Sep 28, 2007

To Insure or not To Insure?

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The topic, you may wonder why I have put like that? I got inspired by the topic in a community where I was having discussion. Once a student asked the question.
"Which pencil to use? 2B or not 2B?"
Let us come to the topic. To insure or not to insure? Let me begin with an example given by one of the members of that community.
He was playing like a child on the footpath and jumped over the bars and hedges just for fun (People dont forget their childhood even in their maturity [:P]). And lost his mobile phone while playing. now he was very sad, he lost his costly mobile phone. But since it was insured he got a replacement mobile within a day and was much relieved (You know how people feel without their mobile even for a minute).
So see how nice the insurance policy is. We get the things replaced if it is insured. Isn't it nice? Isn't making an insurance help us from not being worried about the loss?

On the face of it, YES. But if you look into the technical details with the light of Islam you will come to know how harmful it is and why it should not be used.

Ok let me begin with this. Whatever profit you get from Insurance, the basic harm of it is, the Trust in Allah will fade away. We trust in Allah that He is the only one who gives us loss and profit and no one else can harm us if He does not will us to harm and no one can save us if He wills us to put into trouble. One should know that just like all good things, all bad things also come from Allah (alone) and when Allah puts you in trouble then it is only Him who can pull you out of it.
(Qur'an 6:17) Should Allah touch you with affliction, there is none to remove it but He; and should He touch you with good, He has the power to do everything.
So now the question comes if u trust in Allah then you should be least bothered about your belongings. Let me clear you the concept of it by quoting a Hadeeth of our Prothet.
“One day Prophet Muhammad (SAW), noticed a Bedouin leaving his camel without tying it and he asked the Bedouin,“Why don't you tie down your camel?” The Bedouin answered, “I put my trust in Allah.” The Prophet then said, “Tie your camel first, and then put your trust in Allah.” (Tirmithi)

So from this we come to know that we should take care of our security measures and then put all our trust in Allah. We should lock the keys of our house doors properly and then put our trust in Allah. Now one may ask isn't the Insurance policy also a kind of Security? For this I would like to give the replies given by one of the members of that community. It covers the technicality of the insurance as well. Please be patient and read completely as it is long a reply.

Tawakkul vs. Buying security (through Insurance)
The best way to highlight the difference between these two is the camel example.

Prophet Muhammad (SAW) asked us to tie the camel first. That’s basic common sense, as all of us are concerned about our property. And we cannot blame Allah for our own stupidity. This is why we also lock our house at night. This is also why we install a security system in our cars. So Tawakkul comes AFTER we have exercised our free will and done the best we could to protect our property, for which we have been given some solid advice by Nabi (SAW).

Stepping into the deserts of Arabia for one moment, imagine that you tied your camel to the corral and then went into a mosque to pray. Someone stole the camel. Obviously, you did the best you could, but ended up losing the camel anyway (very precious resource in a desert). This is where Tawakkul comes in. All good things and all bad things come from Allah.

Now, the same analogy can be used to explain the security guard outside your door. Or the padlock on your main door. If someone holds the guard at gunpoint and robs you blind, will you then hold the guard at gunpoint and ask him to make good the loss? Of course not! Because it is not the poor security guard's fault, neither is he under any obligation to pay you back. So what do you do, despite the fact that you have been paying wages to the man, you accept this tough time from Allah and do Tawakkul. The security guard example, thus, cannot be used to justify insurance because the security guard does not indemnify you.

Now let’s look at insurance. The insurance company asks us to pay a premium and provided that all our premiums are paid in time and in full, they will make good the loss (indemnify). Step into the Arabian desert again (Just hypothetically ok, don't go into the desert and think). You have lost your camel, but the animal was insured. So you go to the insurance company and tell them that someone stole your camel. Do they pay you? NO! They ask the same common sensical question: Did you tie your camel?

So now, once you have proven that you did tie your camel they will pay you. If you are unable to prove that, your premiums will be lost as your claim will not be paid out . So now the scenario is that Allah sent trouble your way, and it seems that the insurance company bailed you out. The Tawakkul concept is killed right here, which is a basic tenet of our faith in Allah.

