6/1/11 THE PRICE OF A SACRIFICE....

Number of months ago I read a book title: Cinta di Andulusia. Last three days I have been reading: The Hand of Fatima by Idefonso Falcones. Both novels in fact are historical-based, portraying the worst fate of the Muslims after the down fall of the Cordoba Muslim Kingdom of Spain in the 15th Century ie almost to the same era when the Portuguese invaded the Malay Kingdom of Malacca.

(2) In the Hand of Fatima, it is about a man called Hernando Ruiz, originally a born to a Muslim lady whoim was raped by a Christian Priest, as part of the torture and cleansing process especially for those who were defiance of being converted to Christianity. The Muslim community was called Morisco whom probably were the hybrid of Mooris and Bebers, the two strong anciet North African tribes that managed to established their conquest across to Spain.

(3) With the spread of Islam under Ummayah, which was Arab-based, attract the Mooris and Bebers later to embrace Islam. The same happened to the Morisco. But, when the Christian managed to recaptured Spain, years later, due to greed, then the war turned into Religious Conflict with the defeated ie the Morisco were subjected to all sort of torture and humiliation.

(4) The hatred between the Christian and Islam were very extreme. Nonetheless, the Morisco being the defeated, need to act as the under dog. Unfortunately, Hernando Ruiz, whom was borned with blue eyes and fair skin was caught in between the conflict. Not only he was not accepted in the Christian Community since the mother was the Morisco, but the Muslim Morisco also couldn't accept him because of his White-characters. A drama of prejudice!

(6) Despite being played in between both parties, Hernandos's mother, Aishah kept him to be educated secretly under the Islamic sphere by an old Islamic scholar, Walid. As Hernandos entered his adulthood, he made himself 'more Christian then the Christian' despite he remained unknown true follower of Islam. All through his life, he continue to sneak to pray the Islamic Faith in the Masjid of Cordoba even during the Masjid was in the mid of reconstruction into the Grand Cordoba Church.

(7) Hernandos life, his family, his relationship with both the Moriscos and Christian communities was portrayed as a very tragic storyline. Suffering and happiness comes and goes all along the ways.

(8) Despite it is a Novel, the spirit of Hernandos to be able while working as writer and (Arabic to Spanish) interpreter with the Church, he never missed the chance to made copies of the Al Quran Sura and to be distributed among the Muslim through the under ground networks is something that we should appreciate. He really sacrificed himself for the Truth that he believed. Not even his mother and family members knew his sustenance faith in Islam. All his community see him as traitor to Islam just as he was seen seem to be helping the Church.

(9) The Novel in fact through Hernandos revealed the fact that Andalusia under the rein of the Khalifah prospered, was due to the various Kings in those days really encouraged the development of Knowledge Societies. King Hakam II for instance instructed the collection of books of knowledge from all corners of his conquest, of which he later built a library containing 400,000 copies of books. The library was much larger then built by Cleopatra in Alexandria and Rome by Caeser-Cleopatra.

(10) Of course with the re-conquest of Andalusia by the Christian, almost all the books were destroyed. The Muslim particularly the Moors and Bebers later, I believe made all effort to salvage those books and smuggled them to Morocco, Turkey and even as far as to the Timbuktu in Mali.

(11) The morale of the Novel, among others I would say, the Muslim whom all this while seem to think that they can be successful and given the great blessing by Allah by merely reading the Al Quran, should revisited their mind. 500-1,400 years ago, both Baghdad and Andalusia proved to the whole world that Al Quran could only be understood, not only by reading the Al Quranic texts, but it must be explored through the reading of probably billions or infinite numbers of books.

(12) I strongly suggest kin readers to read this Novel and from there probably we could understand why the Muslims at one stage lived in the dark world (Jahilliah), then becoming the Global Super Power, and yet now being 'enslave almost back to zero!'

Kuching, Sarawak
19 Jan., 2011