by Masuo Nezu

Literally "a Life of Compassion"

On December 24, 1989, a ceremony was held to unveil a monument to the cofounder. Founder Niwano and then-Chief Director Motoyuki Naganuma left early that morning for the Saitama Church, the location of the monument.

In the car on the way, Rev. Niwano asked Rev. Naganuma, "How many Rissho Kosei-kai churches are there now in Saitama Prefecture?" "There are fifteen," was the reply.

Rev. Niwano was filled with deep emotion, remembering when he and Myoko-sensei had worked so hard disseminating the Dharma during the founding period, and he was pleased at how the Dharma had spread in the cofounder's home prefecture. He recalled how she had devoted her life to the Dharma.

Nearing the church, Rev. Naganuma pointed out various places to Rev. Niwano, explaining how they were associated with the cofounder.

"In those days all the roads were gravel," Rev. Naganuma said. In response, Rev. Niwano commented, "Yes, and the roads weren't as wide as they are now." Rev. Naganuma pointed out, "You'll find the old road beyond that one." And so the conversation between them continued.

"Last night I was looking over the family memorial book kept at my family altar," the founder said. (In the memorial books enshrined at members' home altars, the Buddhist posthumous names of their ancestors and close relatives are registered.) "I noticed that this is the memorial day for Mrs. Kuni Furusawa."

Kuni Furusawa was the eldest sister of Myoko-sensei. Rev. Niwano remembered even her sisters.

Myoko-sensei was the sixth daughter of Asajiro Naganuma, who came from an old family in Saitama Prefecture. Her childhood had been difficult, particularly when her father suffered financial reverses and lost their large home and most of his other property. The whole family had to move into a nearby temple for some time. The chief priest of the temple always taught her as a child to respect her ancestors. The message sank in--deeply.

Rev. Naganuma said, "Myoko-sensei later guided that chief priest to the Lotus Sutra and brought him into Rissho Kosei-kai."

Among her older sisters was one who followed the Tenrikyo faith for many years. Yet when she was about to die, it is said that she asked Myoko-sensei, "Please recite the Lotus Sutra. Soothe my soul with the Lotus Sutra."

They even talked in the car about the sashes that Rev. Niwano and Myoko-sensei presented to members of Rissho Kosei-kai going to the front during the war.

"Some 450 men were listed and had their names posted on the wall at our first headquarters," Rev. Niwano recalled. "It took four columns to include all the names."

"I wore one of those, too, around my belly going into battle," Rev. Naganuma said. "Just like the mandala banner, the words 'Namu Myoho Renge-kyo' (I take refuge in the sutra of the Lotus Flower of the Wonderful Dharma), 'Infinite as heaven and earth' and 'Many in body but one in spirit' were written on each one in brush calligraphy. At first I tied my sash around my belly; but after the war, so as not to get it dirty I put it inside my helmet and wore it on my head."

Rev. Niwano inscribed the sacred words on the sashes and Myoko-sensei blessed each one. It is said that among those 450 soldiers, not one of them died in battle.

On arriving at the Saitama Church, Rev. Niwano was greeted by many members. Paying homage to the gohonzon, the focus of devotion enshrined at the church, he then went into the drawing room. There, in his sermon during the ceremony unveiling the monument, he said with deep feeling, "When I think of the life Myoko-sensei lived, I feel it was truly 'a life of compassion.'"

On her monument is an inscription that Rev. Niwano wrote from his heart on her memorial day. After the ceremony, he gazed at the monument and said, "The color of the stone is very pleasing."

This series of articles was originally published in Japanese in 2000 under the title Kaiso Zuimonki: Egao no Ushirosugata.