In the Ofudesaki and the Mikagura-uta, God tells us that illness on our bodies comes from our minds. These dust or evil thoughts in our minds are regret, covetousness, arrogance greed, and self-love. We can probably all agree that these are selfish thoughts in our minds. How do these thoughts cause our disorders in our bodies?  We know that fear and stress can have a consequences on our bodies, affecting our immune systems. But how does thoughts of greed and arrogance cause illness on our bodies?  Does God place illness on our bodies because of these dusts or evil thoughts in our minds? Many of you will say that God does not place illness on our bodies. If God does not, what or who does place illness on our bodies. Enter the concept of the heart, which in the first verse of the Ofudesaki, God tells us we do not understand.  It is our own hearts that collects and stores our demerits caused by acting on our evil thoughts in our minds. Our heart, when opportunity arises, manifest these demerits as negative fate or illness upon our bodies.  We reap what we have sowed because of of own hearts. One can say our hearts monitor our behavior. This concept is difficult to understand because the effect of our actions often are delayed until our next lives, when opportunities may be more appropriate for our hearts to manifest our fate.

Some may wonder when we receive an illness from our hearts, what do we do?  Remember these illnesses  or sufferings were caused by acting our our evil thoughts. So God tells us to ponder these evil thoughts, and not act upon them.  When this happens, we can gradually eliminate these evil thoughts. When our minds are purified, our hearts will bring upon only positive fate. Not acting on our evil thoughts is easier said then done. It take much patience and diligence not to blame others, but to ponder one’s own mind to eliminate our evil thoughts. Some of us, due to our past indiscretions (sins), we may have to confront much inconveniences, but if we continue to ponder and not act on our evil thoughts, we will be able to purify our minds. In the Ofudesaki, God compares this process to digging up a root. It takes much effort to eventualy attain the Original mind, or the pure mind. But again, when we do this, we can attain the Joyous life.

It is the heart that connects the mind to the body. This is why God throughout the Ofuedesak tells the early followers that they do not understand the heart. I will leave you with the following from song 11 of the Mikagura-uta: