It is not just another normal day in the Muslim calendar, but the month of Ramadhan is the most blessed of all, where the Prophet's hadith points out that the gates to Heaven are all opened and the gates of Hell are closed and the Satan are all chained.
When I was a small kid, the "Puasa" month is the most exciting because the breaking of the fast is accompanied by "air batu bandung" and other sweet delicacies which one sees rarely during the other months.
But now with the abundance of "Pasar Ramadhan" the excitement is of a different type, i.e. the dilemma of having so many choice of food for the breaking of fast but at a price. With the prices of food having multiplied many times as compared to then, the fun of home cooked delicacies is very much reduced. In those good old days, we exchange delicacies with neighbours and that was how goodwill and the spirit of Ramadhan was fostered.
I met a Cikgu at my usual car wash centre in Kelana Jaya and it was quite interesting as what he observed about the concept of fasting and Ramadhan, which I would like to share with readers here. He said we should welcome the blessed month much more than Hari Raya which is just for one day as compared to Ramadhan which is for one whole month. The significance of the Ramadhan should be a much awaited event because the rewards of doing good is multiplied by many times over when compared to other months. He said it during the month of Ramadhan that we should be wearing the best clothes going to the mosques to perform the Terawih prayers instead of the Hari Raya day. Another observation which he made not specifically in Ramadhan only is the practice of begging for alms. If the Zakat authorities is doing their job, he said there should be no beggars especially in the blessed month when the unfortunates should be well taken care of.
He pointed out the need to change the concept of welcoming Ramadhan as compared to the month of Syawal. I just listened without much comment as I do not want to jeorpadise my fasting. But I think there is some truth in his observations. We have somewhat gone off tangent with the times and hope the new generation will be back on the right track with regard to how to perform their obligations in keeping with the practice of Islam and not being side-tracked by other influences.
It is a small village in the kecamatan of Tambusai, Kabupaten Rokan Hulu in the Province of Riau, Sumatra. During the Padri Wars of 1830's , Tuanku Tambusai (aka known as Fakeh Hj Muhammad Salleh ) fought the Dutch forces together with Imam Bonjol and Tuanku Rao in West Sumatra and in Northern Sumatra .The last defence was in Benteng 7 Lapis,Daludalu which fell in 1838. He escaped capture and came to Malaya. He was buried in Rasah in 1882.
2 comments:
Dear Hal,
It was just a comment on his part.I would rather still take Ramadhan as a month of sacrifice and endurance. It should go along as such without fanfare or enjoyment.
The deprivation should end with the festivities of Hari Raya as we normally do. May be we are conformists but what's wrong with that!
Hank
Dear Hank,
Perhaps he wanted to see a change in attitude because the differing ways of how the Blessed month is treated by many of us in making it as a month of indulgence and wastage of food as evidenced by the frenzy of people in buying food at Pasar Ramadhan which they could not consume all they bought. As you said it should be a month of sacrifice and not not a feasting month.
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