Page:Shinto, the Way of the Gods - Aston - 1905.djvu/381

Rh The following sentiments are ascribed to the God of Fujiyama:—

''Ye men of mine. Shun desire. If you shun desire you will ascend to a level with the Gods. Every little yielding to anxiety is a step away from the natural heart of man. If one leaves the natural heart of man, he becomes a beast. That men should be made so, is to me intolerable pain and unending sorrow''.

A son of a Mikado received the following inspiration in a dream:—

''It is the upright heart of all men which is identical with the highest of the high, and therefore the God of Gods. There is no room in Heaven-and-Earth for the false and crooked person''.

The following poem was revealed in a dream to the Mikado Seiwa:—

''If we keep unperverted the human heart, which is like unto Heaven and received from Earth, that is God. The Gods have their abode in the heart. Amongst the various ordinances none is more excellent than that of religious meditation''.

The God of a Tajima shrine says:—

When the sky is clear, and the wind hums in the fir-trees, 'tis the heart of a God who thus reveals himself.

An oracle of Hachiman (the War-God) enjoins on his worshippers to be full of pity and mercy for beggars and lepers, and even for ants and crickets. Those whose pity and charity are wide will have their precious cord (of life) extended immeasurably; their posterity will be spread abroad like the wings of a crane. They will become the upright heart of the Gods of Heaven.

Another oracle of Hachiman:—

''All men's love of children and love of self are heinous crimes. Nothing is more admirable than to sever, were it only for a time, all earthly relations''.