We are now in the first month of HIJRA 1425. Unlike our non-Muslim brothers/sisters, most Muslims do not celebrate the New Year. This does not mean, however, that Muharam is seen as an uneventful month. It all depends on how one lives his life.

The quality of our everyday life is crucially important to our peace and happiness. Such life can be a pleasure and a joy, or it can also be a burden or a misery, and therefore it can become a boring and a meaningless exercise. It is then advisable that in living our life, we must consider getting a model to serve as our reference in molding our values and practices.

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) is the best model everybody must emulate. And it is not difficult to do this because the "sunna" of the Prophet is widely known and explained. It is only a matter of mustering enough determination and sincerity to adopt the practices and values held dear by Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

It is accepted by all Muslims that the "sunna" is the key to understanding the message of the Holy Qur'an and to the implementation of the guidelines and laws laid down in it. While revealed scripture explains the basic principles and laws of Islam as a way of life, the "sunna" teaches Islam through explanation and demonstration of those principles and laws; it makes them part of man's experiences by showing how they work in practice. The "sunna" is thus indispensable if one wants to practice Islam and be a true Muslim.

One "sunna" of the Prophet (pbuh) is "moderation." He never enjoined Muslims to be radical, violent or extreme. He preached and practiced peaceful co-existence with all others in the community - be they Muslim, Christian, Jew or others. If he were with us today, he would have condemned "terrorism" as we see such dastardly act happening in our midst. If only all of us - whatever our religious affiliation is - practice moderation, non-violence, peaceful co-existence, tolerance, and love for each other (same values that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) exemplified in his "sunna"), our world will be a better place to live in.

It is not surprising, then, that Indonesia, during this Muharam, is initiating the plan to establish a "Center for Moderate Moslem" (CMM). We are one with the world's biggest Muslim country in such noble venture, especially as we start Hijra 1425.