Evening time. At a traffic light junction.
Sunday, June 29, 2008
Conversation
Next Level
It’s been four months since I attended the weekend madrasah classes at Masjid Al Amin. Today, before the commencement of a Tamil talk by a guest Ustaz, I decided to sit in the class for a while. I was pleasantly surprised to see that quite a few “boyz” had become “men” – noticeably taller, and voices "broken". There was one student who in the last four months had khatamed the Qur’an! (considering that a student may take up to 8 years to do the same). That was one of the strange things of being in the same class for many years. You see people grow up.
~~~
But in the long term, I think it’s important to assume that even the masses know the basics, and are ready to move on to the next stage. The next stage would involve thinking more deeply about the socio-historical contexts of the verses and ahadith, and a critical examination of our current situation as an ummah in
To these scholars, I get the unsettling feeling that they think Islam is a blanket rule that is to be applied by strict application to the various laws of jurisprudence. While this is wholly true, and the surest way to earn rewards due to strict conformation of the laws set out, I think it’s our duty as thinking, reasoning human beings to use our God-given powers of logic and reasoning to understand the reasons why we do things and bring ourselves to a higher level in our relationship with God.
Friday, June 27, 2008
What we don't know can hurt us
This is an op-ed I wrote in Aug 2003 (five years ago, incedible!) when MM used to be SM. As a student in the NTU School of Communication and Information, this piece reflects my hope in the potential of youth to make a difference in society through community-based action. A tad too cliched and skimming only at the surface, it isn't my best piece of work, but what the heck:
At a forum where Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew was the Guest Speaker, one participant revealed that he was more interested in what SM Lee had to say about the economic situation rather than worry about the worsening Singapore-Malaysia ties or the war in Iraq, as these did not have a ‘direct and immediate’ effect on his life. In a survey by Singapore Polytechnic, 85% of about 800 youth also did not feel too comfortable in reflecting views opposite that of the government, as they felt that their views would not be heard.
At a forum where Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew was the Guest Speaker, one participant revealed that he was more interested in what SM Lee had to say about the economic situation rather than worry about the worsening Singapore-Malaysia ties or the war in Iraq, as these did not have a ‘direct and immediate’ effect on his life. In a survey by Singapore Polytechnic, 85% of about 800 youth also did not feel too comfortable in reflecting views opposite that of the government, as they felt that their views would not be heard.
Our state of political, social and until recently, economic, stability in our nation has made conditions for some kind of apathy conducive. Life is great: You’re an undergraduate, reading communications and are the future intellectual who will remake our nation in the time to come. Whatever that means. For some, life has become routine: lectures, tutorials and assignments. There is simply no time to go out of the curriculum and read other material to form opinions about world matters. They are too complex to waste precious time on.
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Keeping in touch
In this journey of life, we meet many people – some of them become friends, most of them remain as detached individuals. For those friends we make during the specific phases, they provide the support, strength and laughter during that time.
When we move on to the next phase, we meet another group of people, some of whom become friends. It’s like a train journey – some new people get on our train, some stay in a different compartment, some get off the train to take their own route. For those who go into different compartments or get off the train, they are not visible to us, for the time being at least.
But do we forget those who get off the train or go into different compartments, just because we don’t see them? No. They might not all be in sync with your train schedule, as they have their own priority bookings in their own trains, or buses or Mercedes’. Just because they cannot join you at certain stops does not mean they do not care, or do not wish to meet. It is a matter of timing and destiny.
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Zayed (Part 2)
In the aftermath of my cycling trip to the CBD, I shall tell you a bit about the other inspirational Zayed - Zayed ibn Thabit.
The Qur'an that we recite today can be largely attributed to the efforts of Zayed ibn Thabit. This is the achievement I remember him most for. But first, a little about his early days.
Zayed was from Medina, and hence an Ansar (helper) to the Muhajirun from Mecca. He embraced Islam at the age of 11 with his tribe members.
In the nascent days of Islam, when Muslims comprised a small community of believers who felt the divine power in their hearts, and also directly through the Prophet s.a.w., many other groups were preparing to attack and destroy Muslims. The Muslim community seemed like a threat as, among other things, Islam empowered the weak and uprooted the old social order, namely in terms of rejecting false gods and implementing new forms of civilised behavior. Under the constant threat of warfare, the Muslims were always on "standby mode" to group and attack enemy forces at the command of the Prophet. Fighting in the army was not just about fighting for a nation or country with loved ones - it was about fighting for God to uphold his Message, the Universal Truth, in the face of untruth and rebellion. One would earn immense grace and reward from God if he were to fight in the path of God (or fee sabilillah).
Zayed tried at the age of 13 to get into the Muslim army, and again at age 14 and 15, because he so badly wanted to contribute to the Muslim community and earn the pleasure of God and His Prophet. But the Prophet smiled and declined his advances to join the army, as he was too young.
Finally, at the historic Battle of the Trench, where the Muslim community was besieged from within and without, Zayed was enlisted and he performed his duties.
But Zayed is not known as a soldier - he is known as a scholar. While waiting for his chance to join the army, Zayed developed his mind. He memorised the Qur'an, through which he obtained piercing insights. He learned foreign languages quickly, such as Syriac and Hebrew, and became one of the Prophet's scribes when writing letters to foreign leaders. He was also the interpreter for the Prophet when dealing with non-Arabic peoples.
Th Qur'an was revealed bit by bit, according to situations the Muslims faced during their first 23 years. Although many companions memorised the Qur'an, a fair number of them wrote it down in parchments and other material. Zayed was the one who compiled all these pieces of parchment in the order that the Qur'an was to be arranged, under the supervision of the Prophet s.a.w. himself.
After the passing of the Prophet s.a.w., a fierce battle was fought against a certain army whose leader was an imposter claiming to be a Prophet. This was not even a major battle, but it took the lives of many outstanding Muslims who had memorised the Qur'an. Umar Al-Khattab r.a. realised the need to consolidate all the pieces of text into a singular book, and convinced then-Caliph Abu Bakr Siddique r.a. to do so. Abu Bakr Siddique r.a. appointed Zayed ibn Thabit to do this job.
Understandably, Zayed was under pressure - the job of compiling the words of God was not something you did everyday. He tracked down every parchment, scroll, whatever people wrote on, and dug deep into the memories of men and verified and verified again the Qur'an.
