Is it the lost tribe of Israel?

by Farzand Ahmed, India Today, November 6, 2006

A recent study has traced the origin of Afridi Pathans in a small town of Uttar Pradesh to the biblical 'lost tribes' of Israel. But the Pathans are not ready to accept themselves as Jews.Malihabad, the small orchard town on the outskirts of Lucknow, will appeal to your senses straightway. While it is renowned for the sweet and fragrant Dussheri mango, the place has given birth to some of the finest Urdu and Persian poetry. And its claim to fame does not end there. The dusty town now stands home to something which can be traced back to biblical times. Among the inhabitants of Malihabad are a clan of tall, fair, well-built people who call themselves Afridi Pathans-warrior and poets. In fact, a huge arch at the entry to the town is dedicated to Bab-e-Goya, a famous warrior and poet. Growing evidence, however, suggests that their ancestry is not Muslim but Israelite and they are not originally from the Afghanistan-Pakistan area but are, in fact, one of the 'lost tribes' of Israel. In Malihabad, in the heart of Uttar Pradesh, they certainly stand out with their unique physical features.

Now a study by one of their own tribe, Navras Jaat Aafreedi, and published recently in the form of an e-book titled The Indian Jewry & The Self-Professed 'Lost Tribes of Israel' in India traces their lineage to one of the 'lost tribes' of Israel. Says Navras, "The main purpose of the research (for a doctorate from Lucknow University) was to trace the Afridi Pathans' ancestry." To make his study credible, he got help from an international research team which included Professor Tudor Parfitt, director of the Centre of Jewish Studies, London University and Dr Yulia Egorova, a linguist and historian from Russia. The team visited Malihabad and collected DNA samples from 50 paternally unrelated Afridi males to confirm their Israelite descent. The researchers looked at Israel's connections with Pathans in the Frontier areas of Pakistan and their links with Afridi Pathans in Uttar Pradesh's Malihabad and Qaimganj (Farrukhabad) as well as with Pathans in Aligarh, Sambhal and Barabanki besides tribes in Kashmir, Manipur and Guntur of Andhra Pradesh.

Historians and scholars like Professor S.N. Sinha, former head of the department of history, Jamia Millia Islamia and Professor V. D. Pandey, head of the department of medieval and modern Indian history, Lucknow University, have found Navras' research a 'landmark' study on the Jews in India and their links to Uttar Pradesh. According to the Bible, there were 12 tribes of Israel. The northern kingdom consisted of 10 tribes who were exiled and subsequently considered 'lost'. Four of 'lost tribes' have been traced in India: the Afridis, the Shinlung in the Northeast, the Yudu in Kashmir and the non-Muslim tribes in Guntur. Historians believe that Afghans were the descendents of Israel - another name of Abraham's grandson Jacob or Yaqub. They came to the region known as North West Frontier and Afghanistan and as they moved onwards they were called Afridan, in Persian meaning 'newly arrived' and thus acquired the title 'Afridi'. Many of the Afridi-Afghans still follow Jewish tradition like Sabbath and circumcision on the eighth day of the birth."There are three major groups of Israelites or Jews in India: Bene Israel, which is the largest group, the Cochini, the smallest group and the Baghdadi. The Pathans of Malihabad and Farrukhabad call themselves Bani Israel, which means Children of Israel. Bani Israel clans are also found in Aligarh and Sambhal in Moradabad.

The Pathan-Afridi settlement in Malihabad dates back to 1202 A.D., when the village of Bakhtiarnagar was founded by Mohammad Bakhtiar Khilji. Most of the Pathans came in around the middle of the 17th century and each migrant clan took possession of villages around Malihabad. However, the greatest wave of migrant Pathans, mainly Afridis, arrived in Malihabad a century later during Ahmad Shah Abdali's five invasions between 1748 and 1761.Many Israelite-Afridis of Malihabad and Qaimganj rose to eminent positions in the field of warfare, politics, literature and sports. If Dr. Zakir Husain, an Israelite-Pathan, the third President of India and founder of Jamia Millia Islamia University hailed from Farrukhabad, Malihabad prides itself on Nawab Faqueer Mohammad Khan 'Goya', the poet and courtier of Awadh, who later migrated to Pakistan; Ghaus Mohammad Khan, the tennis player and Anwar Nadeem, stage artist, writer and poet.

There are around 1,200 to 1,300 Pathans in Malihabad and half of them, according to the latest research, are Israelite-Afridis. The study has evoked much excitement among the Afridi Pathans as they are not ready to accept their Jewish identity. Unlike the other tribes who have readily claimed affiliation to the 'lost tribes' of Israel, Afridi Pathans are sceptical about their Jewish status. The reluctance is quite evident as 91-year-old Qavi Kamal Khan, one of the Afridi Pathans of the town, says, "I have heard that we have Israelite lineage but we are not Jew. We are are Afridis." Historians, however, believe that Navras' research may turn out to be a milestone in the genealogical-historical research that takes off in an obscure of Lucknow, re-discovering a link lost in the passage of time. The study, for once, proves that the world is, in fact a global village.

http://navrasaafreedi.blogspot.com/2007_03_01_archive.html

http://www.fazliazeem.com/research/pathanresearch.htm

Around 722 BC, Israeli civil war and changing strategic interests forced Assyria to deport ten tribes to the east, towards Persia (Iran). A hundred years later, the Babylonians deported the remaining tribe of Yehudah and some Benjaminites to Babylon (Iraq). The Yehudah returned to Israel with the help of Cyrus the great of Persia, but the other ten tribes never retuned. The search for the “Ten tribes of Israel” is a very controversial issue because their descendants lost most of their Israelite traditions and do not possess the Talmud (Oral Torah similar to the hadith of the Muslims). Perhaps the focal point which has dissuaded Israelites from searching openly for their brethren is the Israelite civil war after King Solomon’s reign, which pitted Yehudah (Judah) against all the other tribes and eventually brought their collective downfall. Hence the descendants of the “Lost Tribes” have lived and spread in the lands east of Israel which are now known as Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Kashmir, India, Burma and even western China.

The Pakhtuns have been living in the Afghanistan area for over 2,000 years. Their language Pashto/Pakhto borrows widely from the Arab-ized Persian of their neighbors (now Iran), yet it was a purely spoken dialect. There was no Pakhto/Pashto written script whatsoever, the first Pashto book appearing about the 1500s. Hence the traditions, customs, tribal genealogy and law orally transferred from father to son. The first book on Pakhtun genealogy, the Makhzan-al-Afghani was written in 1613, and contained for the first time a printed table of descent from Abraham to the Pakhtun tribes, through the tribe of Binyamin. While the book was not accepted initially by British historians, modern historians consider it the most accurate account as compared to the other theories proposed by classical

historians.

Speaking on this Zionism topic alone is quite interesting...the word "Zionist" is created from the mountains of Yerushalim which are called "Zion". Similarly the language of the Pathan tribesmen is called Pashto, and its speakers call themselves Pashtun, from the Persian word "Pasht" which means "back of the mountain" so in reality Pashtun is a person who lives in the mountains. The mountains the Pathan's have been living in after exile are called the Suleiman (Solomon) mountains. The Jews/ B'Ni Israel from Russia also call themselves Mountain Jews and are said to be from the same exile.

The word Pathan is a Pashto written form of the original word Pathan in DTorah (Divrei Hayomin/Kings 2), noting their ancestor from the line of Sarul ben Qish, the first King of Israel, who was King David's father in law.

I wrote a book after 5 years of research that as yet to be printed. The Article below are a few chapters from my research manuscript:

Physiology

Jewish Physical features

Data concerning the Jews has been collected from many sources and they may be said to be anthropologically well known. Most observers prefer to seen in the Jewish type one of the most persistent varieties of the human race [1]. Others say that the Jewish type varies in different places, the head form accommodating itself to the local variety of head form. They have unconsciously taken on to a large extent the physical traits of the people among whom their lot has been thrown. Boas has affirmed even more strongly that the head form of the Jewish immigrants to the United States alters in conformity with American standards, even in the first generation of immigrants; the physical effects of detention at Ellis island apparently having a permanent result on the Jewish immigrant population. Deniker divides the Jews into two types, one approximately to the Arab type and the other to the Assyroid. He admits that the types have been modified to a certain extent by elements from the populations among whom they dwell, but he adds “Even in these cases, many traits such as the convex nose, vivacity of eye, frequency of crythrism, frizzy hair, thick under lip, inferiority of the thoracic perimeter etc, show a remarkable persistence”.

These two views are then totally opposed, and some form of reconciliation is necessary if the evidence can be interpreted in such totally different ways. No evidence has been forthcoming to support Professor Boas’s interesting hypothesis, and it has strongly been argued against on other grounds. The evidence by recent writers confirms the stability and importance of the cephalic index, without perhaps giving it the only legitimate role as others have done. With a few exceptions, Jews from various parts of the world usually retain characteristic Brach cephalic head form, the mean cephalic index being 81. Those studied had a standard deviation between 3 and 4. It suggests that these communities which tend to endogamous remain in about the same state of ethnic equilibrium, although they are placed in

different environmental conditions. Not only do the Jews retain their head form in the majority of cases, they also preserve other characters which Deniker has mentioned, the most noticeable of which is the form of the Nose. For some reason or the other the Jews have been able with a remarkable vitality to perpetuate a physical type which has, at least in many places survived. The origin of this type is of particular interest. It is well known that there is a marked resemblance between Jews and the Armenians, and although the Armenoid type prevails, there are clearly other elements in the composition of the Jewish race. Weissenberg suggests that the resemblance of the Jews and the Armenians is due to a mixing during historical times, not in Palestine but in the Caucasus. He suggests here that a blond Nordic type is introduced, with the result that there are now two types of Jews, the Semitic dark with a fine nose and an Armenoid with a course nose and an appearance of blondness.

Published figures suggest that the two types of Jews are really loosely fused together due to different admixtures. It is likely that a similar mixing has taken place among the Jews and the resulting index represents a composite figure.

