PART THREE
422. The churches of the various sects in the present day have become the dens of hungry tigers and wolves.
423. Profiting from God, they indulge in fraud and theft.
424. The true teachings have withered and even the holy houses of God have become the dwelling-places of thieves, demons and giant serpents.
425. Many gods , heavenly and earthly, are extremely indignant. But the churches make no attempt to correct their behaviour and day after day profane the houses of God.
426. Such conduct God hates greatly. Seeing that if left in the present state without purification and renewal the world would remain impure, He sent down the Spirit of Mizu from heaven and founded Oomoto.
427. Favoured with the Spirit of Mizu, I am now undergoing asceticism in order to penetrate deeply into the Divine realm, that is, the training in the art of Saniwa (the method of classifying gods or spirits according to good and evil, justice and injustice).
428. When this asceticism is accomplished, I will make myself manifest and promptly save the sufferers in the world.
429. Instead of manifesting myself and imparting the truth in that way, I publish this book, Divine signposts.
430. These Divine signposts are the words of God and are an eternally unmoving rock. My body and soul, too, breathe in these teachings.
431. While in the position of teachers of the Divine way, present-day missionaries do not know the true will of God.
432. Because of this, the believers who are led by them march fervently forward without knowing God’s true will.
433. Even though this world is already coming to an end, still they do not notice. Pitiable indeed! This world is destined at some time to change radically. The time is near, but of this they know nothing.
434. When the Divine realm is realised on earth, they will all stumble and flounder. Although the way of salvation is already there, none take it. All advance along the path of annihilation like a high tide.
435. Coming down again at the end of the world, the Spirit of Mizu shows in writing and in speaking that he has been in hiding since the beginning of the world. But the people of the present day are not at all convinced, being deaf and blind. On the contrary, they regard it as an absurdity: some mock, others insult.
436. Between heaven and earth there is no complete being apart from the Creator of all in the universe.
437. In the present world, swarming with devils, there is no one who regards good as good. A good person sees good as good, but an evil person sees it as evil.
438. In this world, ruled by ogres, giant serpents and devils, very rare are those who believe in this path, repent and correct themselves. Those who oppose it are infinitely many. But the time has come when the Spirit of Mizu has descended from heaven. Therefore, those who do not follow this way are inviting severe judgment and annihilation.
439. The appearance of the Spirit of Mizu means that this world will be rebuilt as a Divine realm without wars and without conflicts.
440. Between the present time and the Divine there will occur a great war. Afterwards there will be realised on earth a Divine realm, peaceful and eternally prosperous.
441. Until the Divine realm is realised, let all make repentance and correct their ways.
442. Armament and war are the cause of limitless suffering of poor people.
443. For armament or war people should not be burdened with the duty of conscription. What a useless thing to throw away one’s one and only body in order to create a river of blood and a mountain of bones. Do not pay such a heavy tax to the government.
444. In the world there is nothing more evil than war, nothing more worthless than armament. Now many nations of the world are issuing bonds in large sums for armament. Just to pay the interest on them every day requires the earnings of an extremely large number of people.
445. Millions of young men in the world are continuously forced to serve as soldiers and practise the art of killing exclusively. People should not suffer practice in killing, which is evil. There is nothing more useless to any nation than armament.
446. If this world remains in the present state, the people will all perish without exception, and the world will become a field of butchery.
447. To change this evil world into a Divine kingdom, God has sent down the Spirit of Mizu.
448. Do not try to cheat God on the pretext of rain, wind or snow. God brings rain and wind and causes snow according to His will.
449. There are many who say that they could not visit because the rain is torrential or because the snow is deep. These have not yet attained true faith.
450. He who with an upright soul respects and loves God, needs never fear rain, wind and snow. These are absolutely necessary in nature.
451. Missionaries and believers who have to battle against the army of devils and build the Divine realm on earth are never to fear rain, never to abhor snow.
452. If it did not rain in the world, all beings would be unable to stay alive. If the wind did not blow, the polluted air could not be renewed, and human and all other beings would be unable to preserve their bodies. Wind and rain are elements absolutely necessary for the world.
453. Japan is the realm where one should rule with the Japanese spirit. The Japanese spirit means the spirit to fight to the end against those who destroy peace, civilisation, liberty, independence and human rights. It is the spirit to defeat strong devils, unjust and cruel, and to protect the rights of the weak.
454. Those who unjustly usurp and damage the rights of other people and countries because of their greed and ambition, all are enemies of the Japanese spirit.
