"In The Name of Allah, The Most Beneficent, The Most Merciful"
"奉至仁至慈的真主之名"
"Dengan nama Allah yang Maha Pengasih lagi Maha Penyayang"
My brother in Islam, Rex Tan sent me the marriage invitation card through whatsapp recently. He told me about his Chinese Muslim fiancée long ago, I'm feeling glad that the marriage is going to be held in December.
In a glimpse it may seems like ordinary Chinese wedding invitation card, when I look closer.. mashaAllah, there's a Chinese and Malay translation of "Bismillah" as opening.
I have asked his permission to share the invitation card as an eye opener.
Just recently my reverted muslim friends discuss about the so called "masuk melayu", which means "assimilated into Malay society". Miss X express her opinion regarding utensils with her not-so-reverted muslim friend, "Gosh, you seem more "Malay" than Malay people now!"
It seems ridiculous that most Malaysian including Malay behold this kind of misconceptions. Islam equal to Malay, Non-Malay who embrace Islam.. count as "semi-Malay"?
When Muslim from the whole world perform hajj in Mecca, there's no such thing as Mecca for "Malay" only. Muslim from all walk of life like Asia, middle east, Africans and Westerners perform pilgrimage together without differing their skin color.
The same goes to my Muslim brother Rex Tan, he is going to marry with a Chinese Muslim.. red theme wedding card, and he even retain his name as Tan Wei Quan. In what point that he may be counted as "masuk melayu"?
We must get rid of this "masuk melayu" misconceptions that long rooted in our community at all cost.
Unfortunately that is something unavoidable. With all the sunnah jubah and janggut, all will look the same hence in Malaysia look like Malay.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you. On the bright side, I think people nowadays are more receptive to the concept of non-Malay-Muslims attributed by encounters with Muslims from around the world, either from travelling, from working with them, or from documentaries on the tv.
ReplyDeleteIn Southeast Asia, Malay is identical with Muslim Identity. Just like in the Balkans (Southeast Europe), Turkishness is identical with Muslim Identity. It is what it is.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, Alhamdulillah for a new sister in faith, insyaAllah islamnya kaffah.