Pakhtun Physical features: The Historians opinion

Racially, there is a considerable difference between the various Afghan tribes. The Pathans of Bajaur are closely related to the Kalashes of Citral, probably because they are to a large extent Afghanized Dards [2]. On the other hand the broad-headed Pathans of Balochistan resemble their Baluch neighbors. In the plains of Peshawar there is some admixture of Indian blood, and among the Ghilzai tribe of Afghanistan there are traces of Turkish influence. But in general it may be said that the Afghans belong to the Irano-Afghan branch of the dolichocephalic Mediterranean race [3]. The skull index is 72-75, and the average height 170 cm. (Hill tribe Pathans), and 163 cm. (Afghans of Afghanistan). The nose is prominent, frequently convex, of the "Semitic" type. Similar noses are found also among Balochis and Kashmiris. "The Afghans are usually brunets (black haired), but at the same time show a persistent minority of blondism, which may reflect some Nordic admixture. They are heavy-bearded"[4].

A recent book by Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan sums up the physical characteristics:

“The Pathans of the hills are usually tall, fair skinned and have ivory complexions”[5].

Kashmir was under direct control of the Durrani Afghan Empire in the 1800s, and the majority of the population there were the Yousufzai Pakhtuns who had moved eastward from Peshawar. They were living in Kashmir in great numbers, about 600,000 families who were later forcibly subdued for about 40 years by the Sikhs [6].

Dr. Bernier, A French traveler in the frontier villages of Kashmir around the 1880’s remarked on the striking physical similarity of the locals with Jews [7]. He noted that their expressions and manners were distinguishable from the other people in this land. He finally adds that “You are not to ascribe what I say to mere fancy, the Jewish appearance of these villagers having been remarked by our Father, the Jesuit, and some other Europeans long before I visited Kashmir”.

The Jesuit Dr. Bernier points to is Dr. Joseph Wolff who says “I was wonderfully struck with the resemblance of the Youssoufszye (sons of Joseph) and the Khyberi, two of their tribes, to the Jews” [8]. Moorcroft also says of Khyberis “They are tall, and of singularly Jewish cast of features… they have been named by themselves Beni Israel, children of Israel from time immemorial.”

Bernier was also referring to George Forster who wrote in 1808 “On first seeing the Kashmirians in their own country I imagined from their garb, the cast of their countenance which was long and of a grave aspect, and the forms of their beard, that I had come among a nation of Jews” [9].

Colonel G. Malleson of the British Army did not believe that the Afghans were Beni Israel, but commented on the issue of physical features “This no doubt has its weight” [10].

Pakhtun Physical features: Oral Tradition

By their own historical tradition, the Pakhtun tribes are descended from the Israelite tribe of Benyamin, specifically from King Saul’s children. This will explain their unnatural tall height which is uncharacteristic of Jews in the middle-east. King Saul is known in the Quran as “Talut”, which means “Tall” in Arabic. In the Torah, specifically in the Book of 1 Samuel, Saul is described as an unusually tall and handsome man. In this context, the Pakhtun tribes are amongst the tallest people in the area and were known to Mahatma Gandhi’s India as the “mountain giants”. Lord Curzon, the British viceroy to India commented about them:

“I know these men. They are brave as lions, wild as cats, docile as children…It is with a sense of pride that one receives the honest homage of these magnificent Samsons, gigantic, bearded, instinct with loyalty, often stained with crime” [11].

Pakhtun (Pathan) features are well shaped and good looks are common [12], as can be compared to their alleged progenitor, King Saul of Israel.

Pakhtun Emotional Characteristics: Israeli history

Saul’s entire reign as the first King of the Beni Israel was marked by a religious tilt, and Israeli historians comment on his strict observance of religious obligations, as for instance in the case of Jonathan and the altar-stone of Aijalon, and in depicting him as possessed from time to time by the spirit of Jahweh[13]. On his campaigns he took with him a priest who was expert in the use of the ephod, and did not fail to consult him. An entirely probable tradition relates that he prohibited those who consulted the dead and familiar spirits [14]. If he condemned these practices, it must not be supposed that he considered them fraudulent; on the contrary, it was because he regarded the spirits of the dead and the spirits of the elohim as rivals of Jahweh, the sole God of Israel.

Saul’s intensely religious character is reflected in the Pakhtun tribes, which spawned the Taliban, the

former regime of Afghanistan widely condemned for their ‘extreme’ interpretation of Islam.

Many historians have reconfirmed that the Pakhtuns are in no way a united people. They have many sub clans and are constantly feuding with each other. Nothing except the danger of a common enemy can unite them [15]. This is a direct reference to the Beni Israel tribes which united under King Saul only to fight the common Philistine enemy. Israeli Jews today write in their own words “Israelis have long joked that the surest way to destroy the country is for the Arabs to give it peace. Then the tensions within Israeli society would pull it apart”[16].

Pakhtun Emotional Characteristics: Historians opinion

A British army officer sums up the emotional behavior of a Pakhtun:

“Even when he leaves his native heath behind he takes his manner with him. He will come down, a stalwart manly looking ruffian with frank and open manners, rather Jewish feature… He is certain to be filthy and he may be ragged, but he will saunter into a Viceregal durbar (Royal court) as proud as Lucifer and with the air and manner a diplomatist might envy. Not in the least like any Indian subject. [17]”

Genetic Evidence:

The Kings of Israel married foreign non-Israelite women. David married Bathsheba and his son Solomon married the Queen of Sheeba, the Pharaoh’s daughter. Ahab married Jezebel, the daughter of the King of Tyre[18]. After the exile and dispersion of the tribes of Israel, those who could not return started marrying local women after converting them. Hence their descendants partly resemble the Hebrews and partly their neighboring people. This may be the reason why there is such variation amongst the Pakhtun tribes, who are morally and physically distinguishable from each other, although most of them are heavy bearded with the “Semitic” convex nose.

A study was conducted at University College, London in 2002 concerning genetic tests on Jews from all over the world. The results were published in newspapers, the summary of which follows.

The men’s DNA originated in the Middle East, while the women’s mitochondrial DNA seems to indicate a local Diaspora origin. In simple words, most Jews married women of their host country after they were exiled from Israel about 2,500 years ago. This explains why Jewish communities now resemble the local population where they are living. The scientists described the results as 'very important' [19].

An earlier research paper which was published in the American Journal of Human Genetics clearly states that in comparison with data available from other relevant populations in the region, Jews were found to be more closely related to groups in the north of the Fertile Crescent (Kurds, Turks, and Armenians) than to their Arab neighbors[20]. Some Afghans and Pathans closely resemble the people mentioned above, as they also resemble the Jews. Through extensive genetic testing, the Lemba tribe of Ethiopia has been confirmed to be in possession of genes of the Cohen branch of Levi (Priest tribe). However,

they resemble the African people amongst whom they have lived for the last 2,000 years [21].

The farther the Israelite tribes were from Israel, the more they intermarried. These theories now answer the age-old puzzle of Israelite people resembling the local populations in their host countries, even after one generation. Currently, genetic testing of Pakhtun tribesmen has not been done, mainly due to lack of awareness and resources. This is perhaps the best way to give the final word on the subject.

References

[1] L. H. Dudley Buxton, History of Civilization- Peoples of Asia, (New York: 1996), Routledge, pg. 96

[2] B. S. Guha, Census of India, 1931, i, iii A, p. xi

[3] Coon, Races of Europe, p 419

[4] Coon, Races of Europe, p 420

[5] Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, The Durand Line-it’s Geo Strategic Importance, (Islamabad: Area Study Centre, University of Peshawar, 2000) p. 31

[6] William Jesse, History of the Afghans, (Lahore: Sang-e-Meel Publications, 2002) p. 8.

An English translation of the French Caravan Journeys by General J. P. Ferrier (1st Regiment of Chasseurs D’Afrique, 1845).

[7] François Bernier “Travels in the Moghul Empire” (Constable, London, 1891, Pg. 930-932).

[8] Rev. Joseph Wolff, D.D. LL.D, Narrative of a Mission to Bokhara in the years 1843-1845, (John W. Parker, London, 1845). Vol. 1 2nd Edition. P. 17.

[9] George Forster, Letters on a journey from Bengal to England. (Faulder,

London, 1808) (Vol. II, page 20).

[10] History of Afghanistan by Colonel G. Malleson, C.S.I. (W.H. Allen & Co, London, at the India Office, 1878), p 39.

[11] Ekhnath Easwaran, Badshah Khan, (New Delhi: Penguin Books, 2001) p 64.

[12] Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, The Durand Line-it’s Geo Strategic Importance, (Islamabad: Area Study Centre, University of Peshawar, 2000) p. 31

[13] Adolphe Lods, Israel: From its Beginnings to the middle of the 7th Century, (Wiltshire UK: Routledge, 1996)

[14]1 Sam. xxviii. 3, 9

[15] Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, The Durand Line-it’s Geo Strategic Importance,

(Islamabad: Area Study Centre, University of Peshawar, 2000) p. 34

[16] Christopher Dickey and Daniel Klaidman, How will Israel Survive, Newsweek (New York: April 1,2002) p 16.

[17] Oliver, Across the frontier, Pathan and Baluch (London: Champman and Hall Ltd., 1890) p 224.

[18]Amos i. 9

[19] Judy Siegel-Itzkovich. "Dad was out and about, while Mom stayed home." Jerusalem Post (June 16, 2002): 9.

[20] Almut Nebel, Dvora Filon, Bernd Brinkmann, Partha P. Majumder, Marina Faerman, and Ariella Oppenheim. The Y Chromosome Pool of Jews as Part of the Genetic Landscape of the Middle East, The American Journal of Human Genetics 69:5 (November 2001), p 1095-1112.

[21] Israel, The Historical Atlas (New York: Macmillan, 1996) p 111.

