Yakuza My Brother: A Novel

Yakuza, My Brother is a story based on true events. Raz, an Israeli scholar, befriends Yuki, a young, intelligent, well-educated but marginal man. Yuki disappears one day under mysterious circumstances, apparently because of his involvement with the Yakuza, the Japanese organized crime syndicate. Raz is perplexed. Along with his scholarly interest in Japan, he embarks on a personal quest to find and perhaps save his young friend. He knows the trail to Yuki leads through the Yakuza. He finally manages to penetrate one of the most important crime families by employing some uncommon methods. While pursuing his scholarly interest in the Yakuza, Raz never forgets Yuki, his lost friend. Ultimately, after dramatic and harrowing travels around East Asia, he finds a man who might be Yuki. But then again, he might not . . .

Jacob Raz is professor of Buddhism, Zen Buddhism, and Japanese culture at the Department of East Asian Studies, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv. He is the author of numerous books and articles on Buddhism, Japanese aesthetics, and Japanese anthropology, in Hebrew, English, Russian, and Japanese. He translated into Hebrew many masterpieces of Japanese literature and poetry. He also authored fiction and poetry books. On November 24, 2006, he was awarded by the Japanese government the decoration “The Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon” (Kunsho) for his contribution to Japanese studies and for his “outstanding contribution to the friendship and mutual understanding between Japan and Israel.” Jacob Raz is a social activist, leading several NGO's working in the fields of peace and social action, and the world of people with special needs. He is also active in the cultivation and dissemination of Buddhism as everyday practice in various professional, institutional, political, and personal spheres in the modern Western world.