I Am a Muslim. Period.

                                               

Over the past few days I have met some really amazing human beings who are absolutely selfless, doing fantastic work within their communities without actually receiving any recognition for it. I met a Scottish couple at Milpark hospital and they told me that they came to South Africa when they were around 19 years old. They came to this country because they were huge Ernie Els fans. They fostered a child and last year she got married. It was supposedly the happiest day of their life. This couple is very much involved with the church. They co-ordinate Bible study classes for orphaned kids and assist in terms of taking kids off the streets and placing them into schools. Everyday they feed 250 orphaned HIV positive kids in an informal settlement near their place of residence when they return from school. The funding is acquired from their immediate family members residing in Scotland. Despite the fact that the wife suffers from scleroderma, a rare autoimmune rheumatic disease, she is adamant that life is about living and giving. She says that even if you have sickness, you need to be positive. In her own words, " There is plenty of time to sleep when we go six feet deep. If each one of us helped at least 2 people, it will cause a ripple effect and eventually everyone will be able to lead a better life."

Yesterday I met another remarkable woman who is also involved with a church charity organization. Every week, they hand out goody bags to the poor in the community. In January, she was on a charity drive and whilst walking the streets of Randburg, she came across 2 boys who were huddled together in a street corner. She went up to them and started chatting to them. She told me that she had an instant connection with them. After chatting to them for a while, she realized that they were heroin addicts residing in a cardboard box structure on the streets. She went home that night and was unable to sleep. She kept on thinking that whilst she is enjoying the comfort of a bed, the young boys she met were sleeping on the streets. The next morning she jumped into her car in search of the boys. She took them home with her. Over the next few days, she took them for a full medical check up. She is now in the process of trying to get them off their heroin addiction. The problem she has is finances. Rehabilitation centres are costly and she does not have the funds to assist both the boys. If there is anyone out there who knows of a good rehabilitation centre at a minimal fee kindly inbox me. As a matter of interest I am wondering, do any of the government hospitals have a free rehabilitation centre?

I love meeting such inspiring people who find satisfaction and happiness through helping others. On the other hand I am livid and disgusted at some of the Muslim people within our own communities. Last weekend my family and I attended the Saaberie Chishty annual fundraising event. It was an absolutely well put together fun filled event for a very good purpose. However, during the cause of the week I received inbox messages stating, " Are you not a tableeghi? How can you attend the event of Bidatis. They not Muslims. They do not follow Islam properly."

Naturally, I did not respond to any of the messages out of sheer disgust. I have no time to waste by responding to ignorant fools.I mean, who are we to judge another human being. I am a Muslim. I am very proud of my culture and religion. My Islam is very simple. I follow the five pillars of my religion as best as I possibly can. My religion teaches me to assist anyone irrespective of race, colour or creed. I hate it when people use religion to divide people. These people who spread hatred and who claim to love the Prophet Muhammed (saw) are actually very very far in terms of his teachings towards humanity. The Prophet (saw) was kind and sincere even towards his enemies. To those of you who messaged me stating absolute rubbish, please do yourself a favour, instead of wasting your time and energy texting me, kindly refrain from messaging me at all.

