Doctors and Medicine

What does Tenrikyo say about doctors and medications?

Tenrikyo teaches that, like scientific technology, medicine is a gift from God the Parent. It is a tool intended to be used by human beings--who are equipped with intellectual ability due to the "training in wisdom and letters" provided by God the Parent--in order to prevent and cure illnesses. It is indeed a precious treasure and a blessing given by God the Parent.

In the Ofudesaki, we read:

Though there should be nothing called illness in human beings, no one knows the beginning of this world.

Because of My desire to have you know this, I began doctors and medicine for weeding and fertilizing.

Ofudesaki IX:10-11

God the Parent, who created humankind and the world, has sustained and nurtured them ever since. God the Parent single-heartedly desires to save humans and, as an indirect means of salvation, has provided medicine. Here the expression "weeding and fertilizing" does not merely mean removing undesirable things and providing what is useful. Used in a broader sense, it is also about nurturing and trying to develop full potential and capabilities with warm tenderness. What this teaches is that medicine is not merely meant to remedy undesirable conditions but also to nurture and nourish the health of the body in a loving manner. Also, it is of importance that medicine be used with a sense of gratitude while remembering that God has given it to us as a tool for enhancing the health of our bodies, which we borrow from God.

Tenrikyo also teaches that even those considered hopeless by doctors can be saved. Medical advances are being made all the time, and health care facilities are highly developed. In Japan, as much as twenty trillion yen (U.S.$200 billion) is spent on medical care every year. Nevertheless, the number of those who suffer from illnesses is not decreasing, and hospital wards are always full of sick people. Difficult illnesses, which current medicine cannot cure, are not decreasing in numbers, but increasing. God the Parent teaches, however, that even those suffering from such difficult illnesses will be saved through "cutting off the root of the illness."

So much of God's regret is now being shown, the matter is beyond the help of doctors and medicines.

Ofudesaki I:27

If God the Parent's blessings are received, the root of illness can be cut off, and we can attain true salvation.

*     *     *

If illness is to be cured by the Service and the Sazuke, do we need medicine at all?

While doctors and medicines aim at curing disorders of the body, the purpose of the Service and the Sazuke is not merely to cure illness but to cut off its root by sweeping away the dust of the mind, so that both the body and the mind will regain health. When the mind is renewed and the soul is purified through the Service and the Sazuke, illness can be cured as a result. It is a mistake, however, to see them as competing with medicine.

The advance of medical science has been amazing, and medical institutions are well equipped to provide adequate health care. However, illnesses are increasing rather than decreasing since little is done to cut off their origin or root. In fact, some new illnesses attributable to medical treatment have emerged. It is obvious that medicine alone cannot completely free us from illness.

In order to cut off the root of illness and put an end to the suffering, we need to purify and replace our mind completely and grow spiritually. To receive the blessings that will help us do so, the Service and the Sazuke will become more and more necessary.

The idea that you do not need doctors or medication has never been part of this teaching. What I have been saying is that I will save even those who, despite having seen doctors and taken medicines, have been given up on. Who started the idea that you do not need to see doctors or take medicine? Nobody would complain if those who were considered hopeless by doctors could be saved.

Osashizu, July 7, 1890



(This article was excerpted from Questions and Answers about Tenrikyo, 211-214.)