Cartography

1.     Cartography or map-making is the study and practice of crafting representations of the Earth upon a flat surface, and one who makes maps is called a cartographer.

Road maps are perhaps the most widely used maps today, and form a subset of navigational maps, which also include aeronautical and nautical charts, railroad network maps, and hiking and bicycling maps. In terms of quantity, the largest number of drawn map sheets is probably made up by local surveys, carried out by municipalities, utilities, tax assessors, emergency services providers, and other local agencies
In addition to location information maps may also be used to portray contour lines indicating constant values of elevation, temperature, rainfall, etc.

Cartography as a discipline evolved from the ancient practice of map-making, and its complex set of conventions and techniques. GIS was developed much more recently as a comprehensive computer application for performing a wide range of functions on geographic data. The two fields have converged as digital technology has become more pervasive, and as it provides new opportunities that offer to escape many of the constraints under which manual map-making operated. Cartography is both a science and an art, whereas GIS evolved as a more precise and objective approach to what is observable and measurable about the Earth’s surface, with an emphasis on numerical analysis. While the distinction between the two fields is not as strong as in the past, these nuances remain today.

Many cartographers now prefer the term geovisualization, and many GIS professionals consider themselves expert in the design of maps. The following sections explore the many dimensions of the relationship between cartography and GIS, and end with a brief speculation on the relationship’s future

IS MY RAMADAN ACCEPTED ???

Assalamualaikum wa Rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu,

Eid Mubarak! May Allah the great accept from us and you! You have fasted and prayed and wept and begged Allah the Great and now is your time to rejoice as His mercy and forgiveness envelopes the Universe. May Allah shower you and your family with His choicest rewards and please you on the Day you meet Him just as you are pleased today.

A lot of people ask the question: How do I know if Allah has accepted my Ramadan? How do I know that my deeds were not rejected, but accepted and written in my scale of good deeds? And you too must ask this question, since Ali radiallahu anhu said: “Do not be so concerned about the number of deeds as the acceptance of it. Do you not remember what Allah the great said? (Verily Allah only accepts from the pious) [AlMa’idah: 27]”

The answer to that, is simply: That your relationship with Allah after Ramadan is better than your relationship with Him before Ramadan. That you feel and act closer to Allah in Shawwal than you did in Shabaan. This strengthening of your relationship with Allah, is a feeling of the heart as well as from the action of the limbs.

The feeling of the heart, is that you see Allah’s signs in creation, and feel His authority and mercy and blessings in your life and thus draw nearer to Him by constant remembrance of Him. Ibnul Qayyim rahimahullah said: “The more that you witness the magnificence of His Lordship and the meagerness of our servitude to Him, and the more you learn about Allah and His greatness and about your soul and its meagerness, it will become manifestly clear to you that that which you have put forward from your offerings is not the least bit suitable for the Lord of Truth, even if you were to offer the deeds of all of Mankind and Jinn together. As a result, you would be full of fear how your measly offerings would ever be acceptable to Him. However, it is out of His honour and nobleness and graciousness that He accepts it. On top of that, He even rewards you for it, by His grace, nobleness and honour!” [Madarij As-Salikeen (2/439)] Glory be to Allah, the most Gracious, the most Merciful!

And that you draw closer to Him through your actions. That you feel the need to turn to prayer so you resolve to pray at the earliest time, that your heart wants to come back to the mosque so you make every attempt to pray in congregration, to open the Quran even on the day of Eid or start memorizing – so you make every effort to read it frequently, that you desire and miss the taraweeh and so make the resolve to continue to pray tahajjud and that you miss the fasts, so you resolve to do the 6 days of Shawwal. Then you remember the hadeeth of Rasulullah sallallahu alaihi wa sallam: “If the Prophet used to do any action, then he used to stick to it (i.e. make it a habit).” [Reported by Muslim] Based on this, you resolve to make good habits out of the bootcamp that Ramadan pr ovided so that good deeds become second nature to you.

