having visited multiple European cities and finding that she particularly liked the spatial layout of Vienna from an artistic perspective.

In her discussion with me regarding her move to Vienna, her religion, or more precisely its propagation, was not positioned as a motivating factor to move there. Her faith was included, though, in how she approached life in this new location. The importance placed on the faith in which she was raised, and its practice, was maintained after her move to Vienna, which was illustrated shortly after we first met when I asked if her family had been concerned about her moving abroad. She told me that her father told her that she could live anywhere in the world that she wanted as long as she was sure to perform the Service every morning and evening, which she did. This included on the morning before this conversation occurred when she arrived in Paris via bus from Holland where she was visiting another long-term member of the “TEC community.” To do this morning ritual, she found a discreet spot in a park to perform the Morning Service<fnref n="371" /> before starting the rest of her day. When we met on this occasion and again about a half year later via a semi-structured interview on Skype, which was before the founding of the Vienna mission station, she told me that in Vienna, in addition to herself, there was one other Tenrikyo follower, a South American who was already a follower of the faith before moving to Europe who she would occasionally get together with to perform the Monthly Service<fnref n="372" />.

Chihiro was passionate about Tenrikyo and had a close emotional relationship to the faith. She actively sought not only to spread it through direct methods which involved overt discussion of the religion, but also through dispersing and putting into practice its underlying teachings and values without making excessive mention of the religion. The second year I participated in the TEC seminar, Chihiro took part in the first ever German portion of the program about five years after she had completed the similar, though more extensive, spiritual development program of Shuyoka in Tenri City. She explained her principal motivation to participate in the program at TEC was to learn how to linguistically discuss and culturally frame the teachings in German to be more able to share them with people in her Vienna-based life.

<footnote n="371">³⁷¹ This level of dedication to performing the Service every morning and evening is not unanimously shared by all Tenrikyo followers but rather is reflective of one of multiple approaches that to adherence to and practice of the faith. Many followers express a less absolute adherence to this prescribed ritual component of the faith.</footnote>

<footnote n="372">³⁷² It is not required to have all the performative roles filled to perform this ritual.</footnote>
During our shared time at the seminar which facilitated numerous in-depth talks, she told me that she used to try to persuade people of things she believed (in this instance, not specifically referring to the Tenrikyo religion) by being openly dogmatic in her approach but later came to regard it as more effective to simply give hints of what she wished to convey to people through subtle whispers. Based on our conversations and my limited observations of her efforts to spread the faith, her approach was very much in accordance with this perspective. Thus, like the other mission stations discussed in this chapter, her approach to sharing her religion with others and spreading the faith was integrated into the mission station she headed that was included in the mosaic of Tenrikyo sites in Europe.

### c. Pragmatic adjustments made by mission station families in relation to their being in Europe

#### *The issue of citizenship for children of European mission station families*

Despite the increasing presence of Japanese Tenrikyo followers who founded and operated mission stations in Europe, thereby encouraging their prolonged presence on the continent, the founders of these sites and their European-born children commonly remained exclusively Japanese in nationality. Often in the case of their children, this was largely due to the Japanese government's prohibition on dual citizenship. This created a situation where many of the religious actors heading the mission stations in Europe remained positioned as partial foreigners in the lands in which they were living, regardless of how many years they spent there. Through this, most core members of the “TEC community” who came together from numerous European locations, primarily at TEC, were in fact politically categorizable as exclusively Japanese despite their presence often being positioned as representative of the European countries from which they were immediately coming.

Among the numerous social events of the “TEC community” that occurred during my fieldwork, and more specifically in this case one that principally involved its core “members,” was the marriage between the daughter of a Holland-based Japanese missionary family, who was born and raised in Holland, and the son of a London-based Japanese missionary family, who was born and raised in London. These two individuals had initially gotten to know each other when they were children through various TEC gatherings and were then reunited when they were older,
again through the center. Their renewed friendship then developed into a romantic relationship, which led to marriage.

In accordance with the prominent system of residency after marriage in both Japanese and Tenrikyo cultures, this Holland-born woman moved to London to join her new husband and his family. Her relocation and their establishment of a common home was complicated by their legal statuses in the European countries in which they were born and raised because they were legal residents rather than national citizens due to their parents' having chosen for them to hold the nationality of their family's origin rather than that of the country of their birth and upbringing. Because neither one of them was a European citizen with the legal right to move to another European country nor to welcome a foreign spouse, it was only a year after their legal union and multiple legal steps which they navigated in both Europe and Japan that this Holland-born bride was able to move to the UK to live with her UK-born groom. The complications encountered by these newlyweds was just one of multiple instances in which I saw such European-born young adults of Tenrikyo missionary families navigate difficulties due to their legal status in Europe of being exclusively Japanese.

Similar to other such European-born children of Japanese Tenrikyo missionary families, the discrepancy of this UK-born man holding exclusively Japanese citizenship was primarily due to the Japanese government's legally asserted notion of what it is to be a citizen of that country in combination with his parents' understanding of which country he should be legally affiliated. Several such young adults ranging from their mid-twenties to early thirties explained to me that their parents chose for them to have Japanese citizenship rather than that of their European country of birth in large part because of the perceived and lived connection they have with the Jiba (and Tenri City). Central to this choice is that this location is understood in the religion, and by these core members of the “TEC community,” as their “original home” and thus, the primary site to which they are rooted. Accordingly, a principal reason for their parents choosing for them to maintain Japanese citizenship was because they wanted their children to be able to go to Tenri City and stay there for extended durations of time without the complication of needing a Japanese visa<fnref n="373" />. Such individuals were also closely connected with their church lineages based primarily

<footnote n="373">³⁷³ Citizens of most European countries are allowed to stay in Japan for a period of ninety days without the requirement of a visa. Citizens of Austria, Germany, Ireland, Liechtenstein, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom are</footnote>
in Japan, the churches were often headed by family members or people with whom they had
family-like relationships, as was the case of the branch church at which Mr. Sugimoto was raised,
further connecting them to religiously associated contexts in Japan.

The less than straight-forward nature of these newlyweds’ establishment of a common home
showcases the legally transnational lives of the majority of Japanese Tenrikyo followers in
Europe, along with their European-born children<fnref n="374" />, who together largely composed the core
“TEC community” in which their country of long-term residence was not the same as their
country of citizenship. As a result, such individuals were partially grounded to both European and
Japanese localities, but at the same time, belonged entirely to neither. In such contexts, it was
possible to spend many years as partial residents of where they lived, or even, in the case of
European-born Japanese nationals, potentially their entire lives. This adds another layer of
complexity to the presence of Tenrikyo in Europe as the majority of its key religious actors were
not, in fact, legally rooted to this continent, thus rendering the level to which this religion was
based in Europe, rather than transposed largely via non-permanent Japanese Tenrikyo followers,
open to numerous interpretations.

The complex interplay of how such Japanese religious actors included in my study are embedded
in the “TEC community,” Tenrikyo as it exists in Japan, and the wider realm of Tenrikyo is
somewhat analogous to Ong’s (1999) discussion of “transnationalism,” which she prefers over
the term “globalism” in her analysis of a transnational Chinese public in the Asian Pacific and the
related circulation of capital. Her analysis is centered on the horizontal and relational nature of
the contemporary economic, social, and cultural processes that stream across spaces. She explains
that she employs the term “transnational” because it denotes moving through space or across
lines, as well as the changing nature of something and that her analytical focus on
“transnationalism” denotes her concern with looking at the condition of cultural
interconnectedness and mobility across space. Similarly, the social actors included in my study

<footnote>permitted to stay up to 6 months in Japan, but those who wish to stay more than 90 days are required to apply for an extension of the period of stay to the Ministry of Justice (Regional Immigration Bureau) before the period of permitted stay is to expire. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs Japan 2019).</footnote>

<footnote n="374">³⁷⁴ As stated previously, these “European-born children” were often of exclusively Japanese nationality. I specifically reference their being born in Europe in this sentence to emphasize this feature of their lived experiences.</footnote>
who are simultaneously rooted to Europe and Japan in somewhat disjunctive ways that are
interconnected rather than fixed to a singular location occupy transnational existences connected
to and influenced by these disparate locations. As Ong highlights, transnational processes are
situated cultural processes in which the former is intricately influenced and shaped by the latter
(1999: 17). Relatedly, how the legal and cultural identities are navigated and assumed by such
European-born children of Japanese Tenrikyo missionaries is reflective of a transnational
interplay between geographically and intellectually disparate factors.

Ong (1999) argues in her discussion of a transnational Chinese public operating in a globalized
system of capitalism that although citizenship is conventionally understood as being grounded in
political rights and participation within a sovereign state; globalization has made economic
calculation a major factor of diasporan subjects’ choice of citizenship. She uses the term “flexible
citizenship” to refer to the strategies and effects of mobile managers, technocrats, and
professionals seeking both to circumvent and benefit from different nation-state regimes by
selecting different sites for investments, work, and family relocation. Ong explains that in her
discussion of flexible citizenship being based partially in personally linked factors, she is also
talking about different modalities of governmentality, as practiced by the nation-state, by the
family, and by capital, that intersect with and have effects on each other, variously encoding and
constraining flexibility in global (re)positioning.

In the case of such European-born children of Japanese missionaries, although I never heard
economic capital evoked as a factor in negotiating the question of which country(ies<fnref n="375" />) with
which to align their legal citizenship, family and governmentality were similarly highly
influential factors in their assumed citizenship. As Tenri City was regarded as the original home
of humanity and the location in which God the Parent and the foundress (the original mother of
all humans) dwelt, the role of “family” in one’s country of residence can be understood to extend

<footnote n="375">³⁷⁵ One such young adult told me that he decided as an adult to obtain citizenship of the European country in which he was born in addition to his Japanese citizenship that his parents had opted for him to have, explaining to me that he would retain his Japanese citizenship but simply not notify the Japanese government of his having taken the citizenship of another country as well. He told me that he had heard of analogous followers in the US who had done this and thus regarded it as a plausibly possible option. Although I did not discuss the question of citizenship with every such person included in my research, it is reasonable to posit that others had or thereafter made a similar choice to become dual citizens but strategically abstained from declaring their dual status to the Japanese government.</footnote>
beyond that of their immediate kin networks to also reflect “familial” ties conceptualized in Tenrikyo theology to be associated with this pilgrimage site in Japan, thereby extending the “familial” factor in choice of citizenship to extend beyond one’s immediate family to also include these spiritual parental figures. In contrast to the primary trend of the transnational Chinese social actors discussed by Ong (1999) whose national citizenship(s) was largely independent of cultural identity, for such young adult social actors included in my study and their Japanese parents, their choice of their having Japanese citizenship rather than their European country of birth was commonly demonstrated to be related to their emically perceived cultural identity as being firstly Japanese, regardless of their present geographic location. Although in both instances, the retention of one’s cultural identity of origin (or that of one’s parent) was maintained over changes in residential location, in the case of such Japanese social actors included in my research, this was manifested in their choice of citizenship whereas in the case of those discussed in Ong’s analysis, these were largely separate features<fnref n="376" />.