455. Heaven helps the practitioner of good and Heaven plagues that of evil.
456. Concerning divine services, it is necessary to know the distinction between the formal and the informal. I will explain this here. A formal service is that which worships the Gods of heaven and earth and many other gods ; it is a holy undertaking to express to all gods gratitude in words praising their blessings and virtues; and it requires a shrine, words of prayer (Norito) which glorify the gods, offerings, etc. An informal service requires neither a church nor a shrine nor words of prayer which glorify the gods, nor offerings, because it is that which prays to God, the creator of the universe. It is the way of praying to God with one’s soul about one’s own desire. In summary, the formal service is the way of worship and the informal is the way of prayer.
457. The true God is spirit: human beings too, therefore, should pray with their spirit to this holy spirit.
458. It is not correct to incline too much towards the formal service or to the
informal.459. Worshipping idols is not evil. To pray to them for your happiness, however, is not good. Pray to God with your own spirit.
460. At the end of this world, two spirits only, namely Mizu and Izu, will appear and realise the Divine realm on earth.
461. Most people do not know the heart of the Spirit of Mizu. Only one person in the world knows it (the Foundress of Oomoto). He who makes the joy of this Divine envoy his own joy, his sadness his own sadness, knows the way of the true God.
462. At my side there are many missionaries and believers. But although I am joyful, they are not joyful; although I am sad, they are not sad. This happens because they are not capable of seeing and hearing. There is a proverb: “a child does not know the heart of its parents”. Indeed, the heart of God, the Father of the world, cannot be guessed at.
463. The intellectual and learned person remains without understanding of the Divine way, owing to pride. Because of this he receives very little Divine favour.
464. To the person without knowledge and without learning, like a pure baby, God gives the capability to understand His profound heart. This is proof that God’s love reaches everywhere.
465. Discard the dust and dirt which has collected in your heart and renew yourself; unless you do so, you will never be able to know God’s way of salvation.
466. People experienced in worldly affairs can be quite ignorant of the Divine realm. They believe that they understand everything with their wisdom, ignoring the fact that they are protected by the gods of the spirit world. God’s salvation does not reach them and they can accomplish nothing. To be pitied, therefore, are those who are called intellectuals or scholars.
467. The intellectual and learned person cannot easily discard his knowledge, because the storehouse of his heart is full of it. Consequently in the storehouse of his heart there is no space for the true treasure which is the Divine way.
468. Whatever enemy may appear before you in the spreading of the Divine way, walk forward without stopping and without yielding. Even if one appears who would kill you for your service to the Divine way, have no fear. Even if they can kill your body, they can never kill your soul. Therefore there is nothing to fear.
469. The devil which is able to kill not only your body but even your soul is your sin and impurity, made by you yourself. In the world there is nothing more to be feared than one’s own sin. Even if you were killed because of the way, that is according to God’s will. By means of this God intends to give you long life in a more beautiful world.
470. Not only missionaries but also believers of this way appear as the light of the world.
471. Become the salt of the ocean (human society) and take on its pure colour and taste.
472. May all of you become air, light, water, gold and earth, and serve the world.
473. If you serve the world thus, you will be able to open the door to glory, for you will accord with God’s heart.
474. Family members, be unanimous in striving for faith. If in your family there is one who does not believe in God, leave him for a while. For God is much more important than your parents and siblings.
475. He who denies the Divine way because of his parents or siblings defies the heart of the true God.
476. God does not advise you to defy your parents. God advises you to submit to Him in order to redeem your parents or brothers from their sins, following the path of the true God.
477. The most faithful is the one who believes in God, perfects his conduct and guides even his parents to faith. Obeying the words of the parents without distinguishing good from evil is not faithfulness to the true Father.
Written on the 13th of the 5th month in the 37th year of Meiji (1904).
478. To illuminate the dark world, the Spirit of Mizu has come down to earth, cleaving his way through many clouds.
479. The Spirit of Mizu descended from heaven with the brightness of golden light, and entered my body. He will reconstruct this final world, explaining the Divine realm with wonderful phenomena.
480. I purified my soul and found out about the realm of heavenly beings; I saw the true God for the first time and heard His teaching. Indeed I found out how to discard the mountain of sins every day piling up in my heart. I therefore take up the pen for the world and for the nation, and show what I have heard and what I have understood.
481. The clouds of doubt which had constantly hung in my heart for some six years disappeared.
482. The doubt became, rather, a help to me in building a Divine realm on earth. That which until now I had believed to be bad was in fact bad. That which I had believed to be suspicious was suspicious. Thus I became convinced.
