Till We Meet Again, Gus

Artikel dibawah ini ditulis oleh Duncan Graham, seorang jurnalis Selandia Baru di blognya Indonesia Now.

FAREWELL GUS DUR: President RI 20 October 1999 - 23 July 2001

I interviewed Gus Dur for a book on Indonesia and spent most of the time laughing at his jokes. There's one below. He was an extraordinary man, a true democrat, liberal, learned and impossible to dislike. History should treat him kindly - just as he treated others. His impact on Indonesia endures leaving it a far better country after the ravages of Soeharto.

THE BIG DEBATE
By Abdurrahman Wahid (Gus Dur)

Back 10 centuries ago, just before the Crusade was launched, the Pope decided all Muslims had to leave Jerusalem peacefully or there’d be bloodshed. Naturally there is a big uproar from the Muslim community. So the Pope strikes a deal. He proposes a debate with a member of the Muslim community. If the Muslim wins the debate, all the Muslims can stay. If the Pope wins, all the Muslims will have to leave.

The Muslims realise they have no choice. They look around for a champion who can defend their faith. No one wants to volunteer, it's too risky. But they finally pick their representative, an old Mullah who unknowingly agrees without understanding what he’s getting himself into. He agrees on the condition that neither side is allowed to talk but communicate by miming, as he’s almost deaf. The Pope agrees.
The day of the great debate comes. The Mullah and the Pope sit opposite each other for a full minute before the Pope raises his hand and shows three fingers. The Mullah raises his middle finger. The Pope waves his fingers in a circle around his head. The Mullah points to the ground and stamps his right foot. The Pope pulls out a wafer and a glass of wine. The Mullah pulls out an apple. The Pope stands up and says: ‘I give up. This man is too good. The Muslims can stay.’

An hour later the cardinals are all around the Pope asking what happened. The Pope says: ‘First I held up three fingers to represent the Trinity. He responded by holding up one finger to remind me that there is still one God common to both our religions. Then I waved my finger around me to show him that God was all about us. He responded by pointing to the ground and stamping his feet, telling me that God was also right here with us. I pulled out the wine and the wafer to show that God absolves us from our sins. He pulled out an apple reminding me of the first sin. He had an answer for everything. What could I do?’

Meanwhile, the Muslim community has crowded around the old Mullah in total astonishment. ‘What happened?’ they ask. ‘Well’ says the Mullah, ‘first, he said we Muslims had three days to leave Jerusalem. I told him - up yours! Then he said this whole city would be cleared of Muslims. I told him none would leave this land!’

‘And then?' asks a woman. ‘He took out his lunch and I took out mine,’ says the Mullah.

The power of the mind lies in perceiving differences; the power of the heart lies in perceiving similarities
Kekuatan pikiran terletak dalam menerima perbedaan; kekuatan hati terletak dalam menerima persamaan.

Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un
انّا للہ و انّا الیہ راجعون
We indeed belong to God, and we indeed toward him are returning.

Al-Aqsa Sanctuary: The Palestinian Spirit

Al-Aqsa Sanctuary: The Palestinian Spirit
by Simone Daud

The future

Though I am entirely secular and ethnically Galilean Christian from the villages surrounding Nazareth, I hope that the day will come when the wall and tanks fencing us into our camps fall. I hope that our tragedy ends. I hope for the day when the indigenous people of Palestine, weak and landless herded into crowded camps, will be able to freely pray in al-Aqsa temple. Free from brutality, and free to quench their spiritual thirst in the Muslim compound. Free to pray in what we call Beit al-Maqdas, the Muslim Holy of Holies.

We are not beasts to be herded through checkpoints, we are not vermin to access our temple through Clinton's tunnels, the walls surrounding our prison's will fall.

Let my people pray, bring down the wall in Palestine.

al-athan call for prayer



For many centuries the call for prayer has emanated from al-Aqsa menanrates. For centuries the call has dominated the winds of Jerusalem. The Palestinians being weak without facilities to effectively resist see in the morning athan call for prayer a defiance. We shall one day be treated with dignity. We are human.

A third intifada?
Perhaps that's exactly what the occupier wants.

Aku Tidak Tahu

MONO
oleh Gunawan Muhammad

Pada suatu hari di abad ke-7, dua orang Madinah bertengkar. Yang satu Muslim dan yang satu lagi Yahudi. Yang pertama mengunggulkan Muhammad SAW ”atas sekalian alam”. Yang kedua mengunggulkan Musa. Tak sabar, orang Muslim itu menjotos muka Si Yahudi.

Orang Yahudi itu pun datang mengadu ke Nabi Muhammad, yang memimpin kehidupan kota itu. Ia ceritakan apa yang terjadi. Maka Rasulullah pun memanggil Si Muslim dan berkata:

”Janganlah kau unggulkan aku atas Musa. Sebab di hari kiamat semua umat jatuh pingsan, dan aku pun jatuh pingsan bersama mereka. Dan akulah yang pertama bangkit dan sadar, tiba-tiba aku lihat Musa sudah berdiri di sisi Singgasana. Aku tidak tahu, apakah ia tadinya juga jatuh pingsan lalu bangkit sadar sebelumku, ataukah dia adalah orang yang dikecualikan Allah”.

Riwayat ini dikutip dari Shahih Muslim, Bab Min Fadla’il Musa. Dalam buku Abd. Moqsith Ghazali yang terbit pekan lalu, Argumen Pluralisme Agama, hadis itu dituturkan kembali sebagai salah satu contoh pandangan Islam tentang agama yang bukan Islam, khususnya Yahudi dan Kristen.

Pada intinya, Moqsith, sosok tenang dan alim yang mengajar di Universitas Islam Negeri Syarif Hidayatullah ini, datang dengan pendirian yang kukuh: Islam adalah ”sambungan—bukan musuh—dari agama para nabi sebelumnya”, yang sering disebut sebagai agama-agama Ibrahimi.

Tapi yang bagi saya menarik adalah kata-kata Muhammad SAW yang dikutip di sana: ”Janganlah kau unggulkan aku atas Musa”, dan, ”aku tidak tahu…”.

