Yayasan Ta'lim Inaugral Dinner 2019
- 20th April, Palace of the Golden Horses.
“Invest in Jannah: Lend Your Creator a Goodly Loan” by Sheikh Ibraheem Menk
Alhamdulillah by the Mercy of Allah, Yayasan Ta’lim Inaugral dinner was a success.
On a personal note, many thanks and jazakumUllahu khayra to the Yayasan Ta’lim committee for allowing me the chance to contribute and entrusting me as the MC for the event.
May Allah reward and accept the efforts of all of the committee involved and may this be a means of constructing our legacy for success Hereafter – from the team at YT, organizing committee, our guest of honor Sheikh Ibraheem Menk for his support of the event, and all the participants themselves who purchased tables in direct support of the funding initiative: da’wah, tarbiyah, sadaqah and ilm are a collective effort.
As the Prophet ﷺ said, everyone who played a role – both in the front lines, and behind the scenes – deserve a fair share of reward from Allah. Rasulullah ﷺ said,
إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَيُدْخِلُ بِالسَّهْمِ الْوَاحِدِ ثَلاَثَةً الْجَنَّةَ صَانِعَهُ يَحْتَسِبُ فِي صَنْعَتِهِ الْخَيْرَ وَالرَّامِيَ بِهِ وَالْمُمِدَّ بِهِ
“Indeed, Allah will surely admit three into Paradise by a single arrow. Its maker who seeks good by his making it, the one who shoots it, and the one who holds arrows for him” (Narrated by At-Tirmidzi and An-Nasa’ee)
May Allah create this as a launching platform for many great things to come as we make our mark in “history in the making”, and grant the reward of Jannatul Firdaus to all involved.
Token of appreciation received from Haji Ariff Puteh, founder of Yayasan Ta’lim. Alhamdulillah it was a great honor to directly be contributing to Yayasan Ta’lim, even if it is at a very small capacity as an MC.
It's truly inspiring to hear the humble beginnings of how YT started : a group of friends who got together, collaborated with their time and money with the sincere intention to learn Islamic knowledge together. Who would've thought that - fast forward a decade later - it would have the reach and mileage that it did: that thousands have benefitted greatly from the knowledge shared.
I personally have benefitted greatly with regards in my Islamic knowledge and development, especially with respect to Aqidah and Tajwid. And the barakah of YT has extended its continuous great benefit to as far as our friends and families on the other side of the country as far as where we live in Miri, Sarawak.
It's all from the barakah (blessings) of Allah in which He Plants in from his Love and Mercy, when we are sincere and passionate about doing something for His Sake.
Worry about the "efforts" : how sincere you are, how much dedication and effort you put in. Leave the Results to Allah.
We make du’aa and ask Allah grants continuous barakah to YT to be a continuous foundation and platform for da’wah and ilm for our ummah, and that I can continue to contribute in whatever capacity that Allah grants me.
Speaking for the very first time in Malaysia, it was an honor for us to have Sheikh Ibrahim Menk from Zimbabwe.
I personally learnt a good personal lesson behind the scenes with regards to my interaction with sheikh Ibraheem.
First of all, let's clear the proverbial elephant in the room. Sheikh Ibraheem is the nephew of Mufti Ismail Menk. And yes, he looks and speaks a lot like Mufti Menk in his mannerisms, pronunciation, similitudes, and overall speech delivery. And as I was preparing the MC, I couldn't help but have this great sense of deja vu...
I noticed that his biography bears a striking resemblance to Mufti Menk himself - born and live in Harare, Zimbabwe, studied shariah in University of Madinah, and completed his hifz (memorization of Qur'an) and various Islamic studies from his grandfather Sheikh Musa Menk (who is the father of Mufti Menk).
And when Mufti Menk gave his very first talk in Malaysia back in 2012, in fact I was the MC for the event (in my very first MCing experience for a formal event), and in that event, I read out his biography which is almost identical to what I see now (just swap "father" with "grandfather"). So naturally, I thought that will be an interesting piece of trivia to mention to the audience.