*Diverse approaches to conducting “missionary work” amongst mission station families*

Regardless of their legally defined national affiliation, their implication in the lineage-based sites they headed was a prominent feature of their overall lives and also in the presence of Tenrikyo in Europe. As implied by the term, a main purpose of “mission stations” is to conduct missionary work<fnref n="377" />. It is thus appropriate in this chapter to elaborate on what types of missionary work<fnref n="378" />

<footnote n="376">³⁷⁶ As discussed previously, the maintenance of a primarily Japanese cultural identity by Tenrikyo followers of Japanese ancestry outside of Japan was not similarly present in all disparate contexts to have such individuals. Notably, for example, Tenrikyo followers of Japanese ancestry in the US commonly culturally identified firstly as Americans, which was reflective of multiple factors, prominently such individuals often being descendants of earlier migrations, often though not always of more distant generations, as well as the question of cultural and national affiliation in these locations, with the latter containing a strong ethos of being comprised of multiple immigrant populations coming together to compose a greater whole.</footnote>

<footnote n="377">³⁷⁷ Missionary work is also taken on by Tenrikyo churches and grand churches; at least in theory, all Tenrikyo followers are also missionaries of the faith.</footnote>

<footnote n="378">³⁷⁸ The English term “missionary work” is the common translation of two Japanese terms often used synonymously in Tenrikyo contexts. One is “fukyō” (布教) composed of the kanji characters which mean (amongst other things) “distribute” and “teaching.” This is a non-Tenrikyo specific Japanese word for religious missionary work. The second term used is more Tenrikyo specific: “nioigake”(にをいがけデー). This term is found in the twelfth hymn of the Mikagura-uta (“Songs for the Service”: sacred songs performed in the Tenrikyo monthly service) said to have been composed by Oyasama in 1867. This term, which is written in Tenrikyo through syllabic hiragana characters rather</footnote>
these separately operating lineage-based Tenrikyo sites conducted, principally through the
families who hosted them. The differences between their approaches were due to a variety of
factors, such as the church lineages in which they were rooted. Each of which contained
particularities regarding both how they interpreted the teachings and also how they operated, as
well as the individual perspectives and personalities of each mission station head and their family.

Some of these mission station families had a rather casual approach in which their main methods
of sharing the faith were inviting potentially interested friends to the Monthly Services that they
hosted at their home-based mission stations and by talking to people about the teachings in a
variety of contexts, sometimes, as was described in the case of Chihiro, not even mentioning that
they came from a religion. Other mission stations in Europe had in the past or continued during
my period of research to engage in more direct and classic Tenrikyo missionary activities, such as
seeking out sick people on whom to perform the Sazuke faith healing ritual, which historically
served as the main way people became followers of the path. In such instances, according to the
Tenrikyo system, such “saved” individuals who came to follow the faith then became members of
the “home site”<fnref n="379" />” of the person who “saved” them³⁸⁰.

Another classic Tenrikyo method of spreading the religion that some, but not all, European-based
mission station families engaged in was through public displays of the religion, for example by
wearing Tenrikyo ritual clothing and singing religious songs or holding signs with messages
related to the religion in busy locations. One example of this was the family members of a Paris-
area mission station who regularly went to a busy park on the weekends to sing the Mikagura-uta
songs, thereby publicly diffusing a central component of the religion on a regular basis. Another
example of working to spread the religion through public displays was a London-based mission
station family (and sometimes others associated with this site) who on numerous occasions held

<footnote>than kanji, literally means “sprinkling the fragrance,” but in practice is generally used in a way undifferentiated
from fukyō.</footnote>

<footnote n="379">³⁷⁹ This could be a mission station, branch church, grand church, or even Tenrikyo Church Headquarters depending on the site of worship which serves as their “home site”.</footnote>
Tenrikyo-related signs with positive messages inspired from Tenrikyo tenets at busy London Underground stations while dressed in Tenrikyo robes.

It is interesting to note that I learned of this latter example through a PowerPoint-assisted talk on
spreading the faith given by the head of this mission station during the European Seminar to
encourage others to actively engage in making efforts to spread the path of Tenrikyo. In this talk,
he explained that for approximately the past eight months, every month on the day before their
mission station's Monthly Service, the members of his family and others who wished to join
would clean their street and the nearby Underground station (as hinokishin). Then, at the station,
they would "spread God's name" and promote the religion's principal teachings through holding
signage while wearing Tenrikyo garb, such as one that proclaimed that we all have 7 billion
brothers and sisters (in accordance with Tenrikyo's teaching that all humans are brothers and
sisters).

Yet another classic Tenrikyo missionary activity in Japan (and elsewhere) that some
missionaries<fnref n="381" /> continued to conduct in Europe was going door-to door, most often with religious
brochures to talk to people about the faith. During my fieldwork, I saw different perspectives on
this method reflective of an amalgamation of factors such as the individual religious actors in
question, their broader Tenrikyo social spheres, and the social environments in which they were
living. For example, the head of the mission station to which I was rooted told me that he used to
go door-to-door with Tenrikyo brochures in France but found that French people often do not like
being disturbed at home. An approach he found to be better received was to casually talk to
people about the religion when they were out, appeared to have time, and were open to chatting,
such as at a park, to which he added that recently he did not do this as much as before due to
being busy with work.

His finding that speaking to people about the religion in this manner was often better received
than door-to-door efforts that were common in the wider sphere of the religion was reflected in

<footnote n="380">³⁸⁰ Historically, physical salvation from ailments through the Sazuke was the most common way new followers embraced Tenrikyo.</footnote>

<footnote n="381">³⁸¹ “Missionary” can refer to multiple precise positions within Tenrikyo. In this instance, I wish to refer to people whose homes host mission stations.</footnote>
the fact that the only long-term “follower”<sup>382</sup> of his mission station was initially approached in
this way. Approximately ten years prior, he met this individual while waiting for a train on a
platform at which time he spoke to him about the faith and its teachings, which apparently
resonated and provoked interest. This impromptu interaction resulted in his taking interest in
learning about Tenrikyo, and later led him to later travel to Tenri City and become a Yoboku,
after which he continued to be present semi-regularly at Monthly Services at both this mission
station and also at TEC.

More discrete methods of spreading the faith were also engaged in by Tenrikyo followers. An
example of this was shown in Chihiro's softer approach of diffusing the path through a "whisper"
of suggestion rather than by loud dogmatic declarations. Through this approach, she was
purposefully promoting the potential to discretely influence others as a means of *nioi kake*
("dispersing the fragrance," i.e. missionary work). As noted in chapter one, a similar approach of
subtly dispersing the faith's fragrance was a purposefully enacted method of promoting the faith's
underlying teachings utilized by missionary teachers at ACFJT and via the numerous events and
activities organised by TEC that were not pointedly "religious" in nature. As we can see, there
was more than one way that missionary work was conducted on this continent. Regardless of the
specific approach(es) used, the importance placed on spreading the religion to others maintained
a regularly circulated value.

*Legal and cultural adaptations to spreading the faith in the “laique” country of France*

Generally, ostentatious missionary efforts, such as going door to door<sup>383</sup> or public displays of
religiosity were more common in other countries, such as the UK, than they were in France: a

<footnote n="382">382 Though this man, who was originally from South America, did acquire the designation of “Yoboku” in Tenri City through attendance of the nine Besseki lectures there and came to both this mission station and TEC for at least several Monthly Services each year, it remained somewhat unclear in my observations if he regarded himself as a “member” of the religion or if his involvement in Tenrikyo was included in a broader realm of diverse spiritual and social pursuits he was involved in.</footnote>

<footnote n="383">³⁸³ In talking with one follower who engaged in door-to-door missionary work in the UK, it was explained to me that in both the UK and Japan, such efforts only minimally result in new followers being drawn to the faith. In engaging in such efforts, even minimal gains of new followers to the faith (or people who are somehow touched by its teachings) are deemed worthy of such significant efforts on the part of those charged with spreading the fragrance of Tenrikyo. Furthermore, such missionary efforts are regarded as not only potentially beneficial for the recipient of the teachings, but as also beneficial for the person conducting the missionary work.</footnote>
country whose approach to religious freedom differed from that of the UK and many other countries. In France, in accordance with this country's model of “laïcité” (i.e. separation of church and state), although each person is free to privately believe and worship as they wish, religion is largely regarded as a private and personal affair which should mostly be kept to oneself in public spaces rather than freely expressed. The legal regulations in France concerning public religious demonstrations, generally due to this country's brand of “laïcité,” promoted a context in which certain missionary activities that involved overt religious displays and efforts to communicate elements of the faith to passersby employed in other countries were more difficult to conduct in France. At the time of writing this thesis, the official webpage of the French government dedicated to the topic of “government and religious sects<fnref n="384" />” under the section “state, religious sects, laïcité<fnref n="385" />” on the broader governmental website dedicated to “public life<fnref n="386" />” outlined the permitted level of engagement that religious sects may have with the public sphere through the following passage:

> Demonstrations of a religious character that are held in a public thoroughfare are subject to prior declaration like union or political demonstrations. The declaration is made to the city hall and in Paris, to the Prefecture of Police. Exempt from declarations are appearances on public thoroughfare in conformity with local practice. Since a decision of 1938, the Council of State considers that processions having a traditional character are thus exempt of preliminary request.<fnref n="387" /> (Vie Publique, République Française 2019).

Exchanges with core members of the TEC community in France showed what type of religious efforts are and are not permissible or advisable to be a less than neatly defined matter, as evidenced through numerous difficulties that such followers accidently encountered when making efforts to spread the faith. Exactly what was and was not legally permitted and what was deemed as reasonably acceptable in a French cultural context was sometimes not entirely evident to the

<footnote n="384">³⁸⁴ Original text: *administration et les sectes*</footnote>

<footnote n="385">³⁸⁵ Original text: *état-cultes-laïcité*</footnote>

<footnote n="386">³⁸⁶ Original text: *vie publique*</footnote>

<footnote n="387">³⁸⁷ Original text: Les manifestations à caractère religieux qui ont lieu sur la voie publique sont soumises à déclaration préalable au même titre que les manifestations syndicales ou politiques. La déclaration se fait auprès du maire et, à Paris, auprès de la Préfecture de police. Sont dispensées de déclaration les sorties sur la voie publique conformes aux usages locaux. Depuis un arrêt de 1938, le Conseil d'Etat considère que les processions ayant un caractère traditionnel sont donc dispensées de demande préalable.</footnote>
Japanese missionaries charged with making efforts to spread the faith in this land. The specifics of this were often partially based on individual interpretations rather than established legal and/or social guidelines, thereby rendering different approaches to be taken by different followers and mission station families.