Israeli Customs

Generalizations about the Pakhtun tribes and their characteristics are like to be misleading because the various tribes live under different conditions and hence differ slightly from each other in their customs and habits. However, all of them agree to the “Beni Israel” theory as first proposed in the Makhzan-al-Afghani in 1613. They all speak the same language (Pushto/Pakhto), practice the same religion (Islam), have the same Pashtoonwali law and are known for their love of liberty and bravery. The reader must not forget that Israeli customs have been found amongst only a few tribes, most noticeably the Yousufzai (Pakhto for sons of Yousuf).

Since historians have called some Pakhtun tribes descendants of the “Ten lost tribes” of Israel, we need a correlation of current Pakhtun customs with those of the Beni Israel prior to 722 BC, when the Israelites were first deported by the Assyrians. Hence the best judges of “Israeli” customs would be the Jews (Yehudi) that have lived side by side with the Pakhtuns for hundreds of years, before they emigrated to Israel.

Opinion of the Afghani Jews in Israel

The Amishav foundation was created in Israel by Rabbi Eliahu Avihail, its main purpose to reintroduce long-isolated Beni Israel communities into the mainstream rabbinic Judaism. During the 1980’s Avihail’s people began to scour the globe in the search for the remnants. In 1994, Amishav brought 57 members of the Beni Israel community of Manipur (Burma-India border) to the West Bank settlement of Kiriat Arba in Hebron (Al- Khalil).

Since Israel’s creation in 1948, about 4,123 Afghani Jews (practicing ones) migrated to Israel [1]. Today nearly all the remaining Jews live near the synagogue on Charshi Torabazein Street, Kabul, Afghanistan.

Around the late 70’s Eliahu Avihail interviewed Yisrael Mishal, former President of the Afghani Jewish community in Afulah, Israel. Mr. Mishal gave examples of his meetings with Pathans who live on the Afghanistan-Pakistan border [2].

He said that the Pathan tribesmen identify themselves with their former name ‘sons of Israel’ (Beni Israel), even though nowadays they live as Muslims. In Afghanistan they are said to number six to seven million, and in Pakistan seven to eight million. Two million of them live as Bedouins. Outwardly, the Pathans are similar to the Jews.

From their ancient customs, one can point to a connection between the Pathans and the Jewish people. They make up about half of the population of Afghanistan, in the region that is now the NWFP province and part of the Balochistan province in Pakistan. Over ninety per cent of the inhabitants are Sunni Muslims. In their ancestral home in the Suleman Mountains, the Pathans continue to live in the tribal framework as their fathers and forefathers did. The legal system operates according to the “Pashtunwali", the unwritten Pashtun Laws, parts of which are similar to the laws of the Torah.

The British, who ruled Afghanistan for a long time, found it difficult to distinguish between the Pathans and the Jews, and called the Pathans ‘Juz’ - Jews. The Jews, too found it hard to distinguish between themselves and the Pathans when the latter are not wearing traditional dress. Afghanistan has about 21 peoples and languages and only the Pathans, apart from the Jews, look clearly Semitic; their skin color is lighter than that of other peoples and their nose is of the curved Semitic type. Since most of them grow beards and side-locks like Jews, this also adds difficulty to an attempt to distinguish between them and the Jews.

Even though the Pathans accepted Islam voluntarily, they maintain Jewish customs preserved from the

recesses of their past. The book contains considerable evidence taken from Jews of Afghanistan who lived in the neighborhoods of the Pathans and had contact with them. The evidence doesn’t relate to all the Pathans or to all the tribes and places. However, it does prove the existence of Israelite customs among the Pathans:

The Customs

Sidelocks (Payos): The sidelocks are never shaved.Circumcision of male children: Done on the eighth day.Talith (prayer shawl): worn as a shawl and used as a prayer mat.Jewish wedding (Hupah and ring): A wedding canopy under which the groom and bridegroom sit. Some Pathans live with the Bride’s father, just as Prophet Jacob did.Women’s customs (immersion in a river or spring): This is continued among the mountain dwelling tribes.Levirate marriage (Yibum): An obligation for the Pathan to marry his brother’s widow and support the extended family.Honoring the father: The son stands up when the father arrives in his presence.Forbidden foods (horse and camel food): While most Muslims sacrifice camels at the time of Eid-ul-Azha, the Pathans never do so, and sacrifice only cows or goats.Refraining from cooking meat and milk: This tradition has been reported to be followed among some Pathans.Tradition of clean and unclean poultry, also known as halal / haram among muslims Shabbat: preparation of 12 Hallah bread loaves, lighting a candle in honor of the Shabbat, refraining from work on Saturday.Day of Atonement prayer (Yom Kippur): The book says that some of them pray turned in the direction of Jerusalem.Blood on the threshold and on the two Mezzuzot (in times of plague or trouble): This custom is continued as when a Pathan house is created, the blood of the sacrificial animal is smeared on the door posts or the gate of the house.Scapegoat: In the time of plague, a goat is released outside the town as it will carry the town’s disease away with it. This is an old Israelite custom.Curing the ill with the help of the Book of Psalms by placing it under the patient’s head.A Hebrew amulet (Kamia): This tradition continues amongst most Pathans.The Custom of Tefillin: Wearing a box or pouch containing a verse of Shema Israel, that is, "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!" (Deuteronomy 6:4). This custom of Tefillin came from a verse of the Scriptures, "You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes" (Deuteronomy 6:8). The pouch is usually placed over the heart region.Hebrew names: Pathans make frequent use of Davud (David), Yousuf (Joseph), Yaqub (Jacob), Suleman (Solomon), Moosa (Moses) for their names and tribes, and the ancestral home of the tribes are the Suleman (Solomon) Mountains of Pakistan.Holy Books: They honor the Torah, the Law of Moses. Pathan tribes such as Yousufzai have historical proof that they were in possession of the Torah [3], until the Holy books were forcibly or voluntarily

taken from them by Persian Jews and Zoroastrians. The code of revenge (badal) in the Pushtunwali code comes from the “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” law in the Torah of Moses. Just as the Americans say “There is no escape from death and taxes”, the pathans say “Death and revenge – always and forever”[4].The “Star of David” symbol is found on almost every house, bus, school, tool and ornament in the Pathan city of Pehshawar, Pakistan. The rich Pathans make it out of expensive metals; the poor make it from simple wood.

Recently, Shalwa Weil of Israel has done research on the Afghan-Pathan Jewish community in Israel and published her findings in the Jerusalem Post [5], excerpts of which are given below.

In 1935, a Jewish barber Gabriel Barukhoff traveled to Kabul and encountered nomadic Afghan Pathan tribesmen who claimed that they were descendants of the Children of Israel. In the early 1950s he told Israel’s second president, Yitzhak ben-Zvi, who was researching his book “The Exiled and the Redeemed,” that these tribesmen wore an embroidered Hanukkah lamp on their backs. He had heard that they had mezuzot on their doorposts, wrapped themselves in prayer shawls and lit candles on Friday night. When Barukoff cut their hair, they insisted on keeping their side curls.

An Afghani Jew from Heart, Abraham Benjamin, reported to Ben-Zvi that “According to the tradition current among the Afridis (one of the Pathan sub-tribes), they are descendants of the Israelites, more particularly, the sons of Ephraim. They grow beards; the older among them do not hide the fact of their Jewish descent, but recently the younger generation has suppressed this fact which, if disclosed, would render them most unpopular in the present political mood of the country.” This discussion was in 1951, hence the creation of the state of Israel in 1948 would have led to active suppression of their ancient history, as the Pathans are now Muslims.

In the nineties, Shalwa interviewed Pathan students at the University of New Delhi, the most violently anti-Zionist group that she ever met, who reluctantly agreed that they were Beni Israel. “But this has nothing to do with the modern state of Israel,” they informed her.

The Pathans’ ancient code of hospitality, Pukhtunwali--- by which generosity and protection of guests are paramount is sufficient proof for some of their Jewish affiliation, although hospitality is also a Muslin trait.

Like the ancient Israelites, revenge (badal) is one of the driving forces of Pathan society. If attacked, or their pride is wounded, the Pathans will wage a jihad against the invaders. They succeeded with the British in the 19th century. They resisted the Communists in the late 20th century; and they are still attacking the American coalition in this millennium.

Refoel Berlzonf interviewed an Afghani Jewish Immigrant in Israel, Yated Ne’eman about his community’s religious practices in Afghanistan [6]. He said that before the Taliban’s restrictions, the Jews sat and learned Torah every day in shuls at the end of their working day. A Rabbi of the Afghan

community in Israel told Yated that the king once proclaimed that they had a tradition of coming from Jewish stock. Even during his exile in Rome, Zahir Shah maintained links with Jews from the Afghan community.

Refoel relates an incident which happened to a visitor to an Afghan area populated by the Pathans who was accompanied by a relative, a boy with Payos (Side burns). When they passed one of their villages he was attacked by members of the tribe: "They literally wanted to kill us. They thought that I had stolen the boy from one of their areas. When I managed to calm them down and asked them why I was being attacked they explained that I must have stolen the child, because only members of their tribe had the custom of growing Payos since they were Beni Israel."

A rabbi of the Afghani Jewish community in Israel tells Refoel that "There was not even one nonobservant Jew amongst the whole of Afghan Jewry” who immigrated to Israel. “There were some who were victims of ignorance, but there was nobody who was lacking the basics of faith, ahavas haTorah, putting on tefillin and even praying three times a day. The town of Herat had four packed synagogues. If one person was absent for even one tefilloh during the week people went to him to be mevaker cholim, assuming that he must surely not be feeling well."

The rabbi says that this was the state of the Jews in Israel "Until thirty years ago."

"The Afghan king had to have an eye operation in France. The professor who operated on him was Jewish. After the operation the king asked him how much he owed him for the operation. The professor answered that he was Jewish and he asked him if there were Jews in the Afghan kingdom. The king said that there were. The professor asked for the following remuneration for the operation: that every Jew in his kingdom should be given total freedom to move to Eretz Yisroel. The king agreed to this. And that is what actually happened. The Jews who left the country for Eretz Yisroel were allowed to take their possessions with them without any restrictions. After the Jews left there was a revolution and war broke out in the region.”

