Apa yang dicari Ibrahim?

I attended ESQ renungan and session on "persediaan menghadapi Ramadhan" last nite, and to my great surprise, through reversed psychology type of insistence, my life partner agreed to be there as well. This is an achievement for me since I've been trying to get him to attend the ESQ training for a long, long time. Not yet on training, but on the "renungan", a step forward in persuasion skill.

The trainer Arief narrated on Nabi Allah Ibrahim's struggle in finding the meaning behind his life. Who is the ultimate owner of it all? What is hidden behind everything in life? Why are all these created? Why are we here? His search for the truth brought him to one day speaking in front of his people (all these were before he found Allah Almighty). Below are among his words:

1. Bila Ibrahim melihat bintang yang bersinar, dia berkata "Inilah Tuhanku", dan dia merasa bahagia. Tapi kemudiannya bintang itu hilang dari pandangan. "Ke mana pergi Tuhanku?" Dia merasa hatinya sudah tidak bahagia.
2. Kemudian Ibrahim melihat bulan yang mengambang dan bercahaya, dia berkata "Inilah Tuhanku", dan dia merasa bahagia. Tapi kemudiannya bulan itu hilang dari pandangan. "Ke mana pergi Tuhanku?" Dia merasa hatinya sudah tidak bahagia.
3. Kemudian esoknya Ibrahim melihat matahari yang lebih besar dan sinar yang lebih memancar, dia berkata "Inilah Tuhanku", dan dia merasa bahagia. Tapi kemudiannya matahari tenggelam dan hilang dari pandangan. "Ke mana pergi Tuhanku?" Dia merasa hatinya sudah tidak bahagia.

Sehinggalah Ibrahim diberi petunjuk dan seperti tertulis di dalam Al-Quran Ibrahim berkata "Allah itu adalah Tuhanku, aku tidak akan mempersekutukannya".

What happened to Nabi Allah Ibrahim is exactly what is happening to us. A little bit on reflection of ourselves.

1. Bila kita kejarkan jawatan tinggi dan pangkat, kita akan jadikan itu matlamat, silap2 jadi bertuhankan jawatan tinggi dan pangkat. Bila dah dapat, bahagia seketika. Kemudian mula lah hati kembali merasa tidak bahagia.
2. Kemudian kita kejarkan wang ringgit dan kuasa, kita akan jadikan itu matlamat, silap2 jadi bertuhankan itu. Bila dah dapat, bahagia seketika. Kemudian mula lah hati kembali merasa tidak bahagia.
3. Kemudian kita kejarkan membina keluarga dengan limpahan material, tapi tidak dlm spiritual development. Mungkin satu hari kelak ahli keluarga kita berpaling tadah dan menjadi insan yang menyakiti hati kita. Kita akhirnya juga merasa tidak bahagia.

Jadi, dimanakah kebahagiaan sebenar? It goes back to the questions posed by Nabi Allah Ibrahim.

So what about us? Have you for one second, thought about all these things? Maybe you can try this. Try to hold your breath for one second, close your eyes, clear your mind, and try to find that very thing of why we exist, and where do we go from here. Sometimes we are so engrossed in our routine, we forget to look beyond.

This will clearly lead you to your next action and if you search deep enough, insya Allah it will lead you to the right path. Follow your instinct, God-given since you're in your mother's womb.

The feedback from my life partner has not been encouraging enough. Looks like I have to do more selling. Those who have gone through training will see life differently, believe me. For more info you can visit www.esq.com.my.