If
you’re visiting a Muslim home, either during Hari Raya (Eid al-fitr) or during birth or death, the following
guidelines on gifts should be followed.
•Don’t
give
liquor, or foodstuff which is not marked halal. Watch out for chocolates or
candy containing gelatin. These are also forbidden to Muslims.
•Giving
hong baos
(money envelopes) to children during Hari Raya is fine.
•Giving
money
during funerals is acceptable
•Giving
money
to an ill friend is alright, but flowers or fruit baskets are better.
•Malay
etiquette dictates that gifts be opened in private, not in the presence of the
giver, lest it be seen as an act of being desperate for the gift.
Taboos
Related to Indian Malaysians
•A
prominent community in Malaysia is the Indian Malaysian Community. Malaysian
Indians constitute the third largest group or community in Malaysia
(6.2% of the total population)
•Most are
descendants of those who migrated from India during the British colonization of
Malaya.
•They
are usually simply referred to as "Indian" in Malaysia, Orang India
or Hindu in Malay, "Yin du ren" in Chinese.
•There
is a possibility that the first wave of migration from South Asia towards
Southeast Asia happened during Asoka's invasion and Samudragupta's expedition.
Malaysian Indians have their own set of
taboos, which may originate from culture, religion or superstitions. Some of
them are mentioned below.
•Do
not hunt, as killing wildlife is taboo for some followers of Hinduism.
•Do
not hurt a cow, as many Hindus consider the cows are holy, and are offended if
they are hit by strangers.
•Do
not offer to shake the hand of a person of the opposite sex unless they offer
first.
•Do
not touch anyone or receive/give anything with one’s left hand, as the left
hand is considered the wrong hand.
•Do
not use the left hand for eating and also for taking food from a common dish on
the dining table. Typically, people eat with their right hand.
•Do
not walk over books and paper, even newspaper or even touching them with your
feet, as Indian people treat books as an item which requires respect.
•Do
not breaking temple rules while on a visit to a temple. Feet, particularly
shoes/sandals, are considered unclean, always take them off when entering a
temple (except in some Westernized, urban congregations). In some temples
tourists are not allowed to walk into the most holy areas with their shirts on.
•The
words pariah and keling (or kling) are
considered taboo words for Indian Malays.
•The
word pariah is used to refer to low castes or untouchables in the Hindu
religion and is a derogatory term to any person. Scholars of Indian languages
trace "Paraiyar"
back to the Tamil word for drum, "parai.“
•Traditionally,
members of the caste had a ritual duty to beat the drums at festivals, since
the leather used for the drums was considered unclean and thus unfit for
higher-caste Hindus to touch.
•The
word kling has
uncertain multiple origins. Some origins state the word was derived from the Kalinga
Kingdom in India and the word was used to refer to the people of the kingdom.
•Another
alleged
origin was from the marriage of Mani Puridan, a Muslim prince from Kalinga, and
Seri Nara Diraja, the
daughter of Sultan Muhammad Shah. He was apparently the first Indian-Muslim to
have sat and counselled as
one of the ministers in the Melaka court. Thus, the kling was
used for him because he originated from the Kalinga Kingdom.
•An origin
story of the word comes
from
the arrival of Indians in Malaysia. Since Indian women wore Jhoomers on
their ankles it seemed to make a “kling” sound and the word was therefore used
to refer people of Indian origin.
•A
certain origin of the word “kling” is not known, but since it hurts the
sentiments of Indian Malays, the use of the term should be avoided.
TABOOS
RELATED TO CHINESE MALAYSIANS
- Some
words considered as taboos and should be avoided during any conversation
between Chinese and others ethnics in Malaysia. Because it is an offensive
words, for example: “babi”,
which means a pig. However, some people may use
this word if they are angry.
- The
figure shows how drivers have
been described in facebook because
they broke the low of roads.
- Another taboo example is showing
happiness during funeral ceremonies. It is considered as a rude behave and un
respectable attitude towards the family who lost a person.
-
However, saying words like “mati
which means death” during marriage or birthday
party is completely unacceptable and considered as taboo.
In Chinese culture, the seventh month of
the lunar calendar has its special importance, they call this month as “Ghost
month”.
They prepare special festival for that month and it is called as Ghost
festival.
This festival comes from the Buddhism and Taoism origins.At that
time, Chinese usually aware from breaking some interesting taboos because if
that could happen then it will be a sign of a bad luck.
people usually avoid taking pictures at
night because they thought a ghost will be in their picture.
swimming in beach, the reason of that
because they thought the ghosts will be there at beach waiting for people to
make them as replacements which means the ghosts will use the body of human and
they will affect them badly.
The effect of the ghost month has more
effect on Chinese life and their decisions because they will not buy a house
during this month and the reason of that to avoid making the house to be
haunted.
Another examples about Chinese taboos
regardless the ghost month are:
Do not used the number four (四, sì)
particularly on phone numbers, license plates and addresses because it's sounds
like death (死, sǐ).
Never offer a friend an umbrella because
the word umbrella (傘, sǎn)
sounds similar to 散
(sàn, to
break up) and the act is a sign that you will never see each other again.
Taboo
Words: Words with negative meaning should
be avoided in daily conversation, such as breaking, running out, death, ghost,
killing, sickness, pain, losing, and poverty. Obviously, you should not be
swearing either.
