Photo/Illutration Thich Duc Tri poses in Kobe on Aug. 25, 2021. (Itsuki Soeda)

KOBE--A Buddhist priest here has consoled the souls of about 50 Vietnamese people, including students and trainees killed in accidents and incidents in Japan, recovered their corpses or ashes, and sent the remains to their bereaved families.

Thich Duc Tri, 31, head priest of Warakuji temple, or Chua Hoa Lac, here, has received no compensation for his support, as 80 percent of those he looked after were in their 20s.

“I cannot substitute for their family members but I want to stay close to them until the last moments,” said Tri.

Hailing from Vietnam's Ha Tinh province, Tri came to Japan in 2015 to refine his skills as a web designer.

Shortly after he began studying Japanese in Kyoto Prefecture, Tri learned that a high school classmate died from overwork in Mie Prefecture under Japan’s foreign intern program.

The system is intended to provide job skills that trainees can use after they return to their home countries. However, complaints are rife about employers overworking the interns or burdening them with menial tasks under horrific working conditions.

Tri heard the classmate’s bereaved family could not visit Japan for financial reasons so the chief priest of the Vietnam-style temple had the body cremated.

“The classmate left our homeland and worked hard his entire life and had dreams just like I have,” said Tri.

Tri since learned Buddhism to enter the priesthood. He became the new head of Chua Hoa Lac three years ago.

When a Vietnamese man was beaten and pushed into the Dotonbori river in a busy commercial area in Osaka last summer and died, a friend of the victim who was “at a loss about what to do” contacted Tri for advice.

Tri was commissioned by his bereaved family to pick the body up from Osaka prefectural police so a funeral could be held in Osaka with more than 100 Vietnamese and others in attendance.

His relatives were unable to enter Japan due to the travel restrictions stemming from the ongoing novel coronavirus pandemic, and they watched the service through a video link. The man's remains were cremated and delivered to his family.

Supported by donations, Chua Hoa Lac also offers accommodations and meals for young people plagued by human relationships and jobs. More individuals are currently coming to the temple amid the virus outbreak.

“My happiness is everyone becoming happy,” Tri said.

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