Friday, January 14, 2011

The Bright Morning Hours

I sit in my living room, computer in my lap, watching the view outside.  The sun has just come up, the sky is clear and cool.  It rained last night.  The trees are green, their leaves bright and moist.  Their reflections bright in the pond.  The orchids of purple and white and dark brown scattered on the lawn add colors.  I have a beautiful garden.

I can see my turkey pet fluffing his feathers.  He perches right on the doorstep.  I can see a squirrel playing in the tree.  An early squirrel.  Yesterday a family of monkeys came to visit.  The morning chirping birds had quietened down and I can hear the distant sound of a rooster crowing.  A late rooster.

My helper just arrived and she is doing the dishes.  I sit here in this big sofa chair waiting for my children to get ready.  I hear water running in the shower, I hear low humming of the dishwasher.  There is no more food in the house and we are going out to get breakfast then groceries.

My heart fills with gratitude for everything that I have, Alhamdulillahirabbila'lamin, all praise is due to God and God alone, the Sustainer of all the worlds, the Most Gracious, the Dispenser of Grace.  And I pray for His continued blessing.  Yet there is an innate melancholic feeling hanging in the calmness of the morning.

I google for the meaning of a verse and the page rests on Ad-Dhuha, The Bright Morning Hours.  The surah seems to have been revealed to the Prophet, may Allah's peace and blessings be upon him, during a desolate time of his outer life.

In the name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful


Consider the bright morning hours,
and the night when it grows still and dark.
Thy Sustainer has not forsaken thee, nor is He displeased;
for, indeed, the life to come will be better for thee than the former
And, indeed, in time will thy Sustainer grant thee, and thou shalt be well-pleased.


Has He not found thee an orphan, and given thee shelter?
And found thee lost on thy way, and guided thee?
And found thee in want, and given thee sufficiency?
Therefore, the orphan shalt thou never wrong,
and him that seeks help shalt thou never chide,
and of thy Sustainer's blessings shalt thou ever speak.


14 comments:

  1. We have more than enough. Zakat is the compulsory part, and the option is on us to give more.... whatever..., kindness, the very least.

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  2. Thank you Bangchik. You always offer an excellent reminder of the basic responsibility and what we should do to make it better. Yes, the more we realise how grateful we are, the more we must struggle to be better.

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  3. Many of the simple things in our lives -- our family, friends, health, jobs, and the like -- are blessings and reasons to be grateful for.

    Thank you for sharing this post and reminding me of the things that matter in life.

    Godspeed!

    P.S. Happy new year to you too! :)

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  4. Thank you Mama Mia. You leave the loveliest of comments and I really appreciate it.

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  5. Mom said she copied me, love conquers all :) I was late for bright morning hours, til I prayed solat Duha for the first time, Allah showed me what had happened while being late. Be early as told for the better.

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  6. Hello
    Qur'an, in my language (Portuguese) would ALCOORÃO.
    Beautiful word QUR'AN. It means that book?
    Hugs.

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  7. Thank you Babypose, I am amazed at the meaning of surah Ad-Dhuha.

    Hello Cesar, there are Malay words that are Portugese, like meja, mentega, sepatu. Can you guess their meaning?

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  8. Aslmkm.
    This Surah was a revelation that Allah The Al Mighty has never forsaken and hated our Prophet Muhammad SAW as asserted by the non-believers then.
    I believe I always keep the message of this Surah close at heart. We are summoned to manifest the invaluable bounty of Allah The Al Mighty by doing good deeds, thanking HIM & always praying for the best of HIS blessings.
    So we are to faithfully observe our compulsory duties & also do other good deeds. Among others, we offer our Dhuha prayer and try to be kind to others.

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  9. Waalaikumussalam Dr Fauziah,

    I await your visit and your illustrious description of the message. I just discovered the meaning of this surah and it touched my heart so (I have read the meaning of the Qur'an from A-Z before, but it does not mean that I have discovered it all). I know that this surah and its message will remain in my heart, insyaaAllah. Thank you.

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  10. Salam Aishah, maaf lambat reply, skrg tgh sibuk, byk keje..

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  11. Aishah,

    You describe a morning scene, beautiful with normal routine sound in the background. That is a pleasant place to live in, with time to reflect. Consider yourself lucky as very few have this in modern life particularly before one's retirement age - the stage where you are I am sure. I am equally lucky but I am in my twilight years. So watching the sunrise scene overlooking the sea from my house adds special meaning to reflect of life.

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  12. It was Sunday morning Al-Manar. Any other weekday, we would be rushing out the door before 7am!

    When we observe nature, we could not help but reflect.

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  13. You know what? I'm also sitting with you there in your lounge, breathing in that air of calmness. Thanks for letting us in on your private world.

    On another note, I don't think the words you included in your comment on my blog, have a negative connotation per se. It's what humans make of them that makes the difference in the end. In terms of democracy, economy and freedom, I don't think, either, that they're bywords for annihilation, but again, it's what us, humans, use them for. Was it right to fight against Hitler? Yes, 100%. Was it right to invade Iraq? No, in my opinion.

    Greetings from London.

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  14. Hey there Cuban,

    Yes it was beautiful, now sitting at the busy office, I am smiling thinking about it, then, I was not.

    You summed up the arguments for me Cuban. We debate our own human fallibilities.

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