The biggest Thaipusam festival is held annually at Batu Caves, Selangor and has become one of Malaysia key tourism attraction with hundreds of thousands devotees, tourist and visitors flocking the compound of Batu Caves Lord Murugan Temple to perform or watch the colorful and exotic Hindu religious processions.

The 272 steps to the hilltop temple and the 42.7m high Lord Murugan statue. Batu Caves before and during Thaipusam.

According to Hindu lore, Thaipusam is dedicated to hindu god Murugan, the son of Shiva and Parvati, to commemorate the occurrence when Murugan was presented a mystical lance by goddess Parvati to combat and vanquish the demon army of Tarakasura. Murugan came out as winner and was then celebrated in the victory of good over evil.

Although several Hindu shrines exist in Batu Caves, construction of a 42.7 meter high statue of Lord Murugan was completed in January 2006 making it the most dominant feature in the temple compound. In Batu Caves, devotees need to climb 272 steps to reach the temple inside the cave on the hilltop to complete the Thaipusam pilgrimage.

The first Batu Caves Thaipusam pilgrimage is believed to be in 1892 by early Tamils who migrated to colonial Malaya. Two of the first devotees made the difficult track up the ancient limestone hill and planted the `vel’ in the cave that houses a temple dedicated to Lord Murugan. The vel, made of metal and shaped like a lance, symbolizes Murugan who is also known as Velan.

On the eve of Thaipusam, a motorized five-ton silver-chariot bearing Lord Murugan’s image escorted by thousands of pilgrims leaves the Sri Mahamariaman (another name for Parvathi) temple in downtown Kuala Lumpur, on a 15-kilometre walk to Batu Caves.

At Batu Caves, devotees bring fruit and lower offerings usually in yellow or orange adorning dress in same color, the color most favored by Lord Murugan. During the procession, devotees bring milk, water, along with fruits and floral tributes on Kavadis – decorated with feathers of peacock.

Extraordinarily, many devotees torture their bodies with body piercing using hook, skewers and small lances called ‘vel’. These hooks are then tied to strings for pulling chariots or other heavy objects during the procession. Many others pierce their tongue and cheek to impede speech and thereby attain full concentration on the Lord. Most devotees enter into a trance during such piercing due to the incessant drumming and chanting of “vel vel shakti vel.”

Naked-Malaysian: All the above images belong to Mr. Hafis Ismail. All rights reserves.

Technorati Tags: Batu Caves, body piercing, Hindu, indian, Kavadi, Kuala Lumpur, Malaya, Malaysia Deals, Murugan, Parvathi, Selangor, Shiva, Sri Mahamariaman, Tamil, Thaipusam, tourism, travels

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KPLI Ambilan Jun 2010

Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia mempelawa calon yang berkelayakan, berpotensi, berminat dan beriltizam untuk mengikuti Kursus Perguruan Lepas Ijazah Sekolah Rendah (KPLI SR) Mod Sepenuh Masa di Institut Pendidikan Guru.

Pemohon mestilah warganegara Malaysia.
Umur tidak melebihi 35 tahun pada 28 Jun 2010 iaitu lahir pada atau selepas 28 Jun 1975.

SYARAT TAMBAHAN

- Calon hendaklah sihat fizikal dan mental.

- Calon yang memiliki Ijazah Sarjana Muda dengan PNGK 2.75 ke atas diberi keutamaan.

- Calon hendaklah aktif dalam kegiatan kokurikulum.

- Calon yang memiliki ijazah yang bertepatan dengan bidang pengkhususan dan pengalaman mengajar akan diberi wajaran tertentu.

- Calon hendaklah bersedia ditempatkan di mana-mana sekolah termasuk di kawasan pedalaman.

CALON YANG TIDAK LAYAK MEMOHON

- Calon yang telah memiliki kelayakan ikhtisas perguruan seperti Ijazah Sarjana Muda dengan Pendidikan, Diploma dengan Pendidikan, Diploma Pendidikan, Diploma Perguruan atau Sijil Perguruan.

