Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.7, pg.4790, Joseph M. Kitagawa and Gary L. Ebersole
Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.8, pg.5622, Lewis R. Lancaster
Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.10, pg.6573, Robert S. Ellwood and Shimazono Susumu
Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.10, pgs.6824-6826, Murakami Shigeyoshi and Shimazono Susumu
Omoto is one of the many various expressions of the Shinto religion which has its origin or source in the superstitions of religious folklore. One such belief is that the two divine kamis or deities know as Kunitokodachi no Mikoto and Susano-o no Mikoto were the original rulers of Japan who had been expelled by the evil kami which according to Omoto’s power narrative was a way to explain the chaos in the world which was a rival myth to the favored view of the sun goddess, Amaterasu Omikami, as the ancestor of the imperial line which challenged the divine status of the emperor and the legitimacy of his reign.
As you can see these sort of beliefs are based in legend but have an element of truth as they recognize spiritual powers and forces at work but essentially misunderstand the nature of such entities who are malevolent and deceptive spirits.
Anyway its founder, Deguchi Nao, is like many other spiritual leaders of Shintoism who compete for prominence as making special claims of revelatory significance to the importance of their person and character in bringing about great expectations of change with such events as to usher in a eschatological time of renewal and hope with an impending utopian age of peace, compassion and harmony. This desire for an era of change is quite alluring and needed as opposed to the current state of world affairs as facing the deep dark problems of society nonetheless without its immediate prophetic fulfillment it only leads to a sense of disillusionment, disappointment and finally skepticism which perhaps is why many of its members have disbanded causing the numbers of this religious sect to dwindle according to the perpetration of its unrealistic expectations.
This popular end times theme came about as a result of Nao’s supposed dream which took a well known biblical theme and adulterated its application to her spiritual copartner Ueda Kisaburō, also known as Deguchi Onisaburō, as being the fulfillment of her oracle which meant the destruction of the world and the coming of a messianic kingdom with a new heaven and new earth. However this era known as the Taisho restoration was not realized because Ayabe never became the capital of the government such as what they had envisioned but in spite of this Onisaburo officially announced in 1928 as being the messiah or the incarnation of the living Buddha, Maitreya, which according to the oracle would take place during the year of the great dragon, a biblical symbol for Satan. Moreover this new age would be characterized by a great change in the world as leading to a new world order otherwise referred to as the ideal world of Miroku or Bodhisattva Maitreya’s age resulting in the salvation of people which essentially failed to be fulfilled as Onisaburo died in 1948 shortly after the bombing of Japan which may have seemed like the end of the world but nonetheless did not lead to to any kind of messianic age.
In addition to this other things which I find controversial is the questionable nature of each of their spiritual resumes in which Nao portrayed herself as a spiritual guide by leading her adherents to believe that she was possessed, kamigakari, by Ushitora no Konjin as transmitting his words as divine oracles which initially resulted in her being locked up as being insane. Again I am not doubting a spiritual influence here but what I challenging is the deceptive nature of this close encounter with the kami kind.
Now in regards to Onisaburō he was a spiritualist and mystic teacher who majored in the techniques of spirit possession which is also known as the rite of chinkon kishin.
Thus Oomoto was founded on occultic principles, influences and rituals and it continues today with its practices of shamanic mediumship and divination as well as being under the guidance of Nao’s automatic writings which are all devilish in origin.
Another issue which is conflicting is that Onisaburo as a spiritual teacher taught that all religions have the same origin but anyone who has seriously studied comparative religions knowns that they aren’t in essence the same reality however I would agree to their being one source or God in which mankind or humanity originated and that there are similarities to some aspects of our religious views as well as there being certain elements of truth as we are all common beings nonetheless this does not necessitate the impossibility of falsehood in that we are fallible humans. Therefore we are not all equally representing essential or ultimate truth as it only philosophically possible that we all could be wrong but we can’t all be right due to the irreconcilable or antithetical positions that religion takes on critical points of doctrine and practice. Furthermore I think this is internally inconsistent to their own position as needing to differentiate the religion of Omotokyo from others instead of merely syncretizing its identity under the universal umbrella of a nameless organization without a particular or unique expression of faith thus their religious practice is not sustainable or livable according to their own religious worldview. Moreover to imply that all truths are the same is an oversimplification to life in making truth relative and subjective which really means that if there is no objective truth, which there is, then all religions only become a matter of preference without the need for distinctions such as picking out fish in the market based on ones personal appetite and hunger for spiritual sustenance which is more like buying Fugu without caring who the preparer is which in reality will either prove to be fatal or nutritious.
In conclusion Omoto-kyo is one among many of Japan’s new religious movements which attempts to offer hope and insights for our present age but has failed to have the universal impact as heralded among its founders or spiritual leadership. Though positively they have made achievements towards practically helping others I question its ability to attain its ultimate goal or outcome for world renewal.
This matter is further complicated as it has had its fair share of internal strife among its membership as others have either left the fold and joined other cults or have started their own movements instead. This combined with its failure to significantly impact the governmental agencies in which their religious ideologies often clashed with has left this movement as lacking both internal and external peace therefore I question the stability of this religion to bring about the restoration of Japan let alone impact the world. Not only that but according to one source Oomoto-kyo has localized their movement as not encouraging people outside of Japan to join their religion and how ironic is this if they are to somehow really unify the world. Thus I fail to see the credibility of this group as based on what it supports due to the lack of fruition as manifesting its truth claims.
Lastly as a word of encouragement there is nothing wrong in wanting to connect with God as to have the divine Holy Spirit dwelling on the inside of you in receiving a vital and experiential knowledge of the true and living God. This can be done in Christ as you become one with God not in the sense that we are of the same essence or being but as we are joined together with Him in fellowship and it is through this relationship with Jesus that will ultimately lead you to everlasting peace and eternal life.
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.
Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.7, pg.4790, Joseph M. Kitagawa and Gary L. Ebersole
Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.8, pg.5622, Lewis R. Lancaster
Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.10, pg.6573, Robert S. Ellwood and Shimazono Susumu
Encyclopedia of Religion Second Edition, copyright 2005 Thomson Gale a part of The Thomson Corporation, Lindsay Jones Editor in Chief, Vol.10, pgs.6824-6826, Murakami Shigeyoshi and Shimazono Susumu
