Why Ibnu Hanaffi?

Me with mom and dad- MCKK Hassanal Bolkiah Award Recipient, 2007

Assalamualaikum w.b.t

Pseudonym refers to a ‘false’ name whereby the word ‘pseudo’ means false or fake (not real). It can be used in many places or events but personally I believe people mostly use it on the internet where we connect and communicate in this digital world- with the emergence of popular tools like Facebook, Twitter and blogs (Blogger, Wordpress), to name a few.

I myself have my own pseudonym, or a pen name, if you will, that at times make people confused, while some find difficulties looking for me on Facebook, and some others even forgot my real name! Well, that’s partly because I have other nicknames too, such as Aleng (MCKK-since 2003) and Amir (at home). One girlfriend (err.. I mean, a friend of mine who is a girl haha) also calls me with a different name- Am, hehe. Eh, and for preference’s sake, I personally love the name ‘Asyraf’ the most, which is least used by people around me anyhow. Asyraf is derived from my full name, Mohd Amirul Asyraf bin Mohd Hanaffi.

But here’s my most used pseudonym in my digital world- Ibnu Hanaffi. One question now arises. Why Ibnu Hanaffi?

Here are the reasons.

2 January 2010 marks the completion of the twentieth years of my life, full of love and fun, hardship and challenges, plus lesson-containing experiences. All this while, I believe I have achieved the best of things, much more than most, if not all of my brothers and sisters in the family have in their life, also kith and kin. Many things I possess in life are exemplary to them and I am looked up upon, for that matter.

However, there’s one thing that always make me feel compelled to always have humility (I hope I do), and to remember where I come from and how my life started back then in a small village in Seberang Takir- It’s my dad, Mohd Hanaffi.

Ibnu Hanaffi, is a phrase that means the son of (Ibnu) Hanaffi. Through my digital world, I know I can achieve and do a lot of things, and by having my dad’s name as an identity, I secure two things.

First, so that I always remember him when I strive to achieve high in my life. (One may argue that I must remember Allah first, which is undeniable to me because remembering a dad does not necessarily mean that I have to forget Allah). By remembering him, I sort of feel motivated because I always want to make him proud, because he in his entire life hardly indulges in wealth (materially- which is not necessary of course) but the real wealth he really puts much interest on is the success of his children- and I am one of his sons- hence why I want to make him feel proud.

Second, which may be quite similar to that of the above, is because he hardly achieved many things I achieved in my life- which is not necessary to be listed here. Therefore when people were to remember successes and the good side of Ibnu Hanaffi, let them think of Hanaffi, not Amirul, as a means to pray and appreciate the contribution of a dad, through his son- and that’s the way I prove that I love him.

Very simple isn’t it? Nevertheless, none can ever speculate that I have more love for my dad than my mom, because love is something really subjective and I love them both very much and I love them because I love them- only death will do us apart.

I think that’s all for now, and oh before I forget, long time ago, I have put up a post about my dad, which for the record, is the most popular post on my blog until now (judging by number and contents of comments I received for that particular post). You may want to check it out here.

Take care all, and love your parents always, as no matter what, they love you too.

Wassalam.