Well, it is the beginning of a new term for the MCG Committee and I want to sincerely thank all of you who have stepped forward to take a board position. It takes a lot of time and commitment, but I am sure you will find it a worthwhile endeavour. My thanks to all the members who attended the AGM and to Rehman Rashid for being such a crowd pleaser! June is another great month full of events for you. Our speaker this month will be Ramli Ibrahim who recently received the Boh Cameronian Award for Lifetime Achievement. Take advantage of this opportunity to hear this multi-talent talk about his passion for Indian classical dance. You can compare the two dance forms, as we will next visit Ellie Zhao’s Dance Academy and learn about Chinese classical and folk dance. For a special treat, you can learn how to prepare an Indian Thali lunch at Gita Jayabalan’s beautiful home. And lastly, learn about Vasthu Shastra, often referred to as ‘Indian Feng Shui’. We have decided not to have any planned events in July as so many members will be on vacation. However, two events you should check out are the Rainforest Music Festival in Sarawak – definitely worth a trip to East Malaysia – and here in KL, the first ever KL Literary Festival will be held end July. For information on this event, contact Silverfish Books. I hope to see you at our June events or if you are leaving KL for vacation, have a safe journey and a quick return.
- Cindy Zeier PROGRAMME OF EVENTS
REPORTS FROM PREVIOUS EVENTS
THE ALLURE OF BOUND FOOT —18 March
We bring you two reports on this MCG event. The first is a detailed account from Karin Dixon and the next a shorter, more personal view from Kris Ang. The Muzium Negara was the venue for a talk by Susanna Goho-Quek about her exhibition of beautifully handmade and embroidered shoes worn by Chinese women who practised the custom of foot binding. Susanna gave a very interesting recount of a few of the stories she’d heard from her own grandmother and other women she had met in China with bound feet, who are now in their 90’s. Susanna explained to me that the purpose of the exhibition was to focus on the ‘nicer’ side and advantages of this custom, rather than portray it as being solely barbaric.
Of all the legends, the story of the last Emperor of the Tang Dynasty, who was besotted with one of his concubines, is thought to be the most credible. The Emperor built a stage in the shape of a lotus flower for this particularly gifted dancer to perform on and made her bind her feet in white silk so that the big toes curved upwards. This gave the illusion of crescent moons and as she danced she looked like a whirling cloud rising above the water. From then on tiny feet became considered an essential mark of beauty and were desired as a pre-requisite to marriage. Other women, initially in royal and wealthy families began to copy this idea in an attempt to attract the attention of the Emperor and men of the court. Soon the custom became popular in lower ranking families in an attempt to improve their position in society. A woman’s shoes became a potent symbol of her sexuality, which men found erotic and regarded as objects that could arouse great desire. The women became respected as they were thought to be well disciplined, refined and submissive. Men selected women for marriage according to the size of their shoes, the design and type of stitching embroidered on them. The main characteristic of the perfectly bound foot was the length of three inches or less which would earn the woman the title of ‘Golden Lotus’. It became very important for women to bind their feet in order to improve their position in society and enable them to marry into a good family. These women enjoyed the finer things in life such as being taught to read and write and play musical instruments. They were admired, revered and pampered, having servants to look after their every need. Not only did they attend to their binding but also carried out the cooking, cleaning and other daily tasks. Susanna explained that despite the binding many of these women had no problem walking around or even running and for those who experienced problems, there were servants who acted as walking sticks to lean on or carried them on their backs. The parents were also praised on how well they’d brought up their daughter, the family becoming well respected and achieving a good standing in society. However we cannot ignore how painful this disfiguring process must have been for a young child of five, who perhaps failed to understand the eventual benefits. Research has revealed that the bandages were soaked in many different mixtures and pieces of porcelain were bound onto the skin in order to break it down. Unfortunately some girls suffered horrendous infections, which led to gangrene and in some cases death. At the end of the 19th Century views began to change as it was thought that foot binding weakened women and any children they produced. In 1911 the custom was outlawed and eventually petered out. Of all the women Susanna has interviewed half regretted binding their feet and half did not, although in reality none of them had any choice in the matter. The exhibition was well designed and very informative. Susanna is very passionate about her collection and this was reflected in the presentation of her talk. For anyone who would like to read more on this subject, I would recommend reading Susanna’s beautifully illustrated book, entitled ‘The Allure of the Bound Foot’.
