Chijo15

Introduction, 3
Poems, 6
Chijôtengoku, Issue 15 Contents, 8
Opening Remarks, 10
Essays
Religion and Faith, 12
Does Contemporary Medicine Heal Disease?, 13
The Light of Mystic Wisdom, 19
Healing by an Ascetic, 26

_____
¹”What Is the ‘Teachings of Meishu-sama’?”, February 27, 2001; revised October 14, 2006. This essay still requires revision, but I have no plans to look at it soon; the basic information it contains still stands.
²In the “Contents,” the painting is attributed to Spiritual Leader Jikan. “Spiritual Leader” was Meishu-sama’s legal title in the organization, which he did not refer to often, and Jikan was another nom-de-plume. These noms-de-plume are described in the September 12, 1951, essay “My Names.”

1. The mercy and
Compassion of the
Regarder of Cries
Observes without prejudice
Both good and evil.

2. Awe-inspiring is the
Power wielded by
The Messiah that is
Able to separate
Good from evil.

3 Regarder of the Cries of the World,
Another name for the
Boddhisattva of Great Compassion,
Which expresses the sadness
At the ending of Buddhism.

4. Be aware all, that
The spirit of the Bodhisattva
Regarder of the Cries of the World
Encourages and praises
Good and forgives evil.

5. Relinquishing the name
Bodhisattva Regarder of the
Cries of the World,
The world will be saved
With the name Messiah.

6. Great is the time
When, discarding
The robes of Regarder of
Cries, there
Appears the Messiah.

Chijôtengoku, Issue 15, Contents

    Until quite recently, it was thought the two great powers in the world would not be able to settle their differences except through war. Humanity was threatened with the dangerous situation that hostilities could break out at any moment. However, there has come about the fact that this situation has been slightly alleviated, even if we have not completely escaped the danger of conflict suddenly breaking out. I am talking about the recent news from Moscow announcing that coexistence with the West is not necessarily impossible. It is an unexpected and rather remarkable announcement.
     Until this news, the worry that the final goal of communism was world domination had almost become common sense that most everyone, myself included, believed. So, this news from Moscow was a great change no one had dared to dream. One might ask why the Soviet government would make such an unexpected announcement, but this does not deserve very much thought. The level of weapons has advanced from that of the atomic bomb to the actual planning stages for the hydrogen bomb, and even Stalin has to think about the harm that could result from the use of these weapons. There will be no victory in this kind of war. The tragedy of the total annihilation of all humanity has entered the realm of the possible. Most probably Stalin has given up dreams of world domination and settled for a policy of protecting the present gains made behind the Iron Curtain. Thus, the sparkling contribution to humanity that the atomic bomb has helped to prevent war is unparalleled good news. Upon deeper reflection, this event can only be a sign that indicates the construction of paradise on earth is approaching.
     The goal of the paradise on earth we advocate is a world without sickness, poverty and conflict, and of these three misfortunes we are particularly concerned with eliminating disease. God will undertake the great project of eliminating war. From recent events, we can see that God’s great plan is steadily progressing toward the destination of paradise on earth.

     Whether religion or faith, the general public tends to think these are identical, but in truth, there are many instances where the two differ. The popular saying, “Belief can come even from the head of a sardine” is referring to faith and not to religion. Similarly, primitive peoples worshipping grotesque statues made from wood or stone is faith but it is not religion.
     Thus it is not unreasonable that the cultured peoples of today tend to think of idolatry as a belief of a lower level. Even so, the idea that religions are all the same will not do. This is because what are considered religions can be divided into levels of higher, intermediate, and lower. Human beings can truly be saved only by religions of the higher level. It may seem odd to think in terms of levels in religions, but there are distinctions in everything of the universe, and religion is no exception. Religions of the higher levels are presided over by beings of the highest levels, so their authority and influence is of the highest and most powerful order, and it is only natural that they are accompanied by an appropriate power to save which is demonstrated by extraordinary miracles.
     For this reason there occur in World Messianity miracles in which diseases that medical science is not able to heal are healed, danger is avoided by a hair’s-breadth, and what should burn in a fire does not. The more remarkable the material blessings are in a religion evidences at its center a divine presence of the highest levels.

