Friday, November 08, 2013

A Malay genius pay tribute to a past Malay genius


Still plain lazy to write after being away for more than two weeks.

To keep this blog up-dated, we like to share this You Tube link sent to us from Mus, an old friend that we met more than 30 years ago at his home in Long Island, New York.

He was excited to introduce Dr Afifi Al Akiti, a student of the pondok from Perak that went on to study in several countries under many great teachers and finally landed lecturing at Oxford.

Although not widely known in Malaysia, Dr Afifi made significant achievement at his young age. Perakian Mus was proud to highlight Dr Afifi as an example to dispel the stereotype labeling of "Melayu bodoh."

In the video, the young genius paid tribute to another Malay from the past he described as genius but was not sufficiently appreciated in Malaysia.

Our friend Mus wrote:
This is a tazkirah delivered by Dr. Afifi Al-Akiti at the 2013 Nasheed Extravaganza organised by the Malaysian Students at the University of Sheffield.

Dr. Afifi is the first Malay to hold a chair at the Faculty of Theology, University of Oxford.

In his tazkirah, he talks about the geniusness of Allahyarham P.Ramlee in his creative works, and he attributes it to the ability of Allahyarham P.Ramlee to draw from all traditions with compromising, or even abandoning, his Islamic tradition:
The video below:


Read Wikipedia here to know more of this truly illustrious young man.

Dr Afifi illustrated a simple example that highlights a bad tendency of Melayu in power and authority to underestimate and downgrade other Melayu. They would rather appreciate and revere foreigners and non-Melayu.

Seldom do they realise that the ability, knowledge and experience in solutions to solve problems and ideas and visions to build nation and civilisation already exist within us.

Usually they lack appreciation for history and intellectualism. Such attitude is most prevalent amongst business and corporate men, yet they are given so much responsiblity and role by and in government.

14 comments:

STEADYAKU47 said...

Brother I posetd this on my blog - maaf tak mintak permisi dulu. Too good not to share with others. Salam.

HH

Anonymous said...

I am afraid you have cheapened the description of a genius by loosely accord such honor on every tom dick and harry. What this guy is doing is no doubt good, by right an upright human being should be saying same such thing as "do not suicide bomb, it is not encouraged in Islam". But to accord a genius label for such deed is way out of line...Like the datuk ship nowadays...yes?No?

Anonymous said...

"Genius" agama nak buat apa? Dah banyak sangat dah lebai2 ostat kat sini. Sama jugak mcm si KJ diwar-warkan sebagai Oxford graduate, tapi mengaji kursus bodoh Politik, Philisophy. Genius Fizik, Matematik, Economy takpe jugak.

Jabalnur said...

Pelik....kenapa Dr. Afifi tak di iktiraf ulama ulama islam didunia?
Adakah semestinya seseorang yang di iktiraf Oxford ke, Cambridge ke, "genius" dalam urusan addeen?

Bukankah universiti universiti yang mengajar urusan agama semuanya terletak dinegara negara islam seperti Mesir, makkah, medinah, Jordan dan Suria?

Adakah ulama ulama muslim di oxford cambridge atau pun harvard yang boleh dipercayai dapat menurunkan ilmu usuluddin atau hadis, misalnya?

Pada saya kita orang islam tidak perlu kagum dengan Professor professor yang beroxford atau bercambridge. Ulama ulama muktabar islam sprtm Imam Ahmad, Ashafie, Imam Malok dan Hanafi tidak pernah disandarkan pada mana universiti, tetapi ilmu yang mere mereja ini turunkan dapat dinikmati umat hingga kehari imi...

Anonymous said...

Agree that he is an accomplished scholar, an achievement that should be celebrated as very few people made it to this level. However, does he really fit the definition of a genius? Has his contributions made a profound change to society? I am asking this sincerely, no ill intent.

Anonymous said...

Apalah makna genius (pintar, geliga) jika tidak ada wisdom ( kebijaksanaan)
Namun Dr Afifi boleh dijadi ikon anak Melayu Muslim Nusantara.

Anonymous said...

The brilliant Lee Kuan Yew with his 10 failed Policies for Singapore :-
1. Money was used as investment of Foreign Policy causing the deaths and injuries of innocent men, women and childre. Vide. Thaksin. Shinawatra. Bangkok Riots.
2. US$108 Billions (RM350 Billions) were lost by the dysfunctional meritocratic pyramid with the smartes fellow on top in October 2008 on Wall Stree. Vide. Channelnewsasia Lee Kuan Yew November 2008.
3. 2 Child Family Policy of the 1970s and 1980s. This is the killer. Vide Singapore Government White Paper on Population.
4. Humanity and Multiculturalism never practised. Vide Channelnewsasia. Curry Smell Tribunal. the 188 bus drivers strike etc.etc.
5. The perfunctory Judiciary well-known the world over. Vide. Chee, Tan Koon Swan. Aussie and German drug mules. Dr Woffles Wu. etc.
6. 5,000 pigs imported daily. The flower nurseries contracts. King of the Road. The sale of Kim Eng Securities to Maybank. etc.etc.
7. A world class transportation system never established. Vide. Manubani. Distinguished diplomat.
8. The highest paid full Cabinet in the World in a one street town. Vide. Warren Buffet.
9. The Singaporean Trojan Horse DAP founded in 1966 was in Opposition for 47 long years and failed to deliver a conquered Malaysia to save Lee Kuan Yew's failed legacy of a lifetime.
10. Lee Kuan Yew assumed power in 1959 and is still there in 2013.

Anonymous said...

Congrats to this Dr Afifi for his accomplishment. But frankly I will be happier if a Muslim can get a chair in Oxford for other subject than theology. Is that all "genius" Muslims good at? Is that all Oxford and Cambridge can offer?

Anonymous said...

Why does he wear a lady's gown?
Is he LGBT?
Why is his head bandaged?
Is he recovering from brain surgery?
"Melayu b*d*h" is putting it kindly.

Anonymous said...

Bukan ke ahli falsafah Kassim Ahmad dah jadi pensyarah dan head department pengajian asia dan afrika tahun 60-an dulu di yniversiti oxford? Saya terbaca di blog SyedOutBox tak lama dulu..



Anonymous said...

additional to Anon 4:43 opinion

LKY Genious:-

1. able to fool the Westerner S'pork = Israel. Nusantara= Arab (nuasantara not so genius to create Nuke weapon) -LKY enjoy the economic growth & West protection

2. able to fool- Sinpork never use racism/sentiment..actual in 170s He was the one who created the sentiment Spor=Israel,

Tak tipu tak kaya..This is DAP God forever

Anonymous said...

I wonder what happened to that girl prodigy who went to do maths in Oxford or Cambridge at 13.

A Malay Dah-Lah-Lama said...

Well, see how the judges and barristers don themselves in UK- you're the one that needs the brain surgery it seems !

Unknown said...

Maaf....4 some reason....oxford recognised Dr.Afifi....i would rather congratulate him 4 th appointment....n wonder wat he had done do deserve dat relative honour compared to the other arab/pakistani ulama's....Oxford being consistently amongst th top 5 universities in th world at least for last 200yrs....thy must have done something righ to be there....Genius or contentious....Congratulations Dr.Afifi....Hope this appointment puts u in a better position to contribute to th Ummah....Insylh....

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