SUSANNA Goho-Quek did a great presentation of the history behind Chinese bound feet and the exhibition pieces are definitely the most rare and extensive that I have ever seen. I realised how little I knew about bound feet even though I grew up with my grandmother who has them. As the talk progressed I began to miss my grandmother even more.Her feet are not as distorted as the ones shown on National Geographic. However, they do have the hump on each foot and they definitely look the size of an eight-year-old’s. My grandmother is about 96 years old and lives in Singapore.Similar to the women Susanna talked to during her research my grandmother also does not regret that her feet were bound.Her only complaint is that they are not as small as they should be because of her truancy. She used to untie her feet at night when her parents were asleep. Nonetheless, she enjoys telling me stories of how much people of that time believed in having bound feet for the girls. Anyone with big feet was considered ugly and would not be able to get a husband. Susanna was so interested in getting to know my grandmother that we are arranging to interview her soon.I am truly glad that I attended this talk. The best part is I have arranged to return to Singapore to visit my grandmother next week!
Thanks for holding such an interesting and meaningful event.
DISCOVERING MALAY TEXTILES — 31 March
The Jalan Conlay Craft Complex is well known to many residents and visitors to KL, and so it was no surprise that the visit to the museum and talk on Malay textiles drew an enthusiastic crowd of MCG members. We were shown around a recently redesigned and refurbished area within the complex by Zurina binti Anuar, the promoter for the Complex. The new layout contains room settings and displays Malaysian arts and crafts in a way most likely to appeal to customers from Malaysia and visitors from overseas. The Malaysian Development Corporation works with local craftsman and women, and suggests new ideas. Designers then adapt traditional techniques and materials to produce goods for an international clientele. The room settings are varied and imaginative, using different colour schemes and styles to show how locally crafted items can be used or displayed in the home. On display were some beautiful fabrics – batik, songket and ikat – used in different forms: wall hangings, table runners, cushions, even curtains, and baskets, boxes and vases woven from bamboo and rattan. We then moved outside for a demonstration of hand-drawn batik by the resident artist, Latik, and some of us tried our hand with the canting and dye brush, with mixed results! We saw how block-printed batik is produced, and I was impressed by the accuracy of the pattern produced – it needs a steadier hand than mine! We left the heat of the outdoor workshops and the warm smell of the molten wax for the welcome airconditioning of the museum for a tour of the textile exhibition. Although there was no textile expert on hand, our guide Roziah was happy to answer our questions. The most widely recognised Malay textile is batik. It was explained to us that it was only in the 1950’s and 60’s that the distinctive hand-drawn batik of Malaysia was developed, originally by the wives of the fishermen of the East coast in order to supplement the family income. It is still largely a cottage industry. The word ‘batik’ comes from the Javanese word amba and the Malay word titik, and literally means ‘to draw dots’. As a technique, batik has been around for centuries, and has been practised in cultures as far apart as Peru, Egypt and India. Malaysian hand-drawn batik uses a mixture of wax and resin melted together. Motifs, usually stylised forms of flowers, insects and other natural forms, are then applied with a canting, a small copper vessel with a fine spout. The wax acts as a resist to block the absorption of dyes applied to create the rest of the design, so it is important to keep a continuous line between areas of different colour, otherwise the dyes will bleed through and blend together. With block-printed batik, wooden blocks were originally used, but today copper blocks are almost universal. The patterned blocks are dipped into molten wax and applied to the fabric, which is then dyed the lightest colour in the design. The dye is then fixed, areas of that colour are then waxed, a deeper shade of dye applied, and the process repeated until the piece is finished and the wax removed. For a multicoloured piece, this process can take several days. A series of dioramas show the processes involved in batik and songket production, as well as how the kain pua – ikat cloth – of the Iban people of Sarawak is prepared and woven. It is interesting to see how the two processes differ from each other. With ikat fabric, the colour is applied to the warp threads (the threads travelling along the length of the fabric) using a system of tying twine around sections of the threads to block absorption of dye. The fabric is then woven on a simple backstrap loom, giving a narrow finished piece of cloth. With songket weaving, however, a traditional floor loom is used to weave a fine piece of cloth, often in silk thread, but the pattern is carried in supplementary weft threads (threads travelling across the fabric). The weaver has to be incredibly dextrous, picking out individual warp threads and weaving the metallic thread in and out of the threads used for the background fabric. Several styles of embroidery are on display; tekatan embroidery, metallic thread worked on velvet in lovely rich shades, was traditionally used in the palace at Kuala Kangsar, but now more widely seen, and metal thread embroidery on wedding shawls – now very rarely seen, but very beautiful. All too soon, our time at the museum ran out, but I felt that we gained an insight into what is a fascinating and varied tradition of craftsmanship in Malaysia.
