning would from then on be the official books.

That night, Constantine's men gathered together all the gospels that spoke of the Oneness of Allah and burned them. The next morning when the bishops gathered, the Nazarenes realized they had been tricked -- none of their gospels were left on the table! Arius protested and accused Constantine of deceit, but it was no good -- the damage had been done." "Didn't they have other real gospels, like we have real copies of the Koran?" asked Sarah. "Oh, Sarah, there were a few, but you see in those days everything had to be written down by hand, and that took a long time, so you can see there weren't many of them," said Jabel, "but I will get to that in a minute."

"Arius and the rest of the Nazarenes left the conference in disgust. However, Constantine realized these bishops knew their scriptures very well and that he could not allow them to return home where they would continue to preach, so he arranged to have them all murdered. He also decreed that anyone found in possession of the true gospels would be put to death and their gospels burned.

Meanwhile, back at the conference, a creed was drawn up by the followers of Paul." "What's a creed," asked Abraham. "A creed is something that you bear witness too," answered Jabel, "Now, I understand," said Abraham, "Its like our shahadah 'I bear witness that there is no god except Allah, and Muhammad is His Prophet.'" "In a way," replied Jabel, "but, you must remember they did not believe in One God, so you really can't compare it to ours. By the way, the creed they devised that day still forms part of their prayers in church each Sunday, its called the Nicene Creed."

"What you have told is very interesting Jabel, but what has this got to do with Christmas?" asked Abraham. "Well, from that time onwards, Constantine declared that Christians should celebrate the birth of Jesus on the same day the pagan Romans celebrated the birth of the sun god, the most popular god of the Roman Empire and that day was on December 25th, which Christians, now call Christmas day." "Oh, I would hate Prophet Jesus to be part of that," said Sarah. "Has it been like this ever since Constantine?" asked Abraham. "No, things changed, but they didn't get any better, I'll tell you about that in a minute."

Constantine continued to rule the Roman Empire for a long time, and the life of a Trinitarian Christian became much easier. Just before he died, his sister who had become a follower of Prophet Jesus but had kept it secret, tried to convince him he was wrong, but the damage was done.

As time passed the great Empire of Rome fell, it became more corrupt than ever and it just got too big to control! As for the Trinitarian Christians, they traveled across Europe preaching the doctrine Paul had taught, many were people trying to do good, but their belief was wrong. However, they too had problems preaching their religion and so they included part of the pagan rituals into Christianity." "How do you mean?" asked Sarah. "A good question," replied Jabel. "Well, there are many, but let's just take one example, an example which seems to attract you.

In a part of the United Kingdom called Wales, there were pagans called Druids. Each year in December when the days were short and the nights long they would worship their pagan god by tying apples and other gifts onto the branches of a tree.

The Germans did something similar, but they used a fir tree which you know as a Christmas Tree. To the pagans, fir trees were also a sign that winter would end and warmth would once more return to the earth so they would decorate the trees with lots of different trinkets, masks and hold a party around it. When these people accepted Christianity, they continued with this pagan ritual but renamed it, and so it became part of the Christmas celebrations.

The Germans were not content with just the tree however, they invented another story which has been passed down right up until this day. The story they invented was that on Christmas Eve -- that's the night they claimed Prophet Jesus was born -- his mother, Lady Mary, and the angels fly over the countryside, so, they place a candle in their windows to guide them and leave some food for them on a table, rather like the pagan tree offerings in the old days. Of course, the Germans weren't the only ones to invent stories, each country has their own, the Spanish have a similar story."

"Oh, that's horrid," said Sarah. "Prophet Jesus was such a good, pure person how could they do even think of even connecting him to those pagan things!" "Well I guess they just did not think what they were doing," replied Jabel, "now you know why your parents don't want you to have a Christmas tree."

"Well, now that I understand the origins of a Christmas tree I don't want one, do you Sarah?" asked Abraham. "No, I agree with you!" said Sarah.

SUNNAH YANG DIPINGGIRKAN! (2)

Sekali imbas, pembentukan kerajaan Malaysia ini tiada cacat-celanya kerana ia berdiri atas kehendak rakyat. Ketepikan dulu soal tegaknya Khilafah Islamiyah 'ala minhaj nubuwwah walaupun itulah cita-cita kita umat Islam. Bukan kerana merasakan ia mustahil, akan tetapi buat masa ini prosesnya sangat sulit untuk direalisasikan kerana kesalahan kita sendiri.