At last, the job was completed, and to make a long story short, it is the version we have in our hands today.
Zayed was indeed a blessed companion who was given the responsibility and proportionate fortitude to compile the Holy Book. Truly, a warrior who fought for God in his destined way.
And thus we hope that our son takes after the scholarly characteristics of Zayed ibn Thabit, and does his din and mankind a service most pleasing to God.
The Qur'an that we recite today can be largely attributed to the efforts of Zayed ibn Thabit. This is the achievement I remember him most for. But first, a little about his early days.
Zayed was from Medina, and hence an Ansar (helper) to the Muhajirun from Mecca. He embraced Islam at the age of 11 with his tribe members.
In the nascent days of Islam, when Muslims comprised a small community of believers who felt the divine power in their hearts, and also directly through the Prophet s.a.w., many other groups were preparing to attack and destroy Muslims. The Muslim community seemed like a threat as, among other things, Islam empowered the weak and uprooted the old social order, namely in terms of rejecting false gods and implementing new forms of civilised behavior. Under the constant threat of warfare, the Muslims were always on "standby mode" to group and attack enemy forces at the command of the Prophet. Fighting in the army was not just about fighting for a nation or country with loved ones - it was about fighting for God to uphold his Message, the Universal Truth, in the face of untruth and rebellion. One would earn immense grace and reward from God if he were to fight in the path of God (or fee sabilillah).
Zayed tried at the age of 13 to get into the Muslim army, and again at age 14 and 15, because he so badly wanted to contribute to the Muslim community and earn the pleasure of God and His Prophet. But the Prophet smiled and declined his advances to join the army, as he was too young.
Finally, at the historic Battle of the Trench, where the Muslim community was besieged from within and without, Zayed was enlisted and he performed his duties.
But Zayed is not known as a soldier - he is known as a scholar. While waiting for his chance to join the army, Zayed developed his mind. He memorised the Qur'an, through which he obtained piercing insights. He learned foreign languages quickly, such as Syriac and Hebrew, and became one of the Prophet's scribes when writing letters to foreign leaders. He was also the interpreter for the Prophet when dealing with non-Arabic peoples.
Th Qur'an was revealed bit by bit, according to situations the Muslims faced during their first 23 years. Although many companions memorised the Qur'an, a fair number of them wrote it down in parchments and other material. Zayed was the one who compiled all these pieces of parchment in the order that the Qur'an was to be arranged, under the supervision of the Prophet s.a.w. himself.
After the passing of the Prophet s.a.w., a fierce battle was fought against a certain army whose leader was an imposter claiming to be a Prophet. This was not even a major battle, but it took the lives of many outstanding Muslims who had memorised the Qur'an. Umar Al-Khattab r.a. realised the need to consolidate all the pieces of text into a singular book, and convinced then-Caliph Abu Bakr Siddique r.a. to do so. Abu Bakr Siddique r.a. appointed Zayed ibn Thabit to do this job.
Understandably, Zayed was under pressure - the job of compiling the words of God was not something you did everyday. He tracked down every parchment, scroll, whatever people wrote on, and dug deep into the memories of men and verified and verified again the Qur'an.
At last, the job was completed, and to make a long story short, it is the version we have in our hands today.
Zayed was indeed a blessed companion who was given the responsibility and proportionate fortitude to compile the Holy Book. Truly, a warrior who fought for God in his destined way.
And thus we hope that our son takes after the scholarly characteristics of Zayed ibn Thabit, and does his din and mankind a service most pleasing to God.
Zayed (Part 1)
It's not Zayed Khan. Neither is it Zahid, or Zaahir. Or Syed. Or Sa'id.
Our son's name is Muhammed Zayed. From the purists' perspective, it should be mono-syllabic and spelt as Zyd, as it is written in Arabic. But to avoid mis-pronounciation in this multi-linguistic community of ours, we decided to spell it the way it should be pronounced so that Zayed doesn't have a tough time explaining his name in school (like I did!).
We gave the name Muhammed as it is the Prophet's (s.a.w.) name, which brings with it infinite blessings and peace. As for Zayed, there are two distinct personalities in Islamic history who inspired us to give this name to our son, in the hope that our some will carry some traits of these great men. I will talk about the first personality in this post.
Zayed ibn Harithah (ibn means "son of" in Arabic) was a small child when his mother decided to visit her family tribe in the deserts of Arabia. His dad Harithah prepared a caravan for his wife and son to visit the tribe, and when the moment came to part, he was overcome with emotion with the thought that he would miss his son very much.
It was a premonition of the bad news to come. When Zayed and his mother were with the family tribe, they were attacked by an enemy tribe. Surprised and unprepared, some of the tribe members were taken as prisoners - one of them being Zayed. In medieval Arabia (circa 600 AD), such warfare was common. Tribes attacked each other to gain power and property. This case was no different.
Zayed's mother survived to return to Harithah to tell him what happened. Harithah, being the father he is, fainted at the news and lamented at the loss of his son. He searched for his son everywhere but to no avail. It is also important to note that this was a period of time before God sent down the revelation to Prophet Muhammed (s.a.w.) to indicate to him to spread the Message to the world. Thus, at this time, the Prophet was not officially a Prophet yet.
Once again we have to examine the context of Arabia with regards to slavery. Slavery was the norm of the greatest civilised powers at that time. Athens and Rome practiced slavery, and in this world order, Arabia was no different. Victors of tribal wars were at liberty to take their prisoners to be sold at markets for a handsome price.
Likewise, little Zayed was sold at a market known as Ukaz to a Hakim ibn Huzam, who in turn gave Zayed to Khadijah, a rich businesswoman. She presented it to her husband, who was our Prophet Muhammed (s.a.w.). Sayyidina Muhammed s.a.w. was taken in with Zayed and immediately freed him. He gave the boy a lot of love, care and attention, and treated Zayed like his own child. It was indeed a rarity to see a slave given such treatment, when most were not even treated like human beings.
Many years later, some persons from Zayed's tribe visited Mecca, and recognised Zayed. They revealed to Zayed his parents' anguish at his abduction, to which Zayed replied that he had in Mecca, a truly loving and generous father. The tribe went back and relayed the message to Harithah, who set out for Mecca with his brother to see his son.
