Hachiko: A Dog's Loyalty Knows No Boundaries

Assalamualaikum W.B.T.......


   Bertemu semula seperti biasa....Masih hidup..Alhamdulillah.....Cuma ingin berkongsi cerita...Cerita tentang kesetiaan....Yes! Loyalty...We've heard a lot about loyalty. Manusia kepada Penciptanya...Manusia kepada makhluk sejenisnya...Tapi, haiwan kepada manusia? What does it mean to be a loyal companion? How does it feel to have one? I surely have no idea. But there's one loyal friend I've just got to know and his name is Hachiko.......


   I wanted to share with you the true tale of this wonderful canine. It truly is a story of devotion and loyalty that warms the heart and penetrates the barriers of death.


JAPAN'S MOST LOYAL DOG REMEMBERED




A Friend Waits

Professor Hidesaburō Ueno lived in Tokyo with his beloved Akita named Hachiko. Everyday Hachiko would see Ueno off to work from his home and then, at the end of the day, greet him at the nearby Shibuya Train Station.

One day in May 1925 would be the end of their daily routine together, for Ueno suffered a fatal stroke during his day at work. He never returned to his faithful friend that day nor any day thereafter.

Hachiko was given away to new owners but the loyal dog always ran off in search of his true master. After returning to Ueno's former home several times, Hachiko realized that he did not live there anymore. Hachiko then searched for his friend at the train station. There he perpetually returned everyday henceforth, always at the end of the day and at the precise time of Ueno's scheduled arrival. Hachiko waited there in vain every day for 11 years.

The Story Spreads

Some of the people at the train station recognized Hachiko from his prior rendezvous with Ueno.  Knowing about Ueno's death, they were deeply touched by this act of loyalty and brought him food.  Eventually the story spread about Hachiko.

A former student of Professor Ueno's heard of Hachiko's vigil and went to the station to see the loyal Akita.  Fascinated by Hachiko, the former student wrote several papers on him.  In 1932, one of these papers was published in Tokyo's largest newspaper.  This article threw Hachiko into Japan's national spotlight.

Hachiko became the personification of loyalty.  School teachers and parents would use him as a teaching model for dedication and loyalty.  In 1934, a well-known Japanese artist sculpted a likeness of Hachiko to be placed at the entrance of Shibuya Station; in the same area he waited for his long-deceased master.  Hachiko himself was there for the statue's dedication.

The Vigil Ends
On March 8 1935, eleven years after it started, Hachiko's vigil came to an end. At almost 12 years old, the Akita succumbed to heart-worm disease. The nation of Japan mourned the loss of their most beloved canine.

Hachiko's long wait was over and finally he is reunited with his beloved master at Rainbow Bridge.

That's a good boy, Hachiko.

That'll do.

Hachiko was born in Odate, Japan in November 1923, a white male Akita dog. At the age of two months, he was sent to the home of Professor Ueno of the Agricultural Department of the Tokyo University. The professor's home was in the Shibuya district of Tokyo. The professor commuted to the agricultural department in Komaba and the agricultural experimental station in Nishihara. Tragedy struck on May 21, 1925, when Dr. Ueno did not return because he had suffered a stroke and died at the university. Hachiko was eighteen months old. The next day and for the next nine years, Hachiko returned to the station and waited for his beloved master before walking home, alone. Nothing and no one could discourage Hachiko from maintaining his nightly vigil. It was not until he followed his master in death, in March l934, that Hachiko failed to appear in his place at the railroad station.

Each year on April 8th at a solemn ceremony in Tokyo's Shibuya railroad station, hundreds of dog lovers do homage to the loyalty and devotion of an Akita dog, Hachiko, faithful pet of Dr. Eisaburo Ueno, a professor at Tokyo University.

Hachiko was sent to homes of relatives or friends, but he always continued to await his master, who was never to return, at the train station. The fidelity of Hachiko was known throughout Japan, owing to an article, "Faithful Old Dog Awaits Return of Master Dead for Seven Years" in the October 4, 1933 issue of Aashi Shinbun (Asahi News). Upon his death, newspaper stories led to the suggestion that a statue be erected in the station. Contributions the from the United States and other countries were received. Today, the statue of the Akita, Hachiko, pays silent tribute to the breed's faithfulness and loyalty. A bronze statue of Hachiko was put up at his waiting spot outside the Shibuya railroad station, which is now probably the most popular rendezvous point in Shibuya. Hachiko was mounted and stuffed and is on now on display at the Tokyo Museum of Art. 

Hmmmm....touching isn't it? That is loyal. And I would recommend this movie. Memang sangat2 touching. It crushed my heart to see the movie and even more to know the fact that Hachiko was not just a drama, an act of loyalty and love, but this story was for real. They said that this dog in the story is indeed a great actor. Pelakon terbaik. But the real Hachiko....Tidak mungkin ada sedetikpun lakonan selama 9 tahun penantiannya......Itulah teman yang setia.....Sehingga hujung nyawa.....Pengajarannya di sini adalah, ketahuilah bahawa setiapa makhluk ciptaan Allah itu adalah kompleks sifatnya. Jangan pernah dianggap remeh dan diseksa sesuka hati. I don't know if they have feelings or what. If a human beings waits for someone for 9 years, even if he knows that the person is dead, we might say that he has gone mad. But, when a dog did the same thing, we know that it was not madness. It is what we call LOYALTY. Enjoy the movie...Just don't cry your eyes out....Watched it twice already. Don't feel like watching it again coz' it makes me sad...Nevertheless  ^_^  Love Hachiko...