Come On … Hurry… It's Hari Raya Puasa!
Hari Raya Puasa is a special time for our Muslim friends. In the language of the Malays, “Hari Raya” means “grand day for rejoicing” and signifies the end of Ramadan , the month of fasting. The Arabic version of the festival is “Id al Fitr”. “Fitr” literally means “breaking of fast”. The Islamic calendar follows the lunar cycle, and each month starts with a new moon. During Ramadan , Muslims fast from sunrise to sunset.
What! Give up food from sunrise to sunset? Is this the ultimate diet plan? For Muslims, this month of prayers and thanksgiving to God for sustaining them throughout their fast purifies their heart and soul. To further emphasize the purifying aspect, it is said Muslim are to abstain from drinking, smoking and having sex during the fasting period and throughout the month! Children are not required to fast, but they are often trained from young to increase their endurance. They start by skipping one meal a day during the fasting month.
Another reason for fasting is for everyone, especially the wealthy, to understand the difficult conditions a poor person or a destitute goes through. At the end of Ramadan, special efforts are made to contribute alms to the poor.
To sustain them throughout the day, Muslims would have a light simple meal ( sahoor ) before sunrise. After the meal, they would either head to the mosque or perform the morning prayer. After sunset, fasting ends with a meal ( iftar ). Iftar is marked by the call to prayer and you'll know from listening to the radio or the nearest mosque announcing it. No need to constantly stick your head out of the window to see if the sun has set! Muslims often break their fast by eating a date, as Prophet Mohamed was said to have done so. During Ramadan, many dates are on sale. (we're not talking about desperate singles here!) Special congregational prayers are performed during Ramadan nights. Muslims can perform them in the mosque and even void decks of flats for those who live too far from the mosque.
All that fasting pays off when Hari Raya Puasa rolls in… How to tell it's Hari Raya time? For the astronomical buffs, it is on the first day of the “Shawaal” – the tenth month in the Islamic calendar or after 30 days of fasting, act like a werewolf and look out for the new moon.
On the last few days of Ramadan, you'll find families doing a serious bout of spring cleaning and baking. On Hari Raya Puasa, Muslims don their best clothes, have breakfast and perform special prayers. After that, they embark on a continuous flow of visiting the homes of friends and families (my question is, how do they know who should be visiting and who stays in their house to receive them?) Without fail, every household would have a continuous flow of food and snacks so after all that weight lost during fasting is easily replaced.
Dates - one of the typical foods for Hari Raya Puasa
Whether you like your relatives or not, this is the day families near and far make an effort to meet up. It is a time for forgiveness and forgetting differences. It is also a time for charity and thanksgiving well… basically all round goodness. Children pay respects to their elders by seeking forgiveness for any misbehaviour committed in the previous year. (Blame it on the full moon I say!) Children always benefit from any festival. In the case of Hari Raya Puasa, they would be given presents, sweets and new clothes. The money-oriented city that we are, adults often give children token green coloured packets containing money. For which I'm sure the children aren't complaining.
Singapore during the period leading up to Hari Raya Puasa becomes very colourful. Muslim homes have coloured lights hanging outside their windows. Places with large Malay and Muslim communities often hold night bazaars. This year, Kampong Glam and Geylang Serai are packed with stalls selling a wide range of items, from local Malay delights to the latest fashion items to be worn during Hari Raya Puasa.
To learn more about Muslim and Malay culture, why not join us on our award winning Sultans of Spice™. It takes place every Thursday morning.
Source: National Heritage Tour; Kampong Glam; Curriculum Planning Division; Ministry of Education