Shadee Elmasry – Islam & Japanese Society Professor Yamamoto (2) NBF 285
AI: Summary ©
The transcript is not a transcription or a reflection of historical facts, but rather a collection of sentences that appear unrelated and may not have been taken in their entirety. The speakers explore traditional Japanese tea ceremony, introducing culture to media, creating "immigrational identity" in shaping language, and creating "immigrational identity" in education. They also discuss the difficulties of finding Muslims in media and the need for creative expression in art.
AI: Summary ©
some other reason maybe the cousins are after us or something,
maybe enough. But anyway, let's get straight back to our interview
in Java.
All right, sorry about that. So the last question that asked
the political situation for Muslims just meant I imagined my
guess. Muslims in Japan are an ignored entity. They're not large
enough in number.
There's no history of some kind of terrorism. For there to be a
them to be on the radar. Am I right in assuming that the Muslims
in Japan are not on the radar? Now, can you hear me? Yeah, I can
hear you're good to go. Okay. Yes, I still so decently like Chris,
the statistics, but it is says that seeing around like 200,000
Saudi Muslims living in Japan right now.
But the majority majority was observed foreignness, and usually
like temporary workers. And I think the Japanese Muslims are
less than like, 10,000. Something I use is really super, like a
minority case. So like, we don't have really serious, like
prejudice against Muslim right now. But yet, because of the
Israeli
Palestinian conflict,
there was like one like Japanese like scholar, yeah, who keep
posting a really like textbooks like definition, like anti
Islamophobic. Like tweets. Yeah. And there. And also, like, there
is like a new political party in Japan is names like Conservative
Party of Japan or something. Yeah, it's like a far right things like
a political parties. And the, you know, the follower of these
parties are starting to endorsing like her, and on the internet
interface. Like, when I think that day by day, and I can see the
Nordic,
like, Islamophobia is now like forming in Jeff, in Japanese
society, I think.
So now, it's not indirect appeal later, but I can clearly see the
universal Japanese now they are not welcoming the Muslim in their
societies, like both like for like for Muslims, and also the Japanese
Muslims. Okay. Future, I think we will be like otherwise. And I
think eventually, like, we might lose, like a place like live or,
okay. Now, when when they have antagonistic views towards
Muslims, what's the what's the basis,
basis and stuff that it's really like, superficial, like
understanding that they are estimating typical Islamophobic
things like, for example, the Muslims know, they know how they
are not, they're not in disagreement, like at dinner, how
to clean up the stories race, and also the houses and the zoning.
And they will know, sure, it's the Japanese cultures.
And, and because of the Disney, so I personally war between Japan and
South Korea is it's not a fishery, I think, especially if you're
neutral. But the in general in Japan is the thing is high res
low.
So I think the most of Japanese citizens, they think they're in
Hamas terrorists. And the people who are showing the art of
empathy, that was the first thing is also to consider a terrorist in
different societies.
So yeah, sure, you know, we're having a little bit of hard times
right now. So essentially, they're plugged into the, you know, the
global conversation of things. And they have the same views as
basically any European country, I'd say. Sounds like Yes.
How about Islam as
the law, the Sharia, what is your perspective on the Sharia? So
every culture is going to have different issues with the
shittier.
What would be your perception on the show? Yeah, yeah. What would
be the single ruling? That is an issue for them? Or is like a,
something that gets on on their mind that they clashes with their
culture? I mean, in the West, it's always the same thing. It's age of
Asia, right? It's not even a ruling, but it's just something in
the Sierra.
I mean, not sure. But I just think that most of Japanese they don't
they don't even know the word Sharia. And so they didn't know
what the concept of like rule of law in general, like not only by
rule of Islamic rule of law, Secretary of law,
many people think that if like, like, if like, like Islamic
Empire, but there is no Islamic empire right now, that is
something concrete like Japan like there will be no like freedom
speech and there will be no freedom of like drinking alcohol,
or, you know, the freedom revision sort of sense. But I think the
most important thing is that we level it since I Muslims like when
I go back to Japan, and when I have like a discussion
I like academic discussions or like religious like dialogue. The
thing is is that you know many people ask me like what is what
Islam is or what is like life for Muslims but I think the most most
more important things can be like what is actually they being human
in this like a secular like estates especially in this theater
nation states was like gonna mean people are comparing about a meme
you have like in the prejudice like image about Islam like you
know there is no like limited freedoms or these new freedom of
speech but with that money I have a passport and a Japanese passport
and I'm sure they shave you also have an American passport right
American Yeah.
But whatever the number or the you know the country you can enter and
also the number of a country I can enter is different
no Japanese passport is like one of the strongest platform in the
world now it's like second or third like surfing
and example like
I can enter Turkey like with a visa, but if I want to travel to
Pakistan, I need to like apply for the visa or if I wanted to make
such as the Muslim first thing you know, I applied for the visa
like Saudi Arabia and
you also the same ladies as an American citizens they these are
country you can you can visit with you know the the country you have
to apply for the
logistics See, this is so against the human rights or the equalities
of humanities. Yeah. Which is defined by like Western
philosophy. Yeah. So like they is like in actually like the
discount. There is like, we live in such kind of hypocritical
societies, but I don't know why people still like targeting
Muslims and Muslims, like
restriction.
This is actually the textbook definition of an upward height.
But we're not fighting.
We don't think that this is like a threat to the humanities. And I
believe that you know, the study of Islam or like studying the
Sharia or that we're living as Muslims is offer us like good
opportunities to rethink the what kind of world we live in right
now. Yeah.
Even like for example, I Muslims, I want to make cards and even
packs or even if I go to Saudi Arabia, I need still I need to
have to carry like a passport right? In passport me to buy like
a nation state like puja. But according to Sharia, if there is
like, like a place called like, the daughter of Islam, like I
don't have to carry a passport to enter. Like, how am I? Yeah, yeah,
like, and even like, even if I was like Christians, or like a Shinto
is like Buddhist. Like, I don't have to ask like $1 like states to
issue like a password. Yeah. Like it now you can ask like a Muslim
individual to issue like, Alana and I'm not sure about in the
context was Hinduism Buddhism because these like, like,
different opinions was still an issue. I was a Christian. Yeah, I
guess individual to issue Amana and I can be like a Muslim and
yeah, to stay in the place of Islam.
So in this sense, so many people have like, so what I want to say
is that many people have like, so called like, shall HP image but
Sharia is against the humanities. But first, you must understand,
you know, this, like secular like a nation state is the typical
explain
the humanities like this, like this is what I'm trying to say,
talk in front of the normal standard, like the Japanese
audiences, like problem is not about our
misunderstanding about Muslims, or misunderstanding about Islam or
our like low literacy about Islam. It's, like, our major problem is
that we don't know what kind of world we live in. Yeah. So it
sounds to me that the Japanese mental background, intellectual
background is purely a Western background, whatever happened to
the old the original Japanese culture, be that Taoist or Shinto,
Louis or your or what have you?
I think, I think you're right. Especially in the field of
academia is or the I think, we academicians are heavily
influenced by the like wisdom like a paradigm.
But also in the same time, if you look at the more practical aspects
of the Japanese society, they are like lots of like, beautiful
traditional Japanese culture still remain. And so the they are also
lots of reasons to Japanese Muslims are not, not Japanese, if
we're trying to preserve the beautiful Japanese cultures. For
example, I myself is the students. I'm sorry.
of the Japanese tea ceremony, the Japanese like tea ceremony.
So this Japanese tea ceremony in Japanese because Sado tea ceremony
is one of the oldest Japanese culture Yeah, it started like in
500 or 600 years ago. And it is Dr. So, if you say English like a
Japanese tea ceremony, it sounds like you know, like a tea party.
