Methods of flying in Indo-Malay legends for #MythologyMonday

1. Ride a flying creature, like a dragon or giant eagle Image
2. Alternatively, BECOME a giant eagle

4. If you happen to be a woman, there's the option of becoming a flying ghost like the pontianak, langsuir, or penanggal. The former two can change into bird form, while the head of the latter can separate from its body and fly around

6. Finally, just acquire the skill of flight through magical practice Image

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More from @uglyluhan

19 May
If Malaysians know one thing about local history, it's the beloved tale of why the constitution grants special privileges to "natives". What's less well known is that the mainstream narrative is very one-sided
The story goes that Malays fought for independence from the British, but non-Malays begged for citizenship. Malays were forced by the Brits to accept the immigrants, but were given special privileges in exchange. This is what the right means when they tell you to belajar sejarah
In the first place, we would've had a non-Malay population even if we had never been colonised. They were here before the colonists, and even those who arrived during the colonial era weren't as unwelcome as the right would like to believe

Read 16 tweets
17 Apr
Duli has absolutely no relation to Arabic. It comes from the Sanskrit dhuli meaning dust or ash. This is mentioned in the video, but an additional Arabic connection was tacked on from nowhere
"Yang Maha Mulia" is what it sounds like. Again, this refers to the ruler himself, not God. The notion that "maha" must be solely reserved for God is very, very recent and has never been a Malay tradition. Not even after the introduction of Islam. Never

Paduka is a type of shoe from ancient India, deriving from the Sanskrit word for foot. In South and Southeast Asian cultures, touching a person's foot or shoe was among the highest forms of respect. The significance of the paduka can be seen here

allaboutshoes.ca/en/paduka/in_f…
Read 11 tweets
17 Apr
Besides the points made in this thread, it's also worth noting that the separation of man from nature occurs in Malay mythology as well. Several Malay legends speak of a time when humans could communicate with animals and trees

In some stories, the trees imparted knowledge, only a portion of which was passed down. This has been noted as an allusion to pagan animism, when humans learned from the natural environment rather than religion

Or to put it in another way, when god and nature were one. When the natural world itself was the object of reverence and fear

Read 5 tweets
17 Apr
Malay theatre is closely tied to the concept of angin (literally meaning wind), referring to one's temperament or well-being. Dance-drama and puppetry affects the angin of the audience, but a master is also drawn to perform by their own angin

#SuperstitionSat
This definition of "wind" ties into the elements of Malay metaphysics. The body is said to be made up of five elements (pancabuta) namely fire, water, earth, wind and space. The fifth element (angkasa), translated as space or void, is intangible and often left out
Carol Laderman assumed that Malay elemental theory originated with Greco-Arab humourism adopted along with Islam, but the terminology, the association with chakra, and the inclusion of akasha evidences Indian influence, as in other parts of Southeast Asia
Read 7 tweets
15 Mar
I don't know why it was done in this case but there is a reason Chinese names are listed down like that. It might be hard to understand if you're unfamiliar with the language and writing system
First of all, you might notice that when a Chinese person introduced themselves to another Chinese, they sometimes explain or show how it's written. Why? Because the meaning and tones of the name might not be clear without knowing the characters used to write it
This is important for Chinese-language media to write the names correctly, because you won't necessarily know just from hearing the name. Even more so because Malaysian Chinese names are in different dialects
Read 7 tweets
13 Mar
Why non-Muslims should be allowed to use #KalimahAllah

Response to every bad argument. Let me know if there are more
A directive from the Malaysian Home Ministry in 1986 first prohibited non-Muslim publications from using words like Allah, Kaabah, Baitullah and solat. The word Allah continued to be used by Christians, particularly in the Bornean states
It only really became an issue around 2007 when the government realised that the multilingual Catholic weekly The Herald uses the word Allah in its Malay section. The paper is in 4 languages reflecting the multi-ethnic local Christian population

m.malaysiakini.com/news/76316
Read 48 tweets

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