Celebrating the Islamic New Year in Kuala Lumpur
Maal Hijrah is an important Islamic festival that is celebrated with great gusto by the Muslim population in Malaysia. Usually this festival falls on the 10th of January in the Georgian calendar and marks the beginning of the Islamic month of Muharram. Muharram is the first month of the Islamic calendar which is based on the lunar cycle.
Awal Muharram which can be loosely translated into meaning the start of the year is based on the Hijra or migration of Prophet Mohammed from Makkah to Medina as per God’s request accompanied by the Angel Gabriel.
According to Muslim tradition a new day begins after and not after midnight, therefore Muslims recite prayers and chant asking for god’s forgiveness for sins committed during the old year just before sunset. A number of religious rites are also performed such as Asar rites.
After sunset, the New Year begins and devotees say another prayer asking for God’s guidance and help during the New Year so that they might live a healthy spiritual and physical life. Muslims also use this period for self examination and to monitor progress during the past year. New resoloutions are made and old resoloutions are re-examined. Since the festival marks not only the physical migration of Prophet Mohammed but also the spiritual migration of the soul from pagan worship to the simple faith of Islam makes this an extremely important religious event.
In Kuala Lumpur Maal Hijrah is celebrated with a series of events, these are aimed at promoting commitment to Islamic pursuit of knowledge and also tolerance and understanding for the betterment of human kind in general. Amongst the regular programs are religious lectures, choir
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