A Treasury of Ghazali: A Companion for the Untethered Soul

He is Abu Hamid Muhammad al Ghazali, the man who could disprove the ideas that challenged the true Islamic faith. This little but condensed reflection book by Professor Mustafa Abu Sway gives a clear overview of Imam Ghazali’s works and wisdom, very recommended for everyone who wants to know Islam in the right way.

It consists of 40 chapters, and I will summarize the most interesting part for you (although all of those 40s are super!)

I. Education with the Right Intention (p.6-8)
“How many nights have you stayed awake revising and memorising knowledge and poring over books, denying yourself sleep? I don’t know what was the purpose of all this. If it was for the purpose of attaining worldly ends, securing its vanities and acquiring position, and bragging before your peers, then woe to you! and again, woe to you! But if your purpose for doing so was reviving the Sacred Law of the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, refining your character and breaking the soul that commands to evil, then blessed are you! and again blessed are you!” (al Ghazali, Majmu’at Rasa’il).

Islam is not against material and knowledge gain, but we should be wary of the potential impact of fame on the heart. Or everything will be in vain.

II. Are You in the Wrong Business? (p.9-11)
“Therefore know, O you who is keen on knowledge and set out to acquire it and shows a genuine desire and real thirst to obtain it, that if your intention for seeking knowledge is rivalry, boasting, surpassing your peers, drawing people’s attention to you, and massing the vanities of this world, then you are in reality in the process of ruining your religion, destroying yourself and selling your Hereafter in exchange for this worldly life—your transaction would therefore be an utter loss, and your trading profitless. [In such a case] your teacher would also be helping you in disobeying Allah and is your partner in loss, just like the person who sells a sword to a highway robber”. (al Ghazali, Bidayat al-Hidayah p.8).

Imam al-Ghazali said “if you were to find yourself on a sinking ship, you would carry with you only that which will save you! Carrying your weighty belongings, even if they were of gold in such a situation is definitely not wise. Likewise, it is your good deeds (and bad ones too!) that continue with you after death. Your good deeds are your boat to safety!”. In this chapter, Prof. Abu Sway emphasizes the urgency of purifying the heart.

III. Seek Felicity (p. 12-15)
“The otherworldly felicity we are concerned with is subsistence without end, pleasure without toil, happiness without sadness, richness without impoverishment, perfection without blemish, and glory without humiliation. In sum, it is everything that can [at the same time] be conceived of as sought and seeking, desired and desirous, eternally and forever, such that it is undiminished by the passage of time and successions of generations. Indeed, if the whole world was full of gems and a bird was to pilfer one of them every one thousand years, then the gems will be exhausted but everlasting eternity would not be diminished a bit.” (al Ghazali, Mizan al-‘Amal p.180-181)

No matter how plentiful ‘something’, the good and enjoyable things in this world are finite. In fact, even the bad things are finite. What is life if not the sum of these moments (e.g. circumambulating the malls and the marketplaces time and again, often buying unnecessary things), whether utilised properly or not. But leading a purposeless life is not about time, it is about the path one charters Not using time properly to seek felicity is an act of ingratitude towards Allah who has gifted one with life.

IV. Introspection (p.16-18)
“Then I considered my state of affairs, and I realised that I was deep in worldly attachments, surrounding me as they were from every side. I then scrutinised all my works, teaching and instructing being in the finest, among these, and I found that I was occupied with unimportant disciplines, since they were of no benefit for the way to the Hereafter. Then I meditated on my intention in teaching and realised that my intention was not purely for the sake of Allah Most High. In fact, my intention was spurred and motivated by seeking status and fame. I became therefore certain that I was on the verge of a deep precipice, almost plunging into hellfire unless I worked to remedy my state of affairs.” (al Ghazali, al-Munqidh min al-Dalal p.134)

If one could capture Imam al Ghazali’s solution to the worldly attachments and distractions that prevented him from turning wholeheartedly towards Allah, it must be: detachment. His real example is when he decided to leave his position at the Nizamiyyah College of Baghdad, he leave his money and fame source just to redirect himself toward Allah.

