真光(Mahikari)の祖師が受け取ったとする『最初の啓示』につ いて ー その真偽 ＜その五＞

This is the 5th post in phoenix3000's series of posts concerning the revelation claims on which Mahikari is based. It contains interesting food for thought: despite the numerous references within Sukyo Mahikari literature to "raise the hand", why is there no reference to Okada receiving instructions from God concerning making omitama and having kumite wear them round their necks?


ところで、『御み霊』なるものが登場するのは何時 からなのでしょうか。何がきっかけだったのでしょ うか。昭和３４年６月１９日の最初の研修会で、す でに御み霊が用意されていたのでしょうか。
過去の真光出版物で、御み霊の始まりについての記 述に出くわした方、いらっしゃいますか。

宗 教に素人である良一（光玉）に突然の『最初の啓 示』が降りる。初めは困惑する。最初の手かざし （＝犬への手かざし）が行われる。それから人に手 をかざす。病気が治る　ーーー　この光玉の話の設 定では最初からあるとは考えられません。光玉の神 は、「御み霊なるものを作って、首にかけろ」とは 指示していません。犬に手かざしした時も、『次々 に人に手かざしした』時も、御み霊のことには一切 言及していません。「手をかざせ」との指示に困惑 したけど、「御み霊なるものを作って、首にかけ ろ」といったような指示に困惑したのではありませ ん。このような指示は『最初の啓示』に含まれてい ません。もし含まれていたら、二重、三重の『困 惑』であったはずです。そして、「科学をやって来 た人間だ」と自負するのなら、御み霊に対して、ひ どく懐疑的になってもよいはず、そしてそのことが 口にのぼるはずです。

『手をかざせ』との指示には、『そんな聖者みたい な真似が出来るとはいくら馬鹿でも考えられない。 そんなことを考えるのはそれこそ気違いだ』　 （『御対談集』P２８０　ー　「真光と犬の話」参 照）と光玉は言っているのです。それなのに御み霊 に対する言及が一切ないということは、犬へ手かざ しした時も、次々に人に手かざしした時も、御み霊 なるペンダントをすでにかけていたとは到底思えま せん。　御み霊なしで手をかざし、奇跡が起きたの でしょうか。御み霊なしで、額にお浄めしたので しょうか。御み霊なしで、霊動が出たのでしょうか。

それとも御み霊のことは、光玉にとってあまりにも 「当たり前」だったので、付けていたけど、言及す るのを忘れた（？）のでしょうか。もしそうなら、 言及しないほど、または言及し忘れるほど「当たり 前だった」のはどうしてでしょうか。

もしすでにかけていたのなら、「科学をやって来た 人間だ」と自負するのに反してしまいます。つま り、ここでも彼の言うことには現実味を伴った一貫 性が欠如してしまうことになります。ただし、御み 霊に関する疑似科学的説明は初級研修テキストに出 ています。

　　皆様の拝受されました御み霊は、主の大神様と 皆様組み手のお一人お一人に御神霊より霊波線がつ ながれており、その霊波線を通して神の「真光」 「御加護光」「神秘光線」を四六時中お送りいただ いております。
　　このことは卑近な例でいえばテレビ、ラジオの 放送に対し、そのセットを家に置いたのと同じ原理 で、今までの諸々の、俗にいうお守りとは全然内容 が異なって、一瞬一瞬のご守護はもとより、人の命 をもお救いさせて
　　いただけるものであり、行の必要がなく万人生 きたイエス化の可能時代が来たのですから、命より 大切にお取り扱いいただきたいと存じます。（初級 研修テキスト　P６７　）
　
光玉は『地上代行者』だから手かざしするのに『御 み霊』は必要がなかったのでしょうか。
『最初の啓示』の後、最初の研修会前に「御み霊な るものを作って、信者に首からかけさせろ」といっ た指示が降りたのでしょうか。
『御聖言』には御み霊に関する指示、記述は出てこ ないから、これは「光玉の神」ではなく、光玉自身 の考え出した物なのでしょうか。その念の入った扱 い方も彼の考え出したことなのでしょうか。

