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Ōmoto (wikipedia.org)
47 points by benbreen on Feb 6, 2018 | hide | past | favorite | 4 comments



By way of explanation - I came across this page because I was researching Eye Yamatsuka, the founder of the Japanese art-rock group Boredoms, of "Bulldozer Incident" fame. [1]

Turns out his music is apparently influenced by the Shinto-based religion described here. I mainly found it interesting because of this bit:

"The creator of Esperanto, L. L. Zamenhof, is revered as a god. However, all of these kami are believed to be aspects of a single God concept.

The Oomoto affirmation of Zamenhof's godhood is stated, in Esperanto, as follows:

…[L]a spirito de Zamenhof eĉ nun daŭre agadas kiel misiisto de la anĝela regno; do, lia spirito estis apoteozita en la kapeleto Senrej-ŝa.

Translated into English, the foregoing reads:

…[T]he spirit of Zamenhof even now continues to act as a missionary of the angelic kingdom; therefore, his spirit was deified in the Senrei-sha shrine."

Such a good example of why I find history (and Wikipedia) so endlessly fascinating - you start out looking into a Japanese noise musician and end up with a religion that worships the creator of Esperanto as a God!

[1] http://www.johnaulich.co.uk/japanesenoise/?tag=bulldozer-inc...


Ōmoto is also strongly connected with Aikidō: Ueshiba (Aikidō’s founder) was a member of this “splinter sect” and often helped them with their problems with Japanese authorities.

(If memory serves their doctrine could not allow special divine status for the Emperor so they were often harassed or prosecuted for this subversive doctrine).


As an Aikidoka, I've read about Omoto before. I think Aikido wouldn't be the same without Ueshibas connection to Omoto.


i thought he went by yamantaka eye nowadays? idk. but either way, anything that influences his brilliance and the music he made with boredoms is worth a look imo

it's really interesting how ōmoto acknowledges the godhood in humanity while at the same time affirming that the individual godheads are just elements of a greater overarching divinity (sorta reminds me of the old Greek concept of Khaos, and the nature of the All in hermetic teachings)




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