(MS from USA/60s/Female/Homemaker)
I became a shinja in America 36 years ago. I am sure I could not experience this happiness if I didn’t know this Kami.
The Most Important Is to Change Myself
We started to see some changes to my blind son when he was 30-year-old; It was after he graduated from a collage. At first, I thought he just tended to be paranoid. However, he started to suffer from hallucinations. He carried a knife and called police saying, “There is a bad guy injecting drugs to me.” I was always nervous and my heart wavered without knowing what he was going to do next.
From Kami’s teachings, I knew that when my heart wavers, my son’s heart wavers even more. Therefore, I read Shinji when I felt uneasy and was shaken to anchor mine, as well as his heart. And I offered kigan not to get upset nor blame him. I experienced the importance to change myself to calm my son down rather than trying to change him.
Love Brings Love
In retrospect, my husband and I met this Kami when we were troubled with infertility. After a while, we were blessed with two sons, however, we had problems on child raising; we didn’t show the warmth of family enough to our children.
My husband was a soldier and he tended to be very suppressive. And I used to blame him for the ice-cold family environment. When we recognized the way we lived created problems, we made up our mind to change ourselves and create a warm and loving family environment. We both tried to have calm behaviors and a calm way of talking. As we do so, our son’s problem behavior started to subside.
Now, I try to keep a habit of being considerate to my family. For example, I go to a store picturing my family’s smile, and get their favorite food. Also, I say “Thank you for your work” to my husband every day. It is such small things, but when I make actions with the thought of “I want them to be happy,” love comes back to me from them. I experienced that love brings love.
My husband seemed to be puzzled when I said “Thank you for your work” for the first time. But as I kept saying, he started to share what happened to him in a day. Moreover, when I ask him for a help, he helps me willingly. That makes me happy.
Spending 36 Years With Kami
These days, my husband often ask our son to watch TV programs together. He explains contents and what he sees for our blind son. They used to clash with each other, but I hear their laughter these days.
If we didn’t meet this Kami, our family might have fallen apart. Moreover, I might not experience happiness having children. It is sometimes hard to deal with our son’s illness, however, because of it, we could deepen our family tie. Our children’s existence is very big. I keep offering kigan and seeking for a family in harmony where our soul feels at ease.
Heeding the Shinji(*1) to Understand the Reasons for the Joys Experienced
Shinji
The essence to attain true health is one; live a way of life that is one with your unmei(*2).
Seek for a family that foster a kokoro(*3) of harmony and live abiding by the principle.
Kokoro of family will naturally come together and a kokoro to live supporting each other will be fostered.
Anxiety and ambivalence of your kokoro will subside through family interaction.
As your kokoro to live based on the principles get stronger day by day through leaving your thoughts to Kami, the movement of your kokoro will anchor and you will have hope to live.
The strength of your unmei will be drawn out when your kokoro anchors.
*1 Shinji: Words from Ōyamanezunomikoto, the source of all life.
*2 Unmei: The unique strengths given to each human being at the time of birth by Ōyamanezunomikoto that allows us to be useful in society, to help others, and to live a life of hope, meaning, and purpose.
*3 Kokoro: The thoughts and emotions that constantly move between the soul(unmei) and the physical body (jittai); if the kokoro is influenced by our temperament and other physical predispositions of our jittai, it becomes unbalanced; if it becomes one with our unmei, the kokoro becomes balanced and anchored.