DDENGO

Ddengo is Terengganuspeak for attending and listening to religious talks. The root is dengo which means listen or hear.
Last night, the surau in my apartment complex held a ceramah ugama right after maghrib prayers. The surau committee, headed by Ir. Latiff organised these ceramah periodically. As with the previous ceramah, only a handful of people attended. I counted 10 men and a slightly bigger number of women in the surau last night. It was disappointing. Those who did not turn up missed an insightful talk by Ustaz Khairuddin from Mesjid Abu Bakar Al-Siddiq, Bangsar on tassauf.
In old Kuala Terengganu, I was encouraged to stay back after isya to ddengo talks by Haji Wan Hassan and others at Mesjid Putih. These talks enhanced your knowledge and understanding of the religion. I was at a loss why the ceramah at our surau was not well attended despite the publicity given.

There are more than 1000 muslims in the 6 blocks of apartment. All, I would say, have functioning ears. Why then wouldn't they come to ddengo?
I skipped the jamuan ringan after isya and hurried home to a late dinner. As I was having my coffee, I speculated on the reasons of the always poor turnout:
a) People are not interested in religious talk
b) People are already well versed in religious matter, therefore not interested in any more talk
c) People just could not be bothered
d) All the above

The setback would not deter the Surau Committee from organizing more ceramah. They do their job no matter what. They have the will, the heart and the time to make our surau active. I just hope that the rest of the residents appreciate their effort and lend their support.
The least they can do is lend their ears for the next ceramah.