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Seicho-no-Ie

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Seicho-no-Ie
Seichō no Ie (生長の家)
The mon of Seicho-no-ie
TypeJapanese new religion
ClassificationNew Thought
ScriptureNectarean Shower of Holy Doctrines (甘露の法雨, Kanro no hōu) (main sutra)
Truth of Life (生命の實相, Seimei no jissō) (main doctrinal text)
PresidentMasanobu Taniguchi (谷口雅宣)
HeadquartersHokuto, Yamanashi (international headquarters)
Saikai, Nagasaki (Sōhonzan Shrine)
FounderMasaharu Taniguchi
Origin1930
Japan
Separated fromOomoto
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Seicho-no-Ie (Japanese: 生長の家, Hepburn: Seichō-no-Ie, "House of Growth") is a syncretic, monotheistic, New Thought Japanese new religion that has spread since the end of World War II in Asia. It emphasizes gratitude for nature, the family, ancestors and, above all, religious faith in one universal God. Seichō no Ie is the world's largest New Thought group.[1] By the end of 2010 it had over 1.6 million followers and 442 facilities, mostly located in Japan.[2]

History

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In 1930, Masaharu Taniguchi, working as an English translator, published the first issue of what he called his "non-denominational truth movement magazine", which he named Seichō no Ie to help teach others of his beliefs. This was followed by forty volumes of his "Truth of Life" philosophy by 1932. Over the next forty years, he published an additional four hundred–odd books and toured many countries in Europe, South America, and North America with his wife Teruko, to lecture on his beliefs personally. Ernest Holmes, founder of Religious Science, and his brother Fenwicke were of great assistance to Taniguchi. Fenwicke traveled to Japan and co-authored several books, with one called The Science of Faith becoming a cornerstone of the denomination.[3]

Taniguchi died in a Nagasaki hospital on June 17, 1985, at the age of ninety-one.[4] Today the president of Seichō no Ie is Masanobu Taniguchi [ja] (谷口雅宣).

In the 2000s, the Seicho-no-Ie Fundamental Movement seceded from the headquarters. As of 2017, there are three factions of the original movement. The two largest factions are led by Masanobu Taniguchi, the president of Seichō no Ie; a group of elder teachers of Seichō no Ie known as Manabushi leads the other faction.

Scriptures and publications

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New York City Headquarters, East 53rd Street

The four holy sūtras (聖経, seikyō) of Seicho-no-Ie are:[5]

  • Nectarean Shower of Holy Doctrines (甘露の法雨, Kanro no Hōu).[6] Taniguchi Masaharu claimed that it was divinely revealed to him by Kannon on December 1, 1930. There are eight sections: God (神), Spirit (霊), Matter (物質), Reality (実在), Wisdom (智慧), Delusion (無明), Sin (罪), and Man (人間). Similar to many Nichiren sects' views of the Lotus Sutra, this sutra is treated as a protective amulet that can be carried, read, or copied for protective benefits. In Uji, Kyoto, there is a hall for followers to copy the sutra.
  • Song of the Angel (天使の言葉)
  • For Spiritual Healing
  • Prayerful Song to Praise and Bless the Holy Missioners

The most important texts in Seicho-no-Ie are:[7]

  • Truth of Life (生命の實相, Seimei no jissō), which consists of 40 volumes (main edition, 頭注版) published since 1932; this is the religion's most important doctrinal text. There is also an abridged edition (愛蔵版) with 20 volumes.
  • The Truth (真理, Shinri), which consists of 11 volumes, was initially published from 1954 to 1958. It summaries key doctrines mentioned in the Truth of Life.

