By Ravindran Raman Kutty

My Muslim friend commended my thoughtfulness on conveying well wishes to all Muslims during the fasting month especially during sahur, the meal before fasting begins, and buka puasa, the breaking of fast.

His comment that very few non-Muslims practice such efforts has inspired me to write this piece.

Last week, the third week of April 2021, was indeed an auspicious one with the holy month of Ramadhan coinciding with the Sikh and Telegu New Year, followed by the Tamil and Malayalee New Year on the 13th and 14th of April 2021 respectively.

These beautiful festivals decorated 75% of the Malaysian population and 95% of the people of South East Asia and East Asia who celebrated the festivities.

During the New Year celebrations, I made it a point to wish my Muslim brothers and sisters before the start of their fast and the breaking of the fast.

There are many of them who do this too, but my love of poetry inspires me to craft poems for any auspicious day that strikes me the most.

However, it is not about the messages, or me but about how many of us use this opportunity to wish each other on these festivities among Malaysians.

How many Malays or Chinese know that there are several new years among the people of Indian origin?

The Sikhs celebrate Vaisakhi, Telegus have Ugathi, Tamils celebrate Tamil Puthandu, and the Keralites celebrate Vishu. There are many other Indian festivals such as Ponggal, Thaipusam, Onam, Karthigai and Navatathri.

Likewise, how many Indians or Malays know that there are several Chinese festivals such as Dongzhi festival, Yuan Xiao Festival, Qing Ming Festival, Duan Wu Festival and the Hungry Ghost Festival?

We cannot forget our Sabah and Sarawak friends, too. The Regatta Lepa, Sabah Festival, Pesta Kaamatanam, Pesta Kelapa, Sabah Dragon Boat Race, Pesta Rumbia, Hari Gawai, Kaul Festival in Mukah, Kapit Raft Safari, Ba'Kelalan Cultural and Apple Festival are some of the events which are very close to the hearts and minds of our brothers and sisters in East Malaysia.

These festivals are wonderful gateways among the various communities of our country.

Since almost every Muslim Festival is known nationwide, it is imperative for every Malaysian to take heed of these other festivals which are simply colorful, joyous, religious, or even cultural in nature. These festivals are simply a fabulous way to get to know every Malaysian.

Everyone who receives my messages, especially for the Chinese New Year, Hari Raya, or Hari Raya Haji, will certainly respond with a huge smile.

With the advancement of technology, we now can do away with sending postcards, but instead send messages via our mobile phones to wish one another on all the wonderful festivals that we celebrate under the name of culture, religion and art.

Every Malaysian must make it a point to know the other races' interests and festivals. As how I send messages on the start and breaking of fast, I sincerely feel that every Malaysian must send messages to wish and make us all feel as one. We must be precise in making another Malaysian happy.

Previously, the subject Civics used to be taught to students, emphasizing on all the aspects that I had mentioned. However, these elements have since been removed from the curriculum.

It is a pity that we now focus too much on a religion and forget about these basic beautiful facts of our wonderful nation. The penumbra of co lours of our nation has been blackened by the systemic poor education system prevailing now.

Every Malaysian parent must teach their children on the importance of other races and their roles, their significance and their festivities, so that every child will appreciate and respect the beauty of the other races and the colorful cultures and lifestyles. Once a child is positively ingrained, the outcomes will be great.

My Facebook friend and a filial Malaysian, Anas Zubedy, must be remembered in this instance, as he has been a very participative and pro-engaging Malaysian, diligently wishing every community especially on the major festivals by taking up full page advertisements in leading newspapers, wishing them for Hari Raya, Chinese New Year, Deepavali and other festivals.

This is an encouraging sign of camaraderie and solidarity. Malaysia needs more individuals likes Anas Zubedy rather than politicians who grind the wrong sides of every Malaysian under the name of religion and race daily.

The former Director of Broadcasting late Shafiq Alfonse Abdullah used to say that all radio and TV stations must highlight and speak about the varied festivals celebrated by every race in this country, thus educating and creating greater awareness and understanding of our multicultural, multiracial elements among the young, who are becoming totally ignorant or oblivious of the diverse cultures of ours.

RTM and all private radio and TV stations must make an extra effort to propagate these wonderful elements of festivals, thus further enriching the multicultural element of our nation.

The more the Malays and non-Malays understand the festivals and practices of one another's community, I think we will be en route to a much sublime nation filled with love, care, empathy, respect, trust and dignity. These virtues are critical in building a nation that will withstand any tsunami or pandemic.

As the melting pot of cultures, Malaysia is indeed very fortunate to be the home of all major races of Asia.

The tagline "Malaysia Truly Asia" is a very appropriate tagline indeed. The combination of multiple races all in one country makes Malaysia a tapestry of colors; beauty and prowess, just like a rainbow with its pot of gold everywhere. It is just about using the right lenses to spot it.

Racial harmony is an expensive gift. No money can buy it; no one program can salvage it. It must be imbued daily from the conception to birth. We must ensure every opportunity we get to embrace it without any hesitation. A simple message to the people we know during their celebrated festival will certainly enhance our relationship with them.

We may have lost our economic strength and no longer hold the reins of the Asean Tiger, but we can always keep our colorful and bountiful racial harmony intact if we choose not to ignore our neighbors.

Instead, bring them together in an inclusive manner, thus creating a harmonious nation.

Through harmony and peace, we can certainly bring more investors and greater economic sustainability by being resilient in building a stronger Malaysia called Malaysia For All.

We do not want anyone to say that we are different. Instead, we must strive to be known as one nation.

(Ravindran Raman Kutty is an active social worker.)