October 30, 2009 15:34 PM

Celebrating Deepavali In The Spirit Of Unity And Tolerance

By Rohana Mustaffa

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 30 (Bernama) -- The first time we met, he introduced himself as Mohd Syaleed.

"I live with my parents," he told the writer who was curiously looking at his house.

He knew what was going in the mind of the writer because the house is actually occupied by an Indian family.

Syaleed's actual name is N.Selvam, but his friends, business colleagues and family members refer to him as Mohd Syaleed though he is not a Muslim yet.

"My colleagues in Universiti (Putra Malaysia) are the ones who gave me this name," said the 31 year old contractor

Syaleed who got married early this year still lives with his parents, a younger sister and his elder brother and wife in a double storey terrace house in Taman Seri Gombak here. The elder brother Arasu is a Muslim convert and his Muslim name is Azrul Ariffin.

This Deepavali on Oct 17 was a significant occasion for the family as for the first time two new family members were celebrating with the family - Syaleed's wife and Azrul's wife.

CELEBRATING AIDILFITRI

Less than a month earlier they celebrated Aidilfitri with Azrul's wife's family in Puncak Alam.

Even during Ramadan, Syaleed wakes up for the sahur meal with his brother and sister in law. He has been fasting during the holy month for the last two years.

"My parents are open minded. My father said ours is a small family so there is no need for the children to move out after getting married or after converting to Islam. We can stay under the same roof, there is no problem," said Syaleed.

Syaleed who is planning to follow his brother's footsteps has no problems in embracing Islam and at the same time wants to live with his beloved parents.

"My father is aware of my inclination towards Islam that started after I took some subjects like Islamic Criminal Law and Islamic Family Law at UPM," he said.

According to Syaleed, the family believes that all religions fundamentally are the same guiding the adherents to the path of righteousness, thus it makes no difference if they are Hindus or Muslims.

At the same time there is no reason why family ties should be affected just because family members differ in their belief.

"When there is tolerance between one another, the family unity remains intact," he said.

EXEMPLARY FAMILY

Syaleed's family is among the exemplary families in Malaysia when comes to unity and tolerance, regardless it is religion, culture, family tradition or the basic customs practiced daily.

The spirit of goodwill is highly evident during the various communal celebrations, not only through the open house tradition but also how the food is prepared to be savoured together.

For example, Rajkumar King longs for the return of his good old friend Zukri Mohd Ali during each Aidilfitri or Aidiladha as Zukri without fail would send ketupat, lemang and rendang to Rajkumar's house.

When comes to his religious celebration or new year, it is Rajkumar's turn to entertain Zukri and family.

UNITY AND TOLERANCE

At an office, at the city centre, the staff delayed the Aidilfitri function so that they can have it together with the Deepavali function, two days before the end of Syawal.

The preparation was carried out meticulously, there were decorations that are synonymous with the Malays and Indians. Traditional delicacies of both communities like ketupat, rendang, putu mayam, capati and vadai were served. The guests came in baju Melayu, baju kurung, sari or dhoti-kurta. Even the ang pow packets are printed with the` Selamat Hari Raya' and `Happy Deepavali' wishes.

The racial harmony and religious tolerance is part of the Malaysian landscape.

The wife of the regent of Johor Raja Zarith Sofiah Sultan Idris was reported as saying that after 52 years of independence, there should not be doubts on the level of tolerance that exists in Malaysia's plural society.

As for Raja Zarith Sofiah, every Malaysian should contribute in strengthening the unity of the various races that is the backbone of the nation's strength.

She said "if we are only keen in looking at the differences we are bound to find a many differences. On the contrary if we seek the similarities then we will find many similarities despite our different background, skin colour and beliefs".

"We live on the same land and speak the same language. We cry and laugh for the same reasons. There is nothing to lose by respecting one another, but if we are to see one another with prejudice than there is lots to lose," she added.

THE MALAYSIAN OPEN HOUSE

About five years ago Sabah's Deputy Chief Minister Tan Sri Chong Kah Kiat in his address at a seminar on religious harmony noted that the tolerance shown by Malaysians are extremely high due to the great diversity of the nation.

This unique diversity is the testimony of the openness adopted by the government when comes to practicing different religions while Islam being the backbone of unity for all.

The high tolerance level can be seen during religious and communal celebrations including the open houses during Hari Raya, Kaamatan, Deepavali, Christmas, Chinese New Year and others.

The government in its part has given further recognition to these celebrations by holding the Malaysian Open House for the major celebration of each community.

On Nov 1, once again the racial unity and tolerance will be seen and felt at the Malaysian Deepavali Open House at Ladang Siliau, Port Dickson, Negeri Sembilan under the spirit of 1Malaysia. The scene at the Malaysian Open House will reflect the actual attitude and character of Malaysians in the contexts of One Malaysia.

-- BERNAMA

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