IX. The Merits of /marriage (p.32-35)
“Know that the scholars have differed about the merit of marriage, with some of them exaggregating its merit to the extent that they claimed it is better than dedicating. oneself to the worship of Allah; while others recognised its merit but preferred dedicating oneself- to the worship of Allah over it, as long as one does not long for marriage to such an extent that it disturbs one’s state and tempts one to have sex.” ( al Ghazali, Ihya Ulumuddin p.21)

There is no doubt that marriage is meritorious, and that is the normative Prophetic path, so much so that by getting married it’s considered that one has fulfilled half of one’s religion. Here, al-Ghazali explains the correlation between marriage and spirituality.

XIII. Travelling (p.46-49)
“The benefits that motivate travelling are either running away from something or seeking out something, for the traveller is either bothered about something where he is staying, without which he would not aim to travel, or he has an objective and purpose in doing so. Running away takes place because of worldly issues that have adverse effects on him, such as the plague and epidemics when they appear in a country, or out of fear because of sedition, a dispute or a hike in prices. The reasons for travelling are either general, as mentioned, or particular such as being targeted with personal harm in a town so that one runs away. The reason for travelling may also be for matters detrimental to one’s religion such as being tried with prominence, money and a host of other material causes that prevent one from dedicating one’s time for the sake of Allah, thus preferring the life of an unknown person or a stranger to avoid wealth and status. And it may be that one is coerced to subscribe to a blameworthy innovation in religion or invited to take a public office which is unlawful to assume, and hence one flees from it.” (al-Ghazali, Ihya Ulumuddin p.245)

al-Ghazali captures [in the above passage] the essence of travel. One travels to avoid danger or discomfort, to look for better conditions for one’s final destination, or simply to seek some other good. Travelling, al-Ghazali adds, is sought either for worldly gains or for religious purposes. The latter can be divided into seeking knowledge or action. Knowledge covers personal practical ethics that can be acquired through travelling, but also the knowledge of geography which reflects the marvels of the earth.

XIV. Listening to Songs (p. 50-52)
“Listening [to songs] can be absolutely prohibited, permitted, reprehensible or praiseworthy. As for that which is prohibited, it is for most young men who are overwhelmed with the lust of this world; for listening will stir up in them nothing but the reviled attributes prevalent in their hearts. As for that which is reprehensible, it is for those who do not project what they listen to into the image of human beings, but take listening as a habit for most of the time, for entertainment. As for that which is permitted, it is for those whose share of listening is restricted to enjoying beautiful voices. As for that which is praiseworthy, it is for the one who is captivated by the love of Allah Most High, and listening will only stir in him his praiseworthy attributes”. (al Ghazali, Ihya Ulumuddin p.36)

Centuries ago one had to go to special places and gatherings to listen to songs, which were not available all the time. When Muslim scholars discussed and ruled over listening to music and songs, they could not imagine a time in the future when literally millions of recorded songs would be stored in a virtual reality that are readily available all the time. But what are they listening to?

Nutri-score labeling, what?

While COVID-19 has been the centre of attention for the past few years, I believe that other health issues should also be highlighted and addressed with the same urgency. And lately, some issues related to food and health have been circulating on social media in Indonesia. For instance, Este* vs their consumers’ case lead many people to talk about diabetes and daily sugar intake; besides, there is a video about an Indonesian living in Spain who said that Spain is the healthiest country in the world because of their products put a Nutri-score label on its packaging like this:

Juris’ fav

Based on Bloomberg Global Health Index, Spain is indeed the first^[1] but it’s not only their Nutri-score label that takes into account, many factors play role in this measure. What’s interesting is, Spaniards already have a super healthy dietary habit: eating MedDiet aka Mediterranean diet. Following the Mediterranean diet has been linked to a lower risk for all-cause and cardiovascular mortality, myocardial infarction, stroke, type-2 diabetes mellitus, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, obesity, and CVD risk factors.^{[2] [3]}

