It is said that we cannot experience true joy while others are suffering. In the Osashizu is the following verse:
The mind of saving others is the real truth of sincerity alone and, by this truth of saving others, you are saved. December 20, 1889
If we go throughout life helping others, and eliminating greed, arrogance and self love from our minds, then God will take care of us. Do you have this true sincerity to rely on God?
We have all sinned. What this mean and how do we remedy this? Webster defines sin as: an offense against religious or moral law. How do we as human atone or forgiven for these sins? Some religions believe that God forgives all our sins if we accept a tenet, belief or their God before our bodies become cold. In summary, it is the mind set at the end that counts. But is the mindset at the end truly sincere?
Eastern religions believe that every sin is eventually reflected back to us. It is reflected back to us as sufferings or inconveniences. These reflections are how are sins are cancelled. But these inconveniences also test our resolve to be good. We can continue to be evil when negative causality appears, or we can accept them joyously and plant seeds of joy for the future. By this principle of causality, we have the opportunity to cancel our debts (sins); but more important, it allows us a second chance to prove our resolve to be good. The principle of causality has no favorites. The principle applies the same to both the religious and nonreligious. To those who have been the recipient of the sins, what explanation of atonement seems fairer; and to those who have sinned and hurt others, what beliefs would they want to be true? What explanation would result in a better world?
The question arises; can an evil person become a good person? If so, how much time is allowed to achieve this purity of mind? Is it only one lifetime that one has to achieve this goal, or do we have more time? Some religions believe that it is only this lifetime that we are judged on, while other religions believe that we have many life times to purify our minds.
If you believe in having only one lifetime, where does God place all the evil people in the world? In society, we have institutions called prisons that keep these people separated from the rest of society. In many cases, if the system feels that the criminal has changed, he or she is released into society. In certain cases, if society feels that they are too dangerous, they execute them, and metaphorically send them early to God. But what does God do with these lost souls?
Some say that God has a prison system called purgatory or hell. Satan is said to run this overcrowded institution. Unlike the prisons in society, there is no way out of this “hell hole. There is no chance to escape from these endless sufferings. But who will end up in this inferno? Jack the Ripper, Adolf Hitler, and other notorious villains will obviously roam these grounds. But there also may be our children, our parents, and friends that may have taken the wrong path. How about the youths that were influenced by evil individuals, or organization? Why were they not given a chance to change?
The concept of heaven and a hell would be an acceptable solution if one believed that evil was not immutable; therefore the subject deserves to be punished forever. But if one believes that evil can be converted to good, then the concept of causality may be more agreeable. The law of causality states that good thoughts and actions lead to joy; evil thoughts and actions result in suffering for the individual. This becomes the process of purifying our minds over many life times. The law of causality gives us many opportunities to change evil into good.
But what is evil? Evil is said to be like dust that accumulates on us. Like dust, if it gets ingrained, it is difficult to remove. These dusts are greed, arrogance, and self-love. If we sweep these evils from our minds, than we can restore our mind to its original purity. Suffering as the result of causality continues to remind the world to sweep our minds of these dusts. When our minds become pure, causality will bring upon joy that the world as never experienced.
The question arises; can an evil person become a good person? If so, how much time is allowed to achieve this purity of mind? Is it only one lifetime that one has to achieve this goal, or do we have more time? Some religions believe that it is only this lifetime that we are judged on, while other religions believe that we have many life times to purify our minds.
If you believe in having only one lifetime, where does God place all the evil people in the world? In society, we have institutions called prisons that keep these people separated from the rest of society. In many cases, if the system feels that the criminal has changed, he or she is released into society. In certain cases, if society feels that they are too dangerous, they execute them, and metaphorically send them early to God. But what does God do with these lost souls?
Some say that God has a prison system called purgatory or hell. Satan is said to run this overcrowded institution. Unlike the prisons in society, there is no way out of this “hell hole. There is no chance to escape from these endless sufferings. But who will end up in this inferno? Jack the Ripper, Adolf Hitler, and other notorious villains will obviously roam these grounds. But there also may be our children, our parents, and friends that may have taken the wrong path. How about the youths that were influenced by evil individuals, or organization? Why were they not given a chance to change?
The concept of heaven and a hell would be an acceptable solution if one believed that evil was not immutable; therefore the subject deserves to be punished forever. But if one believes that evil can be converted to good, then the concept of causality may be more agreeable. The law of causality states that good thoughts and actions lead to joy; evil thoughts and actions result in suffering for the individual. This becomes the process of purifying our minds over many life times. The law of causality gives us many opportunities to change evil into good.
Imagine God seeing the world as it is today. How would God make people good? Would God punish the evil, and reward the good? Would he destroy the world, and start over again? Would he be a bystander like he has in the past? Would he force people to be good? God is said to be love, and coercion and punishment would be antithesis to this concept of God. Then what can God do to make everyone good? We believe that God has already established a process to purify the hearts of mankind. This is the truth called causality, which has existed since the beginning of mankind.
What is this truth called causality? Good thoughts and behavior causes the individual joy in the future; evil thoughts and behaviors cause the individual suffering in the future. God has created a cycle to purify our minds. We believe in the everlasting soul and reincarnation.