Seicho-no-Ie publishes a newspaper called Seishimei "聖使命, Sacred Mission"). It also publishes three magazines:[7]

  • Inochi no wa (いのちの環, "Circle of Life") for general readers
  • Shirohato (白鳩, "White Dove") for women
  • Hidokei 24 (日時計24, "Sundial 24") for young readers

Beliefs and practices

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The religion teaches belief in the "single absolute divinity" (唯一絶対の神, yuiitsu zettai no kami). One of their proverbs is "Be grateful for everything in the world" (天地の万物に感謝せよ, tenchi no manbutsu ni kansha seyo).[7]

The Seven Promulgations of Light (七つの燈臺) is one of the main doctrines of Seicho-no-Ie.[8]

Meditation in Seicho-no-Ie is called shinsōkan (神想観),[9][10] of which one type is inori-ai shinsōkan (祈り合い神想観, lit. 'shinsōkan as prayer for one another'). There is also prayer for world peace (世界平和の祈り, sekai heiwa no inori).[7]

Associations

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Some Seicho-no-Ie member associations are:[7]

  • Shirohato-kai 白鳩会 (women's organization), founded in February 1936
  • Shiyū-kai 誌友会, small women's groups that are magazine study groups for discussing Shirohatokai's monthly magazine Shirohato
  • Sōai-kai 相愛会 (Brotherhood Association; lit. 'Mutual Love Association'), for middle-aged men
  • Chichi-oya kyōshitsu 父親教室 (fathers' study groups)
  • Haha-oya kyōshitsu 母親教室 (mothers' study groups)
  • Seinen-kai 青年会 (Youth and Young Adult Association), founded in 1948

Education

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Higher educational institutions include Seichō no Ie Yōshin Joshi Gakuen (生長の家養心女子学園), a tertiary young women's boarding school in Yamanashi Prefecture that was founded in 1954.[7]

Locations

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Seicho-no-Ie has centers in:[11]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Masaharu Taniguchi." Religious Leaders of America, 2nd ed. Gale Group, 1999. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008.
  2. ^ "What's SNI: Summary". EICHO-NO-IE International. December 31, 2010. Retrieved July 30, 2013.
  3. ^ Science of Mind magazine, Dec 2008, volume 81, number 12, pages 17–18
  4. ^ "Religious leader Taniguchi". The Montreal Gazette. Associated Press. 1985-06-18. Retrieved 2010-01-07.
  5. ^ "Holy Sutras". Seicho-No-Ie. Retrieved 2025-01-30.
  6. ^ "「生命の實相」 ③ 甘露の法雨". 神は愛なり (in Japanese). 2017-05-16. Retrieved 2025-02-01.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Staemmler, Birgit (2018). "6: Seichō no Ie". Handbook of East Asian New Religious Movements. Leiden: Brill. p. 88–108. doi:10.1163/9789004362970_007. ISBN 978-90-04-36297-0.
  8. ^ "What's SNI". Seicho-No-Ie. Retrieved 2025-01-31.
  9. ^ Taniguchi, Masaharu 谷口雅春. 1996 [1970]. Shinsōkan 神想観 [Shinsōkan-Meditation]. Tōkyō: Nihon Kyōbunsha.
  10. ^ Taniguchi, Seichō 谷口清超. 1991. Shinsōkan wa subarashii 神想観はすばらしい [Shinsōkan-Meditation is Great]. Tōkyō: Nihon Kyōbunsha.
  11. ^ "Centers". Seicho-No-Ie. Retrieved 2025-01-31.

Further reading

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  • Clarke, Peter B. (ed.), A Bibliography of Japanese New Religious Movements: With Annotations and an Introduction to Japanese New Religions at Home and Abroad - Plus an Appendix on Aum Shinrikyo. Surrey, UK: Japan Library/Curzon, 1999. ISBN 1-873410-80-8.
  • Clarke, Peter B. (ed.). Japanese New Religions: In Global Perspective. Surrey, UK: Curzon Press, 2000. ISBN 0-7007-1185-6.
  • Gottlieb, Nanette, and Mark McLelland (eds.). Japanese Cybercultures. London; New York: Routledge, 2003. ISBN 0-415-27918-6, ISBN 0-415-27919-4.
  • Masaharu Taniguchi. Religious Leaders of America, 2nd ed. Gale Group, 1999. Reproduced in Biography Resource Center. Farmington Hills, Mich.: Gale, 2008.
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