Ramadhan in Singapore

In the name of God the Merciful

Ramadhan in Singapore

Ramadan in this day 

of Islamic calendar. It is a time of worship, reflection and

seeking self-purification of one's body and soul. Muslims are encouraged

 to perform extra devotional activities during the month of Ramadan.

 In the evenings, the mosques are filled with people attending special night prayers,

 known as tarawih .

Street Feasts

Every year during the month of Ramadan, the Geylang Serai ( Malay Village

 , a replica of traditional Malay houses of olden times) comes alive with street

 bazaars after tarawih prayers. Most of the Muslims live or gather here

 so it is always filled with large crowds. The street bazaars and night

 market are called ‘ pasar malam ' and are filled with people selling festive items.

 You can buy new carpets, clothes, bags, nasheed CDs and general household items.

A wide variety of food is also sold at the bazaar. This includes kueh -mueh

(Malay cakes and pastries), otah-otah (grilled fish paste in banana leaves),

 cakes, buns, breads, curry, noodles and delicious curry puff pastries.

During the night, the whole place is lit up with glittering lights and decorations,

giving the area its much-cherished ethnic flavour .

Bright Lights

The Jalan Sultan area of the

city is another hub of activity

during Ramadan.

The oldest mosque in the city,

Sultan mosque, which is a

national monument,

 is situated here. The whole

 area is decorated with bright lights

 and a wide variety of food is sold.

Most Muslims buy food in Geylang

Serai or Jalan Sultan to bring

 home to eat to break their fast

or at sahur (pre-dawn) time. Both Muslims and non-Muslims enjoy

these seasonal street feasts.

One dish which is only served during Ramadan is a mouth-watering

rice porridge which is not to be missed. This dish is cooked in every

 mosque to give out to the Muslims after Asr' (mid-afternoon) prayers.

 Most Muslim families break their fast by eating the porridge first.

It symbolizes shukr , gratitude to Allah.

Preparation for Eid

The preparation for Eidil Fitri begins during Ramadan.

 Women are busy sewing beautiful new curtains and buy new

clothes for the whole family. In addition, 5 days before Hari Raya Puasa,

the women will start baking cakes like marble cake and cake lapis

 (layered butter and chocolate cake) and traditional Malay delicacies

 like kueh makmur , a rich baked pastry filled with roasted peanuts

or almonds mixed with sugar and formed into a leaf shape,

kueh tart (pineapple tarts), kueh bangkit (cookies made of tapioca flour)

and many more.Some families re-decorate their homes in preparation

to receive all the guests who will visit them during the festival.

Most families also decorate their houses with glittering lights

on their windows, or around the yards of their houses.

Some Muslim families light oil lamps to welcome the

angels which are believed to be visiting the earth during

the seven days preceding the festival.

Hari Raya Puasa

Eidil Fitri, or Hari Raya Puasa as it is

known in Singapore ,

is one of the highlights of the Muslim

cultural and religious

 calendar. It is celebrated a t the

 end of the fasting month,

 when the new moon is sighted.

The Malay words ‘Hari Raya'

 translate as 'Day of Celebration' or the ‘Festival of Breaking the Fast'.

 Many non-Muslims confuse Hari Raya Puasa with the Muslim New Year.

The celebrations begin with the birth of the new moon of Syawal, the 10th

 month of the Islamic calendar. Muslims usually attend Eid prayers in the

mosque in the morning. This is then followed by a visit to the cemetery

where deceased loved ones are remembered, graves are cleaned and

cleared of overgrowth, and prayers are offered to Allah. Some Muslims

visit a day or two before Eid instead.

Best Dress

The Malays are usually decked out in their best traditional outfit

 to mark the special occasion. The men usually wear BajuMelayu

 (loose shirt with trousers) with kain samping ( short over-sarong

of rich material ) , while the Baju Kurung (tunic top) is the quintessential

Malay attire for females. Married families dress in the same colour to

represent unity.In the afternoon, everyone gathers with their families

and close friends for a grand feast of thanksgiving.

It is also customary to seek forgiveness

from family and friends, and to renew your sense of community.

The younger generations seek forgiveness and blessings from their parents,

 which is very essential .

When visiting, the guests and the hosts exchange ‘salaams' and greetings of

“Selamat Hari Raya”, which means “Wishing you a joyous day of celebration”.

Feasting

There are a wide variety of delicious spicy dishes and traditional

delicacies to eat throughout the first three days of Eidil Fitri. The

spicy dishes are ketupat (rice dumpling wrapped in coconut leaves),

 lontong (rice and vegetable soup ) , satay (grilled meat on a skewer),

sambal sotong (chilly squid) and beef rendang (beef cooked with spices

 and coconut milk). Other festive delicacies include lemang (glutinous

rice cooked in bamboo tubes), serunding (desiccated fried coconut

with chillies ) and sambal goreng (fried meat and vegetables with chillies ).

Green Gifts

The Muslims also give ‘ duit raya ' (gifts/ packets of money)

to children and old folks when they go visiting. The packets

are usually green in colour and children look forward to getting

 these money tokens on Hari Raya Puasa.

Although the first three days are celebrated on a grand scale,

many Muslims in most Asian countries celebrate Eidil Fitri

 throughout the whole month. One explanation they give is

 that Muslims fast for an entire month in Ramadan and therefore

their reward is a month of celebrating Eidil Fitri too! Another

 reason to extend the celebration is so that non-Muslim friends and neighbours can also join in.

thara derar ayadeh*_*