Happiness for all

February 2023
In the beginning.

When do people feel happy?

Winners of the POSTCODE LOTTERIJ (a type of lottery ticket purchased by registering a postcode) are often advertised on television. They are very happy and full of joy. People are happy when they get something they wanted.

People feel happy when others are kind to them, when they feel loved and respected, etc.

A mother feels happy when she feeds her baby and sees it sleeping contentedly. Or people feel happy when they help and please others, for example.

People feel happy at many different moments. What moments make you happy?

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

About my mother

When I was a child, my mother told me strange stories.

When my mother was in hospital, she became friends with a woman who was in the next bed, and my mother was discharged first and went home. A few days later, that person appeared in my mother's dream and said goodbye. My mother heard later that she passed away at exactly that time.

Another acquaintance (who lived in another province at the time), who was as close as family, appeared in my mother's dream and held out his hand to shake her hand. My mother asked, "Why do you have such a cold hand?" and then he disappeared. The blue clothes he was wearing at the time left a very strong impression on her.

Later, we heard from his family that he had passed away at exactly the same time, and learned that the blue clothes had been his favorite garment during his lifetime.

I mentioned this to an older colleague once. She said, "Such things can happen to the pure people." It is true that my mother never had any ill will towards people, and she had the nature not to leave people alone if they were in trouble.

I think that my mother herself thought it weird and never talked about it outside the family. But I think she really saw things that other people couldn't see.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

In schools

Religious education is not allowed in Japanese public schools.

What I remember from what I learnt about human beings at school are the 'human rights' described in the Constitution of Japan (see note). It said that we have the right to freedom, equality, the right to live a humane life and the right to participate in politics, and that through these we will realize 'democracy' and create a peaceful world by 'renouncing war'.

I thought this was a good idea, but there was something I didn't understand. I have the right to 'freedom' and 'equality', and I can participate in politics, ..... But what should I base my judgment on?

I myself fell into 'agnosticism' at one point and became mentally close to 'autistic', although I continued my student life.

How am I to think and judge?

(Note: The Japanese Constitution was promulgated(in 1946) and enforced(in 1947) during the Allied Occupation after World War II. Since then, the Constitution has not been amended once to date.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Humanism

I once asked an acquaintance who said, "I don't believe in God," "So what do you believe in?", and he replied, "Humanism".

Speaking of 'humanism', the name of the Dutch humanist Erasmus comes to mind. Erasmus, who was born in Rotterdam, also gave the name of the university of Rotterdam (Erasmus University). In his book “In Praise of Folly” (1511), through the mouth of Moria, the goddess of stupidity, he satirized people and society, and severely criticized the hypocrisy and corruption of the churches and the clergy in particular. While still believing in human reason, he strived to revive faith and valued the unity and peace of Christians.

Unlike Erasmus, who believed in human reason through belief in God, the 'humanists' of my acquaintance seemed to believe in human reason without God.

I was struggling with what to base my value judgements on, so it was impossible for me to trust my own reason.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Stories about the spirit world

Stories from my mother about the possibility of an afterlife led me to read books by Swedenborg and Steiner, and I began to think about the existence of a spirit world and the existence of an inner spirituality in human beings.

Swedenborg (1688-1772), born in Sweden, was an outstanding scientist and politician in the first half of his life. But from the age of 52, he began to have psychic abilities and had many mystical experiences. He frequently went out of his astral body to explore the spirit world. Based on these experiences, he wrote a large number of books, including “Diary of an Expedition to the Spirit World,” which is in the collection of the British Museum. His remote clairvoyance of the Stockholm fire from about 500 km away was also very newsworthy at the time.

Rudolf Steiner (1861-1925) was an Austrian-born mystical thinker, philosopher and educator who is said to have begun having spiritual experiences from the age of seven. He believed that man's five senses could only grasp the surface of things, and placed the development of spirituality at the heart of his education.

Although I myself had never seen or heard of anything spiritual, I could sense in both Swedenborg’s and Steiner's writings a deep love for human beings. I thought that perhaps they really did have spiritual experiences and tried to use what they learned from them for the benefit of others.

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

The explanation of the spirit world clears up questions

I read various kinds of books, but I couldn't find answers to questions like "Where do we come from and where are we going?", "What is the meaning of human life?", "Why does evil sometimes flourish and good sometimes perish?", "Why are people born in different environments and different personalities?" It was like touching an itch on top of a thick coat, and I only the feeling that I may understand, but in reality I didn’t.

Ryuho Okawa (1956- ) received a revelation from the heavens in 1981 after graduating from the University of Tokyo, and while working for a trading company, he prepared to establish a religious organization and founded Happy Science in 1986. In his book, he unabashedly states the existence of the spirit world.in the age of modern scientific universalism (materialism), clearly stating that "what exists, exists".

Some readers have said that the books would be very good if they didn't talk about the spirit world ...... However, the explanations from the beings of the other world answered my various questions. And I could sense a deep love for people from his writings.

His preaching (now more than 3,500 times) has always been done without manuscripts, and his writings have amounted to more than 3,100 books. These things are impossible just to think about in one’s head. When he preaches, he has spiritual guidance from the heavenly realms.


Many world religions are revealed religions (Judaism, Christianity, Islam, etc.). It seems to me that the teachings of Happy Science are a revelation sent down to our time. God must have had compassion on today’s devastated people and sent them a loving revelation ……

　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　

Happy Science

I have briefly described how I came across the books of Happy Science. I became interested in learning more about the teachings of Happy Science and became a member.

When I came to the Netherlands, I encountered cultural differences. I came to believe that it is because of differences in skin color, religion and culture that we can create more wonderful relationships and societies. Just as different flowers bloom beautifully in their own way and make a magnificent flowerbed. I believe that human beings can make their lives and societies happier by harmonizing with each other, making the most of their individuality.

I am now learning as a member, but I am not sure how much I understand the teachings as they are very broad and deep. However, I hope to share what I have learned (in my way) with you. I would be happy if you could send me your comments and opinions.

If you want to know more about Happy Science, please visit the Official website:
https://happy-science.org/en/ (English)
for more information.

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