Taking
Medicine or Going to Hospital:If not in severely ill, people
should not to take medicine, or see the doctor till Lantern Festival;
otherwise, they may suffer from disease all the year round, and barely gain
recovery.
Breaking
Stuff: Never break a bowl, plate, glass,
vase, or mirror, because breaking may result in money loss and family split in
the future. If shattering one unheedingly, the fragments should be collected
and wrapped by a red paper or cloth, and then littered on the fifth day of the
New Year. Another remedy is to say, “Sui Sui Ping
an,” which means safe and sound every year. The pronunciation of Chinese
character Year (岁 Sui) and Broken (碎 Sui) are the same, so people use the
homophones to expel bad luck.
Washing
Clothes: The first two days of the Chinese
New Year are considered the birthday of the Water God. So, if you wash clothes
during these two days, the god will be offended.
Sweeping and Dumping:On the first day of the New Year,
it is a taboo to sweep the house or dump the trash. Otherwise, all the savings
and valuables will be swept away. If it is really necessary, the house owner
should start the sweeping from outside to the inside of the house, which
intimates collecting money. Besides, pouring water outside should also be
avoided, as flowing water indicates movement of money; in this case, money
leaving the home.
Crying: It is believed that the cry of children forebodes disease and misfortune, which may bring bad luck to the whole family. Therefore, to avoid children’s crying during the festival, parents should not punish their kids, even if they make mistakes or are naughty.
Lending and Borrowing: Settling Debts in order to Start New Year
with a Clean Slate. Do not lend or borrow anything on the first day of lunar
January, especially money. Lending money is an unlucky omen, which means
economic loss, so people should not offend friends or neighbors by borrowing
something from them. Asking for the return of debts owed is also a
taboo. It is said: “If you start the year with someone else’s money, all
year you’ll need loans; if you start the year lending money, all year you will
suffer (household) losses.”
Getting a Haircut: People should not get their hair cut
during the first lunar month, for it indicates the death of their uncle
(mother’s brother). Although it sounds absurd, people are glad to abide by this
tradition.
Porridge or Meat as Breakfast :Porridge and meat should not be served at
breakfast on the first day’s morning. In the past, poor people could only
afford rice porridge, so porridge reflects a down and out life. It is a
favorable omen to eat the leftovers of the reunion dinner on the New Year’s Eve
as breakfast.
Empty Rice Barrel: The rice jar indicates people’s
living standards. If it gets empty, there may be some days of starvation
waiting for them in the near future. So filling the rice jar to the brim before
the New Year’s Eve is a means to attract a healthy financial situation.
Taking
Afternoon Nap: It is believed that people would
become lazy all the year around if they take an afternoon nap on the first day
of the Spring Festival. Besides, if they have visitors on that day, it is
considered impolite behavior.
Dressing
in Rags or Wearing in Black and White: Wearing
new clothes means a brand new start, so ragged or dirty dressing symbolizes
poverty and misfortune and should be avoided. Besides, dressing in black and
white is only applicable to woefully sour occasions like funerals and mourning
ceremonies. Therefore, it is inappropriate to wear black or white clothes
during the festival.
TABOOS RELATED TO
BELIEF IN SPIRITS
A very primitive Malay belief is
the belief in a very effective and vital force (Spirits) existing in all parts
of a person’s body.
- Even
today some Malays might not allow anyone to take a photograph of his full body
for fear of annoying the spirits pervading his body.
- Malays
believes that the ghosts and spirits are more likely to be “close” to the
virtue of children and pregnant women. Children should not go out from home
after Maghrib since they can be “taken” by spirits.
- Pregnant
woman should not kill animals. Malay believes that if pregnant woman kills any
of the animal, the child born will have animalistic feature.
Taboos of Iban People
(Sarawak)
Iban people are the native people
of Borneo in Sarawak. Their traditional religion is animalism, however, they
converted either to Islam or Christianity. Majority of the Iban people live in
Sarawak.. The traditional religion revolves around the Ancestor's worship and
the conservation of cosmic order through the proper observance of rituals and
taboos.
If going fishing, they cannot say
they are going fishing or tell about it or end up with nothing. Similarly,
while they are going into a jungle, they hear a certain bird chrip (Burung Ketupong), it
means bad luck and should avoid going in or else they will get harmed. An other
belief is blood spilling on the foundation of a building. It is though to
appease the spirit and ensure that the project goes peacefully and smoothly as well.
Taboos
of Borneo Sabah. It is widely thought that mothers aren't supposed to eat
buffalo meat, otherwise they will get aged rapidly. Mothers should not shower
their hair for a month. In case they do shower before that, it may cause them
to be mentally impaired when they get older. A pregnant woman is not allowed to
wander outside for the children born will be ill with skin diseases.
None
of the people should do any kind of work on the funeral day. (agriculture). It
brings misfortune. Engagements can not be cancelled. If not, the one who
cancels, has to pay all or half of the amount that has been discussed.
Everything that is related to engagement should be settled during morning time.
And the engagement date should be fixed by the promise of both parties.
TERIMA KHASHIS (THANK YOU)
Sources: Group Presentation-2:Malaysian Culture and Society, Semester-2 2018/2019
Courtesy to: Dr. Mohamed Ayyub Bin Hassan, School of Human Resource Development & Psychology, University Technology Malaysia (UTM)
