What Is Dust?

Although we think that we understand completely the teaching of a "thing borrowed," we tend to be egocentric and bear human thoughts not in accord with the divine will. Oyasama compares such uses of the mind to muddy water and to dust and in that simple language, encourages us to keep the mind clear.

In the Ofudesaki, it is taught:

From now on, I shall speak in the metaphor of water. Be enlightened by the words "clear" and "muddy."

Ofudesaki III: 7

Arrange to clear this water quickly. Purify it by using a filter and sand.

Do not wonder where this filter can be found. Your heart and mouth are the sand and filter.

Ofudesaki III:10-11

Thus, Oyasama likened the human mind to water, saying that if it cannot comprehend the divine will, it is because the mind is clouded like muddy water. But, if we cleanse it of all self-centered thoughts by enlightenment and instruction, the mind like muddy water will become lucid as clear water.

In the Mikagura-uta, it is taught:

God, the same as water,
Washes away the dirts from your minds.

Mikagura-uta V:3

We are taught that God the Parent leads us in various ways to wash away the dirt from our minds. Further, Oyasama used "dust," with which we are quite familiar, to explain what the human mind is like.

Dust is so light and minute that we can blow it away with a single puff of breath, and we can easily clear it away when cleaning a room, but, on the other hand, we see dust on a desk or a bureau even immediately after wiping it. Dust, despite being wiped off over and over again, piles up on things. We can keep our rooms clean only when we clean every day. We know through our daily experiences that, if we are negligent in cleaning, dust will pile up in the meantime until we cannot easily clear it away merely by sweeping and wiping. Just as dust piles up, so piles up the uses of the mind that are not in accord with the will of God the Parent, even though we are allowed freedom of the mind as the truth of self.

It is the Reason of Heaven that, if we harbor selfish thoughts not in accord with the divine will, we will inevitably become troubled, fall ill, and otherwise suffer. Understanding this, if we correct our misuses of mind as quickly as possible, making the teaching of God the Parent the standard for the mind, the mind will become clear and the body will recover its health.

The words "God is the broom" imply this. But if we do not understand this parental heart or give no thought to others, and are idle in sweeping the mind clean of these selfish thoughts, then the dusts will pile up until, in the end, it will be more difficult to sweep them away. Then we shall suffer from illness or misfortune, which might become family troubles and might cause gloom in the general world as well.

In brief, dust is the use of the mind that is not in accord with the intention of God. But, since the human mind keeps changing and assumes various aspects, as a matter of fact, it might be hard to distinguish which thoughts are and which are not in accord with the divine will.

It was around 1883 that Naokichi Takai, who was in his twenties, was sent by Oyasama to save a sick person who lived about twelve kilometers south of the Residence. When he was instructing the man about the cause of illness, the man challenged Naokichi, saying, "I have done nothing wrong in my life." Naokichi said, "I have heard nothing from Oyasama about such a situation yet. I will go back at once to ask." He then ran the twelve kilometers back to the Residence to ask Her, and She explained to him in this manner: "I will tell you. Suppose you have a new house built and you seal up the windows so that no one can enter. The dust will still settle so thick on the floor that you can write a letter in it when you do not sweep it up for, say, ten or twenty days. You know that a mirror will stain. You sweep piles of dust when it is noticeable, but leave fine dust because it is hard to see. When the fine dust becomes embedded into a mirror, it will stain the mirror. Tell this story to him"

Takai said. "I thank you very much," and hurried back the twelve kilometers to the sick person. He conveyed Oyasama's words saying, "I was just told this story." After he was finished, the patient apologized to him, saying, "I now understand what you say quite well. Sorry, I was mistaken." From that time the patient began to believe in God and was completely cured of his disease.

