MAY 8 — Religion is not dead. It is just slowly melding with capitalism.

Last week, Malay daily Harian Metro ran a feature on “Quran therapy” chicken, where Quranic verses were recited over chickens in cold storage, right after they have gone through halal slaughter.

The unnamed supplier claimed that the verses endow the chicken meat with the capabilities of repelling not only diseases, but also disasters.

For this added “therapy”, the chicken is sold at double the price of your run-of-the-mill chicken that merely listened to the hum of freezers.

This week, another Malay daily Sinar Harian ran a story on homemade ice cream brand and franchise Aiskrim Kifayah, publicising ingredients that are sunnah, or allegedly part of Prophet Muhammad’s diet: dates, figs, raisins, and even water from the Zamzam Well in Mecca.

Another of its products, Aiskrim Minda Genius 30+, claims to blend “brain food” such as almonds and saffron, in addition to the above sunnah ingredients. Which kid would not like a cone of ice cream that makes him or her smarter too?

Rayani Airlines was banking on its Shariah compliant positioning to make it a success... but it looks like that was not enough. — Picture courtesy of Rayani Airlines CEO Ravi Alagendrran

Meanwhile, Malaysia’s short-lived airline Rayani Air was either the country’s most successful business story or a total train wreck (or should it be plane crash?), depending on how you look at it.

It has almost been a month since Rayani suspended its operations, barely three months after it launched. And there were so many factors behind the halt — from pilot strikes, to faulty aircraft, to unpaid salaries that up until now have yet to be resolved.

Even before that, cracks were already showing as the airline was warned by authorities following repeated complaints from customers of delays and cancellations... and who could forget the handwritten boarding pass fiasco?

Yet, Rayani Air’s biggest success was to convince its customer base that being the first airline touted as “Shariah compliant” — merely by opting not to serve alcohol onboard and dressing its stewardesses “decently” — is reason enough to choose an airline over its competitors.

Alas, even religious deference could not save Rayani, and it now joins New Zealand’s Coastal Airways, and Canada’s Roots Air and Greyhound Air as the world’s shortest operating airlines.

The story of Rayani’s failed religious pandering should serve as a tale of caution for other airlines from entertaining shallow Islamicity.

Beleaguered national carrier Malaysia Airlines Bhd (MAB) obviously was not paying attention, even as it struggles with the restructuring, coping with double aviation tragedies, and a CEO who seems to know his time is up.

MAB sneakily introduced a no-alcohol policy for its business class passengers on flights shorter than three hours since January 1, and was rightly derided by the public when it defended itself as serving “a diverse and multi faith nation”, and the policy was “in response to the preference of the majority of customers.”

“As flights less than three hours primarily comprise of customers originating from Malaysia, this policy would be welcomed,” the airline said in a statement to Malay Mail Online, an example of flimsy justification for an arbitrary move that has pleasing God at its core:

1. Why was three hours chosen as a threshold? Many international flights run shorter than that.

2. How true is it that Malaysians make up the bulk of short-haul flights? No data was ever provided to back this assertion.

3. Since when does showcasing diversity mean less choice for customers? If anything, a diverse carrier should instead offer non-halal Malaysian dishes too, alongside halal and vegetarian options, among others.

4. Do airlines operate like a democracy now, where the majority of customers’ wishes get granted? It is no secret that majority of customers wish for cheaper flights, and yet there is no sign MAB is taking that seriously.

When it comes to selling religion, some critics are too quick to blame the peddlers. In truth, companies like Rayani, Aiskrim Kifayah, and the “therapy chicken” suppliers were just responding to hungry demands from Malaysians.

For Rayani, we should blame the countless claims that a jetliner would magically be protected from crashes if only there is no alcohol or exposed skin onboard.

There is PAS MP Siti Zailah Mohd Yusof who said passengers would “die in sin” if their Shariah-ignoring planes crash. And her counterpart Khairuddin Aman Razali who called for a Shariah committee in MAB.

Or Perak deputy mufti Zamri Hashim, who in 2014 blamed MAS for its tragedies, allegedly by inviting God’s wrath with alcohol and “sexy uniforms.” Do not also forget Umno Youth excos Dazma Shah Daud and Azmir Yuzaimi Mohd Yunos who shared the same sentiments.

For Aiskrim Kifayah, the culprit is the idea that certain foods possess intrinsic properties just because somebody used to consume them a long time ago. Or that water from a certain well is a panacea that can cure and cause many things.

Zamzam water is already offered for free to hajj pilgrims as a souvenir, together with various claims of its attributes. When it comes to mineral water, cashing in is hardly surprising, especially when you can make much more money just by faking its source.

And for the therapy chicken, the belief that illnesses and diseases can be cured merely by reciting verses from a holy book is at fault, especially when it conveniently ignores the vast scientific evidence that accompanies modern medicine.

We should blame academic institutions that endorse and support such dangerous claims, like Universiti Malaysia Pahang that touts its anti-hysteria, anti-witchcraft kit that runs on chopsticks, salt, lime, vinegar, pepper spray, and formic acid... all for a special price of RM8,750 per kit, of course.

If something can be sold, there surely would be those lining up to make a quick buck. And in the current religiously charged Malaysia, Islam is fast becoming a lucrative commodity.

All the fatwas from the country’s muftis are unlikely to halt the sale of religion, as long as there are buyers and their enablers. There is something mightier and commanding at play here: money.