Some food for thought

A few days ago at a pre wedding function I met a young couple that have a beautiful child who was born with a rare birth defect, microcephaly whereby the brain does not develop properly resulting in a smaller than normal head.Often people with the disorder have an intellectual disability, poor motor function, poor speech, abnormal facial features, seizures, and are short.This cute little child was 13 years old. She sat in her pram staring at the strange faces around her. She was totally helpless yet she was so content. My heart went out to her parents. They have so much of patience with her despite everyday being a constant struggle. Only they know the trials they are facing on a day to day basis. In the same gathering I met a young man who was wheelchair bound. His story broke my heart too. He was a bright student enrolled in a university. However, when his dad passed away he was forced to leave university and start working in order to provide for his family. One day whilst at work, he was shot on his spine during an armed robbery causing him to become paralyzed from his waist down. Can you imagine the trials his family and wife must have faced during this period. They were devastated. With God's grace though he has learnt to adapt to his new way of life. He is working and drives and hence he has become an inspiration to many others out there.... Last week whilst meeting with a community member who deals with the blind school in the area, I was heart sore after hearing 2 stories that were relayed to me. The first is of a young 24 year old woman who became a pharmacist. She loved her profession with a passion. After having a heart attack and 2 strokes recently resulting in a blood clot lodging itself near the optic nerve, she has lost total vision in both her eyes. She can not come to terms with her destiny. Whilst she has taken the bold step to enrol herself at the blind school she finds herself sobbing in one corner of the classroom. She finds a bit of comfort from a fellow student learning braille. He was also a professional person who was simply at the wrong place at the wrong time. During an armed robbery at a store, he was shot in the head causing him to become blind. He has however embraced his fate and chooses to live life one day at a time. I have come to the conclusion that each and everyone of us is going through some sort of trial or test in life. Some people may be having financial problems, others may be having marital problems..whilst others may be experiencing health issues or problems with their kids. If we sit back and analyse our own problems you will quickly realise that sometimes our own problems are miniscule in comparison to what other people out there are going through. God never ever burdens us with more than we can handle. Sometimes we face difficulties simply because God wants us to turn to Him for assistance and guidance. He wants us to be closer to Him. So before you start whining, feeling as though your whole world has come to an end, think about those people who are in far worse off situations than you. In every situation thank the Lord. Be happy and content in life. Always remember that even in a bad situation there is always some good that comes out of it......

Muslims only in name, not in character

This picture was sent to me by a facebook acquaintance. I have no idea who I should be accrediting the picture to. By the way, I am a big fan of both gentlemen :)The title of the post is in NO WAY affiliated to the picture above.....

So this morning I woke up to an inbox message that was sent to me by a young Muslim girl asking me if I by any chance know the guy standing next to the maestro Rahat Fateh Ali Khan? I replied to her stating that whilst I do not know him personally, I do know him. He is a UK based boxer by the name of Amir Khan. He is married to a gorgeous Pakistani American girl and if I'm not mistaken he was recently in the Tabloids for supposedly having an affair. Well, to cut a long story short, this girl has been chatting to someone on facebook who utilizes Amir Khan's pictures and pretends that it is actually his own photos. It seemed to me that this poor girl was smitten by this person based on the boxer's attractive photos.

Then when I got to work, I heard about an even more bizarre story whereby an entire family was involved in duping a girl into marriage for the sake of her wealth. The girl, being an only daughter is now the owner of her dads company. Through her dads business associate the girl was introduced to a boy who claimed to be an electrical engineer. Both families met and the formalities were completed only to find out later that the boy never completed his schooling and neither does he work. The parents executed the scheme so well, that they hired people to pretend to be his work colleagues from so and so company. After the marriage all hell broke loose. The truth emerged and naturally the girl was devastated. She never told her family initially but after realizing that she is the only one in the home earning a fantastic salary that is now used to support her in laws she decided to seek help from her family. The sad part about this whole story is that the neighbours and the boys immediate family knew about the boys bad reputation. Apart from not working, he was also involved with duping people into financial schemes. He would take peoples money and disappear. No one came forward to warn the girl and her family. After a few weeks she obviously went back to her parents home and filed for a divorce. In her own words she mentioned to me that she will never ever trust another Muslim boy again. She is too terrified to get married again. She has opted to focus on her career and her business as such. Her story seemed to be straight out of a movie, yet this is the stark reality of what is happening within our Muslim communities.

A few days ago, I heard a few horrific stories that blew my mind away. The first is of young girl who traveled to SA from a neighbouring African country in search of work. She left her country as the man she married was abusive. Whilst he was powerful and rich he was mean towards her. When she fell pregnant he forced her to have an abortion and then he disappeared...She related her story to me with sadness and yet there was a sparkle of hope in her eyes for a better future.... I then heard about a group of Muslim men from a neighbouring country who claim to be part of a charity organization and dupe people into donating money for boreholes etc. The money is not given towards charity. It is pocketed for themselves.

