From Here and There

After the tsunami attack, several heart-rending stories have come to light. But this one involves a senior Airbus Commander of Indian Airlines, Capt. E. Chandrasekhar, who has a farmhouse at Panayur, right on the scenic beachfront.


It unfolds like this: “On the fateful Sunday, we woke up around 6.30 a.m. shaken by the tremor attacks. Shell shocked, my wife started packing up all the valuables in a suitcase and got ready to leave.” Capt. Chandrasekhar said that it was his daughter, Suraksha, who blew the first whistle of the danger. “She was playing with our new puppy in the garden in the entrance of the house. She shouted at top of her voice, “Pappa water is coming”.


My wife and I saw the tidal waves gushing. I mustered courage, ran to pick up my kid and rushed to the second floor along with my wife. From there, we saw the killer wave engulf the fishermen colony in front of our house, boats being thrown around and boulders flying as “saucers”. In no time our house was immersed in five feet water”, Capt. Chandrasekhar said. “We invoked the blessing of Allah as there is a Masjid behind our farm house. The water receded just as quickly.


And before the second spell of tsunami hit the house we came down to see the havoc. Outside, the dogs barked and crows circled in panic. In the knee-deep water, there was a book floating. And when I took it, it turned out to be a Quran”, he said.


The family has preserved the Quran. Celebrating their 14th wedding anniversary on January 19, Viji Chandrasekhar, who is a small screen celebrity, said they were believers. Capt. Chandrasekhar has mobilised support with his colleagues to provide relief to the tsunami affected fishermen.


(The Hindu, 23. Jan, 2005)

The Quran is not widely known as a source of guidance on environmental and conservation issues, but that has not stopped one development organisation in Tanzania from using it to help conserve an island marine park.


Religious leaders have been asked to promote conservation messages using the texts of the Quran- an approach which has proved a great deal more successful than government regulations.


The island of Misali is just a small dot in the Indian Ocean off the coast of Pemba.


The coral reef surrounding it is home to a rich variety of fish and turtles.


Misali is uninhabited, but where there are fish, there are fishermen - and just a few years ago this fragile island paradise was under serious threat.


Religious awareness


Destructive fishing methods were damaging the corals and harming species that lived there. Government bans had little impact.


The fishermen who launch their wooden dugout canoe from the windswept shores of Misali, like 99% of the population of the Zanzibar archipelago, are Muslims.


Once they realised that catches were falling dramatically, the non-governmental organiz-ation- Care International, stepped in to persuade them to take better care of their environment - through a scheme based on Islamic principles.


“People didn’t experience environmental destruction in their areas until very recently,” says Ali Thani, Care’s project director.


“And after what they are experiencing, they feel that Islamic environmental ethics might be better to create awareness in the community to protect their environment.”


These fishermen have learned the benefits of fishing in a sustainable manner without harming the island’s bio-diversity.


Salum Haji has fished these waters for as long as he can remember.


“There have been a lot of bad things happening here,” he says.


“People have used dynamite and guns to fish here. This has destroyed the coral.


“I am happy that now we have learnt that the Quran tells us to protect everything in this world, including the environment.


“I am more dedicated to protecting the environment now and a more committed Muslim as well.”
With sustainable fishing, catches have increased.


Local fishermen have embraced the new Quran-based ethics


And the underwater life is so rich that the island has also become a tourist destination, with money paid by visitors being put back into community development on Pemba.


It is thought this is the first time the teachings of the Quran have been used in Tanzania to promote conservation.


Local religious leaders like Shehe Mlekwa Lissani Bambi are now highlighting Islamic teachings about conservation in their sermons, though a certain amount of interpretation has been necessary, he says.


“Everything we see in the world is in the Quran,” he says.


“We have not changed what is in it as this cannot be changed, but we are reading it with more knowledge.


“We are the guardians of God’s creation. He asks us to protect what he created and we can do this by looking after the environment.”


‘God’s law’


Shehe Mlekwa Lissani Bambi feels it is fitting that Misali island was chosen to pioneer the use of Islamic ethics to conserve the environment. Misali is steeped in Islamic myth, including one surrounding a saintly figure known as the Prophet Hadhara.


“The island is very important in our history. Once Prophet Hadhara arrived at Misali and asked fishermen for a prayer mat.


“As there was no mat, Hadhara said the island itself was like a prayer mat since it exactly points towards Mecca.


“He prayed and then disappeared. Since then the island is called Misali, which means prayer mat.”
Care International project director Ali Thani says it was only possible to convince people with the help of the sheha and shehe - the religious leaders. So far, he says, the project appears to be working. One local fisherman summarised neatly why the religious message has succeeded where government decrees failed: It is easy to ignore the government, he said, but no-one can break God’s law.


(BBC News, Pemba, Tanzania)

Muslim children from the Gulf States, the UK and Australia now have something new to look forward to- an English comic magazine for kids, described as the first of its kind in the Arab world. Published from Sweden, but edited from Riyadh, Qkids, according to Editor-in-chief, Fahd F. Al-Hajji is different from other children’s magazines in terms of content and style. The magazine has comic strips that convey a subtle message that evil does not pay. It has puzzles and short stories too with a moral content “With most Muslim children lacking reading habits, they remain glued to the television which leaves an unhealthy influence on them. The whole project has been designed and implemented in Riyadh as part of our effort to provide light reading for kids, The future plans include having animated cartoons in a CD format,” says Al-Hajji.


For further details contact: P.O.Box 225340, Riyadh 11324, Saudi Arabia. Ph (9661) 2483688. Email:sales@qkidscomics.com


(Youth Magazine)

A retired Pakistani army Major completed a 2,200 km trek across the Arabian Peninsula to reach Makkah. Mohammed Abbas, 65, said he wanted to be the first man in modern times to make the pilgrimage on foot. He started from Abu Dhabi in the UAE and reached Makkah which took him two months and 18 days. Abbas said he encountered rain, dust storms, wild dogs and an angry camel.


(Gulf News-Feb 2005)