Does Contemporary Medicine Heal Disease?

     The title may appear to exceed exaggeration and border on insanity, but most readers should find no room for objection if they read the argument to the very end. Society is pleased that recent advances in medical science have led to an apparent lengthening of the human life span, but these phenomena are only temporary, and it is obvious that the time will come when these advances lead to reverse effects. Make no mistake this will happen. Here is why.
     As a preliminary step, let me offer firm proof of what I say. The evidence is in the many testimonials that are carried in World Messianity’s newspaper Kyûsei (Salvation) and in its journal Chijôtengoku (Heaven on Earth). At present, several hundreds of these reports are received every month. It would not be going too far to say that almost all of these testimonials, for the past several decades, are the accounts of people whose serious illnesses were not cured by medical treatment or by any other healing therapy. A careful perusal of each account will show that not only did medical treatment have no effect, rather sometimes it even led to unintended ill effects. Pitiful is the only word to describe the long periods of suffering that come from the poor results of medical treatment, accompanied by large wastes of money. The reports carried in the church periodicals reflect not only appreciation and joy of having been totally cured by Johrei but also an enthusiastic expression of sharing their happiness with others suffering from the same conditions. I really want to know what medical doctors have to say when they read these accounts.
     Those involved in medical science do not realize that there is a close relationship between the fact that their therapies do not heal and the phenomenon that the life span seems to have been lengthened to a certain extent. Here is an interpretation based on the principles of divine healing.
     Medical science does not understand that illness, sickness, disease, “conditions,” etc., are all names that have been attached to the suffering that accompanies the process of the elimination of toxins from each and every human body. I have continued to advocate this for many years, but medical science interprets the physical suffering, the pain, that accompanies the elimination of toxins, to be bad, something that must be alleviated. The only method medical science possesses for alleviating that pain are medicines, drugs, pharmaceuticals. The essence of all these are toxic, and with their application, the power of the human body to purify its toxins is weakened and pain is alleviated. With only the pain alleviated, medical science is under the illusion that the disease has been healed.
     The mission of medical science that is perceived to be suppressing the toxins that seek elimination and alleviating pain, which is only a temporary measure, is quite mistaken. Medical treatment is only a technique for alleviating pain and is in reality not a method for healing disease. If this article is carefully read, it should be clear that as I suggest in my title medical science does not heal disease. The principles of divine healing indicate that the progress of medical science is the advance of the technique of alleviating pain, in other words, the advance of methods for postponing the elimination of toxins. The true cause of complications, relapses, and chronic conditions actually stems from the postponement of toxin elimination. So, in contrast to medical science, the true method of healing and the positive way to form healthy individuals encourages the elimination of toxins and the cleansing of the body internally. Contagious diseases naturally do not infect a completely healthy person, special disinfecting procedures are unnecessary, and contemporary peoples’ fear of germs disappears. Because the toxins that are in the human body are primarily medicinal toxins, in brief, the method that tries to cure actually results in creating disease.
     People nowadays automatically look to medical treatment for help when they come down with sickness or a condition, but, because medical treatment, as I just described above, is a continuous repetition of methods to alleviate pain through medicinal toxins and other means, it only results in postponing purification therefore creating individuals who are only half healthy. I will explain what awaits these half healthy human beings, but first it is necessary to emphasize an important point.
     The function that eliminates toxins is generated within the body as I explained, and it occurs because that physical body is healthy enough to sustain the purification process. The healthier the person, the more vigorous are the metabolic processes of that person, and therefore, what we call purification is more apt to occur. This is most clearly observable in the phenomenon that because infectious diseases are the most vigorous forms of purification, these diseases are more prevalent in younger people. Young people experience tuberculosis to a greater degree for the same reason. But these explanations diametrically contrast to the theories of medical science which hold that contracting infectious diseases and tuberculosis indicate a low rate of resistance in the body. If that were so, the older one gets, resistance should weaken and the elderly should be afflicted to a greater extent with these two conditions. Another consequence of medical treatment is that recovery from tuberculosis takes longer because the forced suppression of the purifying function prolongs the condition.