ISLAMIC CALLIGRAPHY 101 — 07 April The topic of the lecture for April was “Glory through Calligraphy” by Dr. Heba Barakat. She is an expert in this field with a degree in Islamic Art and Architecture from Cairo University and a degree in History of Architecture from the University of Ankara, Turkey. She received her PhD in Persian miniature paintings at Moscow University. Heba has worked in this field for over 20 years and is responsible for the recent exhibition, Al Kalima, at the Islamic Art Museum. She gave a lot of information – introducing us step by step to the beautiful art of Arabic Calligraphy. To begin, she spoke briefly about the Arabic script and the various alphabets. The Arabic script finds its origin in the Aramaic Nabatean Alphabet. The relationship between the round letters and the early Arabic script can easily be detected. Their similarities are not merely visual; both the Nabatean and the Arabic languages stress on the use of consonants rather than vowels and both are written from right to left and have no capital letters. Arabic script is the second most widely used script in the world after the Latin script. With the spread of Islam, the Arabic alphabet was adopted by several non-Arab nations for writing their own languages. In Iran the Arabic letters were used to write Farsi. The Ottoman Turks used the Arabic alphabet until 1929. Even the Malay language was written in the Arabic script before being replaced by the Latin script, under the influence from the Dutch and the British. “Calligraphy is not just writing. It is the art of writing,” she said. We next learned about the development of calligraphy in the Arabic script and its importance in the Islamic world. The script of the holy Quran is in Arabic and as Islam spread around the world, so did Arabic calligraphy. What is interesting though, is that Arabic calligraphy did not follow a linear movement. It developed in different styles in different parts of the world. It is a relationship between vertical and horizontal lines, angles and curves, or proportional measurements between letters. In general the various styles fit into two broad categories with some minor variations. They are the Kufic style and the Naskh style. If the letters are angular, cubic, rigid, then we are approaching the Kufic style. If the letters are free flowing, rhythmic and curving, then we categorise them as being in the Naskh style. After the lecture, we visited the new exhibition which shows the exquisite works of Iranian calligraphers.
Since I had listened to her explain the differences between the various styles of calligraphy, I was able to recognise the various styles used by them in their work. The Kufic style or the Naskh style of writing – it all began to make sense!
EXPLORERS VISIT THE FEDERAL TERRITORY MOSQUE — 12 April I always seem to drive past the mosque on Jalan Duta thinking that I must go there sometime but never finding the opportunity. So, when my anti religion, anti-culture, anti-art, etc, 15-year-old son visited with school and then arrived home to shock me with the news that the mosque was “awesome and fantastic”, I decided it must be worth a visit! The Internet provided little information other than who the architects were. Eventually I was given a number of a guide who would take the group round. The state mosque, known as the ‘mosque in the garden’ is situated on a raised area surrounded by a large moat, 33 acres in total. Building commenced in March 1996 and was completed on 1 September 2000, funded by the government and run by the Islamic department, costing RM 225 million to build.