Nutri-score is a front-of-pack nutritional label that converts the nutritional value of food and beverages into a simple score (or code). It is based on a scale of 5 colours and letters (A is green to represent the best nutritional quality while E is dark orange to show it is the lowest). Each product is awarded a score based on a scientific algorithm. This formula considers the nutrients to avoid (energy value and the number of sugars, saturated fats, and salt) and the positive ones (the amount of fiber, protein, fruit, vegetables and nuts, rapeseed oil, walnut oil, and olive oil). The algorithm gives points for each element in the nutrition table (per 100g or ml), which means bad nutrients as well as good nutrients. You can try to convert your fav snack score here! (just click the excel form)

Outline of the Nutri-score calculation

This rating system was developed to help and guide consumers toward healthier food choices and thus prevent a wide range of nutrition-related chronic diseases^[4] This is one of the primary prevention strategies due to Caplan’s theory, and hopefully, it could significantly decrease the incidence proportion and incidence rate of those diseases. FYI, it was originally invented by French scientist Serge Hercberg, and in 2017 the label is officially released in French, followed by Belgium, Spain, Germany, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. Yep, not only Spain.

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), part of the WHO, has called on the EU commission to introduce the Nutri-Score on a mandatory basis in Europe, not just as a voluntary action.^[5] However, there are still many parties that do not agree with it, especially the producer of so-called recreation snacks, and a lot of extra virgin olive oil producers in Spain, why? Nutri-Score measurement is based on a selection of specific nutrients (energy, sugars, saturated fat, sodium, fiber) and other elements (percentage of fruit, vegetables, pulses, and nuts), and does not include other aspects related to the healthiness of food, such as portion-size, level of processing or additives. Or in short, it classifies food/beverage into two categories: healthy and unhealthy. Saturated fats, sugar, sodium, and energy density are factors that affect the unhealthiness of products. It’s clear there is a correlation between high saturated fat consumption and elevated triglycerides, which will lead to the occurrence of CVD and other metabolic syndromes. But we need to make a big highlight IF saturated fats alone are not a reason why that condition happens. On contrary, saturated fats (many foods are containing this nutrient, like red meat, egg, olive oil, etc) can be very healthy if we consume them in the right amounts, and for sure many metabolism and hormonal panel in our body needed them. In the same way with sodium, sugar, and energy density. Consequently, products with a high natural fat content are adversely affected, they should get an E overall. When it comes to the measurement, olive oil will be thrown to the C level since the scoring method makes no distinction, overseeing all the beneficial attributes, it gives the same score as the rest of vegetable oils and margarine. Whole food like olive oil, fruits, pure milk, etc definitely do not need a Nutri-score label since they will not compromise your health (except for those who have specific allergies or intolerance), they are generally classified as a healthy option.

I have found an article that evaluated the Nutri-Score in relation to dietary guidelines and food reformulation in the Netherlands^[6], and it’s really interesting. Despite bubbling with the pros and cons, they said this Nutri-score actually could be an incentive for food reformulation. 52,357 food composition records were used (with certain inclusion and exclusion criteria), converted to Nutri-score, and compared to the Dutch food-based dietary guidelines 2015. In simple terms, they reformulated (improvement scenario) the percentage of salt/ sugar/ saturated fats/fiber components and see what is the new score for the Nutri label.

By reformulating the fiber content, the Nutri-Score improved more for composite dishes (16%) than for cereals (12%). A one-point increase in fiber content (+0.9 g per 100 g) in composite dishes is relatively large (56%) compared to the median content. A one-point increase in fiber content in cereals is relatively small (23%) and therefore more feasible.^[7] Similarly, decreasing the sodium, saturated fat or sugar content by one Nutri-Score point resulted in certain products shifting towards a more favourable Nutri-Score (ranging from about 0–30%).^[8] In brief, reformulation might be an incentive to improve the Nutri-score.

