Di Bawah Lindungan Kaabah

PROLOGUE

The original's cover of the novel, as I remember it.
Taken from Idris Talu's blog wo permission,
with apology

It is one of Dr Hamka's darkest novel, much darker than Tenggelamnya Kapal van der Wijck, or any of the short stories in Di Dalam Lembah Kehidupan.

And it is the most expensive movie in Indonesia.

I read the novel when I was in primary school - heck, I read most of Dr Hamka's novels by then, so in a sense, when I was young, I lived and breath all his sad, and most melancholic of stories. Mind you, not all, were love stories, if you know what I mean. His story lines were more diverse than typical Malaysian novels, nowadays especially.

I tried looking for the novel in my library, but somehow I could not find it. It is not the thickest of Bapak Hamka's novel. In fact it is one of the thinnest, so it could be the reason I have difficulty in locating the movel. In my mind too, I believe I could finish the novel in less than one hour, and thought I should pen my thought for this entry after I had re-read the novel.

To me, while I was captured by the twist of fate of Tenggelamnya Kapal van der Wijck, I thought the fate of the two lovers in DBLK were worst off. While I was captivated by the described beauty of Sitti Nurbaya (by Marah Rusli, and her suffering in her forced marriage the old but rich Datuk Meringgih, I thought that Zainab suffered the most through her marriage to a man deemed more suitable than Hamid by her parents.

I am not sure why to be honest, just the way the stories was told from the two lovers' perspectives. May be because the two were too fragile in characters, that we have no choice but to drown our sorrow with them.

As I have mentioned, the novel is a bit too short for one to develop the characters and give it more depth - not unlike those of short stories, but then again it had developed to such an extend that I was aggrieved when Hamid was banished.

You should read the (love) letters between them - it is sad, and melancholy and they had basically given up on living. She had become a 'walking skeleton', someone devoid of life.

At least, that's how I remember her and the ending of her life.

I may be wrong, but without going through the novel, after 40 years, I can still imagine her agony. And I don't want to relive them, or in a sense, I even dread re-reading them!

Di Bawah Lindungan Kaabah - The Movie

Apparently, it was released in Indonesia last Lebaran and that it went to No 1 for 3 weeks. I would not have known about it had I not read the Jakarta's edition of The Straits Times. Apparently, it has been released in Singapore yesterday.

Apparently too, it is the most expensive Indonesian movie.

I guess I am not into movies nowadays and hence this escapes me.

So I am all excited and at the same time too, I have mixed feeling. I remember all too well reading the Count of Monte Cristo (Alexander Dumas) when I was in F2, and yet disappointed with the TV series, starring one Richard Chamberlain and totally disappointed with the movie version. I think somehow one can beat the novel version of TCMC - we were all left to our imagination then and I can many stories are best left to the imagination.

I can imagine him in prison trying to chisel open the wall in order to escape, and his friendship with Abe Faria. My heart beat faster as he sneaks in into the casket of his best friend, and escaped. I can only imagine the beauty of the girl who stole his heart, whom he eventually lost out due to his vengeful bitterness at the end of the novel.

How sad, I thought.

So I am all excited and at the same time too, I have mixed feeling. I remember all too well reading the Count of Monte Cristo (Alexander Dumas) when I was in F2, and yet disappointed with the TV series, starring one Richard Chamberlain and totally disappointed with the movie version. Yes, the TV version was a better one, and I thought Richard Chamberlain did a great job as Edmond Dante, but still it lacks the emotional punch from reading a novel. I think somehow one can beat the novel version of TCMC - we were all left to our imagination then and I can many stories are best left to the imagination.

We can only imagine the beauty of the leading girls in the novels (Sitti Nurbaya, Zainab and Mercedes), I don't think the leading girls in the movies would live up to my standard (of imagination). If they are beautiful in life, I thought that the girls in the novels are a hundred time more beautiful than the actresses in the movies.

But I am told that the sets for the movie (DBLK) are lavish, if not spectacular; from the authentic Minang  roofs in the village to the water-wheels, and the uniforms worn by the train operators in 1920s Sumatra. It should be real enough to me, and I hope to see a replica of the grand mosque in those era.

