A Book That Tells Us about Jewish Spirit and Japanese Spirit

Categories: Japan & Jews ,Japanese History (Culture)

Abstract

Abstract: A Book That Tells Us about Jewish Spirit and Japanese Spirit
This essay, written by Nishimura Shingo, Member of the House of Representative, is a preface for a book authored by Eli-Eliyahu Cohen, former Israeli Ambassador to Japan. The book is entitled " Joseph Trumpeldor, Zionist hero ― It is great to die for the country: The Jewish sprit ignited in Japan "
Trumpeldor fought against General Nogi’s Third Japanese Imperial Army at Port Arthur as a Russian officer and was imprisoned at Camp Hamadera, Osaka prefecture, which happens to be Mr. Nishimura’s hometown. “It is great to die for the country” is what Trumpeldor inscribed in his heart while spending time as a POW at Hamadera Camp, what he told to his comrades just before his death and what now reads, inscribed on the stone statue of a lion standing in front of his epitaph in Tel Hai in the northern part of Israel, where he fell in battle.
Mr. Nishimura mentions a comment from a European: “The 20th century saw the valiant Japanese warriors turn into mean merchants and mean Jewish merchants into valiant warriors.” Through this book, we must now learn from Trumpeldor in order to become valiant warrior again, Mr. Nishimura emphasizes.
An interesting episode is introduced in this essay. He met Mr. Nahum Admoni, former Director of Mossad and his wife Nina in Jerusalem. Nina told him:
“Seventy years ago, when I was seven, fleeing from Nazis, I escaped Europe with my parents, crossed Siberia and boarded a boat, arriving at Tsuruga, Japan. Then, we stayed in Kobe for a while. I never forget how kind Japanese people were to us Jews then.” As she was telling me her story, Nina’s beautiful blue eyes were filled with tears.
Even though Japan allied with Germany, Japan never persecuted Jews but helped many Jewish refugees. Sugihara Chiune is only one example of many cases, including Tojo Hideki, Higuchi Kiichiro, etc. It is ridiculous that some Chinese leaders compare Tojo Hideki to Hitler!