Knowledge is great | What do you stand for?

Bismillah.

Hah...hah...you might recall a posting on 'What do I stand for?' posted last weekend. It turned out to be quite popular. I've been singing along to 'Some Nights' by Fun the whole week, repeating its chorus like a thousand times - 'What do I stand for. What do I stand for...' and then yesterday (Saturday) I saw the above postcard hah...hah...what a coincident. Hmm...maybe not. Maybe it's a serious divine query from the Lord - "Hey woman, what do you stand for?!"

That postcard is a promo item by the University of Stirling, Scotland. I stood for about 6 hours promoting my alma mater. It was fun. Actually I was promoting DREAMS, among youth especially. You have got to stir up your dreams, you know.

The first, and the last time I attended 'Education in UK' exhibition, I was 17. I was clueless. Being a teenager during late 80s was different. We, well I, was not as advanced as the school kids nowadays. But the exhibition left a good impression on me. I fell for UK. So I was absolutely gutted when I got sent to the US instead. But listen to me, girls and boys, we must keep our dreams alive and pursue them relentlessly. If God stirred a particular interest in your heart, then go for it. God may inspire some people to study religion at Al-Azhar. Others He sent elsewhere. There's a reason (hikmah) for anything and everything. There's a hikmah why my late father had to turn down a scholarship at Al-Azhar.  

So 18 years later, I finally got to experience UK education. And it's sweeter because it was self-funded. Alhamdulillah. Although I keep grumbling about the much higher exchange rate then.

Yes, knowledge is great. Beneficial knowledge is greater.

The Prophet salallah alaihi wasalam used to say after the dawn prayer: "O Allah, I ask You for beneficial knowledge, acceptable action and good provision." [Hadith al-Tirmidhi]

Because I studied in Stirling, I am obliged to happily promote the university. But then again I'd like to encourage you to STIR up your dreams and be a person of STERLING character no matter where and what you choose to study.  

Education UK Exhibition at KL Convention Center
30 - 31 March 2013

Best wishes,
Alumni
Uni of Stirling
www.stir.ac.uk

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Sunday 31st March 2013 @ Maghrib: 
Learn Al-Hikam from Shaykh Fahmi Zamzam al-Maliki at Ba'alawi KL
http://www.facebook.com/baalawikl