Selamat

Hari Raya!
Eid
Mubarak!
Minal Aidil

Pop Quiz!
1)Hari Raya Puasa marks
the Muslim New Year.
TRUE or FALSE?

Pop Quiz!
ANSWER:

FALSE
Hari Raya Puasa falls on the 1st day
of Syawal, the 10th month of the
Islamic calendar.
The Islamic new year is in the month
of Muharram.

Pop Quiz!
2) Hari Raya Puasa is also known as
_________.
A. Hari Raya Haji
B. Hari Raya Aidilfitri
C. Hari Raya Aidiladha

Pop Quiz!
ANSWER:

B. Hari Raya Aidilfitri

In Malay, puasa means Fasting, therefore in
Malay-speaking countries, Hari Raya Aidilfitri is
also known as Hari Raya Puasa. In Arabic,
Aidilfitri means Festival of Breaking Fast.
The Arabic term Minal Aidil Wal Faizin
carries the same meaning as Selamat Hari Raya
AidilFitri.

Pop Quiz!
3) Hari Raya Puasa is a celebration
meant for the Malay community only.

TRUE or FALSE?

Pop Quiz!

Chinese
Muslims
in China

Answer:

FALSE
Hari Raya is NOT a cultural celebration
(e.g Chinese New Year); it is a RELIGIOUS
celebration, celebrated by Muslims all over
the world, regardless of their race (e.g
Chinese Muslims in China, Indian Muslims
in India etc.)

So - the big question :

What happens on the

morning of Hari Raya
Aidilfitri?

Hari Raya Celebration

Congregational (Mass) Prayers at
mosques or wide, open spaces
Seeking forgiveness from
one another
Visiting relatives, neighbours
and friends

But one of the most significant

practices on the morning of Hari Raya
is

ACT of SEEKING
FORGIVENESS

What is the purpose of this

practice?
To strengthen ties between family
members and friends
To apologize for any wrongdoings
that we may have done to the
person, whether we realize it or not
To renew and revive relationships
and ties, make sure that the relations
continue

Significance
The act of seeking forgiveness is very
significant during Hari Raya.
The full Hari Raya greeting:
Selamat Hari Raya, Maaf Zahir

dan Batin
means,
Wishing you a Joyous Hari Raya,
With Sincere Apologies

How is it done?
Lets watch a video of a Malay family
practicing the act of seeking
forgiveness
http://youtu.be/aBEoJDMfrRM

Highlights from video

First, the wife seeks forgiveness from
the father
Children take turns to seek
forgiveness from their parents
When you are seeking forgiveness
from an elder person, you should
kneel down

 The salaam shown in the video is not the normal

one; you are to hold the persons hands with
both palms, seek forgiveness with sincerity.
However, you can only salaam a person of the
same gender (male -> male) UNLESS it is your
direct family member (e.g a brother can salaam
and kiss the hands of his elder sister).
This term is know as Muhriim. If the person is
not a Muhriim, we are encouraged not to touch
them.

WHO do you seek forgiveness from?

Family members, relatives

Neighbours
Friends
Colleagues take this time to seek
forgiveness from one another

You can also seek forgiveness from nonMuslims e.g your Chinese neighbour or
your Indian colleague.

What is said when you seek

forgiveness?
Example 1- child to mother:

Mother, please forgive me for all

my wrongdoings; please bless all
the food that you have sustained
me with all this while and thank
you for all the sacrifices you have
made for me.
I forgive you,
my son. I pray
that you will
be a good
person.

What is said when you seek

forgiveness?
Ahmad,
Example 2: Between friends

please
forgive me
if I have
ever hurt
your
feelings
with my
words or
actions. I
hope we
can always

The same
goes for me,
Faizal.
Forgive me
too if I have
said
something
hurtful or
done
something
bad to you. I
hope our
friendship will

Accepting the apology (to forgive)

and RECIPROCATE
As you can see, in both examples, the
person who is apologized to ACCEPTS
the apology graciously.
to err is human, to forgive is divine
It is also good to return the gesture
and seek forgiveness from the person in
return because we will never know if we
have said or done anything to hurt them
intentionally or otherwise.

Sincerity and Integrity

What is MOST important is that you
are SINCERE about seeking
forgiveness. There is no point in
seeking forgiveness if you do not
mean what you say.
If, in your utterance, you promised to
change or not repeat you mistake,
you have to uphold what you say;
have integrity and do the right
thing.

Next, lets try this out!

On behalf of TKP,
SWB would like to
wish all our Muslim
colleagues ,
Minal Aidil Wal Faizin
Wal Makbulin.
Taqqaballahu Minna Wa
Minkum.