First, we were shown round the Islamic school. There is a pre-school for five and six year olds and the main school is for seven to 12-year-olds. The children attend Islamic school for two hours daily as well as the usual day school. It is voluntary, with classes of between 20-35 pupils. The curriculum is set by the Islamic department and teaches children how to pray, how to take their ablutions, moral education and Arabic for reading the Quran. The classrooms are bright with colourful teaching aids on the walls. Other facilities include men’s and ladies’ dormitories, nine units for ladies and 19 for men. These provide accommodation for visitors who may find it difficult with transport or in funding a place to stay. The multi-purpose hall holds 1,200 people and is used for Islamic forums, conferences and exhibitions. The dining hall caters for 750 at weddings and social occasions. A large library is available for Islamic research. There is a beautiful VIP room, with luxurious soft furnishings and Islamic art features, this being reserved for the King, visitors from overseas and VIP explorers! Separate greeting areas are for ladies and men. A separate conference room is available for press reporting. The local architects visited mosques all over the world before designing this one. Built by a mainly Malaysian workforce it combines traditional design and craft but is also hi-tech. It boasts a number of firsts: the first mosque in Malaysia with air-con (RM12,000 per month); first with a reversible escalator, adapted for bare feet and is also the second mosque with a central chandelier with no bulbs. A lift makes the 95 metres journey up the minaret easier! We were allowed a peak into the men’s prayer hall. The wonderful chandelier, weighing 2.1 tonnes and supported by three cables, works with lenses and blister glass, attracting light into the centre so that the prisms refract the light to the whole prayer area. At night spotlights do the job of sunlight. Lighting also highlights the design in the ceiling at night, the lighting controlled to react to the available light. The sound system is also hi-tech with cameras detecting where people are to only play to that area, the first in the world in a mosque.
The lines produced by the prayer mats inside are continued in the marble outside so that if the hall is very busy worshipers know where to stand. Stone carvings with inlaid malachite and mother-of-pearl were done in India following the style of the Taj Mahal, by the descendants of the original stonemasons. Seven specialists came to do the final touches when the assembly was done. The calligraphy is carved in Egyptian plaster by Iranian workers, with gold leaf. Local plants feature on the beautiful hardwood doors, screens etc. Thirty traditional carpenters from Trengganu and Kelantan did the carvings, taking approximately one month to do one door. Likewise the cut glass of the windows has similar stunning flower designs. Lastly, we were allowed a look into the women’s prayer hall, which was deceptively large, situated at the back of the prayer hall behind screens so that the men cannot see the ladies praying. A wall-to-wall carpet from India with orchids in the design was a replacement as the previous one was considered too hard for the ladies to kneel on. This concluded our visit. I hope the group enjoyed it. I thought it was a good insight into how a mosque is also a community centre. It is a spectacular building and so interesting to hear about how it was designed and built. On the face it is a very traditional building in design but we know now how various features and technology make it a very modern and comfortable place. I would recommend a visit!
ISLAMIC ARCHITECTURE - THE ART OF THE MOSQUE — 13 April
We were indeed fortunate to once again have Dr Heba Barakat as our guide through the Architecture Gallery at the Islamic Museum. The Gallery displays exquisite models of some of the greatest monuments in Islam – the mosque. The mosque occupies the heart of Muslim life and is used not only to glorify Allah, but as a haven where followers come to discuss their daily life and meet others in the community. It may contain a madrasah or school, possibly a court of law. The first mosque was the Prophet Muhammed’s humble home, but it quickly developed into a complex building complete with a number of functional requirements and decorative elements. There are several standards that are typical in any mosque: the space must be clean, it may be open or sheltered, depending on its location; the qibla, or direction of the Kaaba, must be indicated, so all followers will know which way to pray; and a niche or mihrab that is used to focus the followers’ attention. This is located next to the minbar or high pulpit used for Friday prayers. The minaret is used to call the faithful to prayer. The height was originally determined by how far the call should be heard. Now amplifiers serve them well! Shapes of minarets varied regionally, reflecting local taste and customs. Square ones evolved in Syria, spiral dominated the Persian mosques, but most common was the cylindrical shape. Domes are also a common feature. The earliest examples were very small, but with time they became larger in size and in number. This can be seen at the Hanum Aya Sofia in Edirne, Turkey, which was built by master architect Sinan in the 16th century. Onion domes developed during the Mughal period, with the Taj Mahal being the most beautiful example. Courtyards always held a fountain used for ablution before praying. They were generally open to the elements, but often had covered arcades to provide shelter. Various styles of arches were also used throughout, especially in the arcades. The desire to beautify the mosque also encouraged the production of the beautiful tiles that are evident on mosques the world over. Calligraphy also developed as an artform and often used to adorn mosques. This is but a small part of what we learned and I would like to encourage you to visit the IAMM and see these small wonders for yourself.
