Any of this sound familiar?
Another article on Islam and Muslims in Malaysia and the striking similarities.
IN my observations, among the serious misunderstandings involving religion is the use of the term “Malay” as synonymous with Islam and “Chinese” with infidel. There are Malays who describe a new Muslim convert as masuk Melayu (becoming Malay) or sometimes say that he is “not Muslim but Chinese!” For them, the Chinese represent the infidels and Malays embody the Muslims.
To make matters worse, some Malays label the converted Chinese as mualaf and, more disparagingly in the northern Peninsula dialect, Mat Loh.
Malays assume they are the only pure Muslims, although Chinese Muslims may have stronger faith.
To some Malays, Chinese Muslims are not authentic and are seen merely as hitchhikers.
However, many Chinese who have converted to Islam are more pious, while many Muslim-born Malays are of questionable devotion. Malay attire such as kain pelikat, baju melayu and samping are not the garments worn by the Prophet.
But Malays perceive their clothing as Islamic because it is from Malay culture.
Islam does not impede a culture which is not against its teachings. In the past, Malays perceived the use of chopsticks as wrong because it was associated with Chinese culture.
[...]
Malays will normally ask Chinese Muslims to change to Arabic names, as if the name Ah Chong, Ah Seng, Lim or Koh would mean they were un-Islamic.
Maybe because such names do not sound Arabic, the Malays feel awkward about them.
Sadly, the Malays do not feel the same way about names such as Awang, Leman, Seman and others which are not Arabic either. In reality, there are many Malay names which do not have any meaning in Arabic and some have bad meanings if they are translated.
Still, it is all right for the Malays because they are, after all, Malay names.
Again, are Malays Islam and Islam Malays? The Prophet did not ask those who embraced Islam to change their names as long as they did not have bad meanings.
For instance, the name Umar was used during the pre-Islamic Jahiliyyah period and remained when the person became a Muslim.
[...]
Still, they must be given the choice to do so. If the changed names only make non-Muslim Chinese afraid of embracing Islam and fearful that their families will disown them, is it wrong for them to maintain their Chinese names?
If Awang can keep his name, why not Ah Chong?
An assumption that Islam mirrors Malay characteristics has dire consequences in many areas, especially when some Malays themselves act against the teachings of Islam.
Fortunately, most Malays still adhere to the teachings of Islam.
A strong faith is the saving grace in the hereafter.
[...]
Since many Malays contradict the teachings of Islam, the majority of the Chinese have misconceptions about Islam or abhor the idea of embracing Islam.
Islam is against negative traits such as laziness, apathy, envy and the like. Unfortunately, many Malays possess such attributes.
For instance, many Malay students are left behind in their studies. If they are set against the Chinese, either at school or university, many of the Malays will lag.
[...]
They prefer easy instruction without research and thought. At public libraries, the number of Malays using these facilities is still small. Chinese students diligently acquire knowledge, whereas many of their Malay counterparts are distracted by other things.
[...]
Academically strong Muslims will not rely on water that was blessed with the Surah Yassin (one of the most important chapters in the Quran). Previous generations excelled because they stressed the importance of knowledge and were sincere in their efforts to acquire it. They were not merely focused on getting a certificate. Such qualities led to the creation of a powerful civilisation of knowledge in Islam.
Sometimes we as Muslims should praise the Chinese. Their children can still do well in their undertakings with neither high education nor paper qualifications. They either inherited the skills from their parents or from practical learning. Many successful Chinese businessmen are masters in their respective fields without having official paper qualifications. This trait is highly regarded by Islam. The religion urges its followers to rely on Allah and to increase their knowledge. In Surah Taha (verse 113) God says: “(Say Muhammad) Oh Lord, increase my knowledge.”
Based on what I have mentioned above, how can the Malays bring the non-Muslim Chinese closer to Islam and convince them that Islam has shaped the Malays to become noble human beings? The Chinese businessmen are better managers and portray strong positive traits compared with their Malay counterparts — to the extent that many Malays have more confidence in Chinese businessmen than their own. Where are people like Abd al-Rahman bin Auf, a Muslim role model of doing business? Maybe the Chinese, the majority of whom are non-Muslims, have a keener insight into Abd al-Rahman’s business acumen than the Malays.
There is much else that I can say, to the point that I am inclined to think that if the Malays were not Muslim, there would be little else they can be proud of. If the Chinese can receive Islam in its true form, they will have much to offer.
