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Intro
Who is Ahmed Maeno
What was the point that you became really convinced about Islam?
How is your families and friends reaction of your becoming Muslim?
Did they any of them embrace Islam after you still?
was the thing that couldn’t make sense to you in Buddhism, what couldn’t you find in Buddhism? If someone wants to search for Islam and write some questions about Islam in Google, what should he or she get in return?
What is the worst hardship that you go through n Japan about religion and living your life as a Muslim?
What was the best attribute of the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) that impressed you the most? What did you choose to become an Imam? What do you think the reason is to people attack Islam so violently, so ruthlessly? Is there anything you want to add?
#YoureNotMySonAnymore #JapaneseImam #CulturalJourney #FatherSon #UnconditionalLove #ReligiousNarrative #FamilyDynamics #IdentityCrisis #ImmigrantStories #MeetTheImam #CulturalIdentity #Fatherhood #EmotionalStory #SpiritualJourney #BreakingBarriers #CrossCultural #CulturalConflict #HeartfeltTales #LoveAndFaith
Intro
Who is Ahmed Maeno
What was the point that you became really convinced about Islam?
How is your families and friends reaction of your becoming Muslim?
Did they any of them embrace Islam after you still?
was the thing that couldn’t make sense to you in Buddhism, what couldn’t you find in Buddhism? If someone wants to search for Islam and write some questions about Islam in Google, what should he or she get in return?
What is the worst hardship that you go through n Japan about religion and living your life as a Muslim?
What was the best attribute of the prophet Muhammad (pbuh) that impressed you the most? What did you choose to become an Imam? What do you think the reason is to people attack Islam so violently, so ruthlessly? Is there anything you want to add?
#YoureNotMySonAnymore #JapaneseImam #CulturalJourney #FatherSon #UnconditionalLove #ReligiousNarrative #FamilyDynamics #IdentityCrisis #ImmigrantStories #MeetTheImam #CulturalIdentity #Fatherhood #EmotionalStory #SpiritualJourney #BreakingBarriers #CrossCultural #CulturalConflict #HeartfeltTales #LoveAndFaith
Category
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NewsTranscript
00:01What was the thing that couldn't make sense to you in Buddhism?
00:04How was your family's and friends' reaction when you were becoming Muslim?
00:08What is the worst hardship that you go through in Japan about practicing your religion?
00:13Then he started asking me, why you are still Muslim?
00:18Quit being a Muslim.
00:19I told him, no, I can't.
00:21Then finally he goes, okay, then you are not my son anymore.
00:30Who is Ahmed Maeno?
00:34Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.
00:36My name is Ahmed Maeno.
00:37My given name still is Naoki.
00:40I'm from Japan, originally from Aichi, which is the middle of Japan.
00:46I'm currently living in Chiba next to Tokyo and working in Tokyo.
00:50I'm one of the four imams of the Japan Muslim Association.
00:53My naf's ego, myself, awoke, woke up at the age of around 13 to 14 and then started asking myself, where did I come from?
01:04Where am I going to?
01:05And what am I living for?
01:07And since I was brought up in Japan, I was born and brought up in Japan, the atmosphere or the closest religion I found was the Buddhism.
01:16So I thought if I took that path of the Buddhism, especially the original path of the Buddhism, I thought I could reach to the answers for my quest.
01:28I once gave up finding truth through religions, but then I had the chance of going to Australia, Melbourne as an exchange student for about a year.
01:38Then during my stay there, alhamdulillah, I met one Egyptian family.
01:43They treated me very nicely.
01:46So knowing them through dealing with them, my biased viewpoint against Islam slowly melted away.
01:52So what was the point that you became really convinced about Islam?
01:56After coming to the conviction with Islam that this is the one I was always looking for, I still had fear and anxiety towards my future.
02:07Because I was one of them, one of those who look at Islam with biased viewpoint against.
02:14So I knew if I took the final step, you know, over coming across the red line of becoming and entering into the world of Islam and Muslims,
02:23how would I be looked at in Japanese society, in my own society, I would be looked at very strange, weird person.
02:32That was the last, the reason which made me of coming across the final line.
02:40But then watching the film of Malcolm X gave me the last push, encouraged me, alhamdulillah.
02:47Because as Malcolm X lived his previous life as gangster and committing all kinds of sins and whatever,
02:55then seeing how beautifully, how greatly he changed himself, his life into the life of someone like Saint,
03:03very straightforward person, and also seeing at the scenery of the Hajj, when he made a pilgrimage to Makkah, which astonished himself.
