THE BRIDGE

Photo by EsmarE Hamid Kenoh 

Very recently someone had sent private messages to me via Facebook, asking me how to be khusyuk in solat. Apparently she had read my previous articles PRAYING WHILE GOING THETA and Q&A = PRAYING WHILE GOING THETA back to back. So I repeated my advice that understanding in her own language what was recited in arabic during prayer is the key. She said she had done that but still wonders if there are more tips I can give her.

I said yes, there is one other method of which I practiced for my own solat. This is one of which I have never shared except with my wife and the rest of my friends in the Watchers group. I haven't even shared it with my parent because I have no confidence of its truthfulness. In this era when some people might scream "bida'ah!.. bida'ah" at you whenever you share your 'personal opinion' on religion, it make me anxious to share something which purely based on personal experience.

I have been thinking for quite some time whether I should write this or not. Unlike the rest of my previous articles which were the accumulation of opinions by members of the Watchers Group. This things you're about to read is basically all mine after a dream that I had two years ago. I have discussed it with my fellows friends in the group and received a mix reaction. It does ignited an interesting discussion and all of my friends agreed that my profiling on this makes sense. The only problem is that

(a) there's no verses to back it up,
(b) there's no hadiths to back it up,
(c) there's no kitab to back it up,
(d) so far as I have googled, no one has spoken about it before.

and most importantly, none of us in the Watchers group believe we are religious enough to profile one of the most important verse in Quran without the benefit of a verse or hadith to back it up.

But I told that reader of mine about it, and since then she has been pestering me with repeated private messages urging me to write this one up. I have also spoken to my wife about it and she too encourages me to share this special experience with others. She said after listening to my story about the dream and my opinion about what "the bridge" might mean, it too has tremendously motivate her to concentrate during solat. It has also instilled a tremendous amount of fear to Allah whenever she think about what I had told her what "the bridge" might means.


After an hour of discussion via Skype, I finally got my approval from my group to write this one down. However, there is a caveat. They wanted me to write it in a manner to invite the general public to share their opinion. Some of you out who stumbled upon this article might be able to contribute to this issue. Please tell me your opinion via the comment section of these two questions:-

Do you believe this profiling of mine is harmful to the aqeedah of Ahli Sunnah Wal Jamaah and thus this article should be deleted?

I will monitor all your replies for about one month time and if the majority of you says that this article should be deleted.. then I will delete it with no question asked.

So here is my profiling of verse Al-Fateeha from a literal point of view (sort off)...

THE DREAM

The dream is actually very short and it occurs during the 3rd day of ramadhan 2010 when I was napping after praying zuhr. What I can remember is this -

In the dream I was amongst a tremendous group of people in a desert and it was extremely noisy. All of us were moving slowly forward toward something but at first I don't know what the raucous was all about.

Then I saw it, in front of us there is a huge gorge with larva flowing and fire bursting from within it. There was a long line of people queuing toward the pointy edge of the canyon and this time I was able to hear what they were saying. They were praying and saying something about THE BRIDGE. By this time and for no apparent reason I start panicking. So I decided to pray too. I folded my arms over my chest and pray and it sounded something like this (for this article I wrote it down in English but in the dream I was praying in Malay):-

"Dear God the ruler of the universe who owns this day of judgement. I beg you, please show mercy to me by allowing me to use the BRIDGE similar to the one used by your servants that you favored. Dear God, please I beg you not to let me use the the one that you have given to those who have angered you or the one that were used by those who have forsaken you. "

Then I woke up.

It was a scary nightmare for me, but it didn't really hit the nerve until a week later when by pure coincidence I read an article in a magazine which give details on what we all shall faced during the day of judgment. Here is an excerpt from it in English.

"After all their sins has been accounted for and before entering into Paradise or Hellfire, the people will have to cross A BRIDGE laid over Hellfire. This bridge is called SIRATUL MUSTAQEEM which is constructed over the fire of Hell. Depending on one's deeds while living, it can be broad or as thinner than a hair and sharper than a sword. This is the only road that can be taken to go to Jannat. The Prophet will be the first to cross the bridge, then All the Ambia and Mursaleen , followed by the Ummat of the Prophet and then the Ummats of all the other Prophets. One will pass over the bridge as per his deeds. Some will pass as fast as the flash of lightning. Some will pass like wind traveling at high speeds. Some will pass as fast as birds fly, whilst others will pass in the speed of a fast horse. Some will travel in the speed of a running man and some will be dragging themselves on their bottoms. There will be those who will be passing as slow as ants.