Ne’eman says that the Afghani authorities dealt fairly with the Jews. People would deposit large sums of money with them without requesting receipts or promissory notes. Jews would also act as mediators in disputes between non- Jews.

"The king himself, who fled the revolution and lives in Rome till today, was very sympathetic towards the Jews. His personal adviser was a Jew called Yosef Siman Tov from the capital Kabul. He was constantly in and out of the royal palace. Even after the king was exiled they maintained their links. The king made sure that the Shiites did not harm the Jews.”

"The old Afghan people living in the villages also claimed to be descended from Jews. My theory is that there was religious persecution in this area and they converted to Islam. A friend of mine, a big merchant who traveled around the towns told me that they found many gravestones with Jewish names in remote cemeteries."

A Jewish merchant visited Afghanistan just after the British had decided to cut the regular "tax" to the local sheikhs. "One fine day we felt a strange quiet in the town, and it really turned out to be the quiet before the storm. Suddenly we heard hordes of tribesmen on horseback from the mountainous areas thundering into the town and the town was quickly flooded with them. They were courageous and tall fighters and the local police just fled in all directions. The invaders emptied out the stores and houses. Within a short time the place was simply swept up by them and left empty. They collected the booty as if they were on a fishing expedition without encountering any opposition."

“As they were picking up their spoils they noticed me and realized straightaway that I was a stranger to the place and not a Muslim. They did not harm me and started asking me questions. I told them that I was a Jewish merchant from Persia and they let me speak with their leader, the sheikh of the tribe. This is what the sheikh told me: ‘We know about our Jewish ancestry. We have a tradition, which has been passed down from generation to generation, that we come from Jews and that until the period of the Islamic conquest we were complete Jews until being forced to convert to Islam.’ The sheikh added that already 100 years before Islam appeared in the area they were attacked by fire worshipers, who looted all their belongings including ancient books. As a result they submitted to Islam relatively easily, since their tradition had disappeared by that time.”

After the above article was published in the San Jose Mercury on 23 June 1980, the Americans were pressurized by the Jewish and Christian lobbies to send weapons and training to the Pathan freedom fighters through Pakistan.

“Anyone Jewish Shall Be Killed”

In the ‘Darul Amman’ museum in Kabul (capital of Afghanistan), there is a black stone found in Kandahar, on which is written in Hebrew "We shall be faced with fear and terror. Anyone Jewish shall be killed, and any Muslim shall live. Wednesday 4th Adar." The year is broken off of the stone.

Another Jewish immigrant from Afghanistan related the following: "Once I was walking with my family in the king's garden in Kabul. The king was walking there. He called us and we went over to him and kissed his hand, as is customary. The king asked me how long the Jews had been living in Afghanistan. I did not know what to answer. He said that there was a stone according to which the Jews had been here for 1540 years."

Another former Afghan Jew recalls the following: "When I was a child in the Afghan town of Herat it became known that the King Emir Habib Allah Khan, the father of King Amman Allah Khan, was coming to tour the city riding on a horse. The notable Jews of the town, including my late father, a well respected merchant from the area, met and decided to organize a festive welcome for the king. My father also pushed me to participate in the welcoming ceremony. The king asked the Jews which tribe they came from. The heads of the delegation replied that they did not know, since they did not have any family trees. `Well, we do know,' responded the king. `We are from the family of Muhammadzai. We are all from the tribe of Benjamin, descendants of King Saul from the sons of Jonathan, Afghan and Pathan.' The king took leave of the delegation but not before instructing his servants to provide the Jews with gilded coats and hats.”

The president of the Herat Jewish community, the late Avrohom Hakohen also testified that in his youth he heard King Habib Allah declaring that he was from the tribe of Benjamin, and that Afghans living in the mountains had told him: "We have heard from our elders that we come from the Jews."

The king's statement reveals the origin of the name "Pathan." The tribe's members are convinced that they are the descendants of Pison, grandson of Yonoson the son of Shaul, who is mentioned in Divrei Hayomim I (8:35).

Members of the tribe had amulets hidden in silver containers, which they kept secret from everybody and which they themselves were forbidden to open. A Jewish visitor to a village in the Mengal region noticed some boys aged three to five running around with amulets. He grabbed an amulet from one of them, opened it and discovered two words written in ksav Ashuris (Assyrian script): Shema Yisroel. Only one of the members of the tribe knows how to write the amulet and the secret of the "chant" is transmitted from father to oldest son. The person who writes the amulet shuts himself up in a room inside another room and writes the "chant." Since the amulet is written in Assyrian script the person writing it clearly does not understand its meaning, but he relates to it with awe as a mysterious symbol.

One of the villages had a "charm", a bundle which they would put underneath a sick person's head. One Jewish visitor wanted to see the contents of this bundle, but was warned by the locals not to open it and that if he did so he would die. He was told that there were similar bundles in the whole region, but they were not opened by anybody. He met with an old lady healer ("over 100 years old" according to the locals) and she also warned him not to open the bundle, since "it would be a pity for him to die young." He did open it and, having remained alive, found a sefer Tehillim(Book of Psalms of Torah) inside it.

In one of the towns belonging to the Pathan tribe there is a mysterious building called "The Holy House." It is kept under lock and key and nobody is allowed in. Jews who spoke to tribal elders found out that there were sifrei Torah inside. They claimed that this ancient building used to be a synagogue. Attempts to purchase these sifrei Torah for large sums came to nothing, following the staunch opposition of the elders of the tribe "for that is what our forefathers instructed us."

According to local tradition, the locals buried thousands of books ten meters under the ground in the town of Balkh (founded after the destruction of the First Temple) and built a road on top of it.

The district officer of Herat, who signed exit permits for Jews, asked one of the activists in the Jewish community where the Jews were traveling to. He told them that they were heading for Eretz Yisroel(Land of Israel). The officer was very surprised to hear this and commented, "But we are also from the Children of Israel, why are you leaving for the Land of Israel?"

The opinion of Muslim Authors

There is no doubt about the usage of “Jewish” names by the Pakhtun/Pashtun tribes, and such names are also kept by Muslims around the world, but perhaps not with the frequency that the Pakhtuns utilize them. This is one reason that Muslim authors have given against the ‘Beni Israel’ theory.

But the Pakhtun’s follow peculiar customs like: “Passover Practice” of sacrificing an animal and smearing the doorway to avert death and calamityPlacing the sins of the people upon a heifer or goat which is driven out in the wilderness in the manner of the biblical scapegoatStoning to death of blasphemersPeriodical distribution of land by lot [7]The rites of circumcision and purification

which were all given in the Book of Leviticus of the Beni Israel, and modern Muslim historians like Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan accept them as indicators, if not proof of their Israelite heritage [8]. They are the only tribes in the area to practice all of these customs, as the ancient Beni Israel did 2,300 years ago.

The overwhelming physical and cultural evidence has pressured many observers, even Jewish ones to comment:

“I was wonderfully struck with the resemblance of the Youssoufszye and the Khyberi, two of their tribes, to the Jews” [9]

References

[1] From the Internet: http://www.wjc.org.il/communities/jewish_communities_of_the_world/asia_and_oceania

[2] A. Avihail and A. Brin, Lost Tribes from Assyria, (Jerusalem: 1978), in Hebrew. Excerpts have been taken from the English translation by Issachar Katzir. Materials are also online at www.moshiach.com/tribes

[3] L. P. Ferrier, History of the Afghans, Translated by W. M. Jesse from the French Caravan Journeys, (John Murray, London, 1858), p 4.

[4] Ekhnath Easwaran, Badshah Khan, (New Delhi: Penguin Books, 2001) pp. 100.

[5] Shalva Weil, Our Brethren The Taliban?, (Jerusalem: 2002), Jerusalem Post Issue 91 ~ January, February and March 2002 ~ Tevet, Shevat and Adar 5762. Taken from website www.bhns.org/nljan0207.htm

[6] Refoel Berlzonf, Judaism in the Land of the Taliban: “There Was Not Even One Nonobservant Jew amongst the Whole of Afghan Jewry"

[7] Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, The Durand Line-it’s Geo Strategic Importance, (Islamabad: Area Study Centre, University of Peshawar, 2000) p. 34

[8] Dr. Azmat Hayat Khan, The Durand Line-it’s Geo Strategic Importance, (Islamabad: Area Study Centre, University of Peshawar, 2000) p. 30

[9] Rev. Joseph Wolff, D.D. LL.D, Narrative of a Mission to Bokhara in the years 1843-1845, (John W. Parker, London, 1845). Vol. 1 2nd Edition. P. 17.

The blue shaded region above are the areas where the majority of the Pathan tribes settled.

We must also look at the current relationship between the Pakhtun tribes. The western “Afghan” tribe of Abdali (Durrani) was in prime form during Ahmad Shah Abdali’s Afghan Kingdom, yet they were never considered as leaders by the eastern “Pathan” tribes of the Suleman Mountains. The tribe of Yousufzai has remained the unchallenged leader of the eastern tribes since the beginning. In all matters of war, language and education, the Yousufzai have always stood out. Their form of Pakhto dialect is considered to be the purest, as compared to the Abdali Pushto which uses more Persian. The Yousufzai were also in possession of Torah and Israelite prayer items up to Nadir Shah’s invasion of India (L. P. Ferrier, History of the Afghans Translated by W. M. Jesse. (John Murray, London, 1858). p 4). Similarly among ancient Israel the tribe of Yousuf (which included the tribes of his sons Ephraim and Manasseh) was the unchallenged leader of Israel when the tribe of Judah (Yehudah) broke away. The Pakhtun Yousufzai are

known through history for their large numbers, militancy and ferocity in war, just as the tribe of Yousuf is remembered by the Jews, Christians and Muslims. The capital of the ten tribes of Israel was at the city of Ephraim, just as the Yousufzai city of Peshawar (Pesh-Havor, meaning “over Havor”, the same as in written in the Torah) is the unofficial capital of the Pakhtun tribes in Pakistan.

