Deepavali Thaipusam 5 Important Deepavali is a festival celebrated Thaipusam is largely celebrated Festivals and by Indians living in Malaysia. by the Tamil community in This is the festival of lights, it Malaysia. Thai means the month Celebrations in signifies the victory of light and and Pusam means Malaysia hope over darkness. Houses and star, Thaipusam is celebrated in streets of Malaysia are adorned January / February when the star Malaysia is a melting pot of with colourful lights and oil is at its highest. The celebrations cultures. Malaysian culture is lamps. The day starts off by in Malaysia start off by visiting multi-faceted, each of these facets taking a bath with oil and the Sri Mahamariamman Temple is adorned with a festival of its praying. Later during the day and proceeds to the Batu Caves. own. Festivals in Malaysia are processions, street-fairs, This festival sees a footfall of celebrated with much splendour fireworks and get-togethers take over a million devotees from and enthusiasm. Malaysians have place. The aromas of a variety of across the globe. Some devotees embraced each and every culture dishes lingering across the streets go to an extent of piercing their with open arms, and this is why is one of the things that truly bodies and carrying sacrificial they celebrate festivals from symbolises the festivities of burdens called Kavadis to across the world with so much Deepavali in the areas where beseech their blessings. exuberance. Indians live in a large number. Wesak Here are the 5 Festivals and Chinese New Year celebrations in Malaysia Wesak is a Buddhsit festival This is the time when Malaysia celebrated to pay tribute to the Hari Raya/ Eid turns red. All the Chinese living birthday, enlightenment and the Hari Raya is one of the most in Malaysia decorate their houses attainment of Nirvana in the life prominent festivals celebrated in and streets with traditional red of Lord Buddha. The festivities Malaysia, as the majority of the decorations, they do so in order to begin at dawn by gathering at population residing in Malaysia ward off evil spirits. As a part of Buddhist temples and meditating, follows Islam. Hari Raya is the 15 day long celebration lion offering food and charity to the celebrated during the 9th month and dragon dances accompanied poor and praying. A grand float of the lunar calendar for a period by fireworks are performed procession takes place during of one month. Muslims observe across Malaysia. Family get Wesak, it is a sight to behold and daily fasts from dawn to dusk and togethers, cooking of numerous it usually has a giant statue of refrain from consuming food and dishes on the same day, and Buddha. decorating houses are a few wrong-doing. Hari Raya is celebrated on the last day of things that happen during Ramadan, it marks the end of the the Chinese New Year. fasting period for Muslims. 2. The Chingay parade, a 4. Chap Goh Meh, in the 5 Chinese famous annual street traditional Hokkien parade held in Malaysia dialect of Penang, means Customs that is celebrated to mark the the 15th night of Chinese Originated in birthday of the Goddess New Year. It originated of Mercy (Guanyin). in Penang and is Malaysia Chingay was brought celebrated with prayers over to Malaya by and offerings to mark the Malaysia is an amalgamation of Hokkien immigrants and end of the Chinese New celebrated initially in Year. In the modern cultures and a melange of Penang which later times Chap Goh Meh is different ethnicity. Most spread to other parts of known as the Chinese Malaysian traits are an adaptation Malaysia and Singapore. Valentine’s Day, to keep of food and culture from various up with the quaint The Tanjung Tokong Tua tradition of the festival, regions/countries and hence these 3. Pek Kong temple in young unmarried girls are adaptations are now integral part Penang is dedicated to seen throwing oranges in of Malaysia Zhang Li which marks the sea to find the right the origination of Chinese boy. The boy who Here are 5 interesting Chinese based practices in catches it would be the Customs that originated in Malaysia and was built in man of her life. 1799, making it one of Malaysia: the oldest Chinese 5. The lion dance is seen as 1. The famous Yusheng temples in Penang. Tua a symbolic part of Pek Gong, a Chinese god Chinese culture in many Toss, has its roots in the was originally a Chinese Chinese communities Chinese cultural scholar named Zhang Li. across Southeast Asia. In practices. However, the Malaysia it is rather modern Yu Sheng (Yee celebrated as a new art form known as Pole lion Sang) originated in dance by the famous lion central peninsular dancing troupe that Malaysia