Ahmad
Hello everyone. Assalam Alaycom Wa Rahamat Allah Wa akatoh.
Just now I'm going to start the semi-panel discussion by Muslims speaking Japanese language. I said Muslim speaking Japanese language, because one of us doesn't have Japanese parent, but he was born and raised in Japan. He participates instead of the member who couldn't participate because of his physical condition today. He will introduce himself later. The theme of this semi-panel discussion is "Who did you influence your faith?" The main theme of the 10th International Seminar on Prophet Muhammad (SAW) held by Japan Muslim Peace Federation is "The Prophet Muhammad (SAW), he is the most Influential person in the history of mankind." I chose them of this semi-panel discussion because it relates to the main theme of this Seminar.
Then, please inform me of your name, your company name, place of birth, the number of years since you converted or got awareness as a Muslim.
Asad
Assalam Aliekum. I'm Asad Kimura. I'm a Master's degree freshman at the University of Tokyo graduate school. I converted to Islam 2 years ago when I was a junior in a college. I'm from Toyama prefecture. Nice to meet you.
Sgingo
Assalam Alaycom. I'm Ogura Shingo. I work for the automobile related company which Turkish people run.
I converted to Islam 16 years ago. I'm 33 years old. So I can spend half of my life as a Muslim a little more later. I’m from Tochigi prefecture, but I live in Saitama prefecture now. Nice to meet you.
Ahuddary
Assalam Alaycom Wa Rahamat Allah Wa Barakatoh.
I'm Ahuddary. I'm a born Muslim, 17 years old and a senior in high school. Because I'm a Muslim with consciousness since I was born, I have been a Muslim for 17 years. I'm nervous because I was asked to join this discussion suddenly. Nice to meet you.
Amin
Assalam Alaycom. I'm a Master's degree freshman at the University of Waseda graduate school. My father is Pakistani and Mother is Japanese. I said that last year, I feel like I converted about 3 years ago. Nice to meet you.
Nana
I'm Darwish Nana. I sell scarves and clothes for Muslima on the net. I'm a born Muslim. My father is Japanese and mother is Iraqi. My mother from Damascus and raised there, but she is Iraqi. I had consciousness 6 or 7 years ago. Nice to meet you.
Nobue
Assalam Alaycom. I'm Shouji Nobue. My Muslim name is Almers. I'm Japanese and raised in Tokyo. I converted to Islam 5 years ago. I'm eager to learn various things such as the Quran for the last couple of years. Nice to meet you.
Akiko
Assalam Alaycom. I'm Japanese from Tokyo and raised there. I felt many times that I was guided by something about 15 years ago. I wondered what it is. I met my husband 5 years ago. Also my husband is Japanese. He was not a Muslim. Both of us were not Muslim, I guess something guided us, We got married. We didn't have information about Islam at that time, we did our best to gain information on the net. We noticed that Allah is the only true God and Qur’an is correct 5 years ago, when we got married. We tried to pray by ourselves. As a result of my mother's death we contacted Masjid to learn correct prayer sincerely 1 year ago. I'm still a new Muslim and I don't know many things, but I want to tell my story on my own. Nice to meet you.
Reem
Assalam Alaycom. I'm deaf since I was born. I can't speak so well by myself. Today 2 sign language interpreters will help me tell my thoughts. I'm Reem from Japan. My city name is secret. I converted to Islam 10 years ago. But I wanted to convert since I was a child. I feel like I'm a Muslim since I was a child. Nice to meet you.
Ahmad
Thank you. I'm Ahmad Maeno, I'm in charge of moderator and panelist today. I'm from Aichi prefecture. I converted from Buddhism to Islam when I was 18 years old. it was 23 years ago. Because the time I'm a Muslim is longer than the time I was an ordinary Japanese, some people may think of me as not Japanese. I work for Japanese Petroleum and Gas exploration company beside The Imperial Palace at Tokyo. Nice to meet you.
it's the first question. I want to ask you before the main theme "who had influenced your faith?" I think there are various steps of the influence on your faith. Please tell me who gave you the first opportunity to have the faith of Islam, or to have consciousness as a Muslim.
