181. Oyasama’s Rice Bowl (Oyasama no chawan)
“Among the rice bowls used by Oyasama was a chipped one that had been repaired. I saw the bowl: a patterned, ordinary rice bowl which had been repaired with a colorful chip of porcelain. It is now a treasure of the Church Headquarters. When people see it, they will not be able to be extravagant.
Also, among the flat dishes that Oyasama used was one that had been repaired.”
The above is a recollection of Narajiro Kajimoto.
Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 143
180. A Reluctant Offering of Rice Cakes (oshimi no mochi)
Once a family quarreled about the rice cake offering. “Let’s give six pounds.” “No, let’s give nine pounds.” “It is too much but let’s make the offering anyway.” When the offering was made, Oyasama tried to eat one of the cakes with chopsticks. But the chopsticks flew up violently. She could not eat it no matter how many times She tried.
Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 142
179. God is Laughing (Kami-sama, warōte gozaru)
Once Iye Murata had palpitation of the heart. It became so severe that it troubled her a great deal. So she asked Oyasama for instructions. Oyasama told her:
“Your palpitation of the heart is God laughing. God is saying that you do not understand the divine will.”
Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 142
178. Our Body is of Prime Importance (mijō ga moto ya)
Oyasama said:
“Where there is life, there is hope, it is said. The body is the foundation. Money is secondary. In the case of fire, one would take out as many valuables as possible, but one would not do so at the risk of burning one’s body. In the case of flood, it is the same. In the case of robbery, because life is important, one lets the robber have the money, even though one does so reluctantly.
“The same thing is true in the case of illness. One should give quickly to charity the things that are of secondary importance, and have one’s illness cured. But when the dust of miserliness is strong, it is like removing money from a fire even though one is in danger of death from burns. One saves the money and treasures but throws away one’s life. This is in accord with one’s mind. If by giving to charity what is of secondary importance one’s illness is cured, this is the principle of a disaster turning into a smaller misfortune. Understand well.”
This instruction has been handed down by word of mouth from Jirokichi Kita.
Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 141–142
177. At Least One Person (hito hitori nari to)
Oyasama always said:
“I must save at least one person a day. Otherwise, I cannot let the day pass.”
Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 141
176. Person with a Pure Heart (kokoro no sunda hito)
On December 26, 1885, Oyasama spoke the following words to Gisaburo Nakata:
“I can hear the words of a person who has purified his heart. But I cannot hear the words of a person who has not purified his heart.”
Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 141
175. Seventeen Children (jūshichi-nin no kodomo)
One day in 1885, Oyasama joyously told the people who were with Her:
“Seventeen children will come home from Awa tomorrow.”
However, not only did the seventeen not return, but no one at all came on that day, nor the next day, nor even on the following day. People grew tired of waiting and forgot Oyasama’s words.
About sixteen or seventeen days later, seventeen persons arrived from Awa. People were surprised, as the number of persons who returned was exactly the same as Oyasama had mentioned. According to what they said, they had planned to sail off the very day that Oyasama had spoken Her words. However, the weather was bad, and after repeated attempts to set sail, they returned to Jiba some sixteen or seventeen days behind schedule. When Unosuke Tosa and his group heard about Oyasama’s words, they were astonished and deeply moved.
When they were granted an audience with Oyasama, She was very pleased to see them, and said:
“At the present, Awa Province seems a faraway place. There will come a day when you will be able to return here in one night while you are asleep if you wish to do so.”
Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 140–141
174. If You Let Go Your Strength (socchi de chikara o yurume tara)
Hidenobu Nakano, who had been in charge of horses for the Koizumi feudal clan in Yamato, was also proficient in jujitsu and kendo–fencing. He returned to Jiba one day and was granted an audience with Oyasama. Oyasama said:
“Nakano, you are known as a strong man in the country. Now try and remove your hands,”
and She took hold of both his wrists. Nakano at first exerted only a little strength and tried to free his hands, but She would not let go. So he became serious about it, and with a shout, tried with all his might to pull both hands free. But the venerable Oyasama remained steady with perfect composure.
Nakano, who was still in the prime of life, tried, with his face flushing, again and again with all his might to pull free his hands, shouting each time, “Ya! Ya!” But Oyasama retained an awe-inspiring calm, and continued to smile pleasantly. He could do nothing.
Not only that, the most astonishing thing was that the more he exerted his strength, the more strongly his own wrists were gripped. Finally, they started to feel as if they were being ripped apart. Powerful as he was, Nakano could not bear the pain any longer. “I am overwhelmed. Please release my hands,” Nakano conceded to Oyasama. Then, She said:
“You need not apologize at all. If you let go your strength, God will also let go God’s strength. If you exert strength, God will also exert strength. This applies not only now but always,”
and She quietly released his hands.
Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 139-140
173. All Days are Lucky Days (mina, yoi hi ya de)
Oyasama taught Naokichi Takai:
“There is not a single day which you ought to complain about. All days are lucky days. People choose a lucky day for a wedding or for raising a house. But the luckiest day is the day when everybody is spirited in mind.”
First: It Begins
Second: Abundance
Third: Nourished
Fourth: Happiness Comes
Fifth: Providence Comes Forth
Sixth: Peace Settles
Seventh: Nothing to Worry About
Eighth: Expanding in All Directions
Ninth: Suffering Disappears
Tenth: Sufficiency
Eleventh: Sufficiently It Begins
Twelfth: Sufficiently Abundant
Thirteenth: Sufficiently Nourished
(and so forth)
Twentieth: Sufficiently Abundant Abundance
Twenty-first: Sufficiently Abundantly It Begins
(and so forth)
Thirtieth: Sufficiently Abundant, Abundant Abundance
Thirty days make a month, twelve months make a year.
And not one day in the year is unlucky.
Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 138-139
172. Repentance for a Previous Life (zenshō no sange)
There once lived a daughter of a seaweed dealer in Sakai, Osaka, who was inclined to steal. Her parents reverently asked Oyasama the reason why, and Her answer was:
“That is the result of a previous life. Your daughter is not at fault. She only does what her parents did in a previous life.”
The parents then sincerely repented for what they had done, and their daughter was marvelously healed of the bad habit.
Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 138