and is different invented the first set of poles, called ‘Plum from its original version, Blossom Poles’, which including the ingredients took the other lion used, how the food is dancing troupes by a served and of course, all storm and the entire clan of other lion dancing that shouting during troupes and lion dance the Chinese New Year is costumes started adopting a Malaysian Chinese the same by standardizing creation. The modern the custom of Lion dance in Malaysia Yusheng is an a adaptation of a dish from the Southern part of China. The Malaysians added a twist to it and popularized it and were eventually able to call it their own. How the actual settlement Festivals celebrated by Indians happened? All about The Indian community celebrates Malaysian Indian During the British rule, the two main festivals – Deepavali, Indians came to Malaysia as the festival of lights Culture labourers and worked on rubber and Thaipusam, an annual fair of The Indian community in and coffee plantations and also to the Hindu deity Murugan, held Malaysia is one among the three work in the palm groves to at Batu Caves along with many main ethnic produce palm oil. Some of them other smaller religious events groups: Malays, Malaysian are also known to have come to every year. work on the construction of Chinese and Indians. The Indian community accounts for about 7- buildings, roads and bridges. Influence of Indian Culture on 10% of the Malaysia’s population Majority of Indians who live in Malaysian Cuisine: and the first wave of Indians are Malaysia are mostly from Tamil known to have migrated to Nadu and Kerala and speak Tamil The Indian community in Malaysia during the reign of and Malayalam while also Malaysia has enormously Asoka’s invasion towards speaking Telugu and Hindi. influenced the Malay Kalinga and Samudragupta’s cuisine resulting in a variety of Similar to Baba and Nyonyas the expedition and the influential popular dishes. The use of spices Chitty community in Malacca is Tamil Chola dynasty of the 11th makes it unique and Indian food the result of an amalgamation century. is well received by Malaysians between the Indian immigrants from all ethnic and religious and local culture. Though they backgrounds. The confluence of remain Hindu, the Chitties Indian and Malay cuisine is speak Bahasa Malaysia and their called Mamak, and the women dress in sarong kebayas restaurants and stalls refer to instead of sarees. eateries owned and staffed by Indian Muslims which is a popular hangout among the youth. They sell Indian dishes like Roti canai, nasi kandar, maggi goreng and pasembur (Mamak rojak) unique to Malaysia. 4 A Malay woman does 9 Malays always use the 10 Interesting not leave the house for right hand while eating forty days after the birth even when they use Malay Customs of her child. At the end of forks and spoons. In fact this period a ceremony all good things are done and Traditions called Berchukor is with the right hand conducted where the including holding the Malaysia is a multi-ethnic and child’s head is shaved. holy book of Quoran multi-cultural land with Malays, . Chinese and Indians and 5 Traditionally Malay 10 Malay weddings are a orang asli/indigenous people. Yet houses in the villages grand affair, the most (kampung) are important part of Malay it has a unique cultural identity. constructed of wood( wedding is the The Malays as we know form the timber) and palm-leaves Bersanding where the majority of the population and (attap) this was done to couple sit next to each have their own customs and protect from the floods, other on a sofa called wild animals and reptiles. the Pelamin. This is a traditions that are followed mark of approval and vigorously by the Malay 6 When a guest visits a blessing. Loved ones community. home the host greets and guests sprinkle the them with a phrase couple with scented 1 The children of a Malay Assalamu Alaikum which water and yellow rice. household are strictly means, may peace be The guests are given a bound by custom to look upon you. Bunga Telur, an upon their parents with ornamented egg respect and total 7 During the festive festooned with a flower, obedience. celebration of Hari Raya, as a sign of fertility. the Muslims undertake a 2 Friday (Jumaat) prayer month long fasting is an important day for known as Ramadan. The the Malays. It is also an fasting begins from the occasion for people to sighting of the new moon meet each other from the and ends on the last night same neighbourhood. of the same moon. During that month the Muslims fast from 3 The traditional Malay sunrise to sunset. dressing is quite conservative as per the 8 Women on the other hand laws of Islam.