- Calon yang masih lagi terikat dengan Kontrak Perkhidmatan Agensi Kerajaan termasuk yang sedang mengikuti Kursus Perguruan Lepas Ijazah Mod Kursus Dalam Cuti kelolaan Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia.

- Calon yang pernah meletakkan jawatan dalam perkhidmatan kerajaan.

- Calon yang pernah dikenakan tindakan tatatertib atau sedang dalam proses tindakan tatatertib semasa dalam perkhidmatan atau dalam latihan.

- Calon yang pernah disabitkan dalam kesalahan penyalahgunaan dadah atau jenayah.

Permohonan hanya boleh dibuat secara atas talian (online) dengan melayari laman sesawang Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia di alamat:  http://www.moe.gov.my mulai 08 Febuari 2010.

Permohonan atas talian boleh dibuat dengan menggunakan Nombor Pengenalan Individu (PIN) yang boleh dibeli di Bank Simpanan Nasional (BSN) di seluruh negara dengan bayaran sebanyak RM 6.00 (Ringgit Malaysia Enam sahaja) melalui saluran kaunter, ATM dan perbankan Sistem Maklumat Ringkas (SMS).

Pemohon dinasihatkan melayari laman sesawang tersebut bagi mendapatkan maklumat iklan, kesesuaian ijazah dengan bidang pengkhususan, struktur program dan kalendar aktiviti sebelum membuat permohonan.

Calon dibenarkan mengemukakan SATU permohonan sahaja.

Calon boleh menggunakan nombor PIN yang sama untuk membuat pindaan butiran kepada permohonan yang telah dihantar. Pindaan butiran permohonan dihadkan tiga kali sahaja dan hendaklah dibuat sebelum tarikh tutup permohonan.

Calon yang memenuhi syarat dan kelayakan asas untuk mengikuti Kursus Perguruan Lepas Ijazah ini diwajibkan menduduki Ujian Pemilihan Calon Guru Malaysia (Malaysian Teacher Selection Test – MTeST) dan menghadiri temu duga yang akan ditetapkan oleh Kementerian Pelajaran Malaysia. (Sila rujuk Kalendar Aktiviti Permohonan KPLI Ambilan Jun 2010 di dalam Iklan Permohonan Kursus Perguruan Lepas Ijazah untuk maklumat lanjut.)

Permohonan bagi Ambilan Jun 2010 ditutup pada 21 Februari 2010.

Maklumat lanjut sila layari: http://apps.emoe.gov.my/kpli
———————————————————————————————————————————————————————

KALENDAR AKTIVITI PERMOHONAN KPLI AMBILAN JUN 2010

Iklan permohonan KPLI Ambilan Jun 2010.
07 Februari 2010

Permohonan dibuka (Permohonan dibuat secara online).
Nombor PIN boleh didapati di Bank Simpanan Nasional seluruh negara.
08 Februari 2010

Permohonan ditutup.
(Pindaan atau perubahan maklumat permohonan boleh dibuat sehingga tarikh tutup).
21 Februari 2010

Semakan nama calon yang berjaya menduduki Ujian MTeST secara online.
9 Mac 2010

Ujian MTeST seluruh negara (Sila bawa Tiket Panggilan Ujian).
13 Mac 2010

Semakan online nama calon berjaya dipanggil temu duga.
(Pemohon yang berjaya dikehendaki mencetak Surat Panggilan Temu Duga, Borang Butiran Diri dan Helaian Pernyataan Hasrat melalui Internet).
12 April 2010

Temu duga KPLI Ambilan Jun 2010.
(Sila bawa bersama Surat Panggilan Temu Duga , Borang Butiran Diri dan Helaian Penyataan Hasrat yang dicetak melalui Internet yang telah dilengkapi).
19 hingga 30 April 2010

Semakan Tawaran calon berjaya ke Institut Pendidikan Guru (IPG).
(Calon boleh mencetak surat tawaran sementara melalui internet. Surat Tawaran Rasmi boleh didapati selepas melapor diri di IPG).
07 Jun 2010

Pendaftaran calon di Institut Pendidikan Guru.
(Calon yang melapor diri boleh mendapatkan Surat Tawaran Berkursus di Institut Pendidikan Guru yang ditetapkan selepas mendaftar).
28 Jun 2010

Perhatian : Aktiviti dan Tarikh yang dinyatakan tertakluk kepada perubahan semasa.