Harithah knew about Sayyidina Muhammed's (s.a.w.) generosity and fairness, and appealed to him to return his son. The Prophet had immense attachment towards Zayed, but also understood Harithah's pain. He told Harithah that that Zayed would have to make the choice of whether to stay with his foster father, or to go with his real father Harithah. When he conveyed this to Zayed, with Harithah and Zayed's uncle in view, Zayed said," I will not choose anyone but you, for you are a father and an uncle to me."
Alhamdulillah! Zayed chose Sayyidina Muhammed as his guardian over his natural father. Such was the power of love that the Prophet had over Zayed, and vice-versa. Harithah was satisfied that his son was a free man, and the son of a noble, trustworthy and respected man, and returned home.
Shortly after this, God sent down the first revelation that Sayyidina Muhammed was the Prophet of God. Zayed is said to be either the first or second person to embrace the message of Islam.
Zayed was deeply devoted to his foster father. His being black was in no way an obstacle for the Prophet to shower him with love. The Qur'an destroyed the concept of colour segregation when it says:
"Surely, the most honourable among you in the sight of Allah are the most pious of you."
Al-Hujurat, 49:13
Fast forward to a few years later. In the battle of Mu'tah, the Roman army had its mind fixed in destroying the new movement known as Islam. 200,000 Roman soldiers were ready to do battle against the poorly-equipped, under-sized Muslim army. Zayed led the army, as he was always asked to do.
He led the army to fight the enemies hard, with total disregard for the number inequality. Eventually, he was slain in the battle - his life given for the sake of God.
Zayed was the well-loved adopted son of the Prophet s.a.w., who gave his life for the pleasure of God. Surely, we should all strive for his commitment to Allah and his commands, and seek the pleasure and love of the Prophet s.a.w. And this is the first great Muslim personality who inspired us to name our son.
Our son's name is Muhammed Zayed. From the purists' perspective, it should be mono-syllabic and spelt as Zyd, as it is written in Arabic. But to avoid mis-pronounciation in this multi-linguistic community of ours, we decided to spell it the way it should be pronounced so that Zayed doesn't have a tough time explaining his name in school (like I did!).
We gave the name Muhammed as it is the Prophet's (s.a.w.) name, which brings with it infinite blessings and peace. As for Zayed, there are two distinct personalities in Islamic history who inspired us to give this name to our son, in the hope that our some will carry some traits of these great men. I will talk about the first personality in this post.
Zayed ibn Harithah (ibn means "son of" in Arabic) was a small child when his mother decided to visit her family tribe in the deserts of Arabia. His dad Harithah prepared a caravan for his wife and son to visit the tribe, and when the moment came to part, he was overcome with emotion with the thought that he would miss his son very much.
It was a premonition of the bad news to come. When Zayed and his mother were with the family tribe, they were attacked by an enemy tribe. Surprised and unprepared, some of the tribe members were taken as prisoners - one of them being Zayed. In medieval Arabia (circa 600 AD), such warfare was common. Tribes attacked each other to gain power and property. This case was no different.
Zayed's mother survived to return to Harithah to tell him what happened. Harithah, being the father he is, fainted at the news and lamented at the loss of his son. He searched for his son everywhere but to no avail. It is also important to note that this was a period of time before God sent down the revelation to Prophet Muhammed (s.a.w.) to indicate to him to spread the Message to the world. Thus, at this time, the Prophet was not officially a Prophet yet.
Once again we have to examine the context of Arabia with regards to slavery. Slavery was the norm of the greatest civilised powers at that time. Athens and Rome practiced slavery, and in this world order, Arabia was no different. Victors of tribal wars were at liberty to take their prisoners to be sold at markets for a handsome price.
Likewise, little Zayed was sold at a market known as Ukaz to a Hakim ibn Huzam, who in turn gave Zayed to Khadijah, a rich businesswoman. She presented it to her husband, who was our Prophet Muhammed (s.a.w.). Sayyidina Muhammed s.a.w. was taken in with Zayed and immediately freed him. He gave the boy a lot of love, care and attention, and treated Zayed like his own child. It was indeed a rarity to see a slave given such treatment, when most were not even treated like human beings.
Many years later, some persons from Zayed's tribe visited Mecca, and recognised Zayed. They revealed to Zayed his parents' anguish at his abduction, to which Zayed replied that he had in Mecca, a truly loving and generous father. The tribe went back and relayed the message to Harithah, who set out for Mecca with his brother to see his son.
Harithah knew about Sayyidina Muhammed's (s.a.w.) generosity and fairness, and appealed to him to return his son. The Prophet had immense attachment towards Zayed, but also understood Harithah's pain. He told Harithah that that Zayed would have to make the choice of whether to stay with his foster father, or to go with his real father Harithah. When he conveyed this to Zayed, with Harithah and Zayed's uncle in view, Zayed said," I will not choose anyone but you, for you are a father and an uncle to me."
Alhamdulillah! Zayed chose Sayyidina Muhammed as his guardian over his natural father. Such was the power of love that the Prophet had over Zayed, and vice-versa. Harithah was satisfied that his son was a free man, and the son of a noble, trustworthy and respected man, and returned home.
Shortly after this, God sent down the first revelation that Sayyidina Muhammed was the Prophet of God. Zayed is said to be either the first or second person to embrace the message of Islam.
Zayed was deeply devoted to his foster father. His being black was in no way an obstacle for the Prophet to shower him with love. The Qur'an destroyed the concept of colour segregation when it says:
"Surely, the most honourable among you in the sight of Allah are the most pious of you."
Al-Hujurat, 49:13
Fast forward to a few years later. In the battle of Mu'tah, the Roman army had its mind fixed in destroying the new movement known as Islam. 200,000 Roman soldiers were ready to do battle against the poorly-equipped, under-sized Muslim army. Zayed led the army, as he was always asked to do.
He led the army to fight the enemies hard, with total disregard for the number inequality. Eventually, he was slain in the battle - his life given for the sake of God.
Zayed was the well-loved adopted son of the Prophet s.a.w., who gave his life for the pleasure of God. Surely, we should all strive for his commitment to Allah and his commands, and seek the pleasure and love of the Prophet s.a.w. And this is the first great Muslim personality who inspired us to name our son.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
Beautiful
Cycled to Keppel Bay today. It was a place my dad used to cycle to, and he was full of praise for it, for which I did not know the reason then.It's a really awesome place. On a Saturday morning, there's nobody in sight, and it's great to soak in the sun, sea breeze and greenery. East Coast Park - eat your heart out.