But I also realised, that out of courtesy, I should ask Sheikh Ibraheem first if he is okay with it. I understand and respect that some people prefer not to be referenced to other well-known personalities (I.e. The son of so-and-so), because they would prefer that we evaluate and accept them on their own personal merit and qualities, not riding off the thunder of other established individuals.
So after I officiated the opening ceremony, I went up to meet Sheikh Ibraheem in person during dinner before his talk. And that was the first time I would have a chance to speak to him in person.
Masha Allah, my first impression of him is, he is such a nice and good-natured person. I asked him how is everything so far and he immediately shared words of encouragement, in the lines of "Masha Allah, I really love your delivery and the way you communicate", etc.
I later asked him, "Sheikh, regarding your biography, would you mind if I make reference that you are the nephew of Mufti Ismail Menk?"
He paused for a second and he said he actually prefers me not to.
And I respected that.
So when I finally got around to introduce him for his speech, I scrapped off that line, stuck straight to the point, and invited him onstage.
May Allah grant barakah to the Sheikh.
"Remember, what we spend is what remains (with us in the Hereafter),
What we keep : is what we lose (when we die" (Sh. Ibraheem Menk)
To me, I have always considered the role of MC as more than just an "announcer"; an MC effectively carries the weight as the ambassador - the voice / the face / impression - of the event, and of the organizers. And it is with this in mind that I always carry this role with great love, care and respect to deliver my level best to add value and drive it towards success.
Because I consider that efforts such as this (as minor as it is) is still something that contributes to the daawah in the big picture, and every event is an opportunity to meet and bond with people, I also make it a commitment to uphold the highest levels of professionalism throughout the event, even if I do it for free.
I have received remarks in the past that I am a "natural talent". Masha Allah may Allah reward the good intention of the words being said, but the truth is, on my side of the story, the truth is quite the opposite: Having never done any form of public speaking or debates in my schooling years, I have always considered myself inexperienced and lacking in talent, so I make up for it with hard work. What I do in front of the mic has nothing to do with talent at all: it's all purely hours of preparatory hard work in scripting and practicing behind the scenes.
Since I first started, I put conscious and continuous effort towards improving my craft, in scripting and delivery. There is a lot of room for improvement for sure, so do share me your feedback.
One of the most positive and encouraging feedback I've ever received from the organizers (bro Ish) was that he noticed that there was a significant improvement on my performance during the actual event, when compared to the rehersal. He mentioned that "I can tell that this guy probably spent an additional 2 hours alone, ironing out the script, practicing in front of the mirror".
As the main organizer who spent many many hours (way more than me!) many months prior for the event, he can certainly relate and appreciate the value of efforts behind the scenes.
This is my principle: The most important criteria in doing anything - including MC-ing - is passion and a sincere dedication towards ihsan (excellence). The skill development and result will only be a matter of effort. Without passion and sincerity, we will just come up with excuses (e.g. no talent/no time). Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَتَبَ الإِحْسَانَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَىْءٍ
"Verily, Allah has enjoined (that you perform with) excellence in every single thing" (Muslim)
I have received remarks also that "this guy is always the MC". There were even suggestions that it's time for me to "retire" and "groom successors" instead.
Regarding the "groom successors" part, I totally agree. I have no intention of hoarding a monopoly of the role. In fact I have offered to train others: unfortunately very few people want to step up or even give it a try. What I plan to do in the future insha Allah is to compile some material, perhaps collaborate with my friends who are fellow speakers (way better and more qualified than me) on composing courses/workshops to develop public speaking and presentation skills, especially among the youth.
Trust me, if this introvert, inexperienced, untalented guy can do a fairly decent job, so can you: way better in fact, if you put your heart to it.
Regarding the comment and suggestion to "retire".
Well, the way I see it, if organizers invite me, and if what I do can add value, then as long as I am able to contribute, I will do it insha Allah. It will be an honor to serve Allah in this way, even if it may seem trivial.
Jazakumullahu khayran to the organizing Committee once again for entrusting me with this privilege to contribute to the team, may Allah accept all of our efforts. BarakAllahu feekum
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