光玉が『御み霊』を三つも首からさげていた、との ことは、真光裁判の資料を調べて、初めて知りまし た。甲子（恵珠）によると、光玉もかけていたので す。
１）父のおみ霊　　２）二代用のおみ霊　３）ラー ム氏から頂いた分　　とのことです。

『御 聖言』に御み霊に関する指示がないことについ ては、『御聖言』は「これまでに公開発表を許され た御聖言をここにまとめ、新たに刊行することのお 許しをいただいた」もの（『御聖言』P４）だか ら、『御聖言』に載っているのは神示の全部ではな い、御み霊そのものと御み霊に関する指示はあった のではないか、でも含まれなかったのだろう、と信 奉者は抜け道を見つけそうです。
でも、御み霊は真光にとって必須のカルトアイテム なのに、その公開を許されないとはどういうことで しょう。初級研修テキストにはちゃんと御み霊のこ とが５頁にもわたって書かれているではありません か。
その項目だけでもあげると、
　
　１）お取り扱いについて　　２）御容器は開けな い様に　　３）お取り扱いの心得について　４）お はずしされる時の心得　　５）御み霊を落とした時 の心得
　６）失った時、水につけてしまった時、遠方に置 き忘れた時　　　　　その他の注意事項 　．．．．．　　　　　　　　　　（P６７−７１）

そ れに『御聖言』が神示の全部ではない、とは便利 です。『ヨのみ霊もちて娘に与えよ』との紙切れと 似たり寄ったりのことをすればよいのです。「最近 になってこれが見つかった」とか、「実はこれも あったのだが、いままでは公開が許されなかった」 と言って、後に過去の日付をつけて発表すればよい のです。それが実際いつ、誰によって、何に書かれ たものであるか、文意は明白か、前後の文脈が合う か、などという検証は神の領域、つまり、信心の領 域を侵すもので、霊障である、邪神邪霊の妨害であ る、と信者に思わせればよいのです。

さて崇教真光の主張に沿って、『光玉の手かざしは 終戦直後に始まった』そして『最後の岩戸開き』の ごとく『奇跡が次々に起こった』ことにすると、光 玉自身の描く「光玉」像とは相容れず、話が混沌と して来ることは前述しました。　（＜その三＞参照）
一応ここでも同じ質問を出してみましょう。崇教真 光の、この話では御み霊はいつ、どんなことがきっ かけで登場するのでしょうか。

御み霊登場のエピソードがない、というのは本当に 変だと思いませんか。
『３０ 年史』には、昭和２４年に「あなたは、今、 神かくしに合っている．．．」とある宗教家から予 言めいたことを言われた（P６６）とか、光玉があ る山に登って、神に『お伺い』したら、『金竜が出 現した』と言い、その時の様子（P６９）とかに は、紙面を割いてわざわざ述べているのに、肝心の 御み霊、『命より大切だ』と一方的に押し付けて来 る、それほど大切な『オミタマ』の登場に関しては 何の記述もないのです。そんな素性の知れない物 を、信者になると押し付けられて、取り扱いに細心 の注意を要求されます。そうして渡されたオミタマ はいつの間にか信者の生活の中に食い込んで、その 生活と思考を動かしていくのです。そればかりか、 『御み霊があなたを守る』『死後も御み霊があの世 で役に立つ』と本気で思わされてしまうのです。

崇 教真光の言うところの「光玉」像では、終戦直後 （または戦後間もなく）の犬への『最初の手かざ し』は御み霊なしで行われた、ということになるの でしょうか。『最後の岩戸開き』の記述のように 『奇跡が次々に起こった』勢いであれば、御み霊の 必要性が生じてきません。御み霊なしで奇跡が起き たが、やがて、『神霊の世界を研究』しているうち に救世教の教えと浄霊（手かざし）と天津祝詞に加 えて、そこのお守り（『おひかり』）にも目を付け たのでしょうか。