Remember, if you want to get that special Ramadan feeling in your heart again, then take a path to gaining knowledge. “Whoever Allah wants good for, then He gives him the fiqh of this religion.” [Reported by AlBukhari] This is the surest sign that Allah accepted your Ramadan, that after it, you are more knowledgeable about Islam than you were before it. Islamic knowledge is now more accessible to you than ever before. So, make every effort to attend courses, read books and listen to lectures so that you draw closer to Allah every day. There is an AlKauthar course in your city, just around the corner, so make sure you attend it. Once you have gained that knowledge, then act upon it by calling to Allah through all those projects that are working on helping Allah deen. Mercy Mission has a project that you can get involved in or help you to launch your own.

Lastly, I hope to see you all soon in an event near you. Glory be to Allah that He has given us life until the end of this Ramadan, may Allah give us all the opportunity to see the next Ramadan and protect you and your families and all Muslims till then. Ameen.

THE PERIOD OF YOUTH

 

If we examine the life of an average human, we come to realize that life consists of four periods. Childhood: This usually lasts for thirteen to fourteen years. The teenage years which usually lasts for six to eight years depending on when he gets married, (The Period of Youth). The third part of his life is from the time he gets married until his old age, which usually lasts for merely twenty to thirty years, and then lastly his old age whose exact time period cannot be said with certainty, depending on when death takes him.

Now out of these four parts of an average human life, the most crucial stage of his life is the period of youth. The period of youth is a time when a person goes through many changes and experiences; he undergoes and partake many new things which he has never experienced before. The youth begins to feel as though he has control over the whole world, and that he can do whatever he wishes. His desires are increasing day by day becoming attached to the opposite sex, he enjoys lustfully gazing and flirting with them.

Just like everything, life is also a gift from Allah and every aspect of it should be regarded as a gift and a trust from Allah. Allah expects us to spend this youth in His worship and obedience, seeking knowledge of Islam and acting upon it. This in itself is a form of gratefulness.
In a Hadith, the Messenger of Allah said that the feet of the son of Adam will not be able to move until he is questioned regarding four things.
Out of these four questions, one question asked will be regarding how one spent his time as a youth. In another Hadith, the Messenger of Allah has said that on the Day of Judgement, there are seven types of people to whom Allah will give shade to. It is stated in Bukhari that on the Day of Judgement there will be no shade except for Allah's shade. And from amongst these groups, one group will be those youth who spent their youth in the worship of Allah.

Role of Muslim youth in societal Reformation

According to a statistics presented by the United Nations world report (2007), approximately 1.2 billion youths form part of the world's population. Imagine this population standing up for the truth, the world would have been a different place to live in. When I talk of the role of the Muslim youths in nation building it will be wise to know what percentage of the world's population makes up the Muslim youths. A statistics presented by Pew Research Centre's Forum on Religion and Public Life in 2010 has it that, Muslim youths make up about 60% of the total population of Muslim-majority countries and about 29.1% of world youth and young adult population.

Of what benefit will this percentage be if we can only contribute to the rapid decadence in our societies at all tiers of life?. Allah says it so perfectly in the Glorious Qur'an that; "Let there arise out of you a group of people inviting to all that is good (Islam), enjoining Al-Ma'ruf (i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all that Islam orders one to do) and forbidden Al-Munkar (polytheism and disbelief and all that Islam has forbidden). And it is they who are the successful." Q :3 v104.

The youths of today are victims of negative norms passed on to them by the older generation. Our psychology is being abused by what the sight of unfortunate acts our elderly ones indulge in. But if the Muslim youth can study the life of As'hab Al-khaf (The companions of the cave) who were sons of the Kings and leaders of Byzantium (according to several earlier and later scholars of Tafseer as related in Tafseer of Ibn Katheer), who saw the negativity around them and chose to be different in order to build a positive nation, then we will move forward.

As youths, we need a total ethical re-orientation. First we have to really see ourselves as part of the problem. Then go back to our history books and adopt the methodology of earlier generations. 

Secondly, we need to be sincere in our dealings and constantly have to remind ourselves that for everything we do there's a record kept with Allah for accountability.

