Learn from Mistakes; Work Hard

At the State Secretariat in Ipoh, and in his speech during the state-level Maulidur Rasul (Prophet's birthday) celebration, the Regent of Perak, Raja Dr. Nazrin Shah urged the country’s leaders to learn from mistakes in the annals of history that caused the collapse of empires, countries and their leaders.

He said that this should be done so that the country would not suffer the same fate and previous errors are not repeated.

“Only a small number of those given opportunities to become leaders actually did enough to create history and build civilizations. Many of those given the opportunity to lead allowed the joy and passion of having power to lead them astray,"he said.

"Some became complacent, some went astray, some were ill-advised, some adopted wrong decisions and some made miscalculations, "he said.

He said a good leader was one who realized that he was no different from the subjects he led and possessed the qualities of humility, discipline, commitment, honesty and willingness to sacrifice.

“He who leads must know that he is always under God’s watchful eye and is always being weighed and measured by his people,” he said.

Raja Dr Nazrin also said that a responsible leader should identify the road ahead for his followers.

“He is responsible to his people. In fact, leading is a responsibility that should be accomplished by trust,” he said.

On a separate matter, Raja Dr Nazrin told the people that he did not want celebrations such as Maulidur Rasul to be treated as mere "routine" and "ritualistic" functions.

“Each celebration involves time, money and much effort. Therefore, each event should bear its purpose and be productive in nature,” he said.

Source: TheStar Online Learn from past mistakes, says Perak Regent

At the Maulidur Rasul celebrations to mark the birth of Prophet Muhammad, in Bukit Jalil, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong Tuanku Mizan Zainal Abidin has urged the Muslim community in the country to work together and perform their duties with sincerity in order to achieve excellence and distinction.

"Sacrifice and perseverance are required to achieve excellence and distinction. Insyaallah (God willing), with unwavering efforts, we will obtain success and blessing from Allah now and hereafter," the King said in his speech here.

"I am confident that with the Quran as a guide and the Prophet Muhammad's sunnah (traditions), all Muslims in Malaysia will be able to explore science and technology further. Hence, the Muslim ummah will be able to build strength and influence amongst the world community."

The King called on Muslims in the country to understand and use the Quran as a guide and a lesson to foster the spirit of brotherhood with non-Muslims.

"The Muslim ummah should emulate the Prophet Muhammad's distinctive personality in carrying out Allah's call for the creation of a community that can become a world model."

Source: TheStar Online: King urges Muslims to work hard and persevere

Each year and at this auspicious occasion, the King and the Sultans had always called on the people to act and behave in accordance with the Quran and the teaching of our Holy Prophet. Were the messaged effectively transmitted to the people? or, are they treating Maulidur Rasul as mere "routine" and "ritualistic" functions as pronounced by Raja Dr. Nazrin Shah?

When I read the Quran and observed the behaviors and attitudes, I felt sad; it's contrasting; it's negative corelation; but they don't think so.