Some nice lil' plants
Panoramic view of the construction of Reflections
The iconic Keppel Bridge
The yacht dockFriday, June 20, 2008
Rehenuma
This is the AR Rahman song that sent pulses racing in 2003 - and the music video that earned the name "stupidest video ever done" in my list. So much so it has been parodied countless times by friends, with friends. The movie was a monumental flop. I added the extra omelette scene before the song starts to show just how ridiculous the editing for the movie was.
You know who you are - enjoy this :) Set the volume to high, lift your hands, palms up, and do the arm thing...
You know who you are - enjoy this :) Set the volume to high, lift your hands, palms up, and do the arm thing...
Thursday, June 19, 2008
Revival
The Mount Faber bridge and the moon It’s time to get fit. I had started to exercise in December 07, and Jan 08. Then Feb 08 came, and my exercise routine became all messed up. “Non-existent”.
- Lowers the risk of heart disease and stroke, type 2 diabetes, colon cancer and osteoporosis
- Maintains or increases strength, flexibility, endurance and bone density
- Reduces the risk of falls among older people
- Improves mental health and mood, relieves symptoms of depression and anxiety and improves social skills and self-esteem and prevents cognitive
- Helps with weight maintenance or loss, reducing body fat and increasing muscle mass
So yesterday, I went cycling on my dad’s bicycle, the Aleomakino. It’s a good Italian machine, but a bit rusted and has no snazzy suspension. Jalsa would be proud of me [are you proud of me?] for cycling and not jogging. One thing though – I can’t figure out how to adjust the seat height. So I was somewhat squashed up when riding.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
You do not exist
'What have you done with Julia?' said Winston.
O'Brien smiled again. 'She betrayed you, Winston. Immediately -- unreservedly. I have seldom seen anyone come over to us so promptly. You would hardly recognize her if you saw her. All her rebelliousness, her deceit, her folly, her dirty-mindedness -- everything has been burned out of her. It was a perfect conversion, a textbook case.'
'You tortured her?'
O'Brien left this unanswered. 'Next question,' he said.
'Does Big Brother exist?'
'Of course he exists. The Party exists. Big Brother is the embodiment of the Party.'
'Does he exist in the same way as I exist?'
'You do not exist,' said O'Brien.
Once again the sense of helplessness assailed him. He knew, or he could imagine, the arguments which proved his own nonexistence; but they were nonsense, they were only a play on words. Did not the statement, 'You do not exist', contain a logical absurdity? But what use was it to say so? His mind shrivelled as he thought of the unanswerable, mad arguments with which O'Brien would demolish him.
- 1984
George Orwell
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Voices in Our Head
Have you ever thought of why you seem to give up so easily sometimes? Or when you wake up every morning, why you feel as though the day is going to end up shitty, but in your mind knows it's not the case?
As part of my work, I was given this book "Learned Optimism - How to Change Your Mind and Life" by Martin Seligman, to read and see how an elderly person can be sucked into depression during the post-65 years. But it's not just for seniors, it's for everyone. Don't be fooled by the title - it's not the average "lift your soul and mind with 27 effective habits" book. Seligman is a pschyology professor who has done 20 years of research into optimism and what brings out the best or worst form of thinking in people.
The nub of the matter in the book for me are two things - learned helplessness and explanatory style. Sometimes we are faced with misfortunes which set us back again and again (for example always getting it wrong when writing policy papers, or no one turning up for outings when you so enthusiastically organise them one month in advance). When faced with such repeated misfortunes, a person tends to explain it by either saying (a) it is an isolated case, that will last only temporarily, and that it's the fault of others, and that in a normal situation, this wouldn't happen, or (b) it's a pattern, it's a permanent screw-up, never to be reversed, it's your fault. (b) is to learn helplessness.
(a) is the Optimists' way of thinking, and (b), Pessimist. Of course, there is no perfect optimist, but apparently, there are a huge number of perfect pessimists who fall into depression. There are voices inside all of us telling us what to think, giving us reasons for why we succeeded and why we failed.
These voices are known as the explanatory style we adopt. Without even knowing, we tend to listen to these voices and base our behaviour on them. For example, when we fail a driving test, you know in your mind that it's just not your day, and/or the tester was a strict @#$%, and/or it was a hot day so you were sleepy etc. But there could be another voice telling you, subconsciously, that you're at fault since you're a loser and you are not meant to drive a car.
The trick is to sense these negative voices and turn them around to give a positive explanatory style - not just for the sake of it, but because it's true.
In the context of my worldview, I believe that the good voices we hear are those in our fitrah, our natural state. The negative voices are by shaytan, mostly. The negative voices tend to put doubt in your actions, and drag you down in some compounded self-doubting exercise. Seligman's advice is to rebut the negative voices and have a positive self-explanatory style. This, most of us do, but not for all occasions. We have our own pick of what we like (and thus good at) and what we don't like (thus not good at).
Reading the book reminded me what we naturally know, but we tend to forget - to listen to our voices in our heart, which have been put there by the Creator to guide us. They will always come to tell us that we're on the right track, if we are doing so, but dispel us, if we're doing something that we shouldn't be doing as "the created".
I guess, in the end, we all have our own coping mechanisms when we're feeling down. But the important thing is to talk it through in our minds.
As part of my work, I was given this book "Learned Optimism - How to Change Your Mind and Life" by Martin Seligman, to read and see how an elderly person can be sucked into depression during the post-65 years. But it's not just for seniors, it's for everyone. Don't be fooled by the title - it's not the average "lift your soul and mind with 27 effective habits" book. Seligman is a pschyology professor who has done 20 years of research into optimism and what brings out the best or worst form of thinking in people.
The nub of the matter in the book for me are two things - learned helplessness and explanatory style. Sometimes we are faced with misfortunes which set us back again and again (for example always getting it wrong when writing policy papers, or no one turning up for outings when you so enthusiastically organise them one month in advance). When faced with such repeated misfortunes, a person tends to explain it by either saying (a) it is an isolated case, that will last only temporarily, and that it's the fault of others, and that in a normal situation, this wouldn't happen, or (b) it's a pattern, it's a permanent screw-up, never to be reversed, it's your fault. (b) is to learn helplessness.
