Great Construction

Record of Oral Teachings, Issue 27
November 15, 1953

October 15, 19523

     Tomorrow will be held the Topping Out Ceremony for the Messianic Hall and it appears that the weather will be fine. The Japanese construction world has its forms, so we might say this ceremony is a kind of mood-raising event. That may be the way it is, but construction with reinforced concrete just doesn’t inspire a mood. With no other meaning, the building just rises with cement and steal rods. Looking at construction as a series of events is probably only Japanese, but because the tradition of wood construction has remained in many parts of Japan since antiquity, builders probably continue to follow the traditional ceremonies during construction.
     As I have said before, Hakone represents the spirit and Atami, the physical, so completion of the Messianic Hall will be one beginning for the physical. Since Hakone is the spiritual, what occurs does not appear to the eye. However, because Atami is the physical, as the Messianic Hall is gradually completed, that influence will show on a world-wide scale. The most conspicuous sign will be the growth of World Messianity, and since the growth will be physical, people will see it. All that God does is manifested through prototypes, so in terms of where growth will be, for example, it means the divine light program as well will expand, grow. In other words, if a small prototype is enlarged, there will be growth on a larger scale. Therefore, making additions to buildings and adding on to lots in different locations is very good. For branches, it is the same. As they are enlarged, they grow, and the divine light program will certainly grow. This is what a prototype is. Religions of old kept themselves in small places and functioned in a subdued manner but from that way of doing things we differ completely. Construction in previous ages of the various kinds of buildings in temples, such as pagodas, main halls, lecture halls, and monasteries, were magnificent, which shows that the religions had grown that much, but in their beginning stages not much concern was shown for large buildings and grounds. The way World Messianity proceeds, however, is different. The stated goal of religions has been to save all sentient beings, but in World Messianity paramount is the construction of paradise on earth, and since this is fundamental with us, we must also undertake construction on a physical level. In this sense, therefore, when the Messianic Hall is completed, the work will spread not only in Japan, but in foreign countries as well.
     Just two or three days ago, for the first time in about a month, we received a report from Miss Higuchi. I am sure you all want to hear this, so I will have it read now.
(Reading of report, “Letters from Hawaii, Number 10,” Eikô, Issue 232, October 28, 1953.)
     As you can see, non-Japanese are learning about the church and gradually starting to come. I think it interesting. Also, two members of the Catholic Church seem to have come to understand World Messianity, so I do not think that spreading the light will take so much work. It just won’t do not to have the work spread among Americans. God will open a way, and the number of members in Hawaii does appear to have passed a thousand persons. It is quite gratifying that land and a house for the Hawaii headquarters as well as the money for it has almost been arranged. Of the approximately fifty thousand dollars necessary, twenty thousand dollars will be borrowed, and twenty-five thousand dollars has been raised from among the members, so the purchase has been completed. But as Hawaii consists of many islands, the situation is very complicated. Still, in all areas, a connection has been formed. World Messianity seems to have become quite a topic in Hawaii. So much so, that having heard about World Messianity in Hawaii, a Frenchman has come to visit us here. In only about half a year, this much of a foundation has been completed. What would you call this? “God’s hand?” “Divine intervention?” It is quite wonderful. Such being the case, I think next year should be quite interesting. In accordance with what I just mentioned, as the Messianic Hall nears completion, it will cause what could be called an echo, a reverberation. That is how the work will unfold. God’s administration is truly precise. It seems like nothing is happening but indeed the work proceeds on target. In my affairs, matters are always slow, but when the right time comes, all becomes clear. It is indeed interesting. People or materials just appear. What may not seem possible, after a short time, happens. Even something I may have give up on unexpectedly comes out of the blue. It is also that way with matters such as art objects. I may give up on obtaining a certain piece. I may think that because such-and-such a family has the item that there is no way they would part from it―judging from what the dealers tell me―but when the time is right, the work just pops in. It is truly interesting.
     Because this is a matter of which people do not become aware, I have written about it in an interesting way.
(Reading of essay, “Age of Fraud,” Eikô, Issue 231, October 21, 1953.)
     I often speak of Izunome, and in numerical terms, Izunome is five and three, or in classical Japanese, izu and mizu. Izu is five and mi is three, so it is hi, mizu. Hi plus mizu is kami [god]. Hi is also ka [whose phonetic letters looks exactly like the ideogram for “power”], and from mizu comes mi, so Izunome is a true god. There is an interesting point connected to this. I learned about this while I was affiliated with Omoto, but there is a verse in Omoto’s prophetic writings that goes, “Because Omoto is a prototype for the world…,” so Omoto is the first prototype in God’s administration. Omoto’s founder, Nao Deguchi, stands for the vertical, for fire. Since she signified the vertical, she was very serious and strict. She never crossed her legs. Probably because most women behave in such a way, and she was a woman, she always sat straight up and never bent her body. She was strict to the extreme. With foods, she did not consume any animal fats. So, while she was alive members of Omoto were much like her. Western clothes were absolutely not worn nor did she have a leather bag. But there was a