If you, like me, was born in the eighties, than a trip to the shopping mall as a kid must have seemed a surreal experience, a blast to the senses. The cool air-con breeze that greeted you as you walked through the automatic sliding doors, the shiny floors and bright lights, the smell of French fries and ice cream, the array of food, clothes and entertainment on offer.
Growing up, I loved going to the mall, not only because it meant I could spend my ‘hard-earned’ Hari Raya collection money on a new toy or a book (I did read occasionally), but also because it was my own personal escape, my urban getaway when the stresses of primary school got to me. Spend a few dollars here, a buck there. I guess you could say I invented retail therapy. Of course I always got a earful from my parents for it. But it was worth it.
I only bring this up because I’ve noticed how quickly shopping malls have mushroomed all over our tiny island. According to Wikipedia, the figure stands at 83. Incidentally, that’s 13 more than the number of mosques in Singapore, but that’s another story for another time. A decade ago you had to take a bus or the train to get to the mall, which was usually, located somewhere central like Orchard or Bugis. Now, almost every neighbourhood has at least one.
To the naked eye, this rise in the number of shopping malls, some within walking distance from our homes, bodes well for you and me. Mom too busy at work to cook today? A quick trip to that new classy eatery will fix that. Kids bored at home with nothing to do? Forget TV, let’s head to the movies. However, the social ills coupled with our country’s new pastime, if anybody cares enough to look, are scary.
For families, the shopping mall has become a sanctuary. In this era of dual-income families, parents now merge paying their bills, shopping for groceries and having meals all into one fun-filled weekend at the mall. On the surface, this practice may appear to bring the family closer. It may even do, but the often unfortunate by-product of spending family time amidst huge retail chains and flashy advertising?
For starters, children begin associating shopping with happiness at an early age. Eavesdrop if you must on any conversation between children to prove this. Gone are days when kids used to talk about superheroes, hobbies or cartoons. Kids these days compare mobile phones and handheld gaming consoles. Ever seen a boy without a PSP? I haven’t.
Granted, this materialistic trend among the younglings may be the result of too much television or too little parental control. But I’m tempted to think the prevalence of these shopping malls has something to do with it. Brands have become accessible, now more than ever. Kids have become more brand-conscious. It’s simple really. What you can’t see, you won’t want to buy. Kids these days see everything.
The mall has also become the hangout of choice for teenagers, ambling aimlessly from one shop to the next. Where once videogame arcades banned the entry of students in uniform, today’s corporate businesses welcome them with open arms, offering discounts on two indulgences no teenager can do without: movies and fast food. Ironically, many libraries today are situated near shopping malls (some even within them!), ensuring that no effort is spared in reaching out for the teenage dollar.
What is even more worrying is that many parents, yes I’m sorry to blame them, appear nonchalant at their children’s emotional attachment to the mall and all things material. In fact, many encourage such behaviour, offering money and other incentives in exchange for good grades and self-discipline. Modern mothers have taken to dressing up their little tots in fashionable clothes, complete with sunglasses and dyed hair. What role that of modern fathers? To keep making money for his wife and kids, and to keep quiet while he’s at it.
How does the Muslim family living in 21st century Singapore attempt to rectify this phenomenon? Assuming they want real changes, parents would have to plan events away from the clutches of commercialism and consumerism. Nature reserves, museums and libraries (preferably those far from malls) provide ample respite to the stresses of modern life. Paint, read, exercise, swim, learn about history, trek or join an archery course.
Parents also need to start educating their children on how to manage money. They have to stand firm when their children ask for something unnecessary and they should never keep quiet seeing their children fritter away their savings. The idea that you can motivate your child by engaging the shopaholic within him has never worked and never will. Instead, parents need to show through real-life actions that a simple, frugal life like the one our Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) lived is possible and commendable.