But this the tea ceremony is the OG It's the method for the Alex
spiritual education
in traditional Japanese society, so, when we are preparing the T
you we we will learn how to show respect to like a Masters Yeah,
and also how to show respect to the other guests. And so, when we
are taking care of taking care of the t use and toes you know, we
know they how beautifully they can design the odd creature in this
world. So in this way, like in the we will try to learn the idea of
balance between the Macro Cosmos and the micro cosmos. And there
are some lean in the Muslims who is incredible I am organizing this
tea ceremony workshop into Turkey or the other like Muslim
communities in the UK, or even in Japan on the other side wasn't
really criticizing me that I'm doing like a bit of art or
because like these tea ceremony culture, culture is not from the
Islamic civilizations and also the world needs a very surprising
start you know this there are some people who will criticize me that
I'm wearing this Japanese kimono
that there are some there are some people who actually thought that
guy has if he didn't have that intention, but he just like in
respect he advised me Don't try to wear like a coffee pros they will
close the infidels
but first of all this distribution Japanese chemo like this is not
like you know, special like secret like clothes for like a priest or
like in like a Buddhist or Shinto study. This is just like ordinary
like a daily clothes. Which we are wearing that before the month is
one of those Yeah, I mean even even until they get 60s or 70s
It's still Japanese are wearing this Japanese and, and also like
shape. Do you know what this inner chemo is called? What the
commandos called? Yeah. In their in your chemo
in there now what is this innocuous code Jubal Jubal Jabba
Jabba Yeah, Juba story and claimed that it this Jubal yeah
originally it was for us I didn't but
we got this in the clothes is actually that you came from like I
different Portuguese like immersion somewhere and they some
someone who bring this Juba from the Islamic world.
So actually that I am not wearing the Catholic clothes that I am
wearing that Islamic clothes. wish her good inspiration so Islamic
Relations Yeah. So it is very important like when you're
engaging with it like a normal thing communities like in Japan or
Korea or even America.
We must not judge their culture.
Like without like sincere like evaluation. Yeah.
They even might be like even it's not like Islamic. So these like in
the word which is coined by this famous historian like Masha Huson
especially the word like Islamic and Islamically and Islam is like
very limited to the like don't dogmatic aspect of Islam, like
Colombia, rocky does or Africa but it is satanic it is more like a
cultural, like a manifestation of the Islamic values and which is
shared by both Muslim and non Muslims. So even though for
example, the Japanese culture is not Islamic, because we don't have
like, you know, direct interaction with a civilization but there are
some Islamic kid like traces that even in Japanese culture and this
keyboard is one good example. Yeah. And the kimono essentially
is a robe with a belt. Oh yes. Like this is like it is yeah. No
and also that I used to wear this though. Yeah.
You know the Persians
the Persians used to have these big belts
he used to wear them on there so well big said well with a big belt
like this like it's almost a sash right big belt across and then
they put the job on top of that so I mean it's not so far off yes.
Now I personally believe this I can chemo No it's actually really
suitable for for Muslims. Yeah. According the other without like,
I can also wear like a Western suits.
But that which can be like a more Islamic
Because of when I wear suits when I'm teaching university you know
my suits the shows my body line. Yeah, something is so tight. But
this kimono like it comes with my body lines and also the color is
really decent. And even the inner chemo is called like a gym Japan
is a jumper you know, Japanese like a virgin.
Yeah. And
so I believe that if, if we study like Japanese culture really
deeply actually the good Japanese most now not only Japanese
listening but even like normals in Germany as well. Like if we can
imagine, like, like a new color, or like the Islamic civilization
we should call like a Japanese like Islamic culture, like at
least as my aim for the past like two or three years. I think it's
important for every indigenous
culture, the where Islam is new, for people to recognize what's the
baseline, the minimal minimum viable product to be a Muslim to
be a pious Muslim in this culture. So make as few cultural changes as
possible. And to have a the scholars of Teddy in Yemen, they
always say they promote this while simultaneously promoting that
certain number of scholars should preserve the Sunnah as much as
possible, close to what the prophet exactly war, so people
could have a clue. But for the common folk, there should be a
sense of, Well, what is the very least that I have to do? Because
if everyone dressed like that, then a common person would confuse
what's custom, from what sunnah from what's obligatory as Oh, this
Islam is just too much. There's too much I got to do here, I can't
wear a have a beard down to hear and dress up and all this ethnic
clothes, it's not my culture. So when we had early on Maliki click,
right, the that we had that discussion to
Brandon from the Muslim cowboy does that too, where he actually
he wears a cowboy hat, right? What they're trying to show is what is
the minimum that a Muslim needs, right, and the minimum being is
that your clothes isn't tight, that's an obligation your skin,
your lines shouldn't be showing, and it should be cover your outer,
right? So that's the same thing that you seem to be doing is
showing what is the bare minimum that a person has to do to enter
into Islam? And when a number of Muslims dress in a certain thing,
it becomes Islamic in a sense, it becomes part of the the the the
the big patchwork of Muslim culture so to speak. Oh, yes, I
believe so. And also the I even further believe that, you know, is
that only Islam? can offer directly reason. To the Japanese
to preserve the Japanese cultures? Yeah, yeah. Because we're living
in the modern societies. Without like,
which one is more efficient, or even like reasonable like in going
to like Zara or aka I don't know, I can name specific company.
Which one is my face and going to the Zara and by the reasonable
price, like a shirt, or, like buying this for traditional, like
a Japanese kimono, which like, at least like cost, like 200, or 300,
towards the UI, a new one, of course, like, I'm sure like 99%
with the modern like, sacred Japanese will go to like in the
modern,
modern, like fashion.
But the if you are looking Muslims, and if you are looking,
they believe in AlDub. Now, if you believe in the importance of like
a cover in the hour, then that I think Islam will give you the
reason the reason this job
is done is only Islam can understand this beauty of your
job, the practicing disclosures, and I want to say something else
that
Islam comes to mind, the feelings of the people around you. Right.
And that's why the concept of art if you could talk a lot about all
of his customs. So when you're trying to bring something to
somebody, and you have parents family that are Muslim, that are
not Muslim, and you try to bring them Islam, it's wiser for you to
preserve all of that they that is acceptable. And the audit is not
carte blanche on there is audit that is acceptable. There are
customers that are acceptable and customers that are more often
Moldova accustomed that is unacceptable, right. And so and
that's how a Muslim would live, right where you want to imagine
someone who's dropped into Japan, China, Oklahoma, and Texas, they
enter Islam. Now you're going to start offending them by wearing a
turban and everything like what is your point? Isn't your point to
bring this matter closer to them? Or
Is it to be tough and offend them? So that's part of it's not part of
the Sharia is what are the priorities here? And so
preservation of custom and order is part of it does have a place in
our religion. It's one of the more subjective and flexible ones, but
it is part of our deen. Now, speaking of Dawa, in Japan, how
much does a person need to know about ancient Japanese beliefs?
And could you tell us a little bit about the Shinto culture, beliefs?
temperament, things like that, if someone was to go do Dawa in
Japan, like, What even is that? What is the shin to philosophy?
Like, meaningful for asking this question to like,
what would be like best? So how can we understand, like a Japanese
revision to make like a proper like a double bar. But I think
that would be also like an important thing
to
explain Islam to the Japanese audiences. But
again, you know, I always remember this, how do you like to have this
in our country to Korean and I personally, I personally interpret
this as the we have to understand in a context, we have to
understand the environment that Japanese modern Japanese people we
live in. And in most of the Japanese people, like Indonesian
doesn't matter anymore.
Until they are, there are still believes in something. But they
are not.