Asad
The reason I started to have faith of Islam is that I was in the kindergarten which Cristian managed. As a child I was afraid of dying, why I was born, what will happen when my parent will die, where I came from and I will go after death. Only the idea that there is the only true God who created me, can answer to such matters. I think the Christian missionary who taught me that idea, gave me the first opportunity to have the faith of Islam.
Shingo
I'm worried that it may be a love story, the person who gave me the first opportunity to have the faith of Islam, is my wife. When I was 16 years old I went to Pakistan and I converted to Islam. At that time, somehow, I feel Islam and believing in Allah are good things, and I didn't have much deep feelings. I met a woman who will be my wife and she taught me various things about Islam. So she gave me the opportunity to have the faith of Islam sincerely.
Ahuddary
As I said I was a born Muslim. I think that the most influential person for me is my parent. Both father and mother are Pakistani. My father is Hafiz who remembers all of the Quran. In my house, the influence of Islam was strong, I felt I was not in Japan but abroad. Since I was a child I'm living with Islam.
Amin
I said that I felt like I converted about 3 years ago. Until the first and second grade of the college I couldn't have a good image on Islam. At that time, I was able to meet a young Muslim in my college, he is a little older, one of his parent is Pakistani like me. At first I avoided him, but we had some same lessons, that's why we could make friends. I began to think that he was cool, and I was influenced from him. I thought that it's impossible to be a Muslim and to be cool at one time, so I was amazed that he is cool even he is a Muslim. I became interested in Islam. At that time I had a Japanese friend who converted to Christianity. He was very religious and avoided drinking alcohol and adultery. The people practicing religion eagerly became role models for me. Then I could feel familiar with Islam.
Nana
The person who had the most influence on me was, unfortunately, not my parent. It may be a love story, the person is my husband. He is Iraqi. My parent were old fashioned Muslims. They didn't explain well since I was a small child. They would order like that and force me. "You must do this like this, then do like this. Why don't you do like this? Why wouldn't you do like this?" I was afraid that and just followed their words, I was a Muslim in name only. I disliked that when I was a teenager, so I wanted to live more freely like other Japanese teenager. For a few while I quarreled with parent and said. "I don't have any relation with Islam at all and I'm not a Muslim anymore!" Still I was born and raised as a Muslim, so I thought that I had to marry Muslim absolutely, although there is contradiction. Because it was forbidden to have male friends, I requested my parent to get married soon. So I met my husband. Unlike other Muslims, my husband would watch silently and gently. I surely thought that he would act like the traditional Muslims in the Middle East. "I will go out at night normally, I will play with my friends, I do never accept any instructions from you!" He said, "Good, go ahead please." I thought "Is there such a Muslim really?" Now I'm with my husband for 10 years and we have children. He gave me the time to think slowly and understand deeply. He is a role model and respected Muslim for me. I also wanted to become a Muslim who shows actions and doesn't force with only words like him.
Nobue
I became a Muslim 5 years ago. But I met an influential person for my faith 15 years ago. At that time, I was an office worker, but I had a dream of running my own company. Then I met a Muslim businessman. He is a born Muslim. His company just started up. He studied business in the United States. Because it was a start up company, we would talk about business all day long. I would eat and drink with the co-workers of his company many times. In that talking I heard teaching of Islam when there was big obstacle in our business. At that time I didn't notice that it was a teaching of Islam. Before I knew about Islam I was supported by the teachings of Islam and I was able to work hard. Now I run my company on my own. I think studying for a few years at that time became the foundation to convert to Islam.