     When we consider the principles of true health, we see it is only logical that as contemporary medical science has advanced so has decreased the number of individuals possessing true health, which means that there are more and more half healthy individuals. A half healthy individual is, for example, a young person with the constitution of the elderly. The purificatory energy of a half healthy person is weaker, so the opportunity for getting sick decreases. Even if purification should occur, the suppression of purification with medical treatment alleviates the condition temporarily. Another logical outcome of medicine’s mistaken theories that cannot be overlooked is the decrease in the staying power of physical laborers these days. Physical laborers in technologically advanced nations have come to dislike work because they fatigue more easily and thus seek to have the hours they work reduced. Also, another point largely unremarked upon, is that even the ability of farmers to maintain long hours in the fields has lessened, and this is also due to the decrease in their physical vitality. As our culture advances so naturally does concern for the happiness of workers, and although respect for labor is championed as a reason for this concern, it is not difficult to overlook the basic problem of health that lurks beneath the surface of this situation.
     Vaccination, which has come to be vigorously promoted in recent times, also deserves mention. Above I stated that a person catches an infectious disease because that person’s purificatory energy is strong, so the energy to purify conversely weakens with vaccination. People are deluded into thinking that they have lessened the chances of coming down with or getting disease. A person of true health, however, has no poisons in the system and will not contract disease, but at this time it is fair to say that there is no one with true health. Because members of the general public are half healthy individuals carrying toxins around in their bodies, purification is prone to be generated, that is, people will get sick, but then their conditions are temporarily alleviated with medicines. When people get sick and use medical treatments, these therapies force a stop to the purifying process which results in friction with the opposing purificatory energy.
     As this friction increases, physical vitality weakens correspondingly, which can lead to death. One example is the case of inflammation of the lungs. Inflammation of the lungs is ordinarily a very vigorous purification, but if asked for a diagnosis, doctors recommend such-and-such medicine saying that it will cure the condition right away, and that if not used, one may die. The medicine they use on their patient must be a very strong one to be able to overcome the vigorous purificatory process. These principles apply all the more to infants. The reason there are so many infant deaths is because infancy is the period of the most vigorous purifying energy. The medicines used to suppress infant diseases, even if judged to be suitable for the age group, act very powerfully, and the activity of friction produced between the purification process and the effect of the medicine may cause death.
      The reader should have gotten a general idea of the issues involved in healing from the explanation of the specific examples I have given. As long as the number of half healthy people increases, the opportunity for getting sick gradually decreases and even when sickness does occur, the purifying energy is weaker. In this weakened state, the severe friction between the two opposing forces does not occur, so people believe they have avoided death, and this is the true reason that the life span appears to have been prolonged in recent years. But these half healthy people will not lead truly long lives. In their later years, the toxins that have built up over the years in their systems will hasten senility, hardening of the arteries, stroke, and constriction of the kidneys will occur. That the lengthening of the average life span in recent years has not changed the absolute longest length of the life span bears out my point. Statistics show that the average longest life spans still hover at a little over eighty years. Thus we can see that what we have experienced is not a lengthening of the life span due to an increase of true health.
     The true worth of the divine healing therapy is that instead of suppressing purification, purification and the elimination of as much toxin as possible in case of an outbreak of disease is encouraged. Many cases of the purification process are described in the testimonials published in our periodicals. These testimonials show sufficient proof that through divine healing therapy individuals with true health can maintain a life span of over ninety years.