Kini kata-kata itu tenggelam. Kini sebagian ulama merasa di atas Rasulullah: mereka merasa tahu keunggulan diri mereka. Mereka akan membenarkan Si Muslim yang memukul Si Yahudi. Mereka bahkan mendukung aniaya terhadap orang yang ”menyimpang”, walaupun orang lain itu, misalnya umat Ahmadiyah, membaca syahadat Islam.

Dari mana datangnya kekerasan itu?

Saya sering bingung. Satu kalimat suci terkadang bisa membuat orang jadi lembut, tapi satu kalimat lain dari sumber yang sama bisa menghalalkan pembunuhan.

Mungkin pada mulanya bukanlah agama. Agama, seperti banyak hal lain, terbangun dalam ambiguitas. Dengan perut dan tangan, ambiguitas itu diselesaikan. Tafsir pun lahir, dan kitab-kitab suci berubah peran, ketika manusia mengubah kehidupannya. Yang suci diputuskan dari bumi. Pada mulanya bukanlah Sabda, melainkan Laku.

Tapi juga benar, Sabda punya kesaktiannya sendiri setelah jadi suci; ia bisa jadi awal sebuah laku. Kekerasan tak meledak di sembarang kaum yang sedang mengubah sejarah. Ia lebih sering terjadi dalam sejarah Yahudi, Kristen, dan Islam: sejarah kepercayaan yang berpegang pada Sabda yang tertulis. Pada gilirannya kata-kata yang direkam beku dalam aksara itu menghendaki kesatuan tafsir.

Kesatuan: jangan-jangan mala itu datang dari angka ”satu”—dan kita harus bebas dari the logic of the One.

Kata ini dipakai Laurel C. Schneider dalam Beyond Monotheism. Pakar theologi itu menuding: ”Oneness, as a basic claim about God, simply does not make sense.” Dunia sesungguhnya melampaui ke-satu-an dan totalitas.

Schneider menganjurkan iman berangkat ke dalam ”multiplisitas”—yang tak sama artinya dengan ”banyak”. Kata itu, menurut dia, mencoba menamai cara melihat yang luwes, mampu menerima yang tak terduga tak berhingga.

Tapi Schneider, teguh dalam tradisi Ibrahimi, menegaskan ”multiplisitas” itu tak melenyapkan yang Tunggal. Yang Satu tak hilang dalam multiplisitas, hanya ambyar sebagaimana bintang jatuh tapi sebenarnya bukan jatuh melainkan berubah dalam perjalanan benda-benda planeter.

Dengan kata lain, tetap ada ke-tunggal-an yang membayangi tafsir kita. Bagaimana kalau terbit intoleransi monotheisme kembali?

Saya ingat satu bagian dalam novel Ayu Utami, Bilangan Fu. Ada sebuah catatan pendek dari tokoh Parang Jati yang bertanya: ”Kenapa monotheisme begitu tidak tahan pada perbedaan?” Dengan kata lain, ”anti-liyan”?

Pertanyaan itu dijawab di catatan itu juga: sikap ”anti-liyan” itu berpangkal pada ”bilangan yang dijadikan metafora bagi inti falsafah masing-masing”. Monotheisme menekankan bilangan ”satu”. Agama lain di Asia bertolak dari ke­tiadaan, kekosongan, sunyi, shunyat, shunya, sekaligus keutuhan. ”Konsep ini ada pada bilangan nol,” kata Parang Jati.

Bagi Parang Jati, agama Yahudi, pemula tradisi monotheisme, tak mampu menafsirkan Tuhan sebagai Ia yang terungkap dalam shunya, sebab monotheisme ”dirumuskan sebelum bilangan nol dirumuskan”.

Ada kesan Parang Jati merindukan kembali angka nol, namun ia tak begitu jelas menunjukkan, di mana dan bila kesalahan dimulai. Ia mengatakan, setelah bilangan nol ditemukan, manusia pun kehilangan kualitas yang ”puitis”, ”metaforis” dan ”spiritual” dalam menafsirkan firman Tuhan. ”Ketika nol belum ditemukan,” tulis Parang Jati, ”sesungguhnya bilangan tidaklah hanya matematis.”

Dengan kata lain, mala terjadi bukan karena angka satu, melainkan karena ditemukannya nol. Tapi Parang Jati juga menunjukkan, persoalan timbul bukan karena penemuan nol, melainkan ketika dan karena ”shunya menjadi bilangan nol”.

Salahkah berpikir tentang Tuhan sebagai nol? Salahkah dengan memakai ”the logic of the One”?

Di sebuah pertemuan di Surabaya beberapa bulan yang lalu saya dapat jawab yang mencerahkan. Tokoh Buddhisme Indonesia, Badhe Dammasubho, menunjukkan bahwa kata ”esa” dalam asas ”Ketuhanan yang Maha Esa” bukan sama dengan ”eka” yang berarti ”satu”. Esa berasal dari bahasa Pali, bahasa yang dipakai kitab-kitab Buddhisme. Artinya sama dengan ”nirbana”.

Setahu saya, ”nirbana” berarti ”tiada”. Bagi Tuhan, ada atau tak ada bukanlah persoalannya. Ia melampaui ”ada”, tak harus ”ada”, dan kita, mengikuti kata-kata Rasulullah, ”aku tidak tahu”.

~Majalah Tempo Edisi 02 Maret 2009~

Agama seharusnya menjadi sumber kedamaian di muka bumi. Kita, si manusia lah, yang menciptakan siklus kebencian.

Links of the Day

What do you think?
From bendib. Thanks Fatemah for the link.



Hate Thy Neighbour
Thanks for the interesting post, MERC. Liam Bartlett from Channel 9 on 60 minutes blog,

Trying to understand the Middle East peace process is a bit like attempting to unscramble an egg so we travelled to Israel to get a first-hand look at just how hard it might be to even begin a so-called 'road map to peace'.
t might be to even begin a so-called 'road map to peace'.

