Ten Days of Spot-Fixing, Weeping for Cricket, Accusations, Denials and Pakistan Bashing

So much has been alleged and printed about Pakistan Cricket and its latest fiasco lately but for a good reason nevertheless.
Since accusation of match-fixing, spot-fixing, fancy-fixing, or whatever you want to call this type of fraud in sports which hit the roof against Pakistan’s national cricket team on August 29 2010, views on that event (even from those who were not involved in the sport) appear to be as regular as if having the three meals of a day!
One should read this link and have a time of his/her life reading the comments of various people because here are mentioned some important and colorful comments including scraps of some news gossips, which help in unfolding the story, all in one mark:

http://www.newslinemagazine.com/2010/09/ten-days-of-spot-fixing-weeping-for-cricket-accusations-denials-and-pakistan-bashing/

More babbling...Less action!

More talk shows, more guests, but less action is all we see. Since a couple of months, the bodies have been piling up – perhaps not in as large numbers as before, but piling up nevertheless – yet nothing substantial is being done about the raging violence in Karachi or even in all parts of the country
On media, we find representatives from all Pakistani political parties such as  MQM, ANP and PPP have been appearing on news talk shows. But there is nothing new the politicians have to offer to the conversation of tackling the situation in Karachi. They are only seen repeating the same dialogues what they have said before too.
In fact, at some point or the other, they start questioning each other’s conduct and play *Blame game* with each other. Though they call each other brothers but at the same time accuse each other of misconduct and inaction. And the discussion eventually comes full circle and ends with the hard to pin down mafias and gangs that are operating in Karachi which must be eradicated
It should be fair and square mentioned to them that where you all talk about taking action, one should know what kind of action they are talking about and what actually is necessary for the people of the nation!

And the Quest to help continues….

"In helping others, we shall help ourselves,

for whatever good we give out completes the circle

and comes back to us."

Flora Edwards

Nearly a month after floods first began battering Pakistan, and as waters still sweep through the south of the country, the flood victims are still homeless and hardly can cope up with the necessities of life i-e food, clothing and shelter and their old pleasant lives seem to be dream for them.
We do see many Government authorities, different UN welfare organizations extending a helping hand towards the flood victims but what is more pride taking is the efforts and the love of humanity we see in the citizens of Pakistan.
A couple of days we see people going door-to-door and collecting funds, taking out rallies in order to motivate the citizens to help collect food and clothing items for the ones who have lost all their valuables in the flood, as well as mobilizing people across the world through internet, telephone calls, and launching a massive appeal on the streets. What we observe is that the most effective way people can assist relief efforts is by making cash contributions to charitable organizations that are conducting relief operations. Cash donations help in buying the exact items needed in the affected regions, reduce the burden of scarce items, and also support the people financially which can in turn ensure their dietary, environmental and cultural needs. We see the outstanding efforts of citizens who have earned a lot of amount mostly in Lakhs and have donated all to the flood victims under the label of different organizations such as PAF base, a flood relief camp that was held at Royal Rodale in Karachi, a relief camp conducted by Senator Nilofer Bakhtiar, etc. A friend of mine, who is part of a non-profit youth organization FLP (Future Leaders of Pakistan), recently came back from the flood affected areas and said that on visiting the relief camps, she witnessed the miseries of the victims as they were badly affected by the deadly floods. She saw that the poor people didn’t even have clean water to drink and people hadn’t even taken bath since days. She remarked that even along with her large number of members of the committee with her, they couldn’t cover even half of the families of that camp.
Then again, we see doctors, general physicians doing collective efforts for the flood victims and checking for different diseases, that have enveloped the people there; and treating them. The flood victims are endangered to have caught diseases such as malaria, cholera, typhoid and many other lethal diseases. But my friend emphasized a lot that the flood affected victims need more doctors and medicines because the state of people living there is very critical and they should get under immediate observation.
I also went on the flood relief drive through my University i-e Szabist, in which we went on a march for about six hours, for three consecutive days and earned almost Seven Lakhs. It was a good initiative by students of Szabist to march on their toes in Ramadan and collect funds for the flood victims. Inspiring was the generosity of the common man, we saw in these three days --from rickshaw drivers to security guards and to laborers, who without any hesitation gave money to us in order to the help the flood victims. Not only this, we see individuals on roads, carrying a box in their hands and asking for charity for the flood victims on roads .We even see people with the heart of Gold who don’t belong to any committee or organization, are sending Ramadan packages to flood affected population.
By the efforts we see and hear of Pakistanis, we feel that though Pakistan has become paralyzed by consecutive traumatic events that hit the country, but our country still stays Green because of the Ever Green people residing in its heart. The efforts of citizens give us all a lot of hope and confidence that together we as a nation can survive this terrible tragedy and come out stronger, because I feel that even a little effort brings about tangible results and also, people never forget that helping hand when the times are tough for them!