終戦直後、または戦後間もなく、救世教に入信し、 浄霊のお守りをもらい、さて、試してみよう、と犬 に浄霊してみた、というのなら、現実味を持って来 るのですが。

救 世教で光という文字が書かれた紙を折り畳んで、 お守りとして使っているのだから、それを発展させ て、真光のペンダントを作り、『その辺の神社のお 守りとは違うものである、命より大切なものであ る』とすれば、人の信仰心をもっと引き出すことが できる、と見込んだのでしょうか。「イワシの頭も 信心から」と言いますから。

「安物だけど．．」なんて渡されても、「有り難 み」は湧かないけれど、「家宝だよ」なんて言われ て渡されたら、たとえ安物のつぼでも大事にする気 にさせられるのが、真面目で、気が良い人々の傾向 です。そしてその品の扱い方が込み入っていれば、 実際には何の価値がなくても、扱う人にとっては、 その品物に個人的なつながりと意味が形成されてい きます。あれこれタブーがあれば、なおそれに拍車 がかかるし、丁寧に扱わなければ、「悪いことが起 きる」などと脅かされれば、なおのことしっかりと 心が恐怖で縛られてしまい、一種の心理的隷従関係 の奥深くにはまっていきます。こうなると、物品の 方がその人の行動、思考、心理を操縦するようにな ります。この仕組みを「目に見えないものに操られ ている」と表現することも可能です。しかも真光の オミタマの場合は、現実と密着しているようでい て、実は現実とは違う、言ってみれば光玉の作り出 した架空の世界に繋がっていて、そこから信者の行 動、思考、心理、感情まで操ってきます。というこ とは、真光批判に時々見られる、「真光(＝魔光） が信者にさやっているのだ」という、真光からは逆 の見方も心理的現象として成立するのです。

崇教真光では、昭和３４年の『最初の啓示』ととも に、あるいはその後間もなく、御み霊に関する指示 が降りたとするのでしょうか。
それとも『最初の啓示』の以前に、『声なき声』で 「御み霊なるものを準備し、首にかけよ、かけさせ よ」との指示があったことにするのでしょうか。

既 存の『御聖言』のどこかに差し込むのが一番簡単 かもしれません。『最初の啓示』に割込ませると、 手かざしへの困惑にオミタマへの困惑も付け加えね ばなりませんし、それ以前に持っていくと、昭和３ ４年に『手をかざせ」と命じられた時の光玉の困惑 が合わなくなります。「御み霊なるものを準備し、 首にかけよ」というのはそのためだったのか、と いった反応が光玉にあってもいいはずです。それに 教団が『声なき声』『姿なき声』を使い過ぎると、 光玉の主張する『最初の啓示』のインパクトがさら に色あせて来るし、幻聴傾向のある人間、というこ とにもなり、その精神状態が正常だったのかどう か、疑ってかからなくてはならなくなります。既に 使い過ぎのようにも思えるのですが。

『御み霊』がカルトアイテムであり、マインドコン トロールするのに実に巧妙な道具であり、信者に心 理的首かせの役割を果たしていることは、外の世界 から真光の世界を振り返って見ると明白です。実は もう一つ重要なことがあります。インターネットで 次のような書き込みがありました。意味は自明で しょう。

　　名前：岡田良一　俺は神の声を聞いた。確かに 聞いた。”手をかざせ”と。　　
　　　　　　　　　　
　　　　　　　　　　しかし考えてみれば御み霊に ついては聞いてなかったな。
　　　　　　　　　　どうしてあんなものが必要に なったんだっけ？
　　　　　　　　　　
　　　　　　　　　　そうだ！誰にでもできたら俺 が儲からないではないか！
　

　　　　　　　　
　　------ 火の鳥phoenix３０００

Translation of Part 1 of the Mahikari "First Revelation" posts

Sorry for the delay in posting translations of Phoenix 3000's Japanese posts concerning the Mahikari "first revelation". Some of the material here duplicates information presented in previous English posts, but I feel it is sufficiently important to be repeated.

