Greetings to you and your family. Hope that everyone is well and safe. Yes, you read that right. The word ‘cara’ was spelled as ‘chara’ back in the 1960s. Later, in 1972, Malaysia adopted a spelling reform plan called the New Rumi Spelling (Ejaan Rumi Baharu) which we are using today. (Source: Wikipedia: Malay Orthography). 

Allow us to share some insightful content about the Muslim community celebrating birthdays which we discovered in page 4 of a Berita Harian article dated 19 March 1965, the year in which Singapore gained independence in August later that same year. This article can be found in NewspaperSG, a collection of e-resources by the National Library Board, also available on Microfilm Reel.

Majlis yang biasa di-lakukan kini amat di-pengarohi kebudayaan barat
The writer of the article shared his observations of his two children gracing a birthday party organized by his neighbour for their two year old son. They related it to him how they were singing the ‘Happy Birthday’ song around the cake lit with candles. The writer had expressed how the community has easily adopted the culture of the west and might not even know our own Islamic practices in celebrating birthdays. How surprising it is that the effect of globalization can be seen ever so starkly even during the time of our seniors. 

Mengadakan perayaan yang di-kenal dengan nama “Usbu’l Maulud” yang kemudian di-iringi dengan sembelehan yang di-kenal dengan “Al-Aqiqah” ada-lah di-shara’kan oleh Islam
The writer continued sharing in the article more details about Ibadah Aqiqah and that is a Sunnah, fulfilling it will reap rewards, otherwise, leaving it is not a sin either. He also mentioned the practice of Tahnik as well as Azan in the right ear of a newborn and Iqamah in the left ear so that the first words that the baby hear is the Proclamation of Faith about Allah’s Greatness and the Prophethood of Nabi Muhammad (peace be upon him). 

Khidmah.sg is blessed to be given the opportunity to offer the Aqiqah as well as Tahnik and Cukur Rambut services for our community. With reference to the tagline which our co-founders, Fadzuli Wahab and Fazli Mansor, came up with,

A gift for your Child & preserving the Sunnah

We hope to continue doing this to the best of our ability, amidst the evolution of culture over time, for as long as Allah wills.