It is often argued that the significance behind traditional or religious festivals is forgotten by most people, they only enjoy themselves. From my perspective, I strongly disagree with this assertion, as cultural education and social traditions ensure that the historical significance of these events is preserved.
The primary reason behind my objection to the assertion is that people tend to learn the history of the traditional and religious festivals when they are still young. In most educational institutions, for example primary schools, students are taught by their teachers regarding the history behind all the festivals celebrated. Taking examples in Malaysia, students are taught the meaning of every festival celebrated by each race in the country during the culture studies. Furthermore, even when there are still a small number of schools that neglect the culture class, most parents will still teach their children about the origin of the festival while celebrating. So there is no doubt that people will not only enjoy the holiday during festival celebrations, but also be concerned about the meaning behind them.
Furthermore, in addition to formal education, the social nature of festivals ensures traditions are passed down. The festivals are rarely celebrated alone; they are almost always family or friend events. By having such a kind of celebration socially, during the family gathering, the older generation will pass down the meaning and story behind the celebration to their descendents. Even when the younger generation are grown up, they will eventually pass down the meaning to their friends with different cultural backgrounds. For example, festivals like Hari Raya Aidifitri are open houses where host will explain traditions to guests of other races. This cross cultural exchange ensures the meaning is actively taught, not forgotten. This phenomenon has shown effectively among the Malaysian population, which is composed of different races and shares their meaning of festivals among themselves. This has proven that people nowadays are not forgetting the meaning behind festivals, but remembering and sharing among themselves.
In conclusion, I firmly believe that most people remember the significance behind traditional or religious festivals while celebrating them.