Today is the first day of the month of Ramadhan. A holy month for all Muslims from all over the world. This is the month to suppress our hunger and worldly needs and to avoid eating or drinking from sun rise to sun set. All Muslims must learn patience throughout the month. And it is best if we can fulfill the time with good deeds and rituals that will bring benefits and barakah in our lives.
In Malaysia, Ramadhan is celebrated with a lot of activities. Besides religious activities like Tarawikh prayers, sadaqah and reciting of the quran, we also celebrate Ramadhan with varieties of food selections. It is a norm when every Ramadhan comes, food sellers will open up stalls selling varieties of food. This is called Pasar Ramadhan or literally Ramadhan Market which can be found in every district. Unlike some parts of the world, Malaysians muslims are lucky because we can get home food readily cooked without having to lift a finger. These Pasar Ramadhan will sell all sorts of food from savoury dishes to sweet desserts, exactly like what we can get at home. So for those who are busy and are always running out of time to whip a good dish, Pasar Ramadhan can offer a lot of food selections.
Personally, I prefer to cook the main dish and will get a few desserts from the Pasar Ramadhan. As we have too many nice desserts, I will mainly buy a few selections of a few desserts to take home. In my family, we break the fast with some dates and a cup of hot tea. Normally cold drinks are not encouraged but will be taken with moderation. I would prefer if we eat the dinner after Maghrib prayer, but sometimes the dinner can be too inviting or the tummy is rumbling loud enough that sometimes we have to succumb to the food before taking our prayer. The kids are also encouraged to fast although they have not reached puberty because I prefer to train them from small. If they cannot fast the whole day, I allow some drinks and will adjust the time of fasting for them from time to time.
The holy month of Ramadhan is a blessed month. It is also the month to ask for forgiveness and to improve on our qualities of life, what more of our morals and values. I personally believe in good moral values and that we have to be morally right throughout or lives and not only during Ramadhan. What we impose on Ramadhan should be continually done for the rest of our lives. Unfortunately, it is sad to see some people who will not take morals seriously and think that being good and true is something that we should not be proud about. I am appalled at some people who praise unworthy things but condemn those who want to do good. We all should be good not only during Ramadhan but also for as long as we live.
I believe in honesty, a good intention and say the truth, even it might hurts, but saying the truth is better than lying. Even worst if lying has become a lifestyle and norm that it has been almost natural to lie to some people. Hence, this holy month is best if we can practice all the good things and throw all the bad away forever. If we have been a foul mouth, learn to shut or mouth. If we have been dishonest, learn to be honest. If we have been a good liar, learn to say the truth. If we have not been religious, learn to be one. If we have not prayed or read the quran, we can start now. If we are not thankful to what we have, be thankful now. If we cannot stop complaining, end it now. If we think we are holy, think again. We are not perfect but we have to strive to be the best morally and religiously. And materials and assets are just a bonus. Morals should always comes first in every way.
Hopefully, by the end of Ramadhan, we will be blessed by God and forgiven for all our past, present and future deeds and wrongdoings. Hopefully, this Ramadhan will be a better one and it is my intention to improve my deeds, thoughts and actions not only on Ramadhan but throughout my entire life. InsyaAllah.
Ramadhan Mubarak to all and have a nice holy month ahead!
In Malaysia, Ramadhan is celebrated with a lot of activities. Besides religious activities like Tarawikh prayers, sadaqah and reciting of the quran, we also celebrate Ramadhan with varieties of food selections. It is a norm when every Ramadhan comes, food sellers will open up stalls selling varieties of food. This is called Pasar Ramadhan or literally Ramadhan Market which can be found in every district. Unlike some parts of the world, Malaysians muslims are lucky because we can get home food readily cooked without having to lift a finger. These Pasar Ramadhan will sell all sorts of food from savoury dishes to sweet desserts, exactly like what we can get at home. So for those who are busy and are always running out of time to whip a good dish, Pasar Ramadhan can offer a lot of food selections.
Personally, I prefer to cook the main dish and will get a few desserts from the Pasar Ramadhan. As we have too many nice desserts, I will mainly buy a few selections of a few desserts to take home. In my family, we break the fast with some dates and a cup of hot tea. Normally cold drinks are not encouraged but will be taken with moderation. I would prefer if we eat the dinner after Maghrib prayer, but sometimes the dinner can be too inviting or the tummy is rumbling loud enough that sometimes we have to succumb to the food before taking our prayer. The kids are also encouraged to fast although they have not reached puberty because I prefer to train them from small. If they cannot fast the whole day, I allow some drinks and will adjust the time of fasting for them from time to time.
The holy month of Ramadhan is a blessed month. It is also the month to ask for forgiveness and to improve on our qualities of life, what more of our morals and values. I personally believe in good moral values and that we have to be morally right throughout or lives and not only during Ramadhan. What we impose on Ramadhan should be continually done for the rest of our lives. Unfortunately, it is sad to see some people who will not take morals seriously and think that being good and true is something that we should not be proud about. I am appalled at some people who praise unworthy things but condemn those who want to do good. We all should be good not only during Ramadhan but also for as long as we live.
I believe in honesty, a good intention and say the truth, even it might hurts, but saying the truth is better than lying. Even worst if lying has become a lifestyle and norm that it has been almost natural to lie to some people. Hence, this holy month is best if we can practice all the good things and throw all the bad away forever. If we have been a foul mouth, learn to shut or mouth. If we have been dishonest, learn to be honest. If we have been a good liar, learn to say the truth. If we have not been religious, learn to be one. If we have not prayed or read the quran, we can start now. If we are not thankful to what we have, be thankful now. If we cannot stop complaining, end it now. If we think we are holy, think again. We are not perfect but we have to strive to be the best morally and religiously. And materials and assets are just a bonus. Morals should always comes first in every way.
Hopefully, by the end of Ramadhan, we will be blessed by God and forgiven for all our past, present and future deeds and wrongdoings. Hopefully, this Ramadhan will be a better one and it is my intention to improve my deeds, thoughts and actions not only on Ramadhan but throughout my entire life. InsyaAllah.
Ramadhan Mubarak to all and have a nice holy month ahead!
1 comment:
ramadhan mubarak Marhaban Ya Ramadhan.. Selamat datang bulan penuh rahmat & ampunan. selamat menunaikan ibadah puasa Ramadhan 1432 H. semoga dibulan yang penuh berkah dan ampunan ini kita diberikan kekuatan untuk berjuang dijalan-Nya
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