THE ARAB MAN HAS COME BACK!

THE ARAB MAN HAS COME BACK!

AFTER returning from her Umra, Rosmah suddenly came to my office. She looked depressed and restless. She told me that her life had not been the same ever since she got back from Mecca. She felt really pressure.

     "Why, Mah? Tell me what's the problem. There's no one else in the office, just the two of us. Tell me!" I urged her.

     Rosmah kept silent. She was reluctant to tell me her story. Her face changed. I wanted to ask again but didn't have the heart to push her. I let her calm down first.

     Several months ago, Rosmah registered her name with the umra agency that I run. We have known each other for a long time. Rosmah performed her Umra with her husband. They are both businessmen from Mersing.

     "Mahh... if you have a problem, just tell me! Maybe I can help?" I cajoled her. Still, she kept quiet. Moments passed... and eventually she broke her silence.

     "I've been having bad dreams since I returned from Mecca, hajah!" said Rosmah who was in her early 40s. She often called me 'hajah'.

     "I can't even fall asleep without having strange dreams," she continued.

     I was surprised to hear her explaination. Many times I repeated 'astaghfirullah'.

     "Maybe you did something wrong while you were there?" I asked her. She went silent and kept her face down. My guess must be right; she must have done something unsavoury while performing her Umra.

     "What was the dream, Mah?" I asked her.

     "I kept dreaming of being chased by an Arab man, Hajah. He wore a turban, big build, with a cruel face. Each time I fall asleep, this Arab man would always appear in my dream. It's like he's angry with me. I'm really scared, hajah! Yesterday I dreamt that I was sitting in the desert reciting my du'a. My body was sweating profusely because of the heat. I did not feel calm throughout the whole process. I felt like there was somebody behind me."

     "After I completed my du'a. I turned around. And the Arab man was with me! I immediately woke up. I was shivering. I couldn't sleep until morning," Rosmah told me.

     I was fascinated by Rosmah's story. I certainly did not understand why that was happening to her. She explained to me that the dreams really disturbed her. It carried into her waking moments too.

     "The Arab man seems to be following me all the time, hajah. Why am I getting these dreams? What does it trying to say?" Rosmah asked me.

     "Hish! What nonsense are you talking about, Rosmah? Dreams don't mean anything. Maybe they are just reminders. Now, why don't you tell me what you did when you performed your umra last time?" I coaxed her.

     Rosmah was reluctant to tell me anything. But I kept urging her to tell me the real story. In the end, she agreed and told me everything.

     It went like this... From Jeddah, the group that Rosmah was a part of was taken straight to Medina. As usual, they stopped at the Prophet's Mosque and carried out their sunat ritual.

     During the three days that she was there. Rosmah did not encounter any problems. The following day, they went to Mecca. The group organiser asked for the pilgrims to carry out their Ihram bathing, cut their nails and to wear Ihram before departing to Mecca.

     Upon their arrival at Bir Ali, Rosmah made her Umra intentions as requested by the organiser. But when she got to Mecca, without realising it, Rosmah started to have her menses. It did not cross her mind to enquire about the matter at all.

     Due to her lack of knowledge and the fact that she was too embarrassed to ask, Rosmah remained silent about it. She did not tell the organiser anything. Rosmah knew that those who were having their menses could wear their Ihram and make their Ihram intentions, so she assumed that a person wearing Ihram was permitted to carry out the other rituals and duties.

     Rosmah entered Al-Masjid al-Haram and did her tawaf, before continuing on with sayee as well as tahalul. She did not realise at all that her actions were wrong.

     Even though the agent had reminded everybody that a woman in menses was prohibited to perform Umra, Rosmah ignored it. As far as she was concerned, Umra was just 'Umra'. It wasn't like it was a compulsory duty like Hajj.

     Again, I repeated "astaghfirullah" several times. I was stunned to hear Rosmah's confessions. I subsequently told her that an Umra was not something to trifle with. I sternly reprimanded my friend for not telling her husband about the matter.

     According to Rosmah, she did. The problem was that he kept quiet too because he also was unsure about the rules and regulations of the Umra. Unfortunately, they failed to inform the agent about it.

     "I waited for my menses to stop but there was no time. I didn't get the chance to replace my ibadah. When it was time to go home, my menses still had not stopped. I didn't get the chance to do the Tawaf al-Wida!" Rosmah explained to me.

     "When you got the menses, did you pay your Dam? Or, did you nullify your Ihram?" I asked Rosmah seriously.

     She shook her head. "No, I just came straight back," she said.

     I let out a long sigh. I explained to Rosmah that the ibadah she had carried out was not perfect. Even in Umra, there were rules and regulations that needed to be adhered to.

     "I told you, didn't I? I reminded you not to rush doing your Umra. Do your reading on it first! But you didn't. You were too eager. Now, look at all the mistakes you've done," I said.

     Rosmah did not reply. It was true that she was in a rush to do her Umra. She just wanted to do it quickly. It seems that she and her husband took a vow to perform Umra if their business was successful.

     "So, what am I to do now?" Rosmah asked me.

     I shook my head. There were too many problems, and I told her so. Not only that, she left Mecca without performing a special prayer for nullifying Umra, and paying her Dam. So many problems, I stressed to Rosmah again.

     "Mah... when you enter the Al-Masjid al-Haram with your menses, the penalty of your Dam is heavy. You have to slaughter a camel."

     "Since returning from Mecca, did you sleep with your husband? Ah... you were still in a state of Ihram, you know! If you did, then you have to pay another Dam and slaughter another camel. There are two camels you have to pay for, Mah..." I explained.

     I continued telling her that what I had listed out did not include the Dam Ehsar, the penalty of slaughtering a sheep for other wrongdoings such as cutting the hair and nail, kissing the husband and many more.

     "Don't play a fool, Mah. This is Allah's orders! You have to follow!" I stressed to her.

     Rosmah was shocked. It was like she could not believe that the mistakes she committed had to be paid with six types of dam. I asked her to take her husband and refer the problem to someone who could advise them about resolving it.

     "Why is my fate like this Hajah? I only intended to carry out my duties to Allah. Instead, I end up having to pay these dam," grumbled Rosmah to me.

     And no wonder. It wasn't like the penalty was a minor one. For sure, two camels, and not including a sheep, needed to be slaughtered. Definitely her expenses would be big.

     I explained to Rosmah that those were Allah's rules. His laws cannot be bargained like in the markets. Whatever the amount of the Dam, she has to settle it.

     Rosmah was silent, unable to utter a single word. She was stunned at what had happened to her. She never once thought that something like this would happen. I advised her to complete her Umra and settle the dam that had been fixed.

     "If not... the Arab man will come and strangle you later!" I said jokingly to Rosmah before she left my office.

     Not long after that, Rosmah performed her Umra with her husband again. This time, she organised her journey more carefully because she did not want her menses to come while she was in the Holy Land.

     Apart from that, Rosmah had also done her reading and understood the ibadah better. She paid the penalty which needed to be settled. She also slaughtered two camels while she was there. That was not including the other six sheep that needed to be slaughtered for the other Dam. Not including giving food to the poor. It was a good thing that Rosmah could afford it and that money was not an issue for her and her husband.

     With Allah's will, upon her return from that Umra, Rosmah's life returned to normal and was calmer. The Arab man no longer disturbed her sleep.

N / F : FROM " THE BEST COLLECTION OF STORIES FROM MECCA", BY MASTIKA.