Tenrikyō

Tenrikyō is a widely practiced faith that is typically considered to be among the most successful of the so-called new religions that arose in Japan during the modern era. It was founded in the nineteenth century by Nakayama Miki, a peasant woman known to her followers as Oyasama. Tied closely to Shintō, Tenrikyō includes some elements of both monotheism and pantheism. Its adherents focus primarily on achieving an elevated state of existence referred to as the Joyous Life. In 2025, an estimated 1.75 followers of Tenrikyō were in Japan and more than 2 million worldwide. Organizationally, the Tenrikyō faith is primarily overseen from the Tenrikyō Church Headquarters in Tenri, Nara, Japan. The Tenrikyō Church Headquarters supports more than sixteen thousand locally managed churches in Japan and many others elsewhere around the world. Headed by a spiritual and administrative leader known as the Shinbashira, the church’s ultimate goal is to teach and promote the Joyous Life.

Background

Tenrikyō was established by Nakayama Miki, a peasant woman from what is now known as Nara Prefecture. According to tradition, Nakayama was possessed by a god called Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto (God the Parent) when she was about forty years old. Following this experience, she created a form of worship that involved enthusiastic dancing, elements of shamanism, and a doctrine that encouraged charity and emphasized the healing of ailments through mental acts of faith. Nakayama’s sect quickly gained popularity, and her various writings and deeds came to be seen as divine models. She was also deeply venerated by her followers, who referred to her as Oyasama. One of Nakayama’s greatest contributions to Tenrikyō’s development was her authorship of the Ofudesaki, The Tip of the Writing Brush. The Ofudesaki is Tenrikyō’s primary spiritual text, believed to have been transmitted from God the Parent through Nakayama. It consists of 1,711 parts that are mostly written in waka verses. Much like haiku, waka verses are written in distinct syllabic patterns. Specifically, they have five verses that follow a 5-7-5-7-7 pattern. Nakayama continued as the spiritual leader of Tenrikyō until her death in 1887. Since that time, the sect’s leaders have all been members of Nakayama’s family.

Early in its history, Tenrikyō was officially recognized as a distinct branch of the Yoshida sect of Shintō, a Japanese religion that focuses on the worship of ancestors and nature spirits. That association continued until Tenrikyō became affiliated with Buddhism in 1880. Starting in 1908, Tenrikyō was recognized as one of the various sects that were a part of Kyōha Shintō, which was a group of religious sects that was officially separated from the then-national religion of State Shintō in 1882. In the years leading up to World War II, Tenrikyō was one of Japan’s most powerful religious movements. When State Shintō was dissolved after the war, Tenrikyō was formally recognized as an independent religion. While this led to the removal of many of the sect’s Shintō and Buddhist influences, Tenrikyō continued to be shaped in part by the broader Japanese culture.

Overview

On the most fundamental level, adherents of Tenrikyō believe that God the Parent created human beings so that they might live the Joyous Life, which means helping one another and living with joy and gratitude. The Joyous Life also requires a commitment to charity and abstention from any of several negative tendencies that are together referred to as the Eight Mental Dusts. In English, the Eight Mental Dusts include miserliness, covetousness, hatred, self-love, grudge-bearing, anger, greed, and arrogance. Followers of Tenrikyō believe that these dusts can be swept away through hinokishin and ritual. Hinokishin is any selfless act of thankful action that one carries out to serve others and demonstrate gratitude. As a result, charity and kindness are among Tenrikyō’s tenets. Over time, Tenrikyō practitioners have established numerous hospitals, schools, and orphanages and have taken part in many disaster relief programs. Tenrikyō also places considerable emphasis on health and, unlike many other religions, actively acknowledges the importance of modern medical care. As part of their commitment to evangelization, the adherents of Tenrikyō have also founded a university, a radio station, and a library. In addition, the Tenrikyō Church in Los Angeles founded a Judo program in 1964 that played a pivotal role in the popular martial art becoming an Olympic sport. This all allows the followers of Tenrikyō to celebrate the love of God the Parent by helping others in need of assistance.

While Tenrikyō is neither strictly monotheistic nor pantheistic, both approaches to belief play important roles in its doctrine. Of course, adherents of Tenrikyō believe in the existence of God the Parent, a deity responsible for creating the universe and helping people achieve the Joyous Life. As a result, if asked, most followers would say that there is only one god. In this sense, Tenrikyō is monotheistic. At the same time, however, Nakayama also described divinity in terms like Tsukihi (Moon-Sun) and Oya (parent). These terms allowed divinity to be interpreted as being represented by celestial bodies like the moon or sun or the love shared between parent and child. When viewed from this perspective, Tenrikyō can also be seen as pantheistic. In short, the only way to truly understand the nature of Tenrikyō’s god is to study what that god does by studying the teachings of Tenrikyō. These teachings are passed down primarily through the Ofudesaki, which is Tenrikyō’s most important sacred text. They are also found in the Mikagura-Uta and Osashizu. Like the Ofudesaki, both were also penned by Nakayama and are part of Tenrikyō scripture.

The main center of religious activity within Tenrikyō is the jiba. The jiba is a sacred recess in Tenri city’s main temple. According to Tenrikyō tradition, the world was created there, and it is from the jiba that salvation will eventually be extended to the whole world. Outside the jiba, the religious operations of Tenrikyō are carried out through more than sixteen thousand churches scattered across Japan. More than twenty centers of Tenrikyō are located internationally, mostly in Southeast Asia and the Americas. In Japan and abroad, many adherents of Tenrikyō are also Christians or Buddhists.

Bibliography

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