———————————————————————————————————————————————————————

BAGAIMANA UNTUK LULUS PERMOHONAN KURSUS PERGURUAN LEPASAN IJAZAH KPLI?

1.    LULUS PERMOHONAN KPLI SECARA ONLINE

2.    LULUS MTEST

3.    LULUS TEMUDUGA KPLI

MTEST

Format dan soalan-soalan MTEST adalah sangat mencabar Ada soalan-soalan yang hanya memerlukan penggunaan ‘common sense’ tetapi secara umumnya memerlukan calon-calon untuk menjawab dengan’mindset’ seorang pendidik.  Yang paling penting, soalan-soalan MTest dikatakan boleh menyaring calon yang benar-benar berminat dan menghayati bidang keguruan.

KOMPONEN MTEST

a. Inventori Sahsiah Keguruan (INSAK)

b. VERBAL

c.  ANALITIKAL

d. KUANTITATIF

e. BAHASA INGGERIS

PEMARKAHAN UNTUK LULUS KPLI DINILAI BERDASARKAN:

1. Sijil-sijil yang lengkap

Pengalaman di dalam kegiatan kokurikulum mendapat pemarkahan berdasarkan kepimpinan dan jawatan yang disandang.

2. Kesesuaian Kursus yang diminta sesuai dengan ijazah

Majoriti calon yang GAGAL temuduga KPLI pada tahun-tahun yang sudah adalah kerana kursus yang diminta tidak relevan dengan ijazah.

3. Ada pengalaman mengajar

Pengalaman sebagai pendidik mendapat markah bonus.

4. Kemahiran komunikasi

Dinilai semasa sesi Temuduga. Peluang terakhir untuk meyakinkan penilai anda layak menjadi guru walaupun kurang sempurna pada item 1, 2 dan 3 di atas.

PENILAIAN UTAMA SESI TEMUDUGA

Pengenalan Diri
1.     Calon mampu menarik perhatian penemuduga
2.     Calon menerangkan kepentingan pengetahuan sedia ada dan pengalaman bekerja
3.     Calon menunjukkan perkaitan antara aset yang dimiliki dengan profesion perguruan

Penerangan Diri
1.     Idea-idea disampaikan dengan teratur dan jelas
2.     Fasih berbahasa, baku, jitu dan mudah difahami
3.     Contoh-contoh serta penerangan adalah relevan dan tepat

Suara
1.     Calon mempunyai suara kuat dan terang dan boleh didengari hingga ke belakang bilik
2.     Suara ada intonasi ketika membuat penegasan
3.     Sebutan Bahasa Melayu yang betul (tidak pelat atau menggunakan loghat daerah secara     keterlaluan )

Personaliti
1.     Calon menunjukkan keyakinan diri yang memuaskan sesuai dengan profesion perguruan
2.     Calon menunjukkan penampilan diri dan ketokohan diri serta daya kepimpinan yang sesuai sebagai seorang guru
3.     Calon menunjukkan kesediaan menerima teguran
4.     Calon mempunyai disiplin diri yang teguh
5.     Calon memiliki sifat prihatin yang tinggi
6.     Calon adalah seorang yang berbudi bahasa
7.     Calon mempunyai kemahiran sosial/berinteraksi
8.     Calon mempunyai kesungguhan dan keceriaan

Bahasa
1.   Menguasai bahasa pengantaraan dengan baik
2.  Bahasa yang fasih dan lancar
3.    Menggunakan tatabahasa yang betul
4.    Bahasa yang digunakan mudah difahami dan ringkas

Mitos temuduga perguruan KPLI

1. Untuk berjaya dalam temuduga KPLI perlu ada ‘KABEL’ atau bantuan orang dalam.
2. Temuduga Perguruan adalah SAMA sahaja dengan temuduga mohon kerja yang lain.