At the very heart of the problem are the Jewish settlers, now occupying large tracts of land that the Palestinians say are really theirs. The settlers are essentially squatting on whatever piece they choose and constructing houses and towns in a defiant gesture of "now that I'm here – it's all mine".

from bendib

French Police Clear Migrant 'Jungle', Arrest 278

But Immigration Minister Eric Besson said action had to be taken against migrant trafficking rings. "What I want is to dismantle this 'jungle', which is the operating base for human traffickers," Besson told RTL radio.
Activists opposed the raid however. "It's a scandal," said Jean-Claude Lenoir of the Salam migrant support group. "We can't have soldiers fighting in Afghanistan and treat Afghans seeking refuge here with such little dignity."

Anti Corruption Songs by Slank
You know what I hate more than terrorism? Corruption! A Lot, a lot of corruption! Try to live in this country and you'll find them everywhere. Sometime I think I have no respect left for my own government. Indonesia regularly appears on lists of the most corrupt countries in the world, and in the most recent global corruption survey by Transparency International, Indonesia scored a 2.6, with 10 being the cleanest rating.

The situation looks grim now, since the KPK (The Corruption Eradication Commission)chairmen have been named as suspects by police.
Here's the update.

On going battle between KPK and the police
Q+A-Indonesia's corruption court bill

Korupsi membunuh bangsa...Corruption kills.


Photo from tbelfield.wordpress.com

Eid Mubarak

picture from Jewssansfrontieres
Artikel yang ditulis setahun yang lalu. Another great post from Jews sans frontieres. A blog always worth to read.
Thank you, Nedster.

This marks only the second year since 9/11 that my hometown has lit up its remaining tallest building green for Eid.

Everyone remembers the CNN film of a few Palestinians dancing in E. Jerusalem on 9/11. I recall watching that & feeling more than a little irked, having just come from a candlelight vigil with the WTC smoldering in the background & spending part of the day standing on line to donate blood for the wounded -- who never materialized -- that anyone could find a reason to rejoice in the pointless destruction of my city.

Fifteen months later I traveled to Palestine for the first time. In January of '03, I witnessed the biggest single-day orgy of home demolition in the West Bank since the beginning of the occupation, in the village of Nazlat Issa. Nazlat Issa was a thriving commercial center in the northern West Bank that straddled the Green Line. At least 60 shops were destroyed by the IDF that day. After the major part of the destruction was done, I was coughing amidst the rubble, something easily set off since the weeks I'd spent breathing in the debris of 9/11, and that caught the attention of a local pharmacist. He advised me to drink water, and regretted he didn't have anything from his shop to give me, as it had just been flattened.

Quite all right, I assured him, and when I explained the origin of my cough, I got a very common reaction from him, the one most Palestinians expressed as soon as they'd find out I was from New York -- deep sadness for what my city had gone through. Now I was savvy enough not to have expected to find a troupe of 9-11 celebrants prancing about the West Bank, but I was still quite moved at this widely-expressed commiseration. After all, my co-religionists, many of them being settlers with Brooklyn accents, were busy ethnically cleansing these folks, and my country was financing it. But it really took the cake, this pharmacist standing in the rubble of everything he had, and there he was busying himself expressing effusive sorrow for MY loss & worrying about my cough.

Caked with mud as we all were, and wanting to get away from the dust and the terminator-like machines still ripping away at the remains of the buildings, the pharmacist took myself and two other US Jewish activists to his family's house. He was a superb host, even on such a lousy day, occasionally getting a bit sunken when he talked about how he didn't know how he was going to support his family or mused on what would become of his village. But he brightened up considerably when one of my compatriots surged off an overstuffed sofa and burst into a fabulous interpretation of a Shakira-style bump & grind while the chanteuse blared over Lebanese MTV. We merrily egged him on, clapping in unison, and the one female activist amongst us gamely attempted to ululate. The pharmacist's mother made me tea with an herb picked from their garden -- worked wonders on the throat.

So the picture above is in appreciation for that fellow -- I hope he & his family are doing well this Eid; him and all the other Palestinians who've plied me with their hospitality, wisdom, humor & forbearance in my too brief visits to their beleaguered & beautiful homeland.

Selamat Idul Fitri. Maaf lahir dan batin. May the peace and blessings of Allah be on each of you!
Eid Mubarak!

And Shana Tova ( good year) to our Jewish friends.

Ramadan Note

It's Ramadan! A holiest month for us muslim. A month for fasting, praying and giving. One whole month to recharge our faith and feed our soul.
And I've just learned from Velveteen Rabbi, that this year our Muslim holy month of Ramadan overlaps with the Jewish month of Elul.
Like Ramadan, Elul is also a month to reconnect with God.

We can never love our neighbour without knowing them. And it's nice to know that we have something in common.
It's time to start reaching out and learning about others. Looking for similarities rather than differences.

Happy fasting!
May we have a good and blessed Ramadan.

Cukuplah Karena Kita Sesama Manusia

Hidup terus berjalan.
Bagi keluarga Timothy McKay, Garth McEvoy, Evert Mokodompis dan korban bom JW Mariott/Ritz Carlton mungkin tidak semudah itu. Istri Evert bahkan baru saja melahirkan anak keduanya sehari setelah bom meledak.

Pagi ini aku tertegun membaca satu artikel di Tribun Kaltim. Judulnya Ightiyal dan Bom Bunuh Diri. Salah satu isi tulisan itu adalah :

Teror bom itu telah membuat Indonesia menangis. Menangis karena dengan aksi itu, citra Indonesia kembali masuk dalam kategori negara yang tidak aman. Menangis karena pecinta Manchester United kecewa berat karena jadwal laga Indonesia All Stars verus MU di Stadion Gelora Bung Karno dibatalkan. Umat Islam Indonesia juga ikut bersedih, karena aksi pelaku teror bom bunuh diri itu serta merta meninggalkan citra buruk umat Islam di mata dunia.

Juga disebutkan tentang MUI yang harus menunggu empat tahun (setelah Bom Bali I) untuk menyatakan fatwa haram untuk aksi bom bunuh diri. Fatwa tersebut dikeluarkan 10 November 2005.