So, here is the English version of Part 1. (The original post is at 真光の祖師が受け取ったとする『啓示』について 　ー　その真偽　＜その一＞.)

Authenticity of the "Revelations" supposedly received by the founder of Mahikari (Part 1)

The most frequently quoted parts of Yoshikazu (Koutama) Okada's "first revelation" are: Rise. (1) Thy name shall be Koutama. (2) Raise the hand. (3) The world shall enter severe times.

Rather dramatic, isn't it? A person who was completely inexperienced with religion was suddenly chosen by God, given a new name, received far-reaching "Truths", and rose up to save mankind. Even though he was ordered to "Raise the hand", he did not understand the meaning of this at first. Despite being bewildered by this, he spontaneously extended his hand towards a sick dog (not a dog which just happened to be lying asleep beside the road) and shining energy gushed out and enveloped the dog. Soon the dog became well again, stood up, and walked away. Surprised by this result, he stayed still for a while. How does this scenario sound?

Re (1), the name "Ko(u)tama":

From about 1947, Okada belonged to Sekai Kyusei Kyo (SKK) and practiced "tekazashi" (jorei). He was employed as head of an SKK center and, according to various Internet sources, had people address him as "Kotama Sensei" (Sensei is the polite way of addressing a leader or teacher). Thus, "Kotama" was a name he gave to himself, and seems to have been his preferred name. Accordingly, this was not a new name given to him by God in 1959.

After the name "Kotama", Okada claimed he was given another name, "Seigyoku", in 1961. Refer to the Sukyo Mahikari 30-year Chronicle, page 79 (1989).

According to the Internet article "Kotama's medal is a bogus award", Okada functioned as a director in Shinrei Igakukai, a psychic medicine society formed by Michikazu Okada in 1958. In an endorsement of Michikazu Okada's book, Reiyu no Kagaku (The Science of Spiritual Healing), Okada used the name Seigyoku Okada.

Does anyone know when this particular book was published? The first edition was published in 1956. Does this mean that Okada was already using the name Seigyoku in 1956?

If Okada's endorsement was before 1961, we can determine that Seigyoku was a name Okada thought up for himself, as was the case with the name "Koutama." Even if that endorsement was after 1961, which is less likely, it doesn't sound right to use a "divine name" casually. According to the 30-year Chronicle (page 79) and the Commentary on Kami Muki Sanji (page 40, published in 1982), Okada felt dreadfully awed by the kanji "sei - 聖" (meaning "holy") and he was extremely reluctant to use this kanji as a part of his name. If that really was the case, shouldn't he have felt even more reluctant to use such a "holy name" in a book that was not part of Mahikari divine matters?

Re (2), "Raise the hand":

As shown in 真光と犬の話 - the Mahikari dog story (this blog, March 25 2006), there are discrepancies in the date when Okada raised his hand to a dog as the first recipient of tekazashi. Which date is correct (if there is any truth in the story at all)? Did he raise his hand to the dog (a) soon after the "first revelation" on February 27 1959, or (b) before that time? Okada raising his hand to the dog is inextricably associated with the first occurrence of Okada raising his hand. Therefore, this is the same as asking, did Okada first raise his hand (a) after the "first revelation", or (b) before that "revelation"?

The fact that questions arise about such a simple matter is, in itself, truly strange. The existence of discrepancies between the first story by Okada and the story subsequently told by the sect that followed Okada makes one wonder what actually happened and how much of the story is true. This is a real problem, not a matter of differences in interpretation.

According to the writings of Okada himself, (a) is correct.