Artikel ini disediakan dengan bantuan Cikgu Wan Faizol Wan Mat (Pemilik eKPLI : http://www.ekpli.com) penulis Pakej eKPLI – Rahsia Lulus Cemerlang KPLI.

Technorati Tags: bahagian pendidikan guru, borang kpli, emoe gov my kpli mtest, emoe kpli, guru kpli, interview kpli, keputusan kpli, keputusan mtest, kpli, kpli 2009, kpli 2010, kpli gov, kpli jun, kpli malaysia, kpli result, kursus kpli, kursus perguruan lepasan, kursus perguruan lepasan ijazah, mtest, mtest 2009, mtest kpli, mtest kpli 2009, permohonan bahagian pendidikan guru, permohonan kpli, pismp, rayuan kpli, semak kpli, semakan kpli, semakan mtest, semakan mtest kpli, semakan temuduga kpli, soalan kpli, soalan mtest, temuduga kpli, ujian kpli, ujian mtest

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The PAS government had demanded the oil royalty payment from Petronas last year, after the Statistics Department revealed that Kelantan, together with Sabah and Terengganu, had contributed 62.5 per cent of the oil extracted in Malaysia.

The Barisan Nasional-ruled federal government has insisted oil from the joint development area with Thailand was not from part of Kelantan’s waters and has only offered RM20 million as “compassionate payment”.

But Razaleigh, the founding chairman of Petronas, disagreed with the government’s move, saying the formula for oil royalty was first agreed with Sarawak and later extended to all states.

An estimated 75,000 Kelantanese gathered at Stadium Sultan Mohamad IV last night to show solidarity against PM Najib Tun Razak refusal to let the Kelantan PAS state government manage the royalty money on its own. The UMNO led federal government has instead converted the owed petroleum royalty into compassionate money (Wang Ehsan) that will be handled unlawfully by Kelantan’s opposition UMNO and federal entity Jabatan Pentadbiran Persekutuan. In recent 2008 state election, PAS won 38 seats in contrast to UMNO only winning 6 seats. Allowing the minority electives the control of the royalty money is not only unconstitutional but also against the mandate of the Kelantanese.

A memorandum concerning Kelantan’s demand for the petroleum royalty was circulated for the crowd’s signatures and will be submitted to acting Sultan of Kelantan, the Crown Prince Tengku Muhammad Faris Petra and Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak.

Last night congregation began with the dusk prayer (Maghrib) led by Kelantan Deputy Chief Minister Datuk Ahmad Yakob, followed by Night prayer (Isya’) by Ustaz Mohamed Mustafa as imam and lastly a wish prayer led by Chief Minister Tuan Guru Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.

Editor’s note: All the nice pictures belong to TopengPerak Unmasked. All rights reserves.

Technorati Tags: federal government, JPP, Kelantan, Ku Li, Malaysia News, oil royalty, PAS, PM Najib Tun Razak, Sabah, Sarawak, UMNO, wang ehsan

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1. Kelantan Vs Negeri Sembilan, The Update
2. The Fuss over the Name Allah
3. ‘Allah’ issue; 4 More Churches Attacked and RM600,000 Relief

Allah is the standard Arabic word for God. While the term is best known in the West for its use by Muslims as a reference to God, it is used by Arabic-speakers of all Abrahamic faiths, including Christians and Jews, in reference to “God”. The term was also used by pagan Meccans as a reference to the creator-god, possibly the supreme deity in pre-Islamic Arabia.

The concepts associated with the term Allah (as a deity) differ among the traditions. In pre-Islamic Arabia amongst pagan Arabs, Allah was not considered the sole divinity, having associates and companions, sons and daughters – a concept which Islam thoroughly and resolutely abrogated. In Islam, the name Allah is the supreme and all comprehensive divine name. All other divine names are believed to refer back to Allah. Allah is unique, the only Deity, creator of the universe and omnipotent. Arab Christians today use terms such as Allah al-’Ab (“God the Father”) to distinguish their usage from Muslim usage. There are both similarities and differences between the concept of God as portrayed in the Qur’an and the Hebrew Bible.