Having said that, let’s look at how the insurance company makes money. Open up any book on financial institutions and read about insurance companies. You will discover that the insurance companies make money through this equation:
Premiums Received – Claims paid out = Surplus (profit)
So the insurance game is all about getting more in premiums and paying out LESS, otherwise the company will be in a loss. This is why insurance companies design their contracts in such a way that getting the claim becomes really difficult. Here are some examples:
  1. Pay all your premiums on time and you get a 10% discount.
  2. If you miss your premium payment, your claim will not be paid out.
  3. If you are 25 and healthy as a horse, your premium payments will be LOWER.
  4. If you are 55 and have had a heart attack in the past, your premiums will be higher.
  5. If you are suffering from Hepatitis C, your premiums will be higher
  6. If you miss out on the premiums on your car insurance, your discount offer will be taken back.
  7. If there is a theft in your house, and the lock on your door wasn’t working properly, then your claim will not be paid out.
The next thing that makes the insurance business forbidden is that the insurance company HAS to invest in financial instruments that will give a guaranteed return. This is because it needs to predict its inflows if it is to settle claims in a year. Insurance companies keep these complex actuarial tables which give the probability of an event. How many people will have heart attacks, how many will die, how many cars and mobiles will be stolen etc. Based on these, they work out how many claims will be made or how many policies will mature over time. The better an insurance company is in making this calculation, the more prepared it is for any eventualities. But when things like Hurricane Katrina, 9/11 and Sheffield floods happen, they refuse to pay out finding a convenient clause that says they don’t cover terrorism or Acts of Nature. What a laugh!! (By the way, some insurance companies now offer protection against terrorism as well but the clauses are even more strict).

By nature then, the insurance business needs predictability. This is why insurance companies are the biggest institutional investors in fixed rate bonds, long-term saving deposits, and mortgages. This means that their returns on investment are predominantly interest-based. That takes the Shariah-compliance out the window.

Now because we Muslims like to modify the financial system in such a way that it SEEMS Islamic, but still caters to all the needs of the investors today, we have modified insurance into Takaful without even checking first if Islam allows for insurance or not. Takaful companies claim that they invest the premiums into non-interest bearing assets, but what they do is that they invest them in variable interest rate securities (that ARE variable but pay interest within a range), or Islamic mortgages (which are doubtful anyway) or Sukuk bonds (doubtful again) or in indexed stock exchange mutual funds, that pay as much as the stock index. This also ensures returns reach a certain mark. Besides, stock exchange indexes like the Dow Jones, Standards & Poors and Dow Industrial are quite predictable.
But they all still violate the basic concept of Tawakkul and insurance by nature is very exploitative in nature. It is because of the exploitative aspect of it that we say it is un-Islamic.

For example, in UK, people pay £400 per year for a complete plumbing cover. Now what are the chances of your boiler breaking down every year? What if it did, then hiring a technician will cost about £150 and it is STILL less than what you pay in premiums. If ALL the plumbing in your house breaks down, THEN the insurance premiums feel worthwhile. But you see, the insurance company knows that, that does not happen every day. At the end of the day, we know that the insurance companies are profitable precisely because they are paying out less than they are getting in premiums.

There is also the effect of insurance on people's psyche: it makes them reckless or greedy. If your mobile hadn't been insured, you would check twice before jumping over the hedge. And recklessness is certainly not encouraged in Islam. There are also all those cases of Arson committed by people on their own properties to claim hefty insurance. There are also all those women/men murdered by their spouses to claim insurance if they are named as beneficiaries.

So Muslims should just try to lean on the best insurance possible: Tawakkul on Allah. So keep the idea of making insurance away from you mind and put all your Trust in Allah alone. So what is the means to achieve the welfare of the society will be another question?

The Zakath system along with Qarz-e-Hasan gives the answer.

Feel free to comment on this. I would like to have improvement in this topic. Thanks for the patient reading.

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Sep 20, 2007

Something unusual about me...

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Hehe... What do u people think if I die?? Well most of u will be missing me... And somebody will thanks God, Bala tal Gayee... But there is someone who misses me more than anyone...
Just find out who it is...