In Gotaidanshu (a collection of interviews with Okada published in 1985), pages 280-281, Okada said:

It was 27 February 1959, I think, when I was worshipping God at home, and I heard a loud voice say, "Thy name shall be Koutama. The world shall enter severe times." My daughter said...(omitted)..."if God gives you a name, you should ask him for a little more elaborate name." I said, "It's not right to complain." So, I called myself Koutama. Then He said to me, "Raise the hand and cure people of diseases."... (omitted)...For about a week, I was not at all inclined to act on this. However, without planning it, I tried raising my hand to a dog, and this cured the dog. [Note: the person whom Okada refers to as "daughter" is probably Keishu (Kouko) who is "officially" the "adopted daughter."]

Davis also says, in Dojo (1980), that it was a dog that Okada first raised his hand to, after the 1959 "first revelation." It seems Okada thought, "At least a dog won't laugh at me when I raise my hand".

The version of Okada's tale at the beginning of this chapter, that is, that he received the 1959 "first revelation" and then hesitatingly raised his hand toward a dog as his first attempt at tekazashi, and that the sick dog recovered, would certainly give a dramatic impression to a person hearing about this "first revelation" for the first time. This is probably exactly what Okada intended.

According to the story told by Okada in Gotaidanshu (pages 280-281), he was first told, "Thy name shall be Koutama. The world shall enter severe times." So, he called himself "Koutama", and some time after that (it is not clear whether it was hours later, days later, or weeks later) he was told to "Raise the hand and cure people of diseases". Here the purpose of "raising the hand" is explicit.

In an early Japanese edition of Goseigen, part (2), "Raise the hand", was not included between parts (1) and (3). It seems likely that this was not omitted due to a printing error, but because part (2) was not originally in this place in the revelation. It's hard to believe that such an important item was forgotten to be included. It makes more sense to think that part (2) was not originally between parts (1) and (3). This revelation was probably related orally during kenshus. There is a strong possibility that through the oral deliveries, "Raise the hand and cure people of diseases" became shortened to "Raise the hand" only, which sometime later found its place between (1) and (3) in Mahikari literature as a part of the "first revelation."

However, if the "cure people of diseases" part is dropped and only the "Raise the hand" part appears in the form Mahikari claims now, a question arises. If Okada had no prior knowledge of the act of raising the hand, or in other words, if he had no prior experience of religions, wouldn't that have made him wonder what "Raise the hand" meant?

The revelation at 5:00am on 27 February 1959 appears in Goseigen as two parts, Everything in Heaven and on Earth is the Voice of God, followed by Teaching of How to Perceive God, but neither part contains anything about "raising the hand", or performing Mahikari no Waza (giving okiyome, or True Light). In spite of this, Okada knew or immediately understood what this meant. He certainly did express perplexity, as if he had known nothing about this tekazashi until the astounding "first revelation" suddenly came to him, but not in a way that sounds like he was wondering, "What will happen if I do that?" Something doesn't sound quite right, does it? This is a subtle inconsistency that tends to be overlooked. We probably all heard various miracle stories, received okiyome, and so on, before attending primary kenshu. Therefore, we already knew what "Raise the hand" meant before we heard about the "first revelation", and so we probably did not notice this inconsistency.

As Okada accumulated more and more followers, perhaps he felt more relaxed. Perhaps he didn't feel it was strictly necessary to stick to the original story as he had intended, causing some fluidity in his stories as time went by. The implication in some of his statements is that he had known about raising the hand and was doing so before the 1959 "first revelation," despite the fact that he put on an act of being perplexed and hesitant about tekazashi in his original story.

For example, according to No. 934 in "Complaints against all Mahikari groups (Yokoshi Tomo no Kai, Sekai Mahikari Bunmei Kyodan, Sukyo Mahikari, Seiho no kai, etc.)", sometime in his later years, Okada said to his close friends, I cured a woman who had six breasts and made her normal by doing tekazashi. This gave me confidence that I was a person who could save people. It was immediately after that when the revelation came to me.

