Great Construction
Four, The Actual Form of Disease Is in the Soul
All substance in the world of phenomena is composed of spirit and body. Substance decays and decomposes because the spirit has separated from substance. Even in the case of rocks, there are those which are called “dead stones” that crumble apart, and such occurs because spirit has departed from that rock. That metals rust is because the spirit has left and the surface has become a corpse, so rust can be said to be the corpse of metal. However, well-polished swords and ancient mirrors have less rust because the creators imbued them with spirit. So, spirit of substance is merely spirit, but spirit of animals is known as “living spirit.” Human beings are composed of an inextricably inseparable binding of “living spirit” and physical body. The act of “living spirit” leaving the physical body and going from the physical world to the spiritual world is called death or in Buddhism “going to be born.”
The human being, however, is composed not only of living spirit. If the human being were only living spirit, it would be no different than substance. All animals, in addition to living spirit, no, not “in addition,” but in the center of living spirit is heart and there is soul. In other words, in the center of living spirit is heart and in the center of heart is soul. As far as size is concerned, the ordinary size of heart is one hundredths of living spirit, and soul is one hundredths of heart. Soul initiates an activity that initiates heart that initiates living spirit that initiates the physical body, so not only all motion, activity of the human body but the origin of all physical phenomena starts from soul. If this composition were to be distinguished into good and evil, the physical body is evil and heart is good, heart is evil and soul is good. This good-evil friction, good-evil, good-evil becomes balance, harmony which manifests as motive force.
Thus, the outbreak of disease starts from one part of soul which is in the one thousandths part of living spirit that motivates the physical body. Although infinitesimal, soul is capable of shrinkage and expansion. While the human being is up and moving around, soul takes the shape of the physical human being, and when the human being sleeps, soul becomes round. At the moment of death, the human soul becomes round and flies away because at the time of death, heart becomes round, as a circle, and living spirit becomes round. The soul is accompanied by light so occasionally the human soul is visible to the physical human eye.
The fact that disease generates in one part of the human soul which forms the shape of a human being is actually because that part of soul is clouded. In other words, in that part, light has become dimmer. Cloud then appears in the physical body as disease. Thus, if there is no cloud in soul, there will absolutely be no physical disease. In which arises the question of why cloud generates in soul. It generates due to impurities and sins. To explain impurities and sins, we enter the world of religion, so I finish this part of the explanation here and move to explain the afflictions that appear on the physical body.
Living spirit generates cloud on one part of living spirit as explained previously, let us say, on one part of the lungs. When this occurs, blood becomes impure in that part. As blood becomes more impure, suppuration occurs. This impure blood is vomited out and can also become bloody phlegm. The suppurated material becomes pus which turns into sputum or phlegm. Phlegm which has a particularly bad odor is pus that is very old.
Because all diseases and conditions, not just those related to the lungs, generate more or less for the same reason as outlined above, the principle for treatment and healing should be to eradicate cloud on living spirit. Therefore, contemporary medical science which does not know nor understand this principle and seeks to treat only the phenomenal aspects of the disease that appear on the physical body continues research and efforts dealing only with leaves and branches of the problem and understands nothing of the trunk of the tree. To illustrate, even when a condition or disease appears to be healed, fundamentally the disease has not been healed. As such, my finger-pressure therapy by the light of Kannon eliminates cloud on living spirit. As the therapy eliminates cloud, suppuration is dissolved, the disease is alleviated or eliminated, so the purification of living spirit reflects to the physical body and the disease is healed. Still, however, it should not be stated that these are the only fundamentals of the issue of health. Yes, our explanation treats more of the fundamentals than does medical science, but what I have described cannot be said to be absolute. This is because unless soul is completely purified, true peace of mind is not to be had. Purification of soul will not be complete without the individual understanding and practicing a correct faith. Since that faith is the Way of Kannon, when this faith is practiced, the generation of sin and impurities will disappear completely, and the individual will accumulate virtue. From this is obtained perfect health, the possibility of a life full of happiness and joy, the attainment of good fortune and longevity, and the prosperity of the family.
In addition, there is another point I would like to make about soul, and that point concerns people who get easily excited, who are always ill at ease, who are restless. Such individuals have weakened souls, so they have a low level of resistance to the world around them. These individuals, many to be seen in society nowadays, are said to be afflicted with mental instability, on the point of a nervous breakdown. The cause of this is cloud on soul that weakens the mental state. Many such people will inevitably have impure blood solidified in the neck area, and when cloud in this area is dissolved, their mental weakness will be cured. In severe cases of this condition, insomnia will occur, so even after complete recovery, joining and participating in the Kannon Faith will prevent recurrence. The Kannon Faith is the ideal method so that soul is illuminated in light and cloud does not form.
Lectures on Japanese Medicine, Volume 1, 1935
translated by cynndd* * *
“Yon, Byōki no Hontai wa Tamashii Nari” is the fourth chapter of Nihon Ijutsu Kōgiroku, Dai-ippen (Lectures on Japanese Medicine, Volume 1) which was compiled and distributed in mimeographed form in 1935. Although “Dai-ippen” (Volume 1) is included in the title where it has been anthologized, there are no subsequent volumes. “Yon, Byōki no Hontai wa Tamashii Nari” has appeared previously in translation. Citation is given below for reference.“The True Cause of Sickness Is In the Soul,” True Health, 1987, page 68.