QuizGalaxy!

Check out 'What will your obituary say?' ;)



In fact maybe this is true... I always laugh and love laughing... And seriously the Muppets kind people will surely miss me... hehe



One more quiz.. The question was will you get away with murder? Seriously I dont even think of murdering anyone..
But just check out the reply...

















Ten Years: You would get caught, but only because of the guilt you'd feel. But you will be left free the next day you enter the Jail, only because your Net name is Sikku.


Hehe... So if u have a net name Sikku, you will also get freed...
Check out whether you get away with murder or not?






Check my name meaning..


Sikku --

[noun]:

A person with a sixth sense for detecting the presence of goblins



'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com


Sixth sense... huh. In fact I do have sixth sense... But why will I detect the presence of unusual creatures called goblins, haaan?




Hey but later I found out that, the site gives different definitions for the same name for different times you query it... huh. I thought it gives same meaning all the time...

Check this


Sikku --

[noun]:

A deadly strain of projectiile vomit



'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com


Yuck... What a bad definition... huh.

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Sep 18, 2007

Allama Iqbal's Rare Pictures...

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For more on Allama Iqbal: www.iqbaliyat.blogspot.com

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Sep 17, 2007

By Chance...

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One day I went to a certain town. It was by chance that I went to such a town. I don't know the name of the town but I saw something unusual there. I saw a beautiful store, it was so nicely built that it can attract anyone. It had nice carvings and the main thing was that it was completely symmetrical which was the greatest things of construction. Now I was curious to check what was being sold. As I guessed there were lots of customers who came to purchase different items. I thought of buying something. When I went to purchase to my astonishment I saw that nobody was there inside the store. Let alone the manager of the store there were no sales people also! But to my astonishment the store was running smoothly. The items were being sold to the customers and not only that the goods were coming to the store in such a way that the customers need not want to wait, if any item is out of stock. As soon as any need arises the good were bought into the store for sale. Thats not all, I did not see a trace of thing by which anyone can go inside and rob the whole store. The security system was so tight that nobody could rob anything from that store. It was safe from burglars and thieves without the supervision of any security staff! Could you believe it?
Do you believe it?
So I got confused and ran away from there. On my way I found one factory. It was large, beautifully built. I was imagining how did the engineer built such a nice factory? I went inside it. Nobody was there to stop me. hehe. Then I saw inside that there were fully sophisticated machines. I wondered who made it! Then I saw that the machines were actually running, in the sense it was working. But for my astonishment not a single person was there to operate it! No managers no foremen and no engineers to look after it! Well I thought that someone has started it and has went for a rest. I searched the whole factory but not a single trace of any humans were there. Now I just started to observe the machines. Those machines were such that without any operators it wont work, but they were working by itself. I was amazed and I came outside. There I saw a light lamp. It was made by a glass pole. On the top was a light bulb. There was no connection of any electricity. But the bulb was glowing. It was generating light by itself. How on earth is it possible? Then I broke the pole. The lamp fell down, now there was no connection between the pole and the bulb. But the bulb was still generating light and that too by its own.
Conclusion:
Now after all this observations I concluded that all this happened by itself.
Something happened spontaneously and the whole store came into existence. It came into existence in such a way that there was no need of any salesmen or any managers. There was no need to check the availability of the goods. It came into existence in such a way that if any items are out of stock the goods have to arrive in time. How great it is!
I concluded that the factory which was built so nicely came into existence by its own. All the components of the machines had fitted themselves into place and started to run smoothly, giving out excellent products. There was no need of any managers or operators. Not only that the machines were designed by themselves in such a way that it wont get damaged. What a beauty isn't it? Then about the light? I was still wondering how could that bulb glow by itself. Then after several thinking at the end I came to a conclusion that the bulb came into existence by chance. By chance the whole glass was molded in such a way that it would take the shape of a bulb. Now the bulb by itself made the gaseous substance in itself in such a way that it could generate light. How amazing it is, isn't it?
Now who can be a greater philosopher than me who has concluded all this in such a way that no other greatest philosopher wont be able to convince you in such an easy way. Please spread this to others so that they can come to know that there are certain towns in which all these things happen. I know you will be asking for proofs. When certain people say that the whole existence of mankind and the animals and plants and all the natural things on this Earth and not only that the whole universe which is perfect in itself came into existence by chance then why can't these things come into existence by chance? Anything can happen by chance. Though the probability of such chance is near to zero, but it is not completely zero. Hence proved!!!