The saddest story of them all is about a strong willed woman who gave birth to three beautiful daughters. Her husband was so angry that he had no sons and hence he showed no love or respect towards his daughters. He never cared for them. This lady decided to divorce her husband and she moved away to South Africa in order to give her kids a better future. Today with the grace of God Almighty her daughters are all grown up..educated and independent..It is shocking that in this day and age there are Muslims out there who are so ignorant. The prophet (saw) abolished female infanticide. He liberated women and afforded women their rights. He encouraged women to seek knowledge.....Praying etc is a part of Islam...Obeying God's commands is on one scale and being good to humanity is on the other scale. Being able to strike a balance between these two entities determines the goodness of a human being. Sadly there are people out there who act as though they are holier than though. Their day is spent in preaching from morning to night.. yet they are wicked and unkind towards humanity.. A person who is pious should be kinder..softer... more humble. Yet very often I come across people who act all holy....yet they are abrupt... rude.. they lack softness.. they are unapproachable.they don't smile.. they walk with an attitude of authority.they feel as though they are superior and above the rest. This is not Islam in my opinion.. Then I have come across those people whom God has guided towards goodness.These individuals start judging others forgetting about their own past histories..Wearing an abaya and headscarf does not make you a good human being. Neither does wearing a thobe or praying five times a day. It's all about the heart and what lies within.

Dev travels to Bangladesh

THIS IS MY FIRST UPDATE FOR 2016 AND IT COMES TO YOU FROM THE PORT
CITY OF CHITTAGONG IN THE PEOPLE’S REPUBLIC OF BANGLADESH WHICH
IS PLAYING HOST TO THE INTERNATIONAL CRICKET COUNCIL’S UNDER 19 WORLD CUP.

THE EVENT IS INTO IT’S 11 TH EDITION WITH THE FIRST ONE HAVING BEEN HELD IN 1988 AND HAS BUILT A REPUTATION FOR BEING THE LAUNCHING PAD FOR THE FUTURE STARS OF THE GAME.

THE 19 DAY TOURNAMENT OFFICIALLY GETS UNDER WAY ON WEDNESDAY 27TH AND THERE WILL BE 48 MATCHES PLAYED ACROSS 8 DIFFERENT VENUES IN BANGLADESH.

THIS IS MY FIRST EVER VISIT TO THIS COUNTRY SO HOPEFULLY I SHALL OVER
THE NEXT FEW WEEKS BE ABLE TO CONVEY TO YOU AN IDEA OF WHAT I
SHALL EXPERIENCE BEARING AT THE OUTSET THE FACT THAT THERE HAS BEEN A TIGHT SECURITY BLANKET PLACED AROUND THE EVENT AND THAT OUR MOVEMENTS HAVE UNDERSTANDABLY BEEN SERIOUSLY CURTAILED.
I LANDED IN DHAKA ON SUNDAY EARLY EVENING AFTER FLIGHTS FROM PORT ELIZABETH VIA JOHANNESBURG & DUBAI .

THERE WERE QUITE A FEW OTHER ICC MATCH OFFICIALS WHO LINKED UP IN
DUBAI FROM OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD SO WE WE WERE ALL MET AT THE HASRAT SHAHJALAL INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT IN DHAKA WHERE
SECURITY OFFICERS AND LOCAL ORGANISING COMMITTEE MEMBERS
ENSURED OUR BRISK PASSAGE THROUGH CUSTOMS & SECURITY THEN INTO
BUSSES FOR THE JOURNEY OF ABOUT AN HOUR INTO THE CITY WHERE WE CHECKED IN AT THE PLUSH LE MERIDIEN HOTEL.

THE TIME DIFFERENCE OF 4 HOURS MEANT THERE HAD TO BE SOME
ADJUSTMENTS MADE AND AFTER THE USUAL UNPACKING AND SETTLING IN IT WAS NECESSARY TO GET IN SOME SOLID SLEEP AS MONDAY & TUESDAY SAW US ALL BUSY AT THE WORKSHOP IN PREPARATION FOR THE EVENT.

IT IS SOMETIMES NOT EASY TO EXPLAIN WHAT GOES INTO ORGANIZING SUCH
A MAJOR WORLD EVENT BUT YOU COULD PROBABLY WORK THIS OUT BY
THINKING OF THE LOGISTICAL ARRANGEMENTS THAT NEED TO BE PUT IN TO PLACE TO BRING 16 TEAMS INTO THE COUNTRY – ADD TO THAT ALL THE MATCH OFFICIALS AS WELL AS OTHER PERSONNEL AS WELL AS ICC STAFF MEMBERS.

