So What Now?
“Allah lifted me up from a pile of dump and dirty waters. And He put me into a pool of crystal clear waters. That was how I felt when I first decided to wear the hijab. Before that, I never wanted to let go of my attractive corporate dresses, clean-cut A-line skirts and tops with sweet necklines. It was all about alluringly professional and girly/womanly get-ups, killer heels and a latest designer bag or two.”
I had intended to share the following as my opening speech on 28 Sept 14. After giving it much thought, I decided to share it here today.
In July 2013, we had the inaugural Hijab Hijrah event. The theme then was ‘Hijab Hijrah – What’s Your Story?’ The motivation to organize it was born out of my own personal story behind why I don the hijab and the extreme syukr (gladness) and closeness that was felt towards Allah upon donning the hijab. For my Hijab Hijrah co-founder, it was not only motivated by her very own experience, but it was born out of the many moving stories of the trials and tribulations that
women go through in staying strong in their hijab. Also motivated to share the refreshed love for the Beloved, we just wanted to communicate with all other sisters out there. We got a team of five and all praises to Allah, we had a successful inaugural event. The sharing on how to wear a headscarf in a pleasant manner and covering the right places was coupled with professional and dining etiquette to make the event a little more girly affair. It was truly an unexpected turnout and we hope that
the sharing by the hosts, our guest speakers and Ustazah Su’aidah benefitted all the attendees.
We had strong encouragement from many that we should have cosy workshop / clinic-style sessions following the inaugural event. We managed to have a few private sessions upon requests but we had not advertised many of them. We were very afraid that we would not be able to cope with the sharing sessions should the numbers become too big at any one sitting.
A year passed and then we decided yes, we will return this year with a Part II.
We asked ourselves, ‘So what now?” after we have embraced and fell in love with being protected in the hijab? And we realized two major things came out ever so clearly. One was our real purpose in life and fulfilling our primary roles as women-servants of Allah. The other was to share with others how we were either once a “victim” of a circumstances or we were “victims” of our own ignorance and/or actions.
With the renewed intentions above, we decided to move away from ‘hijab’ (headscarf) being the focal point. It is beyond the headscarf now.
Similar concept as the inaugural talk/forum, real stories and case-studies will be shared. Floor is going to be open for dialogue and honest consultation, and we aim to create a safe environment for sisters and brother to speak, if not write to us. We have faith that our esteemed speakers will be able to share valuable knowledge and insights for us to overcome our challenges, insyaAllah.
I quiver as I think about how real this is going to be. But I thank Allah for my encouraging sisters here in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong. With varied challenges as single ladies, stay-home moms, single moms, having been abused or are still overcoming abusive partners, searching for that closeness with Allah, having been misguided and prefer to stay in jail than to face realities in life, yearning for a pious spouse… and the list goes on… all women want the same thing.
So what now? Do join us at http://www.islamicevents.sg/event/4712
See you and your loved ones insyaAllah. Brothers, please join us too.
Wassalam,
Rozi Faith Naser
On behalf of the organizing committee
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Event Synopsis:
Whoever works righteousness, whether male or female, and has faith, verily, to him will We give a life that is good and pure, and We will bestow on such their reward according to the best of their actions. ~Al Quran (Quran 16:97)
Women make up more than half of society today and they are responsible for nurturing the subsequent generations of men and women. It is the women who also instil principles and faith into the souls of the nation.
With the varied challenges faced by women in this modern world, Hijab Hijrah aims to share the real truth about roles of a Muslim woman in this modern world. We will also be focusing on ways of overcoming struggles faced by women.
Key Objectives:
1. To understand the real roles of a Muslim woman in this modern world
2. To discuss ways of overcoming struggles faced by “Victimised Sisters”
“Victimised Sisters” here are defined to be sisters who are struggling with coming back to the right path and returning to fitrah, having marital issues, healing from broken-ness, coping with divorce, having been in-and-out of jail etc
While a number of seats will be arranged in lecture-format, others will be arranged to facilitate group sharing and discussions. Forum will be interactive and hosts will facilitate interactions and discussions. There will be two main sessions with a lunch break in between.
Speakers This Year
Ustazah Su'aidah Salim, Ustazah Nurul Izzah, Ustaz Noor Deros, Ustazah Shameem Sultanah and a married couple who are working professionals.
Special guest - Sister Sa'diyya Nesar from Hong Kong, an inspirational wheelchair-bound writer who has been encouraged by Mufti Menk to continue inspiring others through her writings.
Hijab Hijrah was founded in July 2013 and the inaugural event ‘Hijab Hijrah - What's Your Story?' was attended by 350 ladies. The objectives then were to share ways of overcoming issues faced by women in hijab, to impart personal grooming techniques and different styles of donning the hijab, as well as to empower women with skills and knowledge of professional etiquette in hijab. This year, we are returning with more meaningful focuses.
Details
Event Name: ‘So What Now?' by Hijab Hijrah
Day / Date: Sunday, 28 September 2014
Venue:The National University of Singapore (NUS)
Kent Ridge Guild House
Della & Seng Gee Guild Hall
9 Kent Ridge Drive S(119241)
Time : 1.30 pm - 5.30pm
Tentative Program. (May change on actual day)
1230h Registration
1330h Opening Address
1345h Session 1 (1hr) - Ustazah Suaidah, Ustazah Nurul Izzah & Ustazah Shameem
1445h Session 2 (1hr 15mins) - Sister Harasha, Sister Sa'diyya Nesar, Sister Marina & Brother Ashraf
1600h Break
1630h Session 3 (30mins) - Ustaz Noor Deros
1700h Q&A (30 mins) - All speakers
1730h End of Program
Ticket Fees:
1 ticket - $35
2 tickets - $65 (ie; 32.50 per pax)
5 tickets - $150 (ie; $30 per pax)
10 tickets - $280 (ie; $28 per pax)
Terms and Conditions:
1) Full Payment are to be made before Event starts.
2) No refunds for participants backing out of event.
3) Participants are to attend this event punctually.
How To register?
Method 1) Payment by Cash / Nets
- Please call our HOTLINE @ 6871 8744 Ext 1 to arrange appointment for payments.
Method 2) Bank Transfer / Debit Card / Paypal
- Use the Registration system shown below.
Step 1: Visit this link >> http://www.islamicevents.sg/event/tickets/4712
Step 2: Fill in the No of People Participating
Step 3: Fill in your details
Step 4: Choose your payment methods and proceed with Payment.
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