Tanpa mengurangi makna dan maksud baik penulis, aku bertanya-tanya "Seegois apa kita ini?" Apakah Indonesia menangis karena telah jatuh lagi korban-korban tak bersalah, telah bertambah lagi anak-anak yatim atau piatu dan telah muncul lagi korban-korban luka yang mungkin akan cacat seumur hidup..... atau karena MU tidak jadi datang??? Mana yang lebih penting? Nyawa manusia atau citra?

Dan ketika aku membaca di tulisan tersebut tentang seorang Syeikh Sholih Al Fauzan di Arab Saudi yang menyatakan bahwa

Ightiyal (membunuh dengan rahasia dan sembunyi-sembunyi) dan perusakan (pada sumber-sumber pemerintahan di negeri kafir) adalah perkara yang tidak boleh. Karena akan menyebabkan kejelekan terhadap kaum muslimin dan menyebabkan pembunuhan dan pengungsian terhadap kaum muslimin, ini perkara yang tidak boleh

...aku mulai merasa sedikit mual.

Apakah segala sesuatu harus berputar di sekitar kita, kaum muslim?
Apakah tidak cukup alasannya karena semua manusia punya hak hidup yang sama?
The same flesh, bone, blood, heart and mind?

Beberapa hadis dari Nabi Muhammad (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) yang sangat menekankan agar kita menjauhi kekerasan :

Deal gently with the people, and be not harsh; cheer them and condemn them not.

That person is nearest to God, who pardons, when he has someone in his power, one who would have injured him.

Assist your brother or sister Muslim, whether he be an oppressor or an oppressed. 'But how shall we do it when someone is an oppressor?' Muhammad said, 'Assisting an oppressor is by forbidding and withholding that person from oppression.'

The best jihad (lit. striving) is a just word before a tyrannical authority.

All God's creatures are His family; and he or she is the most beloved of God who tries to do most good to God's creatures.

Faith is a restraint against all violence, let no Mu'min commit violence.

May Allah bless us with His love, and the love of those who love Him. May Allah fill our hearts with love.
Wallahu'alam bissawab. Only God knows the best.

Smile and Help

"Bassem" means smile.



"Ezra" means help.













Apa persamaan yang dimiliki Ezra dan Bassem? For me, they're both amazing human being.

Manusia suka mengkotak-kotakkan sesamanya.
Berdasarkan agama. Bangsa. Suku. Warna kulit. Status.
Padahal kita semua sama. Flesh and bone. Heart and mind.

Apa persamaan Ezra dan Bassem?
Keduanya percaya bahwa keadilan dan hak asasi manusia harus ditegakkan.
That humanity and justice shall prevail.
Keduanya mengorbankan diri mereka untuk itu.

Bassem tewas ketika melakukan protes damai menentang pembangunan tembok pemisah di Bil'in.
Ezra Nawi akan menjalani masa hukumannya 1 Juli besok.

Ketika sebagian dari kita masih sibuk mempermasalahkan perbedaan dan mengklaim superioritas, seorang Bassem yang muslim Palestina dan Ezra yang yahudi Israel membuktikan bahwa tingkat kemanusiaan tidaklah terkotak-kotak. That humanity IS universal. Shame on people who think it isn't.

Berikut adalah surat pribadi Ezra Nawi yang dimuat di The Nation.

Israel's Man of Conscience

My name is Ezra Nawi. I am a Jewish citizen of Israel.

I will be sentenced on the first of July after being found guilty of assaulting two police officers in 2007 while struggling against the demolition of a Palestinian house in Um El Hir, located in the southern part of the West Bank.

Of course the policemen who accused me of assaulting them are lying. Indeed, lying has become common within the Israeli police force, military and among the Jewish settlers.

After close to 140,000 letters were sent to Israeli officials in support of my activities in the occupied West Bank, the Ministry of Justice responded that I "provoke local residents."

This response reflects the culture of deceit that has taken over all official discourse relating to the Occupied Palestinian Territories.

After all, was I the one who poisoned and destroyed Palestinian water wells?

Was I the one who beat young Palestinian children?

Did I hit the elderly?

Did I poison the Palestinian residents' sheep?

Did I demolish homes and destroy tractors?

Did I block roads and restrict movement?

Was I the one who prevented people from connecting their homes to running water and electricity?

Did I forbid Palestinians from building homes?

Over the past eight years, I have seen with my own two eyes hundreds of abuses such as these and exposed them to the public--therefore I am considered a provocateur. I can only say that I am proud to be a provoker.

Because I am a provoker, the police together with their allies have threatened me, beaten me and arrested me on numerous occasions. And when I continued to "provoke" them, they did not hesitate to out me as a gay man; indeed, they spread rumors among the Palestinians with whom I work that I have AIDS.

One of the reasons I have been singled out has to do with who I am. It is difficult to explain, but as a Mizrahi Jew (descended from Jewish communities in the Arab and Muslim world), a gay man and a plumber, I do not belong to the elite of Israeli society and do not fit the stereotype of the Israeli peacenik--namely, an intellectual Jew of Ashkenazi decent. Actually, the police officers who constantly arrest me and I are part of the same social strata. I was programmed like them, have a similar accent, know their jargon and our historical background is comparable. And yet, in their eyes I am on and for the other side, the Palestinian side.

This simple fact seems to disturb them so much that they have to vilify me; that is the only way their worldview will continue making sense. I threaten them precisely because I undermine the categories and stereotypes through which they understand the world.

But the policemen are only actors on this stage. The military, civil administration and the judicial system are all working with the police, and all of them together follow the commands of their masters, the Jewish settlers.

This unholy alliance is extremely dangerous, because for them the end--gaining full control of the Land of Israel--justifies the means. In order to advance this end they dehumanize the Palestinians; and because the Palestinians in their eyes are not human, everything is permitted. They can steal their land, demolish their homes, steal their water, imprison them for no reason and at times even kill them. In Hebrew we say damam mutar, taking their blood is permissible.