On both ends of Pul Siraat, there are two massive iron rods with curved ends like hooksand it will seize whomsoever it is commanded to seize. Some of those seized will be severely wounded, but will manage to pass the bridge, whilst others will be plunged by it into the fire of hell. The entire nations will be struggling to pass over the bridge, but our prophet Muhammadur Rasoolullah sallal laahu alaihi wasallam will be waiting on the other end of the bridge praying for his Ummah to pass with safety."

When I remembered that the bridge itself is named "Siratul-Mustaqim" then suddenly several things clicked in my mind.

First, I began to remember the prayer that I had recited in my dream and how familiar it sounded. My dua in that dream does sounded layman but then again when I think about it again and again, I began to realize that the meaning of my dua in the dream is similar to the meaning of surah Al-Fateeha. This is how I came to realize it

Now, for quite some time there was one thing about verse Al-Fateeha which caught my interest as profiler. It is very obvious that this surah is in a form of a 'doa' (supplication). I however was intrigued to know what mystery might be hidden in this short surah and to what situation might this 'doa' literally refers to. Now, other surah in the form of dua are plain clear. For example the wordings in verse Al-Ikhlas means that we are praying to strenghten our faith and not to worship other than Allah. Similarly for verse An-Nas we are seeking protection from black magic and whereas in Al-Falaq we are seeking refuge against all harms that might come from other creatures be it day or night.

Al-Fateeha on the other hand, has long been understood only metaphorically. It is well understood that the most meaningful portion of  Al-Fateeha is in the verse 1:6 which reads "EH'DENAS SIRAATAL MUSTAQEEM". The Sahih International has translated this portion of the verse into "Guide us in the right path" but other scholars has translated it as follows:-

ABDLH.YUSUF ALI: Show us the straight way,
MUHD M.W.PICKTHALL: Show us the straight path,
M.H.SHAKIR: Keep us on the right path.


So you see, other scholars didn't use the word "Guide us..", instead they ranslated it into either "Show us.." or "Keep us..". However, the words "Siraatal Mustaqeem" were consistently translated into "the right path" (or "the straight path"). Metaphorically, this means that we are praying so that Allah shows us the way to live in Islam. This too is another miracle of Al-Fateeha that I noticed during my research while writing my previous article "A LESSON FROM THE CONVERTS". Apparently people who earnestly pray to be shown the way into Islam will receieved a nod from the Al-Mighty.

A few quick examples as follows:-

Example 1.

"I met a kind, quiet Muslim man named "Hani." I approached the man and told him that I wanted to learn more about his religion. The first thing Hani recommended was reading the Qur'an, the revelation of Allah to His Prophet Muhammad. Hani even gave me a Qur'an (In fact, the small Arabic-English Qur'an that Brother Hani gave me is still one of my prized possessions). Hani inscribed in it the following words that continue to touch my heart: "May Allah guide us to the right path." I began reading the Qur'an and to my surprise, it made sense to me." (Source: An "All-American Boy")

Example 2.

 I heard one of my Muslim friends saying ‘I am going to pray for a while and will come back,’ so I told her that I want to pray as well.” Recalling that moment, Diam’s said she experienced feelings she had never before. “It was the first time that I touched the floor with head and I prayed for God to show me the truth, and I had a strong feeling that I have never experienced before,” Diam’s said. “I believe now that kneeling in prayer, shouldn’t be done to anyone but Allah.” (Mélanie Georgiades)

Example 3
God is unseen but there are clear proofs to those who care to look and listen. Partly as a result of this dream and other reflections, I recall making a little prayer for the first time in many years saying “God, if you exist then guide me.” (Lamaan Ball (M. Phys.)

Example 4.
Hanna was taken directly from the birthing room to the neo-natal intensive care unit. When I found out that my second daughter was blue I was very concern. I went to saw her in the ICU and saw from the level of her chest down to her toes she was in a deep dusky blue. We took a cardiac ultra sound and it showed she had a choarctasion of an aorta. I understood it at that time that my daughter is about to die. I was emotional and I left the ICU, I went down to the hallway to a prayer room nearby. I pray for the first time in my life with sincerity. I prayed "Oh God if you're there, I need help. If you save my daughter and guide me to a religion that is most pleasing to You - I promised to follow" (Dr Lawrence  Brown - Link)

So it is true that the prayer "Ed'denas Siraatal Mustaqeem" (Show us the straight way) is the most significant prayer that we all must perform while we're living in this world. So significant it is that during solat we are required to repeat it 17 times a day.

But then again, I can't help but wonder whether Al-Fateeha has another secret within it.

After the dream that I had, and upon knowing that the bridge in the day of resurrection is literally named "Siraatal Mustaqeem" itself, I cannot help but letting my profiling instinct to kick in. So I did and I found these verses within Al-Fateehah to be most intriguing.

