Top 7 Traditional Festivals in Malaysia

The long history has created a diverse culture in Malaysia. Malaysia is a multi-racial and multi-religious country. It not only has many different beliefs, but also has colorful traditional festivals. Now, let's introduce the top 7 traditional festivals in Malaysia.

1. Hari Raya Aidil Adha - December 10th on the Islamic calendar

Hari Raya Aidil Adha is one of the two most important festivals of the Malays. It is an important religious ceremony held the day after the Islamic pilgrimage to the holy places of Islam. It is also known as the Eid al-Adha and Gorban Festival. The festival is set on the tenth day of December in the Islamic calendar. On this day, Malays will kill cattle and slaughter sheep and worship throughout the day to thank God.

Hari Raya Aidil Adha

2. Eid Al-Fitr - October on the Islamic calendar

Eid Al-Fitr, also called the Festival of Fast Breaking, is one of the most important months of the year for Malaysians. Fasting is one of the "five merits" of Islam. Muslims must fast for 30 days in the 9th month of the Islamic calendar (Bulan Ramadhan). Fasting is designed to allow Muslims to truly feel the pain of hunger and is a way of spiritual self-purification. Eid al-Fitr represents the end of Ramadan. The first day after Ramadan is Eid al-Fitr. Eid celebrations focus on the values of compassion, poverty, charity, perseverance and patience.

Eid Al-Fitr

During Eid, Muslims ask their friends and relatives to forgive them for their mistakes in the past year. Eid al-Fitr is an important occasion for socializing, gathering and reminiscing in Malaysia. It is one of the most important festivals for Muslims and one of the most important religious festivals in Malaysia. The Malaysian government has designated Eid al-Fitr and the second day of Eid al-Fitr as public holidays.

3. Chinese New Year - Lunar January 1st

The festival falls on the first day of the lunar calendar and continues for the next 15 days. On New Year’s Eve, large families will reunite to enjoy the annual family dinner and rice cakes. This is also the time for the wanderers to return home to reunite with relatives and friends. At the same time, the elders will distribute oranges and red envelopes containing New Year's money. to the younger generations.

Chinese New Year

In addition, all major supermarkets will be decorated with New Year banners to represent good luck, and there will be dragon and lion dances and firecrackers on the street. The scene is very lively. Relatives and friends also took this opportunity to visit each other.

4. Deepavali - July on the Indian calendar

Deepavali, also known as the Lantern Festival, is a festival to drives out darkness with light and defeats evil with goodness in Indian culture. It is the most important festival of the year for Indians. The celebration includes going to the temple to pray and worship. In addition, the Indian compatriots will also light up lights or oil lamps to commemorate the victory of the god Krishna over the demon Ravana. Indian compatriots will also wear traditional costumes, display colorful rice paintings in front of their homes.

Deepavali

5. Wesak Day - Lunar April 15th

The fifteenth day of the fourth month of the lunar calendar is the most important day in the Buddhist calendar. It symbolizes the birth, enlightenment and Nirvana of the Buddha. Buddhist believers are all competing to burn incense, worship, and gather in various temples to release pigeons and pray for peace. At the same time, this day is also a day for monks to give alms. At night, every household eat vegetarian food and light up oil lamps, so Vesak is also called the "Festival of Lights".

Wesak Day

6. Harvest Festival - June 1st

The Harvest Festival is regarded by the Darya as the end of a rice planting season and the beginning of a new planting festival. This celebration is quite lively in East Malaysia, because most ethnic minorities live in East Malaysia. It falls on June 1st and 2nd. Celebration activities include house clearing, ancestor worship, and livestock slaughter to celebrate the harvest.

Harvest Festival

On the eve of the day, the whole family will be reunited together. The younger generation will prepare food for their parents. In addition, each household will entertain rice wine (tuak) to the guests, and some households will wear traditional costumes to perform dances.

7. Sabah Festival - May 30th 

The Sabah Festival is mainly a thanksgiving ceremony held by the Sabah Kadazan and Dusun tribes of East Malaysia to celebrate the harvest. Activities include open-air parades and cultural performances.

Sabah Festival

On the day of the festival, the Sabah people wear traditional black national costumes. Both men and women wear belts with many shiny silver coins embedded on them. Women also embroidered clothes with gold and silver threads with colorful beads. People helped the old and the young to participate in the celebration. The harvest festival celebration is full of religious colors.