Summary of the Shinji (April 29, 2020) from Kyōshu Seishisha Tomomarukō Sensei

When you make the effort to live with the teachings (abiding by Kami, Hotoke, and Hito no Michi—the effort to stay within your roles with kigan), you will experience a salvation brought to you through the power of Kibō no Michi
What kind of salvation is brought about?  You will experience your kokoro to be calm, peaceful, and anchored.  Therefore, you will not be consumed by the changes of time, you will not become over worried about certain situations allowing yourself to make the right choices.
Life is filled with many challenges. And what helps you through these challenges is your ability to see the situation correctly. And to do this, your kokoro being calm and not consumed by your emotions become truly important. However, this is easier said than done. That is why we continue to learn the teachings from Kami.
The following Shinji will help you set your priorities and focus during difficult times.

 

Have a strong will to live (your) life supported by the teachings.
Having a strong will is not just making efforts from time-to-time, but it is a determination that comes with a strong feeling. Because life can take turbulent turns at times making it impossible to stay calm and focused, this determination is well needed to make the right choices and actions that would lead your life to be fulfilling.
The reason is said in the following Shinji.



From what Kami sees, people do not seem to be living life with confidence.
Not seeing the truth of things that lies underneath, people are distracted, overwhelmed, and they suffer from what they see on the surface.
Confidence that Kami teaches is the belief in your unmei—to believe you are given an unmei that has the ability to contribute to the world and use it without hesitation. But as mentioned in the Shinji, there are many who is unable to use their potentials. Hence their presence is not realized, felt, and appreciated by many.
Also, the Shinji showed that we are not seeing the truth of things that lies underneath the surface. Kami points out that especially in human relationships, many of us are overwhelmed by people’s titles, or how they look on the outside. And not only that, but losing confidence as a result before seeing the true ability of the other person.
This is the reason why Kami is telling each one of us to live with a strong determination to live with the teachings.



Then what must be done? The Shinji continues.
Treasure the encounters with people and things and try to compromise and reach unity.
Kami reminded us the importance to make the effort to live in harmony with others by using the words compromise and unity.  It is not to better bend than break; but accept the other person’s strengths and weaknesses and try to work with them—not work against them. To do so, you need to have the patience to listen to them carefully. And without any judgments and trying to pull their legs, work to come together.



The result of making that effort is shown in the following.
The more you live life learning the teachings and gaining deeper understandings of the principles, your kokoro will anchor. Your kokoro will not be disturbed by the surroundings because you will be able to distinguish your self and others.
This is a person who lives with the teachings.
The more you learn the teachings of Kami, the more you start to realize and understand your surroundings. And the more you are conscious of what is said in the Shinji in your daily life, you will start to see the workings of the world that Kami teaches us. And as you start seeing the workings of the world, your kokoro will anchor and not be disturbed because you can distinguish the different roles given for yourself and to others in a very clear way. And because your kokoro is anchored and not disturbed, you will not be overwhelmed by the other person’s appearance, but work together to complement the strengths of each other.   
A person who lives with the teachings is not consumed by what goes on in the environment, sees people in the correct way, thus able to have the right involvement that holds a good balance among the people involved.



To the Shinja.
What is to be a Shinja with a right kokoro?
It is a person who continues to make the effort to learn the teachings and live with the principles.

A Shinja with the right kokoro can be described in three terms: ‘Learn the teachings,’ ‘Kigan,’ and ‘Live with love.’
As you learn the teachings, you realize about yourself; ‘I have elevated such expectations on him…’ ‘I was disturbed and irritated about this situation too much…’ By realizing about yourself, it makes it easier to see what needs to be corrected.
However, changing yourself is not easily done without kigan. Therefore, if you find what you need to change about yourself, try not to change it yourself, but kigan.  The repetition of this kigan will help your kokoro not get distracted from the negatives. Through kigan, your kokoro will ease and gain the ability to be more flexible and ‘easy going’ to take in matters in a more relaxed way. And this allows you to be more thoughtful and generous to others being able to live with love. This effort to learn the teachings, kigan, and to live with love is the endless effort as a Shinja.



Now is the time to live with the teachings, and to ask Kami to be a person who can live life with a kokoro that merges with their unmei.
A way of life described in this part of the Shinji can only be achieved along with the correct kigan. The salvation brought about by Kibō no Michi cannot be experienced while you are asking for the wrong things through kigan. For instance, asking for promotions or a raise at work, or asking to pass an exam is not what you should be asking for in kigan.  Kigan should be more focused on your personalities that causes you to be negative or distract you from trying to compromise and unite with people. The more you can offer the correct kigan, you will experience the changes in yourself, that leads to better results.



This determination will protect and lead your life to kaiun.
Kigan is a key element in achieving a life of fulfillment. If the kigan is done in a correct way, your unmei will start to surface more because your kokoro is anchored and calm. And when your kokoro is anchored, you can make choices to fully extend your role to work with others, hence use your abilities in places you are wanted and needed. And as you start to understand and able to distinguish your role and the role of others, being mistreated by others sometimes will start to feel like little things—allowing yourself to brush it off, keep calm, and just carry on. This is the true confidence that Kami is trying to show us. And by far, is the way to receive a great protection from Kami that will eventually lead to your life of fulfillment.
As we are heading into May, we hope that you will stay strong to be with Kami through your kigan and keep moving forward to make the effort to live supported by the principles that are shown through the teachings.