This means that current tribal names of the Pakhtun tribes must correspond closely with their original Israelite names, hence:

Yousufzai – Sons of YousufGadoon – GadRabbani – ReubenAbdali – NaphtaliShinwari – ShimeonZamand - ZebulonLevani – Levi

The similarities of Pathan features, dress, manner, culture, practices, history, genealogy and professions with those of the “Jews” of Israel has made the majority of historians accept their own hypothesis, that they are descended from the Beni Israel tribes.

Qazi Fazli AzeemKarachi Pakistanwww.fazliazeem.com

Online Referenceshttp://www.dangoor.com/74069.htmlhttp://pakhtun.com/AboutPashtuns/WhoArePakhtuns.htmhttp://moshiach.com/features/tribes/pakistan.phphttp://www.imninalu.net/tribes1.htm#Afghanhttp://www.kulanu.org/pathan/pashtunjewishroots.htmlhttp://www.hackwriters.com/losttribes.htmhttp://www.barganews.com/people/viviano/10_20_2001.htmlhttp://www.wzo.org.il/en/resources/view.asp?id=174http://www.cjnews.com/pastissues/01/...-01/front4.asphttp://www.infoisrael.net/cgi-local/...ives/180420041http://www.davidmargolis.com/article..._fp=0&cat_cc=5http://www.innernet.org.il/printArticle.php?id=174http://lazerbrody.typepad.com/lazer_...l_of_te_3.htmlhttp://www.jewishgen.org/cemetery/as...ghanistan.htmlhttp://www.reference.com/browse/wiki/Pashtunhttp://www.bh.org.il/Communities/Arc...LostTribes.asp

http://www.kulanu.org/lost-tribes/hebrew_diaspora.htmlhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pathanhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Pashtunwalihttp://www.factmonster.com/spot/israel1.htmlhttp://www.rickross.com/reference/bl...hebrews14.htmlhttp://www.cumorah.com/cgi-bin/db.cg...records=1&ID=*

LOST TRIBES - Japan

ISRAELITES CAME TO JAPAN

Many of the traditional ceremonies in Japan seem to be the traces that the Jews and the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel came to ancient Japan.

Arimasa Kubo

A Japanese Festival Illustrates the Story of Isaac.

In Nagano prefecture, Japan, there is a large Shinto shrine named "Suwa-Taisha" (Shinto is the traditional religion peculiar to Japan.) At Suwa-Taisha, the traditional festival called "Ontohsai" is held on April 15 every year. This festival illustrates the story of Isaac in chapter 22 of Genesis in the Bible, that is, the story that Abraham was about to sacrifice his own son Isaac. The festival "Ontohsai" has been held since ancient days and has been thought of as the most important festival of "Suwa-Taisha."

Next to the shrine "Suwa-Taisha," there is a mountain called Mt. Moriya ("Moriya-san" in Japanese). And the people from the Suwa area call the god of Mt. Moriya "Moriya no kami" which means "the god of Moriya." At the festival, a boy is tied up by a rope to a wooden pillar, and placed on a bamboo carpet. A Shinto priest comes to him preparing a knife, but then a messenger (another priest) comes there, and the boy is released. It reminds us of the story that Isaac was released after an angel comes to Abraham.

At this festival, animal sacrifices are also offered. 75 deer are sacrificed, but among them it is believed that there is a deer with its ears split. The deer is believed to be the one God prepared. It may have some connection with the ram that God prepared and was sacrificed after Isaac was released. Even in historic times, people thought that this custom of deer sacrifice was strange, because animal sacrifice is not a Shinto tradition.

People call this festival "the festival for Misakuchi-god". "Misakuchi" might be "mi-isaku-chi." "Mi" means "great," "isaku" is probably Isaac (the Hebrew word "Yitzhak"), and "chi" is something for the end of the word. It seems that the people of Suwa made Isaac a god, probably by the influence of idol worshipers.

Today, this custom of the boy about to be sacrificed and then released, is no longer practiced, but we can still see the custom of the wooden pillar called "oniye-basira" which means "sacrifice-pillar."

Today, people use stuffed animals instead of performing a real animal sacrifice. Tying a boy along with animal sacrifice was regarded as savage by people of the Meiji-era (about 100 years ago), and those customs were discontinued. But the festival itself still remains today.

The custom of the boy had been maintained until the beginning of Meiji era. Masumi Sugae, who was a Japanese scholar and a travel writer in the Edo era (about 200 years ago), wrote a record of his travels and noted what he saw at Suwa. The record shows the details of "Ontohsai." It tells that the custom of the boy about to be sacrificed and his ultimate release, as well as animal sacrifices, existed in those days. His records are kept at the museum near Suwa-Taisha.

The festival of "Ontohsai" has been maintained by the Moriya family ever since ancient times. The Moriya family think of "Moriya-no-kami" (god of Moriya) as their ancestor's god. And they think of "Mt. Moriya" as their holy place. The name "Moriya" may have come from "Moriah" (the Hebrew word "Moriyyah") of Genesis 22:2.

The Moriya family have been hosting the festival for 78 generations. The festival of Ontohsai must have existed since ancient times.

I am not aware of any country, other than Japan, which has a festival illustrating the story of Isaac. I believe that this tradition provides strong evidence that the Israelites came to ancient Japan.

The Crest of the Imperial House of Japan Is the Same As That Found On Gates of Jerusalem.

The crest of the Imperial House of Japan is a round mark in the shape of a flower with 16 petals (photo right). Today's shape looks like a chrysanthemum (mum), but scholars say that in ancient times, it rather looked like a sunflower. This is indeed the same

shape as the mark at Herod's gate in Jerusalem. The crest at Herod's gate also has 16

petals (photo left).

This crest of the Imperial House of Japan has existed since very ancient times, as well as Herod's gate.

The Star of David Is A Symbol Also Used At Ise-jingu, the Shinto Shrine for the Imperial House of Japan.

Ise-jingu in Mie-pref., Japan, is the Shinto shrine built for the Imperial House of Japan. On both sides of the approaches to the shrine, there are street lamps made of stone. You can see the Jewish Star of David carved on each of the lamps near the top.

The crest used on the inside of the shrine (Izawa-no-miya) at Ise-jingu is also the Star of David. This has existed since ancient times.

In Kyoto pref., there is a shrine called "Manai-jinja" which was the original Ise-jingu Shrine. The crest of "Manai-jinja" is also the Star of David. So, this has been used since ancient times.

I heard that the Star of David had been discovered at a Jewish synagogue of the third century in Europe, too.

Japanese Religious Priests "Yamabushi" Put A Black Box on their Foreheads Just As Jews Put A Phylactery on their Foreheads.

"Yamabushi"s are religious men in training and are unique to Japan. Today, they are thought to belong to Japanese Buddhism. But the Buddhism in China, Korea, or India have no such custom. The custom of "yamabushi" has existed in Japan before Buddhism was imported into Japan in the seventh century.

The clothes worn by the "yamabushi" are basically white. On his forehead, he puts a black small box called a "tokin", which is tied to his head with a black cord. He really resembles a Jew putting on a phylactery (black box) on his forehead with a black cord. The size of this black box "tokin" is almost the same as the Jewish phylactery. But the shape of the "tokin" is round and looks like a flower.

Originally the Jewish phylactery placed on the forehead seems to have come from the forehead "plate" put on the high priest Aaron with a cord (Exodus 28:36-38). It was about 4 centimeters (1.6 inches) in size according to the folklore, and some scholars say that this was in the shape of a flower. If so, it was very similar to the shape of the Japanese "tokin" worn by the "yamabushi".

Israel and Japan are the only two countries that in the world I know of that use the forehead box.

Furthermore, the "Yamabushi" use a big seashell as a horn. This is very similar to a Jew blowing a shofar, or ram's horn. The way it is blown, sounds of the yamabushi's horn are very much like a shofar. And there are no sheep in Japan, the "Yamabushi" had to use seashell horns instead of rams' horns.

"Yamabushi"s are people who regard mountains as their holy places for religious training. The people of Israel also regarded mountains as their holy places. The Ten Commandments of the Torah were given on Mt. Sinai. Jerusalem is a city on a mountain. Jesus (Yeshua) used to climb up the mountain to pray there. His transfiguration also occurred on a mountain.

In Japan, there is the legend of "tengu" who lives on a mountain and has the figure of a "yamabushi". He has a pronounced nose and supernatural capabilities. A "Ninja", who was an agent or spy in the old days while working for his lord, goes to "tengu" at the mountain to get from him supernatural abilities. "Tengu" gives him a "tora-no-maki" (a scroll of the "tora") after giving him additional powers. This "scroll of the tora" is regarded as a very important book which is helpful for any crisis. We Japanese use this word sometimes in our daily life even today.

We do not have any knowledge that a real scroll of a Jewish Torah was ever found in a Japanese historical site. But I can't help but think that this "scroll of the tora" is a usage of the holy book called "Torah", used by Jews to this day.

Japanese "Omikoshi" Resembles the Ark of the Covenant.

In the Bible, in First Chronicles chapter 15, it is written that David brought up the ark of the covenant of the Lord into Jerusalem.

"David and the elders of Israel and the commanders of units of a thousand went to bring up the ark of the covenant of the LORD from the house of Obed-Edom, with rejoicing. ...Now David was clothed in a robe of fine linen, as were all the Levites who were carrying the ark, and as were the singers, and Kenaniah, who was in charge of the singing of the choirs. David also wore a linen ephod. So all Israel brought up the ark of the covenant of the LORD with shouts, with the sounding of rams' horns and trumpets, and of cymbals, and the playing of lyres and harps." (15:25-28)

When I read these passages, I think; "How well does this look like the scene of Japanese people carrying our 'omikoshi' during festivals? The shape of the Japanese 'Omikoshi' really looks like the ark of the covenant. Japanese people sing and dance in front of it with shouts, and with the sounding of musical instruments. These are very similar to the customs of ancient Israel."

