Japan Edukaizen Trip 2017: Day 5 - Keiyaki-No-Sato, Little Edo and Tokyo Camii

Our first visit for the day was to Keiyaki No Sato, a center for mentally disabled persons, mainly those with autism. It was in Saitama prefecture and so we had to leave very early in the morning. Upon arrival, we were taken on a tour of the site, which included buildings for accommodation and for skills based work like carpentry. The guide told us that the government is starting to feel the financial strain of operating centers like this, and so many centers are closing down and those that remain only take those who really have nobody to take care of them and are not independent. Many have very old parents who themselves need help with self-care, let alone care for disabled adult children.

We met adults with a range of mental disabilities. Some hopped around vigorously when they saw us, others were shier and quieter. Those with mild autism worked in the adjacent building, doing repetitive tasks like stapling pieces of wood in a specific order. After that we went to another site further away, which had a building like a dorm, but homelier than the previous one. We also saw some of the occupants doing cloth work either by hand or using a loom. Most of us bought some of the items they made like little purses, mats and mittens, not so much because we needed them, but as a show of support, moral and maybe financial, for the caretakers and the occupants themselves.  The guide was kind enough to let us use one of the rooms upstairs for prayer. The room however was extremely cold as the heater was not switched on. We quickly prayed and made our way downstairs and back into the bus for some warmth. We bade farewell to the guide for taking the time to show us around and explain everything in detail, and resumed our journey to our next destination, Kawagoe, also known as Little Edo.

One of the features of a great nation is that those who are weak in society are taken care of. Although there seems to be a stigma associated with mental illness in Japanese society (like many others around the world), the government tries its best to provide the necessary care for them so they are not left neglected just like that. It may be the case that this stigma and the associated lack of care for the disabled are more prominent in cities. Perhaps it isn’t too farfetched to claim that people in very busy metropolitan cities like Tokyo tend to care less about others because they don’t have the time to do so, while in the suburbs and the country, close knit communities made up of individuals with a strong sense of affinity to their families and community mitigate this problem. Here in Malaysia, our awareness towards the needs of disabled people is improving, which is good, but there is still much room for improvement. People suffering from disabilities, whether mental or physical, might need lifelong support, but with adequate help from society and the government in the form of basic support and suitable work programmes among other things, they can lead fulfilling lives without losing hope that nobody would care for them once their carers, usually their parents, are gone. The first step is to accept them as a part of society like everyone else, and for that, we need a community with a deep sense of empathy.

Kawagoe

Kawagoe, a city in Saitama prefecture is also called Little Edo because most of its buildings are from the time of the Edo dynasty. One feels as if one has travelled back in time when one walks in the city. Since it was difficult for Mak Tok to walk long distances, she, accompanied by Afiq decided to ride on one of the many rickshaws offering tours around the city, while the rest of us walked. Kak Huda and I walked much further ahead of our group to explore more of the city’s iconic buildings and architecture. Most of the houses on the main street were now shops selling all kinds of things. Kak Shaz explained that real Edo-themed houses were known to have many sliding doors properly aligned so that if all the doors were opened, one could see the garden all the way at the back of the house. 

Old bell tower

After exploring all the nooks and crannies of the city whilst taking photos, Kak Huda and I rejoined our group, most of whom were either shopping, or seated outside the shops, too tired to walk. Kak Shaz suggested we buy knives since the prices here were comparable to the same type of knives elsewhere. These were not any normal knives. The last time I came to Japan, I bought Kyocero ceramin knives, which are really sharp, but not suitable for daily use involving rough cutting and chopping because the knives can chip easily. So this time, I decided to buy normal metal knives but they’re not your usual mundane knives you can get in any shop. These knives are specially made by families who were in the business of making Samurai swords. Since there are not many Samurai left in the world, the families have had to look for ways to sustain their business and venture into different markets, and what better item to produce than knives given their ability to make swords! Every knife is engraved with the surname of the family that made it, which gives it a special feel. I bought two such knives. On the way back to the bus, we bought some black coloured sesame seed ice cream since it looked exotic, but did not taste very nice. Once of all of us got onto the bus, we made our way back to Tokyo, specifically to Tokyo Mosque, to meet another great luminary involved in da’wah, Imam Sulaiman Akira Hamanaka.