Furthermore, the quest for knowledge, so eloquently expounded by the Prophet (pbuh) when he said, “Seek knowledge from the cradle to the grave” should not be equated as a means of gaining greater material wealth. It should be seen as a means to help others, to level the playing field between rich and poor and to create a more harmonious and just society. Unfortunately, this concept is lost on many educators and parents today.
Ultimately, the role of the shopping mall needs to be minimized before more damage is done. It has become too important, too central to our daily lives that the lifestyle it sells, namely that you need (insert long list of products here) to be happy is gladly accepted by the masses, Muslims included.
Grow a spine. Read a book. Throw away your television. Look at photos of your family and loved ones. Pray. And ask yourself what’s really important.
Written by:
Shahnawaz Abdul Hamid
[email protected]
The writer is currently “studying” mechanical engineering at a university, and hopes to one day hang his degree from the wall of his very own sarabat stall. He often is accused of being unambitious, especially when asked on what his dream job is, which he sincerely answers as any job which is a 20-minute bicycle ride from his home in Sengkang. He sometimes cracks his recently-shaved bald head wondering why getting married in Singapore has to be such a costly affair, why doing a hundred – albeit meaningless – things a day is now a national pastime, why sleeping before 10 is considered early. He is a big fan of Magiclean wipers, cheese prata and sunsets.
If you would like to join us as a writer or have enquiries on Thalatha Scoop, send your questions or articles to [email protected].
Salaam,
I totally agree with the writer’s view . And I am proud that he is mindful of such ‘distractions’ at his age. His parents has brought him up really well, Alhamdulillah.
I wish to add that ultimately, it is the parents’ role to ensure that their children engages in other positive ‘distractions’. The importance of parents as role models cannot be over emphasised. We must take the first step! (and I am reminding myself here)
Dr James Dobson, a licensed psychologist in the state of California and a licensed marriage, family and child counselor , shared that one of the most effective ways to distract teens from such meaningless activities is to ensure that they are given opportunities to master sports or any other talents so that these activities and the feeling of self-worth that they attain as a result of such engagements may keep them away from this urban phenomena.It will also help them tide over the storm during the ‘notorious’ teenage years. Don’t forget, though, that these skills do not necessarily involve activities of fun or academic nature. It may be even enrolling them in a Tahfiz programme or other Islamic Programmes designed for Youths organised by the various Muslim Organisations and Masjids.
Even then, the risk that they stray is real. At least, with all these efforts that we have put in, we can rest assured that they will come back to the right path eventually, InsyaAllah. Till then, we simply cannot rest on our laurels.
Salam,
I find that this writing has much to do about nothing really. One can even argue it smacks hypocrisy and the writer, being an undergraduate, touched an area where he is totally unqualified to make any judgement – which is parenthood. Let me explain further.
Much Ado About Nothing – Where is the problem that the writer wants us to see ? Is it the mushrooming of shopping malls all over the island ? The write mentioned ‘A decade ago you had to take a bus or the train to get to the mall, which was usually, located somewhere central like Orchard or Bugis. Now, almost every neighbourhood has at least one’.
Excuse me but is that bad ? Perhaps the writer enjoy taking the bus or train and spent 45 minutes + spending money just to get a good book in town but hey, it’s not a bad thing spending 5 minutes at your local neigbourhood mall getting the same thing you know ! You save time and money and get the same thing!
Still assuming that the problem is with too many shopping malls, the writer mentioned that there are many social ills, if one cared to look hard enough. And he said for starters, children began associating shopping with happiness. But the writer himself was proud to open his writing by saying that he Invented Retail Therapy and that these same shopping centres were his escape from the stresses of primary school ! He further mentioned that though he always got a earful, it was worth it !
Hmmm…so it was ok and worth it for him growing up escaping to the malls but for the kids currently doing the same, it’s a social illness !
Cmon ! Isn’t that hypocrisy !