Previous: Malaysia dealing with similar issues
Update: The article in the link is dead. Here is the cache version
Filed under: Convert Issues, The Culture of Denial and Pretense
CSPAN aired “The State of Black America, with Tavis Smiley” today. Are you going to write a post on this, or do you think this is not a legitimate Muslim-American concern?
Interesting, I just had dinner for the second time this week with a Chinese Malaysian convert. Ironically, she converted in America, 5 years ago. She informed me of some of the disdain the Malays have or the Chinese.
[...] Check this out. ( “not Muslim but [...]
This is common in not just Malaysia, but everywhere else as well. I remember visiting Pakistan and riding with the Tabligh in a car about 11 years ago. We were stopped at a checkpoint. The police officer looked inside the car and saw us white converts. One of us said salams to him, at which he looked at the driver and asked: ”does he speak Urdu?”. The reason for this was that he associated the salams as a way of saying hi in Urdu–as is also found in some urdu english phrase books.
As far as using the word ”Chinese” as synonymous with Kafir, this is common in many other cultures as well, were the dominant ”other” that is non muslim is addressed as Kafir using their own ethnic name. Examples of this stretch back to the times of the crusades, where the word Kafir and Franj were almost one and the same. The word Franj/Ifranj/Franji was an Arabised version of the word ”Frank”-which referred to the crusaders.
Darqawi,
What do you know about the similar usage of Barbari in the early period of conquest? There seems to be the same sentiment against the barbar at that time? any thoughts?
Tariq, can you post the link again? The one above doesn’t work. I basically agree with the article, though it’s a bit exaggerated in that most Malays under 40 are aware of the differences between what is Islamically required and what is Malay culture. A lot of the attitudes mentioned are characteristic of the older generations and there is reason to be optimistic about dawah here. What is lacking for the chinese perhaps is a visible chinese muslim identity, as their numbers are still very small.
I wrote a bit about the names issue here and again here.
Thanks Bin, I couldn’t find another version, but here is the cache version
Seeker:
The only thing that I’d have to say about it is that American Muslims themselves don’t see it as an issue - but in fact it is. Other than Keith Ellison - to my knowledge - there were no Muslims there and it is to the point that no one sees this as an “Islamic” issue. “Islamic” issues are restricted to what is happening overseas in Muslim lands.
It has even gotten to the point that both Muslims and non-Muslims see it as almost inappropriate for a Muslim to address domestic issues that affect all Americans.
Darqawi…
Now the word “Franji” in Arabic is used to denote a Western-style toilet. (as opposed to hole in the floor) I wonder if there’s a connection.
In that case, the word Franji means ”western”. The Ya’ at the end of the is a Ya’ of ascription.
Salaam ‘Alaikum
Some version of “faranji” is present in other cultures as well. I always thought it was a mangling of the word “foreigner.”
The word “barbari” comes from the Greek “Barbaros.” An entry on the etymology of the word “Berber” at Wikipedia says that it is likely the Arabs were not aware of the pejorative use of the word by the Romans and Greeks, thus their name for the language of the people known to the Romans as Libyans (and to themselves as Amazight), and is the root of today’s “Berber.”
Since many Malays contradict the teachings of Islam, the majority of the Chinese have misconceptions about Islam or abhor the idea of embracing Islam.
This section, including some of the interior parts you deleted, was interesting to me. While S’pore isn’t Malaysia, some of the problems there apply here as well. The idea that Malays don’t make good role models for non-Muslim Chinese (and Indians) for the purpose of dawah is common to both countries, and is due partly to the nature of both Malay and OC (Overseas Chinese) cultures. Are Malays lazy and uninterested in education? Certainly not all, but enough are that the stereotype has a basis in reality. Are the Chinese virtuous for focusing so intently on education? Not entirely; many OC suffer from being greedy and kiasu (a Chinese word meaning “fearing to lose out to others; always wanting the upper hand or something for free”).
The ideal solution (IMO) lies somewhere in between. Islam, IMO, would help to moderate the vices that many OC suffer from. Malays would benefit from upgrading their education and work skills; that, in turn, might help to impress the OC that Islam is worth looking into. (Many OC here in S’pore are Christian, so the mental leap from one Ibrahimic faith to the other is fairly small - as opposed to the leap it would take to go from Buddhist/Taoist thought to Islamic thought.) Without this upgrading by the Malays, they make poor role models for the OC and Indians for the purpose of da’wah, who will look to see how becoming a Muslim can improve their material lives.