(a) is the Optimists' way of thinking, and (b), Pessimist. Of course, there is no perfect optimist, but apparently, there are a huge number of perfect pessimists who fall into depression. There are voices inside all of us telling us what to think, giving us reasons for why we succeeded and why we failed.
These voices are known as the explanatory style we adopt. Without even knowing, we tend to listen to these voices and base our behaviour on them. For example, when we fail a driving test, you know in your mind that it's just not your day, and/or the tester was a strict @#$%, and/or it was a hot day so you were sleepy etc. But there could be another voice telling you, subconsciously, that you're at fault since you're a loser and you are not meant to drive a car.
The trick is to sense these negative voices and turn them around to give a positive explanatory style - not just for the sake of it, but because it's true.
In the context of my worldview, I believe that the good voices we hear are those in our fitrah, our natural state. The negative voices are by shaytan, mostly. The negative voices tend to put doubt in your actions, and drag you down in some compounded self-doubting exercise. Seligman's advice is to rebut the negative voices and have a positive self-explanatory style. This, most of us do, but not for all occasions. We have our own pick of what we like (and thus good at) and what we don't like (thus not good at).
Reading the book reminded me what we naturally know, but we tend to forget - to listen to our voices in our heart, which have been put there by the Creator to guide us. They will always come to tell us that we're on the right track, if we are doing so, but dispel us, if we're doing something that we shouldn't be doing as "the created".
I guess, in the end, we all have our own coping mechanisms when we're feeling down. But the important thing is to talk it through in our minds.
Friday, June 13, 2008
P(h)ew
A report I read today in the Straits Times (13 June 2008), entitled "Global Anti-China sentiment on the rise: Poll", that China's popularity around the world was in the decline due to unsafe products, military prowess and economic power, according to the Pew Global Attitudes Project.
Is this another attempt to slime China, more than it deserves to be slimed? Everything that KM said in his book seems to be playing out in this article. Firstly, the actual Pew report talks mainly about the US and its image problems, not just about China. Second, the international feeling that China was not repecting human rights at home could be due to the fact that the survey was conducted from March 17 - April 21, just during the time China was cracking down on the Tibetans' political dissent. Third, the "international" community might not be so international. By the article's own admittance,
"...One the other hand, majorities in France, Germany, South Korea and the United States saw China's economic power as a bad thing..." but
"Majorities of those polled in Pakistan, Lebanon, Indonesia, Jordan, Australia and Brazil as well as Tanzania, South Africa and Nigeria said China's economy had a positive effect on their countries."
... which means it could be mainly the West which has problems with China's growing power.
And fourth, the article is by Agence France-Presse. Go figure.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
Cleaner Air
The house is always dusty. Day after day, I just don't know where these balls of dust come from. Could it be the construction of the new HDB flats next to Kim Tian Vista? Could it be the neighbours' dust? Could it be the Bangladeshi Brothers who, in trying to wash the corridor outside, end up blowing all the dust into the house?
To stop our over-indulgent minds from over-working, we decided to get the oddly-named EuropeAce air purifier - manufactured by the oddly-named Strategic Technologies (with so many oddly-named things, why did I buy it?) It's supposed to suck dirty air and give me clean air.
We can take dirty air any day, no problem. I eat dirty air for breakfast. Not. Anyway - the main reason is the main man Zayed. He's showing signs of having a sensitive nose like his sensitive parents. So we decided to help him out a bit and get the air purifier. One purifier like that is supposed to clean up an area of 25 sq mtrs (size of one room). You have to keep it switched on when you're around, but turn it off when you go out for line dancing class or tai chi.
Light my fire
The cold wind blew at my face, and I held my wife close. The sound of the motor and the gentle swishing of the water as the boat glided along the Sebung river penetrated the stillness of the night. It was not pitch black as I had expected – more than the almost-invisible moonlight, it was a section of the night sky that provided all the light one could need. The guide could not tell us why that portion of the sky was bright – it was as if there was a perpetual sunset there. And the time was 9pm, three full hours past maghrib time in Bintan. No photograph can capture the sight.
The whole thing was fantastic – the darkness, the river, and the mangroves by the side, and the thought that we were in the heart of the forest. The guide explained that the fishermen lived behind the mangroves, and during the day, they came out to catch fish, crab and prawn near the inlets in the mangroves.
We then came to the highlight of the evening, the reason for us being in that Bintan river. The boat moved slowly to a specific tree among the mangroves, where hundreds of fireflies colluded. Fireflies are not like their confused brethren, houseflies. Fireflies are more charming, graceful and cute, and they’re not all this just because they give out light. They fly slowly like butterflies, and are not afraid to come near you.
Their butts blink with light. Scientists are unsure of the mechanism through which they produce light. But they do know that the light is produced from chemical reactions involving oxygen, an enzyme and other substances in the flies’ body. As a testament to how perfect Allah’s creations are, in relation to our imitations of the real thing, fireflies are extremely efficient in producing light – 100% of the light that a firefly gives off, is light. However, a normal electric light bulb gives off 10% of its energy as light and 90% as heat! [If a firefly were to give off the same ratio of heat, it’ll just explode. Or those touching it will be burnt.]
I held one or two in my hand, and the guide offered us plastic cups to catch them and keep them. I thought it was a pretty absurd suggestion – if everyone were to do that, the numbers of fireflies would decimate and the guide won’t have business in the long run. He actually caught one for us, but I tore the cup on the spot and released the fly. I don’t think it’s right to keep such a beautiful creature in captivity for my own amusement.
It occurred to me that a group of us pay for what is free to all creation. The fishermen probably did not think all the sights and sounds near their mangroves were a marvel. They probably look at it everyday, say hi to the crabs and go about their business and catching and selling stuff. Its us, from the wham-bam action-packed city who have lost touch with the primal state of nature, and pay to go somewhere to see it at close distance. The good thing about this arrangement is that those with the moolah can give to those who might not have much moolah in the form of buying services; the bad thing is that those in the city have lost touch with nature.
According to a class I attended, this harks back to the time of Ibrahim alahis salam (a.s.), whose two sons Isma’il a.s. and Ishaaq a.s. took the two separate routes that we so experience today. Isma’il a.s. and his descendents (mostly) took to the farming lifestyle, more in touch with nature and the elements. Ishaaq’s a.s. offspring followed the route of the city dwellers. In contemporary times, this has continued.
