Mohd Ali (third right) presents a prize to Muhammad Hafiez for winning the men’s category as Abdul Rahman Sebli (third left), Mohd Ainnie (second right) and Suut (right) look on.
KUCHING: Muslims must strive to achieve a balance in academic and religious knowledge to develop the country.
Muara Tuang assemblyman Dato Sri Mohd Ali Mahmud said progress in Islam required a balance between achieving development in this world and happiness in the afterlife.
He added that academic and religious knowledge were both elements of equal importance to produce educated and morally-conscious society that should be the compass in the nation’s progress.
“The success of the Muslim community highly depends on education and economic strength as well as strong grasps of spiritual knowledge.
“Spiritual awareness, high aspiration and always working hard to achieve success are important assets for success in the Muslim world.
“It is high time that the Muslim community in this country, in particular the state, prioritise religious knowledge to produce religious individuals who will be successful in bringing progress to this country. We must be united to achieve our vision for this state and country,” he said when officiating at a Tilawah Al-Quran and Nasyid festival in Muara Tuang recently.
Samarahan Resident Abdul Rahman Sebli Senusi, district officer Mohd Ainnie Wahab and organising chairman Penghulu Suut Man, who is also chairman of Kampung Muara Tuang JKKK (village security and development committee) were present.
Mohd Ali said the importance for this nation to produce as many scholars and academicians with strong knowledge in various fields such as science and technology, as well as religious subjects to produce a morally-conscious and resilient society that would become the catalyst of the nation’s development and progress.
On a related note, he advised Muslim scholars and academicians to be loyal to their moral obligation and religious mission in the dissemination of knowledge.
A deviation from the Quran and syariah (Islamic law) will result in imbalance, damage and discord not only to humans but also the environment. As such, it is very important for Muslim scholars to be fair and responsible in disseminating knowledge and information to avoid these from happening.
Mohd Ali said knowledge, be it academic or religious, was important as the rise and fall of a society depended on the knowledge strength of the people. Progress could not be achieved without sufficient knowledge.
The Quran recital competition saw the participation of 16 individuals and performances by five Nasyid groups.
In the men’s category, Muhamad Hafiez Shafie took first place, followed by Ismawi Ibrahim and Mohd Ali Jainneh in second and third placing respectively.
In the women’s category, Temah Abu Bakar took first place while Nurul Khaliqah Abdul Rahim and Lauyah Bakawi respectively came in second and third.