Surely we all know those exhilirating mornings when the skies are perfectly clear and the air is so invigorating that we instinctively take a deep breath. We feel so buoyant that we want to call out to everyone we meet along the way. This "mind of joy" arising in one person expresses itself ever so naturally in his words and attitude and is thus reflected in those around him, creating a warm and exhuberant atmosphere wherever he goes.

This buoyancy has its beginning in the morning when upon awaking there is a feeling of gratitude: "Ah, what a beautiful morning! What a perfect day for getting on with my work! What more could I ask for?" Without even realizing it, this "mind of gratitude" spontaneously expresses itself in our words and actions and reflects our joy in others. This is what I would call "hinokishin."

Having said this, I imagine there are some people who are thinking, "Well, that sounds easy enough to me," or "That sounds a bit different from the hinokishin I heard about."

I wonder, therefore, if we could consider together what sort of actions can be referred to as "hinokishin."

When I was a boy, my father would get me to run errands by saying, "Zenye, would you do some hinokishin for me?" On other occasions he would say, "Let's do some hinokishin together," whereupon he would take me into the garden to pull weeds. Very often I would have to interrupt my studies to run the errands for him or stop playing to go out and pull weeds.

Running errands in the neighborhood and pulling weeds are simple tasks that anyone can do, and yet they still require that one be willing to do them. I assumed as a boy, aside from all difficult theories, that hinokishin meant those very obvious and often simple things we do, which demand only that we have a willingness to do them.

In the Mikagura-uta, The Songs for the Service, we are taught:

There is nothing so trying as illness;
So from now on, I, too, will devote myself to hinokishin.

Mikagura-uta III:8

If we compare our present state of good health with the times when we were suffering from illness, a joyous awareness of being alive will spontaneously well up within us and we shall feel an overwhelming urge to perform daily actions that are themselves an outpouring of joy--this is hinokishin.

So there is really nothing difficult about hinokishin. It is not something that can only be done by people in special positions or with special jobs. Neither does it demand that we have any special skills. Hinokishin can be done by anyone, anywhere, anytime, so long as one has the inclination to do it.

When you are walking outdoors and spot a piece of litter on the ground, for instance, you might lean over and pick it up. If you see someone in the street who appears to be lost, you might kindly point him in the right direction. This also applies to traditional forms of hinokishin such as carrying loads of earth in straw baskets or cleaning toilets--you just go ahead and do whatever is there. If you come across people who have not realized the joy of being given life, you work with them until they are aware of it. And thus you give full expression to your mind of gratitude. When you find people who are troubled or worried, you might think out their problem with them. Perhaps you will discuss together how we human beings should live and give one another encouragement. All of these actions are hinokishin, are they not?

What is important to bear in mind is that hinokishin refers to actions performed in gratitude for being able to live day after day and that through these actions we can draw ever closer to the Joyous Life--the ultimate goal of all our lives.

We must take care to remember, therefore, that hinokishin is not something we do just for a time but rather the continuous expression of our joyousness day after day. Being an action that arises from pure joy, it possesses a quality that is capable of making others joyous and spirited, too.

By this I am trying to show that one need not necessarily be in good health to do hinokishin. What I have said holds equally true for those who are ill. After all, it only stands to reason that people suffering from illness should have a way of rejoicing that only they can appreciate. By the same token, it is only natural that there should be a kind of hinokishin that is perfect for them to express that joy.

Spending one's days in suffering and pain is never pleasant, but so long as there is no way to escape from it, couldn't we try to transform it into joy? I believe we can. We might start by considering our situation from a different viewpoint. The very fact that we feel pain and suffering, for example, is because our sensory nerves are functioning properly and, therefore, these are proof that we are alive. And so long as we are alive, we can surely be of service to others in some way or another, and we may even look forward to working once we are well again. This will enable us to uncover the mind of joy. We can also share this way of rejoicing with those who are not aware of it.

Even if our bodies do not function freely, we can still express our mind of joy, or our mind of gratitude, through a word or a gesture or even a glimmer in our eyes. We can, therefore, show our appreciation to those who are nursing us and help to create a cheerful atmosphere around us. These things, too, can be called hinokishin.

Following this line of thought, we can even say that all our actions whatsoever could well be considered hinokishin when we live in joyousness day after day, in accord with God the Parent's original idea in creating us.

Actions that arise from selfish considerations for one's own convenience, or actions that are calculated by one's personal profit or loss, naturally will not accord with God the Parent's mind and, therefore, cannot be called "hinokishin."

Forgetting greed we work in hinokishin.
This becomes the first fertilizer.

Mikagura-uta XI:4

As taught in this verse from the Mikagura-uta, The Songs for the Service, all actions done as hinokishin, seeking no profit and sparing no effort, are seeds that will blossom and cause marvelous fruit to bear in our lives.

There is an oral tradition that Oyasama explained the verb "to work" [hataraku] as "to make things easier" [raku] "for those around one" [hata]. Here again we find a clear and concise expression with profound significance. If we considered how to bring joy to others, including our families, rather than merely thinking about ourselves and doing things for ourselves alone, we would discover greater joy and meaning in our work and be instilled with new enthusiasm for getting on with it. If we would be thorough in throwing away our petty feelings that consider none but ourselves--the very act of "forgetting greed"--and work with others in mind instead, that would become a "fertilizer" that would brightly illuminate the world, make each of our lives richer and fuller, and call forth happiness.

The most important element in the concept of hinokishin, therefore, is "forgetting greed." When we have entirely thrown away all the many ways of thought that have ourselves as their center, and begin to perform actions as they naturally arise from the mind of gratitude which remains, the act of "forgetting greed" will have been accomplished of its own accord. Thereupon, a radiance far beyond the reach of suffering and sadness will come into being, bringing with it the very perception of the Joyous Life.

The hinokishin you perform will not only assure your own happiness but will also light up the world around you. Through your individual efforts in hinokishin, you will thus enable others, also, to savor the delight of the Joyous Life World

(This article was excerpted from Zenye Nakyama's Joyousness Day after Day, published in 1992 by Tenrikyo Overseas Department.)