Sustaining culture in modern times: spiritual beliefs and practices among working women of Malaysia

Abstract

Spiritual beliefs bring comfort, order, and meaning to life in every culture, particularly in challenging times. To gain access to the spiritual beliefs and practices of Malaysia, a uniquely multicultural nation in the throes of rapid development and political change, we interviewed a diversity of Malaysian women about their spiritual beliefs. Using the lens of gender to frame the study, we focused on working women as it was theorized that women’s ways of knowing might provide insight to the challenge of sustaining traditional spiritual values while maintaining careers in the modern world, which often holds more restrictive views on spiritualism. In-depth interviews revealed a common knowledge of the rules of the invisible world, including how to gain access to it, and respect for ancient practices regardless of religion, career, ethnicity, age, or educational level. Most importantly, sharing spiritual beliefs and practices provided a means of sustaining traditional culture in the everchanging flows of Malaysia’s rapid development.

Keywords:

• Sustainability
• Malaysia
• development
• modernity
• spirituality
• working women

Acknowledgements

Thanks to Wilkes University for its generosity in funding this cross-cultural study in a non-traditional research area and for its unwavering support in subsequent replications of this study; to those colleagues in Malaysian institutions who facilitated the study with services and recommendations, especially those at City University, Nottingham University Malaysia, and the Malaysian Ministry of Education; to Hooi Lai Wan of Nottingham University Malaysia for assisting with data collection; to Jacob Hebda, Christine Marchetti, and Karley Stasko for their scholarly input, feedback, and encouragement; and to William Morrison for recruiting participants, interpreting when necessary, offering cultural guidance, and navigating unfamiliar territories with resilience and resourcefulness. Most of all, thank you to the busy women who volunteered their time to share their spiritual stories with us, even though we were strangers, in order to promote cross-cultural understanding.

Ethical statements

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of Wilkes University for ethical procedures and protocols in accordance with NIH standards and was conducted according to the ethical guidelines in accordance with the Malaysian Ministry of Education. The author reports no conflict of interest.

Notes on contributor

Gina Zanolini Morrison, Professor of Global Cultures and Fulbright Program Adviser at Wilkes University, Pennsylvania, teaches global studies, multicultural education and intercultural communication classes. Recipient of Fulbright Specialist Awards to India and Malaysia, she has published on curricular strategies enhancing diversity and on her research involving women of Southeast Asia, particularly Malaysia.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was funded by a faculty development grant from Wilkes University.