The following lecture was given at the 55th ISTS in Connecticut in June, 2012:
Thank
you very much. In Seicho-No-Ie we often talk about how important it is to have
a positive attitude and encourage people to practice the use of positive words
such as “I am a child of God. I am happy, healthy and wealthy. Only good things
come my way.” You have to know that positive words have power to create and
shape our positive destinies. Positive words include our thoughts, utterances, actions and expressions. Why
can positive words create and shape a positive destiny? It is because the law
of the mind permeates in the universe. One of the very important laws of the mind
is that what you recognize appears. Therefore, by learning this law of the mind
and applying the power of the word we will be able to realize what we recognize
in our minds.
In March my mother visited my family. While she was
with us, she said, “I am happy to be here. So, when I return to Japan, I may
die (drop dead) any time.” I told her don’t say that and encouraged her to
enjoy her longevity. I suggested to her to use more fingers to give a stimulus
in her brain or do more exercise. She used to play the piano but quit, so I
suggested she resume it again. Then she said, “I want to, but I cannot read the
music notes. My eyes become blurry. I want to walk more, but once I sit down
then my body doesn’t move as I wish.” What she said was that she wanted
something, but her brain denied what she wanted. In other words, something that
we want to do is denied by our brain. According to a brain scientist, our body
limitation and our brain limitation are different. The brain limitation comes
earlier than our physical body limitation. Therefore, although our physical
bodies want to do something, our brains stop it. However, In Seicho-No we learn
this in the Holy Sutra, Song of Angel as follows: “When we forget our physical
body and are in a state of selflessness,/ Our body will function most
perfectly.” (p. 19)
We have to know that no one can change or restrict
our destiny. The person who can do this is only you. It is obvious that my
mother’s physical eyes cannot allow her to read musical notes due to her
physical condition. However, the restriction to practice piano because of her
eyes is not the true reason. If this is the reason, why do many mothers try
their younger child of age 2 or 3 years old to play piano? A 2-year-old child
cannot read a music sheet, but he or she can learn from another way. My mom may
play the piano not from reading a musical sheet but another way. But, she doesn’t
try it because not her eyes but her brain limits her action.
On the contrary, my mother told that she read one
Seicho-No-Ie book at least once a month. She loved reading when she was young.
According to my mon, when she was a teenage student, she enjoyed reading Anna
Karenina and War and Peace by Tolstoy. But recently she can only
read a book once a month not because of her eyes but of her ability to
understand the content. She said she reads the same paragraph 4 or 5 times to
understand. Before she understood almost everything just by reading once, but
recently she cannot understand the difficult sentences by reading just one or
two times. She still reads every day. For me if her eyes are blurry, I think
she cannot read both a musical sheet and a book. But she reads books by using a
magnifying glass. It is obvious that her mind or brain confines her action. In
order to free our brain’s restriction we need to relax our brain. The state of
that situation is called the “state of flow.” Dr. Kenichiro Mogi, brain
scientist wrote: “From the viewpoint of brain science we can maximize our
potential while our brain is in a state that is relaxed but focused. When our
mind and body are relaxed and happily concentrating on something, we will be
able to do our best performance.” (The Way of Thinking of the Brain, p. 105)
Then, how are we able to become such a frame of
mind? Dr. Mogi said that we need to prepare in order for our brain to be in a
relaxed and focused state. To reach this state we have to experience difficult
situations. So, he suggested to the readers to have confidence even without a
reason, but we should have confidence that we can do it. In other words, we
have to become optimistic.
In Seicho-No-Ie we learn how to be positive and
optimistic. We have to know that we are all children of God and that we can do
anything. We also practice three important Seicho-No-Ie practices which are
Shinsokan Meditation, reading Holy Sutras and holy books and performing deeds
of love.
I would like to introduce Mr. Tadashi Asoma who, in
the beginning, didn’t have any confidence but had great teachers and achieved
wonderful art works in his life. He was born in 1923 in a very old farming
family which has continued over 200 years and he was expected to succeed in the
house. When he was very young, he loved painting, but his father didn’t allow
him to be an artist. However, after World War II his father passed away, his
mother let him paint. At that time he was an art teacher at a middle school. He
really wanted to become an artist when he was 35 years old, but he didn’t have
confidence that he could become one. In order to have strong confidence, he
thought that he would go to Paris. He asked his art teacher, “Sensei, I didn’t
have a formal art study, so I think it is a good idea to go to Paris to study.
What do you think?” His art teacher, Prof. Manjiro Terauchi, said, “Then,
tomorrow at the teachers’ briefing in the morning, say to everyone that you
will go to Paris.”
“Is it okay to say that?” replied Mr. Asoma.
“Yes, that is the best way. Proclaim to everyone at
the briefing that you will go to Paris. I will explain you the rest tomorrow.”