How about adapting it in Indonesia? I am not sure, it’s a long journey. Readiness of the industries, cost, socialization, and surveillance must be considered. Moreover, the food lobby to water down the score might happen.

Overall, I think Nutri-score scoring has two sides; the positive and the drawbacks. The positive aspects are: it creates awareness, is easy to understand, and is time efficient. Whereas the drawbacks are: not specific, many misleading, and food stigma on it. In other words, the “C D E” score does not mean ✨harmful✨ and not belong to your diet forever, it just means that they are probably not really functional to our body, and only make us happy (for a while). If we crave some chips or cookies and we decide to satisfy that craving so we can move on, it’s just ok. But remember to not eat indulgently every day!

Eindhoven, 1 Oct 2022 23:01 CET

Ref:
_{[1] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-02-24/spain-tops-italy-as-world-s-healthiest-nation-while-u-s-slips?leadSource=uverify%20wall
[2] De Lorenzo A, Bernardini S, Gualtieri P et al (2017) Mediterranean meal versus Western meal effects on postprandial ox-LDL, oxidative and inflammatory gene expression in healthy subjects: a randomized controlled trial for nutrigenomic approach in cardiometabolic risk. Acta Diabetol 54:141–149. https://doi-org.ezproxy.library.wur.nl/10.1007/s00592-016-0917-2
[3] Mozaffarian D (2016) Dietary and policy priorities for cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity. Circulation 133:187–225
[4] https://www.iarc.who.int/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/IARC_Evidence_Summary_Brief_2.pdf
[5] https://www.foodwatch.org/en/news/2021/who-eu-wide-introduction-of-nutri-score-necessary/#:~:text=For%20the%20Nutri%2DScore%20to,by%20the%20end%20of%202022.
[6,7] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/34960088/}

Use Your Head: How to Unleash the Power of Your Mind

Buku Use Your Head (dokumentasi pribadi)

“This is the ‘operations manual’ for your brain. It is designed to help you nurture your ‘super-biocomputer’ and unleash the natural and extraordinary range of mental skills that you possess.” hlm. xii

Buku ini sudah dicetak lebih dari jutaan kopi di seluruh dunia sejak 1974, dan buku yang saya baca adalah edisi teranyarnya. Dari beberapa review yang ada di goodreads, saya tahu sebenarnya isi buku ini bukanlah something “brand new” untuk dibaca di tahun 2022. Tapi akan menjadi penting, karena dari buku ini lah kita bisa mengetahui bagaimana cara kerja otak, konsep IQ, natural acumen and memory, teknik peta konsep/mind map, strategi review dan recall, serta teknik belajar lainnya ditemukan. Selain itu, sampai saat ini saya merasa bahwa cara belajar saya belum pas, atau bisa dibilang belum efektif 100%, jadi tidak ada salahnya untuk coba membaca tulisan Buzan yang satu ini.

Ch. 1 Know Your Brain

Struktur neuron di otak yang terlibat dalam kegiatan berpikir dan mengingat dapat digambarkan sebagai gigantic Branching Association Machine (BAM), tiap neuron bisa membuat 10²⁸ koneksi. Otak sendiri beratnya hanya 2% massa tubuh, namun ia menghabiskan 20% energi tubuh untuk bekerja.

Perbandingan massa otak beberapa spesies mamalia dan jumlah neuronnya, diambil dari sini

Dalam bagian ini diceritakan bagaimana Edward Hughes, seorang remaja yang berhasil menembus Cambridge Uni di tahun setelah sebelumnya ‘diremehkan’ oleh guru-guru high school-nya karena track record nilai yang dirasa tidak memungkinan untuk lolos ujian masuk Cambridge (nilainya selalu B atau C dalam tiap mata pelajaran), bahkan awalnya ia tidak mendapat rekomendasi untuk apply ke universitas. Kemudian atas saran dari ayahnya, Edward membaca buku Use Your Heads dan mulai mengaplikasikan isi buku tsb.