I would like to end my story by quoting one of the famous and the most noted physicists Isaac Bashevis Singer. Who said in a conference:
"Scientists discovered a deserted island. The scientists who stepped on the island were very impressed by what they saw there. They were fascinated by the jungles and wild animals. They climbed steep hills and examined their surroundings. They could not find the smallest sign of civilization in the island. Just when they were returning to their ship, they found a brand new watch on the beach. It was working perfectly. This was quite intriguing for the scientists. How did this watch come here? They knew for certain that no one had ever set foot on the island before them. So, there was only one other possibility. This watch, with its well crafted leather belt, glass, battery and other parts, came to this island by chance and settled on the beach. There is no other alternative."
To explain the impossibility of this, Singer ended his story in these words:
"Every watch certainly has a watchmaker."
[ Source: Taskin Tuna, Sonsuz Uzaylar (Eternal Spaces), p. 31 ]

Any comments and suggestions are most welcomed.

To know more about the Existence of God, read this link, The Road to Peace and Salvation, written by Maulana Abul A'la Maududi.
Thanks for patient reading.



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Sep 11, 2007

Right to Privacy in Islam

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In the Name of Allah the most Merciful the Compassionate.

What is right to privacy? It is the ability of an individual or group to keep their lives and personal affairs out of public view (Wikipedia). So the question is what does Islam say about privacy? People think that Islam does not allow people to have privacy, in other words they say that why does Islam interrupt between one's private life? They actually have a misconception that Islam does not allow them to enjoy in their private life. The main misconception is that they do not make any difference between "Islam" and "Islamic Political System". Islam as an ideology stops one self from doing any wrong thing even in the privacy. Though you are alone you cannot commit any sin. But if you do any wrong thing in the privacy the Islamic System cannot punish you unless their are any eye witness evidences.
Now let us see what Islam talks about one's privacy.
(Qur'an 24:27) O Believers, do not enter other houses than your own until you have the approval of the inmates and have wished them peace; this is the best way for you: it is expected that you will observe it.
The Commandments being given above are meant to prevent the very birth of evil, to reform society and root out the causes responsible for the creation and spread of evil. To understand the commandments let us see what was the condition of Arabs during that time.
According to the Arab custom of the pre-Islamic days, people would enter each other's house freely without permission just by pronouncing 'good morning' or 'good evening'. This unannounced entry sometimes violated the privacy of the people and their women folk. Allah enjoined the principle that everybody has a right to privacy in his own house and no one is entitled to force his entry unannounced and without permission of the inmates.
The rules and regulations enforced by the Holy Prophet in society on receipt of the above Commandment are given below serially:
(1) The 'right of privacy' was not merely confined to the question of entry in the houses, but it was declared as a common right according to which it is forbidden to peep into a house, glance from outside, or even read the other person's letter without his permission.
Hadrat Huzail bin Shurahbil has reported that a man came to see the Holy Prophet and sought permission for entry while standing just in front of the door. The Holy Prophet said to him: "Stand aside: the object of the Commandment for seeking permission is to prevent casting of looks inside the house." (Abu Da'ud - Book 41, Number 5155).
The practice of the Holy Prophet was that whenever he went to see somebody, he would stand aside, to the right or the left of the door, and seek permission as it was not then usual to hang curtains on the doors. (Abu Da'ud - Book 41, Number 5167).
According to Hadrat 'Abdullah bin 'Abbas, the Holy Prophet said: "Whoever glances through the letter of his brother without his permission, glances into fire." (Abu Da'ud, Book 8, Number 1480).
According to Muslim and Bukhari;, the Holy Prophet is reported to have said: "If someone peeps into your house, it will be no sin if you injure his eye with a piece of stone."
In another Tradition, he has said: "The inmates of a house, who injure the eye of the man peeping into their house; are not liable to any punishment." (Abu Da'ud, Book 41, Number 5153)
(2) The jurists have included 'hearing' also under 'glancing'. For instance, if a blind man enters a house without permission, he will not be able to see anybody, but he will certainly be able to hear whatever is going on in the house. This also amounts to violation of the other person's right of privacy.