1:3 - AR RAHMAANIR RAHEEM ("Most Gracious, Most Merciful")
الرَّحمـنِ الرَّحِيم

I found it interesting that in Al-Fateeha we're praying for for God's mercy. Usually people beg for mercy when they fear of an impending punishment. I wonder what kind of situation would make humanity all trembles in fear (noticed that in Al-Fateeha it uses the word "we" instead of "I").

1:4 - MAALIKI YAWMID DEEN ("Master of the Day of Judgment.")
مَـالِكِ يَوْمِ الدِّي

I think the answer to the question above is answered in the next verse. I now believe that the doa might refers to the day of judgment itself. This is the day when all humanity shall be in fear, begging to Allah for mercy and refer to Him as the Master of the day of Judgment.

1:5: EYYAAKA NA`BUDU, WA EYYAAKA NASTA`EEN ("You alone we worship; You alone we ask for help)

إِيَّاك نَعْبُدُ وإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِين

I think this one is easy to figure out. This is clearly a 'begging" in process. During a day of judgment we will all begging to Allah for help and tell Him that He alone we worship. The words is quite self explanatory.  But the question is, what it is we are begging for?

1:6 EH'DENAS SIRAATAL MUSTAQEEM ("Show us the straight way")

اهدِنَــــا الصِّرَاطَ المُستَقِي

This is where things gets interesting. If we read the verses and translated the words "siraatal mustaqeem" as "the straight path" then the meaning become a metaphor. In this world we are now living we will understand it as a doa to become a good Moslem.  

But consider this for a second,  what if  the bridge crossing over hell itself is literally named "SIRAATUL MUSTAQEEM?" Wouldn't  the phrase "Show us the Siraatul Mustaqeem" can also be understood as "Show us the bridge"? (because the bridge itself is literally called "Siratul Mustaqeem)

1:7 SIRAATAL LAZINA AN`AMTA `ALAYHIM;  ("the way of those whom You blessed")

صِرَاطَ الَّذِينَ أَنعَمتَ عَلَيهِمْ

This is also easy to profile. Here we are all begging to God to let us use the same bridge that had been used by those he has bestow favors. This refers to those who had perform good deeds in the world of the living. These are those who are able to cross Siraatul Mustaqeem easily. As mentioned above, some will pass like wind traveling at high speeds. Some will pass as fast as birds fly, whilst others will pass in the speed of a fast horse.

1:8 GHAYRIL MAGHDOOBI `ALAYHIM  ALADDAALEEN. ("not of those who have deserved wrath, nor of the strayers")
 غَيرِ المَغضُوبِ عَلَيهِمْ وَلاَ الضَّالِّين

This verse mentioned to two categories of people whom clearly will not be able to cross the Siraatul Mustaqeem. They are those who have earned the anger of Allah (I believe it's the Munafiqun) and those who who have gone astray (I believe these refers to those who worship others than Allah). When verse 1:7 and 1:8 are read together as a doa, it refers to a situation where we will all be begging to be included the first group of people (those mentioned in 1:7). It would be understandable why none of us would want to end up like the people in the categories mentioned in 1:8.

* * * * * * * *

I now think the reason why al-Fateeha is the first and the most repeated supplication I will have ever recited in my life is because it will be the last and also the most repeated doa I will supplicate right there in Mahsyar. This I believe will happened when it is my turn to cross the bridge. During solat I sometimes see this vision (I'm not sure whether I'm hallucinating while reciting Al-Fateeha) of standing there in mahsyar watching people before me trying to cross the bridge. I will see some of them being presented with a wide and beautifull bridge that is easy for them to walk or run on. Then there are people in category 2 and 3 all hanging like monkeys, screaming to keep their bleeding hand to grip on the bridge which is now as thin and razor sharp as a blade. Needless to say they eventually fall down into the fiery hell.

So that is how I manage to focus even more during my solat for the past 2 years since the dream occured to me. Most of the times during a prayer I cannot help but thinking of the day when I shall stand there with my hands crossing my chest and  looking down  (the same way my heads are bowing down when performing solat) at the gorge full fire, fully aware that I will have no choice but to cross over it someday . No doubt when presented with such brutal view, I tremble in fear and I believe anyone in my situation no doubts will do the same as I am- which is to repeats the Al-Fateehah again and again and again and again and again and again.. begging to Allah to let me use the category 1 bridge.

This is my secret method of keeping myself focus during solat. I am not saying that this is the way for you to follow, but reciting Al-Fateehah during solat, knowing what it means and then imagining yourself about to step on THE BRIDGE surrounded by river of fire can be extremely intimidating that you might end up crying.

But crying during solat is a good thing though.. I think..