• 

• 

Edward Hughes’ testimony: “I used to only get C’s and B’s because I didn’t yet know how to ‘get a good grade’. I learned how to. Anyone can do the same.“

—

Dari kisah tadi, kita bisa melihat bahwa stigma orang kepada anak yang ‘medioker’ ataupun tidak begitu pintar bisa menutup peluang anak tsb menempuh pendidikan yang padahal sebenarnya bisa ia rasakan. Salah satu faktor yang membuat guru-guru atau orangtua menjadi percaya pada kemampuan anak adalah dengan melihat skor tes IQ nya. Sebagaimana yang kita ketahui, tool yang biasa kita gunakan untuk “mengukur intelegensia” adalah tes IQ (Intelligence Quotient). Namun, ternyata saat ini sudah banyak studi kritis yang menunjukkan hasil bahwa:

• Training, it is possible to improve “your IQ”. In other words, it does not absolutely determine “our intelligence” in an irrevocable and permanent way.
• IQ does not measure our ability to think and act on our own.
• The test does not highlight our intellectual potential and therefore our possibilities for progress.

Intelegensia juga seringkali dikaitkan dengan kemampuan logika dan angka, padahal setiap manusia bertumbuh dengan different kinds of intelligence. Tony Buzan adalah salah satu reseaecher yang meneliti tentang standard IQ dan multiple intelligence (MI) ini.

Review Buku: How The World Really Works (shorten ver.)

Buku How The World Really Works (dokumentasi pribadi)

Welcoming our new comer (baru dirilis tahun 2022) yang ajaibnya sudah mendapat rating kelas atas (4.1/5 dari 661 rating) di goodreads. Buku ini pada dasarnya membahas tentang bagaimana Vaclav Smil mengomentari gerakan “Net Zero Emissions by 2050” yang sudah ramai diperbincangkan sejak Paris Climate Agreement 2015 lalu. Saya yang (merasa) sangat jauh dari disiplin ilmu ini pun ikut tertarik membaca karena agaknya dewasa ini mitigasi pemanasan global adalah hal yang sewajarnya diperhatikan oleh semua orang, tak terbatas apa latar belakang pendidikan dan keilmuannya.

NZE adalah kondisi dimana jumlah emisi karbon yang dilepaskan ke atmosfer tidak melebihi jumlah emisi yang mampu diserap oleh bumi. Dan untuk mencapainya diperlukan sebuah transisi dari sistem energi yang digunakan sekarang ke sistem energi bersih agar tercapai kondisi yang harmoni antara aktivitas manusia dengan keseimbangan alam, singkatnya begitu. Nah beberapa upaya yang masuk dalam roadmap NZE adalah: peningkatkan pemanfaatan energi baru terbarukan (EBT); pengurangan energi fosil; penggunaan kendaraan listrik di sektor transportasi; peningkatan pemanfaatan listrik pada rumah tangga dan industri; dan yang terakhir pemanfaatan Carbon Capture and Storage (CCS).

Smil mengatakan bahwa dunia ini “works” karena: energi, produksi makanan, dan 4 pilar modern material (semen, baja, amonia, dan plastik) aka fossil fuels. We are a fossil-fueled civilization, dan kita tidak bisa begitu saja meninggalkannya hanya dalam beberapa dekade, apalagi beberapa tahun.

