Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 198

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198. With Any Flower (donna hana demo na)

Once Yonosuke Shimizu, Shirobei Umetani, and Tora Hirano had gathered before Oyasama and were talking with each other about how their [confraternities] were not advancing as they had hoped. Oyasama said:

“With any flower, there are years when it blooms and there are years when it does not bloom. Even if it does not bloom one year, when the year changes it will bloom again.”

It is said that Oyasama comforted them in this way.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 155–156

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 197

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama

197. Hands that Work (hataraku te wa)

Oyasama always taught us:

“If all the people of the world help one another, there will be no worry or danger for the future. There are families with plenty of work to be done but with no one to do the work, and there are families with plenty of people to do the work but with no work to be done.

When apprenticed, think of all the work as your own instead of as your master’s, and work faithfully whether being watched or not. For example, in the fall, if you notice that it is a cloudy day, take care of the straw mats and any other things as though they were your own and be sure to put them away.

Because you work faithfully and help others in various ways, in the fall people will make new kimono to give to you and do other good things for you. When it reaches this stage it will be advantageous for both. If you are going to do work, do it as faithfully as you would do your own, whether being watched or not. Then people will say, ‘That person is considerate, so I will hire him.’ When you become such a person, there will be plenty of work for you.

The people living in this Residence work as though all the work here were their own; therefore, night and day each of them is thinking, ‘What is there to be done? What can I do next?’ They do the work thinking that it is their own work; therefore, it becomes their own. If you work with the thought, ‘This is my work; this is my home,’ then it will become your home. If you work only when you are being watched and become idle when not being watched, then soon you will not be able to stay here as if it were your home.

This Residence needs as many hands as possible that work and none at all that do not work.”

Also, one time She taught us:

“Work (hataraku) makes those close to you comfortable; for that, it is called hataraku (hata: those nearby, raku: comfortable).”

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 154–155

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 196

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama

196. Maturing of the Child (kodomo no seijin)

Oyasama taught us again and again:

“It is not that the incorrigible child does not understand. It is that the teachings of the Parent have not reached him. If the teachings of the Parent reach every nook and corner, the maturing of the child can then be seen.”

Through the grace of Oyasama, the path was made in which those who could not understand would be able to understand, those who could not be saved would be saved, and those who were to suffer would not suffer.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 154

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 195

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama

195. Thank You for Your Trouble (go-kurō-sama)

“Oyasama made no distinction between people and She was a very compassionate person. No matter what kind of person She met, She never showed any sign of discrimination. No matter what kind of person came to the Residence, She considered everyone to be Her child. No matter how great a man came, She said:

‘Thank you for your trouble.’

Even when beggars came, She would say:

‘Thank you for your trouble.’

Her attitude and manner of speaking never changed. She considered them all to be Her loving children. Once a person met Oyasama, no matter what kind of person he was, he would be moved by Oyasama’s parental love and be reformed at once. Perhaps they were moved by Oyasama’s compassion.

For example, even a police officer who came to investigate and a local ruffian had been converted to the faith. After just one visit, many either entered the faith or experienced a change of heart. These are recollections of Naokichi Takai.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 153–154

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 194

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama

194. Her Favorite Dishes (o-meshi-agari mono)

When She was advanced in age, Oyasama from time to time ate raw sweet potatoes grated with a horseradish grater. Also, She occasionally drank sweet rice wine from a small cup. Her favorite brand was made by the Matsumoto brewery in Senzai. So people in the Residence went with a gourd-shaped flask to buy sweet rice wine for Oyasama.

Her favorites were dishes of rice with assorted vegetables. Among these were rice with sweet potatoes, rice with beans, rice with dried gourd shavings, with matsutake mushrooms, and with pumpkins.

If people came by chance while She was having one of these rice dishes, She would make a rice-ball and offer it to them.

She was also fond of kakinoha zushi, marinated fish and rice wrapped in persimmon leaves which are plucked when they have a pleasant aroma after new buds have sprouted.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 152–153

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 192 and 193

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama

A kite in flight (Image source: Wikipedia Japan)

192. A Kite Cries “Toh, Toh” (tonbu tōto)

This is a story about Sotaro Kajimoto, Oyasama‘s great-grandson, which took place in approximately 1887 when he was about seven. Oyasama gave him a section of a tangerine, turning it inside out by inserting Her finger. She said:

“The kite cries ‘toh, toh,’ and the crow, ‘caw, caw,’ “

and continued:

“Stick out your finger.”

When he stuck out his finger, She placed the section on his finger. Sotaro enjoyed eating it that way.

When he received another section of the tangerine, he, imitating Oyasama, put it on his finger, and then he stuck it out in front of Oyasama. She enjoyed eating it that way.

193. By Himself Soon (hayō hitori de)

These are incidents reminisced by Sotaro Kajimoto:

Receiving some cookies or candies from Oyasama, we, children at that time, went toward the Main Sanctuary and ate them while playing together. When the sweets were gone, we ran back to Oyasama. We held out our hands and She gave us more. We ate them up and ran back to Her again. We must have said, “Grandma, may we have some more?” and I believe we ran back to Her three or four times.

However, She never once said, “Didn’t I just give you some?” Neither did She give the sweets to us all at once to avoid the bother. She gave us just enough to eat, a little at a time. Oyasama loved children very much. When I asked Hisa Yamazawa, my wife’s mother, she agreed.

Now and then Oyasama visited the Kajimoto family in Ichinomoto. On such occasions, she brought some sweets in Her purse to give to the children of the family and to the children of the neighborhood.