Generally, in France, one was not permitted to approach others to talk to them about one's religion in public spaces unless specific authorization had been granted to the group to do so. This stipulation was equally observable in the missionary efforts of other religious groups, such as the Jehovah's Witnesses, who in France could often be seen stationed in front of easily transportable religious displays with textual materials to distribute to anyone who wished to stop and talk with them. In contrast to how they engage in this activity in numerous other countries, in France, they did not take the initiative to approach people.

Despite the dispersal of the Tenrikyo faith in France being subject to more restraints than in many other countries, I would like to specify that the French governmental organization “Miviludes<fnref n="388" />” dedicated to “observing and analyzing ‘cult-like<fnref n="389" />’ phenomenon, coordinating preventative and repressive action of public powers against cult-like misdirection and to inform the public about the risks and dangers to which they are exposed<fnref n="390" />” does not indicate that missionary pursuits commonly engaged in the Tenrikyo religion in Japan (and other countries) such as going to door-to-door, public displays of religiosity, or other overt demonstrations to be included in this French governmental organization’s definition of “sectarian misdirection.” According to the explanation given on the organization’s official website under the question, “What is a sectarian misdirection?” it is explained that:

<footnote n="388">³⁸⁸ “Mission interministérielle de vigilance et de lutte contre les derives sectaires” Although one definition of the French word “secte” is equivalent to the commonly neutral English word of (religious) sect, its most common usage contains the same underlying connotations as the English word of “cult.”</footnote>

<footnote n="389">³⁸⁹ In the original French texts, the word used is “sectaire” for which a close equivalent in English is “cult-like,” which is the word I employ in my translations in this and the next pages.</footnote>

<footnote n="390">³⁹⁰ Original text: observe et analyse le phénomène sectaire, coordonne l'action préventive et répressive des pouvoirs publics à l'encontre des dérives sectaires, et informe le public sur les risques et les dangers auxquels il est exposé.</footnote>
It is a misuse of freedom of thought, opinion or religion that violates public order, laws or regulations, fundamental rights, security or the integrity of individuals. It is characterized by the implementation, by an organized group or by an isolated individual, whatever its nature or activity, of pressures or techniques intended to create, maintain or exploit in a person a state of psychological or physical subjection, depriving her of a part of her free will, with damaging consequences for that person, her entourage or for society.<fnref n="391" />

Although classic Tenrikyo missionary activities were not included in this statement, the presence of this category is relevant to my thesis. Throughout my research, I occasionally encountered possible concern surrounding the issue of Tenrikyo being a “secte” (cult) from both Tenrikyo followers in France mentioning that some members of the wider population may hold or come to hold, if adequate caution is not used, the perspective of Tenrikyo belonging to this category or the impression or questioning from members of the wider French society that Tenrikyo could, in fact, be a “secte.” Regarding this, it is pertinent to note that Tenrikyo was not included in the well-known list, “La commision parlementaire n° 2468” (Gest and Guyard 1995), published by the French Assemblée Nationale which listed 173 “movements jugés sectaires” (movements judged to be “cult-like”) of which numerous groups such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Raëlianism, Scientology, and the Japanese new religions of Sukyo Mahikari and Sokka Gakkai International were included<fnref n="392" />.

Despite the lack of official inclusion of Tenrikyo on this governmental list of “sectes,” whether or not a loyal adherence to diffusing the fragrance of the faith through the more overt techniques commonly utilized in Japan and other countries was appropriate in a French context was met with differing opinions. Furthermore, there were also multiple perspectives regarding to what level a public or semi-public display of belief in and affiliation with the religion should occur, partially

<footnote n="391">³⁹¹ Original text: Il s'agit d'un dévoiement de la liberté de pensée, d'opinion ou de religion qui porte atteinte à l'ordre public, aux lois ou aux règlements, aux droits fondamentaux, à la sécurité ou à l'intégrité des personnes. Elle se caractérise par la mise en œuvre, par un groupe organisé ou par un individu isolé, quelle que soit sa nature ou son activité, de pressions ou de techniques ayant pour but de créer, de maintenir ou d'exploiter chez une personne un état de sujétion psychologique ou physique, la privant d'une partie de son libre arbitre, avec des conséquences dommageables pour cette personne, son entourage ou pour la société.</footnote>

<footnote n="392">³⁹² My inclusion of these groups is not to imply that these groups are, in fact, “cults,” but to demonstrate that this 1995 French list of “sects” includes numerous groups that are commonly regarded as “religious movements” in many other countries.</footnote>
in relation to the possibility of this religion being regarded as a “cult.” For example, one older French man rooted to Bordeaux Kyokai but living in another part of France told me that neither in his town nor in his rather conservative entourage was he open about being a member of this religion because of his concern that it would likely be understood as a “strange Asian thing” and/or a “cult”<fnref n="393" />” that he was brainwashed into being part of due to his being “mentally weak.” In an earlier conversation, he had indicated that such a perspective was held by his spouse, a French woman with whom he indicated to have a difficult relationship, who was not accepting of his being a follower of the Tenrikyo religion. He recounted to me that he did not perform the Morning and Evening Services at home every day, even though it was something he liked to do and felt better when he did, because of his discomfort with the judgement he felt to receive from his wife. He also told me that she occasionally threatened to publicly shame him through declaring his practice of Tenrikyo in the town where they lived and to his conservative social circle out of vindictiveness because of the perceived ramifications that such a proclamation would have for him.

For this French follower, beyond his own personal situation, he regarded discretion as the best course of action in attempts to propagate Tenrikyo in the laique republic of France. This perspective was shown through his being aghast at numerous organized attempts at TEC to spread the religion or engage in public religious displays in ways that he viewed as an inappropriate transferal of how Tenrikyo existed in Japan to this French context. One instance was the performance of the sacred Service songs on the sidewalk outside of TEC when a visiting delegation of officials from Tenrikyo Church Headquarters came to this European center. To him, not only was this inappropriate but it risked giving a negative image to the center and to the religion. What was key to his opposition to emphatic missionary and religious displays being made in this laique republic was that while he strongly valued the foundress’ teachings and his involvement in this religious world, he was opposed to direct transferals of how the religion existed in Japan to France when it was opposed to (what he perceived as) the country’s values and culture. He expressed this stance to be reflective of both his view that French culture and values should be respected and also that he did not think such overt displays of religiosity would be beneficial to how the faith would be locally received.

<footnote n="393">³⁹³ French: “secte.”</footnote>
Another, different instance of missionary efforts in France that I was personally involved in took place at the end of my first time participating in the annual Tenrikyo European Seminar, which the following two chapters discuss in more detail. In this particular instance, shortly after I entered the religious world of TEC by choosing to take part in this three-week training, I found myself somewhat socially obligated to participate in public missionary work in a busy municipal park close to TEC in accordance with this being an activity planned by a UK mission station wife who was serving as our English-language cohort's coordinator for the week. This took place despite my personal lack of viewing myself as a member of this religion nor desiring to take part in this activity. I learned of the upcoming plan for our English cohort during our end-of-the-day meeting on the second to the last day of the program from this UK-based woman. In discussing the planned events for the following day, I was taken off guard to learn that our final day would include a missionary activity, as was included as a part of most Tenrikyo trainings.

For this component of the seminar during the morning of our final day, our English cohort would go to a nearby park to pick up trash as a hinokishin activity, which I was happy to do, and also conduct missionary work that would involve both singing the Service songs in the park and talking to people about the religion as missionaries, the latter part of which I did not feel at all comfortable doing. She specified to our group, based on the council of a senior, long-time staff member of TEC, that we could give people religious pamphlets and talk with potentially interested people during this part of the missionary activity, but because we were in France, we would need to be careful in our approach and not chase after people, as this does not go over well in France. The French cohort would be participating in a different activity for this missionary component of the program<fnref n="394" />.

<footnote n="394">³⁹⁴ The French-cohort’s “missionary” activity organized by instructors and staff living in France took more into account the cultural background of both the country in which this activity was conducted and the mostly French participants who would be taking part in it. In contrast to the English cohort’s activity more “classic” method of conducting Tenrikyo missionary work, the French cohort’s activity involved going to speak individually with non-Tenrikyo people who were personally acquainted with TEC staff and accepted to help with the program through receiving a seminar participant at their home to discuss the faith. This was quite different than the overtly public religious display that our English cohort took part in at the popular nearby large park on a Sunday morning when many people were out and about. Although such manifest displays of religiosity could be potentially problematic in a variety of cultural contexts, attention to and caution regarding this issue was accorded particular emphasis in France in large part due to the strongly laique nature of the country that relegated religion primarily to the private sphere.</footnote>
My lack of ease about the prospect of taking part in the missionary work we were informed that we would be doing the following morning was linked to the fact that I did not regard Tenrikyo as my religion nor did I “believe” in it. I very strongly did not want to find myself in a situation in which I would be obliged to choose between compromising my own integrity by presenting myself dishonestly as a Tenrikyo follower or being honest with whatever people I ended up speaking with. From my own perspective, although I could explain the basic tenets of the religion that I had learned over the course of the three-week seminar, I could not present them as my own beliefs or religious practice. For this missionary outing to go as desired for the group, I thought it would be better for my atypical presence to not be included alongside “true” believers who wanted to share with others the faith in which they believed and held dear.

After this end-of-the-day session, I asked the woman heading it if we could speak a little once the other two students had exited the room to go to dinner. I told her that I was sorry but that I would not be able to participate in the following day's missionary activity because I did not view myself as a follower and could not present myself as such. She slightly showed her malcontent to what I was saying through subtle cues that she was likely unaware of, such as her face and body becoming subtly more tense and a slight drop in her generally upturned visual expression that conveyed a steady enthusiasm to be guiding others in the faith as my words were coming out of my mouth. Nonetheless, she accepted what I told her and said it was fine.

Somewhat later, Mr. Sugimoto asked to talk to me one-on-one and told me that he could understand my perspective but asked me to reconsider my decision because it would really mean a lot to everyone. Although I was uncomfortable with the idea of taking part in this activity and viewed it as potentially counterproductive, I conceded as much as I viewed possible by saying that I could talk to people about ACFJT and tell them about my experience there, which I regarded very positively and could promote through my being a student of the center. However, I would be unable to talk to people about the religion in a way that presented myself as a follower because it would not be truthful to do so. After I explained that this was all that I would be able to do, he accepted this compromise.
The next day's missionary outing was fortunately less difficult than I had anticipated. We walked fifteen minutes from TEC to a central location inside the nearby park in a small happi-clad<fnref n="395" /> group while singing the Mikagura-uta songs, then continued by singing several more songs once we had arrived at a stationary spot. I remember it as a peaceful moment which, to my surprise, felt neither dishonest on my part nor as being an overly conspicuous religious display that could be potentially bothersome to others. Our tone in singing these sacred songs was soft and we blended into the Sunday morning atmosphere of the park. It was unlikely that passersby who saw us understood what group we were from and what it precisely was that we were doing, thereby largely rendering us from a bird's eye view simply another component of this park's eclectic weekend scene.