(Anecdotes of Oyasama, the Foundress of Tenrikyo, p.107)

To help us constantly reflect upon ourselves, Oyasama enumerates the dusts by name: miserliness, covetousness, hatred, self-love, grudge-bearing, anger, greed, and arrogance. (See also 9.1.1-9.1.8)

A Way of Sweeping Away Dusts

In the Anecdotes of Oyasama, the Foundress of Tenrikyo, is the following story:

One day Oyasama said to Izo Iburi: "Izo, will you cut down a tree in the mountains and make a straight post from it?" Izo promptly did so. Afterward, Oyasama said: Izo, try to place a ruler against the post," and She continued: "Isn't there a gap between the two?"

When Izo placed the ruler against the post there was in fact a gap. So he replied, "There is a little gap." Then, Oyasama taught: "Exactly! Even the things that are considered to be straight by all the people of the world are warped when they are placed against the measure of heaven.''

(Anecdotes of Oyasama, the Fodndress of Tenrikyo, pp. 24-25)

In the Osashizu, it is taught:

You are counseling people on the eight dusts, eight dusts, day by day. Counseling on the eight dusts is like a picture drawn on a wall. People may admire it, saying that it is drawn beautifully no matter how often they look at it. This will not do. Everyone should understand the truth and settle it in the mind.

Osashizu, July 23, 1899

It is taught that merely to admire the teaching is not good. Unless people settle the truth of the eight dusts in their minds, they will not understand how to live a joyous life.

Man is apt to incur dust when hearing or seeing anything. Man can therefore keep his mind clear only when he sweeps it every day. It is a human thought to think that your repentance of yesterday keeps you free from dust today. The important thing is to sweep the mind every day using God the Parent as the broom. These misuses of the mind, the dusts, become manifest in our actions, thus making this world, which is otherwise wonderful, gloomy. Then we cannot realize the parental intention of letting us live the Joyous Life.

One's dust also clouds others' minds, making them incur dust as well. Ruining oneself and family or disturbing society are due to dust. Dust disturbs peace all over the world. God the Parent, who hastens the children to lead the Joyous Life, taking pity on us for such conditions, gives us warnings in the forms of illness and other troubles, so as to afford us opportunities, knots, for ridding our minds of dust.

In the Ofudesaki, it is taught:

This cleansing will be a difficult matter, but I say to you beforehand: there is nothing to be called illness.

Whatever pains, sufferings, tumors, fevers, or looseness of the bowels: all are from dust.

Ofudesaki IV:109-110

But the innermost heart of everyone of you is covered with piles of dust.

Unless this dust is cleanly swept away, the deep concern of Tsukihi will be to naught.

Ofudesaki VIII: 61-62

Illness, calamities, and other troubles are manifestations of the parental love for us and are given so that we might take note of and sweep away our dust. An old story of the Path tells us:

Going through the world is just like steering a ship. It all depends upon the way of turning the helm whether or not the ship can reach its destination without colliding with other ships or rocks and going astray from the set course.

The helm of human life is the mind that we must steer well to arrive at our destination. But, man is by nature shallow-minded. There are many people who are carried away by sights and sounds so as to forget the helm and, losing their course, damage the ship.

At the embarkation, everyone wishes to pursue knowledge, overcoming all hardships, so as to be greatly admired and to please his parents. But, there are many who, in the meantime, harbor selfish ideas, begin to indulge themselves, lose their aims, and, not only fail to fulfill their original wishes, but become nuisances and sources of anxiety to others, and end up by being laughed at.

The same thing can be said in faith too. The course along which we ought to steer ourselves has been taught. The destination to which that course leads has also been taught. We should turn the helm rightly so that we go on our course without collision or pause. We tend, however, to lose the given course, call at irrelevant ports, reverse course, wreck the ship, and sink it.

Whether or not each of us leads a happy life depends entirely upon the helm of the mind, and the teaching of Oyasama tells us the way of turning this helm; and that way contains no mistake.

(The above is an excerpt from Dust and Innen, first published in September 1982. Quotations from the Ofudesaki and the Kakisage have been replaced by the revised, current translations.)