It is true the name Allah predates Islam? The popular view is that Islam is exclusively associated with the revelation of Prophet Muhammad SAW roughly 1431 years ago. Among the core teaching of Prophet Muhammad PBUH however involved believing Islam as the continuation to the religion of Isa PBUH (Jesus), Musa PBUH (Moses), Ibrahim PBUH (Abraham), and going all the way back to Adam PBUH, the first human on earth. As Islam views it, to say something predates Islam would literally means to predate all humanity.

In relation to the usage of the word Allah in Malaysia Roman Catholic publication, it is very important to get the facts straight.

1. Regionally, Christianity had only flourished in Borneo long after Islam has established itself, with Christian missionaries actively converting pagan tribes in Sabah and Sarawak during the Rajah Brooke era.

2. The calling of god as Allah in local Christian teachings got nothing to do with Arabia pagan god, the Christian term for god was purposely localized to imitate the name of existing native god, the god of the majority, which is the god of Muslims. Furthermore not one Orthodox Coptic Arab Christian Missionary ever laid foot on Malaysia soil to justify calling god as Allah. All missionaries were from England and other European countries.

To be technical one can says the name Allah predates Prophet Muhammad PBUH, but at the same time, the same name was also non existence in any Roman Catholic Bibles produced in the country(s) where all the Christian missionaries had came from. The local Muslims reservation on this issue is not entirely baseless.

It is important to know exactly where both side stand on this matter. Its common for Muslims to back the Islam side, and Christians backing the Roman Catholic side. However, to have another large group of Muslim unopposing the Christian view on this matter is something worth sinking our mind into.

According to Datuk Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat, the spiritual leader for Parti Islam Malaysia (PAS) cum Chief Minister to the state of Kelantan, a key figure in the opposition coalition, Islam is a blessing to the universe, that translates into Islam is for all (Arabic; “Rahmatan Lil-Aalamin”). The one god in Islam is also the universal god of all religions. Other religion should be welcomed to call their god by Islam name.

Technorati Tags: Borneo, Christian, Islam, Kelantan, Kuala Lumpur, Malay, Malaysia, Malaysia Insider, Malaysian, Muslim, Roman Catholic, Sabah, Sarawak

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2. Malaysia ‘Allah’ Ban Overturned
3. Na Tok Kong, Worshipping the Muslim Deity

Christmas motifs and decoration in a shopping mall

In shopping malls, shopkeepers and retailers take the opportunity to erect a non-religious motifs such as snow, stockings, Santa and his reindeer. There are also the candy canes and Christmas tree, come complete white, green, red and gold, which are regarded as the traditional colors of the season. All commercial centers and hotels decorated themselves in sync with the atmosphere of Christmas.

Religious Adherents Statistic of 2000, Malaysia Department of Statistics

Christmas in Malaysia also refer to the church gatherings comprising of people of different beliefs (excluding Moslems) to observe the festive spirit. The celebration and the festivity continue till the morning hour.

Sabah will host the Christmas Open House this year at Padang Merdeka here on December 27 and Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak is scheduled to officiate the event. The concept of ‘open house’ is unique to Malaysia. Such practice is a norm for all religious festivities – friends, families and strangers are welcomed for a visit thus enjoys the delicious feast prepared by their hosts.

Christianity in Malaysia is a minority religion practised by 9.1% of the population. The major Christian denominations in Malaysia include the Anglicans, Baptists, Brethrens, independent Charismatic churches, Lutherans, Methodists, non-denominational churches,  Presbyterian and Roman Catholics. Majority of Malaysia Christians live in East Malaysia (Borneo) consisting 28% of  Sabah population and 42.4% of Sarawakian.

