By Ruqoyah Mazlan

This Muharram retreat felt different.

What started out last year as three 6-seater cars making the road trip to KL has now grown into something much bigger: a 40-seater bus, accompanied by cars that drove in on their own, filled with His servants from all walks of life.

We used to stay in service apartments, but this time, it was two large townhouses. There were so many new faces, and yet, everything felt familiar. Maybe because when hearts are gathered for Allah, they don’t feel like strangers for long.

2 Lessons That I Carry Back To Singapore With Me:

Surrendering Is Not Passive

A reminder that stayed with me: another word for Islam is taslim تسليم — to surrender.

To truly be Muslim is to surrender everything — our desires, our fears, our plans — to the will of Allah. It’s to stop fighting the flow of His decree and to trust that His plan is better than ours, always.

BUT SURRENDER DOESN’T MEAN PASSIVITY. IT’S NOT ABOUT SITTING BACK AND DOING NOTHING. IN FACT, REAL SURRENDER IS DEEPLY ACTIVE — IT’S CHOOSING TO REMEMBER ALLAH IN EVERYTHING, IN EVERY BREATH AND EVERY STEP.

It’s continuing to seek Him even when we’re weary, even when the world pulls us in every direction.

Think of it like our favorite 24-hour mamak — always open, always ready to serve. Our hearts, too, should be on a 24/7 schedule of remembrance, always turned toward Him no matter the hour.

Because Allah is never off-duty. He’s the One keeping us alive — every second, without pause. While we struggle to remember Him, He never stops taking care of us.

Understanding The Value of Knowledge

I was reminded about how sacred it is to learn. In a time when knowledge is often pursued for credentials, titles, or career advancement, we were reminded of Imam Al-Ghazali’s daily schedule — where seeking knowledge, worship, family time, and finding sustenance each had their rightful place.

That is the true definition of a balanced life. And what a reminder that seeking knowledge should be for the sake of Allah, not just for increasing our income.

To use sacred knowledge only for worldly gain, our teacher said, is a disgrace to that knowledge.

That hit me hard. Because in today’s world, it’s easy to fall into the trap of productivity, performance, and prestige.

But real knowledge should humble us. It should make us more gentle, more forgiving, more in awe of our Creator. And if it doesn’t, we’re doing it wrong.

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As we step into 1447H, I ask Allah to make this new year a journey of sincere seeking — one where we chase the truth (Ya Haqq), deepen our surrender, and be in constant remembrance of Him.

May Allah accept every step, every sujud, every noble intention we had during this retreat.

May He continue to gather our hearts for Him and keep us sincere in our journey.

May this Hijri year be a blessing for us all.

Do You Believe in One God
& Ready to [Re]start your Journey of Faith & Gratitude as a Muslim?