IT BECAME EVIDENT FROM THE TIME WE GOT HERE THAT THE GOVT HAD
SPARED NO COST IN ENSURING THE SAFETY OF ALL THOSE AT THE
TOURNAMENT SO SECURITY IN THE FORM OF ARMED GUARDS AS WELL AS PERSONAL SECURITY OFFICERS FOR OFFICIALS AND TEAMS HAS BEEN GIVEN PRIORITY .

AFTER THE WORKSHOP ENDED IT WAS TIME FOR THE VARIOUS MATCH OFFICIALS TO SPLIT UP AND MOVE OFF TO THE VARIOUS CENTRES WHERE MATCHES WOULD BE PLAYED.

20 OF THE MATCHES SHALL BE LIVE ON NATIONAL TV AROUND THE WORLD SO POSSIBLY YOU SHALL CATCH SOME OF THEM ON SUPERSPORT OR WHICHEVER SPORT CHANNEL YOU WILL BE FOLLOWING THE CRICKET ON IN YOUR COUNTRY.
THE LE MERIDIEN HOTEL IN DHAKA WAS OUTSTANDING AND THE TIGHT
SCHEDULE MEANT THERE WAS NOT MUCH TIME TO EVEN GET TO SEE MUCH
ELSE- HOPING THIS SHALL BE CORRECTED WHEN I RETURN THERE FROM CHITTAGONG ON 3 FEB.

FLEW ON WED FROM DHAKA TO CHITTAGONG ON US BANGLA AIRLINE- A SHORT 40 MINS OR SO HOP OVER TO THIS 2ND LARGEST CITY IN BANGLADESH.
THE 45 MINS DRIVE FROM THE SHAH AMANAT INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT BROUGHT HOME THE REALITY TO ME OF WHERE I ACTUALLY WAS AND HOW PRIVILEGED SO MANY OF US ARE IN OUR DAILY LIVES.

THE POT-HOLED, CONGESTED ROADS TOOK US ALONG PATHWAYS THAT
SADDENED ME IN SO MANY WAYS- WE HAVE MADE SO MUCH PROGRESS ON SO
MANY FRONTS AND YET HUMANS ARE SUBJECTED TO SUCH CONDITIONS OF ABJECT POVERTY AND HARDSHIPS IN SO MANY COUNTRIES.

AMIDST THE FIGHT FOR DAILY SURVIVAL LIFE CARRIES ON AND
EVERYWHERE THERE WERE THREE-WHEELERS OVER-FILLED WITH PEOPLE
GETTING TO OR COMING FROM WORK, UNKEMPT CHILDREN SCROUNGING
AROUND ENORMOUS RUBBISH DUMPS ALONG THE ROADSIDES, RICKSHAWS
PULLING ALONG HEAVY LOADS OR CYCLE-RICKSHAWS FERRYING PASSENGERS
ALONG BUSY PATHWAYS- EVERYWHERE THERE WERE COLORFUL TRUCKS
AND BUSSES – PEOPLE AND MORE PEOPLE – CONTRASTED EVERY NOW AND
THEN BY AREAS WHERE MODERN SHOPS COULD BE SEEN AND FINALLY UPON ARRIVING AT THE NEWLY OPENED RADDISON BLU HOTEL, THE OTHER SIDE OF THE COIN – OPULENCE AND LUXURY!

THAT JOURNEY JUST HUMBLES ONE AND MAKES ONE AUTOMATICALLY RESORT
TO A PRAYER OF THANKFULNESS AND AT THE SAME TIME OFFERING PRAYERS FOR THE DOWNTRODDEN AND THE INDIGENT.

PRIVATE CLUBS ARE IMPORTANT IN BANGLADESH- VISITORS WILL BE AMAZED AT HOW EXPENSIVE CERTAIN LUXURIES ARE AT INTERNATIONAL HOTELS SO
LOCALS OF A CERTAIN STANDING WOULD INVITE SPORTS PERSONS TO THEIR
CLUBS WHERE THEY CAN ENJOY MEALS AS WELL AS REFRESHMENTS AT CLUB
PRICES! THESE CLUBS ARE WELL RUN AND HAVE IN SOME CASES TOTAL
SPORTS FACILITIES AS WELL FOR THEIR MEMBERS- NOT SURE HOW EASY IT
WOULD BE TO BECOME A MEMBER BUT I DOUBT IT WOULD HAPPEN UNLESS YOU KNOW SOMEONE IN HIGH PLACES!