They are leaving,
in regularly systematic manner. And also, I think, example. I'm
also like, free in visiting the UK, or France or Germany's. And
also, I visit this quite a few times in America as well. But I
think in the European culture,
this like making like a metaphysical argument, is really
important. When it comes to regulation, we example like, you
know, they are I saw they saw many, like videos, or like
podcasts on a youtube program that you know, the Muslims, these are
the Muslim preacher, and also the Christian like a priest and who
are trying to give a debating, which is like a crack belief.
But I think they do in some like, as like Japanese. The first is,
like, it sounds like so like the Western cultures who try to like
debate something, especially, especially about a metaphysical,
like, it's things that we got.
And I remember that when I was reading the classical tasawwuf
book,
there's like two ways to reach the Haqiqa The one is like, nuzzled
in descending, and another ways like rouge, like ascending and
this like, he knows what it means, like more like, like a
metaphysical, like reasoning, that how, you know, the one pure,
like, existence, you know, Allah had created the whole universe and
creatures, dislike all which is another practical aspect, that
what kind of a practice that we can do to like a sense no, to
reach like a Malefor. You know, like it modified or to, like taste
like a Tauheed to experience the sense of like a total heat. And
when it comes to the, you know, Japanese or like, not like New
Zealand people is more like orange people. They want to know, what is
the practice of Islam? Like, what is the beauty of practicing Islam?
Because like, when the no matter how you try to talk about the
oneness of the god, I Tao, heat or Allah? Or do you like a new blu
ray prophecy?
I think it might not be so convincing to them. You don't like
it? This is not our culture. It's just a theory to them. Yes, it
just only rain as a theory. But if we talk about like the Huda Beauty
of like pains occurred, or, like, how the Muslims are practicing,
like fasting, like some enduring Ramadan's, or, that if I show the
visual image by in hunch, then, you know, the people they gathered
in one place, like Africans, or with Asians, or like a Caucasians,
like in all kinds of place, and to feel the, you know, the Arctic
solidarity, so communities, like Japanese people are more
influenced by, you know, the kind of practical work aspect. So
that's, that's a good point. And I think that's, I would say that's,
that's almost universal,
regular people, you're good, they're gonna make a change if
they see other regular people living better than them. Right.
And the problems that they have are not shared by the you know,
there are solutions to those problems with that other group. So
that leads me to a simple question. Hypothetically, I'm a
guy who's got a business trip in Tokyo, Japan.
Where do I go to get a sense of community I could put my hotel
room next to their go, you know, from I could have been Asia and
talk to some people have a sense of community what is one of the
stronger communities and Muslims in Tokyo
In Tokyo, these the masjid called Tokyo jammy jam is Masjid in
Turkey in Turkey Sandwich. Like it is like you know I don't think
it's directly run by the Turkish region so first but still like
associated with the Turkish Ministry or the Regis in Turkey
is these like Turkish Imam is he's really sincere and also
now this Tokyo Jami is not only famous or like a masjid, it became
like one of the most like popular like a touristic place in Tokyo
right now. So every week, I think more than hundreds, you know,
hundreds of people are visiting Tokyo Jami and every week. And
almost every week there is the, the ceremony of the conversion,
like, the Japanese are converting Islam in Tokyo. So if we go to the
Turkish army, that you can see the big communities. And what is more
grateful about this Tokyo's army is that if you build a Turkish
army, that you can meet like assault somebody or second
generation Muslims, like second generation, Japanese Muslims, I
can remember the iron from you know, some of the Japanese
Japanese, but right now we have like Pakistani Pakistani like
Japanese Muslims, like Indonesian Japanese Muslims, what an
Indonesian who was born and raised in Japan,
or the golden Malaysia of nice Muslims, or the Palestinian like
Japanese Muslims, or the Egyptian Japanese mostly, I mean, I do.
Like they are the creating, like a new generations, like a day of the
future of the Japanese communities. Because right now, in
general,
the population is like declining in Japan.
And we're not getting married. And we aren't having babies. But I
think the only like Muslim crazy is like you're worried because I
was I was a Christian before we become Muslims. Yeah.
I think the average age of the Christian community in Japan is
like, over 65 years old. Like is it like it's become an older
communities like is only becoming like a religion for the I don't
know, the
like a household something. But I don't believe anything that the
Muslim community is the is the fastest growing community in
Japan. But still, I can see it in the Muslim community in Japan is
the youngest, like inclusion committee in Japan. And the
beautiful things I read recently, you could buy a house in some of
the suburbs for $25,000, because the population is just dropping so
badly. Oh, yes. Like the I think many like Japanese like youth or
they get moved into the big cities. Yeah. Not very many like
into diversions in a small small towns and becoming like a ghost
town in Japan. That's insane. The idea that some maternity wards
have shut down and sent their nurses to a central maternity
ward, right?
Because there are no there. There was one hospital days, they
recorded that there was on average of birth a week.
So they're like, What, what's How do what why do we have a ward?
Right? So they combined four hospitals. They all went to the
biggest Ward, right? And everyone who wants to have a baby in Tokyo
or in this town would just go to that word. Right? With that
hospital, you might have to drive a little bit, but that's only one
you have to you can go to. So it's insane how that population is
dipping so badly in Japan. I think that that's probably its biggest
crisis going forward right. Now, yes, I think the client, yeah,
this is a humanitarian crisis. So this is why I'm saying I can
afford Japanese. Like,
they don't have to understand Islam, they first they have to
understand what kind of problem they're facing in Japanese
communities. Yeah. Then we read Japanese can say that Islam can be
like, like your life giving, like force work, life giving energy for
the Japanese societies, that in terms of like a cultures in terms
of societies and in terms of politics. This is what I keep
saying, Yeah. And it's amazing how humans problem has gone back down
to like, the most basic problem of just existing. Right. And it's
almost like we gouged ourselves with selfishness. I mean, the
science and tech did so well to give people good life in certain
countries, that people can't stand the idea of directing attention to
others. I mean, we have now the concept of dinks. Right? You know,
that Dinkus or, yeah, you guys know what a dink is? dual income,
no kids, boyfriend and a girlfriend, right? Both have it,
they got a dual income, and they've decided no kits, right? So
that they could just do whatever they want. And so the culture is
you become you. You're indulging to the point that you cannot even
share your time. It pains you to share your time with a kid and you
still have a problem. If you have one kid. Two kids, you still have
a problem because you're not growing at that point. And what is
it that may
Japan, you know, be is really Japan is one of the leaders in
population decline. What's this? What's the source? What's the
reason? I seem to be the same reason America I think some people
think that this is having baby, it's just like, they're basically
they're losing their minds. Yeah. And so they have to enjoy life and
they think you're the babies of Turin. So they get obstacles or
for the happiness. Yeah.
So I think the word problems have been is more than culture is like
in the day, we like more than people, we always tend to stay in
like a comfortable zone. Yeah. But especially when you study about
the Notasulga or the Islamic culture is actually not only the
Islamic culture, but also the traditional Japanese culture as
well. Like, the culture, they help us to get out from the comfort
zone
to get opportunity to become like a major. Yeah. And what I see like
in a modern Japanese society, the I feel, I strongly feel that now
the less and less people are your major, and more and more people
are like claiming their rights. You know, they're claiming the how
the crack they are, how they're, like strong they are, they're
always trying to prove something. Yeah. But no, I'm in Istanbul and
what's missing and what needs to be touched that you know, or they
see our tech get, you know, Zarya, you know, Sophie launches in
buscador you know, Asian side of Istanbul is called Uzbek Cadet
tech essay that was recommended by Casey in order to dissolve the
articles Wikia okay you know the SOFIA not just for interviews with
people you know, they're coming to they stumble, when they go into
the hutch, you know, they're resting a few lucky masters and
then you go into your mind. And still, you know, this was Becker
taxi is run by Dr. Muslim medication or I could work with
and when I entered this vegan advocacy, there is one famous like
Islamic calligraphy. You see the kitsch? You know, hitch, hitch
means Persian and also the Turkish but it means I get nothing.