After picking up trash around the park while wearing gloves, we transitioned to the main
missionary activity of handing out Tenrikyo brochures and talking to people about the faith. By
this time, the park's Sunday morning atmosphere was becoming livelier and was becoming
increasingly filled with people going on strolls or runs. Each of us held brochures that had been
brought along for this purpose. As planned, I only held ACFJT brochures rather than ones on the
Tenrikyo religion which the others were prepared with for potential missionary interactions.

With these brochures in hand, we stationed ourselves alongside a path in a central area of the park. For the most part, we just stood around readily armed with religious materials to share with others, purposefully maintaining an actively engaged and cheerful demeanor, smiling and saying hello to passersby, often accompanied with a slight outreach of a hand holding a religious brochure<fnref n="396" />. People who crossed our path on this Sunday morning in the park generally responded politely, saying hello back to us, but most continued on their way without stopping which granted us little opportunity to engage in the missionary work we had come to the park to do. For the most part, people did not pay positive or negative attention to us and simply went about their Sunday morning as planned, most often walking or running by us. From my own vantage point at that time, the efforts that were being made seemed a little sad or misplaced at the very least. It

<footnote n="395">³⁹⁵ Happi coats are the more casual, easy-to-wear Tenrikyo garb.</footnote>

<footnote n="396">³⁹⁶ All the other people taking part in this activity held brochures on the religion. I was the only one who did not, though this was not an overt difference in our communal engagement in this task.</footnote>
appeared clear to me that what we were doing was not working very well and it was rather perplexing that the others remained unwavering in their unrelenting readiness to engage with passersby despite the general lack of response to our presence.

Among the numerous things I did not yet understand about Tenrikyo practices and perspectives was that missionary work, along with other hinokishin efforts made by followers<fnref n="397" />, was not only done for the immediately observable benefits outside of oneself that may be obtained but also for one's own “spiritual growth” and for the possible positive outcomes that may come about at some unknown time in the future<fnref n="398" />. In the case of such missionary activities, not only did their efforts potentially lead new followers to the faith but they also functioned as a solidifier of the faith and active religious engagement by the actors engaging in these efforts.

As demonstrated, there was not one sole method through which “missionary work” was conducted in the multifarious Tenrikyo scene in Europe, nor was there one sole way (or site) through which people in Europe were affiliated with the Tenrikyo religion. One omnipresent theme, though, was the complexity and diversity present in this multi-sited and multi-layered context, one of which was the lineage-based sites discussed in this chapter. Accordingly, one of the ways followers rooted to these lineage-based sites became more intimately familiar with TEC was through their participation in the intensive training of the European Seminar. The following two chapters will be dedicated to a discussion of this annual program. Chapter seven will be focused on the program itself. Then, in chapter eight, the participants will be discussed in order to give the reader a more in-depth insight into the eclectic collection of people who together composed this social world.

<footnote n="397">³⁹⁷ Missionary work is considered one way through which people conduct hinokishin.</footnote>

<footnote n="398">³⁹⁸ Because in Tenrikyo cosmology, people's souls are in a constant state of being born into a body, leaving their body via death, and being reborn into another body, the potential positive benefits were not relegated exclusively to this lifetime, but also to future lives.</footnote>
# Chapter seven: The annual Tenrikyo European Seminar: cultivating followers through a structured training, constructing a virtual social world

## a. Integrating and reinforcing belonging in the social world of TEC and the broader realm of Tenrikyo

### *The European Seminar as my introduction to the TEC community and to the broader Tenrikyo social modality*

As previously explained, the European Seminar was my in-depth introduction to the Tenrikyo religion and the social world of TEC. This three-week training brought together principally followers<fnref n="399" /> coming from numerous European locations<fnref n="400" /> and I got to know many members of the “TEC community” through it. It also acquainted me with people included in the “TEC community” who were absent from the seminar by learning about them via members who were present. During these three weeks, it was evident that I had stepped into a fascinating interconnected social world that was principally based on close interpersonal relationships paired, for most, with a close relationship to the faith. Although I did not realize it then, this first concentrated glimpse into this religious and social world was in large part a compressed version of the context I would spend the next two years exploring through my fieldwork.

The Tenrikyo European Seminar was an annual program orchestrated at TEC for participants to learn about, or deepen their understanding of, various components of the Tenrikyo religion. It functioned not only as a time of religious instruction for those who attended the program as students, but also as an important period of gathering between dispersed members of the “TEC community” who came to the center to take part in it as either staff or students. For most, spending time with others in this context was positioned as reunions with people they already

<footnote n="399">³⁹⁹ I had already gotten to know Kanae who was in France as a visiting missionary teacher through the relationship that developed via our language exchanges and had become acquainted with Mr. Sugimoto through our student-teacher relationship. Through neither of these relationships but had not learned of either of their full involvement in the Tenrikyo religion and in the TEC community.</footnote>

<footnote n="400">⁴⁰⁰ Also included among the people who came to TEC for this seminar were people living in Europe who do not consider themselves to be “followers” or “members” of the religion, but nonetheless came to TEC to participate in this program and people living outside of Europe, namely during my fieldwork in the US and Japan, who participated in the seminar as staff.</footnote>
knew rather than initial meetings; most present already had close relationships with others there. This was not the case for everyone who came nor were the social connections previously established shared between everyone present. Because of this, it also served as a period of forming relationships with others that would commonly be continued and expanded upon in numerous contexts where this initial period of time together would serve as a base for future interactions. Thus, the seminar served as a key moment of establishing and strengthening a social thread that connected those included in this prominent scene of cultivating relationships, which then expanded to also exist as a binding agent that ran through the broader TEC community. This was due in large part to both the multidirectional interconnectedness of this social sphere and also the experiential and theological base that they would share with others in this group through taking part in this training.

As was common for people who came to be part of this “community,” their social interactions would often continue in numerous contexts, such as at TEC as well as often in other locations, the most prominent being the pilgrimage town of Tenri City. The fluid nature of meeting with members of this dispersed yet interconnected social group in a variety of contexts was a central theme of the TEC community, as it also was for the broader social sphere of Tenrikyo. The specific nature of the time spent together in Tenrikyo gatherings was pivotal to the formation and development of these interpersonal social relationships and to their relationship with the broader group. The social environments in which these interactions occurred generally involved a purposefully orchestrated mode of sociality that was inspired by and reflective of the Tenrikyo teachings that all humans are brothers and sisters and that helping one another is one of the primary reasons for our existence as humans. Also present was the theme of collaboratively working with others to orchestrate something greater, which the Service was often interpreted to symbolize.

In thinking about the social connections that came about and were deepened during such Tenrikyo scenes, it is important to appreciate that it was not simply through spending time together that these social connections were formed and developed. It was also through the specific social environment that featured a high level of intellectual and enacted collaboration in combination with a generally promoted demeanor of benevolence toward one another which purposefully fostered a feeling of “community.” These particular relational modalities
encouraged in such scenes included inclusive collaboration and a social environment aimed at facilitating the enjoyment and well-being of everyone present along with a concentrated form of experiential immersion in the religion that was meant to transfer to and expand in those involved. In such settings, the relational model employed was heavily influenced by each person present being purposefully accorded a position of importance as an individual and as a child of God the Parent (and our original mother: the foundress) not expected to be perfect but rather, understood to be progressing at their own pace on the path of spiritual development.

Such behavioral modalities were not, in my observations, unique to TEC but rather were part of the wider culture of Tenrikyo. During my fieldwork, I saw this social modality displayed in a variety of contexts during my time in Japan, both in Tenri City and at the four lineage-based sites of worship I visited elsewhere in the country. I was also exposed to evidence of its existence elsewhere through first-person interactions with Tenrikyo followers from numerous countries that took place most notably, though not exclusively, while in Tenri City and at TEC, and also through exposure to overseas Tenrikyo contexts via internet and textual sources. Thus, the general Tenrikyo way of being, which included various enacted practices, expressed attitudes, and interactional tendencies that I was acquainted with during the seminar was reflective of the broader Tenrikyo world of which it belongs. While my discussion in this chapter, and the following, is focused primarily on my observations during my two years of participation in the European Seminar, first in the English-language cohort and then in the French-language cohort, I will also include mention of numerous components of this specific context that I saw evidenced to exist in the broader sphere of Tenrikyo.

*Being at home at TEC, becoming increasingly embedded in the TEC community*

One prominent component included in the experience of participating in the European seminar was that of staying together in shared housing. During the European Seminar, both staff and students stayed on TEC grounds. This experientially rich element of non-residents staying at the center was not exclusive to the seminar. At other times of the year as well, in both organized group settings and more individual ones, people stayed at TEC. As a result, they were linked to the center and to its social world; the long-term residential world of TEC discussed in chapter one was just one type of community construction that occurred through time spent staying at the
center. The presence of these shorter-term guests was a semi-regular feature of the center that influenced both the center's ambiance during their time there and also added to its non-fixed and socially open nature.

Some of these short-term guests were long-term members of the broader “TEC community” who had been connected to the center and its social world for significant periods of time, for example almost all seminar staff and approximately half of its students. Others came to know TEC through staying there for multi-day events, such as the seminar. This was largely (though not entirely) the case for myself, as well as for two of the three students with whom I participated in the English cohort of the seminar, and also our guest instructor from Hawaii. Regardless of people’s connectedness to TEC, or even to the Tenrikyo religion, their stays there encouraged an experientially developed connection to this center which included both material and social components beyond the more public domain of daytime events and activities.

Apart from the seminar, other prominent annual events for which people stayed at TEC included the European followers' reunion, the youth weekend retreat of “Palette,” the spring charity rummage sale, and the children's pajama party. Overnight events that were not markedly religious, such as the latter two, drew not only Tenrikyo followers or people interested in the religion but also people who remained decidedly removed from the center's religiosity while participating in “cultural” events that took place there, such as for example, most of the French young adults from ACFJT discussed in chapter one, along with newcomers and people who did not frequently come to TEC. The time of short-term stays, though frequently quite brief, introduced people who had never before stayed overnight at TEC to life at the center and reintegrated those who had into its residential side. This residential world which they came to know or reenter included the other people at the center, the center's somewhat distinct mode of sociality, and the material world of the guest space. All of which contributed to a developed relationship with the center and those with whom one spent time there.

In addition to the sizable influx of guests before and during official TEC events, followers living in other parts of Europe sometimes stayed at the center when they came to TEC (or Paris) on their own or in small numbers. Reasons for coming to stay at TEC included meeting with other members of the core “TEC community” about various topics regarding the religion in Europe, to
deliver a sermon at a TEC Monthly Service, or simply to spend time in the Paris area. Less commonly, followers from outside of Europe, most notably Japan (many of whom came to the center for official reasons associated with Tenrikyo Church Headquarters) and also to a lesser extent the US and the Republic of the Congo, along with occasionally other countries, also stayed at TEC as short-term guests. Additionally, non-Tenrikyo visiting artists (who generally, though not exclusively, were Japanese) also sometimes stayed at TEC when they came to France to put on workshops or showcase their art at ACFJT.

Further adding to the collection of people who temporarily became part of the residential sphere of life at TEC were the Japanese Tenrikyo university exchange students studying in Europe who occasionally stayed at TEC during their school breaks, thereby partially returning to a familiar cultural and religious context with which they were raised while remaining geographically in Europe. One of the people I got to know through participating in the seminar was one such young woman who took part in the program partially as a support staff member and partially as a student after finishing her year abroad before returning to Japan. Perhaps the most surprising example among the diverse social actors who stayed at TEC outside of major center events during the span of my fieldwork were some of the non-Tenrikyo young adults from ACFJT referenced previously. They occasionally got together at TEC for reasons outside of official center events, such celebrating one of their birthdays, and had sleepovers in TEC's guest housing simply to enjoy time together at the center as a sort of retreat between friends<fnref n="401" />. Regardless of one's reason for staying at the center, the experience served to experientially connect those doing so to the center and its social structure.

During my fieldwork, I noticed a general pattern when the center hosted a sizable number of short-term guests for organized events that was demonstrative of an underlying logic about the guests' social position that was in accordance with the spatial organization of TEC residents in relation to their social position. As explained previously, the building that housed the young adult male missionaries was the principal building that welcomed short-term guests. Its first and second floors served as guest space for visitors, more commonly female than male, because the top floor

<footnote n="401">⁴⁰¹ This group of friends also included young French men, though on this occasion, they were not included because the activity was a sleepover which was by default a single-sex activity as at TEC, men and women only stay in the same room when they are married.</footnote>
where the young adult male missionaries lived often hosted young adult male guests who joined
their shared space and the atmosphere of young men hanging out together<fnref n="402" />. While I never
witnessed any expression from these male residents that occasionally welcoming guests into their
living space was troublesome for them, it is pertinent to note that the use of their living space in
this way did create a situation where these young men who called this shared room “home” for
periods of several year lived in a space that was only partially “their own.” This lack of personal
space, though, was often not new to these young missionaries. Many of them grew up in families
based at Tenrikyo churches where sharing one’s living space with others outside of one’s own
family was common practice<fnref n="403" />.

Older guests, in association with their age-related hierarchical status, along with family units,
often stayed on the ground floor of this building which accorded them a more autonomous space.
During my first year of participation in this program, one student was there with her primary
school-aged daughter and another was there with her two young adolescent daughters<fnref n="404" />. Both of
these families had been coming to TEC since before the children were born and thus, the children
were “at home” in this familiar context. Younger women<fnref n="405" /> generally stayed communally in the
rooms on the second floor. This was the space I stayed in during my fieldwork when at the center
for organized events. Through such differentiated locations, small social worlds came about in
this building, which influenced the experience of the people involved, thereby affecting their
relationship to the social world taking place at the center at that time.

<footnote n="402">⁴⁰² This was generally expressed to be an enjoyable experience by these male guests.</footnote>

<footnote n="403">⁴⁰³ An example of this was relayed to me by a young adult missionary whose family served as support staff at the grand church where she was raised. In a casual exchange at TEC over dinner one evening, she told me about how when she was in high school, she used to dream of being able to take a bath by herself rather than with others (all female) during the grand church's scheduled communal bath times simply to have a moment of personal space and enjoyment to herself. This was said when we were discussing that her communal lifestyle at TEC was not new for her, but rather akin to the Tenrikyo environment in which she was raised and spent her entire life apart from the time she when was a student at Tenri University.</footnote>

<footnote n="404">⁴⁰⁴ Neither of these women had the option of leaving their children with a spouse during their participation in this training.</footnote>

<footnote n="405">⁴⁰⁵ In this instance, “younger” and “older” refers largely to their relative ages in relation to each other rather than their absolute chronological ages.</footnote>
These moments of sharing the intimate space of rest was an important feature in the development of relationships between people included in the “TEC community.” These communal experiences of staying with others in shared housing did not simply occur for the functionally motivated reasons of it being the easiest or most cost-effective way to house people. Rather, sharing rooms in such contexts was motivated by the importance placed on being with others. This socially based reason was demonstrated, for example, during my second year of participation in the seminar. When one of the two female participants staying in the room adjacent to the one I was sharing with another female participant went home after her preplanned two-week period of participation had ended, the remaining woman was moved to our room. This was done so that she would not be alone for the final week, as I heard stated in a comment made by the head of TEC, missing out on this component of the experience. This motivation was also evidenced by the fact that the room she had been staying in was left empty, showing that there was no other need for the space at that time.

Moments of familial closeness that came about through inhabiting shared spaces for various durations of time were not unique to TEC. They also were a prominent feature of other Tenrikyo contexts, such as the grand church followers’ dormitories in Tenri City which I discuss in further detail in chapter seven. Shared housing was an important feature of the communal social modality of many Tenrikyo contexts that encouraged the construction of social connections between those present. This component, among others, that was shared between dispersed Tenrikyo contexts contributed to a feeling between dispersed followers of belonging to a larger Tenrikyo “family,” to use the term, and extendedly the analogy, that I encountered throughout my fieldwork. At TEC, largely through particular social modalities that were established through the ongoing presence of interchanging participants already solidly a part of “Tenrikyo culture,” a dispositional and interactional social base was established into which the center’s short-term guests were included while present.

In contexts when the center hosted numerous short-term guests, such as the seminar, conversations late into the evening in pajamas were often followed by seeing each other once again first thing in the morning, often before everyone had fully woken up and sometimes before regular maintenance to their appearance had occurred (such as brushing their hair, putting on
makeup<fnref n="406" />, or changing into their clothes for the day). The social closeness facilitated through staying together was something that I often heard expressed as a notable feature of what they enjoyed about coming to and staying at TEC, including by non-Japanese people new to the faith and those who did not consider themselves to be followers. The experiential component of sharing one’s room with others encouraged important Tenrikyo values and practices, such as comradery, cooperation, and communal life during concentrated periods of engagement with the religion to be intensified. Although it should be mentioned that tensions which existed through people’s prolonged immersive contact with others were also occasionally present.

More prominent, though, during such periods of staying in close proximity to others who were also actively engaged in the religion was a tendency for a sense of benevolence between those present. During public moments at TEC, as it is more difficult to say what occurred in the private realm of long-term staff and residents when no “outsiders” were present, a culture reflective of such a benignantly oriented group focus was encouraged. This behavioral orientation was manifested in numerous ways, including the performance of small gestures, for instance by serving drinks to others during meals and refreshment breaks, speaking with others in an understanding and caring manner, and engaging in various acts aimed at helping or cooperating with others.

The social world of TEC was created and recreated over time through a consistency in the underlying behavioral mode and emotionally linked sociality that was maintained for the most part, despite a fluidity in the precise composition of social actors involved. This was facilitated by the perpetuation of key components of a “Tenrikyo culture” through the presence of followers already solidly enculturated with this social modality, such as TEC residents and seminar staff as well as through specific features which reaffirmed its continuation in those already grounded in it and which newcomers and less involved people were included in while there.

The theme of acting in unison and making communal efforts toward a greater whole was encouraged through established components of staying at the center. While there, regardless of

<footnote n="406">⁴⁰⁶ During the seminar, it was common for women who often wear makeup in other social contexts to forgo wearing it during the seminar, particularly as the program went on and social barriers between those present were increasingly removed.</footnote>
the reason, people would usually take part in the communal residential side of TEC. This included assisting with morning “hinokishin” chores, taking part in Morning and sometimes Evening Services<sup>407</sup> performed as a group in the sanctuary, partaking in communal meals most often prepared chiefly by Eriko Kawakubo (for which other women, including some staying more temporarily at the center, also commonly helped with), and simply spending time with others there. Also included in the experience of staying at this religious center for organized events was the discussion of Tenrikyo teachings in both formal and informal contexts. During the seminar, these components were included as more structured components of the program through the inclusion of twice daily organized hinokishin sessions, the prominent place of the Morning and Evening Services, structured book and practice-based classes, and the significant place that the thrice daily communal meals held in the overall experience.

Many of the people who stayed at TEC found a home away from home there through its welcoming environment. In my own experience, as was common, my relationships with people with whom I shared time and space while staying at the center were often cultivated through the behavioral mode and communal sociality put forth that encouraged amical social interactions. For Tenrikyo followers visiting from overseas, this sense of belonging at TEC was encouraged through its somewhat familiar cultural ambiance, mode of operation, and materiality. For followers who already had significant exposure to Tenrikyo contexts, being at TEC was a reentering of a familiar socio-religious framework. Behavioral components of the group, as well as the intellectually based components of the teachings, were not unique to TEC but existed in like manner in the broader realm of “Tenrikyo culture<sup>408</sup>.” Their continuation at TEC was partially brought about via a revisiting of a previously developed disposition by the religious actors who had been enculturated with it in this and other Tenrikyo contexts and in combination with an inclusive transferal to newcomers.

<footnote n="407"><sup>407</sup> During organized gatherings at TEC, both the Morning and Evening Services were performed together as a group. Based on the comments I heard regarding more quiet periods when the center was not hosting such gatherings, followers often performed the Evening Service when it suited their individual schedule rather than at a set time as a group.</footnote>

<footnote n="408"><sup>408</sup> I elaborate on the concept of “Tenrikyo culture” more later.</footnote>
Propagating a transnationally shared “Tenrikyo culture” in a localized context

One shared component that linked the seminar that took place at TEC to this broader “Tenrikyo culture” was the similarity it shared with other Tenrikyo trainings. Most prominent was its close resemblance to the three-month spiritual development course of Shuyoka held in Tenri City that served as an important formative experience in the lives of many followers, including many of the core members of the “TEC community.” This resemblance was commented on by multiple people included in my research population familiar with both programs. The European Seminar and Shuyoka were discussed as being similar to other religious training programs held in both Tenri City and also at non-lineage based centers in the United States, Korea, Brazil, and the Republic of the Congo according to discussions I had with followers over the course of my fieldwork who had firsthand familiarity with them. Given this evoked similitude, participating in the seminar at TEC meant also partially taking part in the non-place specific pedagogy and experience of similar religious training programs held elsewhere.

When discussing the role of such Tenrikyo trainings in the transmission of a religious base and model of spiritual development, Shuyoka merits specific attention due to the prominent role it held in the formative experiences of many core members of the “TEC community,” and those of Tenrikyo followers based in other geographic locations. It was positioned as the principal spiritual formation program in the religion, rendering it a familiar frame of reference for the content it conveyed and also for its structure and role in cultivating a deepened relationship to the faith. Followers born into the religion, particularly those in Japan, typically (though not always) attended Shuyoka as young adults, thus encouraging its teachings and its experience to significantly contribute to who they were as adult members of the religion.

