Ceremony of Welcoming the Birth of Baby (Malaysia)

A woman usually gives birth after about nine months of her pregnancy. Several months before the birth of the baby, a family, especially a husband pays more attention upon his wife and fulfils all that she needs. A pregnant wife‘s desire, more often than not, differs from her desire in other normal days. This distinctive desire is called mengidam (a desire to eat something sour such as mango and orange during pregnancy). These fruits can avoid a vomit and minimize a feeling of queasy felt by the pregnant wife.

Besides all above, during the pregnancy of the wife, the husband should protect himself from some taboos and prohibitions. He should not go fishing or killing an animal with a sharp weapon such as sword, cleaver and any other weapons. It is believed that when the husband stands against those prohibitions, the baby would have a hereditary deformity; he may have an upper lip divided. Therefore, both spoiling the pregnant wife and avoiding the taboos and prohibitions are considered as important aspects that will help the wife easier in the process of giving birth and will help the baby to have a perfect body.

1. Equipment

This part is still in the process of collecting data

2. The Way of Organizing the Ceremony

In the ninth month of pregnancy, the wife, the husband and their family will not wait too long to welcome a new member of their family. They wait the baby with fear, hope and happy. When the baby is born, a midwife takes care of it. As will be explained in the cultural values, either the father or the grand father of the baby then appeals azan or iqamah on the baby‘s ears. Afterward, the midwife cuts the baby‘s umbilical cord, and then washes it cleanly.

The placenta is then buried perfectly because, as the Malay society believes, it is the twin brother/sister of the baby during in the womb.

3. Prayers

This part is also still in the process of collecting data

4. Cultural Value

There are several values upheld by the Malay society during the pregnancy:

• The pregnant wife should always show a bright and happy face, and very fond of helping other people in order to have a good child.
• Both wife and husband are suggested to read more frequently the chosen verses of the Quran such as the verse of Yusuf and Muhammad. This may help the baby to be smart, to have good-looking face like the Prophet Yusuf and to have a high morality like the Prophet Muhammad.
• When the baby is born, its umbilical cord is then cut as a symbol of the separation between the womb and the real world, while its placenta is buried just the same with the burial ceremony of dead person. This rite purposes to make the child, when it grows into an adult, to be well educated and good person. The placenta is buried in the house‘s courtyard to keep it from a scandalous violation of the black magic actors.
• As in usual, the baby is crying when it is born, because (1) as a human, he/she is afraid of a big responsibility held by him/her, (2) afraid of sins that fill the world (3) or he/she is scared by an evil spirit. For the son baby, either the father or the grand father of him should appeal azan (a calling to invite Muslims to conduct a regular prayer) on his right ear. While for the daughter, one of them appeals iqamah (last summon to begin a prayer) on her left ear.

Source:

1. http://www.ashtech.com.my/adat
2. http://www.malaysiana.pnm.my
3. Syed Alwi bin Sheikh Al-Hadi, Adat Resam Melayu dan Adat Istiadat, Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka Kepementerian Pelajaran Persekutuan tanah Melayu Kuala Lumpur, 1960.

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