Let’s pause abit. Again, where is the problem ? After social illness, next, the writer attempted to argue that the cause of materialism is somewhat attributed to these ubiquitious malls. Konon konon, these malls contibuted to the accessibility of branded goods. Of course lah…that’s what malls are supposed to do – provide space for retailers to sell products that consumer wants! What did the writer think these malls do ? Sell things that nobody wants ? The cause of materialism is not due to these malls. They are due to other reasons, within the person himself or herself. For example, kalau orang ada kereta, they may also want a car. Kalau orang ada jam rolex, they may want the same thing or better. But that is a personal attributes. It has got alot to do with upbringing, perspective in life, economic factor of the persons, etc. One can be an unmaterialistic person and still enjoy the convenience of an accessible mall to buy a birthday present !! So, to say that malls is the cause of materialism (when it’s only selling product that is in demand) among our younglings is misleading and way off the mark !
The writer went on to say that ‘The mall has also become the hangout of choice for teenagers, ambling aimlessly from one shop to the next’. Did the writer stopped to think that if he had gone to these mall just to escape the stresses of primary school, these bunch teenagers could be doing the same thing, escaping the stresses of their secondary school ? If the writer can do it, why can’t these teenagers in secondary school ?
Incredibly, the writer went on to blame parents for being nonchalant about this problem. I am a parent and I wish I have more time to rebut the writer’s point on us being poor parents here. But I do have to go for a meeting now. As I attempted to summarize my argument about us parents being lousy, it occured to me that the writer is totaly unqualified on this matter. I mean, he is not a parent, I don’t think he is even married. He needs to go through the challenges of what a marriage brings, how it changed you from a young adult into a person with great responsibilities. There are so many other aspects and responsibilities required that of being a parent and the writer ‘conveniently, myopic-ally and unqualifiedly’ claimed that parents are to blame because we allow our kids to enjoy the mall. Hmm…perhaps the writer should get married, have kids, go through the hustle and bustle of holding on to a job (mind you, holding on to a job now vis a vis in the 80s during his parents’ time are 2 different challenges altogether), pay all the bills and mortgages, managing the complications of family life and many more before he want to comment about parents letting their kids enjoy the malls, PS2, etc.
Since I have to rush, I’ll conclude by saying that I don’t see what’s the problem. Malls are mushrooming because of economic reasons. Malls are being developed because retailers demand them. Retailers demand them because consumers wants to buy products. All these contribute to the economic growth of Spore for these past many years, which the writer ultimately enjoys and benefit from. Don’t blame the malls. They are just stone building, reacting to consumer demands. Don’t blame the parents. We’re doing the best we can in this trying times. Become one and you will understand. If you really want to blame, blame progress. For progress creates better product (think iphone) and services. But you can’t really blame progres can you ?
I mean you are in University chasing progress. So, parents to blame ? Nah, look in the mirror !
I’d blame you – chasing after progress. As a result, everything that you blame here, malls, materialism, developed.
Got to go ! Late already !
Wan
I agreed with sharifah and i salute the writer for having strong pillars of faith .Not many youngsters like him nowadays,diffilcult to come by.His parents have suceeded in bringing up qualities islamic values in him.Its not the matter of quantity malls but the quantity of evil social activities in the malls tat we are worried of.The more malls the greater influences around.The more malls the more our children spend time in the malls.The more malls the less quality time with the family at home.The more malls the more they lack of their sholat,too engross with the games at TIME ZONE.Wake up parents give them the islamic values in our children,if not we will regret the children wil regard the mall as their second home.Audzubillah
Hello.
This is in response to Wan and the writer’s article.
Let’s be objective in our arguments. The point that the writer brought up in his young days may be something just to bring about your interest. However, i do believe that for a fact that he is trying to bring up a more important and undeniable fact.
Now, i see two ways in which we have to address and these two ways will always be in every argument in our daily lives.
1) Malls in Muslim Views.
2) Economic and Social development as a country.
I say these in the best knowledge that I have and I may not be the most qualified person. I believe however i’m debating in the reign of common knowledge to which everyone has a right to argue in the interest for a better cause.