The most common language of delivery for this program was Japanese, but Shuyoka programs in other languages were also held in an effort to render the program accessible to a wider range of followers. As of April 2016, approximately 662,000 people had completed the Shuyoka program since it was established in 1941 (Tenrikyo online 2016b). In addition to their Japanese language sessions which started a new cohort every month, Shuyoka trainings in English were held every year along with sessions in other languages such as Thai, Chinese, Nepali, Portuguese, French, and Spanish with varying levels of frequency.
People who took part in the European Seminar as students were generally classifiable into one of several categories. For followers born into the faith in Europe (the majority of whom had Japanese missionary parents), it was most common to attend the program as young adults. Another commonly represented category were individuals of diverse ages who came to embrace (or have interest in learning about) the faith as adults in Europe. People of this category were generally not Japanese or of Japanese origin. Most commonly, these participants were coming<sup>409</sup> from France and the United Kingdom as a result of these two countries having the most significant representation of the religion in Europe. This was also because the seminar was generally comprised of an English-language instructional cohort and a French-language instructional cohort<sup>410</sup>. The other significantly represented category of participant was that of Tenrikyo followers from other countries (such as the Republic of the Congo, Korea, and Japan) who often had already participated in a similar training in their home country<sup>411</sup>, but wished to deepen their knowledge of the faith and competency regarding how to discuss it with people from other linguistic and cultural backgrounds.

All of the trainings similar to the European Seminar and to Shuyoka mentioned slightly previously utilized the same principal textual materials as the main component of the theoretical portion of the training, which in each case comprised about half the day, in combination with structured formation in the religion's ritual components and organized hinokishin activities for the other structured part of the day. Another shared feature that added to the comprehensive experience of the trainings were the communal meals and shared living quarters that rendered one's experience of taking part in the training a fully immersive one. At these intensive trainings, not only did participants learn the theoretical and practical course material taught through the structured instructional sessions, but they also learned, or further cultivated, particular ways of

<footnote n="409">409 I say “coming from” rather than “were from” because participants were similarly somewhat commonly immigrants in these countries, or otherwise from abroad for shorter periods for which the term “immigrant” does not fit.</footnote>

<footnote n="410">410 The diversity of seminar participants was even more extensive the second year I took part in the program because that year, for the first time, a German-language cohort was additionally added to the program.</footnote>

<footnote n="411">411 In Japan, this is most commonly the three-month spiritual development course of Shuyoka. In Korea, it is similarly a three-month course of a different name. In the Republic of the Congo, similar to at TEC, it is a three-week course.</footnote>
being reflective of the broader “Tenrikyo culture” that was a common thread which ran through
numerous dispersed Tenrikyo contexts. This was demonstrated through both my direct
observations and also through comments indicating as such by followers who were familiar with
them.

I discuss all these components as they existed in the European Seminar in this chapter. In doing
so, I am simultaneously describing this specific annual training at TEC that numerous members
of its community had taken part in as students and/or staff and also to a certain degree, offering a
descriptive point of reference for similar programs that took place elsewhere which served as
formative experiences in other localities throughout the Tenrikyo diaspora. Through the shared
format of such trainings, a common foundation of the doctrinal, historical, and ritual components
of the religion and its embodied practice was fostered between disparate Tenrikyo followers. By
means of these localized trainings such as the European Seminar that were only partially place-
specific, followers did not need to leave their country<sup>412</sup> to participate in the experience that was,
in part, transnational.

The communal way of life encouraged through staying together in shared housing was an
important part of the overall structure of the transnationally shared elements of the training. At
TEC, this was through staying with other seminar students and staff in the guest housing adjacent
to the main building. This shared residential component of the seminar was a commonly present
element of numerous other Tenrikyo trainings that took place both in Tenri City and elsewhere,
such as several trainings held in the United States and Korea. I learned of this shared component
through followers who had taken part in these trainings talking about this feature as a prominent
aspect in their overall experience.

For participants of Shuyoka in Tenri City, shared housing took the guise of staying at one's grand
church followers' dormitory<sup>413</sup> at which one shared living space not with one's Shuyoka cohort
but with others of one's own lineage. In trainings elsewhere, such as those I heard about in the
US and Korea, the general format was to stay on-site with others taking part in the program.

<footnote n="412">412 Or, in the case of participants in the seminar held at TEC coming from European countries other than France, their continent.</footnote>

<footnote n="413">⁴¹³ I discuss the followers’ dormitories in Tenri City in further detail in chapter nine.</footnote>
Despite this difference in precisely with whom one shared living quarters, the inclusion of communal housing in a religiously focused context and location rendered one's immersion into a concentrated Tenrikyo world during these periods of structured formation a more fully comprehensive experience in which the focus on the religion and its social world was extended into one's off hours. In both the shared housing in Tenri City and also that of TEC during the seminar and other occasions for which its guest housing hosted numerous people for organized events, a similar Tenrikyo model of communal life was practiced, thereby creating an experiential bridge between such contexts. At both TEC and in the dormitories in Tenri City, people shared space with others who, in like manner, were focusing their minds and their actions on the religion and its teachings.

Generally, staying in either of these residential settings included sleeping in a room with others, often with people one did not previously know, and sharing time in a partially home-like environment. Prolonged conversations focused on the faith and on personal parts of one's own life and commonly, a sense of benevolence toward others were notable threads that I observed to run through both settings. These tendencies were encouraged through conceptual and enacted components of the religion such as hinokishin (i.e. making efforts directed toward the benefit of others) and uniting oneself harmoniously with others through the Service along with the religion's encouragement toward reflection and fraternal relations. I do not wish to imply that either residential setting was one of complete harmony or in complete accordance with these evoked similarities but rather to highlight the parallels between these two connected settings that fostered an experiential congruence between them.

The largely similar Tenrikyo trainings that occurred in disparate locations were a contributing factor to the existence of a wider “Tenrikyo culture.” Regarding my use of the term “Tenrikyo culture” that I have already employed numerous times thus far, I would like to note that it is not a nomenclature or concept that I formulated myself through my own anthropological interpretations. Rather, it is one that I heard used and discussed at numerous TEC gatherings and also on occasion by followers in other locations, such as during my fieldwork in Japan, most notably while in Tenri City, and also through my internet-based observations of discourse by followers in the US. Most often, the existence of a “Tenrikyo culture” was simply woven into discussions on other topics. When I heard it mentioned in group settings, its existence was
something that those present generally expressed agreement with. Though, it should be noted, this sentiment was not unanimously shared by all Tenrikyo followers I met throughout my research, which I will elaborate on later.

This broader shared Tenrikyo culture, which I explore in further detail in the following pages, was a key factor of the ease with which Tenrikyo followers coming from elsewhere were integrated into scenes that took place at TEC and into the “TEC community.” Tenrikyo culture was one primarily based physically and culturally in Japan, but which also spanned beyond this place-specific context by means of serving as a bridge between disparate Tenrikyo sites and followers to connect those of the broader group. This partially non-place specific “culture” was a contributor to the existence of the two-tiered “TEC community” by rendering one’s anchorage to the modality present in this group’s core one that was somewhat transferable from one Tenrikyo site to another<fnref n="414" />, though as I have discussed, this was not the only contributing factor to who was and was not part of the core of the “TEC community.” Conversely, the existence of a Tenrikyo culture at TEC was also an important factor which contributed to the belonging that many members of the “TEC community” had to the wider transnational sphere of Tenrikyo, even if they were not part of this group’s core.

As explained by Kato (2017a: 90), “Tenri culture<fnref n="415" />” (*Tenri bunka 天理文化*) is not a formal doctrinal term found in the official religious texts of The Doctrine of Tenrikyo, the Ofudesaki, the Mikagura-uta, or the Osashizu. It is, though, the only terminology that employs the term “culture” (*bunka*) in published discourse used by the Shinbashira and other prominent figures in the religious organization. Moreover, as asserted by Kato (ibid), “this term can at times discursively connect the religious tradition of Tenrikyo with culture and cultural practices associated with Japan…” He further explains that this terminology has been used to reference other aspects of the Tenrikyo tradition. The original meaning mainly referred to the foundress’ teachings as

<footnote n="414">⁴¹⁴ To a certain degree, this shared similarity was particularly pronounced in contexts composed largely of Japanese followers, as there was somewhat of a blur between Japanese and “Tenrikyo” culture, thereby encouraging Japanese Tenrikyo social actors to be particularly at the core of this way of being.</footnote>

<footnote n="415">⁴¹⁵ Because “kyō” is the standard Japanese suffix used in the names of religions which translates approximately to “the teachings of ...,” “Tenrikyo culture” and “Tenri bunka (culture)” present sometimes in Japanese texts contains the same meaning.</footnote>
constructed in the post-WWII period that focused on restoration efforts to return to how the path
was understood to have existed during the foundress' life before alterations to it were made out of
pragmatic adaptations to governmental restrictions. In addition to this meaning, though, Kato
(ibid.) argues: "In some instances, however, this terminology is used in a way that connects
particular cultural practices associated with Japan with Tenrikyō." Often, there was a blurring
together of these two types of "Tenri culture" that came to form a greater whole.

In my observations in combination with comments made by followers at TEC, this broader “Tenri
culture” or as I refer to it, “Tenrikyo culture” was one that was present at disparate Tenrikyo sites.
This “Tenrikyo culture” included numerous conceptual constructs and enacted practices
reflective of the religion and the broader realm of Japanese culture that came together to form a
greater whole. For example, in both the wider sphere of Japanese culture and in the Tenrikyo
faith, purity was a prominent conceptual construct. In the Tenrikyo faith, this value was promoted
through both general Japanese practices such as removing one’s shoes before entering intimate
spaces<fnref n="416" /> and through Tenrikyo-specific practices. The most prominent of which was the ritual of
the Service, performed with the goal of purifying one’s heart, and also those of everyone in the
world, of the “eight dusts of the mind.” Another example of the duality of Tenrikyo culture being
reflective of broader Japanese culture while also being Tenrikyo specific was displayed in how
meals were opened by placing one’s hands in the “namaste” position and clapping twice before
eating. This practice was reflective of the Japanese tradition of placing one’s hands in the
“namaste” position and saying “*itadakimasu*” (“I am receiving”) as a culturally scripted way of
expressing gratitude to the people and to the *kami* (gods/ spirits/ nature) who contributed to the
food being there to partake.

At TEC, at the beginning of communal meals that often included both Japanese and non-Japanese
people, although the Japanese word of “*itadakimasu*” was not said, the tradition as it existed in
the broader sphere of Tenrikyo was continued by everyone first placing their hands in the
“namaste” position, then clapping twice in unison before starting to eat. That this was a
transnational Tenrikyo practice grounded in the religious actors present was illustrated by a

<footnote n="416">⁴¹⁶ In Japan, shoes are generally removed before entering any dwelling. At TEC, although shoes are worn in almost all areas of the main building, shoes are removed before entering the sanctuary.</footnote>
Congolese follower born and raised in the religion in the Republic of the Congo referencing this
ritualized way of opening meals to be a standard part of Tenrikyo gatherings at her Congolese
church. Furthermore, the presence of this Japanese ingestatory marker among members of the
broader transnational Tenrikyo social collectivity was also demonstrated through Tenrikyo
followers I met in Tenri City, such as numerous Brazilian and American followers<sup>417</sup>, also
performing this practice.