It is important to keep in mind, however, that the evil I confront every day in the West Bank could not have been carried out without the Israeli court system. Judge Eilata Ziskind not only mistakenly found me guilty but she instructed the court to invite a translator for the sentencing, as if I do not speak Hebrew; in her mind I, a Mizrahi Jew, am a Palestinian Arab--and Arabs are, almost by definition, guilty. My case is merely part of a pattern. All the crimes committed by the state and its proxies in the territories over the past four decades were made kosher by the Israeli courts. Therefore, the courts are just as much to blame for the ongoing cruelty.

Because I am a provoker the state subjects me to continuing harassment, and yet I have remained persistent. What strengthens me and gives me energy is the widespread and constant support I have always received from political allies. When I was beaten by settlers, when my car was stolen, when I was arrested, I never felt alone. I know that thousands of people, both in Israel and abroad, support what we in Ta'ayush (Jewish-Arab Partnership) are doing against the occupation.

"Ezra" in Hebrew means help, and I know that in times of trouble I can rely on my friends for help.

So, don't expect me to buy their lies. That Palestinians are terrorists. That Jews or Muslims or Christians are bad. That all Israelis are coldblooded occupiers. That women are being opressed in Islam.
That gay or bikini-clad women are ignorant people.



Jadi next time kalau ada yang mengatakan Palestina adalah masalah SARA, atau mendukung Boycott Israel adalah bodoh dan dangkal, aku hanya perlu mengingat Bassem dan Ezra. Dan yakin bahwa mereka tidak sendiri dalam perjuangan mereka.

We're all doing our part. I'm doing my teeny tiny little part by reminding you of Bassem and Ezra.


q7zjewapvb

Laki-laki Paling Baik

Kasus Manohara Odelia Pinot sedang heboh-hebohnya.
Dan semua orang (termasuk saya ^^) sibuk berkomentar. Ada yang kasihan, ada yang mencela Malaysia, ada yang mengutuk KBRI di Malaysia dan Singapura, ada yang menghina si Ibu, bla bla bla...
Ah, yang penting dia sudah pulang.

Tapi sda beberapa hal yang menjadi pemikiranku.

Pertama, bagaimana kedutaan negara kita melindungi warganya di luar negeri. Sudah menjadi rahasia umum bagaimana buruknya kedubes dalam mewakili kepentingan TKI/TKW di luar negeri. KBRI di Malaysia pernah (atau masih?) menjadi sarang koruptor yang mengambil uang jerih payah pekerja migran kita. Dalam kasus Manohara ini dikatakan KBRI Singapura sempat menolak permintaan tolong Manohara dengan mengatakan "Hari Minggu kami libur, telpon lagi hari Senin."

Kedua, bagaimana institusi pernikahan yang seharusnya menjadi sarana untuk menuju kebaikan dapat berjalan sangat salah. Yaitu ketika agama tidak lagi menjadi pegangannya.

Beberapa contoh kejadian dengan latar belakang agama:

Seorang ustad muda yang sering muncul di infotaiment pernah berbicara di depan kamera "Jika seorang istri mengetahui betapa mulianya kedudukan suami di mata Allah, maka dia tidak akan mau menentangnya".

Seorang suami menghendaki istri untuk memilih antara menemani suami atau orangtua istri yang sedang sakit keras. Hal ini menyebabkan sang Istri memilih menemani suami dan tidak sempat bertemu lagi dengan Ayahnya.

Di mana Islam berperan di kejadian-kejadian di atas?

Dalam pengertianku Islam adalah Sunnah of Love, seperti yang ditulis Hymie Ali di blognya. Dan Tuhanku adalah Tuhan Yang Paling Penuh Kasih Sayang. Karena itu tidak ada manusia yang lebih rendah dari manusia lain. EQUALITY adalah hal yang sangat ditekankan dalam Islam.

Nabi Muhammad SAW mengatakan bahwa :

... Even as the fingers of the two hands are equal, so are human beings equal to one another. No one has any rights, any superiority to claim over another. You are as brothers. O men, your God is One and your ancestor is one. An Arab holds no superiority over a non-Arab, nor a White over a Black person, nor vice-versa, but only to the extent to which he discharges his responsibility to God and man. Only the God-fearing people merit a preference with God.

Dan bahwa belajar adalah kewajiban bagi setiap muslim, baik perempuan maunpun laki-laki. Jadi ketika di suatu sudut dunia ada sekelompok orang yang melarang anak perempuan bersekolah, bahkan menyiram mereka dengan air keras, itu bukan Islam.

Dalam lingkaran kehidupannya, seorang wanita dapat menjadi tiga peran :

1. Sebagai anak perempuan.
Nabi Muhammad mengatakan : 'He who brings up his daughters well, and makes no distinction between them and his sons, will be close to me in Paradise.'

2. Sebagai istri.
'The best from among you is one who behaves best towards his wife.' (Hadith)

3. Sebagai ibu.
Kita semua pernah mendengar bahwa 'Surga ada di telapak kaki ibu' dan bahwa Nabi Muhammad menekankan kata 'Ibu' tiga kali sebelum menyebut kata 'Bapak'. Dan ini berlaku untuk semua, tidak peduli gendernya. Jadi jika ada suami yang menghalangi istrinya untuk berbakti kepada orangtuanya, rasanya itu bukanlah suami yang sebaiknya diikuti dan 'tidak ditentang'. Karena kewajiban seorang istri terhadap suami tidak boleh menghilangkan hak orangtua terhadap anaknya. Begitu juga sebaliknya.

Nabi Muhammad adalah seorang suami yang tidak malu membantu istrinya mengerjakan pekerjaan rumah tangga. Beliau rela tidur di depan pintu rumah daripada membangunkan istrinya. Dan tidak pernah memaksakan kehendak. Bahwa dalam Islam pekerjaan domestik dan mendidik anak adalah PEKERJAAN. Yang bahkan lebih berat dari pekerjaan di luar rumah.