And I asked, you know, the person we're working in this is bacteria
tech. So you like it? What are the what is the purpose of hanging
dissident Islamic calligraphy on the wall? Sophie Logis? And He
answered me that in this is the aim of the spiritual education of
Islam.
The immoral education that we always try to prove something that
we tried to become like someone, though, we're trying to produce
like something. Yeah. But in traditional agriculture, it's
like, the weird, we are taking this education to become like a
nice thing. We're embracing the weird nothings.
And this, like in the decline of the population, and that's
ridiculous. Related to this, as well, that, that now the more
people who try to prove something, or try to make them makes them
unhappy. So that's why they think they need all the environment that
like the obstacle, their happiness, yeah. But in the end,
you know, the ultimate aim, the humanity is like, in the we, why
we're living right now, to pass to,
to transmit, you know, knowledge of the Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu
wasallam. Listen to the next generation, you know, we are just
like a vehicle. Yeah. Like, if we don't make it, if we don't, we
cannot get married, if we don't make the insurance or the if we're
not investing on the younger generation, then the our community
that will disappear, you'll disappear. And yeah, I like to put
it like this. Your you have your own life. You only have your own
life, thanks to other people who are not selfish. So there is a
percentage, I don't know what the percentage is 1/3, maybe one
quarter, one half, where you owe, you owe it to the community
at large, to think about the future to advance this, this thing
called human beings and Muslims on top of that. And the way to do
that is by prioritizing your family over your career, nobody
says i Hey, well, some of the things do. Most people say,
most people say, Well, I gotta my career is so important. I help so
many people in my career, right?
Very few people say no, I don't want to have kids because I want
to indulge, most people will justify it to themselves. So I got
a very important career. I got a very important year coming up. And
they keep postponing marriage. So career ism, the way I look at it,
it's the biggest enemy to family is career ism. Like, you know, I
can't imagine what I would have done. All of us can say the same
thing. What would I have done?
If I didn't have to have a family? And I could work
12 hours a day, seven days a week? What kind of career would we all
have? Yeah, but you'd also be very miserable to write. And what kind
of old age would you have? What kind of middle of life would you
have? Right? So we don't think about that. On top of that we
don't that's all about ourselves. Imagine then, the whole community.
If we all did that, what kind of community would we have?
If we'd have empty masajid, right, we'd have no community left. So
everyone's got to realize that
career is the enemy of family.
And I, the way I look at it both got men and women have to take
that but women have ticket even more, right? Because they are the
physical bearers of children, and they have a bigger obstacle. So
they have to have a greater belief that having a family is more
important than having a career. Guys have to have that because
when they don't raise their kids or kids turn out wrong, you might
you might as well have had not have kids with a guy doesn't raise
his son. More important than raising his daughter, in my
opinion. But in any event, I now like to ask you a question that
when a young Japanese Muslim comes up to you said just converted to
Islam, I need to make a YouTube playlist of Japanese lectures Who
do you give them?
Japanese lectures? Yeah, I need I need my Japanese
playlist of lectures of talks of classes.
All the Japanese who is the scholar out there the day even if
he's not a scholar, but he's a day a person of Dawa and Imam who's
out there.
Speaking
they also like famously Japanese like a dog who is out with a
shaved arm at the minute he's working you know, very close to
Tokyo and he is reinvesting on your child education but I'm not
sure that he has the he's uploading in his lecture on the
YouTube video but in general for example dialogue in Istanbul you
know, I have more than five Japanese Muslim students like
whenever I found you know, the Japanese Muslims or having kind of
challenges in Japan I always encourage them to you know, come
to the Muslim countries whatever they know I'm based in Istanbul so
you know, I am encouraging my students to come they stumble in a
state like one or two years to study like this times.
But what if they don't speak Arabic? They only speak Japanese.
No, thanks speak Japanese and Turkish and fossa you know this
this study was ours well, and the reason and the reason for this
start that we have now if you if you ask to take stock on YouTube
that you can you can watch like millions of YouTube videos or
lectures about Islam but it
in Turkish these words like these words are sofabed in our in Arabic
because yeah, I thought that it means like companionship it means
like being together and we must not forget that your Islam is not
like a digital like the content that you can download from the
internet and you can once you install it you can become a
perfect listener something Yeah, like the living as a Muslim no
process. Process Yeah, we can all learn Islam
through Okay, so you can reduce the image of your humanity who's
to talk about you know, the Islamic practice or the showing
current practices and Muslim they, you need to learn they can
learn like Islam through like fragile.
Like human or imperfect like human. The who are also trying to
seek the past of Islam. Yeah, this is connected mastership and
discipleship. The message if you disagree with me, like have you
ever watched like new Star Wars? Like so seven excellent apes
annoy.
The new series of Star Wars? No. What is that again? Sagan? Star
Wars new series of style. Oh, Star Wars? No, I saw a couple of the
movies like The Last Movie that they ever that they said this is
the last one. I did see that one. Yep. Okay, so you know, I am a big
fan of Star Wars. So I watched him from the episode one to Episode
Nine.
These are probably one of a new series of Star Wars like I liked
the old series, but if the new servers really disappointed,
because these is like these a protagonist school array, yeah, in
a female, like the protagonist, the characters, and
in episode eight, you know, I was hoping that she will become the
Jedi. You know, this is kind of like a traditional like, if, like
a fighter. Yeah. Who, who? Who have like lightsaber and derisive
like, boom, boom, yes.
So, so I was hoping that you know, she will
have she will find her own like a master to start like a training.
Yeah. And in episode eight, there was a character called Luke
Skywalker, and he's like the legendary, like a character in the
old series. And I hope that he will become the master. But in the
end, he didn't teach anything to disagree with female protagonists.
But yet, she became suddenly the strongest like a Jedi in the
history of Star Wars series. That's that.
Yeah, millennials interpret that this is like a reflection of the
identity Identity Politics, Politics. Yeah. Western
agriculture that you define yourself as like the best thing
You can become like a best. Yeah. And I think, you know, they are
like integral even we Muslim, do we have this kind of a tendency
that we are infected, you know, kind of identity politics? We
don't know, you know? Yeah. So that if you have like a correct
book, that if we x in the correct videos, and if you're watching
like a record lectures, and then we can become like, right like,
right Muslims Yeah, it's not like we are also the imperfect human
beings that we will make a millions of mistake in our life
and also the and but if we only accessing socolor The 100% Like a
correct knowledge about Islam, like we don't know how to rebuild
ourselves when we make mistakes. And this is what we see in the
young Japanese Muslim corneas. Well, I can think of, for example,
they are some hardship, and that they couldn't like they they
didn't like make prayer for they have to end up like drinking
alcohol because these like pressure from societies, and then
when they make a good nearly missed even a tiny bit of a
mistake, you know, they will become depressed and they will
leave it to community. But actually, it's not like the
everything that you have made. They are not only the beautiful
things that even the ugly thing that this might be could be like a
lesson
to become like a better like the Muslims. Only you can make it a
good Tober Yeah, but you can you will never run this like this,
like the hope spiritual like journey will be Muslim just
accessing like a data that you need your own like sensor in
Japanese we call the master Sensei, you know, give Master?
Yeah. So the while we haven't we haven't had to restore that isn't
Muslim communities, not only Muslim, agree and Japanese society
is the existence of the Mastership. Also like a
discipleship? Yeah. So I totally agree, that's one of the biggest
problems with the new generation is the lack of sub. Like there's
no sub. And there's no culture of this. So they need to see their
parents doing that. Right. They need to see their parents honoring
somebody and accepting their tutelage over the span of decades.