WE WENT TO THE UTTARA CLUB IN DHAKA AND LAST NIGHT WE WENT TO
THE CHITTAGONG CLUB WHICH IS SITUATED A WALKING DISTANCE FROM
OUR HOTEL. EXCELLENT SETTINGS AND CUISINE OF A GOOD VARIETY ON
OFFER- NOT TO MENTION THE BEERS OF OFCOURSE FOR SOME OF OUR COLLEAGUES.

WED AFTERNOON WE DID THE VENUE INSPECTION – THE MA AZIZ STADIUM
CAN BE SEEN FROM MY ROOM AND ABOUT 30 MINS AWAY IS THE MAIN ZAC STADIUM- IMPRESSIVE STADIUM WHICH HAS HOSTED MANY INTERNATIONAL MATCHES IN CHITTAGONG.

THINK BY NOW YOU SHOULD HAVE A GOOD IDEA OF THE CONTRASTING SITUATIONS OF BANGLADESH – THE PEOPLE ARE WONDERFULLY WELCOMING AND WARM IN THEIR DEALINGS WITH US.OVER THE NEXT FEW DAYS THERE WILL BE WARM-UP MATCHES FOR THE TEAMS EVERYWHERE- THEN WED THE OPENING MATCH TAKES PLACE HERE IN CHITTAGONG- DEFENDING CHAMPIONS SA PLAY THE HOSTS BANGLADESH AT THE ZAC STADIUM- THIS WILL BE BROADCAST LIVE AND MY FELLOW MATCH REFEREE GRAEME LE BROOY WILL BE OFFICIATING ( NEUTRAL).

UNTIL MY NEXT UPDATE MY FONDEST GOOD WISHES AND AS USUAL, ASK FOR SOME RESPONSE OR ACKNOWLEDGEMENT.

ALWAYS

JUST

DEV

Morocco - Day 1

Hi everyone,

Over the past few weeks I have been inundated with numerous emails and inbox messages with many people wondering why have I stopped blogging. Well, it has been almost 3 months since I last posted an article. I have not stopped blogging as such, I simply do not have the time to blog and focus on a business at the same time. I was keen on blogging about my recent trip to Morocco and Spain as recorded in my travel diary and hence I have decided to do short postings of my trip over the next few days or weeks. Please bare with me :) !

After a long 18 hour flight via Dubai, we were received at the airport by our tour guide, Mr. Muhammed. We headed towards the city centre and checked into the beautiful and spacious 
Idou Anfa hotel, named after the original inhabitants of Casablanca, the Anfa tribe. Naturally
we were really exhausted and so after enjoying some home cooked meals, (pad kos) we went 
straight to bed at 16h00. We only woke up the next morning at 08h00. Of course we felt totally
rejuvenated. We were ready to explore majestic Morocco!!

What an exciting day out in Casablanca's city centre.. weaving our way through gulleys and alleyways in our red 'petit taxi' finally arriving at the plush Morocco mall located on the beach front adjacent to the most affluent residential area in Casablanca. After a bit of shopping, we had a light lunch at Burger king. Knowing Arabic in morocco is a plus factor. We became friends with the taxi drivers who took us to one of the best Moroccan hamaams in the city 'Hamaam Topkapi'....At first we were gobsmacked when we were told to strip down to our knickers whilst sharing a sauna with other Moroccan women . But after a while we got use to it and the overall experience was beyond amazing..when they mean scrub you down.... they scrub you down to the point where you can actually see all the grime coming off your skin. It's as though all the dead skin is taken off and you left with beautiful smooth skin. The one hour scrub down process done with an original, natural non chemical Moroccan soap and a loofer is followed by a one hour massage with argon oil. We found the Moroccan women in the spa to be quite comfortable with their sexuality as women. They had no shyness at all with regards to being naked in front of each other. Could this be the reason that many South African Muslim men opt to marry them? From what I've noticed thus far most Moroccan women are gold diggers. The women we met at the spa today said that in life you have choices. So why marry a poor man when you can marry a rich man and live a life of luxury. In order to get a rich man you need to look sexy and beautiful..I guess that's the reason the Saudi women are intolerant of having the presence of Moroccan maids in their homes...After the spa we headed back to the hotel passing through an argon oil factory store where we were given a brief history about the origins and medicinal uses of argon oil. And now we enjoying a hot cup of coffee whilst listening to the sound of the piano in the hotel foyer.....Dinner to follow...nighty night folks.. smile emoticon

