He may lead his life in darkness, but 30-year-old Muhamad Firdaus Hairi suddenly found himself in the spotlight after a photo of him and his son went viral on social media. Every morning at around 8am, Muhamad Firdaus leaves his house with his baby boy and walks to the Sentul East LRT station. His routine commute to the baby-sitter’s before going to work has however earned him viral fame as “the blind man cradling his baby”. One morning, a stranger captured a photo of Muhamad Firdaus sitting at the LRT station with his son strapped to his front in a baby sling carrier. The image was uploaded on Facebook sometime in January 2017, and has, to date, been shared by over 10,000 people. Since then, Muhamad Firdaus has also been featured in a Facebook series titled “Ordinary Muslims doing Extraordinary Things”, which highlights his talent in memorising the Al-Quran and earning the title of al-hafiz. Firdaus wasn’t born blind. He was born premature and was placed in an incubator but the light was too strong and his eyes were not properly shut. The hospital staff forgot to shut his eyes properly, which damaged his nerves. But for him, that’s all in the past. Firdaus now has a small family of three consisting his wife Noor Hidayah Ibrahim who is partially blind and his son Muhammad Razin Hamizan who is born with a normal eye sight.
Photographer, Aiman Amerul Muner and Reporter, Shakira Buang spent some time with him for an interview during the month of Ramadan in 2017.
Firdaus Hairi (right), his wife Noor Hidayah Ibrahim (left) and their 2 year old son, Muhammad Razin Hamizan (centre) walking towards a train station in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Every morning, Firdaus and his small family will leave their house in Sentul and walk to the nearest Light Rapid Transit (LRT) station at around 8 am. As they arrive at the train station, he says goodbye to his wife and go their seperate ways. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERAfter saying goodbye to his wife, Firdaus hops on the train to send his son to a childcare centre. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus sending his son, Muhammad Razin Hamizan, to a childcare centre in Sentul East, Kuala Lumpur before going to work in Titiwangsa. For Firdaus, it’s easier for him to send his son to the babysitter because it’s nearer to his office. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus currently works as a researcher at a company that publishes the Holy Quran in Braille. The company, Al Fitrah Foundation, publishes Braille copies of the Quran for the visually impaired and has since gained interest from Muslim communities as far as the United Kingdom. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus uses the braille machine in his office in Titiwangsa, Kuala Lumpur. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus reading a braille version of the holy Quran in his office in Titiwangsa, Kuala Lumpur. Firdaus holds a Diploma in Al Quran and Dakwah from the Darul Quran Institute in Kuala Kubu Baru, Selangor. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERAt 4 in the evening, Firdaus clocks out from work and leaves to the train station. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus and his colleague walking together by the main road of their work place to the nearest train station. For both of them, they do not have a problem of walking by the main road as they have memorised the route to the station. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus takes a second to post an update on his Facebook profile while waiting for the train to arrive. Even though he could not see the screen, Firdaus is able to hear messages from people and hear what he’s typing due to a setting on his phone which he claim all phones have the same setting as his phone. He is an avid user of Facebook and enjoy his spare time scrolling through his timeline. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus walks towards his son’s day care centre in Sentul East, Kuala Lumpur. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus waiting for his son at the childcare centre. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus with his son being accompanied by a security guard whom helps Firdaus once he arrive at the childcare centre. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERAfter Firdaus picks up his son, the family of three meets up at the train station and head back to their house in Sentul, Kuala Lumpur. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus performing wudhu before Maghrib prayers at a mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus and his friends who are also blind, wait for the Adhan to break fast and Maghrib prayers. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus (centre) breaks fast after performing Maghrib prayers at a food court in Kuala Lumpur. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERAfter breaking fast, Firdaus recites the Adhan for Isya’ prayers at a mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFirdaus leading the Tarawih prayers at a mosque in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Throughout the month of Ramadan, Firdaus has been invited to be an Imam for a mosque in a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERAccording to Firdaus, there are still people who question the eligibility of a blind person to lead prayers at the mosque because they could not see the praying mat. Some also left the prayer congregation. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNERFor Firdaus, ignorant attitudes won’t stop him from doing what is right. He hopes that people will stop discriminating against people with disabilities. MALAYSIAKINI/AIMAN AMERUL MUNER
Aiman Amerul Muner 