Cuma, jangan kambus keyakinan bahawa masanya akan tiba kerana terhapusnya sistem sekularisme, demokrasi atau apa sahaja corak pemerintahan duniawi selain Islam adalah janji Allah dan Rasulnya. Kita pun tidak seharusnya menunggu tanpa usaha dan alhamdulillah, gerakan-gerakan menzahirkannya semakin rancak sejak kebelakangan ini.

Kembali kepada isu asal, kita dapati masalah bermula sebaik sahaja kerajaan yang ditubuhkan ini mengambil pendekatan yang meminggirkan ajaran Islam dalam menguruskan negara. Jika kita teliti sejarah lampau, matlamat utama memerdekakan negara ini dari cengkaman penjajah adalah untuk membela agama, bangsa dan negara itu sendiri.

Atas dasar ini, rakyat tidak kira latarbelakang dan pegangan bersatu bagi menuntut kebebasan. Pada awal-awal pembentukan dan pembangunan kerajaan, dengan mengambil kira kepentingan warga pribumi juga kewujudan pembangkang mengikut kontrak sosial yang telah dipersetujui, pelbagai usaha dilakukan untuk membela rakyat menerusi pemberian pelbagai jenis bantuan dan subsidi. Namun begitu, semakin maju negara ini, semakin jelas kedengaran saranan untuk memansuhkan pemberian subsidi ini kepada rakyat.

Kita tidak menafikan ada baiknya cadangan itu pada beberapa jenis subsidi sahaja (itupun jika ada) dengan syarat jelas terbukti wujudnya pembaziran sepanjang proses itu dijalankan. Pun begitu, adalah lebih baik dikaji semula mekanismenya dari menghapus terus kerana asal kewujudan subsidi ini adalah untuk membantu meringankan masalah rakyat yang benar-benar bermasalah. Namun soalnya sekarang ini, cadangan untuk menarik semula pemberian subsidi seperti minyak, elektrik dan air atas pelbagai alasan dangkal adalah satu bentuk kezaliman yang nyata.

Baru-baru ini, dalam suatu forum di majlis pertemuan bersama penuntut IPT, jelas berkumandang idea bodoh ini dari seorang ahli panel untuk menghapuskan terus pemberian subsidi ini pada rakyat. Baginya, ini menunjukkan kerajaan amat prihatin dalam memajukan kehidupan rakyat dimana wang yang berjaya 'diselamatkan' ini dapat disalurkan kepada sektor pendidikan, pengangkutan awam, perumahan awam dan lain-lain lagi sekaligus mengelakkan pembaziran. Seolah-olah selama ini, sumber kewangan bagi tujuan subsidi datang dari harta milik keluarga mereka. Walhal, harta yang mereka ingin tahan pemberiannya itu adalah hak milik rakyat.

Dari Ibnu Abbas r.a, bahawa Nabi Sallallahu 'alaihi wa Sallam bersabda, “Kaum Muslimin bersyarikat (berkongsi) dalam tiga perkara iaitu air, padang ragut dan api” [HR Abu Daud].

Berilah apa sahaja alasan yang dirasakan logik, namun cubaan untuk 'menghanguskan' segala bentuk bantuan kepada rakyat adalah bermaksud meminggirkan sunnah Rasulullah S.A.W dalam mentadbir kerajaan. Kita harus sedar, di dalam Islam, ada beberapa aset adalah hak milik semua rakyat dimana Allah Azza Wajalla membenarkan setiap individu ‘memanfaatkannya’ tanpa sesiapapun ‘memilikinya’ secara individu. Ini jelas digariskan oleh Islam bagi tiga kumpulan sumber yang berikut:-

(1) Keperluan awam yang mana masyarakat bergantung kepadanya di dalam menjalani kehidupan.

(2) Aset atau sumber alam semulajadi yang sifat kejadiannya tidak membolehkan ia dimiliki oleh individu secara perseorangan seperti sungai, tasik, laut, terusan, jalan raya, tempat letak kereta awam, masjid, musolla, Mina, Arafah, Muzdalifah dan seumpamanya.

(3) Bahan galian atau mineral yang banyak atau berlebih-lebihan yang tidak putus bekalannya seperti petroleum, gas, emas, bijih timah dan yang seumpamanya.