Japanese people carry the "omikoshi" on their shoulders with poles - usually two poles. So did the ancient Israelites:

"The Levites carried the ark of God with poles on their shoulders, as Moses had commanded in accordance with the word of the LORD." (1 Chronicles 15:15)

The Israeli ark of the covenant had two poles (Exodus 25:10-15). Some restored models of the ark as it was imagined to be, have been using two poles on the upper parts of the ark. But the Bible says those poles were to be fastened to the ark by the four rings "on its four feet" (Exodus 25:12). So the poles must have been attached on the bottom of the ark. This is similar to the Japanese "omikoshi."

The Israeli ark had two statues of gold cherubim on its top. Cherubim are a kind of angel, a mysterious heavenly being. They have wings like birds. Japanese "omikoshi" also have on its top the gold bird called "Ho-oh" which is an imaginary bird and a mysterious heavenly being. The entire Israeli ark was overlaid with gold. Japanese "omikoshi" are also overlaid mostly with gold. The size of "omikoshi" is almost the same as the Israeli ark. Japanese "omikoshi" may be a remnant of the ark of ancient Israel.

Many Things Concerning the Ark Resemble Japanese Customs.

King David and people of Israel sang and danced with the sounding of musical instruments in front of the ark. We Japanese sing and dance with the sounding of musical instruments in front of "omikoshi," as well.

Several years ago, I saw an American-made movie titled "King David" which was a faithful story of the life of King David. In the movie, David was dancing in front of the ark when bringing up the ark into Jerusalem. I thought: "If the scenery of Jerusalem were replaced by Japanese scenery, this scene would be just the same as what I see here at festivals in Japan."

The atmosphere of the music also resembled Japanese. David's dancing really looked like Japanese traditional dancing.

At the Shinto shrine festival of "Gion-jinja" in Kyoto, men carry "omikoshi," then go into the water, and cross a river. I can't help but think this originates from the memory of the Ancient Israelites carried the ark as they crossed the Jordan river after their exodus from Egypt.

In an island of Inland Sea of Seto of Japan, the men who were selected as the carriers of the "omikoshi", stay together at a house for one week before they would carry the "omikoshi." This is to prevent profaning themselves. Furthermore, on the day before they carry "omikoshi," they bathe in seawater to sanctify themselves. This is the same custom as the ancient Israelites':

"So the priests and the Levites sanctified themselves to bring up the ark of the Lord God of Israel." (1 Chronicles 15:14)

The Bible says that after the ark entered Jerusalem and the march was finished; "David distributed to everyone of Israel, both man and woman, to everyone a loaf of bread, a piece of meat, and a cake of raisins" (1 Chronicles 16:3). This is the same custom as the Japanese. Sweets are distributed to everyone after a festival in Japan as well. It was a delight during my childhood.

The Robe of Japanese Priests Resembles the Robe of Israeli Priests.

The Bible says that when David brought up the ark into Jerusalem; "David was clothed in a robe of fine linen" (1 Chronicles 15:27). So were priests and choirs. In the Japanese Bible, this verse is translated into "robe of white linen."

In ancient Israel, although the high priest wore a colorful robe, other ordinary priests wore simple white linens. Priests wore white clothes at holy events. So do Japanese priests wear white robes at holy events. In Ise-jingu, one of the oldest shrines of Japan, all the priests wear white robes. And in many Shinto shrines of Japan, people wear white robes when they carry the "omikoshi" just like the Israelites did. Buddhist priests wear luxurious colorful robes. But in the Japanese Shinto religion, white is regarded as the most holy color.

The Emperor of Japan, just after he finished the ceremony of his accession to the throne, comes alone in front of the Shinto god. When he comes there, he wears pure white robe on his whole body. Furthermore, with his feet naked. This is the same as when Moses and Joshua removed their sandals in front of God in bare feet (Exodus 3:5, Joshua 5:15).

Marvin Tokayer, a rabbi who lived in Japan for 10 years, wrote in his book:

"The linen robes which Japanese Shinto priests wear have the same figure as the white linen robes of the ancient priests of Israel. "

The robe of the Japanese Shinto priest has cords of 20-30 centimeters long (about 10 inches) hung from the corners of the robe. These fringes are the custom of the Israelites. Deuteronomy 22:12 says:

"make them fringes in the corners of their garments throughout their generations."

Fringes (tassels) were a token that he was an Israelite. In the gospels of the New Testament, it is also written that the Pharisees "make their tassels on their garments long" (Matthew 23:5). A woman who had been suffering from a hemorrhage came to Jesus (Yeshua) and touched the "tassel on His coat" (Matthew 9:20, The New Testament: A Translation in the Language of the People, translated by Charles B. Williams). Imagined pictures of ancient Israeli clothing sometimes do not have fringes. But their robes actually had fringes. The Jewish Tallit (prayer shawl), which the Jews put on when they pray, has fringes in the corners according to tradition.

Japanese Shinto priests wear on their robe a rectangle of cloth from their shoulders to thighs. This is the same as the ephod worn by David:

"David also wore a linen ephod." (1 Chronicles 15:27)

Although the ephod of the high priest was colorful with jewels, the ordinary priests under him wore the ephods of simple white linen cloth (1 Samuel 22:18). Rabbi Tokayer says

that the rectangle of cloth on the robe of Japanese Shinto priest looks very similar to the ephod of the Kohen, the Jewish priest.

The Japanese Shinto priest puts a cap on his head just like Israeli priest did (Exodus 29:40). The Japanese priest also puts a sash on his waist. So did the Israeli priest. The clothing of Japanese Shinto priests must be that used by ancient Israelites.

Waving the Sheaf of Harvest Is Also the Custom of Japan.

The Jews wave a sheaf of their harvest stacks of grain seven weeks before Shavuot (Pentecost, Leviticus 23:10-11), They do this also at the Feast of Booths (Sukkot, Leviticus 23:40). This has been a tradition since the time of Moses. Ancient Israeli priests also waved a plant branch when he sanctifies someone. David said, "Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean" [Psalm 51:7(9)]. This is also a traditional Japanese custom.

When a Japanese priest sanctifies someone or something, he waves a plant branch. Or, he waves a "harainusa" which is like a plant branch. Today's "harainusa" is simplified and made of white paper that is folded in a zig-zag pattern like small lightning bolts, but in old days it was a plant branch or cereals.

A Japanese Christian woman I know used to think of this "harainusa" as just a pagan custom. But she later went to the USA, and had an opportunity to attend a Sukkot meeting. When she saw the Jewish waving of the sheaf of the harvest, she shouted in her heart, "Oh, this is the same as a Japanese priest does! Here lies the home for the Japanese."

The Structure of the Japanese Shinto Shrine is the Same As God's Tabernacle of Ancient Israel.

The inside of God's tabernacle in ancient Israel was divided into two parts. One is the Holy Place, and another the Holy of Holies. So is the Japanese Shinto shrine. It is divided into two parts.

The functions prepared in the Japanese shrine are similar to the ones of the Israeli tabernacle. Japanese people pray in front of its Holy Place. They cannot enter inside.

Only Shinto priests can enter. Shinto priest enters the Holy of Holies only at special times. This is the same as the Israeli tabernacle.

The Holy of Holies of Japanese Shinto shrine is located in far west as in the Israeli tabernacle. Shinto's Holy of Holies is also located on a higher level than the Holy Place, and between them there are steps. Scholars say that, in the Israeli temple built by Solomon, the Holy of Holies was on an elevated level as well, and between them there were steps of about 2.7 meters (9 feet) wide.

In front of a Japanese shrine, there are two statues of lions called "komainu" that sit on both sides of the approach. They are not idols, but guards for the shrine. This is also a custom of ancient Israel. In God's temple in Israel and in the palace of Solomon, there were statues or relieves of lions (1 Kings 7:36, 10:19).

In the early history of Japan, there were absolutely no lions. But the statues of lions have been placed in Japanese shrines since ancient times. It has been proven by scholars that statues of lions located in front of Japanese shrines originated from the Middle East.

Located near the entrance of a Japanese shrine, there is "temizuya" which is a place for worshipers to wash their hands and mouth. This is the same custom as found in Jewish synagogues. The ancient tabernacle and temple of Israel also had a laver for washing and sanctification near the entrances well.

In front of a Japanese shrine, there is a gate called the "torii." The gate of this style does not exist in China or in Korea, it is peculiar to Japan. The "torii" gate consists of two vertical pillars and a bar connecting the upper parts. But the oldest form consists of only two vertical pillars and a rope connecting the upper parts. When a Shinto priest bows to the gate, he bows to the two pillars separately. It is assumed that the "torii" gate was originally constructed of only two pillars.

In the Israeli temple, there were two pillars used as a gate (1 Kings 7:21). And in Aramaic language which ancient Israelites used, the word for gate was "taraa." This word might have changed slightly and become the Japanese "torii". Some "torii"s, especially of old shrines, are painted red. I can't help but think this is a picture of the two door posts and the lintel on which the blood of the lamb was put the night before the exodus from Egypt.

In the Japanese Shinto religion, there is a custom to surround a holy place with a rope called the "shimenawa" which has slips of white papers inserted along the bottom edge of the rope. The "simenawa" rope is set as the boundary. The Bible says that when Moses was given God's Ten Commandments on Mt. Sinai, he "set bounds" (Exodus 19:12) around it for the Israelites not to approach. Although I don't know what kind of things these "bounds" were, ropes or something else must have been set as the boundary. The Japanese "shimenawa" rope might then be a custom that originates from the time of Moses.

The only big difference between a Japanese shrine and the ancient Israeli temple is that a Shinto shrine does not have the burning altar for animal sacrifices. I used to wonder why Shinto religion does not have the custom of animal sacrifices if Shinto originates from the religion of ancient Israel. But then I found the answer in Deuteronomy chapter 12. Moses commanded people not to offer any animal sacrifices at any other locations except at specific places in Canaan (12:10-14). So, if the Israelites came to ancient Japan, they would not be permitted to offer animal sacrifices.