As Muslim youths, we need to affirm in our hearts that Allah has written our sustenance even before He created us. If we can achieve that in our hearts, then our blind love for material acquisition will natural die which we all know is the cause of our present appalling situation.

We have to inculcate within our bosom the spirit of change and that we are that change we are advocating for. I see people talking about nation building but they are quick to give in to corrupt practices. If only we can stop admiring the bad people in our society, I guess nobody will involve himself in corrupt practices to impress others.

We have to be very vocal and vociferous and define what principles we uphold so that we can always speak and stand for the truth where ever we are and people will dare not approach us with any corrupt mindset which in essence will provide a buffer zone between us and corrupt people. In the Sunan of Ibn Majah on the strength of Abu Saeed Al-Khudri (RA), the Prophet (may the peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said:

"Behold! Fear from people should not prevent one from saying the truth if he knows it"

There's always something for us to do to make the desired difference. If our minds are also corrupt  and we criticize simply because we have no equal opportunities as those we are criticizing, then we will build no positive nation. The Prophet (may the peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him) said; "Character is contagious", be very careful where you contact your character from. Identify with people of like minds and come up with a strategic plan on how to move this nation forward. Remember that we are solely responsible for the decisions we make in choosing which group to fall in to.

I always say that no matter how rich we are, no matter how many degrees we have bagged, no matter how many feathers we have in our cap, if we don't value our Islam, we are not more than a zero behind decimal point.

So dear youngster! Realize your value and importance for the future fate of the Ummah lies in your hands. May Allah guide and protect us all on the day of Judgement. Ameen

We ask Allah to guide the Islamic Ummah - young and old, leaders and peoples - to do what pleases Allah (Exalted be He), to heal hearts and reform deeds and to direct everyone to the Straight Path. Allah is the One Who is Capable of doing so and the One Who guides to the right path. May Allah's Peace and Blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions!

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Getting The Most Out Of The Campus Experience

Welcome to yet another piece, hope you are in good health. The following information can help you as a student to settle in and get comfortable in your new surroundings ; the campus. 

GET TO KNOW OTHERS
Don’t be shy. Look for opportunities to engage with other students. Attend floor meetings of various associations on campus.  Also, don’t forget a smile goes a long way in building friendships.

GET TO KNOW THE CAMPUS
Don’t be late to class! Get to know campus before the first day of classes. Best way to do this is get a campus map and take a quick tour of the classroom buildings. This will make the transition to campus much easier and less stressful. If in doubt on where to go, ask the senior students.

GET INVOLVED IN EXTRACURRICULAR ACTIVITIES AND CLUBS
Make a deliberate, genuine commitment to get involved in something on campus beyond attending classes. One of the best ways to enjoy the campus experience is to get involved in clubs/organizations and other extracurricular activities. These activities help with the campus connection and provide leadership opportunities.

GET A PART-TIME JOB ON CAMPUS

Working  in an academic department, the library, or in one of the many student affairs departments.  Visit your school’s employment website and check out the student employment opportunities if your school offers it otherwise you can work in one of the shops or business centers located within or outside the campus, by doing so,you can be able to be independent after graduation before you get a job.

VOLUNTEER TO ASSIST AT CAMPUS EVENTS, This is a sure way to get to know the campus and faculty/staff and other students.

ATTEND CAMPUS EVENTS—basketball games, lectures, concerts, plays, programs that the school offers and the list goes on. 

BE PATIENT
Maintaining support ties at home along with persistence in meeting with new people and trying new things will pay off as the first month of classes comes to a close.  ”Never cut a tree down in the wintertime. Never make a negative decision in the low time. Never make your most important decisions when you are in your worst moods. Wait. Be patient. The storm will pass. The spring will come“ - Robert H. Schuller.

PLAN FIRST SEMESTER SCHEDULE CAREFULLY
Plan wisely.   The first semester is a time for adjustment to campus.  It can be challenging and successfull!

COMR. YUSUF YUSUF YAKUBU

SECRETARY GENERAL,

GAMJI MEMORIAL CLUB,

ABUBAKAR TAFAWA BALEWA UNIVERSITY, BAUCHI.

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