Jika sudah ada contoh sedemikian jelasnya, kenapa masih terjadi kekerasan dalam rumah tangga? Dan ketika telah terjadi kekerasan dan kriminalitas seperti itu kenapa masih ada yang membela pelaku kekerasan dan menyalahkan korban?
Ketika di dalam rumah sendiri tidak dapat dijalankan syariah yang benar bagaimana syariah dalam konteks yang lebih luas dapat dijalankan?

Anak-anak harus diberi pemahaman sejak dini, bagaimana menghormati orang lain. Anak-anak laki-laki harus mengerti bagaimana menghormati dan melindungi ibu dan saudara-saudara perempuan mereka. Untuk selalu berkata-kata baik dan siap menolong. Dan bagaimana mereka memperlakukan wanita di kemudian hari adalah cerminan perlakuan hormat mereka kepada ibu dan saudara perempuan mereka.

Anak-anak perempuan ditanamkan pentingnya pendidikan dan berpikir mandiri. Bahwa dengan segala kewajiban dan hak-haknya mereka adalah manusia yang sama indah dan mulianya dengan kaum laki-laki. Dan di masa depan mereka tidak akan membiarkan diri mereka diperlakukan tidak baik oleh siapapun juga.

Jadi, next time ada yang menyakiti atau memaksakan kehendak kepada istrinya, orang itu pasti lupa bahwa laki-laki termacho, teristimewa, terbaik adalah laki-laki yang paling lembut dan paling sayang terhadap keluarganya...
Sebaliknya, perempuan yang paling baik juga yang paling sayang sama suami dan anak-anaknya ^^

Ini adalah sebagian percakapan seorang Bedouin dengan Rasulullah (Khalid ibn al Walîd):

Q: I wish to be the richest man in the world.
A: Be contented, and you will be the richest man in the world.

Q: I'd like to be the most just man.
A: Desire for others what you desire for yourself, and you will be the most just of men.

Q: I want to be the best of men.
A: Do good to others and you will be the best of men.

Walahualam.

Palestina In My Mind

I'm 28 years old.

And I could not remember precisely, when was the first time i heard of the word "Palestine". Perhaps on my elementary school. Cause I read too much at that time. I even wrote about the downfall of USSR in my school magazine and my friends raised their eyebrows.

I was raised as a moslem, in the biggest muslim country in the world. I even remembered someone or a teacher once said something about Jews, and Christians. Yes, there was a lot of racism inside our community too. We're good. They're bad. And sometimes the minority didn't get a decent treatment as they should get.

I was glad I decided not to believe that stereotyping. I was glad I could teach my children that they had to treat others as the way they wanted to be treated.

I had to admit, Rachel Corrie was one the most memorable moment.
I was shocked, not just by the way she passed away. But also by the hatreds she and her family received from Israelis supporter.

In Indonesia, Palestine was always connected with our identity as Muslim. And for some Islamophobics or Zionist supporters in here, Palestinian also identified as terrorists. And the stereotyping went on. So Jews and Israelis and Zionists were the same entity. Just like some said Muslim and Al Qaeda and Terrorist were the same thing.

When I read about Rachel Corrie, I thought: "Hei, she's an American girl. And she's not a muslim. Almost the same age as me. And she's dead defending your brothers and sisters in Palestine."

After that, one by one, I found out about Breaking the Silence from Daniel Bunuel "Don't tell my mom that I'm in The Holy Land" on National geographics channel, October 2008. And then Courage to refuse, ISM, Machsom Watch and Jews Against the Occupation were some of the best sources.

While blogging and reading, I found great thoughts from great people around the world, including Israel. There were Chet, Julia, Leila El Saba and Young Activist in US. Bob Birch and Antony Loewenstein in Australia. Yarra in Israel. And some amazing blogs, from Gaza with love, Oranges and Olives, Jerusalem Syndrom, Raising Yousuf and Noor, Munich and A little bit of everything, Tikun Olam, Mondoweiss and Jews san frontieres. I read "From Beirut to Jerusalem"'s dr. Ang Swee Chai and Palestinian walks's Raja Shehadeh.

Too many to mention.

But from them I knew one thing for sure. That Palestine (or Palestina in Indonesian) was never about religion. It was about humanity. It was about peace, justice and freedom. No matter what your religion was.

Lets face it. This was something that some people here in Indonesia should learn more.

I would finish with some words from Remi Kanazi.

I envision Palestine in my mind
With the “chosen” frozen in time
To realize their morality’s blind
To take back generations of crime
And put an end to Apartheid

How many kids sit and wish
They could be labeled other than a terrorist
To exist is to resist!
Reads the graffiti in their cities

Give them chalk instead of rocks
They’ll use the blackboards
If you let them go to school

Give them chalk instead of rocks
Instead you bulldoze the block
Destroy their homes
Palestine is what you call the “no building zone”

But you can’t bulldoze our minds
Every time we’ll rise through ashes
Like Cassius Clay
We’ll bob and weave for infinity
There is no divinity
In bombing our cities
Setting up committees to treat us differently
We’re from Falasteen
The land where dreams are made

So just remember one thing
One day the bells of freedom will ring
And you’ll see me smiling
Loving life in Palestine

This post dedicated for Blog About Palestine day 2009

Gusti Allah Tidak 'Ndeso'

Renungan hari ini.

Emha Ainun Nadjib: Gusti Allah Tidak “Ndeso”
Beragama yang Tidak Korupsi
Oleh: Faisal

Suatu kali Emha Ainun Nadjib ditodong pertanyaan beruntun. “Cak Nun,” kata sang penanya, “misalnya pada waktu bersamaan tiba-tiba sampeyan menghadapi tiga pilihan, yang harus dipilih salah satu: pergi ke masjid untuk shalat Jumat, mengantar pacar berenang, atau mengantar tukang becak miskin ke rumah sakit akibat tabrak lari, mana yang sampeyan pilih?“


Cak Nun menjawab lantang, “Ya nolong orang kecelakaan.”
“Tapi sampeyan kan dosa karena tidak sembahyang?” kejar si penanya.
“Ah, mosok Gusti Allah ndeso gitu,” jawab Cak Nun.
“Kalau saya memilih shalat Jumat, itu namanya mau masuk surga tidak ngajak-ngajak, ” katanya lagi. “Dan lagi belum tentu Tuhan memasukkan ke surga orang yang
memperlakukan sembahyang sebagai credit point pribadi.