And in order to realize that, to believe that and what I think one
of the reasons behind this is that the nature of the world, today's a
world of tech, tech, science and tech, it, it prizes, innovation,
and rightfully so. Right. So going back and mimicking, you know, the
Internet of the past, or the software code of the past is
useless. You need to go innovate, people then take that ethic, and
then apply it where it doesn't belong, such as anything that has
to do with transmission or expertise. Both of those things,
they just require years of dog Id almost boring repetition of the
same thing. Right. And that's why I think in the modern era, people
have a hard time with the idea of anything taking a long time.
Right? If everything they want seven minute abs, everything he
wants, people don't want to put in the time, and the effort and the
humility. So that's something that you have to you have to go uphill
in fighting that battle. Yes. So that's why they're coming back to
your questions. Like, you know, I'm always encouraging the
Japanese when they asked me that, what is the best lectures? Or what
is the best book that I saw? Yeah, the first you have to take your
time. Do find out which ones are the best books for you.
Because
people always expecting like a clear answer of something. Yeah.
But maybe like in that way, you can order some like books away
Slovenia, Amazon, and you will read it. And maybe you find out
that it's not like helpful for you. But this India, this is also
good experiences. Yeah, this shows that not every person knows about
Islam, and there is something books, which is not useful for
them. But maybe that books might be useful for the other people.
Yeah. And I think it is now right now in modern societies, the more
and more people even including me, like we are less. I mean, as you
said that we are losing the suburbs. Yeah, to accept, you
know, the, the complexity of the humanity and the complexities of
like, even like Norwich as well. Because I'm like, I'm sure you
also have
even when you start a service or different project, yeah.
I did my PhD in Kyoto University, but and also I'm working on the
university but you know, the syllabus like university syllabus
system syllabus, yeah. If you read the syllabus, right now, I don't
know that these are huge festival in university that we have to
write the so details about the lecture or the the courses Yeah,
that not only about the name of the courses was that we have to
write an aim of the courses and also the we have to write the
outcome of the courses that you're doing right now. We have to like
guarantee the outcome that what outcome that you know, the student
can get if they take this course without the lecture about Middle
Eastern, the introduction to like Middle Eastern studies or
introduction to like Islamic studies.
They teach you how to write the, you know, the in the outcome, then
they after taking this course the students can get, like a firm like
knowledge about, like Islamic studies or Middle Eastern Studies.
I mean, it's impossible. Yeah. I mean, it's
like a good international restaurant taking the courses, but
some people may or may not. And we this is so based on, like, recent
professional, like, more like superficial like engineering
mindsets. Yeah. Like the, if you write down the code, they know
that he's in the end, and then human can work like a machine.
Yeah, there's gonna bargain. But it's not like, maybe when they
take the course, maybe it not be the hippo at that time, then maybe
in 20 years, or 30 years or 40 years or even look at dust, dust
very many before they die. Maybe they will find out some kind of
modified with that you don't know the what kind of knowledge can be
helpful, helpful for the human force or his or her life. And
that's where
that's where sometimes the best education is go hang out with that
guy. Apprenticeships, what is an apprenticeship? Oh, this guy knows
how to run this kind of a business. There's no syllabus, the
syllabus says hang out with him, spend time with him on the job,
and observe, DO what He tells you to do. You'll go up the ranks
until he earns your trust and gives you bigger responsibilities.
Those apprenticeships and your Do you remember Theranos?
Did you hear in Turkey about the whole Theranos scandal.
Tara's Theranos is essentially a company that had hundreds of
millions of dollars of investment, and claimed that with a drop of
your blood, they can do like 35 blood tests,
right with one drop of your blood, something like that. And that they
have some kind of a device. And that device will churn out the
results of like multiple, multiple, multiple blood tests,
instead of you having to go take multiple shots.
Now, here's the amazing part. The amazing part is that the
journalist, is a medical journalist and medical Tech Tech
journalist who figured out that she was a fraud and the founder
was a fraud. She never had any such device. It was a theory in
her head. She collected the money. And she even started getting into
the business, but she would take a drip of Java blood, then send it
to traditional labs, and then give people the result because she
never had a machine. So here's the amazing thing about how Elizabeth
Holmes, thank you for chocolate Well, what
was uncovered to be a fraud. The guy said that in tech,
the innovators are always young.
They're not entrenched, they're able to think outside the box. But
in the medical fields, because there are human lives at stake.
There's higher risk innovators of, of anything new in the medical
field, tend to be in their 40s and 50s.
Right, that's when they earn trust. And that's when they were
able to give something back to society. Because it's risky.
Whereas there's no risk in an app with app doesn't work. No one, no
one, no one died, right? So he was like, Oh, she's way too young. How
is she in the innovating in the medical world? Right at that young
age. And that's when he started to actually start prodding and asking
questions, and you could see a whole bunch of documentaries on
Elizabeth Holmes and Theranos and the fraud that she committed. So
that goes back to what you said, is that, like, what was your name?
Ray? Whoever was
your name?
Yeah, whoever that Jedi the Jedi girl was, is that she becomes the
greatest Jedi without putting in a minute of labor. There are no
years of waiting of work. Right? And that's a scam. You're scamming
the the viewers, you're scamming people into imagining that great
results can come out of no work. Right? And that just doesn't exist
in the world. Right? And all that came into the question like of
what you said, on there isn't there may not be a quick YouTube
list. But that's not how Islam was practice. Islam was practiced by
living with people with Muslims over the years. And slowly
marinating. Right. And your bad qualities come out one at a time
in the presence of those people. I'd like to turn it now to the
audience on YouTube.
What questions do you have for Professor Yamamoto has given us
from His precious time? It's now evening they're in Turkey. It's
probably past Maghrib time.
10pm Oh, so let's see. Oh, let's take two or three questions from
more audience here. Alright first one is there a concept of Sn or
spirituality in the original Japanese culture C says Yes I
think so. I mean it's not like completely like Simon a stone
because in your concert is so closely related to the song itself
but
you know
not it's not about a son but basically like a strong like a
word I reinforced while reading the book you know Cadabra for tuba
and when I'm translating the scorpion in Japanese is the word
codec ether the ether it means like altruism, like the like
sacrifice yourself for the others generosity, yeah generosity and
especially you know, disallow altruism. And that was once the
most important like philosophy was a HELOC like a Japanese culture.
But now you know we are like, like we have lost and this is you know,
one of the reason why have translate you know this Nina
Islamic classics to be German
Intertek Japanese languages like you know this job like Islamic
correct terminology so a lot of Islamic terminology and also
Islamic values that might give like a new option like opportunity
for like Japanese radio to remember the you know, our like,
beautiful, I guess relation like If Sun might be there also an
option, maybe the one and also the ether, and also the, the beauty or
like a Toba in repentance. And when it comes to if son
I mean, I'm sorry, is really off the topic
instead of you know, just talking about Islam or is talking about
you know, the faith, but I'm also trying to introduce new Japanese
audiences like what kind of creativity
that you know, we Japanese Muslim can offer do you mean jumping to
the Japanese authorities? And I personally I interpret like this
is my end of the exam, you know, as an IV in the Muslims like, I am
designing support like Japanese islamicate like art and
handicraft. And this morning I have new I have designed so it can
see this Yeah. Oh, that was you.
I grew up this is the a Japanese translation of the Estrada Fatiha
in the Quran. Someone sent me that this morning is that I use the
traditional like a Japanese like handwriting like calligraphy.
Yeah, bring it over a little bit more. I guess. I guess other side
yeah, there we go. Perfect. Perfect. Well, it's beautiful.