(3) The Command to seek permission is not only applicable in cases where a person wants to enter the other people's houses, but it also applies to entry in the house of one's own mother or sister.
A man asked the Holy Prophet: "Sir, should I seek permission to enter my mother's house also?" The Holy Prophet replied that he should. The man stated that "there was nobody beside him to look after her", and asked "whether it was necessary to get permission every time he wanted to go in". The Holy Prophet replied: "Yes; would you like that you should see your mother in a naked state" (Ibn Jarir quoting from 'Ata bin Yasar).
(4) The only exception to the general rule is that no permission is needed in case of an emergency or a calamity like theft, fire, etc. One can go for help without permission in such cases.

(5) The system of seeking permission is to say Assalamu-Alaikum and then disclose one's identity and then ask for permission.
It is related that whenever Hadrat `Umar went to see the Holy Prophet, he would say: "Assalam-o- alaikum ya Rasul-Allah, I am `Umar: May I enter!" (Abu Da'ud).
The Holy Prophet enjoined that permission should be asked thrice at the most. If there is no reply even at the third call, one should come back. (Bukhari, Muslim, Abu D'ud)
Once he went to the house of Hadrat Sa'd bin `Ubadah and sought permission twice after greeting with: Assalam-o-`alaikum wa Rahmatullah (peace be upon you and mercy of Allah), but there was no response. After calling for the third time when he received no response, he turned back. Sa'd came out running from the house, and said, "O Messenger of Allah, I was hearing you all right, but I desired to have Allah's peace and mercy invoked upon me through your sacred tongue as often as possible; therefore, I was replying to you in a low voice. " (Abu D'ud - Book 41, Number 5166a, Ahmad).
The three calls as enjoined above should not be made in quick succession, but at suitable intervals so as to allow sufficient time to the inmates to make the response in case they are not free to do so.

(6) The permission for entry should come from the master of the house himself or from some other reliable inmate like a servant or a responsible person, who gives permission on behalf of the master. One should not enter the house on the word of a mere child.

(7) Undue insistence for permission to enter or to keep standing at the door obstinately even after refusal, is not permissible. If no entry is permitted even after three calls, or the master refuses to see, one should go back.

(24:28) Then, if you do not find anyone therein, do not enter until you have been given permission, and if you are told to go back, you should go back. This is a purer way for you; and Allah has full knowledge of what you do.
That is nobody should mind if entry is refused, for everybody has a right to refuse to meet another person, or offer a plea if otherwise busy. The Command "Go back", according to the jurists, means going back in the literal sense and moving away from the door. Nobody has any right to compel the other person for a meeting or to embarrass him by standing obstinately at his door.

Apart from that the next verse gives some more details....
(24:29) There is, however, no harm if you enter houses which are not dwelling places, but contain something useful for you ; Allah knows what you disclose and what you conceal.
"Houses which are not dwelling place" are the hotels, inns, guest houses, shops, staging bungalows, banks, etc. which are generally open to all people. And you need not take any permission to enter.

So the privacy system in Islam does not allow any one to interrupt in the private life of other person. in fact one cannot enter or look into the window of other person without permission or without the willingness of other person. So the unbelievers have the complete freedom to enjoy (to have illegal sex) in their private life and do whatever they want. The only thing they should see to it that it should not be done in public or affect the society by doing so. If they are caught in that act by 4 eye witnesses then they have to face the punishment, which is 100 lashes if s/he is unmarried and stoning to death if s/he is married. And then should not complain that Islamic punishments are harsh and inhuman.
It is better for you to be on the safer side and follow the teachings of Islam by believing in it. Islam calls to peace and salvation in this world and the world hereafter. I pray the you and I get success in this world and the world hereafter. Aameen.