Bagi kita yang menjumpai orang yang saat itu juga harus ditolong, Tuhan tidak berada di mesjid,
melainkan pada diri orang yang kecelakaan itu. Tuhan mengidentifikasikan dirinya pada sejumlah orang. Kata Tuhan: kalau engkau menolong orang sakit, Akulah yang sakit itu. Kalau engkau menegur orang yang kesepian, Akulah yang kesepian itu. Kalau engkau memberi makan orang kelaparan, Akulah yang kelaparan itu.

Seraya bertanya balik, Emha berujar, “Kira-kira Tuhan suka yang mana dari tiga orang ini. Pertama, orang yang shalat lima waktu, membaca al-quran, membangun masjid, tapi korupsi uang negara.

Kedua, orang yang tiap hari berdakwah, shalat, hapal al-quran, menganjurkan hidup sederhana, tapi dia sendiri kaya-raya, pelit, dan mengobarkan semangat permusuhan. Ketiga, orang yang tidak shalat, tidak membaca al-quran, tapi suka beramal, tidak korupsi, dan penuh kasih sayang?”

Kalau saya, ucap Cak Nun, memilih orang yang ketiga. Kalau korupsi uang negara, itu namanya membangun neraka, bukan membangun masjid. Kalau korupsi uang rakyat, itu namanya bukan membaca al-quran, tapi menginjak-injaknya. Kalau korupsi uang rakyat, itu namanya tidak sembahyang, tapi menginjak Tuhan. Sedang orang yang suka beramal, tidak korupsi, dan penuh kasih sayang, itulah orang yang sesungguhnya sembahyang dan membaca al-quran.

Kriteria kesalehan seseorang tidak hanya diukur lewat shalatnya. Standar kesalehan seseorang tidak melulu dilihat dari banyaknya dia hadir di kebaktian atau misa. Tolok ukur kesalehan hakikatnya adalah output sosialnya: kasih sayang sosial, sikap demokratis, cinta kasih, kemesraan dengan orang lain, memberi, membantu sesama. Idealnya, orang beragama itu mesti shalat, misa, atau ikut kebaktian, tetapi juga tidak korupsi dan memiliki perilaku yang santun dan berkasih sayang.

Agama adalah akhlak. Agama adalah perilaku. Agama adalah sikap. Semua agama tentu mengajarkan kesantunan, belas kasih, dan cinta kasih sesama. Bila kita cuma puasa, shalat,
baca al-quran, pergi kebaktian, misa, datang ke pura, menurut saya, kita belum layak disebut orang yang beragama. Tetapi, bila saat bersamaan kita tidak mencuri uang negara, meyantuni fakir miskin, memberi makan anak-anak terlantar, hidup bersih, maka itulah orang beragama.

Ukuran keberagamaan seseorang sesungguhnya bukan dari kesalehan personalnya, melainkan diukur dari kesalehan sosialnya. Bukan kesalehan pribadi, tapi kesalehan sosial. Orang beragama adalah orang yang bisa menggembirakan tetangganya. Orang beragama ialah orang yang menghormati orang lain, meski beda agama. Orang yang punya solidaritas dan keprihatinan sosial pada kaum mustadh’afin (kaum tertindas). Juga tidak korupsi dan tidak mengambil yang bukan haknya. Karena itu, orang beragama mestinya memunculkan sikap dan jiwa sosial tinggi. Bukan orang-orang yang meratakan dahinya ke lantai masjid, sementara beberapa meter darinya, orang-orang miskin meronta kelaparan.

Ekstrinsik VS Intrinsik

Dalam sebuah hadis diceritakan, suatu ketika Nabi Muhammad SAW mendengar berita perihal seorang yang shalat di malam hari dan puasa di siang hari, tetapi menyakiti tetangganya dengan lisannya. Nabi Muhammad SAW menjawab singkat, “Ia di neraka.” Hadis ini memperlihatkan kepada kita bahwa ibadah ritual saja belum cukup. Ibadah ritual mesti dibarengi ibadah sosial.
Pelaksanaan ibadah ritual yang tulus harus melahirkan kepedulian pada lingkungan sosial.

Hadis di atas juga ingin mengatakan, agama jangan dipakai sebagai tameng memperoleh kedudukan dan citra baik di hadapan orang lain. Hal ini sejalan dengan definisi keberagamaan dari Gordon W Allport. Allport, psikolog, membagi dua macam cara beragama: ekstrinsik dan intrinsik.

Yang ekstrinsik memandang agama sebagai sesuatu yang dapat dimanfaatkan. Agama dimanfaatkan demikian rupa agar dia memperoleh status darinya. Ia puasa, misa, kebaktian, atau membaca kitab suci, bukan untuk meraih keberkahan Tuhan, melainkan supaya orang lain menghargai dirinya. Dia beragama demi status dan harga diri. Ajaran agama tidak menghujam ke dalam dirinya.

Yang kedua, yang intrinsik, adalah cara beragama yang memasukkan nilai-nilai agama ke dalam dirinya. Nilai dan ajaran agama terhujam jauh ke dalam jiwa penganutnya. Adanya internalisasi nilai spiritual keagamaan. Ibadah ritual bukan hanya praktik tanpa makna. Semua ibadah itu memiliki pengaruh dalam sikapnya sehari-hari. Baginya, agama adalah penghayatan batin kepada Tuhan. Cara beragama yang intrinsiklah yang mampu menciptakan lingkungan yang bersih dan penuh kasih sayang.

Keberagamaan ekstrinsik, cara beragama yang tidak tulus, melahirkan egoisme. Egoisme bertanggungjawab atas kegagalan manusia mencari kebahagiaan, kata Leo Tolstoy. Kebahagiaan tidak terletak pada kesenangan diri sendiri. Kebahagiaan terletak pada kebersamaan. Sebaliknya, cara beragama yang intrinsik menciptakan kebersamaan. Karena itu, menciptakan kebahagiaan dalam diri penganutnya dan lingkungan sosialnya. Ada penghayatan terhadap pelaksanaan ritual-ritual agama.