In Malaysia, Jesus too is recognized and loved by other spectrum of the population. The Moslems that constitutes the majority 60.4% of Malaysian, have different perception on Jesus.
In Islam, Jesus (Arabic: Isa) is considered a Messenger of God who had been sent to guide the Children of Israel (Bani Israil) with a new scripture, the Injil (Gospel). The Qur’an, believed by Muslims to be God’s final revelation, mentions Jesus 25 times. It states that Jesus was born to Mary (Arabic: Maryam) as the result of virginal conception, a miraculous event which occurred by the decree of God (Arabic: Allah). To aid him in his quest, Jesus was given the ability to perform miracles, all by the permission of God. According to Islamic texts, Jesus was neither killed nor crucified, but rather he was raised alive up to heaven. Islamic traditions narrate that he will return to Earth near the day of judgment to restore justice and defeat al-Masih ad-Dajjal (“The False Messiah”, also known as the AntiChrist).

Like all prophets in Islam, Jesus is considered to have been a Muslim, as he preached for people to adopt the straight path in submission to God’s will. Islam rejects that Jesus was God incarnate or the son of God, stating that he was a mortal man who, like other prophets, had been divinely chosen to spread God’s message. Islamic texts forbid the association of partners with God (syirik), emphasizing the notion of God’s divine oneness (tauhid). Numerous titles are given to Jesus in the Qur’an, such as al-Masih (“The Messiah; the anointed one” i.e. by means of blessings), although it does not correspond with the meaning accrued in Christian belief. Jesus is seen in Islam as a precursor to Muhammad, and is believed by Muslims to have foretold the latter’s coming.

Christmas is 'almost' a non-religious affair in Malaysia

Muslims believe in the virginal conception of Jesus by Mary, which is recounted throughout several passages in the Qur’an. According to the Qur’anic narrative, Mary had withdrawn into a temple and was visited by an angel an agent of divine action or communication commonly identified in Islam with the angel Gabriel (Arabic: Jibreel) but also with the created spirit from God by which he enlivened Adam. He proclaimed to her the conception of Jesus.

Mary was startled, for she had vowed her virginity to God and intended to retain it. The angel reassured her, stating that such a conception was easy for God, who wished to make from her a sign to men and a mercy from Him. The Qur’an describes the conception as the result of a creative decree made by God, similar to the creation of Adam. Some Qur’anic exegetes describe the event of conception as the angel’s breathing into the cloak of Mary; which, upon putting it on, resulted in Jesus being conceived. Afterwards, Mary withdrew “to a distant place.”

After delivering Jesus, Mary was overtaken by the pangs of childbirth, resting near the trunk of a palm tree. Jesus then addressed her from the cradle, to instruct her to shake the tree and obtain its fruits and also to allay Mary’s fears of a scandal surrounding his conception. She then showed the new-born to her family, and in silencing immodest rumors he declared: “Lo, I am God’s servant; God has given me the Book, and made me a Prophet. Blessed he has made me, wherever I may be; and He has enjoined me to pray, and to give alms, so long as I live and likewise to cherish my mother.” (Resource: Wikipedia)

Technorati Tags: Anglicans, Baptists, Borneo, Brethrens, Catholics, Christian, Christmas, Gabriel, Gospel, Isa, Jesus, Jibreel, Lutherans, Malaysia, Malaysia Travel, Mary, Maryam, Methodists, Moslem, Presbyterian, Qur'an, Sabah, Sarawak

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1. The Fuss over the Name Allah

This is not Muniappan, but a Malaysian Indian nevertheless

One day a tourist from Pike County, USA named Bob has just arrived in Malaysia for a short summer vacation. Anxious to know what Malaysia is all about, he decided to chart a taxi for a short tour in KL before checking-in to the hotel.

The name of the taxi driver that day is Muniappan,  an army retiree. As all other proud Malaysian, Muniappan want to impress Bob with Malaysia rapid development and decided to show the top few landmarks in Kuala Lumpur.

