The Malaysian Insight

MY cousin brother was born into a religous family. His father is a Muslim convert who is a staunch Muslim – you know, the kind of Muslim who’d wear white jubah and serban; keep a long beard and put on eyeliners; and who’d make their wife(s) adorn lengthy hijabs.

Since young, my cousin brother was raised to be a staunch Muslim just like his parents. Every weekend and on school holidays, he’d be required to follow his father to travel with Tabligh groups from one mosque to another, from one neighbourhood to another. Sometimes they even visited Muslim houses, preaching about the religion of Islam.

(Tabligh is the act of conveying the message of Islam, to invite people to understand the worship of Allah)

My cousin grew up spending his free time with Tabligh groups instead of friends his age ; instead of playtime, he was made to read the Holy Book and attend religious talks. By the time he was a teen, he appeared to be a little ustaz – very calm and very much reserved.

While other family members cringed at the way the boy was raised, his parents on the other hand were very proud of themselves. They believed that they had instilled good Islamic qualities in their boy and that was enough to secure his wellbeing in this world as well as in the afterlife.

While my cousin mingled well among his Tabligh mates and performed his so called ‘religious duties’ as expected of him, his education at the national school he attended suffered.

When his Form 3 examination results came out, his parents were disappointed. However, instead of focusing on the boy’s education, supporting him with whatever he needed and sending him for tutorials like any other parents with common sense, his parents decided to invest in ‘magic pills’, ‘special drinks’ and dates which were ‘protected’ with verses from the Holy Book – they believed all he needed to get through his remaining schooling years was blessings from the Al-Mighty.

The SPM examinations soon followed and my cousin’s parents awaited the results with so much hope. Sadly, what they anticipated never took place. My cousin did not do well, failing in a few core subjects. His parents were devastated, but even then, they accepted it as God’s fate – perhaps God did not want him to excel in worldly matters, they thought.

And so, at the age of 18, they encouraged my cousin to seek employment opportunities while pursuing his religious knowledge with his father’s Tabligh group. But once again, things did not work out the way his parents had planned out.

Within a period of two years, my cousin went in and out of numerous job opportunities. At 20, he decided he was not interested in any jobs, instead wanted to pursue religious education. His parents of course saw this as a delightful development and believed this was God’s calling.

My cousin then began his journey, leaving home every now and then, using Tabligh as an excuse. His parents of course gave him their complete trust. They fantasised about having their boy come home one day as an Ustaz, and having an Ustaz as a child was a dream come true for all staunch Muslim parents.

But that dream remains a dream.

Last year, my cousin’s father sensed something amiss and decided to observe his son closely. He then caught my cousin with a woman in their house during his absence. Upon warning him never to repeat his foolish unIslamic behaviour, my cousin became violent and rebellious.

Weeks that followed were the toughest for his parents, for he began to steal and sneak the woman into his room by cutting the window panel. When all attempts to discipline their son and remove the woman from the house failed, my cousin’s father sought assistance from the police.

But never did his father expect the police to inform him that traces of drug substances were found in his urine. They wanted their only son to become an Ustaz but he ended up being a drug addict. My cousin was only 21 at the time.

Having all their dreams crushed, my cousin’s father finally realised his mistake. He knows now that he should have used the Islamic qualities within him as an adult Muslim to be a good parent instead of forcing his young son to adopt religious teachings without grasping the core values of humanity.

He realises now that a child should be allowed to be a child – to spend time with children his age, to grow up making mistakes and learning from it, to be advised and nurtured as a good human being before he can be a good Muslim.

Sadly, it is too late for the father to be remorseful. His only son is now lost and has sunk deep.

Today, my cousin is counting his days in the Pusat Serenti drug rehabilitation centre. Instead of looking forward to a bright future, he is trapped in darkness. The religion which was hoped to secure him of a good future, ended up causing his own destruction. – September 21, 2017.

* Fa Abdul is a passionate storyteller and a resident agitator of the idiots in society. Well-known for her straight-talking sarcasm and occasional foul mouth, she juggles between her work as a writer, producer and director.

* This is the opinion of the writer or publication and does not necessarily represent the views of The Malaysian Insight. Article may be edited for brevity and clarity.