SRI AMAN: A group of six teenagers aged between 14 and 21 years who want to be known as ‘Team Gerak Sahur’ from Kampung Hilir Sri Aman are involved in an activity to wake people up to take their sahur meal before dawn.
This activity was only held during Ramadan month in the era before the 80’s in the villages. Although the practice was discontinued with the passage of time, this team is trying to restore the tradition.
Interestingly, during the month of Ramadan starting at 3.00am through to 4.00am, the teenagers would walk around the village making noise with the aim of waking up people around the village to get up for sahur.
They would make noise by hitting the various items and call aloud the words ‘sahur, sahur, wake up, sahur, sahur wake up’, repeating the call to get sleepy heads to be ready for ‘sahur’.
Among the ‘musical instruments’ used or sounded are paint cans, trays, zinc bowls, wood, bottles and others to produce a sound as a sign of the coming of the dawn.
Although using simple tools, this team still is able to produce ‘music’ that is entertaining to the villagers, apart from getting the Muslims to wake up for ‘sahur’.
After residents are awakened by their ‘call’, this group of teenagers will move in a group from house to house of other villagers and repeat the same call until all houses in the area are covered by 4.00am.
One of the villagers said, although this traditional practice has discontinued for while due to today’s modernisation, it should be continued every year in maintaining the legacy left by previous generations.
He added that the activity that was formerly done by adults is now inherited by the younger generation. Thus, the villagers hope the tradition presented and propogated by ‘Team Gerak Sahur’ would be maintained.
“Hopefully in the future, it will be many more young people here who can continue practising this kind of activity,” he said.
According to a member of the group ‘Team Gerak Sahur’ Kampung Hilir Sri Aman, Mohd Sabri Haji Jimi, 21, he is eager to gather with the others as early as 3.00am because he doesn’t want to miss the programme.
“It is a very fun activity although having to get up early in the morning with another friend in waking people up,” he said.
Mohd Sabri said that such activity could help preserve Malay and Islamic culture when celebrating the fasting month.
“I am proud and happy to see friends have enthusiastically together joined this programme that was initially an idea produced by our group,” he added.