For me – it was great to go through the whole mangrove tour thinggie. I felt in touch with the magnificence of the Creator’s handiwork.
The whole thing was fantastic – the darkness, the river, and the mangroves by the side, and the thought that we were in the heart of the forest. The guide explained that the fishermen lived behind the mangroves, and during the day, they came out to catch fish, crab and prawn near the inlets in the mangroves.
We then came to the highlight of the evening, the reason for us being in that Bintan river. The boat moved slowly to a specific tree among the mangroves, where hundreds of fireflies colluded. Fireflies are not like their confused brethren, houseflies. Fireflies are more charming, graceful and cute, and they’re not all this just because they give out light. They fly slowly like butterflies, and are not afraid to come near you.
Their butts blink with light. Scientists are unsure of the mechanism through which they produce light. But they do know that the light is produced from chemical reactions involving oxygen, an enzyme and other substances in the flies’ body. As a testament to how perfect Allah’s creations are, in relation to our imitations of the real thing, fireflies are extremely efficient in producing light – 100% of the light that a firefly gives off, is light. However, a normal electric light bulb gives off 10% of its energy as light and 90% as heat! [If a firefly were to give off the same ratio of heat, it’ll just explode. Or those touching it will be burnt.]
I held one or two in my hand, and the guide offered us plastic cups to catch them and keep them. I thought it was a pretty absurd suggestion – if everyone were to do that, the numbers of fireflies would decimate and the guide won’t have business in the long run. He actually caught one for us, but I tore the cup on the spot and released the fly. I don’t think it’s right to keep such a beautiful creature in captivity for my own amusement.
It occurred to me that a group of us pay for what is free to all creation. The fishermen probably did not think all the sights and sounds near their mangroves were a marvel. They probably look at it everyday, say hi to the crabs and go about their business and catching and selling stuff. Its us, from the wham-bam action-packed city who have lost touch with the primal state of nature, and pay to go somewhere to see it at close distance. The good thing about this arrangement is that those with the moolah can give to those who might not have much moolah in the form of buying services; the bad thing is that those in the city have lost touch with nature.
According to a class I attended, this harks back to the time of Ibrahim alahis salam (a.s.), whose two sons Isma’il a.s. and Ishaaq a.s. took the two separate routes that we so experience today. Isma’il a.s. and his descendents (mostly) took to the farming lifestyle, more in touch with nature and the elements. Ishaaq’s a.s. offspring followed the route of the city dwellers. In contemporary times, this has continued.
For me – it was great to go through the whole mangrove tour thinggie. I felt in touch with the magnificence of the Creator’s handiwork.
Wednesday, June 11, 2008
Arch-Angel
Everyday at work, people shoot arrows. Some arrows fly over me, some across me, but the nasty ones are those that are shot at me. I’m not senior enough to shoot substantial arrows at others, so I decided to take the Navy’s call to Be Someone at least.
When we were in Bintan a few days ago, I decided to go for an archery session. I asked my wife to do it with me because it’s not fun shooting things alone. Probably feeling like shooting someone too, she decided to come and shoot some arrows.
The earliest archeological evidence of the bow comes from
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Spirited Away
The spirit of Bintan - 9 June 08My dear son - we're back after three days away from you. Although we saw many beautiful places, had many beautiful experiences, and saw other beautiful babies, there is nothing more beautiful than you.
Even now as you refuse to sleep because you want to talk to us, your radiant smile brings a contentment and love in our hearts that only our Creator knows.
I look forward to bringing you with us next time, to play in in the company of the sun, sand and the sea.
Even now as you refuse to sleep because you want to talk to us, your radiant smile brings a contentment and love in our hearts that only our Creator knows.
I look forward to bringing you with us next time, to play in in the company of the sun, sand and the sea.
Friday, June 06, 2008
Kenna Bang
A few days ago I watched a documentary on the History Channel, known as "Beyond the Big Bang". Apart from realizing that subscribing to cable means more than watching mindless SunTV, I re-discovered my childhood fascination with the universe.
One of the most intriguing things to the human mind, or least my mind, is the nature of the universe. Questions like "What is space? How big is the world outside our planet?" leave me wanting to know more and more, because the answers all have something to do with how I was created. God is the Creator of whatever there exists - if I'm blown away by the miracles of nature I see on Earth, then I'm equally blown away by the wonderful things I find out about the universe. There is an intimate connection between us and the universe. In fact, the elements that make up the most gigantic stars in the universe can be found in us - famous examples being carbon and hydrogen.
To begin with, the sheer size of the universe baffles the mind. There are an estimated 100 billion galaxies, each containing up to 1 trillion stars, in the observable universe. We are in just one galaxy (the Milky Way), in one solar system. Imagine the trillions and trillions of planets out there which we have no knowledge of.
One of the more interesting things about the universe is its creation. The scientists battled it out in the 50s and 60s – has the universe always been there, unchanging and exactly the same from donno when, or did it have a beginning?
Albert Einstein, although believing in the former, formulated the theory of relatively which proved the latter. He just couldn’t bring himself to believe that the universe had a beginning. Furthemore, the leading scientists of the day distanced themselves from the then derisively-called Big Bang theory because of the religious connotations.
Finally, the discovery of cosmic background microwave in 1964 confirmed that yes, the universe had a start point, and the microwave was the repercussion of that start, which was a humongazoidal bang. As MSN Encarta says it -
"According to the big bang theory, the universe expanded rapidly in its first microseconds. A single force existed at the beginning of the universe, and as the universe expanded and cooled, this force separated into those we know today: gravity, electromagnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force...
Next time you have the chance, do catch the documentary on the History Channel - it will really show how small we are in the grand scheme of things.
Albert Einstein, although believing in the former, formulated the theory of relatively which proved the latter. He just couldn’t bring himself to believe that the universe had a beginning. Furthemore, the leading scientists of the day distanced themselves from the then derisively-called Big Bang theory because of the religious connotations.
Finally, the discovery of cosmic background microwave in 1964 confirmed that yes, the universe had a start point, and the microwave was the repercussion of that start, which was a humongazoidal bang. As MSN Encarta says it -
"According to the big bang theory, the universe expanded rapidly in its first microseconds. A single force existed at the beginning of the universe, and as the universe expanded and cooled, this force separated into those we know today: gravity, electromagnetism, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force...