There are inconsistencies in the stories Okada himself told. Sukyo Mahikari selected which stories to tell, and whichever it selected, it could not avoid inconsistencies. Since the latter part of the 80s, Sukyo Mahikari appears to have promoted version (b). That is, it now claims that Okada's first use of tekazashi (equates to Okada giving tekazashi to the dog) was before the "first revelation".

It was reasonably well-known to people outside the Mahikari organization that Okada once belonged to SKK. However, those amongst Mahikari kanbu who knew of this said nothing publicly because Okada's SKK history contradicts his claims -- such as the "first revelation", and "True Light" being permitted to all people for the first time in human history -- and it would jeopardize Mahikari's credibility. Yet there seem to be some older followers, who became Mahikari members in the early Mahikari years, who also knew of Okada's SKK background. In addition, Okada left some statements which reveal that he had been doing tekazashi before the "first revelation", so the fact that Okada had practiced tekazashi (jorei in SKK) could not be completely erased. Thus, the sect promoted the idea that Okada had been doing tekazashi before the "first revelation", and also moved the dog story to before the "first revelation". The sect may not be aware that this reduces the dramatic impact that Okada originally intended, and also comes closer to the fact that he was practicing tekazashi (jourei) in SKK. The sect glosses over the fact that Okada belonged to SKK by saying that he "studied other religions."

The members' ability to think objectively has been weakened by the emphasis on tekazashi (Mahikari no Waza), "Firstly, tekazashi. Secondly, tekazashi . . . .", and by information control. They make great efforts to accept whatever the sect says, even if it sounds a bit strange. Therefore, the sect is able to say what it wants to say to the followers without causing any problems.

Even Okada himself omitted inconvenient parts of his history and made contradictory claims. Sukyo Mahikari follows his example and does not clarify facts. It remains silent, changes statements to suit its convenience, and replaces facts with other "facts" or completely changes stories.

There are very few objective and factual statements in Okada's biography in Daiseishu and in the 30-year Chronicle. Many of the facts surrounding Okada remain vague or ambiguous. This may be sufficient to satisfy Mahikari devotees, though.

If the sect informed the followers of facts accurately, without any lies, distortions, or cover-ups, the world of Mahikari would cease to exist. Goseigen, page 5, refers to the principle of the major religion's secret creed, that is, "The followers shall follow but they shall not know". Mahikari is not a major religion but, even so, the same could be said for Mahikari itself.

So, let's look again at the words of Sukyo Mahikari. The Sukyo Mahikari 30-year Chronicle, page 66, says, From the time that Sukuinushisama spontaneously raised his hand and saved the dying dog, his interest in the divine spiritual world deepened, and he studied the divine world while working on paying off his debts.

In other words, soon after the war, Okada supposedly discovered tekazashi alone, despite no relationship with SKK, started to have an interest in the spiritual world, and, without belonging to any religion, studied the divine world by himself. What's more, he did this while "repaying his enormous debts". Presumably, Mr. Tomita's letter that denies that Okada belonged to SKK expresses Sukyo Mahikari's position on this matter.

The quoted statement of Sukyo Mahikari from 30-year Chronicle implies that it is just "by chance" that Mahikari no Waza is similar to SKK's jorei. Well. . . since the teachings say that nothing happens "by chance", perhaps the wording should be that these are simply not related, even though they are almost identical. Sukyo Mahikari seems to think that saying that Okada was interested in and studied other religions creates a possible explanation for the similarities between his teachings and those of other religions (in particular, for the many similarities with the teachings of SKK), and supports the claim that Okada previously had "no experience of religions", and was an amateur researcher of religions.

In addition, Sukyo Mahikari seems to have decided to imply that there were other "revelations" before the "first revelation". For example, they tell of voiceless voices saying "Up, look up!" when he was in the bath, and say he heard the words "Your sins are being erased" when he was contemplating suicide. Some members tend to count the "spiritual dream" which Okada claims to have had during his "five days of unconsciousness" as a revelation. Some day the sect might add "Raise the hand" to the content conveyed by the "voiceless voices" Okada supposedly heard before the "first revelation."

phoenix3000