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When one asks the Japanese what their religion is, many of them would answer they had no religion. On the other hand, when asked what the religion of their family is, they might answer "Buddhism", "Shinto" and so on, which means that the religion that each family has had since ancient times, for the purpose of worshiping their ancestors, has stayed with the household. This is not concerned with individual religious piety.
Shinto, which means "the way of God", is the indigenous religion in Japan, and a powerful symbol of Japanese cultural and national identity. The word "Shinto" is composed of two Chinese characters. " Shin" means God, and " to" means the way. Historically, Shinto descended from traditional Buddhism. Then, it evolved, influenced by Buddhism, into a religion in its own right. According to the myth of Shinto, the three Gods, who were all invisible, produced the eight islands of Japan. Today these Gods are objects of worship at shrines as symbols of our ancestors. The ancient people believed mountains, trees, rocks, the sun, moon, and rain all had Gods. They built shrines and temples to pray for good harvests, many children, and a long life. These served the same purpose as churches in Christianity; regular worship services were held there by believers.
The shrines were constructed in two main architectural forms. One of these architectural forms is made of wood and is a very simple style. The other is the domestic form which involved a rectangular worship hall, and a prayer hall. Many shrines were painted with cinnabar (red color) on the columns and white over the walls; also, they made a Torii as a gate for the shrines. Then, after they had passed through theTorii, they purified themselves by washing their hands and mouths in water basins.
Most Japanese go to shrines for the first worship of the year on New Year's Day. They pray for happiness, peace, and good health for the year. When approximately 30 days has passed after a baby is born, they also go to shrines to pray for the baby's good health. In November of each year, girls, age 3 and 7, and boys, age 3 and 5, are dressed up by their parents and taken to a shrine to be honored. Also, for the wedding ceremonies, Shinto is the first choice among couples getting married. Moreover, we have many kinks of festivals that are held at shrines.These are very important events for Japanese to live safely, entertain their ancestors and have abundant crops. On the other hand, most people seldom go to shrines unless these events are held. However, the Japanese consider shrines as places of celebration. In addition, even though many Japanese don't consider themselves religious, Shinto is an important part of life in Japan.
The UAE was established in 1971. It is located in the Middle East, on the coast of the Arabian Gulf. It contains seven emirates including Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. Abu Dhabi is the capital. The population in the UAE is approximately three million. Maybe one percent of the people are non Muslims. According to the concept of Islam, the Muslim treats them as Muslims. Also they have their own traditions and places to worship. Through this report, I hope to give you a clear picture of Islam in the UAE
The UAE has known Islam for thousands of years. There are some very old mosques. One of them is located in the northeast of the UAE, built by the old Muslims. After the country was established, Islam continues to be reflected in the structure of the buildings and the houses. Mosques are built in every area. There are approximately one or two in each neighborhood. Also there are many museums about Islam. For example, the Sharjah Islamic Museum is one of the biggest museums in the UAE, which houses old objects of Islam. Also, it gives us the old picture of Islam in the UAE.
About the government, all the laws and contracts between companies or individuals follow the instructions of Islam. In addition, the government has established a ministry for Islam and its laws. This ministry controls mosques, sends people to Hajj (holy place) helps the poor people, distributes Zkah (contribution to the poor Muslims), and other tasks related to Islam.
Muslims all follow certain rules, and these rules are for men and women equally. Muslims have to pray five times each day at specific times. This is one important thing in Islamic rules. In addition, they have to fast during the holy month, which is called Ramadan, during specific days each year. Also, they have to go to Hajj once in a lifetime, so they have to visit Mecca, which is located in Saudi Arabia. Moreover, they cannot tell lies. All of these are basic Islamic provisions.
Islam has many events and celebrations. For example Eid-alfitr comes after Ramadan and Eid-adha comes two months after the first event. For two these events, Muslims have special customs. For example, they wear new clothes, distribute supplies to poor people such as rice, meat, vegetables and other valuable things to help them face their poverty. The duration for each event is three or four days each year. Also in Eid-adha the Hajj journey ends and people come home from Mecca in Saudi Arabia. The relatives and neighbors visit the returning travelers to say hello.
Islam exists in the entire world and the number of Muslims is increasing, but there are some disadvantages, such as some people who are abusing the word of Islam. For sure people have heard about terrorism.
This gives you some information about Islam in my country. It is almost the same in all Muslim countries, the same events on the same days. I have told you about some of the basic elements of Islam, for example, Hajj, prayer and Zkah, and I hope you understand Islam in the UAE a little bit better now.
We wrote about religion in JAPAN and the UAE. We decided that our religions are almost totally different. We are going to compare some factors such as events, methods of worship, architectural structural form and the purpose of prayer.
Islam has many events such as Ramadan, Eid-alftir and Eid-adha. Each one has a special date on which it is celebrated About the worship, there is only one place of worship, which is called a mosque. Muslims go there five times each day to pray. Regarding the architectural structure, there is only one special design of the mosque and the purpose of prayer is to meet one of the Islamic requirements.
In Japan, we have lots of religious events such as celebration for baby's birth, children to be honored, and to have good harvests. Each person has his or her own individual date for these events, unlike the Islamic holidays. We believe three Gods produced Japan when Shinto was created. However, now we consider God as a symbol of our ancestors.The purpose of praying in Shinto is for good health, harvests, happiness, peace, many children and a long life. Our architectural structural forms are symbolized in two main halls and a Torii, painted a combination of red and white as a gate for the shrine.
As you can see, religions in JAPAN and the UAE have mostly differences, but they have one thing in common, which is both of these religions have a God which is very important to both Shinto in Japan and Muslims in the UAE.
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