The Light of Mystic Wisdom

Transcribed and compiled by Motokichi Inoue

Question: A member who is the eldest son is married and lives separately from his parents, about three blocks away. The parents practice no faith of any kind, do not perform memorial rites for their ancestors, nor do they make offerings on their family altar, so would it be all right for the eldest son to take the family altar to his home and look after the ancestors?

Answer: Yes! The sooner he does so the better.

Answer: There should be no problem, but the weaker the relationship you had with that person in the physical world the lower the level the spirit will be in the spiritual world.

Answer: This is a superstition, so all who wish to do these things should go ahead and do them. If you think doing these things in such a year is bad, spirit will become weaker and in that breach, evil spirits can enter.

Answer: The change will not be all at once. Gradually the world of Buddhism will change to the world of gods. What should be noted, though, is that the highest reaches of heaven have been prepared and that the Buddhist hell and purgatory are slowly disappearing.

Answer: Medical science holds that a lack of sleep is not good for the health, but I have always said that this is an error. Lack of sleep does not affect me at all. On the other hand, too much sleep can dull the functions of the brain. The women who work in the red light districts in Japan are very quick witted, and this is the category of people who get the least amount of sleep. In most cases, the most important factor is the nerves. I won’t say that alcohol is absolutely bad either. It is a matter of being flexible to meet the circumstances. But the case of a member who drinks to excess and gets drunk is not good. Such actions are proof that that person is not really an individual of faith, so this person’s Johrei will become less effective. There is no problem if you channel to a non-member who is drunk, though.

Answer: Do not worry about such things. If you fall in love with someone, it is all right to marry them. Even if you fall in love with someone who doesn’t believe, eventually they will believe. You should understand that falling in love is God’s way of beckoning two people to marry.

Answer: This is possible. It is called extrauterine pregnancy, but what is cut out is not the fetus of a human being. It is the reborn spirit of a small animal, like a dog or cat. This pet was cherished like a human child in its former life, and because of that affinity, it is reborn. Normal pregnancy is impossible with such a spirit. There is no reason for the child of a human being to have fine hair or fangs.

Answer: This condition is caused by possession of her dead husband’s spirit. Prayers should be chanted as often as possible, and the teachings should be read to him. Her condition will gradually improve. She will be healed, but recovery will take quite a while.

Question: My elder brother was suffering from a nervous breakdown and suddenly disappeared about thirty years ago. The family had a Buddhist ascetic read the situation spiritually and he told us that my brother had drowned. The fourth year after my brother went missing, my elder sister (the second daughter, then twenty-one years old) became insane and at the same time, my left side, especially around the head, became affected by neuralgia. When I was around twenty-two years old, through practice of faith in the Nichiren Sect, I was able to become a little healthier, and my sister also made some improvement. A year later, I had a relapse and decided I did not have enough faith, so at Narita Temple, I fasted for twenty-one days and prayed for better health, but instead, my condition worsened and I seemed to be having a nervous breakdown. I joined in October last year and have improved considerably. About fifty years ago, one of the family’s servants fell into the family well and died. In my mother’s family, my mother’s aunt came down with lung disease and was told that if she ate animal brain tissue, she would improve. She tried it but still died. How can my family be saved?

Answer: Your family has much sin. Fasting should never be practiced. From God’s viewpoint, it is wrong. As far as brain tissue is concerned, that is something that human beings should never eat, so one will never improve by consuming it. There is no other way for salvation other than accumulating virtue through the practice of a correct faith.

Question: The child (male, two years old) has had fever and diarrhea for two weeks. The mother has continually suffered from vaginal discharge since the birth. Does the child’s condition have any relationship to his mother’s milk?

Answer: This mother has a lot of toxins. Vaginal discharge is very good. The more she discharges, the more she will heal. The child’s diarrhea is also purification so it is very good.

Question: A female, twenty-seven years old, last year got a lump in her lower abdomen and her ovaries and the lump were surgically removed. The surgical wound has not yet healed, she felt pressure in the chest area, and there were some nights when she couldn’t sleep. With Johrei, she has come to feel a lot better and is able to sleep at nights. The doctor calls it neuralgia, but what is really going on here? And, how should we channel Johrei to her?

Answer: It is a big mistake to think of this as neuralgia. To think like this after joining the church is disrespectful toward the Divine Light Tathagata. Channel Johrei to the affected parts and to the kidneys from the back.

Question: The Divine Light Tathagata scroll in a member’s home was hung straight, but in normal conditions when we face it, it seems to be leaning to the left. When someone prays in front of it, or the Amatsu Norito or Zengen Sanji is chanted, it imperceptibly moves to the correct position or else leans to the right. When the prayer is over, the scroll again moves imperceptibly to leaning left again. Why does such a phenomenon occur?

Answer: You are being shown a miracle. There is not much of a meaning to this phenomenon other than that.

Question: I would like to ask about Daishogun.