Very beautiful. And when I design this like the I'm really convinced
like I don't see any without that there are some like far right
wingers like Japanese studies saying that we need Japanese
muslims or muslims for a Muslim they're bringing some kind of
like, impure, like a contamination to the Japanese societies. Like
they're trying to destroy, you know, they are like a beauty of
the Japanese cultures. But when I'm designing this the I see some
kind of beautiful harmony
isn't like a beautiful harmony of the Japanese culture. And Islamic
like a culture or Islamic spiritualities Yeah.
And not only handwriting's but of
so I'm assuming tea ceremony so I am designing Soco islamicate like
tea salmon use and toasts and things is
this is a Turkish saying. Yeah, yeah. Who like ndpr who this is
like Turkish like a calligraphy? Yeah, it isn't like this. Yeah,
who is it's about a lot. And yeah, it's like a calling upon you
invoke invocation. Like he means like, you you're asking Allah to
like a gift like add up to humanities. And and this is the i
i am working with the traditional like a Japanese artisan
to design distribution or a handicraft because now you know
less than this Japanese people they're buying traditional
Japanese handicraft Yeah, they're doing like furniture from Ikea or
somewhere like before somewhere from like shopping mall. But
and also the even some not all not only Japanese when Muslim or it
isn't me that why is spending so much money on creating the
handicrafts and handicrafts? Because there's there's more like
reasonable prices, handicrafts or so in a shopping mall. But I'm
telling those people like which one is more like Islamic or which
one is more like Muslim like way of living? Yeah. By your mass
produced like handicraft in from shopping mall or like visiting
like a traditional Japanese autism and explaining the East
Me spirituality and how much I respect in Japanese culture as the
Japanese citizen and designing this in a traditional handicraft
which is inspired by Islamic spirituality. And using this this
use and also a carefree whatever they
I think a lot of these are like more like Muslim like way of
living
like a way of living, it's more holistic that way, I guess. And in
this way, like it might be it might not have like big impact.
But I think at least I'm quite sure that this Japanese artisan
who are working with me have
the opportunity to digest history spiritualities
by design is handy if
you're watching like Islamic like YouTube channels, or like Tiktok
videos because this is about experiences Yeah.
So the record is Sunday.
I rather say that Japanese don't know much about it constantly sign
it's not
about Islam. And so I'm not sure we have like correct like crack
corresponding with a word in Japanese culture. But if Japanese
can can embrace the beauty of Epson then you know they can
produce like more beautiful things for the Japanese societies.
Someone is asking here now
this Japanese tea ceremony does it take place in someone's home?
You invite people to them like how does it work? Exactly. Oh this
Japanese is actually like if you invited me to wherever living in
New Jersey and uses if somebody invited me to New Jersey I can
also do tea ceremony for you. Okay good. So it usually is done at
home or either the traditional like a tea room
but these program about like ordinary like Japanese tea
ceremony
it's not a problem but this like Japanese tea ceremony like
contemporary Japanese tea ceremony is like heavily influenced by
symbolism. So like days for example, it stays like hanging
scroll
hang on the wall they usually like that that hanging
hanging Squall you can see like a calligraphy which is based on exam
but isn't philosophy and so this is one of the reason why some new
some of the Japanese parents they hesitate
to send your kids to the like in Japanese T seminar classes. So
that's why like I personally I have a really sincere like a
master if we understand your sensibilities in the future you
know, I want to design a traditional like a tea room. But
we should take a design for a good Muslims or tea room to design to
introduce like Islamic disagree charities. So what I'm organizing
this my Japanese tea ceremony, like a workshop, and I'm not using
an exam but somehow new scores and I was only using like handicraft
which have come like it only Sami like elements, but instead of it I
personally like designing this also. This hanging score is I have
designed this hanging score measure now I like I'm an I
and I have handy things were on the wall for this disharmony. And
this flower is called Keegan BANA Hagen burner. He got me off camera
and Burnham is a flower is a flower of the afterlife. So in the
past in Japanese and when they see you know this flower, they always
like memorize they always remembering about the afterlife in
Buddhism, but I personally reinterpret reinterpret this
flower that we Muslim We Japanese Muslim like we can remember about
you know, Islamic like Astra Yeah, like when we want when we are like
in the DC and this flower so that's why I write down this
Arabic calligraphy the RDF and in my interpretation is RF RF like
the implies like Allah Allah.
So, this is how you know this. I personally call this project as
semantic reconstruction like semantic reconstruction. So even
though we are living in a non Muslim countries, and even aware
we are surrounded by so called seemingly non Islamic context,
like we can bring the new interpretation
to like the Japanese cultures. And this is what actually like Malay
Muslims and in raising Muslims also Chinese Muslim did
resemble like these, like
do you know the word? The book called Hunter Hunter? Never heard
of it? No. Oh, hunky. Dory is probably a chain in homies
Chinese. And the Kitab means Kitab This is another beautiful thing
about Islamic civilization like whenever you go if these Muslim
communities the book is always caught up
with culture, especially Islamic books, we live in China In China
as well. The Islamic book is cooked up in the Malay or
Indonesia is in the Islamic stop in Turkey.
The book basically book is called kitab. So I think in American
Muslim communities that you can also use the word dub lingual
Islamic classics, like you can, you can use this as like, you
know, English terms. Yeah, this hanky dubs means like Islamic
classic book written. In fact Chinese characters. So hum is
Chinese and determines book oh I see okay. Okay. And when you when
we observe this book, they are some like vocabulary or
terminologies which is used by the confusion ism, or like a
Buddhism's. And some, like researchers say saying this is
like historical like evidence that how like Chinese Muslim and try to
integrate, like a Confucian mystic or Taoist or Buddhism, like
worldview and Islam. But personally, I don't believe I
don't believe that correct. That interpretation. You know, I
personally think that this is actually the process of semantic
reconstruction. So even though they borrow this word, the way
Muslim use this, they Oh, they, they have put the Islamic like
meaning to it.
So this is born with the format, but content is always a stomach.
So there's a huge difference between compromising with the
other regions. And as they bring the new creativity. Yeah. And
bending with terminology is all over culture. Yeah. If it was
otherwise, you wouldn't go and find the ethnic, even the
scholarly clothes of every
nationality is different. So yes, in Africa, the island scholar will
be wearing different clothes in West Africa than North Africa,
than East Africa than Yemen, than Iraq, then Indonesia and Malaysia.
So that's why what we have is a deal that has roots, and then a
very strong trunk, that doesn't move, but then you have branches
that sway
that sway back and forth. And that's the flexibility, the
balance between where we're flexible, and encourage movement,
and where what is inflexible and immovable and should never change?
Yes. And also, even I, you know, I'm a bit of a bit arrogant, but I
think, you know, my mighty summary workshop is one of the most
creative, like a Japanese culture.
Because I put the Islamic interpretation in it. And what do
people do when they go? Sorry, I didn't trip What did they do when
they go to this tea ceremony? So in this case, I mean, so, right
now, most of the Japanese like practitioner tea ceremony, you
know, the
authority, they are sincerely studying about the etiquette of
the Japanese, the tea ceremony, how they serve and how they
prepare, you know, green tea, and how they tried to show respect to
your guests.
But
you know, since it's already established, like a cultures like
the East know, like new creativity needed in the JSR repeating limit
routine, and I still yet I strongly respect no disabilities
among cultures. But if we look at the history of disharmony in early
periodicities, harmony,
there was also like a tea ceremony inspired by feminism, but also
there was a Christian t 72. Like a Catholic.
In the 15th century, in the 60s, as were in Germany, society, you
know, there was the Japanese, Christian, Caucasian and they were
like Samurai, like Lord, who had converted to Christianity, they
were called a Christian, a Christian daimyo just in diamonds.