This movie can only live on in that era. Anything else would make a mockery of the novel by Buya Hamka.

It looks like movie set of an epic to me, to be honest, and for that reason alone, I would love to see the movie.

1920s Minang town. Love the scene, though it looks
like a bit unreal to me.

I wish they would leave the set behind and make living museum out of it.

A real working waterwheels in a Minang setting

Zainab - of course when I was younger, I thought
the Zainab in the novel is more beautiful than this actress. Sorry,
Laudya Cynthia Bella - you are pretty but you can't live up to Sitti Nurbaya's beauty for sure.

I am prepared to be disappointed in term of character development - I have to feel their pain for me to be totally absorbed in the story line and feel the pleasure of watching this movie - any movie, for that matter; and I do know many can't lived up to my standard,  but I think the set may make it for me - just may be.

Didalam Lembah Kehidupan

I read this book when I was in primary school. Many times over, I must admit and it never fails to set me thinking about life during those days.

At the very least.

And most likely I would read it 'dengan mata berkaca.' Don't get me wrong, I don't think I cried. Haha, I would not like to admit it, I guess, but I would admit that tears did fall down my cheek on many of the short stories written by the late Hamka.

Or at least, I would sigh (a very heavy sigh) at the sad ending of each and every one of the stories.

Last Ramadhan, while on my extended Raya leaves, with nothing much to do other than answering emails and making phone calls, I decided to go through the book all over again; story by story, and page by page, line by line, word by word.

And I ended up again, after 40 years, with tears falling down my cheek.

And very depressed! In a very good way.

Actually I felt sad but relieved after reading them - after all these years.

Aah, Prof Hamka, he is a (master) story teller, and he certainly knew how to prick our conscience. 

Actually, you are talking about short stories here, about 12 altogether and being short stories, he didn't much time to develop the character and build up the story line. Sometimes, it may seems a bit superficial, but actually it is not. It is a fast-paced story line - it can only be expected as you would need to tell stories that span a generation or two and finished it in less than 10 pages.

Who am I to question the master of the 'Malay' story teller, anyway?

Anak Tinggal, Anak Dapat, Anak yang Hilang - even by the title you would know it would be a tearjerker. Bonda Kandung and Isteri Yang Tua would take you to sacrifice of the weaker sex. In fact, most if all would have women element in the story and the hard lives they led during those times.

Honestly, at times, I would question the wisdom and the reasoning of the characters in the story. At times, it seems illogical. But that's the beauty of them all. I guess we are reading stories of nearly a century ago, and I can't imagine lives during those era, other than what I can read from Hamka's novel (and those of other prominent Minang author like Marah Rusli et al).

Call it fate, call it a twist of fate, call it anything in fact, but while it may seems unreal today, it was too real in the last century. And we can only be thankful for the life we are leading, irrespective of the shortcomings - perceived or real, and I am sure I had many.

I believe this short story is one book that should be in every home and library and should be read by every youngster and internet-era kids in this country. Then one would know the struggle of our fore-fathers in the previous century.

I had thought that I had seen all, and that at this age, at times, my conscience is numb. It really would take a lot for tear to fall, but it didn't take long whenever I read Hamka's novel.

"Keburukan orang yang telah meninggal itu terkubur bersama jasadnya, dan segala kebaikan tergambar kembali diangan-angan orang yang hidup, tak sebuah juga yang dapat dilupakan."

- Isteri yang Tua

Had I not read this book during my innocence days, I would think that life in the olden days was only about death. Life, in this book, was not about living, for every story would contain death, many times over!

"Sebab itu harus lah diingat oleh dua orang yang bertemu, bahawa pertemuan itu mempunyai warna perak, yang terbentang disebelah Timur dipagi hari. Dan perpisahan adalah berwarna merah, terbentang disebelah barat di senjakala. Warna perak diwaktu fajar, adalah lambang pertemuan yang indah. Warna merah disenjakala adalah lambang perpisahan yang gundah, warna air mata daripada darah!"