Mr. Asoma did what Professor Terauchi said. Then, he
was called to the principle’s office and told, “It’s trouble. Although you said
that, we cannot help you at all, okay?” That day Mr. Asoma went to his art
teacher and asked what he should do next. Then, Prof. Terauchi said, “Wake up
at 5 am.” “What?” “You want to go to Paris, don’t you? You need to speak
French.” “I see.” “Wake up at 5 and listen to the radio broadcast of the French
class.”
In this way Mr. Asoma started learning French when
he was 35 years old. When he finished his work at school, he started attending
French language school in the evening. In order to go to Paris at that time he
needed to receive a scholarship from the government and pass the exam. The
first time he took the exam, he was so intimidated by the atmosphere because
all the people who wanted to go to Paris were young people who had students of
art colleges or who were just graduated from the college. He is the only one
who was middle one’s thirty. He failed his first exam. At his second exam he
passed the first-stage exam but failed the second one because the second exam
was an oral exam. The interviewer was a French teacher and he asked Mr. Asoma
if he could speak French. He said he could. Then the interviewer asked many
questions in his native speed. Mr. Asoma was not able to reply to anything.
He failed the third, fourth and fifth exams. After
the 5th exam an examiner called out and stopped Mr. Asoma and said, “You
are a school teacher, so isn’t it enough? You don’t have to quit your job. You
should not go to Paris.” Mr. Asoma replied, “But I declared to everyone that I
would go to Paris. All students and their parents know about this. They ask me
when I will go to Paris. I cannot withdraw it anymore.” “But you are the only
one who took the exam 5 times.”
When Mr. Asoma failed his 6th exam, while
the examiner was repeating “Trouble, trouble,” he asked Mr. Asoma, “Please stop
taking exams.” At his 7th exam he was finally able to pass the exam.
Before going to Paris his art teacher, Prof. Terauchi, showed his favorite book
which was the Truth of Life. After finishing one year study in Paris Mr.
Asoma decided not to go back to Japan but continue his study in New York. After
he moved to New York, he notified of his school his decision. He attended the
art school in New York during the day and worked during the night because he
needed to send money to his wife and three children. It is a big decision to
follow his dream although the fact that he has his responsibility to raise his
family in Japan. That was 1959 and he studied in New York for 2 years. Then he
returned to his old school in Japan and worked for 1 year and returned to New
York to continue his study.
Mr. Asoma studied very hard to improve his art
skills at the college and worked during the night at the restaurant as a bus
boy to send money to his family in Japan. After 5 years he was finally able to
call his family to New York. However, his oldest son who was a freshman at
college was not able to call him “father” because of a lack of bonding. His
wife also had problems adjusting to life in New York. At that time he saw an ad
in a Japanese newspaper about the Seicho-No-Ie Public Lecture conducted by Dr.
Katsumi Tokuhisa. He and his family attended this seminar and he learned how
important it was to maintain a positive attitude and bright countenance. Dr.
Tokuhisa had a chance to see Mr. Asoma’s paintings and commented that his
paintings were very beautiful but had a lack of brightness. In order to become
positive and bright, Dr. Tokuhisa taught the following words to recite
anywhere. “I am bright. I am going to improve more and more. I am the best
painter in the world. My family members are all wonderful and I am so happy. I
am very rich.”
In Manhattan no one cared what Mr. Asoma was
reciting. People might think that this guy was talking to himself loudly. So,
he continued saying these words over and over again anywhere for many months.
These words are a kind of prayer. Without knowing it he was able to restore the
harmony between family members and his family became bright and cheerful.
Meanwhile his paintings improved and sold more. These pictures are some of his
paintings. He moved back to Japan when he was 73 which was in 1996. He
succeeded his family line and opened his art studio. His has continued painting
up until now and is very successful. I have his risograph and it is very
expensive. Even his poster is over $50 or $60. When he came back to Japan, he
was able to open up a new field and started painting cherry blossoms.
Mr. Asoma followed the idea to be harmonious with
nature which is the teachings of Seicho-No-Ie and put solar panel on his house
and studio. The owner of the solar panel company talked about Mr. Asoma’s
painting to his friend who was the owner of an art gallery in Ginza, Japan. As
soon as he saw Mr. Asoma’s art, he wanted to exhibit his paintings in his
gallery. Mr. Asoma said okay, but he didn’t expect a lot because his real
paintings were very expensive. However, within a week three of them were sold.
He will become 90 next year, but he is still active. He had exhibitions in
Tokyo, New York and Florida last few years. He is a Seicho-No-Ie Regional
Lecturer and occasionally gives a lecture. He was able to achieve many things
including becoming an artist, being prosperous and realizing harmony in his
family because he practices the Seicho-No-Ie Sundial Way of Life. I hope those
who attend today will practice the sundial way of life which emphasizes a
positive life in our daily lives. Thank you very much.