“ Though much berated as a source of heating, propulsion, and versatile use, oil and natural gas remain unchallenged. The world’s most aggressive push toward green everything – Germany in the last two decades – managed to boost its shares of wind and solar in electricity generation to about 40 percent, but could barely make a dent in fossil fuels’ share of primary energy use (from 84 percent to 78 percent). What kinds of elaborate dreams must politicians and media pundits have to entertain the idea that the US – or anyone – can go (net) zero in several years? Stopping fossil fuel use in its tracks, even were it possible, wouldn’t even be moral: billions of people in the Global South need more of the things that we take for granted – energy, fertilizer, food security, vaccines.“

Di postingan ini saya tidak akan menuliskan ringkasan tiap bab, tapi hanya bab yang menurut saya paling menarik, atau ada kaitannya dengan keilmuan saya. Berikut daftar isinya:

Ket: Chapter 2 Understanding Food Production: Eating Fossil Fuels isinya sedikit banyak bersiggungan dengan buku yang pernah saya review.

Ch.5 Understanding Risks: From Viruses to Diets to Solar Flares (p. 134-167)

Sebelumnya, kita harus sadar terlebih dahulu bahwa kita hidup di dunia yang penuh dengan ancaman dan risiko (man-made atau atural risk). Ancaman dan risiko ini tidak pernah hilang, melainkan bergeser saja dari waktu ke waktu, dan bahkan bertambah. Dulu, yang ditakutkan adalah hal-hal semisal serangan teroris, dan bahan pengotor di bedak/susu bayi. Namun sekarang, ketakutan itu lebih terfokus pada quotidian activities, chemophobia (residu pestisida di sayuran/buah), dan yang paling utama adalah tentang diets, global warming, dan yang masih jadi primadona berita: pandemi SARS-CoV-2.

Treatise – Nature: Cause or Effect?

Buku ini memuat penjelasan dan beberapa pertanyaan umum tentang posisi alam dari pandangan dua kelompok: mukmin dan ateis/naturalis. Kelompok kedua menganggap agama dan sains sebagai dua hal yang tidak bisa berjalan beriringan.

Buku Nature: Cause or Effect? (dokumentasi pribadi)

Paham naturalisme (ontologi) di sini meyakini bahwa fenomena dunia (material)/ peristiwa-peristiwa di alam semesta tidak berkaitan dengan faktor supranatural/metafisik. Naturalisme menganggap jika alam/nature dapat mencukupi dirinya sendiri, tidak ada hal lain di luar nature. Dalam kerangka naturalisme, bila ditanya, “mengapa alam semesta ada, alih-alih tiada?”, jawabnya: “ya, pokoknya ada”. “Mengapa ada manusia di muka bumi?”, jawabnya: “yah, itu terjadi begitu saja” (“brute fact”—kata Bertrand Russell).

Dalam bagian pertama, dijelaskan tentang kemustahilan alam diciptakan tanpa penyebab (baca: kausasi, entitas Tuhan). Tiga di antaranya adalah:

First Impossibility: Causes create things.

“Think of a huge pharmaceutical laboratory. There are jars and vials and each of these contains the ingredients of different medicines. Specific quantities of these ingredients are going to be taken to make a headache medicine. If anybody says “the jars and vials containing the necessary substances are blown over by the wind. The precise quantity of each of its ingredients is split, then, are mixed together. In this way, a headache medicine is made. That is, a number of causes bring it into existence.” This explanation holds no basis since the number of substances used in the medicine has already been identified, in milligrams. If one of these measurements is wrong, something harmful would probably be produced rather than medicine. As it is seen in this example, even a lifeless headache medicine can not come into existence through physical causes. So it is completely impossible that animate beings could be formed by chance causes. For they are composed of matter that has been taken in the most precise measure from various substances.“

Semua yang tercipta di alam semesta ini adalah atas kuasa Allah SWT, dan segala apa yang Ia ciptakan akan dipelihara-Nya sedemikian rupa.
“The rain comes from the sky in order to produce food for you and your animals. Since water does not possess the ability to pity and feel compassion for you and to produce food, it means that the rain does not come by its own will, it is sent by a Caring Being.
Furthermore, plants and trees can not consider your food and compassionately produce fruits and grains for you. They are strings and ropes to which God attaches His bounties and holds out to animate creatures.“