Visitors to the Masjid in 2020 have shared with us their thoughts after the visit. Some of their comments and their photos can be seen below.
Comments from Visitors 2019 can be seen here.
Comments from Visitors 2018 can be seen here.
Comments from Visitors 2017 can be seen here.
Comments from Visitors 2016 can be seen here.
Comments from Visitors 2015 can be seen here.
Comments from Visitors 2014 and before can be seen here.
2020.11.21 Meijo University, Student
・Today’s lecture was beneficial for me since I learned how peaceful and fair Islam is. I would like to spread the truth about Islam here in this country, where there is a lot of misunderstandings.
・I realized that I never had a proper understanding of Islam. […]. I was surprised since I used to think Islam was much stricter (e.g. Halal), but rather they were having a life with freedom. I am happy with the knowledge about Islam I acquired today.
・To be honest, I had my life almost without knowing about Islam. […]. since I am studying in the faculty of foreign studies currently, I assume myself having a chance to meet a Muslim. I would try to remember the things we were taught today. Thank you for the talk today!
2020.11.7 Keio University, Student
» Details on their talks with SYM are HERE
・Thank you for showing us inside the Masjid today. I gained loads of knowledge which are not available by just reading books. This was my first time visiting a Masjid. The time there was very meaningful and almost every learnings were new for me. I would like to share the facts about Islam with Non-Muslims.
2020.11.3 Sugiyama Jogakuen University, Student
・I used to imagine Muslims having a hard time since they have to pray 5 times a day, cannot drink alcohol, and cannot eat pork. However, Muslims were not feeling like that in reality, so I realized it was nothing but a guess by us Japanese. It was a great lesson to know about what the Muslim youth are feeling daily. Thank You.
・Islam did not seem dangerous at all after listening to Ms. Sarah’s talk. I will try not to forget about thinking Islam and IS separately, and I also have to nurture media literacy. I felt is actually good that women are not being discriminated, rather they are treated fairly due to their capacity. I learned it is certainly not discrimination even for a housewife if they can be proud of it. It was surprising to know the fact headscarves has a mean of preventing troubles.
・Thank you for such a valuable lecture today. Islam is harsh to women! That was my impression before, so I surprised about the fact there is actually a lot of positive things for women. I am interested in Islam now. I would like to participate in the volunteer activity if there is a chance again.
2020.10.3 Sugiyama Jogakuen University, Student
・The difference between Islam and Christianity, the Quran and the Hadith were previously confusing for me, but the lecturer explained them in detail. I finally understood them clearly. It was wondering to know that actions differ by the one’s choice of Sunnah, this made me curious. I used to learn the severeness of discrimination against women in Islamic countries, but I am glad to know that this was totally a misconception.
・Certainly, Islam is widespread and there are many Muslims all around the world. Being able to practice the religion in each one’s capacity is very good. I imagined for an instance Ramadan, requiring a lot of endurance over and over. Therefore I am glad to know that it is not that harsh and rather it is an enjoyable act. I had stereotypes of Islam and learnt that they were wrong. I feared how unknowledgeable I was. I think it is awesome knowing the answers to the purpose of life. Thus, not being worried about it, since I guess we Japanese don’t have these ideas.
・I had a lot of misconceptions about Islam. I was amazed when I learnt the concepts of the 5 pillars, and it was not harsh as I expected it to be very strict. I am really grateful to learn facts like the fairness between men and women, Muslims being misunderstood as dangerous extremists, and many other things too. I think this was a great opportunity and I appreciate being a part of such an amazing experience.
2020.8.29 Group from Izakaya Restaurant “Zenchan”
・I usually pass by this mosque since I live near, and I have finally entered the place of prayer. I learned one of the facts about the mixture of worship and daily life. I pray for the future to always be “Assalam Alaikum.”
・The culture of Muslims was explained clearly, so I have learned a lot. I had learned about Sunnah and Shia a long time ago in geography class, but I never considered it from a religious perspective. I would like to know more about this. The Azaan which was done by a boy and the recitation in the prayer was astonishingly beautiful. I have certainly seen something good.
・Thank you for such a clear lecture. I think the assumption of Islam’s dangerousness is because of the newscast media. I am relieved by the fact that we are actually, all the same just wishing for peace.
2020.8.22 Nagoya University, Student
2020.8.21 Public High school in Nagoya, Teacher
・Today’s visit has totally changed my views toward Islam to be changed. I now have a deeper understanding of the types of Islamic veils like chador, also about the 2 denominations, and about Ramadan. I am currently in a position of teaching, so when I have to teach about Islam, I would like to convey what I have learned today. ・Since I am a teacher of World History, I thought I had enough knowledge about Islam. Today, the topics like “Allah”, “Prohibition of Shirk”, “The last prophet”, “the six articles of faith”, “the five pillars of Islam”, this fundamental textbook knowledge has been enhanced for sure. I realized that the vague image of “An oppressing religion against women” I had was derived from my personal internalization of western values. When I used to read books written by Masayuki Yamauchi, it was said “For men is the world, for women is the house”, so this might have made me think of the value of Islam’s teaching.2020.2.13 A Employee
・The Manga “Satoko and Nada” got me curious about Islam. I thought I had less prejudice against any religion since, I was raised in a family of Shinto, and I have a Chrisitan relative on my mother’s side, and I have a friend who is a Buddhist monk. Therefore, I was impressed by the beauty of the religion Islam when I was reading “Satoko and Nada”. But, at the same time, a question arose: How can people do such cruelty in a country of Islam or within some Muslims. […]. This question was cleared in this visit to Masjid Nagoya. […]. The other topics were also very interesting. It was also my first time to have a view of the Majid and the prayer. I feel like the culture of Islam is much closer and much familiar to me. It was a great experience. Today’s visit made me think, for sure, I want to deepen my knowledge of Islam more nowon. Thank you very much!2020.1.19 Nagoya NHK Culture Center of Arabic Class
2020.1.18 Ehime University, Student
・I am grateful for such a valuable opportunity you have given me this time. […]. Though it was my first time going to a masjid, not only Ms. Sarah but also some people greeted me with kind words, which made me very happy. Regarding Halal, the opinion from a perspective of Muslim made me notice that not all people are thinking affirmative about the business of Halal certification. I gained beneficial knowledge more than I expected.2020.1.4 Toyo University, Student
・[…]. The questions which I prepared were answered clearly. I became more curious about the activities of Masjid Nagoya. During the session, since I was enjoying it, I found myself forgetting about my thesis. Nonetheless, the Muslim youth are no different from me (born and raised in Japan), I felt frustrated about the fact many have misconceptions due to their lack of knowledge. If there is anything I can do I would like to put effort into promoting the importance of cross-cultural understanding.2018.11.17 Nagoya Gakuin University, Student
・I have a few Muslim friends, but I was able to deepen my understanding of Islam even more today by learning about things I cannot ask directly to them. I hope more people of Japan and the world will have an understanding of Islam.
・I had a prejudice against Islam that there is only a little freedom and have to obey the rules with no exception, but after listening to the talk today, I felt that Islam has a lot of freedom and that it’s flexible. I thought people would die from hunger because of fasting, but in reality, there are people that actually look forward to it, and I felt it is a month where everyone can become happy.
