TOLERANCE DURING THE FASTING MONTH
Here we are at the fasting month again.
It is a month where Muslims are to abstain from food and drink from sunrise to sunset. It is the month where they have to be at their best behaviour.
It is a month of tolerence and restrain.
Working in a government link company, I've begun to see the entire fasting month in a new light. The greater tolerance and restrain seems to be coming from the non-Muslims!!
What do I mean?? Well, let me explain in my usual point form:
1. Tolerance to terrible driving and jams.
- Muslims rushing home for "buka puasa" seem to disregard yellow boxes, traffic lights, signals, right of way, speed limits, etc but the non-Muslims seem to patiently let it be.
2. Tolerance to lower work rate and output.
- The non-Muslims again show tolerance and actually take on additional work.
3. Tolerance to eating habits.
- The non-muslims refrain from eating in front of their friends, refrain from a cup of coffee during meetings, drink coffee in their cubicles, etc. Even our office "tea lady" stops making tea and coffee and this is tolerated by the non-Muslims too.
4. Tolerance to change in meetings and schedules.
- The non-muslims are suddenly in meetings that go on through lunch hour.
- Urgent meetings and decisions cannot be made after 4 pm.....why? The muslims have been given an hour off early to avoid jams. (Refer to 1)
5. Tolerance to all social and fun activity involving Muslims being cancelled.
- Meetings that get suddenly cancelled, sports activities get cancelled, etc.
I just found it amazing that the tolerance levels of non-muslims here in Malaysia was so high!!
Keep it up guys and gals.....at least the fasting month has lent itself to being beneficial in making us non-Muslims better individuals in terms of tolerance, patience and caring about others.
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14 comments:
Haha... Couldn't agree more with you.
I've never realised we (non-Muslims) were being tolerant. Maybe it's because we've been told to do so from young. Anyway, back in the school days (the Form 1 & 2 days when we were in the afternoon session), to us the main attraction during the Ramadhan month was everyone gets to go home early. Back then, we'd considered that as a "blessing" rather than tolerance... :)
Like that, I also practise tolerance lah... which is "I practise, you tolerate!"
LOL
We tolerate is apt! :)) we tolerate all they nonsense because obviously we are the better people :))
Although Nanda, please let me correct that - not non-Muslims but non-Malays because Muslims elsewhere or other race Muslims behave way better than the predominant here in this country ...
They've a long way to go before they even comprehend appreciation of others, leave alone tolerance ... but they did a mighty fine job getting all the non-Malays to TOLERATE them ahahah
Bro:-
very nice read...but am afraid to say more..since there is a good possibility of me and the readers..and the writer of this article can face detention up to 2 years... :-)... i guess we'll enjoy the company..
During the fasting month last year, me wrote something similar. Quoting me Muslim colleague (madam o) who was disgusted at the way diners at buka puasa buffets pile their plates as full as they can . . . and then waste most of it.
Isn't that counter productive to the whole exercise?
Akuani: Actually in the middle east it's WORST!! Work stops...no eating in public for all..etc..so it is a MUSLIM thing and not MALAY thing.
AD had said earlier on that belief and faith is up to an individual but imposing it onto others, even in a "controlled tolerance method", is what I'm not too comfortable with.
Nanda, I have been in the MidEast during Ramadhan - depends on the country you're in.
I had no such problems and we got food delivered to the office, or in hotels it was room service.
Also yes Arabs stop working (but really do they EVER work??) but the foreign labour continues even in 55 degree temperatures in the height of summer.
I find that smaller % of morons who impose their ideologies is the cause of anxiousness amongst a greater majority ...
What saddens me is that religions that get knocked when it's interpretations of individuals or small self preservation groups that cause the problems ...
:)) anyhows, we've more shit going on now ... when will this ever end?
Nanda: Dude... for me even harder-lah. On top of all that tolerance, i have to put up with some extra stuff.
I go for smoke, everyone stares at me like i am killing someone. I go for lunch, people ask for my IC, or else they don't want serve me. I drink water in the car, everybody in the bus stares at you like i am a monster. quite annoying if you ask me.
BTW, i also would like to follow anba's precautionary steps. Don't want to say too much and end up in Camp Kamunting.
Achilles the last line sounds like the gomen is succeeding into scary the shits outta us into silencing those who speak out with their use of draconian laws.
What an amazing democracy we live in ... NOT!!!!
Akuani: What to do... got family to take care of-lah. hehehehee
got more to say, but of course we will have to find alternative methods of doing so.
achilles: Sorry la bro....go get a tan la....better still..come diving la...sure look more indian after that!! hehehe!!
nanda: Good suggestion... so when you free to give me diving lessons and certify me? this way i will be prepared for next year's ramadan-lah. hehehehe
Achilles ... a tan eh? ahahha my uncle had that prob most of his life - being a little mixed along the way :)) ... and in the end when he remarried, he became a muslim - now he fasts instead of being asked for his IC all the time kih kih kih - not suggesting the same course for you ... but Nanda seems to have a point with the tanning - altho to escape you need more than a tan :))
achilles: Actually, easiest way to mark yerself out from the pack is by a getting a BIG ASS tattoo on yer arm. Senang.
nanda: Yer religious beliefs is yer CONSTITIUONAL RIGHT. Hence me push to get people involved.ie. be responsible in exercising yer democratic right to vote to ensure our CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS are not further impinged.
But as you saw, it was asking too much me suppose fer some . . .
ps: me thinks when a Hindu man's body is snatched by the Islamic religious authorities & buried as a Muslim is NOT merely "imposing in a controlled tolerant manner" as you put it. FAR FROM IT DON'T YA THINK?
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