The holy month of Ramadan for Muslims involves fasting from dawn to sunset. In Islam, the act of breaking the fast at sunset is called Iftar (or berbuka puasa in Malaysia). It is considered a deeply spiritual moment of gratitude, patience, family & community eating together & performed prayers. Following the practice of Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him (PBUH), the fast is traditionally opened by eating an odd number of dates (usually 3), cakes, and drinking water. Dates provide an immediate natural sugar boost & fiber after hours of abstaining. Consuming a full meal after performing Maghrib prayers.
The cultural traditions in Malaysia, Iftar is usually a communal event where families, neighbors & friends gather. Favors include hot bubur lambuk (spiced rice porridge), nasi lemak, and various sweet kuih-muih (traditional cakes & cookies). Islam emphasizes not overindulging or wasting food during Iftar, as it defeats the spiritual purpose of self-discipline. It is highly meritorious to provide Iftar for others, especially those less fortunate, the needy and old people.
This Ramadan, I realized the management, entrepreneurs, and staffers of Bazaar Ramadan at Presint 3, 11, 14 & 16 (Agriculture Heritage Park) Putrajaya for the implementation of “Go Green” by not providing any plastic bag except biodegrading and charging RM0.20 to their customers needing it. So, many bring their own bags. There are 291 business stalls with the standard size of 10 feet x 10 feet operational daily from 3 p.m. in the afternoon to 8 p.m.
Terawih prayers are highly encouraged (sunnah muakkadah) special night prayers performed during Ramadan, focusing on deep spiritual rejuvenation, the forgiveness of sins, and community bonding. The Prophet Muhammad PBUH said that whoever stands for prayer in Ramadan out of real faith & seeking reward, their past sins will be forgiven. From a scientific perspective, prayer is associated with reduced symptoms of illness & improved mental wellbeing.
Zulkifly Baharom (hajizul50@gmail.com) is a content creator under the Newswav Creator programme, where you get to express yourself, be a citizen journalist, and at the same time monetize your content & reach millions of users on Newswav. Log in to creator.newswav.com and become a Newswav Creator now!
The User Content (as defined on Newswav Terms of Use) above including the views expressed and media (pictures, videos, citations etc) were submitted & posted by the author. Newswav is solely an aggregation platform that hosts the User Content. If you have any questions about the content, copyright or other issues of the work, please contact creator@newswav.com.