Among great-grandchildren of Oyasama, I was the first born of the boys. Among the girls, there was Omoto. Now, it is said that Oyasama said of me:

“Oh, I hope that he will be able to come by himself soon!”

It is also said that when my younger brother Kunijiro Shimamura was born, Oyasama said:

“My, what a fair-complexioned fine boy!”

and held him in Her arms. I often heard of these incidents from both my mother, Uno, and my mother–in-law Yamazawa.

Once Oyasama carried both Manjiro Yoshikawa and me on Her back at the same time. There was a time when She came to the east side of the Nakaminami-Gatehouse wearing zori similar to fujikura-zori (thongs which are knitted with rush at the front).

Oyasama’s voice was sweet and gentle. She had a slender figure. Her face was oval and Her mouth and chin were identical with that of Her daughter, Omasa, although Omasa’s face was a little rounder. Now in regard to their figure, Omasa was on the masculine side but Oyasama was on the feminine side. Oyasama’s back was not bent.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 151–152

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 191

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama

191. Welcome Home (yō, harubaru)

On May 5, 1886, Torakichi Tagawa and people of twenty-six families of Tanokuchi Village in Tajima Province, formed a [confraternity]. He was selected as its head. At that time, he was seventeen years old. This was the start of the Tenchi-gumi Seventh [Confraternity] (later renamed the Ninth).

On August 29th of the same year, Tagawa and eight others set out from the village for Jiba. They arrived in Osaka on September 1st. That evening, while staying at an inn, Tagawa suffered acute stomach pains. He had a continuous attack of vomiting and diarrhea throughout the night. At that time cholera was prevalent in Osaka. The party members were shocked and extremely apprehensive. They performed the prayer service, and prayed all night for his complete recovery. At last his condition began to improve as dawn drew near. They set out that morning before daybreak. With [Tagawa] still in bad condition, the group went through the Jusan Pass and through Tatsuta to Shoyashiki Village and stayed at Jukichi Nakayama’s house. That night, Chusaku Tsuji and Risaburo Yamamoto came from the Residence to give a talk. Chusaku Tsuji administered the Sazuke to Tagawa. After that Tagawa did not suffer from any pain.

The next day, the party visited the Jiba of Origin and worshiped at the Place for the Service. They were led to the Resting House and were granted an audience with Oyasama. When they met Her, She was wearing Her red garments and sitting very erect. She said:

“Welcome home from such a distant place.”

Oyasama’s gracious words moved Tagawa to tears. Never forgetting this feeling for the rest of his life, he actively pursued missionary work with all his heart and soul.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 150–151

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 190

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190. This Path (kono michi wa)

In the summer of 1886, Kichitaro Matsumura returned to the Residence. In the eyes of Matsumura, who had acquired some education, the illiteracy of the people who gathered at the Residence and their very uncouth manners seemed questionable. He had even come to harbor a sense of contempt toward them. One day, when he had an audience with Oyasama, She said to him:

“This path is not the way of intelligence or knowledge. I do not say, ‘Do not come,’ to those who come. I do not forcibly say, ‘Come,’ to those who do not wish to come.”

Upon hearing these words, Matsumura realized his arrogance and repented from the bottom of his heart. Thus the preciousness of the truth of Jiba became deeply embedded in his heart.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 149–150

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 189

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189. The Hearts of Husband and Wife (fūfu no kokoro)

In the summer of 1886, Narazo Hirano and his wife, after abandoning the family occupation, were devoting themselves to missionary work in utter poverty with the resolve, “When we think of Oyasama, we never mind going for four or five days without food.” As it was summer, they had no possessions with them except the light summer clothing they wore: one cotton kimono each and a summer kimono for Narazo.

One day, when they returned to the Residence, Oyasama gave them these words:

“In this path the hearts of husband and wife are the foundation. I have discerned your sincerity which could thrust through a great tree or pierce a huge stone. One year from now, I will grant you an uchiwake-basho, a place of salvation.”

Anecdotes of Oyasama, p. 149

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Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama 188

Blogging Anecdotes of Oyasama,

188. Permanent Staff of the Residence (yashiki ni jōzume)

Around noon on August 25, 1886, a short and stocky man came to the Residence and announced himself as the head of the Nara Police Station. He was received by Oyasama, and afterward left the Residence.

That night, someone pounded at the gate of the Residence, almost to the point of breaking it. Yoshie Iburi asked who it was, and the answer came, I am the head of the Nara Police Station. I visited here this afternoon. Open the gate!” Although Yoshie thought it was strange, she opened the gate and suddenly five or six ruffians rushed into the kitchen, all shouting, “Let’s set fire to this Residence and burn it down tonight.” Yoshie was shocked, ran into a room and shut the door behind her. The room led to Oyasama’s room.

The ruffians then hurled the brazier from the kitchen, raising a storm of ashes in the room. Bowls and dishes were smashed. Intermediaries who were sitting in conference upstairs heard the rumbling sounds and screaming voices, and rushed downstairs. They fought the ruffians at the risk of their lives.

This happened to be the day of Ohimachi,* and villagers were meeting in a neighbor’s house. They also heard the uproar and hastened to the scene in a crowd. They helped to overcome the ruffians and then informed the police of the situation.

Narazo Hirano, took the six ruffians to the Tofuya Inn and, after giving them a serious lecture on their misconduct, released them.

On that day, Oyasama paid Her tribute of praise to Hirano:

“It was a chance for you to show your courage. Starting tomorrow you shall join the permanent staff of the Residence.”

* Ohimachi originally was an overnight gathering where people purified themselves and on the following morning worshiped the sunrise. Later it became a festival where villagers feasted together after rice-planting or harvest.

Anecdotes of Oyasama, pp. 148–149

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