FOR almost all Muslim families, the true spirit of Hari Raya Aidilfitri will be missing this year.

For many, Hari Raya is not about buying new clothes, cakes, gorging on ketupat and rendang, getting packets of duit raya or decorating their houses with festival lights.

The true Aidilfitri celebration is reconnecting with parents, grandparents and siblings, and the chance for younger family members to reverently kiss their elders’ hands, seeking forgiveness.

All of that will be near to impossible this year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, which has forced the authorities to forbid families from their annual balik kampung pilgrimages, to stem the spread of the virus.

For others, it is also about congregating at mosques on Hari Raya morning for the Aidilfitri prayer, the only time in the year that this special ritual is performed.

That, too, is out of reach for most Muslims as mosques have been told to limit congregational prayers to only 30 people.

So, for 27-year-old Afiqah Mahmood, Aidilfitri this year does not feel like Hari Raya at all, even though she has bought herself new clothes, cakes and other delicacies.

“I never thought that I had to celebrate Hari Raya without my family. I can say that Raya this year does not feel like Raya,” said Afiqah, who is from Negri Sembilan but lives and works in Penang.

“There’s no mood to celebrate because my parents are in Seremban and I can’t go home to see them. My grandmother is also celebrating Hari Raya alone. This is a very sad Raya for me.”

Afiqah’s distress was echoed by the nine other low-income families interviewed by The Malaysian Insight in Penang, Kuala Lumpur and Selangor on how they were celebrating Hari Raya this year.

Mislia Md Dahlan was looking forward to seeing her siblings and relatives who typically visit her home in Kepala Batas to see her and her elderly mother.

“I am sad because I can’t see the relatives and the people that I miss. They have always visited during Hari Raya,” said the 57-year-old housewife, adding that her son who works in Kedah won’t be able to return either.

“Also, my younger brothers and sisters can’t come home and visit their ailing mother,” said Mislia, who doesn’t have the mood to decorate her home this year.

There will always be Raya

The pandemic forced the government to shut down most of the country for eight weeks to break the chain of the Covid-19 infections, which has so far infected 7,009 and killed 114.

Shutting down the economy has wiped out the incomes of many working-class families and migrant workers as businesses were forced to put their workers on unpaid leave or retrench them.

Those who depended on a daily wage such as night market traders, food hawkers and labourers have also been badly hit.

Fruit seller Zulfahmi Gafar experienced so much red tape and hassle at police roadblocks during the movement control order (MCO) that he could only work for four days.

“So, I only had income from those four days. As I have depleted my savings, we won’t be buying anything new or doing anything special,” said the 28-year-old Gombak resident.

Yet, Zulfahmi still feels fortunate because he gets to celebrate Hari Raya with his wife, children and his parents who live nearby.

The MCO had also wiped out the income of van driver Jamilah Bebe Mustapha after all schools were shut down nationwide.

“I didn’t qualify for any government aid so for me this Raya is going to be very modest. I am baking my own cookies and re-using my old Raya clothes.”

It is the same with trader Nur Maslina Salleh, who did not earn anything during the MCO and because of that, she won’t be buying new clothes or cookies.

However, what Jamilah and Nur Maslina really miss this Raya is not being able to see their parents and other siblings.

“Usually, I help out my parents every year with the Raya preparations but this year I can’t go home. So, we can only stay in touch by phone,” said Nur Maslina.

Jamilah, on the other hand, is staying in touch with her parents through video calls.

“There is a sad feeling but we must be prepared to accept these travel limitations because it is for the good of everyone. We have to pray that we will all one day be free of the virus,” said Jamilah.

Julia Hassan, her husband and her two children will be wearing the same Raya clothes and the family will only be making ketupat and rendang this Hari Raya.

The 53-year-old was forced to shut down her rice stall in Bukit Mertajam during the MCO and the family is on austerity mode.

“I’m sad this year because I can’t perform the Aidilfitri prayers and I can’t join in the ‘takbir’ raya,” she said referring to the special Islamic verse recitals held on the eve of Raya.

Siti Hasni Abdullah from Port Klang also could not earn anything during the MCO as she was forced to close down her mixed rice stall she runs with her son in front of their flat.

“Thankfully, my son got to keep his job at a 7-Eleven out. He and my elder daughter, who is working in Seremban now, help make ends meet,” said the 55-year-old who hails from Tawau, Sabah.

She won’t be able to see her husband who is still in Tawau or her daughter but Siti Hasnah is not sad.

“The pandemic is a scary. I believe in being grateful for what we have. I am grateful that my husband and kids are healthy, that no one got sick.

“There will always be Ramadan and Hari Raya again next year. What is important is that we remain healthy so that we can celebrate it again.” – May 22, 2020.