Why do Muslim converts attack their ancestors' heritage?

 

Ridhuan Tee Abdullah, the infamous Chinese Muslim convert, slammed Penang for declaring the Hungry Ghost festival as official state heritage because the wandering souls "could not be seen".  

"What's the real Malaysian identity?" he asked in his Facebook post on Sept 5, just five days before the Seventh Spooky Lunar Month ends.

That was such a cheap shot against his own ancestors' culture. Perhaps the restless spirits can visit him to prove they are "real".

But is belief based on physical sightings? Has anyone actually seen God? Or Heaven?

Non-Malays rebutted Ridhuan (above) by joking that he needed only to look in the mirror to see a ghost. Sure, he's not a literal one, but he rather resembles a malicious spirit – in the flesh.

We can laugh at the toxic bug spray of racist saliva from Ridhuan, but on social media, many people applauded him for bashing Chinese culture.

On one Facebook post, he got 15,600 likes. There were many comments supporting him too.

One "Nino" denounced Penang for portraying itself as a state with a Chinese identity. "Ini bertentangan dgn semangat kebangsaan Malaysia. Apa tujuan sebenar Kerajaan DAP? (This is against the national spirit. What is the real purpose of the DAP state government?)"

The comment got over 1,000 likes, suggesting wide backing for such cultural assaults.

So, are Chinese, Indian, Dayak and Kadazan cultures now deemed outside the "Malaysian identity", as Ridhuan suggested? Does only Malay-Muslim culture count as "national spirit"?

Yet these jokers conveniently ignored that Penang, as reported by Malay Mail, also recently declared the tomb of the Indian-Muslim saint Dato Koyah, who died in 1840, as state heritage. He was known for spiritual healing and feeding the poor.

The Kapitan Keling Mosque, Acheen Street Malay Mosque, Sheikh Omar Tomb, plus nasi kandar, pasembor, and Malay mi udang (prawn noodles) had also been honoured earlier as Penang heritage. 

Obsessed with Chinese ghosts? 

For some weird reason, Ridhuan seems to be haunted by the phantoms of his ancestors.

In mid-August, he blasted a Hungry Ghost Festival banner in Kuala Lumpur for being only in Chinese and lacking Bahasa Melayu, The Rakyat Post reported.

But if the banner did have a Malay translation, then he or other provocateurs may have barked: "How dare you invite Malays to a pagan event that may undermine our faith?"

Either way, it's impossible to placate rabid racists – damned if you do, damned if you don't.

As an aside, actually it would be good to have some English text too, so that "banana" Chinese like me can rediscover our culture. Tourists would also like to visit the ghoulish festival.

But Malay banners would be strange. They may sound like this: "Acara Hantu Lapar diadakan di tokong ini. Orang Islam tidak dialu-alukan sebab kami mahu elakkan dari didakwa menyebar agama lain kepada Muslimin. Sekian, terima kasih."

Or in English: "The Hungry Ghost event is being held at this temple. Muslims are not invited as we want to avoid being prosecuted for spreading other religions to them. Thank you."

Does Ridhuan understand that? I'm sure he does, but he and other converts such as Firdaus "Fear-dose" Wong and Zamri Vinoth will keep finding angles to stir up racial tension.

However, most converts practise Islam without making a big hoo-hah. They also respect their forefathers' culture. But sadly, a very vocal minority is creating Islamophobia.

Yoga may empty the brain

The latest one to join this chorus of condemnation is Cikgu Chandra, who became "famous" for attacking Hindu temples. After recently converting to Islam, he wasted no time attacking his Indian heritage.

He wrote: "Yoga may empty the brain. It's better for Muslims to pray five times daily and recite holy phrases."

His Facebook post got over 9,300 likes. Chandra is most welcome to be diligent in Islamic prayers, but why attack his ancestors' culture? Is he popular among Malays because he bashes Indians?

Do his supporters know that yoga improves health? But when a Muslim does stretching on a mat, will they be accused of "idolatry"?

Yet yoga offered in gyms and studios nowadays does not have religious mantras – they are purely for exercise and relaxation. Rather than "emptying the brain", yoga calms the mind.

Meanwhile, restless brains filled with hatred are prone to constant racist incitement. This is actually a crime that Madani often ignores, even though police reports have been lodged.

If anything linked to Indian culture is deemed to be anti-Islamic, then the Malay language itself must be "scrubbed clean" of many, many words.

These include agama, syurga, neraka, bumiputera, bahasa, raja, menteri, mulia, suka, duka, jaga, jati, etc, which come from the Sanskrit and Pali languages linked to the Hindu-Buddhist past of the Malays.

But racial "ketuanan" (supremacy) ideology prefers to ignore this history. English words are also linked to Christianity, so should those be removed too?

Puppet masters?

Instead of mocking yoga or Hindu temples, Chandra should examine how prayers can reduce Muslim social ills.

These include rasuah, dengki, fitnah, buang bayi, sumbang mahram, rokok, rempit, and dadah (bribery, jealousy, slander, dumping babies, incest, smoking, reckless riding, and drugs).

Most of these are deemed as "dosa besar" (major sins). But I was surprised that even rempit was deemed sinful - as the then Penang mufti explained in a 2022 Utusan Malaysia report, Islam forbids Muslims from harming themselves or others.

Perhaps pugnacious Muslim converts should focus on solving the real problems of the Malays? That would be far more productive than spreading fear and hatred against their Chinese and Indian ancestral cultures.

But what's the real motive of these drama kings? Here is one big clue: they are largely silent about corruption, which is probably the biggest threat to the Malays themselves.

This strongly suggests who their real dalang or puppet masters are. - Mkini

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ANDREW SIA is a veteran journalist who likes teh tarik khau kurang manis. You are welcome to give him ideas to brew at tehtarik@gmail.com.

The views expressed here are those of the author/contributor and do not necessarily represent the views of MMKtT.