TRUE FREEDOM - WOMEN FREEDOM FIGHTERS — 20 April On the day that the people of the most populous democracy in the world went to the polls, it was indeed timely that members of the MCG gathered to view a documentary covering a significant and turbulent period in the formation of that democracy. Sagari Chhabra, the film-maker, described “Asli Azaadi” (True Freedom) as a “film made from the heart”, a tribute and salute to the many people, but particularly women, who had contributed to the struggle for freedom and independence from British colonial rule in India. As she so expressively summed up in the film, “for my tomorrow, you gave your today, can we ever hope to repay.” This central thread continued throughout the film, as we were introduced to many of the surviving women freedom fighters. From their personal accounts, we gained first-hand knowledge of various aspects of the freedom struggle, and were privileged to see historical events brought alive through their eyes. We heard first from members of the Indian National Army, organised and later led by Subhas Chandra Bose (also known as Netaji) during World War II, to fight for independence from British rule. He recruited Indians based in Singapore, Malaya, Burma and Thailand for his force, and felt strongly that a women’s regiment should be an integral part in the fight for freedom. Almost 1,500 volunteers were raised for what became known as the Rani Thansi regiment, the first all-women’s military wing in the world. Defend until the last man and the last bullet” was Netaji’s evocation to his troops. Stories related by surviving members of this regiment spoke of their courage and tenacity through battle, bombing raids and interrogations. Members of the Rani Thansi regiment felt such strength of spirit, loyalty and passion that when eventually instructed to disband by Netaji, a petition of blood was produced, such was their determination to stay and fight. The INA was ultimately dissolved, many of its members put on trial and imprisoned, but it had succeeded, in no small way, in shaking the morale of the Indian Empire. By contrast, the film also covered the independence movement led by Mahatma Ghandi, with his strategy of “satyagraha”, described in his own words as “the vindication of truth not by infliction of suffering on the opponents but on one’s self”. “If it is to be blood that is shed, let it be our own”. We heard personal accounts from women involved in his non-violent mass civil disobedience campaigns including the boycott of foreign cloth and the famous anti-Salt law marches. One interviewee describes being hit by a cane so hard that she was unable to raise her arm for several days afterwards, and gives an eyewitness account of the shooting of a fellow demonstrator who refused to back down. Many of these women relived experiences of being imprisoned, one when pregnant, others when no more than children. Another inspirational account described how the imprisoned women built a ladder of mattresses (which took two hours) to then raise the flag of India from the top of the prison walls. Defying the soldiers instructed to shoot at them, they sang of how they were the women of India and would sacrifice their homes and families for the love of their country. The soldiers could not bring it upon themselves to shoot. The film went on to recount the sacrifices and courageous initiatives of women through other significant events in this period of history, such as the Bengal famine, Bombay mutiny, eventual Independence followed by the sting of Partition, in which women invariably bore the brunt of abuse. And so to the present day, where the women’s movement in contemporary India continues to strive for improvements in the lives of Indian women – “women were equal partners in the struggle for freedom, so should be equal partners in the fruits of development”. Although the interviewees of “Asli Azaadi” are now all in their 80s and 90s, a strong sense of their conviction, bravery, feistiness and resilience still shone clearly. The documentary was a moving and informative account of a period of history, not often seen from the perspective of women who were directly involved. Sagari Chhabra continues in her quest to seek these remarkable women and to document and celebrate their contribution.