As they arrived at Dayabumi, Muniappan entered his tourist guide mode and started to explaine “Mr. Bob, here we are at Dayabumi, one of Malaysia prominent landmark. This building was completed in 1984 and the first to use all out white marbles finishes”. “Oh, really? interesting! How long they took to complete it?” asked Bob. Muniappan hesitates, but being a proud citizen he didn’t want to be seen as ignorant, so he bluffed,” I heard someone said 11 months”. Amazed by the answer, but reluctant to be seen as so, John replied, “Oh we got building like this back in the States, using the latest in construction technology it would take only took us not more than 7 months”.

After that, Muniappan brings Bob to KL Tower. “On our right side is Menara Kuala Lumpur, currently the fourth highest tower structure in the World, but when it was first completed,it ranked no. 1″. “How long was the construction period?”, asked Bob. Trying to outwit Bob this time, Muniappan answers,”exactly 6 months sir!”. “That’s like forever, the Chicago Sears Tower only took 4 and a half months, but that was like in 1932″, bragged Bob.

So this time Muniappan heads straight to Petronas Twin Towers, but upon arriving he purposedly shut his mouth. Amazed by the elegant architecture as he looked from the window, Bob asked,”So what is this twin building here?”

Muniappan casually replies, “…err I don’t know sir. IT WASN’T HERE WHEN I PASSED THROUGH YESTERDAY!”

Bob was then as silent as a dead corpes until they arrived at his hotel.

A top minister recently slammed Malaysia's taxi drivers, saying they were more of a problem for the tourism industry than the nation's notoriously filthy toilets

Technorati Tags: Dayabumi, KL Tower, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Malaysia Deals, Malaysia Taxi, Malaysia Travel, Malaysian, Petronas Twin Tower

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The last time Malaysia has won was in 1989 in Kuala Lumpur SEA Games after defeating Singapore 1-0 at Merdeka Stadium. Malaysia went to final last night after winning the semi final against Thailand 2-1. Singapore successfully ranked no. 3 after defeating Laos 3-1.

Well done and congratulations to the All Under 23 ‘Harimau Malaya’ squad and coach K. Rajagopal for successfully make Malaysia proud!

The ‘winning’ came courtesy of an own goal by Vietnam’s Mai Xuan Hop’s in the 84th minute of a toughly-fought final. Match remained intense until the end of 6 mins extra time when many experimental thrill of Vietnam to score goals were successfully being thwarted or deviated on their own.

Harimau Malaya squad successful bid for gold began with 11-0 win against Timor Leste, 1-3 lost to Vietnam, 4-0 win against Cambodia and then beating Thailand 2-1.

The football gold medal was also Malaysia’s 40th gold medal in the 25th. SEA Games, Vientiane, Laos. The victory was all the more sweeter as the Malaysians had lost 1-3 to Vietnam in a group match on Dec 6.

Technorati Tags: Harimau Malaya, Laos, Laos SEA Games 2009, Malaysia, Malaysia Insider, Malaysia News, Malaysian Football, Singapore, Thailand, Timor Leste

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PM Dato' Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak tabling the 2010 "1Malaysia Prosperity for All" Budget

Yesterday 15th. Dec 2009, however, something out of the ordinary again happened. This time, the prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s debut Budget 2010 dubbed “1Malaysia prosperity for all” budget has almost been turned down by the Parliament when it barely obtained by a 66-63 vote margin at the third reading of the Dewan Rakyat. That’s 48 percent attendance for the BN MPs and a 77 percent attendance rate for the Pakatan reps.

It is reported that it is the first time that the national budget was approved with such a narrow margin, when a rejection would have a clear negative impact on the Barisan Nasional government. The parliamentary democracy practices deem a budget rejected as equivalent ot a successful non-confidence vote toward a government and indirectly opens the way to the formation of a new government. Before the critical Third Reading, the budget was approved with only one vote in committee-debate at the stage of the Home Ministry – which has been the last ministry to have its allocation approved.