Contained in this brief pre-meal act was a blurring together of Tenrikyo-specific and Japanese
practices. Clapping twice prior to meals, then beginning to eat at precisely the same time was a
synchronized engagement of the bodies of those present that encouraged a sense of coordinated
unison between members of the group. Although this prescribed ritualized marker only took a
few seconds, it is interesting to note that it was also in accord with numerous practices beyond the
Service, such as the ritualized care given to the altars and their surrounding area and the other
organized collaborative hinokishin tasks included as part of the seminar which I discuss later in
this chapter. Such engagements linked those taking part in them to the broader social whole of the
Tenrikyo group they were presently with and, for those familiar with these practices in other
Tenrikyo contexts, with the broader realm of Tenrikyo culture. By beginning meals in this
manner during the European Seminar, just as in numerous other scenes that took place at TEC,
those who were new to Tenrikyo were incorporated into the sociality of Tenrikyo culture through
their mirrored enactment of this Tenrikyo practice. Moreover, this Tenrikyo practice was
incorporated into the embodied beings of those taking part in this brief act through their repeated
execution of it three times daily before meals.

Another important feature of Tenrikyo culture was the religion's significant usage of Tenrikyo-
specific vocabulary. Some of these terms were words that were otherwise part of the Japanese
language which carried in them different meanings in Tenrikyo. Other Tenrikyo terms (often
compound words) did not otherwise exist in the Japanese language, with most such words having
been conveyed by the foundress to her followers. Although these Tenrikyo terms were commonly
used by followers in disparate settings, their precise definitions often displayed a lack of exact
congruence between followers. This lack of strict definitional conformity, though, was expressed

<footnote n="417">417 Most people of these two countries are of Japanese origin</footnote>
as normal, even desirable, by people charged with teaching others about the religion. This stance
was often accompanied by the explanation that because the people interpreting these terms were
different, the existence of numerous interpretations was normal. The use of these terms, though,
was a widespread feature of Tenrikyo and one that was important to expressing and shaping the
worldview of the faith.

As discussed by Bénéï (2008), language acquisition involves the development of skills to use
language in socially appropriate ways and make meaning of culturally relevant contexts and
activities. Thus, the acquisition and use of Tenrikyo-specific vocabulary was learning and
practicing “being” a Tenrikyo person. Not only was Tenrikyo-specific vocabulary used as a
means of communication, it was also an important mechanism of engaging in membership in this
religio-social group and of shaping the conceptualized meaning of their actions. Contexts aimed
at forming people into a particular framework, which in the case of my research are Tenrikyo
centers such as TEC, “draw upon, amplify, and crystalize senses of linguistic belonging while
making the latter’s ideology explicit and further anchoring it in lived and experienced bodies”
(Bénéï 2008: 83).

For those already situated in the transnational Tenrikyo culture which included a generous use of
Tenrikyo-specific terms, such as the core members of the “TEC community” and others
previously involved in the religion, engaging in simple practices that were a part of Tenrikyo
culture often reconnected them to a social, mental, and embodied involvement in the religion.
This shared experientially developed connection to the overarching socio-religious sphere was
brought about in disparate locations and in different church lineages through the maintenance of
established commonalities. These commonalities were promoted, in part, through the hierarchical
organization of the religion which joined all Tenrikyo sites to supervising entities linked directly
or through further hierarchical connections to the overseeing body of Tenrikyo Church
Headquarters in combination with established practices between these sites through shared
traditions and officially defined practices. By means of these inter-site commonalities, a
connection to and enactment of a particular model of social interaction was encouraged, through
which participants in the European Seminar were connected to a broader Tenrikyo social model.
Conversely, this broader model was grounded and further developed in the participants of the
seminar (and also other contexts at TEC). As a result, we can see that such trainings served,
amongst other functions, as pointed moments of inculcation and practice of this disparately
shared Tenrikyo culture.

*Interpretational flexibility in combination with fixed structure: the role of the Service in
transmitting the faith*

In Tenrikyo, the vagueness of its teachings and key terms were generally understood to be
deliberately unclear in order to facilitate reflection by followers who will each understand them
differently depending on their own character and point of spiritual development, which are
understood to change over time in both this life and in their future lives. This longitudinal
perspective of spiritual development is reflective of the belief that when a person dies, they are
leaving their physical body to be reborn into a new body at some unspecified time in the future.
As I heard explained by core members of the “TEC community” during the seminar and other
formal and informal moments of discussion on the faith including other structured religious
gatherings, post-Monthly Service sermons, and one-on-one conversations, the importance of deep
reflection upon Oyasama’s teachings was explicitly conveyed through the last line of the
Ofudeski, which states: “I earnestly request each and every one of you to ponder deeply over
these teachings.” (Ofudesaki XVII: 75). That this was the only line in the original Japanese text
not to be written in waka-style poetry was commonly cited as evidence that this statement was
meant to be differentiated from the rest of the text or emphasized in relation to all other lines of it.

Comparable to how the discussion of and reflection on group-specific terms facilitates
ontological understanding in the field of anthropology (Sperber 1996), discussion of and
reflection on Tenrikyo terms, concepts, accounts, and teachings were commonly held to facilitate
spiritual growth. In both the former and the latter of these ideologically rich referential contexts
of analysis and reflection, it is the shared familiarity with these terms, rather than how they were
precisely understood, that functioned as a marker of membership in the group. In Sperber’s
discussion of the lack of a precise definedness of terms commonly used in anthropology in
reference to the discipline’s “interpretive vocabulary,” he states: “...fuzziness of anthropological
terms is no obstacle to their use. Fuzziness is never a hindrance- if anything, it is a help- to the
establishment of resemblances,” (1996: 21). Similarly, the fuzziness of Tenrikyo vocabulary (and
their related concepts) lent itself well to their widespread use, and to a collective belief in the
existence of the concepts understood to be conveyed through these often-vague religious terms.

Sperber (1996) states that the distribution of reflective beliefs, which are not the result of
perception and unconscious reflection, is something that occurs openly. Reflective ideas are not
only consciously held, they are also reflectively spread. Because the distribution of different types
of reflective beliefs is easily observable, he argues that it should be obvious that different types of
reflective beliefs reach a cultural level of distribution in very distinct ways. For the case of my
study, his description of how a myth becomes a culturally distributed representation is most
pertinent:

A myth is an orally transmitted story which is taken to represent actual events
incompatible with intuitive beliefs. Therefore, for a myth to be accepted without
inconsistency, it has to be insulated from intuitive beliefs: that is, held as a reflective
belief. A myth is a cultural representation; this means that the story is told (given public
versions) often enough to cause a large enough proportion of a human group to know it
(have mental versions of it). For this, two conditions must be met. First the story must be
easily enough and accurately enough remembered on the basis of oral inputs alone. Some
themes and some narrative structures seem in this respect to do much better cross-
culturally than others. The changing cultural background affects memorability, too, so that
the content of a myth tends to drift over time so as to maintain maximal memorability.

Second, there must be enough incentives to actually recall and tell the story on enough
occasions to cause it to be transmitted. These incentives may be institutional (e.g. ritual
occasions where telling the story is mandatory); but the surest incentive comes from the
attractiveness of the story for the audience and the success the story-teller can therefore
expect. Interestingly, though not too surprisingly, the very same themes and
structures which help one remember a story seem to make it particularly attractive.
(Spencer 1996: 95).

For a myth to be believed as true from a rational perspective rather than as simply an enjoyable
story, credibility must be attributed to the source relating it, typically that of elders who
themselves came to believe the myth to be true due to the credibility of the elders who previously
related it to them. A perpetuated belief that lends itself to multiple interpretations increases its
likelihood of cultural success (Spencer 1996). In discussing how cultural representations are
passed from one person to another, with the story of Little Red Riding Hood as an example,
Spencer (1996) states that most cultural descendants are transformations, not replicas. This is
crucial to understanding Tenrikyo as it existed in its multiple forms both at the time of my research and previously. The organisational structure of Tenrikyo ensured control over the maintenance of a certain degree of unanimity between its sites of worship and followers. This was encouraged by the church lineage system through which all churches had as their highest authoritative “elder,” so to speak, Tenrikyo Church Headquarters and connectedly, the Shinbashira<fnref n="418" />.

Despite this partially uniformizing structure, the religion was not positioned as a path that should remain static throughout time and in all contexts. That the way in which followers contemporarily understood the teachings was different than how the original followers understood the teachings when they were first conveyed by the foundress was often discussed and asserted to be a good thing. In such discussions, the general evolution of certain ideological aspects of the faith was frequently attributed to the spiritual growth that had occurred in humanity since the teachings were first revealed. The context-based variations were often explained by a rationale circulated throughout the religion, including by means of official discourse, that because different cultures and the people within them evolved over time with the help of God the Parent to be what they are currently, it is thus completely normal and even a positive thing that the teachings are understood differently in different places.

In my observations at TEC, various Tenrikyo-related topics for which clear-cut, definitive answers were undetermined were sometimes speculated about in both official and unofficial religious discussions. In such analyses, combinations of what people had heard from others, and their own ideas were commonly discussed as possibilities to a variety of partially unknown aspects of the religion. Some followers relished such discussions while others were more interested in the experiential or faith-based components of Tenrikyo and did not seek out or necessarily enjoy theoretical discussions about the religion. This difference in how the faith was approached and experienced by followers at TEC was one contributing factor to the diversity of followers found there. At any religious event at this European center, there were numerous ways the religion was mentally/spiritually interacted with and experienced among people who

<footnote n="418">⁴¹⁸ As a reminder, the Shinbashira is the acting head of the Tenrikyo religion.</footnote>
considered themselves “members” of the religion. Despite this diversity in approaches to the religion, a sense of social cohesion remained a notable feature of such gatherings.

At TEC, especially in my observations during the seminar, there was a significant amount of discussion on how to render the Tenrikyo religion more culturally accessible and adapted to the disparate locations in which it existed, while still maintaining its core on both a deeper spiritual level and on the level of practice. The Service ritual, which continued to be orchestrated as it was originally conveyed by the foundress in the 19th century, was the key means through which the central spiritual and enacted foundation of the religion was maintained. This ritual was an oral, musical, and danced text of the religion’s principal teachings that featured a combination of easily decipherable and vague content. It was this ceremonial act that was conceptualized as the vital component of the religion around which all other aspects were based. Although followers were commonly encouraged to reflect upon the faith, and this component that served as a principle source of its mythology<fnref n="419" />, it was the practice of this ritual that was prioritized rather than how this and other aspects of the religion were interpreted and put into practice.