“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”~ Maria Robinson.

“If Tomorrow never Comes”

Sensation of mixed feelings was being felt by me while penning down my thoughts on “what if tomorrow never comes”.
 
We forget sometimes, that the word “IF” is attached to our lives like glue. For example if we make others happy; they will be happy with us, if we be good to parents we will be rewarded in the hereafter, if we do hard work; only then we will prosper, if I don’t eat food; I will get weak....everything has an if in it! And especially this “if” determines the real aim of living in this world i.e. if we do good deeds in this life on the earth, then we will enter Jannah or else if we don’t then we will be thrown into hell fire.

My mind was racing so vigorously when I thought if I die tomorrow, the only thing that I have been doing lately is I have been sulking the whole time. I haven’t done either things...neither have made Allah happy and neither the people around me and neither myself! We disobey our parents, we watch TV, listen to music, have quarrels with our best buddies, taunt our siblings, don’t even read the Quran since days, offer Salah whenever we feel like......May Allah forgive us All! Ameen*

We all forget the time of death that we don’t even know when it will come upon us! It maybe tomorrow, after a month or maybe even after 20 years!

I feel so astonished just by thinking of Brittany Murphy, the young beautiful singer cum actor, who died recently. What would her last act be?? She mustn’t be offering her salah, or praying to Allah for Mercy...because the foremost thing that ends all talks would be that Lshe mustn’t even know who Allah swt is!

And another thing that actually scares me and gives me Goosebumps is the idea of me being buried 10 feet deep down the ground and the Angels coming...they ask me the questions that would determine my destiny in the hereafter...And I not be able to give the answers and they say that saleha because you gave wrong answers you will not be honored to enter Jannah but will be thrown into hell fire! *shudders* Astagfirullah!
This life truly is temporary, and we still don’t get a reality check by seeing people who are dying every other day be it a natural death, suicide, murders or bomb blasts! Because at the end of the day, we have become nothing but insensitive!
The first and foremost thing that clicks my mind is that whatever happens is according to the will of Allah! He knows best! And that Allah is angry with us and we should take heed from these traiumatic events that are happening around us and turn towards him for forgiveness but instead we just cry or regret for just a couple of minutes and then continue partying out and think of bringing the show down!

The remedy of this anarchy that we have created is that we need to take a BIG STEP closer to Allah (swt) and make him happy!
We do a lot of things to make our loved ones happy and even go out of our way to do something special for them but what about Allah? Our Deen-e-Islam? Have we done anything for it or for Our Lord? Towards which we turn only when we want to? The answer is simple and short...A NO!

The feeling less namaz that we offer, without having any depth in our hearts is that what we do for Allah, the One entity who loves us the most??
The time is changing but the only one who actually has to change is the Ashraful Makhlookaat...that is us! The ones who have been given the brain and Aqal to ponder but we don’t use that!

Would end my reflections by saying that days pass by, Ages go by, but the Love for Allah shouldn’t pass away from time to time but should be getting stronger and stronger by every tick of the clock!

May Allah give us all hidayat towards the enlightened straight path! Ameen*

all that is left is the moth smoke...

Moth Smoke is the superb debut novel by Mohsin Hamid, and is taken as a steamy and often darkly amusing book about sex, drugs, and class conflict in postcolonial Asia.

Moth Smoke tells the story of Darashikoh Shezad, who is a banker by profession, who loses his job when he refuses to be traditional in corrupting the influential people, but the twist in the story is when he falls in love with his best friend's wife, which thrust him into a life of anguish, drugs and crime. The book is a wonderful commentary on the gap between the middle and the upper classes, corruption and the favoritism, together with the excitement and guilt that comes with those misdeeds.

My favorite part of the book was the essay on air conditioning and how it divides the elite, rich minority from the poor, sweating masses. In the novel, the air conditioner becomes the symbol of division between the haves and the have-nots with far reaching consequences on the lives of the novel's characters. It breaks up a marriage, starts an affair, causes a death and leaves a strong mark upon the protagonist's mind.

The foremost metaphor used in the novel is that of a love struck moth circling the flame. As it comes closer and closer till its wings are burnt and all that is left is the moth smoke. Like the moth that self destructs and is reduced to nothing in its mad love for the flame, Daru's love for his best friend's wife also causes his disgrace. Their forbidden love puts away both of them till nothing remain but ashes of her marriage and the dust of his life.

The ending is more breathtaking and critical in its own sense, where Ozi (who is the bestfriend of Daru) sends Daru to jail in revenge for his affair with his wife by accusing him of a hit and run accident in which he himself was the guilty party.

Therefore summing up, I would say that Mothsmoke is one such book, which urges the reader to pursue the next chapter and another, as it comprises of suspense, tinge of romane and also with well defined characters and dialogues.