Answer: Daishogun is the son of Kunitokotachi-no-Mikoto. During the age of the gods, he created a lot of sin for himself. As a way of atoning for that sin, first he possessed Miki Nakayama, the foundress of the Tenrikyo Church so that she would take down its prophetic writings.

Question: I would like to ask about the teaching, “having faith in Buddhist sects that revere The Lotus Sutra is all right for one generation, but after that, it is all right to change denomination.” 1) In the case where the family temple belongs to one of the Nichiren sects and the family has supported the temple for more than two generations, what should they do? 2) If a person changes temple affiliation, should the altar tablets, rituals at the family altar, and location of the ancestors’ grave also be changed? 3) What should we do after we have joined this path?

Answer: Leave matters as they are. People who join the church should leave things as they are. Yes, there is an old saying, “the Lotus for one generation.” Among the Buddhist sects, those that stress The Lotus Sutra can be compared to a flower, which blooms then drops. The day eventually comes when the flower drops so it does not flourish long.

Question: In my family there is the tradition of pasting a piece of paper over the god shelf during a funeral. I believe that because the gods and the buddhas come from the same root, this tradition is not necessary, but what do you think?

Answer: Until now, such a practice was acceptable. It is said that funerals are defiling, but this is strange because all gods must have had the experience of dying. The closer one is to a divine being, the more light one receives and the more one is purified, so hiding the god is a mistake.

Question: In the Ram-Monkey (southwest) direction, I placed a large earthenware jar filled with water instead of making a pond. Is it all right to put goldfish in this jar?

Answer: It is all right to put goldfish in it. Goldfish in the jar will also help to keep down the mosquitoes.

Question: My family has had the tradition during the season of the Festival of the Dead of constructing what we call a “living spirit shelf,” which we make temporarily of wood and to which we move the ancestor tablets for three days only. What do you think about this?

Answer: Your family does this because sometime in the past an ascetic or some such person told your ancestor to do it. It has become a custom, but there is no need for it.

Question: My family has been affiliated with the Pure Land Sect of Buddhism for generations, and it is only my elder brother who is memorialized in a Zen sect. Because it is a Zen sect, his memorial name is different, so I would like to change his affiliation to the Pure Land Sect, but the Zen temple is far away, so I am thinking of making the change at a nearby Pure Land temple. Can this be done?

Answer: There is no great difference among the various Buddhist sects, but the Zen sects are of the higher levels so you should leave his memorial name as is. Before long, all the ancestors will join World Messianity.

Question: For some years after the funeral for economic reasons we have only had a wooden stick for a grave marker and have not put up a headstone. Is this all right?

Answer: This is not good. There is nothing so foolish as not putting up a headstone for economic reasons. The ancestors will arrange for you to get enough money to put up a headstone. After that, it is all right to burn the present grave marker.

Answer: The word “yawn” in Japanese has the same vibratory level as the Japanese word for “malevolent spirit.” When one becomes physically stiff, purification naturally starts and the spirit of toxins comes out through the yawn. In this way, the amount of the material form of toxins decreases. If one person yawns, other people see that, and are induced to yawn also.

Healing by the Ascetic

There was a period some thirty years ago when I suffered from chronic toothache. I had been to almost all of the respected dentists in Tokyo, did not get relief anywhere, and was really desperate. On an acquaintance’s recommendation, I went to see an ascetic of the Nichiren Sect. While treating me, he repeatedly chanted, “Praise be to The Lotus Sutra,” and between the intervals, in a low, commanding voice he said several times, “You two, cure this person’s toothache. If he is cured, I will enshrine you as Inari, so work hard! You will be So-and-So Inari and you will be Such-and-Such Inari.” At that moment I thought, “All right, he is using two fox spirits to heal me,” and thus came to understand his healing method. When I think about it now, the ascetic’s techniques were not effective, but at the time what did come to my mind was that my toothache was caused by medicinal toxins. At that point, I stopped going to dentists, and since then I have had no problem with toothaches. It was a fox spirit who informed me about the harm of medicinal toxins, so I am truly thankful to that fox spirit for saving my life. During the worst times, the pain from the toothache would even go to my head, and I was prepared for the worst fates to befall a human being, either going crazy or committing suicide, so I can say that I am indebted to that fox spirit.