- Anak yang Hilang

The stories in Didalam Lembah Kehidupan

1. Pasar Malam
2. Encik Uteh
3. Penjual Ais Lilin
4. Anak Tinggal
5. Bonda Kandung
6. Gadis Basanai
7. Isteri Yang Tua
8. Anak Yang Hilang
9. Malam Sekaten (Bulan Sabit dan Kayu Palang)
10. Anak Dapat
11. Cinta dan Darah
12. Disuruh Meminta Ampun 

The Most Beautiful Mosque II - The story behind

I found this information from the website of Jabatan Warisan, which I thought I should share with everybody.

I told you that there is always a story behind old buildings like this one. May Allah bless their souls - Sultan Iskandar Shah and Juragan Abdul Shukur.

Thank you Jabatan Warisan. The conservation work was commissioned in Dec 2008.

KONSERVASI MASJID LAMA KG KUALA DAL, PADANG RENGAS

Masjid Lama Kg. Kuala Dal ini telah dibina pada tahun 1936, kira-kira 73 tahun yang lalu. Pembinaannya dibiayai oleh Sultan Iskandar Shah, Sultan Perak yang ke 30. Berdasarkan plag perasmian yang terdapat pada masjid berkenaan, tercatat majlis perasmiannya yang berlangsung pada 10 Zulhijjah 1356 hijrah bersamaan dengan 11 Februari 1938 yang dirasmikan oleh Sultan Iskandar Shah.

Pembinaan masjid ini sempena menunaikan hajat baginda Sultan Iskandar Shah yang berniat dan bernazar untuk membina sebuah masjid apabila salah seorang daripada anakanda baginda telah sembuh daripada gering.

Lokasi Kampung Dal menjadi pilihan kerana baginda dan para pembesar serta kerabat DiRaja sering pergi berkelah di Lata Bubu iaitu kawasan perkelahan DiRaja yang berhampiran dengan kampung tersebut. Di dalam perjalanan baginda telah melihat orang-orang kampung tersebut bersembahyang di madrasah yang telah usang. Maka lahirlah rasa belas kasihan baginda terhadap penduduk setempat, maka baginda menitahkan supaya membina masjid yang baru di kampung tersebut.

Masjid ini telah dibina di atas sebidang tanah yang diwakafkan seorang bangsawan iaitu Juragan Abdul Shukur secara lisan dan kemudiannya diletak di bawah nama pemegang tanah wakaf negeri Perak. Masjid ini tidak digunakan sejak tahun 1976 setelah Masjid baru Al Wahidah dibina bersebelahan dengan masjid.

The most beautiful Mosque in Malaysia

This is our heritage indeed.

Without a doubt of the intrinsic beauty and at RM700,000.00, it was well worth it. Many times over, I must add.

You won't get a more beautiful mosque at less than a million ringgit. In fact, you can't ge a bungalow at RM1 million. For that reason alone, I think we should have more of such designs in the future.

It is now well and alive, and in full 3 dimensional splendour, that one can touch and feel; that is not only confined to the frames of pic sold at the souvenir shop at the Craft Centre at Jalan Conlay.

I am ecstatic; I am a very happy man, so much so that I drove 300 km just to record this beauty.

I saw it last Raya, but being very tight with my primary school reunion, I just did not have the time to stop over and enjoy it.

It has just been officiated by Prof Zuraina, and hence I have not heard much on the news. I thought it should have been officiated by Dr Rais Yatim, not so much that he was an important man, but at least the camera would follow him, I guess.

Apparently Jabatan Warisan commissioned Asli Bina Jaya to rehabilitate this 1938 building to its full glory, and it is now completely done. Well, almost. According to the draftsman of Asli Bina Jaya, the original building is yellow and not the natural wood colour that we can see in the previous entry.

According to Imam Adnan, the building were in the state of disrepair since the mid 70s, and since the mosque was surrounded by durian orchard, quite a bit of the roof were broken especially during the durian seasons, and it gradually got deteriorated over the years, and by the 70s, it was abandoned.

It was easier to get funding for a new nondescript mosque than to repair the old mosque and he said then too the interest and awareness were not there. At one stage, it was even decided they were going to pull it down and let the wood get rotten. I am so glad that they didn't go through with that idea.