But without this knowledge of causality, we cannot understand why we suffer, and why we should not behave with malice. Understanding causality may initially prevent some from evil actions by the fear of the future; but eventually it will be understood as a process to purify our minds, and to help others.
We believe that it is this importance of understanding of causality that God has appeared and revealed himself in the past. It is with this importance that we must spread the truth of causality to the world. When the world understands causality, there will finally be peace on earth.
Have you ever wondered what God is? To the atheist, or nonbelievers it does not matter since God does not exist. But should it matter to them?
In the Tip of the Writing Brush, there is a verse that states that the world is the body of God. Can God be the universe? And like the trillions of other things in the world, we are just part of this immense universe. As part of God (universe), we are dependent on the laws of nature, like the law of gravity, law of causality, and other cycles of life. These laws keep the universe in equilibrium.
Whether we deify the universe and call it God, it does not matter. The Universe and its laws continue to protect us. Through out time, religions have arisen trying to explain the actions of the universe. They have in essence fabricated God in the image of human beings. We have attempted to humanize the universe, often times placing more importance on ourselves. We must remember that we are only a part of this immense universe (God).
Have you ever wondered what God is? To the atheist, or nonbelievers it does not matter since God does not exist. But should it matter to them?
In the Tip of the Writing Brush, there is a verse that states that the world is the body of God. Can God be the universe? And like the trillions of other things in the world, we are just part of this immense universe. As part of God (universe), we are dependent on the laws of nature, like the law of gravity, and other cycles of life. These laws keep the universe in equilibrium.
But can the actions of mankind disrupt this equilibrium. Physically, pollution from mankind may disrupt this equilibrium; but can our mental status also disrupt the universe (God)? Can the thought and actions of mankind somehow disrupt the equilibrium of the universe? Can the body of God be unhealthy because of the evils in the hearts of mankind? Can the sufferings in the world be lessened by our thoughts?
Whether we believe in a caring God or not, we all believe in the universe. This universe is large beyond our comprehension; but we are a part of it. The universe is the body of God.
What knowledge or discovery would make the world better? Is it a cure for cancer, or other diseases that plague mankind? Would the cure of AIDs make the world better? How about the invention of a transportation vehicle that produced no pollutants? Many of these discoveries will improve life, but will they make a significant improvement in the world?
In the Tip of the Writing Brush, it is said that understand heaven’s truth is important in understanding the intentions of God. What is this truth of heaven? The truth is causality. We must understand that positive acts and thoughts lead to joy, and evil (selfish) thoughts and behaviors lead to suffering. If all human beings understand this truth, there will be only joy in the future. There will be heaven on earth.
There are many things that we do not understand. Why does God allow people to suffer? Why does God not prevent bad things from happening? Where was God? Could it be that that God has a different priority?
Human beings have a tendency to concentrate on what they can see. For example, we all want to have healthy bodies. We want to have a good appearance, and have material wealth. We are more connected to the physical world. Many have a tendency to believe that God blesses us with material wealth. When we suffer, we cannot understand why God would punish us.
Could it be possible that God has no influence on what happens to us? If we were to believe in causality, joy or suffering are the result of our own actions or thoughts. Or for the atheist, everything is the result of statistics. God is nonexistent, or is an observer.
Or maybe God’s priority may be different than ours. The maturation of human minds may be more important than what occurs to us physically. The physical world may be secondary to the contents of our minds. The physical world serves as a medium to mature our minds. The physical world is ethereal, or temporary, while the soul (mind) lives eternally if we are to believe in the after life.
Sometimes I wonder, why so many people are taken away at one time, like the deaths of so many people in a mass catastrophe. Can God be of disapproval for all these people at one time, or is the event a random occurrence. Whether it is from chance, causality, or at the hands of God, death may only be a short respite for these souls. If we are to believe, in the everlasting soul, there will be more opportunities for the mind (soul) to mature.
We cannot understand why we suffer because we do not understand the intentions of God. To God, the physical world may not be as important as the maturation of the minds. Suffering is only ethereal or temporary. The long-term goal is for the salvation of all mankind. For some, this process of the maturation of the mind may involve much suffering, and many life times; but eventually, everyone will be saved.
In the Osashizu is a quote that I find is enlightening and true.
God’s path is the path of the three- inch span of the heart; your ideas of wanting to follow the path may not be enough to get you through it. January 27, 1891
In our churches, there are many who are given the teachings, and understand it. Yet when they are confronted with temptations, sufferings, and other situations, they revert to their past thoughts and actions. We must have a determination to follow the teachings in whatever situations arise. We call this true sincerity in our religion. It is a mind that accepts any situations that life places in front of us, and still continue to follow the teachings of God. Some may call this faith; but I feel that it is stronger than faith, because it also includes a strong determination to follow the belief.
True sincerity is a mindset that is difficult to attain. But I believe, it is the only mind that God accepts. It is with this mind of true sincerity that God accepts our prayers.
OFUDESAKI-GOD'S TEACHINGS 