Beautiful Malaysians like Nazirah should be celebrated

 

I felt good when I read the story in FMT on March 8. It really made my day.

The report was about how a Proton saleswoman in Kulim, Nazirah Hasan goes the extra mile to please her clients and in so doing helps foster harmony and a feeling of being Malaysian.

Nazirah uploaded a TikTok video showing her helping her Hindu customer get the new car blessed – as is the custom among most Malaysians – at a house of worship.

She is seen carrying a tray with four limes and a coconut used for the blessing ritual and then the new Proton Persona owners are seen performing the simple ritual.

Hindus usually place a lime under each of the tyres of a new car in front of a temple and then after it is blessed by the priest, drive the car over the limes. Often, a coconut is also shattered on the road in front of the car.

Some Hindus do this at home, or even outside the showroom. Driving over the limes is seen as a sacrificial offering and a plea for the safety of the driver and passengers.

The breaking of the coconut is a reminder to the owner to keep his or her ego under control because that is often the main cause of all problems, including misunderstandings, accidents and road rage.

In Hindu symbolism, the outer shell of the coconut represents the ego and the inner white fruit represents one’s real self or the purity within. So, in breaking the coconut, the person is reminded to break the ego and bring out the purity within.

I would think that Nazirah is probably unaware of the symbolism, but still the same she wants her customers to feel safe and be safe on the roads.

No wonder she earned praise from netizens for her thoughtful gesture. FMT reported that at the time the report was written, the video had garnered 700,000 views.

Nazirah, who has been selling cars since 2009, said her actions stemmed from respect for her customers’ beliefs.

She told FMT that for years she had been doing this for all her non-Muslim customers. If it is a Chinese customer, she provides a full pineapple with its crown intact.

“The guiding principle in my life is ‘niat’ (intention). I did this out of respect for people of diverse faiths. It felt like the right thing to do in our multicultural society,” she told FMT.

“I’m quite surprised by the attention my video received, as this isn’t the first time I’ve done this. I’ve been following this practice for years,” she added.

I think her employer should reward her for going out of her way to make her customers feel comfortable and for also promoting harmony – something that Malaysia cannot get enough of.

It’s not often that we get to hear such stories but when we hear them, we all cheer, regardless of our ethnicity or religious belief. At moments like this we all feel proud to be Malaysian.

I hope actions such as Nazirah’s are given wide publicity so that more Malaysians will be encouraged to promote goodwill. And I hope no politician or religious zealot will try to poison her mind.

I recall another incident that truly warmed my heart. This happened in December 2018.

An old Chinese woman was trying to cross Jalan Tun Razak but each time she tried, she had to step back as the cars were zooming by.

According to a Bernama report, her plight was seen by several people who were filling petrol at a nearby petrol station. Concluding that she was not using the overhead pedestrian bridge because she was too old, five people, not just one, rushed to her aid.

Three of them stopped the traffic while two others held the old woman’s arms and walked her across the road to safety.

The beauty of this was that the five included Malays, Chinese and Indians. I cannot forget that incident because it made me feel so good inside. Even now, when I think about it, I get a little emotional.

A couple of months ago, I attended a wedding of a young doctor in a temple. I saw young Malays there and I saw young Chinese there, some of them wearing the sari (the women) and the jippa (Indian men’s traditional upper garment).

When I saw this, my first thought was about what the politicians in race-based or religion-based parties would say.

The truth of the matter is that Malaysians – if left alone – will live in peace and harmony.

The problem arises when devious politicians out to win power, and organisations led by bigots and narrow-minded leaders, work to persuade Malaysians to see the differences rather than the commonalities, and evoke fear and suspicion in them.

So, let’s celebrate beautiful Malaysians such as Nazirah who fosters harmony with a simple gesture and the five men who rushed onto the road to help an old woman.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.