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My Childhood Days I

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In the Name of Allah The most Merciful The Compassionate.

Assalamu-Alaikum to you. Here I am going to share my childhood days. It is not that easy to recollect everything from my childhood days and if at all I recollect it also it is difficult to put everything over here. I would first of all like to make you know that I consider my childhood days to be right from the first day of my memory till my 6th standard in School. That will be my 12 years of age, I was 12 when I was in 6th standard.
In fact the dictionary meaning also gives the same type of meaning.

1. the time of person's life when they are a child
2. the state of a child between infancy and adolescence
http://dictionary.reference.com/search?q=childhood

Ok, let me recollect. Hmmmmmm I dont remember exactly. But I do remember some incidents from my days when I was around 4 years or 5 years old. I may not recollect tell them exactly in chronological order, but I will tell those incidents. I remember that we were going to school. Now you may think who is this WE? Well let me introduce my first friend in my life, he is Haroon Assadi, one of my cousin. He is my Maternal cousin also and Paternal cousin also, so double bonded cousin. He was such a naughty boy that he always used to get beatings from everyone in our house. We both plan something and do some mischiefs and when the elders ask about it with him he used to tell "I dont know who did it", but when asked with me i used to say "Haroon did it". Then what? He used to get beatings, but I wont. lol. But he never fought with me in this regards. We both used to go to School together. I know that it was Christian High School, Udupi. I studied my L.K.G and U.K.G. The moments which I remember from school is that we used to go by Auto Rickshaw, and the driver was very friendly with us. I remember being standing in a line in our school, dont know for what purpose, but I remember it. Then I remember all my class mates playing with the small cycles with 3 tyres. But we were just watching them play as we did not know how to play. Then we learned how to play and we enjoyed it. I remember We used to eat biscuits in class. Those were school days of my KG class. Now let me tell something which I remember from my home - in fact my maternal Grandma's home (I used to stay with her when I was going to school). I still remember that I had a Grand Grand mother. My Mom's Paternal Grand Mother. Or I can say my Maternal Grand Father's Mother. Simpy to say My mother's father's mother. She was too old, but very beautiful, I still remember. We used to play with her. She had a stone by which she used to grind or soften things which she used to eat it later, as she did not have teeth. Sometimes we used to help her. We used to enjoy it. I still remember that tarana which was put in the tape "Jaago Jaago Subah Huwi", and this our "Grand Grandma" used to mimic it like this "Jaago Jaago Sir Mein Bukhaar Hai". And that made me think, that we can change things as we like.
Then I still remember how I used to catch my pencil, my Maternal Grandma used to teach me how to catch the pencil. I dont remember whether my class teacher ever thought me to catch the pencil, but I remember that my Grandma thought me that thing. Then I still remember my Grandma used to teach me how to read. I don't remember whether she thought me ABCD, but I remember those words she thought how to pronounce. Like for example F A N - FAN, C A N - CAN etc. Then I remember she thought me Alif, Ba, Tha - The Arabic alphabets. All these were when I was just 4 to 5 years old.
Then I remember one marriage, of my Maternal uncle. I discussed those incidents with my Aunt, she asked astonishingly "how could u remember it? You were just 4 years old at that time." I told hehe I dont know but I remember. And then one more incident comes into my life. I saw my mom crying, she wept like a child. Then we went to our Grandma's house. There I saw my sweet little "Grand Grandma" is dead. That was the first death I saw in my life and I still remember it. I saw everything from giving bath to Kafan and then Dafan. I prayed the Janaaza Namaaz also. At this moment I totally forgot my cousin. I don't remember whether I was with him or not. Anyways those were the early moments which I could not forget at all. Then we continued to go to school. We both were in standard 1st. I remember I used to excel in getting marks than my cousin, though he was very intelligent than me. Then one day I was separated from my cousin. In fact I was separated from all my relatives. Not only my relatives but also my home town. My dad was working in Riyadh. He got a family visa and we all went to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

My Childhood II coming soon...

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