Duit raya is the tradition of giving money in envelopes, also known as sampul raya, during Hari Raya Aidilfitri as a symbol of blessing and love.
It’s what everyone, especially young people, look forward to after a month of fasting.
Even today, young people can be seen huddling in corners once they have received their money packets, whispering to each other while slipping open the sampul to reveal who received the most.
This shows that the tradition of receiving duit raya is still very much cherished among youths today.
Imran Mikhail Mohd Nur Azharin, 18, typically receives around RM300 to RM400 every year during Hari Raya Aidilfitri.
"A big chunk of this money is from my parents," he states.
On the other hand, Farell Iman Fariq receives a varying amount each year as it is dependent on how many open houses he manages to attend for that year’s festive celebrations.
"I would put the estimate at between RM1,000 to RM3,000. But however much I receive, I’m still grateful for it," the 18-year-old says.
Valerie Lim, 18, echoes the same gratitude.
"If I were to add everything up, I would usually get around RM200. Once in a while I will get an additional RM50 from my grandparents," she says.
"It’s not much but it does mean a lot to me."
Saving or spending?
Receiving a generous amount of duit raya can no doubt cause a lot of excitement among young people.
Many may have the desire to spend all the money. After all, it is considered a treat for them after going through the month of Ramadan.
But it is also evident that a lot of young people today still prefer to save a good amount of their duit raya for the future.
Imran Mikhail says he keeps all the sampul raya he receives in one envelope and leaves it unopened until the end of Raya festivities.
He then puts half of the amount he gets into his savings.
"I will only open the packet to see how much I get when the festive season has wrapped up. This way, it ends up being a surprise for me."
He also mentions how dangerous his prior habit of putting all the Raya money he received straight into his wallet was, as he would end up spending all of it in a short period of time.
"In recent years, I’ve decided to start saving up more money. Now, I take around half of the amount of money I receive every year and give it to my parents to be transferred into my savings account."
Similarly, Lim also leaves her Raya packets untouched and only counts the total received when the celebrations are over.
"I will wait until I accumulate a decent amount of money packets before I sum up the total – it feels more fulfilling in a way."
Unfortunately, Lim is not immune to splurging her money sometimes.
"I would try to save most of it but unfortunately, I’m a shopaholic so I end up spending about 60% of my duit raya while the other 40% goes into my savings," she explains.
Another person who shares a similar “half-and-half” rule is Farell Iman.
"Every year, I would save half of the money and spend the other half for myself," he shares.
"However, this year I intend to spend slightly more as I will be travelling."
Meanwhile, Eryna Batrisyia Mat Rohime – who looks forward to visiting more family and friends this year as she has graduated from secondary school and has more time – shares that she sometimes struggles between wanting to treat herself to nice things and wanting to be frugal and save up.
"I will usually use some of my duit raya to buy all the things I’ve been wanting," she says.
"I’m trying to practise having my own savings and spending my money wisely instead of spending everything all at once."
