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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 145

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama, ,

145. Always in a Comfortable Place to Live (itsumo sumi-yoi tokoro e)

Shobei Masuno’s wife, Ito, visited her intimate friend, Cho, daughter of Yazaemon Koyama of Sannomiya in Kobe, in February 1884. She received the teachings through Cho, who taught her, “Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto is truly the all-powerful God of wonders.”

Ito had been suffering for three years from an eye disease. Several famous doctors had treated her, but they could not help her. All she could do was to resign herself to the fact that she was destined to be blind. Shobei also had been afflicted with beriberi for many years and medical treatment did not help him at all, so he too was always in a gloomy mood.

The couple decided to try and listen to the teachings of God the Parent. A messenger was sent to Koyama immediately to ask him to teach them. Thus they heard the teachings for the first time on February 15th. They had an altar built at once and God was enshrined. The couple listened together to the talk: “Illness of the body is a manifestation of the eight dusts. By repentance, one’s illness will be cured without fail. Become of a sincere mind and rely on God.” Also, it was said that, “Foods are all gifts of God; there is not a single one that will poison you.” At these words, Shobei, who had quit drinking sake because of his illness, tried drinking the sake which had been offered to God on that day. The next day, he felt invigorated. Similarly, after just one night, Ito’s sight had improved to the point where she could distinguish between black and white.

Together the couple offered their thanks to God. They also went to Koyama’s home to share their joy with him. But when they returned home, Ito was again almost blind even before nightfall.

The couple discussed the matter together. “We were blessed with God’s providence in just one night. God will surely save us if we make a firm resolution to unite our hearts and serve God for the rest of our lives,” they concluded. So the couple united their hearts and prayed for God’s blessing, zealously performing the morning and evening services. Shobei recovered in fifteen days and Ito received God’s blessing in thirty days. Her eye disease was cured and she was able to see.

With joyful hearts, they returned to Jiba for the first time on April 6th. Oyasama was to leave Nara Prison and return home that day. The couple went to Nara to greet Her and accompany Her home. They stayed till the ninth. Oyasama spoke to Shobei gently:

“Shobei, thank you for coming. You were destined to come to the Residence sooner or later.”

He was so deeply moved by these words that he devoted himself to spreading the fragrance of the teachings of God and saving others, traveling back and forth between Kobe and Jiba and neglecting his business. But whenever he was away from Jiba his health was not as good as usual, so he asked Oyasama for instructions. She told him:

“You should always live in a place that is always comfortable.”

Upon receiving these words, Shobei made a firm resolution to live at the Residence.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 117-118

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 144

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama,

144. The Virtue Which Reaches Heaven (ten ni todoku ri)

Oyasama was detained in Nara Prison from March 24 through April 5, 1884. Chuzaburo Koda was also kept in custody for ten days. While imprisoned, Chuzaburo was ordered by a jailor to clean the toilets. When he came back to Oyasama after he had finished cleaning, Oyasama inquired:

“Koda, what do you think of having been brought to this kind of place and even having been made to clean such filthy places as toilets?”

“I think I am serving God whatever I do. So I am very happy,” he answered. Oyasama said:

“You are right. If you do something with gratitude, no matter how hard or unpleasant it may be, your virtue will reach heaven. Virtue which is accepted by God will be turned into joy. But no matter how hard or trying the work that you do may be, if you do it complaining, ‘How hard it is, how I hate it,’ the complaints will also reach heaven and be returned to you in kind.”

Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 116

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 142 and 143

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama,

142. Narrowness Holds the Promise of Joy (semai no ga tanoshimi)

This is a story about Genjiro Fukaya, who had an undying gratitude for the teachings. He grew more spirited in his devotion as he walked over the land spreading the teachings and healing the sick. In those days, Genjiro had no spare clothes, no charcoal for the fire, nor even food for the day. Despite such narrow circumstances, he often returned to Jiba. Oyasama always said to him:

“Narrowness such as this holds the promise of joy. You should not be dissatisfied because things are yet small. As virtue is accumulated, small things grow great. Even a large pine tree was once small. Be happy with what is small. In the future, a great promising bud will sprout.”

Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 115

143. Children Are Dear (kodomo kawaii)

Whenever at a loss as to what to do, Genjiro Fukaya sought Oyasama’s instruction. One day, he asked Oyasama through an intermediary and received the following instruction:

“One year passes, and there is one year of virtue. Two years pass, and there are two years of virtue. When three years pass, one becomes a parent. Once one becomes a parent, children are dear. No matter what, treat your children with love and care. It will not do to hate your children.”

After Genjiro received the above instruction, he loved his followers with ever increasing affection. To welcome the followers on service days, he would prepare their meal, making sushi and rice cakes. Though these things may sound like trifles, in this way, with his sincerity, he raised his followers step by step.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 115-116

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 141

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama,

141. Buds Burst Forth from a Knot (fushi kara me ga kiru)

In the beginning of March 1884, Genjiro Fukaya, who had withdrawn from the Meisei-sha [Confraternity], returned to Jiba with Zensuke Uno in order to obtain permission for establishing the Shido-kai [Confraternity]. They left Kyoto in the evening and arrived at Nara around two o’clock in the morning. They reached the Residence in the early dawn. They were granted an audience with Oyasama through the arrangement of Risaburo Yamamoto, and asked Oyasama for permission to establish the [confraternity]. Then, there were these words of Oyasama:

“Sah, sah, you have come to ask Me, to ask Me. Sah, sah, you must understand well. Sah, sah, even here at Jiba, there has been festering and pressing within for the past forty-eight years. There have been cases of festering and pressing. Moreover, from without, they will come again to press. Because there is a knot, there is a bud. Buds burst forth from the knot. Understand well this principle. Step by step, step by step, this path has been cleared through many hardships and trials to the present. I say to you, understand well.”

These words did not clearly give permission. So, Fukaya and Uno asked Her permission again, saying, “The five of us will follow God at the sacrifice of our lives.” Then, Oyasama said:

“Sah, sah, sah, I accept your sincerity. I accept it. The seed of the Shido-kai [Confraternity], sah, sah, from today, sah, sah, is planted. Sah, sah, you cannot imagine how large it will grow from now. Sah, sah, make those of the [confraternity] understand this. Even if they do not, God is watching. Leave them alone, I say,”

and She gave Her approval. The true sincerity of the five persons, Fukaya, Uno, Sawada, Yasura, and Nakanishi was accepted by God the Parent in this manner.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 114-115

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 140

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama

140. Thank You Very Much (ōkini)

Kyuhei Kontani was healed of blindness and returned to Jiba for the first time to offer thanks to God for the cure. On the morning of February 16, 1884, Kontani and his wife, Take, accompanied by Koyemon Murata, were granted an audience with Oyasama.

Take offered some money wrapped in a sheet of paper to Oyasama, who then said:

“You are Otake from Banshu?”

And raising the gift to Her forehead She added:

“Thank you very much.”

Take is said to have told others later, “I would have wrapped more money if I had only known that Oyasama would be so pleased at that time.”

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 113-114

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 139

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama, ,

139. With Flag Flying (furafu to tatete)

Kunisaburo Moroi, with a group of ten persons, started to return to Jiba for the third time on January 21, 1884, and arrived at Toyohashi on the twenty-second. The boat was not scheduled to leave till evening, so he took a walk around town, and caught sight of a lantern maker. An idea occurred to him then, and he bought about a hundred and twenty centimeters of extra wide Indian cotton. With this he placed an order for a flag with the lantern maker.

The flag had a white background with a red sun in the center, within which was written, in bold black letters, “Tenrin-Ō-Kosha.” At the lower left was written in small letters, “Totomi Shimmei-gumi [Confraternity].” Flying the flag at the front of the group, they crossed Ise Bay staying overnight at various places on the way, and arrived at Tambaichi* on the twenty-sixth to spend the night at Shobei’s inn, the Ogiya.

