Hindu woman's devotion to late Muslim father a testament to love

 

OUR MUHIBAH STORY | Differences in religion have often been portrayed as a barrier to family relations.

But the story of Janakie Krishnan, a Hindu woman, visiting the grave of her Muslim father, Jaafar Abdullah, proves how love between father and child surpasses all.

Interestingly, as per tradition for many Muslim families during Hari Raya Aidilfitri, Janakie also visits her father’s grave on that day.

In a video on TikTok, she shared how she and her husband cleaned and poured water on Jaafar’s grave, a custom practised by Muslims, especially during Hari Raya.

Their openness to do so despite being from a different religion caught the attention of many who praised the couple and said they are proof of how good relations between religions should be protected in Malaysia.

When contacted, Janakie declined to comment further.

In her video, she said she is proud to be able to fulfil her obligation to her father by arranging for his Muslim funeral rites and for him to be buried according to his wishes when he died several years ago.

She noted that her father’s conversion when she was a teenager was not always accepted by her family and it was a tumultuous time in their lives.

“We faced a lot of challenges at the time because we couldn’t accept reality.

“There were a lot of arguments and tears when we learnt that my father converted to Islam.

“However, as time passed, we learnt to accept and respect his decision,” said Janakie.

‘Never preached to us’

She said her father never tried to preach about Islam to them or convert them.

Instead, he only showed how he practised his new religion by praying and fasting, she said.

At the same time, he remained a proud ethnic Indian, she said.  

“This made our family respect him and his new way of life. We never compared our religions and when he was alive, my father always tried to repair our relationship,” she said.

When Jaafar passed away, Janakie said she and her husband ensured that he was buried as a Muslim as their final parting gift to him.

“As Malaysians, respecting each other is very important,” she said. - Mkini