Nanima's 80th birthday celebrations

My welcome speech for the event

Assalamualaykum .. ahlan wa sahlan

On behalf of the Mehtar and Patel families I would like to take this opportunity in welcoming one and all to grace the commemoration of our nani ma, Zuleikha Paruk Patel’s 80^th birthday celebrations. Indeed, as the eldest and only grand-daughter it gives me an immense pleasure in playing the role of the master of ceremonies for this afternoons family event.

As is customary and in line with tradition, we will commence today’s short program with the recitation of the holy Quraan that will be rendered by Hafez Haroon Ismail. This will then be followed by a poem by my niece Juwairiyya Mehtar in honour of her great grandmother. We then have a  small eulogy about my Nani ma’s life, where it all began... and of course no program is complete without a dua. 

We are gathered here to celebrate 80 birthdays and 60 years of mothering, 34 years of grandmothering, and 7 years of great-grandmothering. 

Each of us has entered my grandmother’s book of life in a different chapter—some long ago, some more recently—but we are, nevertheless, all part of a story that began in a small town called Newcastle. Nanima was born on the 25^th of September 1935. She is the eldest daughter of Ismail Paruk and Aisha Variawa. The story goes that when Naimas mother was 10 years old she came from India on a ship to South Africa as her father was residing in Lichtenburg. Naima’s fathers family was distantly related to the Variawa family and so he was also on the ship on his way to South Africa at the tender age of 15 years old. Nanima’s grandfather at first made his way to Reunion when he left India. After residing in Reunion for a while he realised that an island life was not for him so he continued to South Africa settling in Durban. Once again he did not adjust to a Durban lifestyle and he eventually landed up in Newcastle. Whilst chatting to Nanima on the phone a few days ago, I asked her how did she meet her knight in shining armour, my late Nana Ismail Bhai Patel.. known to some as uncle IC or to others as dash mota.. Whilst laughing on the phone she mentioned to me that my nana was looking to settle down and hence, the late marhoom Jeeva mota brought my nana to Newcastle for a samoosa express. Whilst viewing a few potential suitors, he eventually settled for nanima after she won the award for making the tastiest samoosas.....lolol..... well actually nana wished to marry nanimas younger sister but nanimas father said that according to the rivaaj the eldest daughter must get married first. So after both family’s reached a concensus in a typical Indian movie type situation, nanima agreed to marry nana. The rest of course is history.

Growing up I have fond memories that I shared with Nanina.,playing at the flat in Wynberg whilst enjoying a hot sugar roti...Ma staying up late with me to watch Saregama during my university years.Or ma trying to make baked potatoes when she received unexpected visitors one afternoon for lunch. In the rush she pressed the wrong button on the microwave with the end result being an empty potatoe shell. It was as though the whole potato evaporated... When I opened the microwave to take out the potatoes I burst out laughing although ma was irritated and not amused at all as she had a few hungry stomachs to feed. We then landed up frying chips.

"Of course these are few incidents that I recall and more memories will be made insha Allah, the end is not yet written, so we will refrain from speculation, but suffice it to say that we will be eagerly awaiting the sequel at her 90th birthday celebration insha Allah. But as we reflect today upon the time we have been given with our grandmother, mother , confidant and friend, however long or short, we are reminded that our connections with one another constitute our greatest blessing and though we choose to celebrate the length of our lives, it is their essence that is more worthy of recognition. And so it is true here.To that end, let us celebrate to times shared, advice given and sought, wisdom imparted, stories remembered and, of course, the joy of being in the company of a living legend. Happy Birthday Nanima, and may there be many more chapters to come."