The end of the Ramadan months signals the beginning of a festival called Hai Raya Puasa in Malaysia. With most of the population in the country being Muslims, the festivities are celebrated in on a grand scale. Here are some facts about Hari Raya Puasa.
Hari Raya Celebrations | Image Credit: William Cho, Hari Raya @ The City 2009 (3826110389), CC BY-SA 2.0
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Before the feast
Ramadan is said to be the 9th month on the Islamic colander is also one of the holiest months for Muslims. During this period, the devotees avoid eating, drinking and smoking during the day. This act of fasting and abstinence is for one to learn good virtues like patience, humility and spirituality while surrendering oneself to Allah. The period of fasting begins at dawn and ends at 4 pm.
Prayer time
During this one month of fasting, Muslims take an extra effort to engage in religious practices. The holiest act that a Muslim can do during this period is to read the Qur’an daily. Tarawih is a recital that includes reading all 30 sections of the Qur’an while at the mosque. It is imperative that the entire Qur’an has been recited throughout the month.
Getting ready
Preparing for Hari Raya means buying new clothes, spring cleaning and cooking up delicious food. Special foods such as dates, lemang (glutinous rice and coconut milk steamed inside bamboo sticks), ketupat (glutinous rice wrapped in weaved pandan leaves). The faithful serve themselves quite a large plate when breaking fast. All kinds of unique foods are sold at fairs only at this time of the year.
Celebrations
The ending of Ramadan is decided by looking at the moon. On the day of celebration, Muslims wake up before dawn and pray, afterwards, they dress up in brand new clothes and take part in special morning rituals. Once this is done, breakfast is served at home and then starts all the fun. If you will be in Malaysia in time for the festivities, try out the Ramadan buffet 2018 in hotels like The Westin Kuala Lumpur to get a taste of one-of-a-kind delicacies served.
Fritzjames Stephen is a travel writer, who writes content based on the myriad of experiences and indulgences that the world has to offer travellers across all walks of life. Google+