Dalam bahasa yang mudah, rakyat bebas menggunakan kesemua sumber ini tanpa sebarang caj keuntungan. Ini jelas diungkapkan oleh Rasulullah S.A.W dalam hadith yang sama seperti di atas tetapi diriwayatkan oleh Anas R.A dengan tambahan : “wa tsamanuhu haram” bermaksud "harganya adalah haram".

Oleh kerana itu, kerajaan 'dulu-dulu' atas dasar kebajikan menubuhkan syarikat miliknya sendiri bagi menguruskan sumber-sumber tersebut manakala rakyat bersama-sama menyumbang kos pengurusannya. Akan tetapi, dalam tempoh 50 tahun kemerdekaan negara, 'trend' ini perlahan-lahan berubah dimana proses penswastaan telah mengambil tempat hinggakan rakyat terpaksa menanggung dua kos: penyelenggaraan (nyata) dan keuntungan (tersembunyi) kepada syarikat swasta yang mengendalikan pengagihan sumber ini sedangkan ia jelas haram dalam Islam.

Realitinya, penswastaan berlaku bukan kerana ianya satu keperluan, sebaliknya kerana kegagalan kerajaan mentadbir sumber kewangan GLC yang diperoleh dari rakyat menerusi kutipan cukai dan zakat dengan baik sehingga berlakunya pecah amanah, rasuah dan sebagainya. Demi menutup lubang-lubang ini dan menyelamatkan kepentingan masing-masing, penswastaan mengambil tempat sehinggakan kerajaan yang kita lantik sekarang ini tak mampu bersuara untuk meminta pengurangan 'keuntungan' dari syarikat-syarikat swasta berkenaan.

Kita masih lagi menanti perubahan yang akan berlaku selanjutnya. Meskipun pemberian subsidi ini masih lagi berjalan seperti biasa, namun pengurangannya secara mendadak memberi kesan yang amat mendalam kepada rakyat. Mungkin, sekarang ini ia hanya dikurangkan tetapi, apa yang ditakuti adalah penghapusannya dalam sistem pentadbiran kerajaan kerana 'cakap-cakap' mengenainya jelas kedengaran. Ia bukan lagi satu kiasan kerana banyak program debat, forum dan seminar yang dianjurkan sejak kebelakangan ini membincangkannya sehinggakan ada di kalangan umat Islam bersetuju dengan gagasan menghapuskan pemberian subsidi dan bantuan ini atas nama kebajikan dan keadilan untuk rakyat.

Manusia, bila ia lari dari sunnah Allah dan Rasulnya, impaknya bukan sahaja kepada diri sendiri akan tetapi ia turut memberi kesan pada masyarakat sekelilingnya. Amat benarlah janji Allah, bila satu kaum menolak undang-undangNya, akan ada kaum lain yang bangun mengambilalih tanggungjawab itu. Jauh dalam hati ini, aku dapat merasakan kekuatan Melayu Islam semakin hari semakin terhakis. Dan pola ini akan berterusan jika tiada sebarang agenda dan langkah-langkah yang mantap untuk memperbaikinya.

Pun begitu, aku bukanlah seorang nasionalis untuk memperjuangkan Bangsa Melayu....kerana....aku rasa amat bangga bila melihat dalam kesamaran dan kekusutan ini, saudara baru Islam atau golongan Mualaf telah memainkan peranan mereka yang tersendiri. Menyedari kelompok mereka yang minoriti, mereka menyerahkan soal politik kepada kita Melayu Muslim yang jauh lebih ramai untuk berusaha mewujudkan negara Islam sedang mereka secara konsisten berusaha menyebar luas ajaran Islam dan memberi kesedaran betapa indahnya Islam kepada bangsa mereka. Soalnya, berapa ramai di antara kita Melayu Muslim yang benar-benar serius dalam membangunkan negara Islam ini?

KERAJAAN RAMBUTAN

Farihin tersengih-sengih kat pintu. Lambat jer dia melangkah masuk ke dalam kelas. Musykil gak aku dibuatnya. Tak macam selalu. Biasanya, kalau dia sampai jer kat bawah, kita dah dapat dengar bunyi sandalnya menapak anak-anak tangga. Mana taknya, orang melangkah cermat, dia berlari pecut memanjat tangga. Elok sampai dipintu, nah....bagi salam punya la kuat. Kebiasaannya begitu, cuma malam ni ada 'something wrong some where'. Aku jeling-jeling gak kat tangan dia, ada beg plastik besar warna putih. Sengaja dia sorok kat belakang badan, kira nak buat kejutan la tu. :)

"Nah Ustaz, mak kasi", katanya sambil menghulur bungkusan tersebut.

