Having contributed to the fund herself, she reached out to her network of neighbours, the majority of whom were well to do Muslims. Sadly, even after making numerous requests, no contributions were forthcoming.
“I am very upset and frustrated because in our resident chat page, these people always share things about the blessings of the holy month and how to have a prosperous Ramadan.
“However, while boasting about sheesh kebabs and other wonderful meals they had for berbuka (break of fast), none of them had it in their hearts to help these young children have a better Hari Raya,” Mala said, sounding rather distraught.
Not willing to let the children down, Mala, a single mother, made a few phone calls and managed to find one Malay business associate who was willing to help her reach her target.
The day for the big Raya shopping expedition came around, and the kids, aged between 2 and 12, were taken to the 1Utama shopping mall. They were beaming with joy as most had never set foot in a large mall before.
However, in the happy chaos of choosing jeans, T-shirts, dresses and baju raya, one young boy stood quietly in their midst, watching them. He did not have a baju raya in his hand, nor was he selecting any.
“Have you picked your favourite?” Mala asked.
The boy shook his head.
“Why not?”
“I don’t want a baju raya,” the boy replied softly.
“What do you want then?” Mala gently asked.
“All I want is daging, aunty.”
“Daging? Why would you want daging?” asked Mala, surprised.
“I want mak to make rendang daging for Hari Raya like she used to. It has been a while since we had it.”
It broke Mala’s heart to hear the boy’s simple request. Holding back her tears, Mala promised him he would have daging for Hari Raya this year.
Although a practising Hindu who doesn’t eat beef herself, Mala found it in her heart to pay a Muslim friend to cook rendang daging for the boy and his family for the morning of Hari Raya.
Mala’s story really touched my heart.
Every year during Ramadan, in a show of solidarity, we invite non-Muslims to break fast with us. We see it as our small way to help foster unity among Malaysians of all religious and racial backgrounds.
Sadly, while the holy month of Ramadan is often a time to promote interracial and inter-religious understanding, many Muslims do not step forward to do what Mala has done.
I ask you – how many Muslims would have been willing to take a group of underprivileged non-Muslim children shopping for one of their festivities?
How many of us would also be willing to fork out our hard-earned halal cash to purchase something non-halal, in order to put a smile on a non-Muslim’s child’s face?
Why even go that far? As my friend Mala experienced, Muslims aren’t even willing to help fellow Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan.
“Fasting during Ramadan has lost its meaning, Fa,” said Mala when I spoke to her last night.
“I feel so sad that I cannot afford to reach out to all those kids who are yearning for simple things for Raya. I cannot understand why people who post all sorts of religious quotes, have trouble sharing what is blessed upon them by God with other fellow Muslims.
“Isn’t that how they obtain ‘pahala’?”
I suppose for some people, fasting does not cleanse their souls – it just leaves them hungry and thirsty.
Such a waste of a holy month, I’d say.
Fa Abdul is an FMT columnist.
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