The next morning, the twenty-seventh, Moroi led a procession of six rickshaws. He rode in the first one with the flag and was followed by five rickshaws with two persons in each of them. When they reached the road leading to the main gate of the Residence, a police officer on guard questioned them, but since their answers were very clear, he merely noted their names and addresses.

Arriving at the Residence, they learned that for several days Oyasama had been saying:

“Ah, I feel tired, tired. Children will be coming home from afar. Ah, I can see them coming with a flag flying.”

The people around Her were wondering what it was all about. But when they saw the flag they were deeply impressed by the fact that Oyasama was able to see the flag long before it came into sight.

* Tambaichi is now a part of Tenri City.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 112-113

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 138

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama, ,

138. You Must Treasure Things (mono wa taisetsu ni)

Oyasama endured hardships in police stations and prisons about seventeen or eighteen times. Gisaburo Nakata accompanied Her several times.

On one such occasion, She had a scrap of writing paper brought in and She made twisted paper strings out of it. With it, She wove a net basket to carry a sake bottle. It was very strong and beautifully made. When She left the jail to return home, She gave it to Nakata, saying:

“You must treasure things. You must make good use of everything. Everything is a gift from God. Now, keep this as your family treasure.”

Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 112

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Blog (18 Nov 2010)

News / Blog

It’s been some time since I wrote a straight-ahead blog. This is my first since my 2010 New Year’s Greetings! While I’ve been largely contented with just working on the Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama series for most of 2010, there were a few things I felt worthy to say here.

First of all, the site was upgraded last month with a slightly new look and new features. I’ve also mixed some of the contents around as well.

To my loyal subscriber of the old RSS feed — I’m sorry, but it doesn’t appear to work anymore, so if you haven’t done so already, please sign up to the updated feed via the ubiquitous orange RSS square on the front page.

Lastly, a few links to some suggested reading that have been appeared on the Web recently:

Avery Morrow’s Internet Fancy: Parallel Developments of Christian Science and Tenrikyo

This isn’t the first, and certainly not the last comparison made between the two faith institutions that were both founded by women.

Flushing Times article on Tenrikyo Mission, New York Center

I personally find it hilarious that the article refers to Tenrikyo places of worship as “temples.” Maybe we should just give up and call them so!

Wandering Mind Is a Sign of Unhappiness – NYTimes.com

This has nothing to do with Tenrikyo, really. Yet it I found it personally worthwhile to discover scientific study suggests a wandering mind may undermine one’s happiness.

Website for the Tenrikyo Hawaii Convention 2011

This is the official website for the follow-up event to Tenri Forum 2006.

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 137

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama,

137. A Single Word (kotoba hitotsu)

Oyasama taught Isaburo Masui the following:

“Some are good within yet bad without, and there are also people with the opposite character. To be sure, anger, selfishness and irritability are unadvisable. A single word is important. One achieves harmony in the family by the way one breathes in and out to form the very words one speaks.”

Further:

“Isaburo, you are gentle and sociable to everyone outside your house. When you are home and face your wife, you become angry and shout at her; that is the worst thing you could do. Never do it again.”

Masui suspected that his wife might have complained about him, but on considering that God knows and sees through everything, he simply decided he would never get angry again. Thereafter, he was never irritated by anything his wife said.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 111-112

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 136

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama,

136. Now, Go Forth with This (sā, kore o motte)

Once when Oyasama had returned home from prison and had changed Her clothes, She gave the red kimono-undergarment that She had been wearing to Gisaburo Nakata, who had accompanied Her home. Oyasama said:

“Now, go forth with this to save others. Any and all sick persons shall be saved.”

Gisaburo was very happy. He placed the red garment in a kerchief and carefully wrapping it around his body, he busily engaged himself in efforts to save others. When he lightly stroked the afflicted areas of a sick person with the red garment, chanting, “Namu, Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto, Namu, Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto,” everyone received God’s blessing at once, no matter how serious the illness had been.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 111

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