Hari Raya – A Guide for the Unsure

By A. Najib Ariffin - Nadge –

“...Hari Raya, which is the Muslim New Year... ”, Oops! Have you heard anyone say something like that, or do you yourself think Hari Raya is the Muslim New Year? Well, it is not - but that was what one Malaysian speaker mentioned while addressing a public function some time ago. Granted, the person was not Muslim but having heard that, this is a good chance to explain a few things about “puasa” and “Hari Raya” (“literally the “Great Day”) for the better understanding of our multi-cultural society.

Hari Raya in relation to the puasa (Malay word for “fasting”) in the month of Ramadhan is the celebration to mark the fulfillment of the month's fasting, which is an obligatory part of Islamic faith. Thus it is sometimes half-jokingly said that any Muslim who does not puasa doesn't have the right to celebrate Hari Raya. Also it is clear that it is NOT the Muslim New Year, which by the way is another holiday, Awal Muharram (Muharram being the first month in the Islamic calendar).

Delicious "Kuih raya" or festive cookies of many kinds sold at the ubiquitous Bazaar Ramadhan around Malaysia, to be served to guests at Hari Raya season when people visit each other, a tradition called  'Rumah Terbuka' (Open House).

It is pertinent to note that the Ramadhan fasting and the celebration at its completion are not just a Malaysian or Melayu Muslim affair. The whole Muslim Ummah (“Umat” in Malay or roughly “the community”) all over the world performs the same fasting and celebrates it at the end. In Arabic, Hari Raya Puasa is the 'Eid or “'Eid-ul-Fitr” and this is Malaysianised in spelling as “Aidil Fitri” (or "Idul Fitri" in Indonesia).

Meanwhile the other Hari Raya is for the Hajj, or “Hari Raya Haji” and also called “Hari Raya Kurban”, because it marks both the annual Pilgrimage for pilgrims to holy Makkah (Mecca) in Saudi Arabia as well as commemorating the symbolic sacrifice of Prophet Ibrahim (Abraham) on his son Ismail (Ishmael). Kurban means “sacrifice” and at this feast domestic animals are sacrificed or properly slaughtered for their meat to be distributed, especially to the poor.

Back to the puasa itself. The fasting practically and physically means not eating, drinking (not even a drop of water) or engaging in sexual activities during the fast. The actual time of fasting is the entire daytime. This is from when the first indication of light is visible in the horizon (note that this is before actual sunrise as the light appears before the sun itself) and ends exactly at sunset. Both times are marked by the “azan” (or the “bang” in colloquial Malay) i.e. the calls to prayer at Subuh pre-sunrise and then at Maghrib sunset.

Some people also wonder about the annually 'changing' times of Ramadhan and Hari Raya, which don't coincide with the standard solar or Western calendar. This is because they follow the Islamic calendar that observes the cycle of the moon, similar to the Chinese calendar. There are 12 months in the Islamic calendar but they follow the shorter moon cycle, as the lunar month is less than the solar 30 or 31 days in a month. Thus on average the Islamic year is shorter than the solar year by roughly 11-odd days.

This means that the Islamic months, such as Ramadhan, slowly 'move' earlier each year throughout the solar years. Actually both the sun and moon are not exactly regular in their relative movements with the earth and that is why there are 'leap years' in the solar calendar, while in the Muslim calendar the actual observation of the moon is made, to visually sight the new crescent moon that marks the fasting and then Hari Raya.

Selamat Hari Raya Puasa!

It's Thaipusam - so I'll post something 1Malaysia

Thaipusam is a well-known Hindu festival that’s freely celebrated in Malaysia and reflects the diversity and harmony of this great country.

Stories abound on the history of Thaipusam, so here're some that I've learned from Hindu friends and my own reading... The festival is said to commemorate both the birthday of Lord Murugan (or Muruga and also known as Lord Subramaniam), the youngest son of Lord Shiva and Parvathi, and the occasion when Parvathi - a powerful goddess in her own right - gave Murugan a vel (lance) so he could vanquish the evil demon Soorapadman and his large army which were plaguing the world.

Thaipusam also coincides with a full moon day in the auspicious 10th Tamil month of Thai when the constellation of Pusam, the star of wellbeing, rises over the eastern horizon.

In Kuala Lumpur, the festival is celebrated on a mammoth scale at the Batu Caves temple on the city's northern outskirts. It began in 1892, started by early Tamils who migrated to colonial Malaya. Reportedly two of them climbed up the ancient limestone hill known as Gua Batu (Batu Caves) to the local Malay and Orang Asli aboriginals, and planted the vel in the cave. Made of metal and shaped like a lance, the vel symbolises Murugan the protector.

The huge Batu cave interior, the size of a soccer field and more, now houses several Hindu temples or shrines, with a special one dedicated to Lord Murugan. The huge cave is even likened to a natural cathedral space.

Batu Caves, especially during Thaipusam, are included and marked on the “Must-See List” for tourists in most literature about unique things to visit in Malaysia. Tourists always remark positively how amazing that a Hindu temple complex harmoniously occupies a major caves system in Islamic-majority Malaysia.