483. Doubt is an act of impertinence towards God; however it is permitted according to circumstances. If you think something is bad, examine it thoroughly. Instant and unquestioning belief often leads people to superstition and even harms the true way.
484. God’s way becomes long or short according to the interpretation of God’s teaching. Therefore, from now on I will willingly guide you on the way which is very pure and easily negotiable.
485. Until now I wandered in sin and was troubled about the direction of the path, but now I find myself saved on the correct and easy way, thanks to the Spirit of Mizu, descended from heaven. I am saved first, and therefore from now on I will willingly show the way I have found to save the world.
486. Among gods there are two kinds. One is the true and the other is the malicious.
487. The spirit of a true god comes from God. The spirit of a malicious god comes from evil.
488. Respect the gods born from God. Do not respect the gods born of sins.
489. Those who believe in God, make your hearts tranquil and distinguish good gods from evil gods. A devil will always manifest itself in the form of a good god in order to deceive and afflict good people.
490. Of love there are five kinds. One is the love between parents and their children. The love of parents for their children or of children for their parents is not unique to the human race; even birds and beasts have it. It is the natural love of all animals. In the world there is no one who does not have this love. But because the present world is already nearing its end, few are the sons and daughters who respect and love their parents, although nearly all parents love their children. It has been said from of old that even the dove knows how to honour its parents, and the crow surely repays its parents’ favour. It can be said, then, that one who does not esteem and love his parents as a son is below the birds and beasts. Even the savage beasts of the fields and mountains love their own children.
491. The second is the love of preference. For preference of horses one loves a horse; for preference of women one loves a woman; for preference of bonsai one loves miniature trees. Love of preference is such that one loves one’s own heart by one’s preference. One does not love the horse itself. The same is true of the woman or the bonsai. Consequently, all love that is not poured onto the object itself is none other than the love of preferring only one’s own heart.
492. The third is feigned love. Feigned love is not that from the deep heart. It can happen that a half-mother purely loves her half-child from the heart, but in most cases a half-mother loves her half-child for the sake of her husband, for the relatives or for what people say. These are all feigned love.
493. The fourth is false love. This is the love of one who does not have it in his heart while he speaks of it with his mouth. Love spoken by a hypocrite is false. And the love of one who rates his love as true often turns out to be false. The love of partial Shintoists or obstinate missionaries often turns out to be false.
494. The fifth is the love of God. It is the just and beautiful love. The possessor of this love even loves his enemies. To love one with a twisted heart and to lead him to good is the love of God. It is the love which turns to everyone, including people from foreign countries. To love any evil one in the same way as a good one--for God shines not only on the fields of the good but also on those of the bad--is the love of God. The love of God is the love which favours the evil one more.
495. He who receives Divine favour understands the meanness of his own heart.
496. He who understands the meanness of his own heart has already gained the key to the door to the realm of heavenly beings.
497. If you have understood that your heart has become cloudy and impure, this is the beginning of receiving Divine favour.
498. If day and night you are sad about your impure heart and try to come close to God, this is the beginning of receiving tranquility of heart.
499. At the same time you will receive Divine virtue to purify your heart.
500. A human being who understands that he is poor in his heart, can become humble and gentle thanks to Divine virtue. The gentle one, wherever he goes, is surely favoured by God and loved by people.
501. If you eagerly yearn for the true way as a hungry man wishes for food and a thirsty man desires water, this is the beginning of receiving Divine virtue. If you know how to be content even in insufficiency, this is the beginning of receiving Divine virtue.
502. He who has compassion in his heart and practises it already receives God’s virtue.
503. There are various qualities also of compassion. When a rich man pities and saves a poor man, this is compassion. When a strong man helps a weak man, this too is love and compassion.
504. Besides this there is that compassion where a man loves one stronger than himself. Although rich and strong, he, who knows not the true way and light, is indeed to be pitied. To lead such a man onto the true path is compassion conforming to the heart of Heaven.
505. One who pities and saves others is in turn pitied and saved by the true heavenly God.
506. Happy is he who becomes intimate and familiar with God. He who wishes to be intimate with God should have a just heart equal to God’s.
507. Be glad of the fact that you are tormented for your service to the Divine way.
508. Be glad of the fact that you are tormented by devils because of your good conduct.
509. Be glad of the fact that you are tormented for choosing the truth. Divine strength is promised you.
510. Do not regard as happy those who become kings, lords or nobles. Do not regard as happy those who become rich. In the world the happiest are those who meet with God.