03:14So many people gather in many places for the purpose of watching soccer or dancing or the concerts, for the purpose of having fun.
03:24But people here, gathering here, so many people are gathering for the sake of worshipping one God.
03:30Is there any such place other than this place? I said, no.
03:34Then I finally understood, becoming a Muslim does not mean that you have to be a timid person.
03:43No, becoming a Muslim is something very cool, very cool and beautiful and great.
03:49Alhamdulillah, I took the final step and then embracing Islam.
03:53So the very night of that day, when I saw the film of Malcolm X, I consider myself, that was the time I embraced Islam.
04:02I returned back to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala, when I put my knees down and then put my foreheads on the floor and prayed to Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala.
04:12How was your family's and friends' reaction of your becoming Muslim?
04:16Well, they misunderstood. Although I told my parents my story of coming to Islam from A to Z, but they misunderstood.
04:25Yeah, then that's why in the beginning there was no problem, actually.
04:29But then when social issue happened in Japan appeared, obviously that was due to some fanatic cult called Oumu, those who threw the killing poison inside the subway trains of Tokyo.
04:48Although it was nothing to do with Islam, they gave a very negative, bad image against having a faith whatsoever, having a particular religion whatsoever.
05:01So then there comes matter and issue of ignorance or not knowing about Islam.
05:07They thought Islam could be the same or very similar to such fanatic people.
05:13When I was wanting to take permission from my father to go study abroad in Kuwait for the sake of, you know, learning Arabic language, I was already entering a university, majoring Arabic language in Osaka.
05:29Then he said, no.
05:31Then he started asking me, why you are still Muslim?
05:36Quit being a Muslim.
05:37I told him, no, I can't.
05:39Dad, you know that ever since I became Muslim, did I become nuts?
05:44Did I become worse than before?
05:47He knows inside himself, it's not.
05:50I mean, his son, you know, didn't become any worse.
05:54Then finally he goes, okay, then you are not my son anymore.
05:59So that was very shocking statement.
06:01But since I was still, although I was having a part-time job and so on, but still somehow dependent to my parents, so I had to find some other way to go on my life.
06:13Then next day I went to the masjid in Kobe, then concerted my program with the Egyptian imam.
06:21Then he gave me a recommendation letter to Egyptian embassy to get a scholarship in Azhar University.
06:29So I posted that letter to Egyptian embassy, then went back to my parents and then sat together with my parents with all calm atmosphere.
06:41And then, alhamdulillah, I found my parents okay accepting me again.
06:46So alhamdulillah.
06:47Did any of them embrace Islam after you still?
06:52Unfortunately not.
06:53My father, who passed away, although his latter time before dying, he even told me that if I start living with you, I will be ready to embrace Islam or something.
07:05But my family circumstance didn't allow that.
07:09What was the thing that couldn't make sense to you in Buddhism?
07:13What couldn't you find in Buddhism?
07:15One of those is reincarnation.
07:20Reincarnation is the thought started from India.
07:24And as you know, Buddhism was the successor of Hinduism.
07:28Or even the Buddha himself was considered to be revolutionist of the Hinduism.
07:33So the reincarnation is to see that you have the spirit, you have the soul, and this soul is never going to die.
07:43And remains in this world through many kinds of shapes, depending on your works, depending on what you do.
07:51So the previous life, you might have been animal or insects or whatever.
07:58And then according to your deeds here, this life, you may be different creatures.
08:04You may be a human being, or you may be different creatures after this life.
08:09And likewise, unless you reach the Nirvana, unless you reach the true understanding of this whole universe,
08:17and then get out of the reincarnation cycle, you continue that way.
08:22That is how the thought of reincarnation sees.
08:26So the question goes, then the numbers of people are different from time to time.
08:32So if you say that the soul is keep living, keep reborn, keep giving a rebirth to another,
08:39how can you match those?
08:41And what's more was the reason which stopped me from becoming a monk,
08:46which is to separate completely from the sacred and the normal life or daily life.
08:55Yeah, they completely separate, differentiate between the life of faith and daily lives.
09:01So there you find the contradictions.
09:02If someone in Japan wants to search for Islam and write some questions about Islam in Google,
09:10what should he or she get in return?
09:13Well, there are, alhamdulillah, many.
09:16So depending on how deep he or she is interested in knowing Islam,
09:21but very unfortunately, there is some books written by some orientalists
09:29who wants to, you know, spread the hatred against Islam among Japanese people.
09:36Those books are like bestsellers, sellers of these days, something, unfortunately.