MCG NEWS BOOK CLUB REPORTSNo report from Chapter 1 this issue.
Kalpana Swaminathan is a surgeon and a writer. Most of her previous books have been for children. She shares the pseudonym Kalpish Ratna with Ishrat Syed, and their writings on science, the arts and literature appear in several publications. Kalpana lives in Bombay. Ambrosia for Afters is an imaginative look into the double life of 15-year-old Tenral during her last year at St. Agnes School for girls in Bandra, Bombay. Her real life is boring to her, “a skin of milk life, easy and forgiving like five o’clock sunshine”, so she regularly escapes into an adolescent fantasy world. Along with Tenral, we find the adult life around her conceals some very seamy adult problems. In our discussion, we found out that girls attending convent schools in the 1970’s led very sheltered lives. This leads to the naïve debates between Tenral and her friends about Romance that have them fashioning fantastic and amusing stories about their teacher, Mrs Alfie. Their tales about her dead lover, Mr Alfie, range from men lost at sea to cousins asking for special dispensation for marriage from the Pope. What else but naïveté could explain the belief that seeing Mrs Alfie in the throes of an epileptic fit is the Devil copulating with her? As Kalpana is an Indian writer, there are many local references that do not make sense to a Westerner. Rajesh Khanna, Linda Goodman forecasts, and phrases such as “[She looked] as healthy as a festive cow on a pongal card” were graciously explained by Depali Sud. We had fun learning that Rajesh Khanna was a huge movie star and that Bandra was a good, middle class section of Bombay. We could still understand the book, but understanding everything would have made reading the book easier. One of the devices used to tie Tenral’s two worlds together was inserting Tenral’s versions of fairy tales. Some in our group found them to be clever and amusing at times. ‘Red Riding Hood’ alludes to the sexual abuse of a schoolgirl. Like Tenral, the Frog who would go a-wooing does not know that when you seek a double life there are rules that must be followed – “There are rules for water, rules for land. If I don’t mix the two, things seldom get out of hand.” We also enjoyed Kalpana’s descriptive use of language and thoughtful phrases throughout the book: “She made her voice heavy as batter, slapping the words against each other with fatal predictability.” Tables lurk, young teachers are “desperately nubile” and a tired voice “sagged like old elastic.” We thoroughly enjoyed the book and recommend it. It’s up to you to discover if Tenral comes out of her fantasy at the end, for there is always ambrosia for afters.
LIBRARY REPORT After many happy years at Renata’s residence (thanks Renata!) the MCG library will be moving in the second week of June, to 15 Jalan Langgak Golf, 55000 KL. Please see map. New (trial) Library Hours:
See you at the library!
BOOKING POLICY FOR EVENTS Reservations Wait List Vouchers Cancellations Refunds Eligibility Event Participation
Your co-operation with the Booking Policy would be much appreciated by the Events Planning Team.
PLEASE NOTE that the information in this website has been gathered informally within the group and reproduced privately for members' enjoyment only. There may be inaccuracies and these publications are not designed for commercial use. Anyone intending to make formal or outside use of MCG material is requested to contact the President
| Events
| Newsletter
| Book Club
| Library
| Explorers Group
| ©Malaysian Culture Group, 2004.
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Archaeological evidence has established that the custom was practised during the 13th century, other sources suggest it may have begun long before this.
It is built to accommodate up to 22,000 people. The main prayer hall holds up to 15,000, the ladies’ prayer hall up to 2,000 and the outside courtyard the remainder. Approximately 12,000 visit at Hari Raya, although the parking is for a mere 1,000 cars. The mosque has attractive gardens surrounding the stunning building, which has 22 beautifully decorated domes.
The granite is from Johor Bahru and the marble from Langkawi. The mosque is symmetrical with two waterfalls and a moat, water being a feature to help calm and prepare for prayer.
