UNAIR NEWS – President of Indonesia Muslim Chinese Association (PITI) Surabaya Ustadz Syaukani Ong attended the Halal Bihalal of the Indonesian Psychiatric Association (PDSKJI) Surabaya branch on Sunday, May 22, 2022. The event was a collaboration between PDSKJI and UNAIR Faculty of Medicine (FK UNAIR).
Ustaz Syaukani Ong told the guests that ‘silaturahmi’ (strengthening ties) should not be narrowly defined. He said most people define silaturahmi as a regular visit. The meaning it carries is much more comprehensive. Silaturahmi may also be defined as maintaining good relations with other people. Visiting is just one way to maintain these relationships.
“Ladies and gentlemen, silaturahmi is more than just a regular visit. Silaturahmi is defined as the connection of the relationship between the two sides of two different elements. Humans are all distinctive,” said Ustaz Syaukani.
He continued that people who already know each other are likely to have conflict as every human is different. The distinctiveness is God’s gift and what makes us different from animals. Allah created animals without differences in voice, face, and fate. None of them has a problem with differences.
“Cows’ faces are alike, and so are the voices and faces. Hence, they never clashed with one another,” he said.
One of the importance of silaturahmi is to maintain the relationship so disputes among people who already know each other could be avoided. Essentially, the greeting is the next phase after getting to know each other.
“Silaturahmi started with getting to know people and proceeded with greeting each other,” he said.
Ustaz Syaukani Ong, who is the vice-president of HM Cheng Hoo Foundation Indonesia, also reminded the guests that people who maintain silaturahmi will go to paradise and vice versa. As narrated by Imam Bukhari and Imam Muslim, the person who severs the bond of kinship will not enter Paradise.
“Muslim who maintains silaturahmi will guaranteed paradise. Let’s not imagine paradise in the Hereafter, people who maintain great friendships alone already feel heavenly. But, if the bond breaks, in the world alone it feels uncomfortable, let alone in the hell of the Hereafter, which is far away,” he said.
Author: Haryansyah Setiawan
Editor: Nuri Hermawan
