### Dr. Naoki Yamamoto: From Japan
Dr. Naoki Yamamoto was born into a Japanese Christian family that was not deeply religious. Although his parents read the Bible regularly, they did not engage in intensive religious practices. He enrolled at the prestigious Doshisha University and studied at the Faculty of Christian Theology, aspiring to become a priest.
At the age of nineteen, while searching for spiritual answers, he came across a small book of less than a hundred pages that spoke about God in a profound way. After finishing it, he discovered that the book was a Japanese translation of classical Islamic texts, authored by a prominent Japanese Muslim scholar. The book's message, which emphasized the truth of monotheism and the necessity of transcending the self and ego, deeply moved him.
He decided to contact the book's author and discovered that her husband was a professor at his own university. He sent him an email, and they agreed to meet at a small café near the campus. What happened next was surprising: as soon as the professor entered the café, he burst into tears. He later explained that his wife, the author, had passed away a year earlier due to cancer, and that reading Yamamoto's email reminded him of a prophetic hadith about a person's deeds continuing after death through beneficial knowledge, ongoing charity, and the prayers of righteous children. He realized that his wife was still alive through her knowledge.
These encounters prompted Yamamoto to study Islam more deeply. He received private lessons in Arabic and Islamic texts from that professor, then traveled to Egypt to join an intensive Arabic language program. There, just two or three days before his conversion, the decisive moment occurred.
During Ramadan, while returning to his small apartment in Cairo from language school, he saw the modest building doorman breaking his fast with only a single cucumber. When the doorman saw him, he offered him that sole cucumber with complete generosity. This simple gesture from a humble man who deeply believed in his religion, without expecting any reward or recognition, profoundly impacted him. Yamamoto says: "That cucumber is the reason I became Muslim."
He converted shortly after and returned to Japan, where he recited the Shahada at an Islamic center. He emphasizes that his conversion was not dramatic like a superhero movie, but rather the decision of an ordinary person who found truth in the simplicity of faith and its practical application.
Yamamoto completed his higher studies, earning a doctorate, and moved to Istanbul, where he now works as an assistant professor and lecturer at the prestigious Marmara University.
Yamamoto believes that what he admires most about Islam is the practical aspect and the real application of values, as embodied in the actions of the Egyptian doorman. He also thinks that one of the biggest challenges in Japanese society that Islam can help address is the problem of loneliness and isolation, citing high suicide rates. He considers the perseverance displayed by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) during the years of preaching in Mecca to be one of the most admirable qualities, especially in today's fast-paced and impatient world.
Dr. Naoki Yamamoto's story shows how a journey in search of truth, combined with sincere human encounters and the practical application of values, can lead to profound spiritual discoveries that transcend cultural and geographical boundaries.
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