Asian Transformations in Action - Api-fellowships.org

SPECIFICITIES OF GLOBALIZATION 185offered in initiating dialogue or contemplation amongstthe younger generation, and hence becoming a possiblecatalyst for their spiritual or psychological maturation,but he also lamented the fickle and fleeting sense ofopportunism within the popular media in Japan, veryquick in embracing such ‘spiritual icons’ when it servestheir own interests well, and readily cutting them downto pieces when it becomes ‘obligatory’ upon them todo so later.This was followed by an interview with Professor NaokiKashio, Associate Professor in the Faculty of Lettersat Keio University, specializing in “Spirituality inContemporary Japan” and one of the initiators of thewebsite Spiritual Navigator.My discussion with Professor Kashio yielded a veryinteresting point for consideration when he underlinedthat as Japanese society continued to evolve throughthe Bubble Economy-period, and the post-Bubbleperiod, the giri (obligation to the group or community)aspect of society remained very much intact, whilst theninjo (a sense of emotion or compassion) aspect largelydiminished and disappeared, belying the fact that giriand ninjo were dual aspects that went hand-in-handtraditionally, so much so that they were often referredto in tandem as giri-ninjo.To which I labored the point, if giri is so inevitable assomething fundamental to the ‘Japanese way,’ whatabout ninjo then—was it not also so inevitable assomething fundamental to the ‘Japanese way’?Next, I interviewed Mr. Nouki Futagami, Founderand Director of New Start, an NPO focusing on therecovery of hikikomori (acute social withdrawal) andNEETs (Not in Education, Employment or Training);and I also had a chance to attend one of New Start’snabe parties (like a steamboat or fondue party), where Imet and mingled with many who were recovering fromhikikomori.Talking to Mr. Futagami opened up a door to acompletely different, and ultimately sad and tragic,reality—that of the hikikomori. It is easy to dismissthem as weak-minded social escapists or the being partof the privileged curse of affluence, but the implications,I realize now, are much more devastating and outrightdisturbing to our sense of humanity.Mr. Futagami described how these young people havefallen into a state of ‘total absence of desire, hope orvolition,’ lost in a state of mental stasis, and how thisdisconnection can last for years, even beyond a decadeor so. And with more than a million people said to bein this state, is it not already a crisis of society? Whilehe was very emphatic about the positive results of themany initiatives and programs in New Start, as well asunderlining the government’s own extensive ‘outreach’programs in trying to return this million or so intothe local workforce, I was shocked to hear him admitthat these were all in fact programs for the ‘recovery orrehabilitation’ of the hikikomori, but there was hardlyany concerted nor significant effort to ‘prevent’ otheryoung people from sliding into this state of hikikomori,even now.I asked Futagami-san, “What happened here? Was ita case of someone leaving ‘a gate’ wide open, or was itmore like that there were ‘gates’ after ‘gates’ left open upto this point, and finally the last one was also breached?”He didn’t actually answer my question. He understoodmy point.I followed this up with an interview with ProfessorJohn Clammer from the United Nations University,who specializes in material culture and consumption inJapan.Professor Clammer affirmed the views similarlyexpressed by Professor Kashio, that while there issupposedly a “spiritual boom” right now in Japan,much of this boom, as reflected in TV programs such as“Aura no Izumi” and the nation-wide touring SpiritualConvention or SupiCon (with up to 60 conventionsheld across Japan throughout each year), is catering tomiddle-aged housewives searching for some meaning intheir lives after completing their chores of raising theirown children. But this “spiritual boom” is certainlynot speaking to, let alone reaching out to, the youngpeople so desperately in need of a spiritual dimensionwithin their lives or some sort of spiritual guidance ororientation.Finally, I rounded off all my interviews with a sessionwith Ms. Ritsuko Yamaguchi, Founder of MoodDisorder Association Japan, an NPO focusing on therecovery of people suffering from mood disorder anddepression.This last session with Ms. Yamaguchi was probablythe most heart wrenching and the most compellingof them all. Here I learned how there were in factmany filmmakers, especially documentary filmmakers,attending her mood disorder recovery programs. Someof them may be there to investigate depression andmood disorder, but many were seeking some sort of‘therapy’ for themselves.Asian Transformations in ActionThe Work of the 2006/2007 API Fellows