Reviewed
by Sajjad Shaukat
Renowned poet Alexander writes, “What oft was thought, but ne'er so well express'd…Expression
is the Dress of Thought.” In this respect, in his book, “Journey Towards
Allah”, which is in fact a
travelogue, Dr. Asif Mahmood Jah, while performing his own Hajj rituals,
expresses his personal experiences and those of other pilgrims, including
visited sacred places so brightly that the readers feel as if they
are themselves accompanying the author and are performing the pilgrimage.
His strong belief in God could be judged from
his first sight at Kaaba, the actual abode of Allah, situated in Makkah. In
this context, Dr. Asif Jah, writes, “A wave of spiritualism penetrated in my
body and a coma-like situation gripped me…with tears in my eyes, I felt that I
was being absorbed in the House of Allah and was standing before the court of
my Creator.”
The author explains,
“Allah, the Almighty is the Creator of the Universe and even a little particle
is engaged in his praise all the time. A true Muslim feels real pleasure in his
life when he presents himself before Allah in Masjidul Haram or before the last
Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in his mausoleum in his city (Madinatul Nabi).” In this
regard, every moment of this spiritual experience was unique and enthusiastic,
while Dr. Asif Jah was full of commitment and devotion towards Kaaba and the
holy Prophet.
In the book, Dr Asif Jah
elaborates, “A most notable and important matter of my journey is that I have
jotted down my feelings and sentiments in black and white, while sitting before
Kaaba and the holy place (Riaz-ul-Jannat) of the holy Prophet’s mausoleum.” He
mentions in detail about the seven rounds of Kaaba.
Dr. Asif Jah illustrates
his journey towards the Ghar-i-Hira (Cave of Light) where our holy Prophet
Muhammad (PBUH) used to contemplate and adore Allah Almighty, and where God
revealed the first lines of the holy Quran to him through the Arch-angel
Jibrael. On attainment of 40 years of age, the holy Prophet was revealed the
lesson of the Saura-i-Alaq. The author has indicated these lines in his
travelogue, while sitting inside the Cave.
The author points out
that the way to the Cave of Light is most difficult and zigzag and needs a
strong determination to attain the objective. According to him, “After all, we
reached the Cave of Hira.” In the way, there are more than 1300 steps to reach
the Cave. Pakistanis, Indians, Bangladeshis and people from Africa have
established their shops from where the people purchase juices and hot cups of
tea to satisfy their thirst and hunger. He writes, “It is a unique occasion
when someone spends some moments outside the Cave of Hira and is excited to go
inside the Cave. On my turn, I entered into the Cave and felt immense pressure,
filled with mysticism, while continuing writing down the lines for the book.
There I recited Darood and Salam. I received spiritual ecstasy and
forgot what I had intended to pray, as I was overawed by the name of Allah
Almighty. What a time? It could be when Allah bestowed upon this Cave his
blessings and revealed the holy Quran on the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).”
After returning from the
Cave of Hira, he thanked God Almighty who granted him courage and effort to
complete his sacred journey downward. Then Dr. Asif Jah narrates his journey
towards the Cave of Saur. The Arab driver took them towards the mountain Saur
and started dilly-dallying in order to extract as much money as he could muster
from Pakistani foreigners.
While imagining the Makkah
of 1424 years back when no proper road was manufactured and high mountains had
besieged the path on all sides, the author remembered the days with sorrow when
the enemies had forced the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) and his dear companion
Hazrat Abu Bakar Siddique to take shelter in the Cave of Saur for three days.
Then, in accordance with the order of Allah Almighty, they went on Hajrat to
Yasrab, with the Prophet’s message to all the non-Muslims. The author
visualized the difficulties, borne by these great personalities in the Cave,
while anti-Islam elements had been searching them everywhere.
Dr. Asif Jah noted that
during the Hajj occasion, at least three million pilgrims visit the holy places
in Makkah and Madina. It is commendable that men from Police and Armed Forces
control the Hajj system efficaciously. Showing realistic approach, he observed
that in order to reach Hajre-e-Aswad and acquire a place in Riadh-al Jannat,
people struggle strenuously and achieve their target after strong push and
pull. In this race, Pathans and Africans are not behind others, while some
Pakistanis, Indians and Bangladeshis also follow the suit. However Indonesians,
Malaysians and Nepalese, including Turkish people are harmless, who do not push
others to go ahead in completing the rituals of Hajj. They are never impatient
and restless in performing the Hajj ceremonies. They perform Hajj and other
tenets of Islam in an amicable manner.
Being author of several
books (travelogues), Dr. Asif Jah has enumerated the difficulties encountered
by the pilgrims during their stay in Makkah and Madinatul Nabi. While, expressing
his personal experiences and those of other pilgrims, he mentions, particularly
about cold and flu, bronchial diseases and the stomach diseases. In this
connection, being a medical practitioner, he provided free medical treatment to
the affected pilgrims, and distributed medicines amongst them.
Besides, the author has
also pointed out the conduct of tour operators and travel agents whose attitude
before looking is entirely different from that of the later stage of the
pilgrimage. They are the exploiters who want to earn money only and do not
perform their duties properly during the Hajj days. In this context, he regrets
that on this holy occasion, these people are involved in malpractice.
While praying, Dr Asif
Jah also imagined that Allah is seeing his humble self and all other pilgrims
from the Heaven. He prayed for all the Muslims who at the moment, are passing
through various crises and difficulties.
Nevertheless, Dr. Asif
Mahmmod Jah’s travelogue, published in form of book is a unique compendium
which is full of his personal spiritual experiences and is worth-reading by the
intending pilgrims of the future, as it shows his power of observation,
farsightedness and in-depth study of feelings related to the Hajj pilgrims.
Dr. Asif Mahmmod Jah is an officer in the
Customs Department and is well-known for his honesty and efficiency. Being
himself a doctor and social worker, he has been running a free dispensary for
those patients who cannot afford costly treatment. Over the years, he has
established a large net-work of free dispensaries for the poor. Notably,
in wake of his multiple official and non-official engagements, the author has
been helping the suffering humanity at large by considering himself as servant
of the poor and the needy.
Title:
Journey Towards Allah
Author:
Dr. Asif Mahmood Jah
ISBN
9781329827165
Publisher:
Ilm-o-Irfan Publishers, Al-Hamd Market, Urdu Bazar, Lahore
Price: Rs.
1200/-(US $ 15)
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