Akiko
The influential person for my faith is, he isn't a human, but Allah after all. I felt like that I was led by something powerfully from about 15 years ago. For example, no matter how much effort I made, I couldn't achieve the goal, but as a result it was good for me. I worked as a secretary, but it was harsh, human relations too. At that time my mother got breast cancer. I didn't tell it to anyone, I did my best alone. I didn't show my sorrow, I worked very hard. I couldn't tell anyone, even I got Meniere illness, I couldn't sleep and I couldn't show my sorrow. Because I'm a woman I didn't want to lose my job, I didn't show weakness to anyone, anyway, I was a great hard worker. I tried my best and I cried at one time. At that time I said those words while I was on my way to the company and home, I was working, going to sleep and crying, "Please guide me, Please protect me, Please give the best way for me." I was desperate. I thought that there are gods. But it's not Buddhism probably, since I hadn't learned anything, I thought that Christ may be gods. I liked also gospel, when I heard them tears came out, it healed me. I felt that I was guided by something. I thought that absolutely there must be gods. I made a vow to some gods, because I am a human being, so I went to shrines or temples, washed money in Japanese traditional religious place, thought of the stones as power stones and read some books about supernatural. I thanked all kinds of gods. The reason why I'm going well is because there are some gods and my ancestors, and they protect me. I had to thank them. I went, prayed, I thought that if something led me to the good way, I would have to thank them. If these gods accepted my prayer and led me to the good way, I have to be grateful to them. I wondered whom I should thank. I thought that it's Christ. I wanted to go to the Mass, but I hesitated to go because I was afraid that I may be immersed in the church thoroughly and I may marry Christian there. At that time, I met my husband when I thought of going to the Mass. I was a career-oriented woman, I thought it was my life to work without getting married like this. I asked gods. If I can have a family, give me a life partner before I would live as a career-oriented woman. If It's better to live alone, please led me so. Oh gods, please decide for me, I was desperately trying to ask, then I met my husband. I talked my whole story to my husband. He understood it sensuously. He read the books about Buddhism all the time when he was a small boy. He wondered what the person and this world is made of. He wondered for anything. He studied about the history, quantum mechanics, science, universe, big bang, but he couldn't understand about gods, and he thought whether Christ may be gods or not. Then he met me. We could accept each thoughts and immediately we got married. We really seriously studied about God together, I found the Hadith and the Qur’an. When we followed historical people and events, we understood it's not a myth. It’s the truth, not a legend. 5 years ago we thought that the Qur’an and the Hadith are truth, we wanted to thank Allah, we started to live based on them. I learned about acts such as Duaa and people such as Muhammad(SAW). I'm impressed now, we are trying hard to practice faith.
Reem
I watched at Egyptian TV program by chance when I was a small child, I could hear Azan. I couldn't explain it well, but I felt calm and comfortable. I wondered what this music was, I thought it was good anyway. Later I noticed it was Azan. After that, when I was a student of the college, I met an international student from Egypt. At that time I had a very bad image on Islam. I thought that Islam suppresses women. Anyway I thought Islam is bad for women. The international student explained that it's different totally. Islam is good for women. For example when they married, men have to give money to women and do many good deeds for women. I thought that Islam was different from my imagination at that time. I was impressed so much. Then I said to my friends that I wanted to convert to Islam. I asked them what I should do. All my friends gathered. They said that all of them wanted to help me to convert. When I heard that, I became very happy and I learned that Islam is that everyone would support for brothers and sisters. I wanted to believe in Islam. I don't know the reason but I liked Egypt very much since I was a small child. I was interested in Egypt. I majored in Egyptian ancient history at the college. After that I met my husband. My husband is an Egyptian, he can hear. Before I met my husband, another man told me. "I can't marry you because you can't hear." I was shocked. But my husband said, "You certainly can't hear, but you believe in Islam. You can't hear because God may want to protect you from bad words. In order to protect you God would take sounds from you." I was very touched and very happy. Then I wanted to learn Islam. That was the huge opportunity for me.
Ahmad
Yeah it's very wonderful. I'm glad to hear that, thank you for your love stories. Also I relate to Egypt. When I was 17~18 years old I studied in Melbourne-Australia as an exchange international student. And I met an immigrant girl from Egypt, she gave me an opportunity for Islamic faith. It was the first time for me to meet Muslim in my life.
In my case I couldn't make it a love story. Because of the wisdom of God I couldn't get married to her, and now I'm blessed with my wife from Japan and 5 children. When I was 14 years old, I wanted to know the answer of the question where I come from and where I'm going to. I wanted to know about that from the bottom of my heart. I wanted to be a monk of Buddhism, but I couldn't. Later I tried to find the truth on my own, I didn't think that Islam is the truth. I was such a person. She was the first influential person for my faith.