1) In a well known hadith, Rasullullah s.a.w once said that as far as possible to go latest to the market and be the earliest to leave. This was because the market is normally a potential source of gossip and mindless spending. In fact, there’s a specific devil assigned to the market. Now, naturally the market has evolved to be a mall. Essentially, the principles and workings of a market remains the same.
In this light, the eventual increase in numbers do not bear good faith for the community at large. Do remember that Islam is a religion whose end in mind is for the ummah/community.
2) In economic terms, malls are not the best solution to the developing the economy. The country with the most number of malls will definitely provide employment but if you noticed a majority of the brand names are based from abroad. Essentially this means that our incomes will go to a foreign country. Now what would be a better way to develop our country. Well for one, our government has been pushing for technoprenuership, biological sciences, and innovation. These are the things that puts Japan where they are, America at the top and Germany to be renown in their engineering. In this simple argument, malls do not bring the development of the country. For a simple fact, most americans do not have a 30 mins drive to the mall. (Remember that their cities clusters are far from the suburbs and a larger population stays away from city clusters) Yet America has the most number of Nobel Prize Winners.
Although i do not have the research to show that malls inevitably distract our youths, but in general assumption, this distraction is not something that will help us develop our country better.
So let’s push our youths to innovate more. Yes read more books. Discover new things. and i’m sure Wan when you were younger you played with games you innovate yourselves. This innovation is certainly what we need more than ever.
Right.
Lastly, i’ld like to address Wan’s plight as a parent.
Now my dear Wan, I’m grateful that you’re a working parent healthy and supporting your family very well. This bodes well for our community. At the same time, do take note that you’re not the only parent. Yes, the writer is not a parent and he may not understand what a parent goes through. But do understand for a fact, that you’re not the only parent and there are many parents around. Like as with being a student or a sportsman we all strive to be the best. and Life puts you through these challenges so that you’ll be better and stronger. So do strive to uphold your family to be the best that it can be. And do remember, at the end of your life, let it be that you’re able to look back and smile that you did it well and you did it as a muslim.
ah yes about convenience, i sure that sometimes you dont need the things you get at the mall everyday right?
We have the convenience store(mamak store) for that. but yes i do agree. Malls are undeniably convenient.
Best Regards,
Amin.
wan, i agree with you! you made a lot of sense.
maybe we can strike a balance. yes our beloved Nabi saw said we shd spend the least amount of time in malls, but you have to admit malls are quite convenient, with NTUC and u know, shops selling clothes. as for letting off stress in malls.. that’s definitely a big NO, as letting off stress thru spending money doesn’t make sense in my books.
by striking a balance, i mean, maybe we can go to these malls in the afternoon on saturday, then go to masjid for ceramahs after maghrib? sundays are family days, spend together at parks, sports etc.. parents should ensure the balance is there, i think. it’s their responsibility.
i think it doesn’t make sense to blame malls.
Assalamualaikum,
Firstly I wish to thank everybody for having read the article. I feel humbled by the attention it has received and the response it has gathered.
I wrote the article having observed the sudden rise in the number of shopping malls in our country. It’s interesting to note that in the last decade alone, 15 malls have been built. This figure does not include the expansion of many malls in recent years.
Now, I understand the general sentiment that these malls have brought greater convenience to us, i.e. as Wan pointed out there’s no sense in traveling for an hour to town when one can find the same shirt, shoe or book in a mall five minutes from home.
However, if anyone cares to remember, before the rise of the suburban mall, we bought our vegetables from the nyonya sayur, we bought our meat and fish from the nearby wet market and we got that shirt, shoe or book from any of the small-time retailers that dotted the landscape of our neighbourhood. For a peek back into time, visit an old housing estate, say Bedok and observe how residents don’t have to travel anywhere else to get their NECESSITIES.
What I am lamenting is how the use of flashy advertising and marketing tactics have resulted in our youth gravitating towards these malls like bees to honey. What I am lamenting is how the youth of today are more materialistic.
