Happy Science Group's View on Fusosha's "Harbor Business Online" Published Article

In the article published on July 7th and 8th this year by "Harbor Business Online," a web media of Fusosha Publishing Inc., the author Mr. Zenro Fujikura repeatedly distorts the teachings of Happy Science and engages in extremely malicious impression manipulation to equate it with Aum Shinrikyo. As follows, we point out this mistake and strongly protest against such religious discrimination acts and blasphemy that violate "freedom of religion."

Mr. Fujikura takes up the book "Wisdom to Survive the Great Depression: The Spiritual Messages of Konosuke Matsushita" by Master Ryuho Okawa and claims that it contains a "Poa ideology-like" concept similar to Aum. However, our organization has the teaching of "Thou shalt not kill," which is completely contrary to the facts.

In Aum, they harbored resentment against a society that did not accept them, denied the structures and systems of this world, and introduced the Poa ideology, claiming that "killing is the greatest salvation." Furthermore, they brainwashed their disciples into believing that "those who do not believe in Aum have no Buddha-nature, so killing them is not a sin."

Our organization pointed out the dangers of such Aum doctrines several years before the Tokyo subway sarin attack (1995) and widely appealed through demonstrations. Happy Science teaches that all people have Buddha-nature and are children of Buddha, respecting life as eternal beings that reincarnate repeatedly. This is the basis of human rights thought and answers the questions "Why should we not kill people?" and "Why should we not commit suicide?" Our organization also teaches the importance of loving each other beyond racial and ethnic differences.

The reason our organization publishes various spiritual messages is to prove the existence of the spirit world and to reveal that humans engage in intellectual activities as eternal beings in the afterlife by introducing the diverse personalities and views of spirits in the heavenly realm. Spiritual messages are not the basic doctrine of our organization but are positioned as reference opinions. The passage from the spiritual message of Konosuke Matsushita criticized by Mr. Fujikura is nothing but a warning admonishing the divine child, humans, against wasting the precious life bestowed by God and Buddha due to a loss of faith.

Mr. Fujikura writes as if our organization has a "ruler orientation," but what our organization wishes and acts for as a religion is not to seek earthly power but to fulfill the great vow of "making all humanity happy" of Buddha and God.

Mr. Fujikura criticizes our organization in the article, saying "laws are secondary" and "lack of law-abiding awareness." However, the growth of Happy Science into a major post-war organization is due to conducting religious activities rich in creativity within the freedom guaranteed by law. At Happy Science Academy, education is conducted to maximize students' free creativity based on the Basic Act on Education and the Course of Study.

It is Mr. Fujikura who lacks the spirit of lawfulness, repeatedly trespassing into our organization's facilities and becoming a criminal defendant, repeatedly stepping onto the roadway during unauthorized demonstrations, causing cars to swerve significantly into the opposite lane to avoid him, committing road traffic law violations that could lead to major accidents. He is also a person with extremely little social common sense, such as kicking the most sacred object of worship in religion with his companions.

The article describes our organization as if it is filing lawsuits for intimidation purposes, but our organization has won several favorable judgments against Weekly Gendai, Friday, their authors, and plaintiffs of unjust lawsuits, proving the legitimacy of the lawsuits.

Furthermore, Mr. Fujikura claims he was assaulted by our organization, but there is no such fact. It is the nuisance and provocative acts, including violent acts such as bumping into people, by Mr. Fujikura and others that are the problem.

Mr. Fujikura writes as if "President Okawa is greater than the law," suggesting that our organization calmly condones legal violations. However, the phrase "Buddhist law surpasses royal law" is based on the story where Buddha Shakyamuni made Angulimala, a murderer who killed a thousand people, his disciple and reformed him, meaning that "the disciplinary system within the Buddhist community is much stricter than the laws of this world" ("Buddhist Happiness Theory—Charity Theory, Precept Theory, Heavenly Theory—"). In religious organizations, the "thoughts in the heart" that cause actions are questioned for correctness, so much stricter norms apply than in general society.

Mr. Fujikura claims that the predictions about the Golden Age advocated by our organization have "stalled," but this is contrary to the facts.

The Golden Age, as our organization calls it, is the era from 2020 to 2030, where the errors of atheistic dictatorial states are corrected, and people can live happy lives based on faith. With the COVID-19 pandemic originating from China, the Xi Jinping administration is being criticized worldwide, and a network of encirclement against China is forming globally, it can be said that the Golden Age is steadily beginning.

Mr. Fujikura claims that our organization asserts "Japan will perish unless the 'one-religion rule' by Happy Science is realized" and aims to "eradicate those who do not understand or recognize Happy Science."

However, Happy Science is very tolerant and an "open religion," allowing people to be active as believers of our organization even if they belong to other religions. Our organization respects Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, etc., and expects and supports religions to play their proper role for social peace and prosperity. There is no teaching such as "Japan will perish unless the 'one-religion rule' by Happy Science is realized."

Mr. Fujikura writes as if our organization holds an apocalyptic ideology like Aum and is dangerous, but this is a clear mistake.

Aum's apocalyptic ideology was something that longed for the end, but our organization has no such ideology. Regarding the current COVID-19 pandemic, we positively consider it as an opportunity for "reflection" and "recovery" for humanity.

As such, the article written by Mr. Fujikura is filled with impossible hypothetical stories equivalent to distortions and malicious impression manipulation based on a lack of religious education, and it is not credible.

Mr. Fujikura, who has expressed online that "it might be better to deny all religions," lacks any sense of reverence for religion and has no consideration for the rights of believers seeking a serene faith life. Such malice and prejudice against religion, which has high social public interest, cannot be overlooked, and we hereby strongly protest again.