511. Ignoring this true happiness, the greedy and the obstinate regard treasures that rust, decay and perish as giving happiness. They do not know true spiritual happiness, because their heart remains in darkness, while their physical eyes can see.
512. Love and respect all people in the world. Because every human being is born as a son or daughter of God, created in a form similar to God, loving and respecting human beings is equal to respecting and loving God.
513. Respecting and worshipping or praying to God is that which gives profit in all things. Belief in God gives profit to the individual, to the family, to the nation, to the world and to all else.
514. Faith in God makes the body healthy, relieves the suffering of illness and gives the power to maintain life as long as possible, as also for the future life of the soul.
515. All people themselves become distant from God because of sin. But if a person begins to have a heart free of sin like a baby’s and adores and respects God, God will immediately draw near and give to him joy and prosperity.
516. Adore God more than your parents. God will love your parents all the more.
517. When you see an evil person, immediately examine your heart. When you examine yourself minutely you can understand that you too have a bad side, no less than the other.
518. Never despise the evil or the stupid. Taking them as examples, examine your heart and correct your conduct. If you regard the evil and the stupid as worthless, you regard also yourself as worthless.
519. May believers conduct themselves as becomes believers. The believer without good conduct will finally profane even the name of the holy God. The sin of a believer who profanes the Divine name is more serious than the sin of one who does not believe in God. If you are believers, may each of you manifest God’s glory through true conduct.
520. The fact that the fields and mountains are adorned by the flowers of the different seasons is the manifestation of God’s power. God brings this about in order to bring pleasure to the eyes of humans.
521. But if one neglects one’s daily work, too absorbed in plants and flowers, this is contrary to God’s heart.
522. The whole of God is constituted by the virtue of love and good. Because of this, he who does not dwell in the goodness of love, in the truth of faith, becomes remote from the Divine light and cannot reach the Divine world, full of extreme goodness, beauty and joy.
523. Love of goodness and belief in truth constitute the Divine world; love of evil and belief in falsehood make up hell (the abysmal world).
524. The Divine world is divided into two parts. One is the dwelling-place of the spirits full of the virtue of love of goodness, namely the realm of heavenly beings. The other is the dwelling-place of the spirits full of the light of belief in truth, full of wisdom and understanding, namely the realm of angels.
525. The realm of heavenly beings is the peaceful dwelling place of heavenly beings and in it there are countless groups. It is a paradise whose inhabitants glorify God’s virtue and serve Him with rites of thanksgiving; they are occupied in various professions in service to the holy work of the Divine world.
526. The realm of angels is the land of the missionary-angels, who ceaselessly visit the realm of heavenly beings, the intermediate world and hell, to convey the Divine teachings and love to their inhabitants.
527. God is love itself; therefore, however heavy and serious are the sins of a human soul, God is not indignant, neither does he prepare a hell specially to punish that soul. The human soul or spirit prepares its own hell and falls itself into its ever-burning fire, only because of the love of evil which that soul itself has possessed since its earthly life. God has no ideas of hatred, reproach or punishment. God is love and favour itself. Man is the child (part-spirit) of God and at the same time is a Divine dwelling place (part-body). God is eager to make a realm of heavenly beings on earth: He gives part of His divinity to prophets so that all peoples may be convinced of His love and favour. If God had even a little hatred, that would indeed mean that He himself had already perished. Therefore in the holy words it is said: God is love and goodness.
528. If you wish to be raised to the Divine realm, polish your soul and accumulate virtues more even than the purest of the missionaries of the various churches existing until now. Unless you do this, it will be difficult to reach the realm of heavenly beings.
529. Missionaries and believers of this way must be superior to the most superior of the missionaries of other teachings, because my way is that which clearly shows all that is to be accomplished, not known to previous missionaries.
530. When you make offering to God, before all else purify your heart. God does not accept the offerings of a family at war. For it is in the true heart of one who offers that God rejoices.
531. There are those whose tongues only reach the Divine realm. There are those whose ears only reach the Divine realm. May you strive to raise your whole body to the Divine realm, and make your body and soul perfect.
532. If you wish to raise your whole self to the Divine realm, repent of the heavy sin which enfolds your body and heart, ask the Spirit of Mizu for salvation, and purify your heart so that it becomes whiter than snow.