And they were like, practicing is t 72. Like, contemplate the
spiritual, the Christianity's and there was also tea ceremony for
the merchant and also the the ceremony for or summarize. So,
there was like a diversity party. So T 70 itself is just like a
format like iPhone. So Indian this is like just like technologies.
Yeah, what is the important thing is that now what we will do by
using this like technologies, so like mighty 70 Is that you know,
also in is introducing the
like an advocate and also the speech varieties, the tea
ceremony, but I am also an N same time by using this T reg T
container, or by like, you know, or through the showing this occurs
if you you know, I'm trying to introduce, like islamicate like
spiritualities
arts.
This is the characteristic Almighty samedi like a workshop.
Now, when I go to the tea ceremony, I'm like a guest
essentially, I sit down and then
I'm a guest, I start receiving, you know, the tea and then is
there something like something else?
I should read it's really difficult to explain with words,
but you know, there is the one video shop
By the blogging theory in the YouTube channel, yeah. And I show
you know the
boosters for Williams. They did my tea ceremony. Oh, okay.
So if they some of the interesting tea ceremony you can go like tea
ceremony, blog MCRD Nokia moto any you can see or maybe you can just
Google like Nokia moto tea ceremony Islam? Oh, no, no
we're running out of time but I didn't ask one of the very
important questions that I know some people really wanted me to
ask. Okay
the Japanese cartoons
there so remind me animate
they're so influential and I still cannot get my head around
how they get such a cult following. Right Why enemy versus
anything else? And secondly,
there are some people that try to use anime
as a form of Dawa.
Like Sahibs company is all about that. So
could you mind expanding on exactly what's going on with the
poll? Why is enemies such a pull? Why does it have such a pull?
First of all, yeah, I must say I'm huge, like otaku anime, you know,
I mean, without cause like, I mean, if your narrative and your
Japanese anime I have already watched, at least at least, like
once, how many Japanese animes and also, I read the millions of the
Japanese manga.
And I haven't noticed and yet there are so many Muslims. And not
only that, I mean, not only Muslim in the US, in the US, or in
Europe, there are lots of the the Muslim fans of anime in a Muslim
country as well, within the integrity as well. And at first,
like, for example, the first time I came to do it, he was like 13
years ago. And I'm so surprised that you know, I was studying in
the traditional Muslim Education Institute. And we are studying now
and sort of yeah, that we are memorizing new NASA NASA law
certain thing that
I have. I have noticed that you know, all of my old classmates
they're watching Naruto, you know, Japanese anime Japanese like Ninja
anime. Yeah. So the people who are studying this traditional like
balloon is like sighs and is it same type a huge fan of Japanese
enemies? Yeah. And I asked my classmate and, you know, because I
was so shocked because like this traditional like a ton about Iran.
And, and, and it made eye contact because like, I thought they had
these two different like, separate like entities worlds. Yeah. Yes.
But I asked them why they're watching like a decent Japanese
anime, especially Naruto. And one of our friends like said to me
very interesting things that when they watch the American movies, or
the American TV series,
they become very uncomfortable.
Because in American TV series, or anyway,
or the movies, there was always like identity politics. Yeah. It's
like they always try to define themselves. Like, for example, in
Star Wars about you know, this way, you know, she's always
defined herself. Or even more in a Marvel hero comic series as well.
Like in the URI there is no scene training. These will mastership
and discipleship. It what is seen that if they define ourselves, we
query now they can become the strongest in character.
Like Marvel was already those things, but in Japanese anime or
manga,
this identity politics is not an important topic. Yeah. What de
emphasizes on is when somebody's anemic, or demon slayer, or the
Judas Dickerson's, or the other enemies like they have especially
what they emphasize in training, like Rick defines themselves
like tarbiyah I see so there's enough anger that's good when
they're trying to train themselves in a day always study with their
masters you know, Sensei, you know, the *.
So, Mike,
if you analyze you know, the or the structure of the Japanese or
the manga you know, there are some like a common like message so
islamicate message This is Islamic, but you know, the Islamic
you know, the common like values like between the Islamic Islamic
spirituality and also like Japanese cultures
and about you know, about you know, the other possibilities or
potential of the introduce or using this manga as a medium to
introduce like Islam did audiences or whatever there are some like
there are some
people there who are you who are creating dislike, so what
islamicate only meant was, I think there was one company in Saudi
Arabia, they created only Mako the journey. Yeah, I think there is
only is about the unit battle or the
fear you know about Earth.
And I personally, whether I
also believed in this manga or using visual image can be, like
whatever the option to introduce Islam, not only not only for non
Muslim audiences, but also missing audiences. So
I don't know. Have you seen this before? Let's see.
Everything is somewhere. Move it over a little bit. Yeah. Japan,
I'll move it over. Oh, this is not Japan is Cambodia. Bah, bah Jia.
And I thought that was Yeah, Japan. Moving a little bit. The
audience can see. Yes, yeah. Pull it out a little bit so everyone
can see. Okay, but I thought it said Yeah, Japan,
not Japan. Batuan. Now who is that? Is that a character that you
made? Oh, yeah. So, so I drew this character. I call this series of
hijab in Ninja series, hijab is dangerous.
And jebby newbies? Yeah, the reason why I've started designing
this character is I actually I really liked drawing things. But
when I become Muslim, I stopped growing. Because my friend told me
that there was really like a great Hadees like criticizing, like a
drawing the human figure. Yeah. And I believe it was a forearm. I
still I still, this is really controversial. So now I stopped in
a drawing for artists like eight years or at least 10 years
something. Yeah, but there was the
TV series, not TV. Oh, yeah, those TV series
in that.tv, was made by Disney's actually. And there was like a
Muslim characters. Yeah. And in Disney advertise that this is like
first like Muslim character in the streets, and I watched a TV
series. And it was not that I really enjoyed it. But still, I
got some, like, hidden messages behind it. Those like more than
entertainment, especially Western entertainment, like even though,
you know, they create like Muslim characters or fictional
characters, like they are trying to reduce the Muslim illness into
coming back ethnic identities. Yeah. They tried to put this
character into identity politics again, which I repeated measuring
this word identity politics. Yeah. And even you know, overall, now
the Western entertainment, they always talk about diversities.
They always talk about you know, the like equalities. Humanities,
but have you ever seen like really cool, like Muslim like a main
character in
there to rose the best of gut? Yeah, able to read the Turkish
like entertainments doing the same but yet, like, those characters
are also big fans or to ruse but they also try to prove something.
Like they're always trying to prove the Muslims are great.
Muslims are cool. And they these are all like, in that area over
the contemplation about so and also they everything, any cool
hijab he charges, almost like a zero. Yeah. They, when they, you
know, typically Muslim, Nigerian Muslim, and they always talk
about, you know, they're, like female Muslims, who are suffering
for the pressure from the Arctic paternalistic societies, if we try
and like, trying to see for the Liberty. But if we go into the
kind of negative image, and it makes me it makes us so tired of
watching it. Yeah. So that's why you have an x ray, and even Japan
as well. Now we have like many, like second generation and surgery
Muslims.
But since you know, there will be no Muslim countries, you know,
some of them. Some of them, they were scared of, like wearing the
hijab, and even though they wear hijab, and when it goes to the
schools, you have to encounter correct prejudice or something you
get bullied. And imagine that, you know, they were they are
practicing Islam. When the in the facing lots of challenges in the
schools, especially in the public schools, and imagine what kind of
emotion they have their wedding going back to the home. Yeah, they
feel so alone, you know, they sought help helpless. Yeah. So and
when I hear that kind of stories, I started to think that, you know,
I want to encourage, and I want to, we need to encourage our
children, not just making yourself happy and we need to invest on
next generation as we need to encourage those young generations
that saying that you know, practicing some is call them being
born as Muslims. Cool, that beautiful the abstract is
installed is called, so that's why I have a design. I started
designing the cute hijabi characters, which is a company
which doesn't exist in the western like entertainment. How are you
going to translate this into a show? Show? First, I need to do a
manga. So I'm practicing myself, but isn't really like a long step.