No used crying over spilled milk now. Undoubtly this is already a blow to the face to Barisan Nasional, but should the opposition had managed to make use the once in a lifetime opportunity, the probable outcome would be phenomenal. The question now is where are the other 19 of Pakatan Rakyat’s MPs?

Technorati Tags: 1Malaysia, 2010 Budget, Dato' Seri Najib Tun Abdul Razak, government, Malaysia, Malaysia Insider, Malaysia News, parliament, politic, Prime Minister of Malaysia

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For the Muslims worldwide, the true significance of Aidil-adha is to commemorate the historical event when God had asked Prophet Abraham to sacrifice his son Ismael to test his obedience and thanks to his unquestionable willingness to carry out His command, God had later changed the sacrifice for a cow. Since then cow have been very popular in Muslim’s diet, and for the next few days after coming Friday, it would means excessive intake of red meat, usually cooked and eaten with rice, barbequed or made into Satays or other local delicacies.

A communal effort to bring down a cow for Aidil-adha. Image courtesy of aurisshaira89.blogspot.com. All rights reserved

Family members, relatives, neighbors, friends and complete strangers would gather, sometimes through a middle man to jointly sacrifice an animal. In Islam, an animal sacrifice is allowed to be divided into 7 parts (currently one part cost around RM360-400) as to cater for the financially disable. Those with lot of money can sometimes sacrifice a whole cow, if not 2 or 3.

Animal to be sacrificed must first be selected from a good and healthy breed with no deformity and be slaughtered in the name of Allah. One of the interesting Malay’s myth during Hari Raya Korban is that the person slaughtering the animal somehow decide whether it will be meatier or fattier depending on his skill.

Usually it would take a joint effort of 7-15 persons to process the slaughtered animal and is carried out voluntarily based on communal spirit . It is not a secret however that volunteers do have certain priveleges, access to rare parts for special delicacies like the head, testicles, tail, digestion system and other internal organs.  The sacrificial meats are then distributed to neighbors and relatives or prepared for feasting.

There are also politicians using the government money for a larger scale of sacrifice, not uncommon to have between 20 to 30 animal at one go, sometimes with 2-3 exclusive sacrifices with imported camels from Australia or the Middle East. In Islam, it is said that the ‘accepted’ animal sacrifice would help individuals in their far and long journey in the Day After, but since the politicians have their sacrifice at the expense of goverment money, it would be uncertain who would really benefit from the sacrifice, except maybe to fill in empty stomachs.

Only animal that can be eaten can be sacrificed, but not all of them. Apart from cows and camels, other domestic animals such as goats and sheeps can also be sacrificed. Chicken for one is not a sacrificial animal. Horse sacrifice is unheard of. In Malaysia, it is commonly cows.

Sometimes a small function is organized, to gather relatives and friends for a quick congregation. Foods (using the sacrifed animals as main ingredient) and drinks are served to those invited. Animal sacrifice is strict muslims affair only, but Aidil-adha is widely celebrated through-out Malaysia. Ironic? This would simply means that in particular to the sacrificial meat, where it can only be consumed by Muslims, another non-sacrificial meat would have to be prepared separately to serve for the non-muslims. (For a Muslim, a sacrificed animals are supposedly to be treated with respect, even their bones and other wastages are not allowed to be thrown away or eaten by scavengers and have to be buried in the ground afterward, and oh yes, not to be eaten by the infidels, sorry!).

It is more ironic that to the other 3-5% of Malaysia population (the Indian Hindus), cow are a revered and sacred animal. But Aidil-adha is not about being offensive to other religion. The Muslims too believed cows and other domestic animals as sacred, and these are the only animals that can assist in easing the burden of the far and long journey in the Judgement Day. In Malaysia, diversity and religious tolerance have faced the test of time and have proven that different cultures can co-exist with peace and harmony. On the other hand, it would be rather hard and unpractical to ask for a sacrificed animal should Islam being selective and had specified for exotic animals like Pandas, Orangutans, Bengal White Tigers or Alaskan penguins.

Religion aside, Aidiladha would mean another holiday to include into the country’s long list of holidays and breaks.

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