Many Japanese Customs Resemble the Customs of Ancient Israel.

When Japanese people pray in front of the Holy Place of a Shinto shrine, they firstly ring the golden bell which is hung at the center of the entrance. This is the custom of the ancient Israel. The high priest Aaron put "bells of gold" on the hem of his robe. This was so that its sound might be heard and he might not die when he ministered there (Exodus 28:33-35).

Japanese people clap their hands two times when they pray there. This was, in ancient Israel, the custom to mean "I keep promises." In the Scriptures, you can find the word which is translated as "pledge." The original meaning of this word in Hebrew is "clap his hand" (Ezekiel 17:18, Proverbs 6:1). It seems that ancient people of Israel clapped their hands when they pledge or when they do an important thing.

Japanese people bow in front of the shrine before and after clapping their hands and praying. They also perform a bow as a polite greeting when they meet each other. To bow was also the custom of the ancient Israel. Jacob bowed when he was approaching Esau (Genesis 33:3). I have noticed that modern Jews do not bow. However, they bow when reciting prayers. Modern Ethiopian people have the custom of bowing, probably because of the ancient Jews who emigrated to Ethiopia in ancient days. The Ethiopian bow is similar to the Japanese.

We Japanese have the custom to use salt for sanctification. People sometimes sow salt after an offensive person left them. When I was watching a TV drama from the times of the Samurai, a woman threw salt on the place where a man she hated left. This custom is the same as that of the ancient Israelites. After Abimelech captured an enemy city, "he sowed it with salt" (Judges 9:45). We Japanese quickly understand this to mean to cleanse and sanctify the city.

I hear that when Jews move to a new house they sow it with salt to sanctify and cleanse it. Again this is the same in Japan. In Japanese-style restaurants, they usually put salt near the entrance. Jews also use salt for Kosher meat. All Kosher meat is purified with salt and all meals start with bread and salt.

Japanese people place salt at the entrance of a funeral home. After coming back from a funeral, one has to sprinkle salt on oneself before entering his own house, for it is thought in Shinto that anyone who went to a funeral or touched a dead body has become unclean. Again the same concept as the Israelites.

Japanese "sumo" wrestlers sow the sumo ring with salt before they fight. European or American people wonder why they sow salt. But Rabbi Tokayer wrote that Jews quickly understand its meaning. Japanese people offer salt every time they perform a religious offering, This is the same custom used by the Israelites, for the Bible says: "With all your offerings you shall offer salt." (Leviticus 2:13) Japanese people in ancient times had the custom to put some salt into baby's first bath. The ancient people of Israel washed a new born baby with water after rubbing the baby softly with salt (Ezekiel 16:4). Sanctification and cleansing with salt and/or water is a common custom among both the Japanese and Israelites.

In the Hebrew Scriptures, the words "clean" or "unclean" often appears. Europeans and Americans are not familiar with this concept. But the Japanese people easily understand it, for it is Shinto's central concept to value cleanness and to avoid uncleanness. This concept again probably from ancient Israel.

In Japanese Shinto Religion, There Are No Idols Likewise Israeli Religion.

Buddhist temples have idols which are carved in the shape of Buddha and other gods. But in Japanese Shinto shrines, there are no idols. In the center of the Holy of Holies of a Shinto shrine, there is a mirror, sword, or pendant. But Shinto believers do not regard these items as their gods. In Shinto, gods are thought to be invisible. The mirror, sword, and pendant are not idols, but merely objects to show that it is the holy place where invisible gods come down.

In the ark of the covenant of ancient Israel, there were the tablets of stone of God's Ten Commandments, a jar of manna, and the rod of Aaron. These were not idols, but objects to show that it was the holy place where the invisible God comes down. We can say the same thing concerning these objects in Japanese shrines.

Ancient Japanese People Had the Belief in Yahweh!?

There is a difference that Shinto religion believes in many gods, while the Israeli (Jewish) religion believes in only one true God.

However, different from the modern Judaism, ancient religion of Israel, especially of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel, inclined to idol worship and polytheistic belief (belief in many gods). They believed in not only true God Yahweh, but also Baal, Asytaroth, Molech, and other pagan gods. Practically the religion of ancient Israel was not monotheistic. Shinto's polytheistic belief seems to have come from the polytheistic inclination of ancient Israel. Shinto scholars say that a Shinto god "Susanoh" resembles Baal in several aspects, and a female Shinto god "Amaterasu" resembles Asytaroth.

Until 40 decades ago, at Mt. Inomure in Ooita pref., Japan, people had held a ceremony to beg rainfall. They put woods together in the shape of the Star of David for making the foundation, on it constructed a tower made of tree branches, and on its top put a bamboo pole tangled with a slough of snake. They burned the tower and prayed for rainfall. It reminds us of the story that ancient Israelites had burned incense to the bronze serpent (made by Moses) on the pole until the reign of the King Hezekiah (2 Kings 18:4).

Although Shinto is a polytheistic religion, I think there is a possibility that ancient Shinto had once believed in Yahweh also.

The first born among the Shinto gods is called "Amenominakanushi-no-kami." This god is said to have appeared first, live in the midst of the universe, have no shape, no dying, be the invisible master of the universe, and be the absolute god, who resembles the Biblical God as the Master of the universe.

Archaeologists say that the religions of Babylon and of Egypt had originally believed in one god called "the god of sky," which seemed to have a connection to the Biblical "God of heaven." Later, their religions degraded to the polytheism. I think that we can safely say the same thing happened to the Shinto religion. I suppose that the ancient Shinto religion had the belief in God Yahweh, but later degenerated into polytheism. I believe that the Japanese people should come back to believe in one true God whom the Bible teaches.

A Christian friend of mine, Mr. Tsujii, once told me a story. One day, Mr. Tsujii's friend who is a passionate Shinto believer came to him. The Shinto believer brought the Bible and said excitingly to Mr. Tsujii:

"I read the Torah. I was very surprised to know the religious ceremonies of ancient Israel. The ways of them are the same as Shinto's! The way of their festivals, the way of the Temple, the way to value cleanness, all of them are the same as Shinto's!" Then, Mr. Tsujii said to him:

"Yes, that is what I have also noticed. If you have noticed it, why don't you believe in God whom the Bible teaches? I believe that is the way to establish and recover the true

Shinto religion in which you believe." Hearing it, the Shinto believer was too surprised to say any more words for a while.

The words of Mr. Tsujii are the same feeling as that I have for all the Shinto believers in Japan. I pray that all Japanese people may come back to believe in God of the Bible. Because He is also the Father of the Japanese nation.

Festivals of Japan Resemble the Festivals of Ancient Israel.

Today we Japanese celebrate the new year on January 1st, but historically we used the lunar calendar, when January 15th was the official date for the new year celebration. It is a Japanese custom during the celebration to eat "mochi" (rice cakes) throughout the seven days. This is similar custom to the Jewish, for the Bible states:

"And on the fifteenth day of the same month (first month) is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; seven days you must eat unleavened bread." (Leviticus 23:6)

The recipe for "unleavened bread" is the same for Japanese "mochi," because if you use rice as the ingredient instead of wheat flour, it would become Japanese "mochi." The Hebrew word for unleavened bread" is "matsah." I can't believe that it is an accident that these two words sound alike.

Furthermore, the Japanese people eat porridge with seven kinds of bitter herbs during celebration. In historical times people ate the herbs on January 15. The ancient Israelites also ate "with bitter herbs" on the 15th of the first month (Exodus 12:8).

In Japan, we have the "Gion" festivals at many locations during summer. The most important is the one held at the "Yasaka-jinja" Shinto shrine in Kyoto. The festival in Kyoto continues throughout July each year. But, the most important part of the festival is held from the 17th to the 25th of July (We Japanese call it "the seventh month"). The 1st and 10th of July are also important. This has been a tradition since ancient times. But the 17th of the seventh month is the day that Noah's ark drifted to Ararat:

"Then the ark rested in the seventh month, the seventeenth day of the month, on the mountains of Ararat." (Genesis 8:4)

We can imagine that the ancient Israelites had a thanksgiving feast on this day. But after Moses, it was replaced by the Feast of Booths (harvest festival) which is held on the 1st, 10th day of the seventh month, and during 8 days from the 15th of the seventh month (Numbers 29:1, 7, 12, 35).

The "Gion" festival in Kyoto started with the wish that no pestilence would occur among people. This is similar to what King Solomon started, in the wish that no pestilence would occur in the country, the feast which continued for 8 days (including the last meeting day) from the 15th of the seventh month (2 Chronicles 7:8-10). Over 120 years ago, a business man from Scotland, N. Mcleod, came to Japan and investigated the

customs of Japan. He wrote a book titled "Epitome of Japanese Ancient History." In the book, he wrote that the "Gion" festival in Kyoto resembled Jewish festivals very much. Rabbi Tokayer made a similar comment. He said that the name "Gion" reminds him of "Zion" which is another name used for Jerusalem. In fact, Kyoto used to be called "Heian-kyo" which means "peace". Jerusalem in Hebrew also means "peace". "Heian-kyo" might be Japanese for "Jerusalem."

At the "Gion" festival in Kyoto, people start the festival with a shout of "en-yara-yah." We Japanese do not understand the meaning of this Japanese word. But, Eiji Kawamorita, a Japanese scholar and a Christian pastor who mastered Hebrew, wrote in his book that this word came from the Hebrew expression "eni ahalel yah" which means "I praise Yahweh (the Lord)."

Old Japanese Words Have Hebrew Origin.

Joseph Eidelberg, a Jew who once came to Japan and stayed for years at a Japanese Shinto shrine, wrote a book titled "The Japanese and the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel." He wrote that many Japanese words originated from ancient Hebrew.

For instance, we Japanese say "hazukashime" to mean disgrace or humiliation. In Hebrew, it is "hadak hashem" (tread down the name. See Job 40:12). The pronunciation and the meaning of them are both almost the same.