533. Understand the Divine power through wisdom (kushimitama). It may happen that while one wishes to have a son, a daughter is born; while one wishes for a daughter, a son is born; or while one wishes to have a beautiful child, a plain-looking child is born. Does this not prove that every one who is born is a child of God, not of human beings? If it is the human parent that gives birth, then why cannot the parent decide about its own child?
534. Every single human being is born in this world according to the will and power of God. Know therefore, that although it is your child, yet it is not your own.
535. If you understand that your child is not only yours but also God’s, you will never be able to treat it cruelly, even if you are the parent. Nurture your child with the same heart as that with which you serve God. If not, you will become one who defies the heart of God.
536. Being a human being, incapable of creating even a single hair, do not overuse the parent’s privilege. He who pointlessly beats his child about the head in reproach, a child born according to the Divine will and the Divine working, is a criminal of the Divine realm.
537. Love your enemy. Sympathise with him willingly and with a true heart. Have compassion for the evildoer and pray to God for his salvation. If you accomplish this, God, being aware of your heart and conduct, will favour you all the more.
538. Why should God reward you if you love only those who love you, only those who respect you? Even the evil love those who love them.
539. Follow God in all things, for every human being is a child of God. Love therefore every human being in the world, as God loves you.
540. Do not carry out good with the intention that someone will see it or find out about it. Practise it so that no one finds out. God will show your conduct to the world and your reward will be great, if you carry out good away from human eyes.
541. Trust all to God. Do not be anxious about trivial things. Clothes and food are gifts from Heaven to protect human life. God has taken care to make clothes to preserve the human body. Therefore, if you ask with a heart which accords with the true way, they will surely be supplied by Heaven. Even birds and beats are able to feed their bodies and maintain their lives.
542. Accumulate your treasures in the realm of heavenly beings and acquire limitless prosperity there.
543. Humans are drifting in the muddy water and are on the verge of death. Pitying them, God has again sent down the Spirit of Mizu to the holy land, to favour wandering sinners and save their lives with the gift of wisdom.
544. Because God has decided that the holy land of Ayabe be the Divine realm on earth, innumerable gods gather here and deal with the affairs of this world. Now, in this holy land of Ayabe I preach to the suffering people of the world in accordance with the profound and loving heart of God.
545. God created the sun, shining in the sky, with His complete power; He gave to it spirit, spirit-power and spirit-body; and He named it the Sun God.
546. God created the moon with the complete power; He gave it spirit, spirit-power and spirit-body; and He named it the Moon God.
547. God created the earth to shelter humankind; He gave it spirit, spirit-power and spirit-body; and He named it the Earth God.
548. In the Divine world God gave birth to innumerable gods; on the earth, too, God gave birth to innumerable gods; and He appointed them to their respective positions.
549. Not correct is the teaching which asserts that there are no other gods besides the one-and-only God. Because God is all-powerful, He gives birth to many gods and allots them their positions.
550. The gods who came into being outside the atmosphere enveloping this world are called the heavenly gods; the gods who came into being within the atmosphere are called the earthly gods.
551. Even though furious waves may rage and roar and threaten to carry away sinners, those who are on the Divine path need have no fear, for the waves are pushed back by the power of the Spirits of Izu and Mizu.
552. Know that without the permission of the Spirits of Izu and Mizu nothing can be realised. However furiously the storm may rage, it will not be able to blow away even one thread of a spider’s web, if the Spirits do not allow it.
553. The saving voice of the Spirit of Mizu resonates like thunder, and its light is as clear as lightning.
554. God is without beginning and without end. Because He possesses infinite love (Sachimitama), harmony (Nigimitama), activity (Aramitama) and wisdom (Kushimitama), His virtue fills the sky and every single corner of every land.
555. God created all beings and gave birth to all gods, and He protects them all, night and day. May all people therefore joyfully revere the Divine virtue, worship God and serve Him steadfastly and with a pure heart, for as long as their life lasts.
556. The spirit of Mizu came down to this world according to God’s will. The enemies who oppose the Spirit of Mizu must surely perish. Who can win against one sent by God?
557. Seas, mountains, rivers and fields, all of these are created by God’s power.
The human body, life and spirit, even clothes and food, of these there is none which is not created by God. Divine children, my brothers and sisters, may you all purify your hearts and join with me in praising God’s teaching and His enormous merit.
He who believes in this path and practises correct conduct is always with the Spirit of Mizu. Though my body may be far away from yours beyond mountains and seas, my soul is always in the same place, together with you, my pure friends of the way.
Written on the 1st day, 6th month (according to lunar calendar) in the 37th year of Meiji (1904).