Tokyo Mosque

Tokyo Mosque, also called Tokyo Camii, is the main mosque of Tokyo. It was built and continues to be maintained using funds from the Turkish government, hence the name Camii. Although it is the main mosque, it is not very big. Many of our suraus are bigger. It consists of 2 floors, with the main prayer hall on the 2^nd floor, accessible from the outside directly via a stairway leading to the balcony outside the prayer hall. The architecture is distinctly Turkish, and although Dr MAZA is an advocate for mosques to retain the architecture of their own culture, he said that having a mosque with such magnificent ‘Islamic’ architecture can be a source of attraction for the Japanese to come and visit the mosque. We prayed Maghrib and combined Isyak to it and then went downstairs to have a short discussion with Imam Hamanaka and sister Yuki, a local Japanese Muslim who works part time at the mosque while studying at one of the local universities. The discussion had to be brief because according to Dr MAZA, if we were in the mosque when the azan of Isyak is given, then the men must join the prayer, even if we’ve prayed Isyak already earlier together with Maghrib.

Sister Yuki, who is conversant in English, told us that on a regular week day, they receive about 20 local visitors who wish to learn about Islam, while on weekends that number can soar to more than 100. There were other volunteers too, mostly foreign Muslim students studying in Japan. After a brief chat with sister Yuki, we adjourned to one of the bigger rooms to speak with Imam Hamanaka, who is actually the Imam of Shikoku Island Mosque. He happened to be in Tokyo because he was supposed to receive the badminton delegation lead by Datuk Norza later that night. Imam Hamanaka converted to Islam 50 years ago when he was on a vacation in Malaysia. He then studied in Malaysia in one of the madrasas for a period of about two years (hence his fluency in Bahasa Malaysia) and went back to Japan to spread Islam. He is the founder and administrator of islamjp.com, which contains information about Islam in Japanese, for the reference of Muslims and non-Muslims proficient in the language. He met Dr MAZA when he came for the sunnah conference in Perlis some months earlier, and then met again him again when Dr MAZA went to Japan a few weeks prior to our trip as part of an official delegation from Perlis lead by the Raja Muda of Perlis. It was comfortable to hear him speak because he spoke in BM, talking about the issues faced by young Muslims in Japan. Among them was the lack of opportunity to study Islam properly, especially for new converts. Not many Muslims live near Tokyo mosque since housing in the area is quite expensive. A lack of funds means it is difficult to hire teachers and open more centers of Islamic studies. As a result, many Japanese Muslims are weak in both knowledge and practice of Islam. Imam Hamanaka admits this problem affects his own children. Even though he himself is an imam, he echoes the same sentiment of Imam Sugimoto whom we met in Shizuoka, that the environment makes it difficult for Japanese Muslims to appreciate the need to study and anchor themselves properly to the religion.

Dr MAZA had a few questions about their funding and the rights to print the Japanese translation of the Quran, currently held by the Muslim Council of Japan. After some further discussion on some other issues of mutual importance to us as individuals of the Muslim ummah, we decided to make a move. Dr MAZA, in his capacity as the mufti of Perlis, offered to sponsor students on short term and long-term study in Perlis, expenses fully paid except for flight tickets to and from Malaysia. They were very grateful for the offer and I believe Perlis under the guidance of Dr MAZA will be able to help them for the sake of Islam, insya Allah.

We bade them farewell. I wished I had brought more copies of my book to donate to Tokyo Camii, especially since sister Yuki said she was thinking of writing story books for children, which are scarce in Japan. Perhaps another time insya Allah.

Tokyo Camii

Imam Hamanaka speaking to us in fluent Bahasa Melayu

Night shopping

After our visit to Tokyo Camii, we went back home to our hotel to freshen up. We had our bento dinners and then went shopping together buying different things. The fruits, especially the strawberries were so fresh. We ate most of them on the way back. I spotted a funny phone cover like the one below.

Mampuihla siapa beli phone cover ni....

Muhaimin and I decided to walk home with Dr MAZA, who had explored the surrounding area the night before. We almost got lost, but thankfully, Dr MAZA’s acute sense of direction helped us get back to our hotel safe and sound. It was quite alarming to see people coming out of offices at 10 o’clock at night. No wonder Kak Shaz despite her love for Japan, says if given the opportunity, she wouldn’t work in Japan. The expectation of bosses for their workers to work as long as they have life in them – and this is no exaggeration, people have died from overwork – is taking a toll on the well-being of the whole society. There needs to be a balance in everything we do, and here again is where I think Islam can offer something to the Japanese. They are excellent in almost all things they do, achieving what we call ihsan. But Islam will give them a compass, to guide them and tell them that they are servants of Allah, not servants of men, and thus should live balanced lives according to how Allah has ordained man to live for security of spirit, mind and body.