Is there a link between these two phenomena above? Perhaps there is, perhaps there isn’t. What I hope to have made clear in my article is that Muslim parents shouldn’t wait to find out by allowing the impressionable minds of their children to wander aimlessly within the confines of these malls.
What I hope is to see a fall in consumerism among the Muslim community, even if it prolongs economic recession. What I hope is that we realize collectively that we don’t need ten pairs of jeans or a huge TV or that new MP3 player. What I hope is for the number of malls in Singapore to be ENOUGH.
Yes, I am not a parent. So I can’t possibly understand the stresses a parent faces. If I have stepped on any toes (especially those of the mothers and fathers who have read this), I sincerely apologize. This article is only a commentary of what I have seen as a young adult and tutor to primary and secondary school students. It is only my opinion that we do not take this issue I have brought up lightly.
consumerism is driven by media lah
Peace to All,
Nawaz, your laments are noted and you obviously have genuine concerns about it. As your concerns are about the well-being of our community, I can’t help but respect and admire your spirit in this matter.
Obviously, spirit alone is not enough. One should follow up that spirit with actions – for words without actions means nothing. I’m sure this you would agree. But if we are to do action, we must make sure we are doing the right type of action. The wrong action would not solve the original issue and may lead us to being lost further….
In my humble opinion, trying to solve the problems of curbing the materialistic tendencies in our youth, cutting down consumerism within muslim community and to Action it by be-develling the malls is like barking the wrong tree.
What about television ? Most products get advertised thru TV, and not just during advertisements only. These days, even in the TV series, you get loads of product advertisements. You see the cool hero with the latest MP3/4 player. You see the villain with an advanced Lenovo laptop somehow manipulating traffic lights in the streets.
And you also hear cool gadgets on the radio, that latest Courts buy 1-get-1 free LCD TV or that OSIM massage chair.
And then there’s Internet. Practically, everything is sold on the Internet these days. Your ebays, amazons, mocca, etc. Search ‘Ship’ on Yahoo and you have tons of peripherals and services on ships, complete with 3D pictures and all. And try befriending someone from in Facebook or Tagged. Every page you go, there’s a new product being touted, right in cyberspace. Advertisements of products and services are not going to go away. In fact, it’s set to grow into many multi billion dollars industry. So much so that Microsoft tried to buy Yahoo months back just to some piece of this advertising industry. Do we then stop our youths from accessing the Internet ? And of course there’s the good old fashion newspapers – your berita harian, straights times, newpaper, etc. Flip every page and you see adverts for product and services. And the myriad magazines out there, you’re Her World, 8 Days, Manja, etc. You see pages and pages of advertisements.
If your argument is to blame the malls for our community being materialistic and consuming too much, you must then blame TV, Radio, Internet, Newspaper and Magazines. Again, going by your logic, if we are to distance our youth from the malls (which, being a dumb stone, are relatively passive as far as enticing and manipulating our youths), then we must even be more constrictive with TV, Radio, Internet, Newspaper, Magazines. What would become of our youths then ?
No expansion of the minds, won’t understand the latest technology, don’t know the latest developments. Do we want our kids to be like the Talibans ? Don’t know anything else except reciting the Quran and memorising hadiths ? And let foreign powers that be dominate us ?
Frens, I say, these malls, (TV, Radio, Magazines, Internets) are nothing more than just Medium or Channels. Instead of worrying the malls will corrupt our youths, why not change our paradigm and use it to our Advantage instead ? Why not encourage muslims to set up business right in the heart of these shopping centres and then offer tuition classes, computer classes ? Why can’t we setup a Muslim-oriented starbucks or Coffeebean where muslims youth go in, do their homework and come Zuhur or Asar, ada small room or surau for prayers ? I personally think Joo Chiat and Tanjung Katong Complex are brilliant malls for malay/muslims but sadly, a lot of the retailers are owned by Chinese ( I could be wrong ).