"Apa ni?" Soalku sambil membuka simpulan ikatan plastik berkenaan.

"Rambutan, mak ambik kat kampung", jawabnya sambil menggaru kepala separuh botak yang tak gatal. Kembang-kempis hidungnya sewaktu menceritakan perihal buah yang dipetik dari pokok milik datuknya masa balik kampung hujung minggu yang lalu.

"Alhamdulillah.....nanti sebelum solat jemaah kita makan sama-sama ngan kawan-kawan, ok?"

Dia mengangguk kepala tanda setuju. Sesekali, dia menggigit jari sambil memandang ke arah rakan-rakan yang lain. Segera aku arahkan para pelajar berterima kasih padanya. Amboi, bertambah kerap la pulak kembang-kempis hidungnya. Alahai Farihin, syukran jazilan!

Daripada Uqbah bin Amir al-Juhani R.A, Nabi S.A.W. bersabda: "Setiap orang berada di bawah naungan amalan sedekahnya sehinggalah diadili di antara manusia (pada hari kiamat)" (HR. Ahmad)

Buah rambutan yang Farihin bawa memang manis...sesuai dengan warna merah hati kulitnya. Teringat cerita seorang guru tentang buah rambutan ini. Katanya, kita sering diajar malah jadi maklum benar akan kelebihan pokok kelapa dimana setiap bahagiannya amat berguna dalam kehidupan manusia. Senang cerita, dalam kelompok tumbuhan, kerajaan kelapa sememangnya menjuarai carta pokok pelbagai guna sehingga kita terlupa mencanangkan kelebihan pokok lainnya. Lalu, apa lebihnya kerajaan rambutan ini?

Membandingkannya dengan pohon kelapa yang tinggi membelah awan memang bukan satu perkara yang wajar. Samalah dalam menilai jasa seseorang yang jauh berharta dan berpengaruh dengan golongan sederhana ke bawah bukanlah satu tindakan yang munasabah kerana masing-masing memiliki keupayaan tersendiri. Cumanya, kerajaan rambutan..jika diamati....amat peramah dengan manusia. :)

Yelah, kita bebas untuk menikmati buahnya tanpa perlu bersusah payah. Petik sahaja gugusan rambutan yang layut di hujung dahan, dah boleh merasai kelazatannya. Kalau ada buah kat tempat tinggi pun, tak susah sangat nak capainya...'ada beran' (meminjam istilah Bang-Bang Boom yang merosakkan bahasa sebenarnya :P) boleh jer panjat dahannya atau guna jer batang penyapu daun kering buat merengkuh buah yang agak jauh dari gapaian (ni satu lagi, salah guna peralatan!).

Pohonnya yang sederhana tinggi dan rendang itu juga turut memberi keselesaan pada kita berteduh di bawahnya sambil menikmati manis dan masam produknya. Yang menarik lagi, perhatikan buah rambutan itu sendiri....sudahlah ia membumbungi manusia yang mengunjungi kerajaannya dari terik mentari, ia juga turut melindungi pengunjung kecil seperti semut hitam dan kerengga dari tiupan angin dan hujan lebat dengan bulu-bulu romanya. Turunla hujan lebat mana pun, puak serangga nie selamba badak jer menikmati manisnya madu buah hasil fotosintesis nie.

Begitulah mesranya kerajaan rambutan ini. Walaupun ia tidak sehebat raja durian atau semewah delima dalam kategori tumbuhan, ia masih lagi memberi sumbangan sesuai dengan keupayaan dirinya. Yang lebih mengkagumkan, sekiranya kita menikmati buah rambutan ini dengan memetiknya dari pohon, lebih mudah bagi kita menentukan mana satu buah yang manis dan masam hanya dengan memerhatikan kehadiran semut hitam di permukaan kulitnya. Lagi banyak semut hitam, lagi manis rasanya. Kalau banyak kerengga lak, tak payah la korang susah-susah panjat...sebab biasanya....buah kat dahan tu rasa masam-masam manis gitu.

Nah! Kerajaan rambutan jujur dalam menjalin hubungan dengan tetamunya. Tidak seperti sesetengah manusia, sentiasa memikirkan taktik dan teknik untuk menipu dan berlaku khianat demi mengaut keuntungan duniawi. Berpura-pura tersenyum manis sedang hati bersalut dendam kesumat yang tak pernah padam. Tak percaya? Tanyalah orang-orang politik.