One widely accepted version of big bang theory includes the idea of inflation. In this model, the universe expanded much more rapidly at first, to about 1050 times its original size in the first 10-32 second, then slowed its expansion …
The universe cooled as it expanded. After about one second, protons formed. In the following few minutes—often referred to as the “first three minutes”—combinations of protons and neutrons formed the isotope of hydrogen known as deuterium as well as some of the other light elements, principally helium, as well as some lithium, beryllium, and boron. The study of the distribution of deuterium, helium, and the other light elements is now a major field of research. The uniformity of the helium abundance around the universe supports the big bang theory and the abundance of deuterium can be used to estimate the density of matter in the universe.
From about 380,000 to about 1 million years after the big bang, the universe cooled to about 3000°C (about 5000°F) and protons and electrons combined to make hydrogen atoms. Hydrogen atoms can only absorb and emit specific colors, or wavelengths, of light. The formation of atoms allowed many other wavelengths of light, wavelengths that had been interfering with the free electrons prior to the cooling of the universe, to travel much farther than before. This change set free radiation that we can detect today. After billions of years of cooling, this cosmic background radiation is at about 3 K (-270°C/-454°F)…
The Cosmic Background Explorer (COBE) spacecraft, a project of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), mapped the cosmic background radiation between 1989 and 1993. It verified that the distribution of intensity of the background radiation precisely matched that of matter that emits radiation because of its temperature, as predicted for the big bang theory. It also showed that cosmic background radiation is not uniform, that it varies slightly. These variations are thought to be the seeds from which galaxies and other structures in the universe grew.
Evidence indicates that the matter that scientists detect in the universe is only a small fraction of all the matter that exists…"
"Big Bang Theory," Microsoft® Encarta® Online Encyclopedia 2008.
http://encarta.msn.com © 1997-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved.
Next time you have the chance, do catch the documentary on the History Channel - it will really show how small we are in the grand scheme of things.
Thursday, June 05, 2008
The Illusion
Sometimes it’s so easy to get sucked into work, and fall into a twilight frame of mind that sees life in terms of the work that you do. It could be the sign of one’s weak constitution.
So there you are, a fresh graduate with remarkably good grades, at your first day at work. You’ve been given many accolades for being a model youth and you’re put in some ivory tower from where you see the rest of the world as needing your guidance and light.
This translates into high expectations on yourself at the workplace. You expect to do a lot of difficult work, as you’re in an officious-sounding organization, but you think you will pull through. You also subconsciously think you will be given a similar ivory-tower kind of treatment.
Lo and behold, the work starts at a fast and furious pace. You are unfamiliar with the quality and quantity of work. Surprisingly, and rather illogically, you are expected to learn very fast and be an expert on subjects you have barely heard about in recent years. You are also expected to give instant answers to instant questions posed to you at a pin drop, on things you have no clue about. But you rationalize these expectations and impose them all on yourself. After all, you got remarkable grades and you’ve been put up there with the rest, right?
Then the boss, the Teacher and the Guide, the True Source of Inspiration, belittles you on the second encounter. Your lack of knowledge of the subject matter and slow reaction time in responding to questions on a variety of facts and figures are exposed. You receive sarcastic remarks on your choice of degree and ability to do work. These are unfair and unwarranted comments – but you rationalize them and agree with what you hear. Yes, you have no subject matter knowledge when you ought to have so and you are not able to answer questions immediately on a variety of facts and figures when you ought to be able to do so, because you got remarkable grades and you’re in an ivory tower.
You believe more and more of what is said to you, and you internalize it, until you only think of whether you will get penalized for saying or doing anything wrong - or right. You thought you were something, but in the end, you are not really anything in this officious organization. The pessimism of work overtakes you. Anxiety is commonplace.
~~~
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
The Lord
On the authority of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him) that the Prophet (peace be upon him), from among the things he reports from his Lord (mighty and sublime be He), is that he said:
A servant [of Allah's] committed a sin and said: O Allah, forgive me my sin. And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for them. Then he sinned again and said: O Lord, forgive me my sin. And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for them. Then he sinned again and said: O Lord, forgive me my sin. And He (glorified and exalted be He) said: My servant has committed a sin and has known that he has a Lord who forgives sins and punishes for sins. Do what you wish, for I have forgiven you.
(Related by Muslim and al-Bukhari)
Monday, June 02, 2008
The New Asian Hemisphere
Through his latest book "The New Asian Hemisphere: The Irresistible Shift of Global Power to the East", Kishore Mahbubani (KM), foreign policy maestro of Singapore and currently Dean of the LKY School of Public Policy, has spoken on something many in the diplomacy circles would rather not openly say - that the West needs to open its eyes, ears and mind to the fact that Asia is rising and is going to be a participant (and cease to be a spectator) in the global arena of power, politics and people.
The West is great - no doubt about that. The West gave us philosophy, technology and (might I add) democracy - things that gave the individual freedom over his or her destiny, in a way. (Of course, past Asian and Islamic civilisations had all these and more before the advent of the modern West.) These developments culminated in the term "modernisation" which basically refers to the standard of life that the West has attained. But times are changing.
KM speaks at great length on the fact that previously, the West (which comprises mainly countries such as the US, UK, the European Union) had taken the rest of the world for a ride in making the major decisions that affected mankind:
"For most of the previous three centuries, the peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America were objects of world history. The decisions that drove history were made in a few key capitals, most often London, Paris, Berlin, and Washington, DC. The misnamed World War I and World War II were carried out without consulting the majority of the world's populations. They were co-opted into fundamentally European wars - at least until Japanese aggression appeared in China and the Pacific. Today, the 5.6 billion people who live outside the Western universe will no longer accept decisions made on their behalf in Western capitals."
KM then argues that we are at an era where the West's domination (not power) has ceased, but the West has not grasped this idea. He then goes on to cite examples where the West has demonstrated incompetence in handling global crises and prefers to follow ideology where pragmatism should prevail. He also explains at length, the failure of the US to follow the rule of law in the global arena. He notes that the most glaring example of this was the illegal Iraq War, when US administration decided to attack Iraq against the explicit decision made by the UN Security Council forbidding the war.
The book is packed with examples and most importantly, KM's personal experiences and insights gained from an extensive career in the foreign service. His credibility allows him to come to conclusions which most of us would be hard-pressed to find backing for.