Cara beragama yang ekstrinsik menjadikan agama sebagai alat politis dan ekonomis. Sebuah sikap beragama yang memunculkan sikap hipokrit; kemunafikan. Syaikh Al Ghazali dan Sayid Quthb pernah berkata, kita ribut tentang bid’ah dalam shalat dan haji, tetapi dengan tenang melakukan bid’ah dalam urusan ekonomi dan politik. Kita puasa tetapi dengan tenang melakukan korupsi. Juga kekerasan, pencurian, dan penindasan.

Indonesia, sebuah negeri yang katanya agamis, merupakan negara penuh pertikaian. Majalah Newsweek edisi 9 Juli 2001 mencatat, Indonesia dengan 17.000 pulau ini menyimpan 1.000 titik api yang sewaktu-waktu siap menyala. Bila tidak dikelola, dengan mudah beralih menjadi bentuk kekerasan yang memakan korban. Peringatan Newsweek lima tahun lalu itu, rupanya mulai memperlihatkan kebenaran. Poso, Maluku, Papua Barat, Aceh menjadi contohnya. Ironis.

Jalaluddin Rakhmat, dalam Islam Alternatif , menulis betapa banyak umat Islam disibukkan dengan urusan ibadah mahdhah (ritual), tetapi mengabaikan kemiskinan, kebodohan, penyakit, kelaparan, kesengsaraan, dan kesulitan hidup yang diderita saudara-saudara mereka. Betapa banyak orang kaya Islam yang dengan khusuk meratakan dahinya di atas sajadah, sementara di sekitarnya tubuh-tubuh layu digerogoti penyakit dan kekurangan gizi.

Kita kerap melihat jutaan uang dihabiskan untuk upacara-upacara keagamaan, di saat ribuan anak di sudut-sudut negeri ini tidak dapat melanjutkan sekolah. Jutaan uang dihamburkan untuk membangun rumah ibadah yang megah, di saat ribuan orang tua masih harus menanggung beban mencari sesuap nasi. Jutaan uang dipakai untuk naik haji berulang kali, di saat ribuan orang sakit menggelepar menunggu maut karena tidak dapat membayar biaya rumah sakit. Secara ekstrinsik mereka beragama, tetapi secara intrinsik tidak beragama. [ed.AYS]

Sumber : Jalal Center

My Islam and His Islam : About Woman

Hmmm, read these articles and think.

women character, about how women have this 'genetic' bad character. Just because they're women. "Too fast to judge, cursing a lot, and ungrateful to their husband.”

marriage. This is about how a wife should and shouldn't do according to Islam. That a wife should be devoted to his husband, while a husband should be devoted to his mother.

I don't know about the writer's perception of Islam, but my perception of Islam is full of love Islam, full of peace Islam. And doesn't judge human by their gender Islam. Nor hate others for their race and religion. And This is Islam I will teach my children.

Walahualam. Only God Knows.

Wonderful article from a muslim woman.

Radical Feminism, a la Islam
by Umm Farouq

Someone asked to explain what my wearing HijabMan's "This is What a Radical Muslim Feminist Looks Like" T-shirt means.

It would mean that I am a female Muslim who takes the rights that have been decreed to me by my Creator.

I'm not subservient or meek, nor do I accept cultural idiocies as replacements for my God-given religion. It does not mean that I am not faced on a regular basis with situations involving choosing culture over religion, because I am. However, I grew tired long ago of being a sucker, as did the feminists from the movements that spurred from the 1920s suffragettes to the 1970s ERA-ers to ladies like the feminists of today featured in the film Borat who were horrified by his (unbeknownst to the poor ladies) satirical woman-bashing Khazak rhetoric. I will choose my religion, because I know I can always back up my actions with proof. You and your backwards cultural whatevers can go fly. They are fluff and nutter. I am substance.

Watch me get up and walk out of a room, because I will. If taking my rights means to you that I am haughty, so be it. Let the haughtiness begin.

Let me repeat: I am not subservient or meek. I speak from my heart. When there is an injustice, I roar.

As a radical Muslim feminist I know my rights as a wife, which are to be fed, sheltered, clothed, and cared for in a way befitting to me. I have the right to a marriage contract which safeguards me in case of a divorce. Man, it's a pre-nup that was given to women over 1400 years ago. Please find that in the Western law books! Fourteen hundred years ago in England, women were either witches or hysterical. Muslimahs were neither. Which do you want, a divorce, or your head? Muslimahs could keep both.

Anything I choose to do for my husband in the home, such as cooking, cleaning, and general care of the household, are not required of me, but rather are charities. I choose to be benevolent towards him because it makes both of us happy and helps to create a loving environment, and I know my reward will be with Allah. But if I'm down and out, like I am today, you better believe he'll bring home the Popeye's and I'll need a foot massage. It's a two-way street.

As a radical Muslim feminist, by the will of Allah I will empower my children with educational opportunites and give them the means, even if it requires that I not buy new clothing or eat the foods I really desire; even if it makes me give up the computer or the telephone or trips overseas--my children will have a way out because I refuse to allow them to live a life they do not want. I have three daughters. They must be empowered with knowledge.

Being a radical Muslim feminist also means that I will teach my son to wash his own clothing, cook his own food, mend his own holes, and most importantly, own his own behavior. I will not run after him with a plate and spoon when he is 26 years old, worried about his potential starvation. He will be self-sufficient, giving, and will respect me and his sisters and his wife. If he fails in any of these areas, then I will know that my mothering of him was a failure, too, and that I joined the ranks of the women who have propagated generations of no-good 'i am entitled to everything' empty Muslim men. May Allah protect me from that.

As a radical Muslim feminist, I will not tolerate double standards.

But guess what? I'm not radical at all, nor am I a feminist. I'm just a Muslim.

That, in a nutshell, is what the T-shirt means to me.

Maybe one day I'll add to this, but right now I have kiddies who want to paint.