Malaysian has a poetic culture. From the time we are young, we memorize our form of poetry called pantuns. These pantuns consist of four lines, with every other line rhyming. The first two lines describe something ordinary while the last two impart wisdom. My favorite goes like this. 

Pisang emas dibawa belayar 

Masak sebiji di atas peti 

Hutang emas boleh dibayar 

Hurang budi dibawa mati 

Golden bananas are transported by sail 

Cook one on the stove 

Debts of gold can be paid 

Debts of the heart are taken to the grave 

We often sing these pantuns as part of our most well-known folk song – Rasa Sayang which means I Feel Love. We are also a passionate, romantic culture at times. Our national anthem’s melody was originally a love song – Terang Bulan or Moonlight.

Malaysia pop or rock music got a lot better over the decades. When I was growing up, it was mediocre at best. But we do have a legitimately good rock song – Isabella by the group Search. It is unique because it opens with a bass solo. It is about forbidden love. Pound for pound, it can match up with any Western rock song. 

Our greatest musiuan, however, was a singer named Sudirman. Originally trained as a lawyer, he was a phenomenon. My favorite song of his is Salam Terakhir or Final Goodbye. It is dramatically haunting. He died at a young age, rumored of AIDS. 

 I can still remember enough Malay to get the gist of these songs. I still remember quite a few folk ones that I learned growing up. We have a line that goes – I want to die at her fingertips and be buried in the palm of her hand. 

That is pure poetry.