We say "anta" to mean "you," which is the same in Hebrew. Kings in ancient Japan were called with the word "mikoto," which might come from a Hebrew word "malhuto" which means "his kingdom." We call the Emperor of Japan "mikado." This resembles the Hebrew word "migadol" which means the noble. The ancient Japanese word for an area leader is "agata-nushi;" "agata" is area, and "nushi" is a leader. In Hebrew, they are called "aguda""nasi."

When we Japanese count "One, two, three... ten," we sometimes say:

"Hi, fu, mi, yo, itsu, mu, nana, ya, kokono, towo."

This is a traditional expression, but we Japanese don't know what this means if we think of it as Japanese.

It is said that this expression originates from an ancient Japanese myth. In the Shinto myth, the female god called "Amaterasu" who manages the sunlight of the world once hid herself in a heavenly cave, and the world became dark. Then, according to the oldest book of Japanese history, the priest called "Koyane" prayed with words before the cave and in front of the other gods to have "Amaterasu" come out. Although the words that were said in the prayer are not written in the book, a legend says that these words were "Hi, fu, mi...."

Joseph Eidelberg writes that this is a beautiful Hebrew expression, if we suppose that there have been some changes in the pronunciation throughout history. These words are to be spelled:

"Haiafa mi yotsia ma naane ykakhena tavo."

This means: "Who shall bring out the beautiful? What words shall we say for her to come out?" This surprisingly fits the situation of the myth.

Moreover, we Japanese not only say "Hi, hu, mi...," but also say with the same meaning:

"Hitotsu, futatsu, mittsu, yottsu, itsutsu, muttsu, nanatsu, yattsu, kokonotsu, towo."

Here, "totsu" or "tsu" is put to each of "Hi, hu, mi..." as the last part of the words. But the last "towo" (which means ten) remains the same. "Totsu" may be the Hebrew word "tetse" which means "She comes out. " And "tsu" may be the Hebrew word "tse" which means "Come out." Eidelberg supposes that these words were said by the gods who surrounded the priest "Koyane." That is, when "Koyane" first says "Hi," the surrounding gods add "totsu" (She comes out) in reply, and secondly when "Koyane" says "Fu," the gods add "totsu" (tatsu), and so on. In this way, it became "Hitotsu, futatsu, mittsu...." But the last word "towo" the priest "Koyane" and the surrounding gods said together. If this is the Hebrew word "tavo," it means "(She) shall come." When they said this, the female god "Amaterasu" came out. "Hi, fu, mi..." and "Hitotsu, futatsu, mittsu..." later were used as the words to count numbers.

In addition, the name of the priest "Koyane" sounds close to a Hebrew word "kohen" which means a priest. Eidelberg shows many other examples of Japanese words which

seem to have a Hebrew origin. His list contains several thousand words. I don't believe this is a mere accident.

In ancient Japanese folk songs, there appear many words which we cannot understand as Japanese. Dr. Eiji Kawamorita says that many of them are Hebrew. A Japanese folk song in Kumamoto pref. is sung "Hallelujah, haliya, haliya, tohse, Yahweh, Yahweh, yoitonnah...." This also sounds like Hebrew.

Lost Tribes of Israel Came to Ancient Japan.

Ancient Israel was divided into two countries; one is the southern kingdom of Judah, and the other is the northern kingdom of Israel. In 70 A.D., the people of the southern kingdom of Judah scattered all over the world. There is some evidence that Jews traveled the silk road and went as far away as Japan. But, how about the people of the northern kingdom of Israel? The ancient book of history 'the fourth book of Ezra' says that the Ten Tribes of the northern kingdom of Israel went east and walked for one and a half years to a far away land. The Bible also says, in Isaiah 11:12:

"He (God)...will assemble the outcasts of Israel, and gather together the dispersed of Judah from the four corners of the earth."

The word "dispersed" is used for the people of Judah, but "outcasts" is used for the people of Israel. The ten northern tribes were driven away to a land rather than "dispersed". The main body must have gone to a country far away from Israel.

There is strong evidence of an ancient Israeli presence in Afghanistan, Kashmir, India, and China. According to a Chinese historical book, there were Israelites who had the custom of circumcision in the time of the second century B.C.E. in China. The ten tribes of Israel must have moved to east passing these countries. We cannot say there is no possibility that the main body of the Ten Tribes of Israel came far away to Japan.

In ancient times, some people moved to Japan from China, some people also came from Russia, and some people from South-East Asia. Most of them were of Mongoloid stock. Among them, there is a possibility that the main body of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel also came to Japan.

I don't believe that the Japanese religion called Shinto and all of its customs came from the southern kingdom Jews. But, if the Lost Tribes came to Japan in early history, it is understandable that their religion and customs would have a strong influence on Japan. According to the research of Dr. Kawamorita, there appears God's holy name "Yahweh" many times in ancient Japanese folk songs. The Jews of Judah do not use His name, because they quit pronouncing His name from the third century B.C.E.. But the people of Israel continued to pronounce His name.

The formal name for the Emperor "Jinmu," the first Emperor of Japan, is "Kamu-yamato-iware-biko-sumera-mikoto." Joseph Eidelberg says that it can be interpreted in Hebrew

as "The king of Samaria, the noble founder of the Hebrew nation of Yahweh." This is not to mean that "Jinmu" himself is really the founder of the Hebrew nation, but the memory of the Hebrew nation might have come into the legend of the Japanese first Emperor "Jinmu."

But, how about the custom of circumcision? Rev. Takatoshi Kobayashi, who is one of the grandsons of Meiji-tennoh, and a member of the Imperial family of Japan, but is a Christian pastor now, says that the emperor and the prince of Japan are circumcised. However, this testimony is the only evidence I know that the custom of circumcision exists in Japan.

From the Study of Blood Types.

Prof. Tanemoto Furuhata, who is the authority of forensic medicine at Tokyo University, writes in his book that the blood types of the Japanese and the Jews are very similar, and he was surprised to get to know of it. I also heard that a professor of Paris University had discovered that the chromosome "Y" of the Japanese is the same in size as that of the Jews.

But I expect that further research will be done by a lot of people. The decisive evidence that may prove to all people that the Ten Lost Tribes came to Japan has not been discovered yet. Finally, I introduce the rumor that God's name is written in Hebrew on the holy mirror which is kept at the Japanese Shinto shrine "Ise-jingu" since ancient times.

Concerning the Rumor That God's Name Is Written in Hebrew on the Holy Mirror of Ise.

In the Imperial House of Japan, there are three valuable treasures which were derived from ancient Japanese myths. These three are a sword, a jewel pendant and a mirror.

Among them, the mirror called "Yata-no-kagami" (mirror of Yata) is placed in "Ise-jingu" which is the Shinto shrine for the Imperial House. In fact, there is a rumor that God's name is written in Hebrew on the back of this holy mirror. This mirror is regarded to be very holy and no one is permitted to see it usually. But there are some people who insist that they have seen it.

About a hundred years ago, Arinori Mori, the Minister of Education, Culture, and Science of Japan at that time, insisted that he saw the back of the holy mirror. He said that on it written in Hebrew was the God's name "I AM THAT I AM", that is, the name which God spoke to Moses (Exodus 3:14).

After World War Two, Dr. Sakon, a professor from Aoyama-gakuin University, stated that he had seen a replica of the mirror which was placed in the Imperial Palace. He said that on it written in Hebrew was God's name "I AM THAT I AM".

Later, it is said that Yutaro Yano, a passionate Shinto believer, saw the mirror and transcribed the patterns of the back of the holy mirror. Yano asked a priest at Ise-jingu again and again if he could look at the mirror. The priest moved by Yano's passion, secretly permitted him to look at the mirror, and Yano carefully copied the pattern off the back of the mirror.

This copy has been maintained for years in a Shinto group named "Shinsei-Ryujinkai" which is run by Yano's daughter. It had been held in secret by the group. But later they say that there was "god's revelation" to show the copy to His Highness Mikasanomiya, a younger brother of the Emperor Hirohito (Showa Tennoh). Mr. Wadoh Kohsaka, who is a Shinto researcher, had a role in handing it to Mikasanomiya. After that, Kohsaka decided to show the copy to the public in his book, for he thought it was important for the Japanese to know the truth. The book was published several years ago.

There are two theories on how to interpret the letters on the mirror. One is to interpret the letters as "Hifu-moji" which is believed to be one of "Jindai-moji"s, the supposed Japanese letters existed in ancient Japan before Kanji-writing had been imported from China to Japan. Another theory is to interpret them as ancient Hebrew. The theory of "Hifu-moji" is from Yano himself, but I don't believe it. Because I find some contradictions in his interpretation. And no one knows what Hifu-moji really looks like, so

how can we accept them as Hifu-moji? Furthermore, all the known Japanese ancient "Jindai-moji"s are written vertically. I have never seen it written horizontally.

Some people suggest that the 7 letters inside the central circle of the mirror might be read as "I AM THAT I AM" - in Hebrew "eheyeh asher eheyeh," reading "eheyeh" two times. Other suggest that they could be read as "Yahweh's light," - in Hebrew "or Yahweh" ("Or" means light). If they could be read "Yahweh's light," it might be the reason why the god of the Imperial House is called "Amaterasu" which means the god of light or god of the sun. The god of the Imperial House of Japan may have originally the God of the Bible, but later the faith in Him got mixed with the belief in "Amaterasu." People started to call the god of the Imperial House "Amaterasu," because on the mirror was written "Yahweh's light" (Psalm 36:9, 84:11.)

As for the letters outside the central circle, a person suggests that they are ancient Greek. But some letters among them are the same as the ones inside the circle. So I think both the letters inside and outside belong to the same language.

I think that these letters also look like Aramaic language which the ancient Israelites used. If anyone reading this has a different understanding, please let me know. Anyway, we do not have any evidence that the copy of Yano is really the pattern of the back of the holy mirror. This still remains as a mystery. I wish that the day to show the mirror to the public would come.

Arimasa Kubo