However, I don't think all Western intellectuals are blind to the rising power of Asia. Many of them are aware of the rising of Asia, but the voices of the ignorant are the loudest, amplified by the Western media, naturally.
KM definitely has risked alienating a great many of his contacts and friends by writing this book. He doesn't condemn the West per se, but simply says that the West has to change its mindset to accept Asia into its worldview, in some strong and definitive language. You almost want to clap and cheer, being an Asian, when reading this book. Definitely a good read if you want to spend some time trying to make sense of the world.
The West is great - no doubt about that. The West gave us philosophy, technology and (might I add) democracy - things that gave the individual freedom over his or her destiny, in a way. (Of course, past Asian and Islamic civilisations had all these and more before the advent of the modern West.) These developments culminated in the term "modernisation" which basically refers to the standard of life that the West has attained. But times are changing.
KM speaks at great length on the fact that previously, the West (which comprises mainly countries such as the US, UK, the European Union) had taken the rest of the world for a ride in making the major decisions that affected mankind:
"For most of the previous three centuries, the peoples of Asia, Africa and Latin America were objects of world history. The decisions that drove history were made in a few key capitals, most often London, Paris, Berlin, and Washington, DC. The misnamed World War I and World War II were carried out without consulting the majority of the world's populations. They were co-opted into fundamentally European wars - at least until Japanese aggression appeared in China and the Pacific. Today, the 5.6 billion people who live outside the Western universe will no longer accept decisions made on their behalf in Western capitals."
KM then argues that we are at an era where the West's domination (not power) has ceased, but the West has not grasped this idea. He then goes on to cite examples where the West has demonstrated incompetence in handling global crises and prefers to follow ideology where pragmatism should prevail. He also explains at length, the failure of the US to follow the rule of law in the global arena. He notes that the most glaring example of this was the illegal Iraq War, when US administration decided to attack Iraq against the explicit decision made by the UN Security Council forbidding the war.
The book is packed with examples and most importantly, KM's personal experiences and insights gained from an extensive career in the foreign service. His credibility allows him to come to conclusions which most of us would be hard-pressed to find backing for.
However, I don't think all Western intellectuals are blind to the rising power of Asia. Many of them are aware of the rising of Asia, but the voices of the ignorant are the loudest, amplified by the Western media, naturally.
KM definitely has risked alienating a great many of his contacts and friends by writing this book. He doesn't condemn the West per se, but simply says that the West has to change its mindset to accept Asia into its worldview, in some strong and definitive language. You almost want to clap and cheer, being an Asian, when reading this book. Definitely a good read if you want to spend some time trying to make sense of the world.
Sunday, June 01, 2008
Words from the first Caliph
After the demise of the Holy Prophet s.a.w., Sayyidina Abu Bakr Siddique r.a. assumed office as the Amir ul Mu'miniin (Ruler of the Believers), he delivered the following speech:
[After thanking God and praising Him]
"O men! Here I have been assigned the job of being a ruler over you while I am not the best among you. If I do well in my job, help me. If I do wrong, redress me. Truthfulness is fidelity, and lying is treason. The weak shall be strong in my eyes until I restore to them their lost rights, and the strong shall be weak in my eyes until I have restored the rights of the weak from them. No people give up fighting for the cause of God but God inflicts upon them abject subjection; and no people give themselves to lewdness but God envelopes them with misery. Obey me as long as I obey God and His Prophet. But if I disobey God's command or his Prophet's, then no obedience is incumbent on you. Rise to your prayer, that God may bless you."
[After thanking God and praising Him]
"O men! Here I have been assigned the job of being a ruler over you while I am not the best among you. If I do well in my job, help me. If I do wrong, redress me. Truthfulness is fidelity, and lying is treason. The weak shall be strong in my eyes until I restore to them their lost rights, and the strong shall be weak in my eyes until I have restored the rights of the weak from them. No people give up fighting for the cause of God but God inflicts upon them abject subjection; and no people give themselves to lewdness but God envelopes them with misery. Obey me as long as I obey God and His Prophet. But if I disobey God's command or his Prophet's, then no obedience is incumbent on you. Rise to your prayer, that God may bless you."
- The Life of Muhammad
Muhammad Husein Haykal
Connecting with the parks
We cycled a nice 14 km today, thanks to Jalsa, the semi sports freak and event organiser supremo. The elements were almost against us, but we talked over some thosai (at least I did) at Komala's and the rain subsided.
As we cycled through the East Coast and some park connectors - alhamdulillah! - I marvelled at how the Government has really taken care to beautify the green landscape. The paths are cycle-friendly, level and clean, pretty little flowers and shrubs are planted in orderly rows at the sides, and the routes are planned with safety in mind. How come no one talks about these things in the papers? People find a thousand things to complain about in Singapore. Ungracious folks, rising costs, gamblers gambling earlier, political juveniles/psychopaths - the list will go on. But how about the good stuff?
Th simple pleasures I had today made me think of all the good things we have here. This might sound like some patriotic jazz, but really, we ought to feel blessed for having things that literally billions around the world can only dream of [check this - almost a billion people don't have access to water from a clean water source]. NParks is doing a great job in helping to people reconnect with nature and have a good, peaceful ride or walk in the park.
Maybe next time we can indulge in another similar cycling spree... maybe a longer route covering the entire 9km park connector at East Coast.
As we cycled through the East Coast and some park connectors - alhamdulillah! - I marvelled at how the Government has really taken care to beautify the green landscape. The paths are cycle-friendly, level and clean, pretty little flowers and shrubs are planted in orderly rows at the sides, and the routes are planned with safety in mind. How come no one talks about these things in the papers? People find a thousand things to complain about in Singapore. Ungracious folks, rising costs, gamblers gambling earlier, political juveniles/psychopaths - the list will go on. But how about the good stuff?
Th simple pleasures I had today made me think of all the good things we have here. This might sound like some patriotic jazz, but really, we ought to feel blessed for having things that literally billions around the world can only dream of [check this - almost a billion people don't have access to water from a clean water source]. NParks is doing a great job in helping to people reconnect with nature and have a good, peaceful ride or walk in the park.
Maybe next time we can indulge in another similar cycling spree... maybe a longer route covering the entire 9km park connector at East Coast.
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