by Masuo Nezu

On May 1, 1926, Rev. Niwano sat for a commemorative photo at the age of nineteen at a photo studio in Tokamachi on his way home after worshiping at Yahiko Shrine in Niigata Prefecture.

While Rev. Niwano was first employed as a wood and charcoal dealer--in 1924, the year after the Great Kanto Earthquake--Mr. Ishihara, the master of the charcoal shop, built three rental houses. He paid off his mortgage with the monthly rent he received from tenants, as well as with any extra profits from the shop. Thus Rev. Niwano worked as hard as he could, thinking, "Let's get the shop out of debt as soon as possible; let's make this a first-class shop."

He didn't have any sense of "being employed." In the winter, the outdoor work was bone-chilling. Employees' hands would be stained with blood from chopping and carrying wood.

"Shika-san! [Rev. Niwano's first name then was Shikazo], let's finish up for today," Mr. Ishihara would say. He was a hard worker, and few employees lasted long under his stern management.

"Yes, sir," Rev. Niwano would respond. However, he would already be bringing back another load of wood from the warehouse and would add, "Let's bring in one more load and then quit."

He was forever thinking about business the following day. Another load helped to start the day better tomorrow.

"He was no ordinary man--from the beginning"

After Mr. Ishihara passed away, for many years Rev. Niwano continued to pray for him, that his spirit might rest in peace. One morning, the founder paid a visit to the Ishihara family.

After wishing them a good morning and exchanging greetings, he prayed before the family's home altar. He made an offering there of a large carton of fruit.

Mrs. Ishihara said, "I know you keep a busy schedule. But if you are not in a big hurry, how about having a cup of tea with us?"

"Well, I am going to Niigata at the end of the month, and next month I am supposed to go to Europe," replied the founder. He spoke of activities related to the World Conference on Religion and Peace and other international activities, and then introduced various other topics.

Listening appreciatively, old Mrs. Ishihara turned to me (as I was accompanying Rev. Niwano then as his secretary) and said in an aside, "Founder Niwano is such a good man. And it is because of his virtue, I suspect, that foreign religious leaders think so highly of him. When he was working in our shop in the early days, I recall that he was quite different from all the other employees. When I was pregnant with my second child, he would always get up early, go out to the well in the yard to wash his face, and then bring me back a wooden bucket of water to use. He worked very hard, all day long, every day. I thought then that he was no ordinary man--from the very beginning."

In the car on the way back, the founder reflected on the old days, and he said to me, "In any event, Mr. Ishihara was certainly a very hard-working man. So I wanted to learn that from him. Mr. Ishihara trusted me and treated me a little differently from the others. Those who came to work in his shop later sometimes thought that I was Mr. Ishihara's younger brother."

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