reason for this. There are two islands off the Tango coast, one called “Male Island” and the other called “Female Island.” Because Ushitora no Konjin was said to have performed rituals on these islands, in the early years Omoto would hold services on these islands once a year. At one such event, there was a raging storm, many boats were buffeted about by the waves, and everyone was worried. It was thought that there must be something wrong, that is, that some one must have brought an impure item aboard the boats, and so a search was undertaken. It was found that one of the participants had brought along a leather bag. This bag was held to be the cause of the storm’s fury and the bag was thrown into the sea. As the bag went into the seas, the storm abruptly stopped, so the idea of leather being impure is not just a superstition. Call it the karma of the founder’s spirit, but her strictly vertical personality showed in various ways. Onisaburo Deguchi represented the horizontal, and he was very extreme in this regard as well. He was continually horizontal. He dictated his books while completely reclining on a bed. He said he could not dictate if he arose from the bed. So, in different rooms throughout the various Omoto headquarter buildings, futons were always spread out with pillows. He would go to a room and just plop himself down. When the authorities searched the Omoto grounds at the time of the First Omoto Incident, they investigated him on the suspicion of raping women because they had discovered the futons spread out with pillows in each room. It was inevitable that upon learning of such a search, Onisaburo would shout at the officers. “I am the spirit of the horizontal!” The vertical and the horizontal, fire and water, were well represented in those two. Because of the founder’s one-sided verticalness, in 1922 the First Omoto Incident came about, during which period Omoto came under heavy attack. When Onisaburo’s time came, another Omoto Incident occurred in 1935 due to Onisaburo’s horizontalness. The attack this time was fatal. He was in jail for seven years and only released at the end of the war. Omoto failed with the vertical and it failed with the horizontal.
     This principle can be well understood when seen against the backdrop of the world. Eastern civilization is vertical, Western civilization, horizontal. The vertical Eastern civilization, because it is a spiritual civilization, denied the horizontal, the material aspect. Here I refer to India, but India has now become poor in a material sense. This is a rather trivial example, but even in the movies, Indians are always portrayed as skinny. They seem to be just like skeletons. This is because, as food was generally scarce, people became accustomed to eating little, so it became usual that they are thin. It is very different now, but previously the diet was only vegetables and milk. The Japanese feudalistic system was greatly influenced by this kind of asceticism. The West, however, was completely different and conversely spread out horizontally on the basis of invasion, constantly in conflict. Conflict between many different elements on the horizontal aspect continued, so their efforts too ended in failure as well. The East failed with a vertical civilization and the West failed with a horizontal civilization. Izunome is exactly in the center of the cross where these two aspects come together, neither vertical nor horizontal, but vertical and horizontal. A flexible fusion, this is Izunome. So, out of Omoto, from Nao’s vertical aspects and from Onisaburo’s horizontal aspects, was I born. I am Izunome, taking elements from each side. My way of doing things is Izunome-like. Our badge carries this meaning. A civilization that leans neither to the vertical nor to the horizontal, that is the real, the true. Another point is that Izunome becomes the source of power. When writing the ideogram for “power,” the vertical stroke is written first, then the horizontal stroke, bringing it down like this. Thus, when vertical and horizontal are united, power is manifest. When the vertical and the horizontal are brought together, a form that begins activity is created. What heals sickness with Johrei is this power. As you know from history, there has been no power until now. Until the present, vertical was vertical and horizontal was horizontal. There was nothing to unite them. Since they were not united, there was no power. That is why until now even religion did not manifest power. Religions were all simply teachings, Teachings about religion. Teachings about Buddhism. But teachings can not really save human beings. Teachings do not heal disease. There must be power to heal. That power, as I have just said, first manifests when the vertical and the horizontal are joined. When the vertical and horizontal were united in Omoto, I was born. The civilization of the world will proceed as such as well. When this point is grasped, you can well understand God’s administration and the appearance of World Messianity.
     One more point. I receive telegrams asking for blessings and protection and the telegrams do state what the problem is or where the patient hurts, but I find that some of the telegrams are not about serious conditions. They describe symptoms that should be healed with Johrei in a breeze. But such symptoms are not healed easily because channels put too much of their own energy into the channeling, so when the channeling of Johrei does not result in the healing it should, remember it is because you are putting too much of your own energy into it. Trying to refrain from adding your own power is rather difficult. But, as purification becomes more intense, the light will strengthen and so in order to channel the light effectively, the channel’s energy must be reduced even more. Just a little of one’s own energy will retard, impede the release of light. There is a way to handle this problem. You have to try to release your own energy, to let go of it as much as you can, to the point where you think you cannot let go of it anymore. Whether your own energy is included or not makes a big difference. It happens even to me. If I somehow put my own energy into my Johrei, the healing changes. When you can let go of your own energy, healing increases many fold.

Pages 25-31.
translated by cynndd