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A sad yet heartwarming video of a 20-year-old Indian woman who had apparently just given birth and took shelter in a surau has gone viral on social media.
In the TikTok video posted by user @shownbotak, committee members of Surau Madrasatul Huda in Alor Setar, Kedah, had looked after the woman and her newborn baby.
The surau became a safe place of respite and recovery while she took care of her infant child.
She turned up at the surau secretary’s doorstep looking anxious and afraid
According to a report by Harian Metro, the woman pleaded “I’m scared, please don’t chase me away”, when she was found in a state of anxiety and confusion behind the Surau Madrasatul Huda secretary’s home.
Shamsul Anuar Aziz, the owner of the TikTok account that posted the viral video, described the encounter as a moment of self-realisation about the real meaning of humanity, regardless of background, race, or religion.
He recounted the chance meeting, which happened last Saturday night (24 May) around 8.35pm. Shamsul said he had just completed his Maghrib prayer and sat outside the surau for a while until he saw the woman carrying her baby, walking by the surau slowly.
“The way she walked, the way she looked.. she appeared to be afraid, like someone who is in trouble. Her baby was wrapped in a yellow towel and she was carrying a plastic bag,” he said.
Telling the story further, Shamsul said he also received a call from his cousin who lives just behind his house. His cousin informed him of a woman with a baby hiding in the dark nearby.
“I went to see, bringing two or three congregation members from the surau. When I saw her, she was crouched and hiding behind a car. The area was really dark. When I called out to her, she seemed like she wanted to run away.
“At the time she spoke softly, ‘please don’t chase me away’. I was on the verge of tears,” he said.
The single mother was in financial trouble and feared for her safety
Shamsul managed to persuade her to go to the surau with him to provide a safe and calm environment. However, he shared that the woman did not speak much and assumed that it was probably because she was scared and traumatised.
“I said I’m not chasing you away. I want to help. She finally followed me to the surau. We gave her a place to sit and asked what happened to her,” he explained.
After a while, she opened up to Shamsul and told her story.
It turns out, she had been staying at a friend’s house nearby who also has a family of their own but have been having financial troubles. To make things worse, her husband is currently serving a jail sentence.
She told Shamsul that she ran away from her friend’s house because she didn’t feel safe there. She had no money and no place to go, while her child was only wrapped in a towel with no fresh diapers.
The surau committee members took care of her and bought her a train ticket
Empathising with the woman’s plight, Shamsul and a few of the surau members went to buy milk and disposable diapers for the baby, as well as provide a temporary shelter for them at the surau.
The woman then told Shamsul that she has a brother in Penang, who he helped her get in touch with.
Together, the surau members bought her a train ticket to Penang that same night and ensured that she and her child got on the train safely.
“This is the first time something like this has happened at our surau. We were just grateful that we were given the opportunity to help her. Doesn’t matter what race or religion, what’s important is that she and her baby are safe,” he said.
@shownbotak Kita kan Satu Malaysia Bantuan kami kepada ibu dan baby.. Moga mereka sihat selalu #fypシ゚ ♬ original sound – Aki Seruling – AKI Seruling
Netizens shared approving comments, some even offered to make sure she arrived safely in Penang
In the comments section, other TikTok users who saw the video left positive comments, thanking the surau committee members who helped the woman.
A few users who are based in Penang even offered to help the mother continue her journey back to her brother safely after she reaches Penang.
The incident and comments prove that Malaysia is full of people who help one another while putting race, religion, and background aside.
Shamsul and the Surau Madrasatul Huda congregation as well as its committee members are fine examples of compassion and harmony within a multiracial society such as ours.
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