Fortunately someone from Jabatan Warisan saw it fit to rehabilitate the mosque.

I am quite sure by the time it was mentioned in my blog, Jabatan Warisan had decided to hire the conservationist to do the work on the mosque. But still, I am proud to have mentioned it in my blog and pretend that I have a say on this conservation.

For the record, those usable items were re-used while many new materials were used to. Part of the wall had to be re-sculptured all over again. The roof was made longer to minimize seeping of rain into the main hall, though Jabatan Warisan want to ensure originality, but relented to request on practicality.

Now that it is in livable condition, Imam Adnan told me they will hold Zohor and Asr prayers daily there, while the 'newer' mosque will hold the remaining prayers. They are also requesting the contractor to provide with a PA as it will take ages for JAIP to come up with the funding if they were to request through JAIP.

Honestly, this mosque has no need for air conditioning. By virtue of it 'kelarai' wall, you could get a constant breeze coming through all day. It is ideal for the tropics; our forefather knew about this.

I salute those involved and I hope to see many more of our old mosque will get rehabilitate.

AllahuAkbar.

If you wish to see the mosque in its full splendour, please visit my fotopages rahmanhariri.fotopages.com and akmal-hariri.fotopages.com. All pics were taken by Arif, Akmal and yours truly. Of course the most beautiful ones were taken by yours truly! ;-) I wish.

Not all things must come to an end (as advocated by a commentator more than a year ago). Especially old mosque.

Like good old soldiers, they will not die. In fact unlike good soldiers, they will not even fade away.

EPILOGUE

For the record, the mosque is in Padang Asam, at the outskirt of Kuala Kangsar. We used to pass this mosque years ago in the 70s and 80s, and didn't bat an eye-lid then. Well, time has changed, and so too my perspective in life, I guess.

I feel relieved and satisfied that this old mosque has been fully restored. I know I have little say on this, but nonetheless I feel good about it since it was highlighted in this very blog more than a year ago.

Now if only I have the time to move around the country and record old buildings worth remembering. I personally most old buildings are worth recording. There are always stories behind it.

There is this Rumah Kutai in Kota Lama that should be restored, and of course many more that I will try and highlight in Time in a Bottle.

This is our heritage

Such a beautiful building in a very dilapidated condition. This is our heritage; this is our soul, for who are we without ourhistory.

Yet no one cares.

Tell me, how many historical site do we have in the country that traced back our history? Where are the Malacca Sultanate palaces that would showcased the empire our forefathers built in the 1400s? The Portuguese have the A Famosa or whatever remains of it; The Dutch the Stadyhust; the Babas the various building in Malacca.

Is Islam a new religion in Malaysia? Does it come in mainly after Merdeka?

I would think so. If you dont believe me, check out the mosques in Kuala Lumpur.

Masjid Negara, in the early 60s, Masjid Wilayah, very recently, Masjid Sultan Abdul Aziz in Shah Alam, may in the late 80s.

We have the Chandis in Lembah Bujang; The old church ruin on top of the hill in Melaka. All dated hundreds of years ago.

Where are our old Mosques?

It seems that we Malays are the pendatang, and a recent one at that, as we have the habit to demolish our beautiful old mosques and build non-descript buildings on its remain so much much so people are saying, "You guys must be new here. Look at all the brand new mosques. There is no evidence that you guys have been heer for too long."


This is what we saw on our raya trip to Kuala Kangsar on the second day of Raya. If you want to imagine this building in its full glory, please visit the Craft Centre at Jalan Conlay. You can buy the painting for about RM100.00.

The real one is in Padang Asam Kuala Kangsar.


The side of the building

A closer up on the side of the mosque

It is still beautiful though it is in ruins

The wall

The carving on the roof


These two pictures are the inside of the mosque

Can the state government of Perak declare the building as a heritage, and perhaps rehabilitate it to its former glory?

Kita dok sibuk with the House of Bok la, and the various buildings in Penang and Melaka, and yet we forgot - or conveniently forgot, about these beautiful buildings.

Where are the souls of the Malays in this country?

(All pictures were taken by Arif)