To many Hindus, Thaipusam is the day of thanksgiving or atonement for wrongs. To this end, a structure called kavadi (translated as “burden”), some simple and some spectacular, are often carried or pulled by the devotees with chains and ropes anchored in the skin of their backs or chests. Over the years, curious Western medical experts have speculated that the white ash smeared on the body, the juice squeezed from the yellow lime fruit and the milk poured on the pierced areas may help to numb the skin. The more extreme kavadi practices have been cautioned by some as dangerous and even contrary to the spirit and requirements of Hinduism.

This festival attracts over a million people each year at the by-now famous Batu Caves near Kuala Lumpur, the grounds of which presently house various Hindu temples and shrines, as well as the 42.7meter high statue of Lord Murugan that was unveiled in January 2006. As the caves are high up, just as traditionally the abode of Muruga is a hill or mountain, pilgrims and visitors need to climb a whopping 272 steps to reach the mouth of the caves.

Thaipusam has since evolved and grown so greatly in Malaysia that it has now far outsized similar celebrations even in India. For example, during Visit Malaysia Year 2007, the Thaipusam celebration was the biggest yet with an estimate of some 1.5 million devotees and tourists converging at Batu Caves, with possibly more than 10,000 kavadi bearers.

A fireworks display lit up the Thaipusam eve skies. 40 cultural shows were held on the day itself. More than 550 stalls offering everything from prayer items to food to clothes added to the festivities enjoyed by Malaysians.

Annually, celebrations commence with a procession on the eve of Thaipusam from the Sri Maha Mariamman Temple in Kuala Lumpur’s Chinatown district (Maha Mariamman is also another name for Parvathi, Murugan's mother). A five-ton silver chariot bearing Lord Murugan’s image followed by a procession of several thousand people in its wake makes a 13-km trek to Batu Caves. Upon the chariot’s arrival, devotees will carry Lord Murugan’s idol up the 272 steps to the temple cave, an ascent of about 56m or 185 feet from the base.

Throughout its history, the chariot has been pulled by up to six pairs of bulls. But in 2000, the organisers responded to allegations of animal abuse, by switching to a motorised vehicle. Meanwhile, drumbeats make trance-inducing rhythms and long wooden pipes, known as nathaswaram, croon devotional tunes in a loud festive atmosphere.

Thaipusam is of course celebrated all over Malaysia. In Penang, more than 600,000 people including foreign tourists made their way to the Arulmigu Balathandayuthabani temple in Jalan Kebun Bunga. The Thaipusam festival is also a mainstay in Penang's event calendar. The temple management and several factories and associations set-up 110 stalls along Jalan Utama to offer food and drinks. More than 1,000 kavadis of various sizes and colours were carried by devotees up the 248 steps to the top of the temple as an act of seeking blessings.

The festivities in Penang have evolved to the extent that they assimilate distinctly local characteristics. This year’s celebrations drew a cosmopolitan following of many non-Indians. One group of Chinese devotees was seen pulling a small chariot of Kuan Yin, the Chinese Goddess of Mercy. Another group had actually prepared an ornate chariot replete with giant images of Hindu gods such as Shiva and Kali accompanied by the serene image of Kuan Yin.

Penang’s yearly Thaipusam chariot procession has been held since 1857 (coincidentally the year Kuala Lumpur was founded under the auspices of Raja Abdullah in Selangor). A wooden chariot was used for the first 37 years until the silver chariot was brought from India to Penang in 1894.

Devotees who undertake a vow observe a strict vegetarian fast or viratham, consuming only water and pure Satvik food once a day for about 40 days. They observe celibacy and renounce all forms of comfort and pleasurable activities. The 40 days of purification are spent in meditation and prayer.

Among the vows taken are through carrying the kavadi or pal kodum (milk containers), breaking of coconuts or shaving one's head bald. They would then carry out their vows clad in yellow and saffron, clean-shaven heads smeared with sandalwood paste. Fire walking and self-flagellation may also be practiced.

The most spectacular practice is the vel kavadi, essentially a portable altar up to two meters tall, decorated with peacock plumes and attached to the devotee through 108 vels pierced into the skin on the chest and back. Many others pierce their tongue and cheek to impede speech and thereby attain full concentration on the Lord. Most devotees enter into a trance at such piercing due to the incessant drumming and chanting of "vel vel shakti vel.”

The kavadi itself is steeped in ancient mythology. At Mount Kailas, Lord Shiva entrusted the dwarf saint sage Agastya with two hillocks, with instructions to carry and install them in South India. But the sage left them in a forest and later asked his disciple, Idumban to get them. Idumban found the two hillocks, but could not initially lift them, until he obtained divine help. Near Palani in South India – where to this day there is a famous shrine of Murugan - Idumban put the hillocks down to rest awhile. When he attempted to continue his journey, he found that the hillocks were immovable.

Idumban sought the help of a scantily dressed youth, but the youth claimed the hillocks belonged to him. In the ensuing scuffle, Idumban was defeated. He then realised that the youth was Lord Murugan in disguise. Idumban pleaded to be pardoned and asked that anyone who comes to the hills to worship Murugan with an object similar to the two hillocks suspended by a rod, may be granted his wishes. And so the kavadi came to play its role in Hindu festivals such as Thaipusam in 1Malaysia.