Wang Lin

On the early morning of November 30th, I departed from smog-covered Beijing by the first flight and arrived in Zhuhai 3 hours later. I spent another hour on the bus and finally arrived at Beijing Normal University Zhuhai (BNUZ). On behalf of CAFIU, I attended the activities organized by the University marking the 20-year teaching of Mr. Takashi Naito in China, including “My Life—for Japan-China Friendship” Photographic Exhibition.

It is winter now. In north China, trees have withered, while in Zhuhai trees still shade the streets and flowers are in blossom. Located in the north part of Zhuhai City, the scenic campus of BNUZ is renowned as “the most beautiful valley campus in Asia”. I had no time to appreciate the fantastic scenery before the students led me to the Qiuzhen (seeking the truth) Kyudo Gymnasium where there is a competition between the Kyudo Department of BNUZ and the Kyudo Department of the United International College. When I stepped into the Gymnasium, a silver-haired energetic old man was walking towards me, Teacher Takashi Naito. We exchanged greetings and he guided me to the guest seat to watch the match.

The students were very attentive. Five players shot at the same time. The targets were 20 meters away. Each player could shot twice. Players were required to shoot the first arrows in turn and then the second. It was so quiet in the gym that we could hear the sound of drawing bows. Only when the arrows hit the targets, teammates would cheer for the players. I knew little about Kyudo, just as the saying “dilettante watch the scene of bustle”. However, I was touched by the students’ serious and strict attitude towards contest from which I could imagine their hard efforts in training.

Over 2pm, after the contest was over, we arrived at the library of the University to attend the opening ceremony of the Photographic Exhibition about Mr. Takashi Naito’s working experience in China. The CPC BNUZ Committee Secretary Tang Wei, Vice-President Wu Zhongkui, Consul-General of the Consulate General of Japan in Guangzhou Ito Koichi and other Japanese friends from Osaka University of Economics and Hokkaido Kyudo Alliance attended the activity. Secretary Tang Wei and Consul-General Ito and I respectively delivered a speech at the opening ceremony. Nearly 200 Chinese students of Teacher Naito attended the ceremony. They surrounded their Japanese teacher to express congratulations and take photos with him. You might be curious about what the silver-hair teacher have done in China.

                The Retired Teacher Engaged in Kyudo Exchanges

Professor Naito is an ordinary but great teacher. He was born in Tokyo in 1934 and is already 80 years old. After graduation, he had been teaching English at Sapporo 1st High School in Hokkaido, Japan. Being fond of Kyudo, he began to practice it. In 1966, he was already a Level-5 Kyudoist. Since the school established Kyudo department, Mr. Naito had been the Kyudo coach instructing the students in Kyudo practice. They also won the Kyudo championship in the Japan national high school sports meeting.

Since Mr. Naito and his wife visited China in 1978, their wish to further know about China had become stronger and stronger. They hoped to contribute to China’s education. For reasons, Mr. Naito had not realized his long-cherished wish until in 1995 when he retired from the high school. He was teaching Japanese in Tianjin Institute of Light Industry. In 1997, he was a visiting professor of Tianjin University of Sport and built the Qiushi Kyudo Gymnasium with his own savings and began to teach Kyudo.

I still remember attending the inauguration ceremony of the Gym with the then CAFIU Vice-President Zhang Xiangshan. Time flies. Professor Naito had been whole-heartedly engaged in teaching Kyudo for more than 10 years. In 2006, he came to BNUZ from Tianjin, where he built the Qiuzhen Kyudo Gym and bought Kyudo equipment with his own savings. Moreover, he also organized the Chinese student to visit Japan. The student would write down their feelings about every visit to Japan and made a memorial album. Professor Naito published a book named Learning Kyudo Easily for the Chinese students to learn Kyudo better. For more than a decade after he started to work in China, he did not receive any salary. The university just provided him with a dormitory and the accommodation subsidy of less than ten yuan per day, same as the students. But he did not mind at all. As the coach, he led by example. Although he was not as energetic as before, the old gentleman managed to get up at 4:00 am every day, start morning exercise together with his students in 6:00 am and train until 10:00 pm. Professor Naito believes that one should persevere in his attempts to achieve the goals, no matter how difficult it is. These ideas have long been running through his teaching. He said that Kyudo is not just about drawing bows and shooting arrows. Rather, etiquette and courtesy training is more important. Therefore, students who have studied Kyudo are better acquainted with manners. I deeply sensed that during my one-day stay in Zhuhai.

Professor Naito’s efforts were supported by BNUZ. Nowadays, practice of this sport is no longer limited to students of Kyudo department; it is an optional P.E. course for every student. Activities such as Mid-autumn Day Kyudo Gathering, Freshman Initiation Kyudo Gathering, Autumn Match and New Year Kyudo Gathering are held annually. A lot of students also visit Japan to study Kyudo with Professor Naito.

After instructing students in Kyudo practice for 30 years in Japan, Professor Naito has taught Kyudo for 20 years in China after retirement. His efforts are widely acclaimed by faculty and students alike. Tianjin Daily, Guangzhou Daily and Yangcheng Evening News have run reports of his work. In 2012, he was honored with Award of Foreign Minister of Japan for his contribution to China-Japan exchanges.

                Bridge Connecting Youth of the Two Countries

By carrying out exchanges, misunderstanding can be dissolved. To enable Chinese students to get a full picture of Japan, Professor Naito has organized them to visit Japan annually ever since 1999. During these trips, Chinese students exchanged ideas with Japanese college and high school students under the guidance of Professor Naito. In addition to Kyudo exchanges, they tell Japanese students about China and get first-hand experience of Japanese students’ daily life. These exchanges between Chinese and Japanese young people are conducive to their mutual understanding and friendship.

During their short visit to Japan, Chinese college students not only get to know about Japanese associations, but also observe the country with their own eyes and write down their feelings about the trip in the memorial album. These trips go on as usual quite effectively in spite of the difficult situation of bilateral ties in recent years due to Diaoyu Islands collision incidents and Japan’s “nationalization” of Diaoyu Islands. More than 20 students visited Japan with Professor Naito this August, exchanging ideas with students of several high schools and colleges from Osaka, Chiba and Hokkaido. They got to know Japan’s team spirit, saw the clean environment and advanced technologies of the country, and were delighted to find that the hospitality of the Japanese people was not affected by the difficulty in bilateral relations at all.

The 80-year-old Professor Naito now plans to retire from teaching and has informed BNUZ of his plan to return to Japan in one and half year. He has chosen a BNUZ senior Wang Fuxi as his successor. Wang Fuxi says that he applied for this university because he had read the reports about Professor Naito’s teaching of Kyudo there. As a Kyudo enthusiast, he wants to further study Kyudo in Japan after graduation and return to BNUZ to inherit Professor Naito’s mantle and further develop Kyudo.

Professor Naito is devoted to promoting China-Japan friendship. When being interviewed by Hokkaido News, he said, “Although there are disputes between Chinese and Japanese governments, why not rely on young people to bring a better future? It is my lifelong career to convey the etiquette of Kyudo and the Japanese culture at large to Chinese young people so as to do my part for China-Japan friendship. I will continue to serve as a bridge between the two countries and strive towards better prospects unswervingly with young people from both countries.”