09:41So they may be the first medias that they would find, I guess.
09:47What is the worst hardship that you go through in Japan about practicing your religion
09:53and living your life as a Muslim?
09:55Currently?
09:55Yeah.
09:56Now?
09:56Generally.
09:56Well, I would say lack of helping hands because, like, I have, alhamdulillah, five children,
10:03but, you know, we don't have, I mean, my family, including myself, seven people,
10:09the only Muslims amongst my families and relatives.
10:13So as the case of my wife.
10:15So we don't have families, hands of families to take care of.
10:20Community.
10:21Yes.
10:21Or even the community.
10:23I am living in the place called Giotoku in Chiva, where comparatively many Muslims are living.
10:30But to my eyes, Muslims are gathering at times of prayers, but for their private lives,
10:36I don't see any links or, you know, bonds.
10:42You don't find company in your daily life with the other Muslims so much.
10:46What was the best attribute of the Prophet, alayhi salatu wasalam, that, you know, impressed you the most?
10:51His mercy.
10:52Especially at the time he was coming back from Ta'if, trying to call for the people of Ta'if,
10:58but being thrown the, you know, stones and against act.
11:02Then when he was offered by the angel of the mountain to, you know, crush them,
11:08what he said, subhanAllah, resound.
11:10And perhaps there might be generations after them, those who would believe in one God.
11:16SubhanAllah.
11:17Why did you choose to become an imam?
11:20Because no one is doing.
11:22There are, subhanAllah, very few states even as Muslims.
11:27There are many people who pronounce the shahada, shahada thing.
11:30But Allah knows, God knows how they become after it, after the shahada.
11:36Because there is no system established for taking care of them afterwards, following up.
11:43There is no, you know, and those, especially those who are coming from outside of Japan,
11:48those who are enthusiastic in Dao activities,
11:51they call people and then when they find people giving shahada,
11:56they go after another target without taking care of the new ones.
11:59Well, when I was still young, you know, after becoming a Muslim,
12:04there are very limited graduates of the Islamic studies from my elders.
12:10But because I was, I think that was one of the reasons why I felt distant from their activities.
12:17You know, I was not living in Tokyo, so many of them in Tokyo
12:20and very few activities of them reached me, reached people, a person like me.
12:27So, I question myself, although they've learned and they've given the opportunity
12:32to learn the deen of Allah to the heart of a young star like myself that time,
12:37they're not doing good enough.
12:39They're not, you know.
12:40But of course, later on, I understood that everyone has, you know,
12:43their own life and they're too busy for their daily lives.
12:46But that time, they're not working good enough.
12:49I mean, they're not making their best efforts or whatever.
12:52So, then if no one is going to do, I have to do it.
12:57What do you think the reason is that people attack Islam so violently, so, you know, ruthlessly?
13:02What is the reason?
13:03Even in Japan, you see the results of this.
13:05In my opinion, one of the reasons for that is because they know, they understand that Islam is true.
13:13And because they understand straight away inside themselves, after knowing, recognizing Islam as truth,
13:21they know that they have to accept it.
13:24But if they accept it, it will be a burden on them.
13:28So, they act with hatred and, you know, against it.
13:33Because, you know, without the teachings and the education of Islam,
13:38our nafs becomes very fat and huge and, you know, powerful against us.
13:45Is there anything you want to add?
13:47Oh, please.
13:48If you were a man, a brother and sister, please don't forget to pray for me and for my family
13:57and especially for my mother's Islam and also the mother of my wife and my brother and kinship
14:06and all, you know, similar circumstance, people like our parents.
14:14Many of the parents of people like me, believers or converts, are still not Muslims.
14:20So, please pray for us.
14:23Jazakumma khaira.
14:27Jazakumma khaira.
14:28Jazakumma khaira.
14:29Jazakumma khaira.
14:30Jazakumma khaira.
14:31Jazakumma khaira.
14:32Jazakumma khaira.
14:33Jazakumma khaira.
14:34Jazakumma khaira.
14:35Jazakumma khaira.
14:36Jazakumma khaira.
14:37Jazakumma khaira.
14:38Jazakumma khaira.
14:39Jazakumma khaira.
14:40Jazakumma khaira.
14:41Jazakumma khaira.
14:42Jazakumma khaira.
14:43Jazakumma khaira.
14:44Jazakumma khaira.
14:45Jazakumma khaira.
14:46Jazakumma khaira.
14:47Jazakumma khaira.
14:48Jazakumma khaira.