Why can’t we open a Malay/Muslim bookstores ala Popular like what they have in Angsana JB call Badan where many religious and secular books and multimedia products can be found. Why not create more such channels so that there will be more muslims who can be confident of producing products such as books and multimedia items because there is now more channels in these malls to sell these products ? And why not allow our youths to go and see the latest iPhone technology, the latest Adidas shoe, the current Rolex design, the newest racing bike, so that they can be encouraged and challenged to come up with something equivalent or better in the future. If the non-muslims can do it, why not us Muslims who have Allah s.w.t grace.
If we continue to see the malls as evil, to me, we go down a backward path. If we see these malls as a wonderful medium or channel where we ought to take advantage of, we progressed as a community. More shops means more business for our community, more products and services for our community. Our kids see so many of their elders making it in business and hopefully that will inspire them into enter business after school. The malls as a channel for our kids to learn the latest products and services from the International communities, from the Japanese, Koreans, Germans, etc, and be challenged to come up something better.
We should engage the world, not shun it. We should go forward. Not backwards.
We should change our mindset and view the malls as a channel. The other races are doing it. When will we turn it into an advantage for our community ?
Peace to All, especially Nawaz.
Salams to Nawaz – may Allah reward your attempt to seek the best path for yourself and sharing it with others.
As a mother of three children, I totally agree with your views. The accessibility of malls and their association with happiness is a dangerous tendency that I, as a parent, would certainly want to protect my children from. The malls and their convenience is not the problem – parents spending precious family time and money there is. Certainly the TV and the internet are also dangerous distractions, and deserve parental control in their own right, but that does not detract from the fact that hanging out too much in malls is a serious problem with youths today.
And I respectfully disagree with the writer who believes that we should encourage teens to go and be inspired by the products sold in malls so that we can come up with even better products. Let’s face facts – most teens who go to malls do not think about making money, only about how they can spend it. And even if some actually do as the writer suggests, so long as these business ventures are going to feed people’s materialistic tendencies, and distract Muslims from what is really important in life, there is no difference between such ventures and those owned by non-Muslims. A rose by any other name still has thorns.
I am not against progress, but I refuse to accept the assertion that challenging the status quo means regressing.
Last year, for his social studies project, my ten-year-old had to plan activities for the family for the June holidays which involved hardly any money apart from bus fares and minimal entrance fees. He came up with so many places to visit and things to do in Singapore that it was just mindboggling. And not one of the days involved the cinema or the ubiquitous mall.
It can be done.
As a last word, I don’t think there is any conflict in saying ‘no’ to materialism yet striving to excel in studies. Seeking education is encouraged in Islam, but, as Nawaz so thoughtfully pointed out, our children must be reminded that the intention behind striving for success is to be in a position to serve others meaningfully. And if they earn good money as a result of their education, alhamdulillah – it does not make them hypocrites, only potentially better Muslims, if such money is put to good use, that is.
Parenting is an amanah, a trust; I pray Allah gives us the wisdom and strength to execute it appropriately.
In the name of Allah,
Most Gracious, Most merciful.
Salaamualaikum,
When I first read this article, first thing that came to my mind is "blame the driver, not the car".
When you talk of something that is materialistic, it can be subjective.
it's like a pen, pen can be a bad thing if you don't use it wisely and etc. get my point?
What we should question ourselves is, our purpose of actions and the purpose of the subject that is. in your case, the purpose of shopping mall.
As for me, I go to shopping mall to get stuffs I need that I cant get at the nearby provision shops. and other times, its to unwind and spend time with my family.
other than that it's up to individual how they define what is a shopping mall, what is quality time, family, etc.
parental guidance play a major role in moulding a child's life and future. definitely. so it's up to the parents to teach and the kid to think of purpose and consequences.
other than that, their choices are beyond our control. and it's only upto God to intervene, if God's willing.
God knows best.
May God bestow upon us His Guidance and free our mind from narrow-minded thoughts and acccept possiblities.bestow upon us, His Rezeki in wealth, faith and understanding so to get closer to Him, in Dunya and Hereafter, to help ourselves, our family, community and religion.
Amin.