But I think this is really important because I didn't know
what the
I knew about the context in America, but in the case of Japan,
Usually just you know, the art
world entertainment field is like dominated by liberals. And the
liberal means like not very sincere about, like tradition.
And India. And you can easily do, especially with Muslim communities
that we conservatives, so we don't be hesitant to enter this field.
But because we are not showing our initiative in this field. So
that's why there are some people who are using this like media to
like, distort the image about Islam. Yeah. And I heard that, you
know, Deaf without even destroying human image.
I'll stick with this controversial, but there are some,
like legal opinion that it is still permissible to write like 2d
characters as long as it remained 2d, like not as just the medical
opinion. Yep. Just if it's the full body, and it's to D.
It's mcru. If it's not full body, and it's to D, it's Halon. If it's
full body, and three dimensional,
is forbidden. Yes. Yeah. So that and these are good ideas. Look at
a half $1 line. Yes. Line. So it may mean if mommy knows the best
example or the practicing, like, best example, Islamic culture,
still, we are facing, like real toxic, like visual image when we
are like opening Netflix or Disney Plus, there needs to be an
alternative for sure. No doubt about Yeah. So then do we Muslim
even though this is like a controversial area like we
consider the Muslim show in misadventures field. Yeah. And,
but also, since this is a new field, not only about it already,
but in education, like in the Muslim community, we're not
investing much on like education also made art.
But you know, this anime, anime is like a
collective, like a project, you have to hire like, no, the
hundreds, or sometimes you know, this not, there are hundreds of
people who may 1 of all, you know, person to me, write down the plot,
or person to look at designing characters, or a person to make a
animated, like,
make this animation so that it takes time to
get started by writing the right novel, like a novel. Yeah. So that
we can use it as a script in a plot. And Inshallah, you know,
once I finish, you know, I want to find someone, like a manga artist,
to like, make to draw his character into like, a manga. And
if it becomes, like, successful, you know, I want to make like an
animated version as well, like story of, you know, the Muslim
like a ninja. And by the way, the Muslim character I haven't
designed is the are either second generation Muslims or the the
Muslim converts? Yeah, I mean, I would start, start getting it out
there get getting excitement. And then you have companies like
fictional frontiers, who would maybe know that world of
production, and get it out there. Because it's a very, as you said,
labor intensive, it's expensive, there's a lot of talent needed to
put it together. And a lot of money's needed to fund it. But if
you get it out there, you get the concept out there.
You know, you'll you get the ball rolling.
In that regard, I think the final frontier is doing a great job.
Now, for example, you know, and I made this the or, like,
you know, genocide of Israel is recommending, now we are
boycotting lots of products. Yeah, I think this is really important.
But boycotting something is also like, not enough. Yeah, like, what
we need to do we need to produce something. Yeah, we need to create
our own ecosystem.
Not only that, we need to create our own fruit, we need to create
our own like books, we need to build our own universities, we
need to build our own schools. And we even create our own character
100 For example, we can criticize like Muslim fictional Muslim
characters, which are created or designed by like non Muslim
companies, but even like well, you're criticizing it as long as
we're criticizing we just remain as the consumer of the content
that's true. You're an objective content you know, we're just
giving you all our own resources to a criticizing you just waste of
time. Yeah, we're important that we need to show our creativity and
we need to show with Ebola I personally believe that my next
job we ninja, other cooler than any any other like infection was
in character in this world. No, maybe I remember guarding but I
have this kind of self competence.
And what you know, and also this is I'm not drawing for myself, you
know, I also like drawing but I am investing on the the younger
generation. And I want to tell them, that being wasn't
Muslims core converting Islam is cool, like studying Navajo and
Sarraf is like a cool, like, pursuing in a traditional religion
of Islam is cool. And this is this is what makes us different from
the like modern like secular people because they are only
confined themselves to identify to define themselves in the world of
identity politics, but what we what the Muslim can do is that we
need to use a resistance to encourage the young generation
because Muslim community has the youngest target the Muslim
community, the youngest like it was my birthday is in a majority
societies. So what we have to do is that we have to work for the
youth and this is the philosophy of the photo Interviewer If you
want me to youngness but the youngest doesn't mean that just
being young, it means like you will acquire your spirituality to
become like nature enough
to like investing so this is what they do is and this is what we
surely have the Thar you know the
well we'll be observing your project your project so you have
many projects and bringing Islam into the Japanese culture and hope
we put in our two cents and trying to get your word out there about
about you and what you're doing. So just like a Lafayette and for
all this information about what you're doing, and we were all with
you, and a lot of comments you're very happy with hearing about what
you're doing here and putting out and may developing a character and
a lot of curiosity about your other DAU endeavors. So hopefully
we will
Crossroads again. cross paths again and I make dua for you.
Allah gives you a lot of Sofia can all of what you're doing. You got
a lot on your shoulders there not a lot of support in the Japanese
Dawa scene about men lots out to give you Tofik and bless your work
just like Hello, thank you very much. Thank you
speaking of Dawa, and, and Islam entering in places while we're
doing watching this someone sent said to me before you log off for
the day, you got to watch this little clip
on churches becoming mosques, not in Japan, I think it's in America,
but they but piggybacking off of what Professor Yamamoto was
talking about his experience in Japan, and with Japanese Muslims.
So I'm gonna listen to this. We're gonna listen to this, but I hope
the hope is not going to be cursing in here. So let's see.
This is Jeremy McClellan, an Irish comedian.
Generally has good attitude towards Muslims. But let's see
what he's saying here. Hopefully, the the internet isn't too slow.
And we could hear it.
Alright, it's buffering. And it's two minutes long. So we'll see.
In the meantime,
now, right, this is buffering, I don't know if it's gonna take
a long time.
What constitutes waste of time, according to the Maliki school,
says, Adam, I believe that is all stuffy. But then again, we do have
definitions for low alive.
law law is that which has no purpose in itself, but has a
purpose for something else. You could call most sports as live,
where in itself, there is no value, no meaning to kicking a
ball in the net, or shooting a ball through a hoop. But there is
a lot of the
other benefits, namely, friendship, exercise, teamwork,
then there's low has no benefit in itself, nor does it have a
secondary benefit. And that's like for example, a lot of lot of card
games games with dice board games, there's no real benefit in itself,
nor
secondary benefit. Unless you really try to stretch it out, like
really played mental gymnastics to show how it's beneficial. Most
video games I would probably say, Don't also our level, not live. So
if someone
plays basketball for an hour, every day, and another plays video
games for an hour every day, one of them is going to come out
healthy one of them is going to come out unhealthy. Right? So
that's the difference between live and low is not that's not like
that's the breakdown that I liked the most that I saw that I like
the most between playing and just wasting time. And playing is
forbidden when it obstructs what's more important than it low is
forbidden or discouraged. Absolutely. complete waste of time
is discouraged
or forbidden
Absolutely all right this video is not coming up because internet I
guess it's too slow here. But in any event let's
we're gonna wrap up right now. Just come along here and
everybody. We will be back tomorrow with tomorrow's guests
as a guest not as a host Paul Williams from blogging theology.
Thank you all very much this is Aqua locally and on Subhanak
Allahu Moby Dick Nisha Illa illa Anta staford According to Vedic
well acid in Santa Fe has 11 Medina meanwhile middle side hot
water was sober Huck was sober sober was Sarah money come
Rahmatullah?
know oh hello Google