Eid Open House

This year my hubby and I decided to celebrate Eid in my hometown first before proceeding to visit his family. Thus we all went to our neighbourhood 'Surau' to perform Eid prayers. Here I took the opportunity to wish happy Eid to my neighbours who have all gathered to pray. After prayers we went back home and had breakfast together. I had prepared My all time favourite chicken curry, samosas, 'roti jala', and had ordered some spring hoppers (putu mayom ) and lemang. I also made my special coffee. It usually is a grand breakfast on the moring of Eid,

After breakfast, we took some family photos and proceeded to the graveyards of family members to offer prayers and flowers for the departed souls. In Malaysia, it is customary to greet people with “Selamat Hari Raya” which means “Happy Eid “. Muslims also greet each other with “maaf zahir dan batin” which means “forgive my physical and emotional wrong doings”. Eid al- Fitr is not only a time of celebration but also a time to cleanse their sins and strengthen their ties with family and friends.

In Malaysia we celebrate Eid al- Fitr in a unique way due to our vast cultural diversity. The celebration of Eid al- Fitr spans over 3 days sometimes to a week with much joy and festivity in the air. We have the unique “Open House” theme where everyone from the layman to the Prime Minister play hosts to their visitors. ‘Open House” means Muslims will open the doors of their homes to welcome friends, visitors and well wishers irrespective of race, religion, culture or position. It is the time when Malaysians of all race and religion join in the festivity and celebrate together with their Muslim friends. The “open house” concept is unique to Malaysia and I don’t think any other nation in this world has this concept. This open house concept is also practiced during other major festivals like Chinese New Year, Diwali, and Christmas.

As any festivals in Malaysia, there is food galore. Traditional delicacies like ketupat (rice wrapped in coconut leaves and steamed), lemang (glutinous rice baked in bamboo stems), rendang (dry spicy beef/chicken curry), satay (grilled chicken/meat ), peanut sauce, roti jala and chicken curry are served to the ever thronging guests. There will also be an array of kuih raya ( festive cookies), mouth watering desserts and drinks. Large scale open houses are held by politicians in venues announced via the mass media. This is the time when tourists from various countries are given a warm welcome and shown the Malaysian hospitality.

When the Prophet Muhammad arrived in the city of Medina, he found that the people of that city celebrated many festivals. He abolished these pagan observances and told the Muslims that God has prescribed only two festivals for them - the two Eids. The Eids are days of thanksgiving and rejoicing for every Muslim, as well as for the community of Muslims as a whole. Eid-alFitr celebrates the completion of a month of fasting and Eid-al-Adha the completion of hajj, both fasting and pilgrimage being acts of worship undertaken for the sake of God alone.

While the Eids are occasions for joy and happiness, they are certainly not occasions for frivolity, over-eating or the pursuit of pleasure. The joy which we feel on Eid is the spiritual joy of fulfillment - fulfillment of God's command of discipline, piety and collective worship. Each of the Eid days begins with prayer (salat) and is spent in alms-giving, visiting friends and relatives, and exchanging greetings and gifts. The spirit of Eid is the spirit of peace and forgiveness, for at these times one should forget all grudges and ill-feeling toward one's fellow men if he has not already done so. On Eid one makes a fresh start in his relations with others in a brotherly spirit.


We had an 'open house' - a Malaysian tradition, on the 13th Saturday. We planned to have it from 11:00 am to 3:00 pm but somehow it got extended by a around 2 hours as some of our friends were only able to visit later. It was definetly a very happy but tiring day for me. Some of my family members only come out after sun down. Thus the open house got extended to almost 11 pm. All in all it was a very fulfilling day. Now I have to store all the balance food and pack our stuffs to go to Ak's hometown.