*Constructing inclusion in a community through interpersonal and visual means*

As discussed extensively by this point in my text, one prominent feature of Tenrikyo culture was its emphasis on communality. During the seminar, participants stayed at the center and spent all day with other participants and staff. Thus, over a short period of time, many hours were shared between those present. Additionally, the structure of the program and its content, which focused on comradery and spiritual development, encouraged people to share more intimate parts of themselves than they otherwise normally would in other contexts. While taking part in this training, participants spent almost every moment with one another and, if only momentarily, became largely like family to each other. This all-encompassing social experience was similar to a variety of other Tenrikyo trainings and was, in fact, an important component of such programs and of the “Tenrikyo experience” that was constructed in such purposefully collective contexts.

<footnote n="419">⁴¹⁹ My use of the words “myth” and “mythology” are not meant to convey a judgement on the factuality of these religious teachings but to reference the religious “story” that is contained in them.</footnote>
During these TEC-based seminars, similar to other Tenrikyo trainings, a small social world was constructed which included individuals connected in various ways to TEC, the greater European Tenrikyo community, and to the religion itself. Throughout the program, the Tenrikyo teaching that all humans are brothers and sisters and should live harmoniously together and mutually help one another (*tasuke ai*) was a main theme of both the theoretical and practical components of the program. These teachings were prominently manifested in the discourse and practiced ways of being displayed by those taking part in this immersive experience, thereby influencing the social proximity and type of interactions that occurred between them. This ontological framework also encouraged a feeling of connectedness that spanned out beyond the specific individuals present during a given year of the seminar to influence their conceptualized relationship to and interactions with both Tenrikyo followers in other contexts and also people outside of this religious sphere.

Not all seminar participants remained actively connected to TEC after completing the program, but at least while there, participating in this residential program, they were part of its community. Later, even if their presence at TEC did not continue, they nonetheless remained part of the fluid story of the “TEC community.” For those who completed the program, one way that their lasting presence was maintained was through the visual representation of the time they spent there. Each year since the inception of the seminar, group photos of those who had completed the program dressed in the Tenrikyo ceremonial wear of the kimono or hakama pant suit have been taken after performing a simile<fnref n="420" /> of the Monthly Service as the final event of the program. These photos were displayed together in the commonly traversed stairwell leading up to the sanctuary where they served as a visual record of a component of the center’s social history.

When I first came to TEC, the faces shown in these photos were mainly unknown strangers. As I became more integrated into its social world, though, I got to know many of the people in these photos, including to a certain degree, several participants who had since passed away who I slowly learned about through people who knew them. Although these late members of the “TEC community” were no longer a physically present or actively contributing part of this social world, their inclusion in this ongoing and interconnected social collectivity was continued through their

<footnote n="420">⁴²⁰ This performance was regarded as a simile of the TEC Monthly Service rather than a “real” Monthly Service.</footnote>
memory that ran through multiple segments of it. Their enduring inclusion was encouraged by
many members of this group by means of their recollection of these late members, as well as by
their more generalized contribution to the ongoing development of TEC and of the Tenrikyo
religion in Europe. Because the “TEC community” was composed of an interconnected matrix of
social relationships that spanned over space, time, and sub-spheres of the group, one did not need
to be included in a specific context to be included in its more expansive social world. Shared
memories, social connections, and points of reference were binding factors. Thus, connections to
or knowledge of the social history of this group was often linked to one’s level of anchorage in it.
The longer one was a part of it and the more connected one was to other members of it, the more
likely one was to be acquainted with its social history.

In addition to the lasting inclusion of previous participants through these photos whose presence
at TEC was not continued during the period of my fieldwork, their lingering presence was
sometimes also maintained via their connection with active members of the TEC community<fnref n="421" />
who relayed their news to other members of the group. Their presence was also influential
through their contributing influence on how the program and the center subsequently operated as
both were in the ongoing process of development. Furthermore, their momentary presence also
contributed to the overall group through the shared memory of their presence that remained at the
center and in its connected social realm. This is just one example of the multilayered social world
of TEC that spanned beyond specific moments in time and place to include a more expansive and
eclectic social whole. Included in the expansive construction of this multifarious “community”
was the physical body through which these connections occurred. The next part of this chapter is
dedicated to a focus on this component of the group’s construction as it existed during the
seminar.

<footnote n="421">⁴²¹ This statement inferentially excludes the several participants who had since passed away.</footnote>
b. Establishing a connection with each other and the religious world of Tenrikyo
through the body

*Morning and evening hinokishin: developing a Tenrikyo disposition through
repeated bodily engagement in communally orchestrated chores*

Another important way those taking part in the seminar were implicated into the religious realm of Tenrikyo and that of TEC was by means of their physical bodies. This physical involvement began first thing in the morning. During the European Seminar, the majority of our time from early morning until evening was scheduled. Our day started at 6:45 am each day with designated chores referred to as “hinokishin<fnref n="422" />.” To designate which “hinokishin” each of us would perform, there was a printed schedule of who was assigned to each of the allocated tasks displayed both in the back of the sanctuary and in the hallway on the ground-level floor which we all passed through frequently. Our assigned hinokishin duties, which participants and staff performed together once in the morning and then again in the mid-afternoon, changed twice a week, each time with different groups of generally three or four people taking part in each task.

These groups were often composed of a mix of people from different linguistic backgrounds and roles at the seminar (students, instructors, support staff, accompanying children<fnref n="423" />) who commonly did not share space during other parts of the program. Thus, these organized hinokishin sessions were a key component of the program that facilitated shared time and collaboration through a structured activity between the wider spectrum of people present. Such shared moments were conduits of social connection between the individual participants that often expanded to include an inferential connection to the broader “TEC community” through a particular model of cooperation included as a component of activities at this center. Although our engagement in these chores labeled as “hinokishin” might appear to many onlookers to simply be

<footnote n="422">⁴²² The following year, I participated in the French cohort of the seminar. In this group, the subject of if this allocated time should really be referred to as “hinokishin” since this twice-daily scheduled block of time consisted of required chores rather than voluntary acts of service performed out of gratitude to God the Parent was raised. After some discussion on the matter, it was generally agreed that these allocated blocks of time were to practice the act of performing hinokishin rather than necessarily hinokishin itself.</footnote>

<footnote n="423">⁴²³ During my first year of participation in the seminar, the children of two women participating in the French cohort stayed with them at TEC during the three week training, in one case a single child and in the other, four children.</footnote>
mundane moments of center upkeep amidst the broader training program, they were, in fact, key
moments of community construction and social connection, with the latter being positioned in
Tenrikyo doctrine as one of the main goals of human existence.

From my vantage point, whether or not these assigned duties were functionally necessary or
highly useful, and whether or not there was a need for a team of three or four people to perform
each of the assigned tasks was at times debatable. The focus, though, similar to many other parts
of the seminar program and the religion in general, was not simply on streamlined efficacy, but
rather on developing in oneself through practice important Tenrikyo tenets such as *tasuke ai*
(mutual help) and hinokishin: that is, acts of service performed voluntarily out of gratitude to
God the Parent. From an official Tenrikyo perspective, in our participation in these various tasks,
it was not of primary importance *what* we were doing, but rather *how* we were doing it, with the
intention behind our actions being of principal importance. I heard numerous French seminar
participants talk about that when “hinokishin” was obliged by others, as it was during the
seminar, that it lost its sense of being “hinokishin” because it was then no longer voluntary.
According to this perspective, the essentially obligatory twice daily hinokishin sessions were
therefore paradoxical through their definitional voluntary character being categorically removed
through their scheduled requirement.

Although the official doctrinal emphasis of hinokishin focused on the intention with which the
action was performed, in practice both at TEC and in various Tenrikyo contexts in Japan which I
observed, the emphasis in organized “hinokishin” engagements was often placed principally on
the action that was executed, thus making our observable actions an important component of
engagement with the religion. In this, there was a frequently present duality in which hinokishin
was positioned as both a personal voluntary spiritual endeavor grounded in intention and a
socially compelled act. It is interesting to note that this duality was also present in other important
components of the religion, such as performance and/or attendance of the Service and attendance
of the Besseki lectures and the rite through which one becomes a “Yoboku” that followed.

The specific tasks which made up our assigned hinokishin sessions contributed to our lived
experiences of taking part in the seminar and were also reflective of similar hinokishin
engagements that occurred in a variety of other Tenrikyo contexts in its broader global sphere.
Thus, a detailed description of what these “hinokishin” tasks concretely entailed is merited. Both in the morning and afternoon sessions, most of the hinokishin tasks were dedicated to cleaning. This was reflective of the fact that cleaning was the most common activity of structured “hinokishin” sessions in Tenrikyo contexts throughout the world. Although in theory, hinokishin could take many forms as it was the intention with which it was performed that rendered it as such, in practice in official contexts, the form it most commonly took was reflective of the emphasis in Japanese culture on cleanliness and purity. Generally, these organized acts of service focused on cleaning various spaces to make them more enjoyable for others, often with direct reference to how nice the clean space will feel for other people. It was sometimes also put forth in instructional moments on the religion that such cleaning efforts are somewhat analogous to the Service performance in which efforts are being made to clean away “dusts” from one’s heart.

During the organized hinokishin sessions of the European Seminar, several groups were tasked with cleaning various parts of the main TEC building and the residential building through standard cleaning procedures (scrubbing toilets, mopping floors, etc.) Another group was charged with cleaning the general seating area of the sanctuary by wiping the chairs and sweeping the floor. A separate group was tasked with attending to the altars and the ritual space surrounding them through specific highly scripted methods, which I discuss in more detail in the next subsection. In the morning, a group was charged with preparing a breakfast that would be waiting for everyone once they descended to this space after having performed the Morning Service that followed this morning hinokishin session. In a complementary role, another group composed of several people, often three or four, was tasked with walking to a local bakery to purchase the fresh baguettes that would compose the central component of breakfast. In the afternoon, a group was assigned to attending to the outdoor space in the front of TEC grounds through simple gardening tasks, etc.

My earlier comment that the number of people allocated to certain hinokishin tasks did not always appear to be functionally necessary for their orchestration was made in particular reference to the task of buying baguettes. While doing this did necessitate a certain amount of

<footnote n="424">424 As a reminder, the performance of the Service is taught as a means conveyed by the foundress to “sweep away” the “eight dusts” that have accumulated on our hearts over the span of many lifetimes, thereby hindering our physical, social, and emotional well-being.</footnote>
time as it involved an approximately 10-minute walk in each direction<fnref n="425" />, it was not practically necessary to have three or four people assigned to this task as the bread could have easily been put in a bag and transported by a single person. That this trip was allocated to three or four people demonstrated the social nature of participating in these organized hinokishin tasks as a key element, rather than their focus being solely their completion in the most efficient manner possible.

Normally, if a group completed their assigned hinokishin tasks and time remained before the next scheduled activity, participants would go to the other groups' hinokishin task areas<fnref n="426" /> to see if they could help with the remaining work. Similar to other TEC events, and in accordance with Tenrikyo culture in general, there was an extreme emphasis on helping one another displayed during these scheduled hinokishin periods. People would sometimes roam from one location to another until they found a task they could help with, creating an intensified atmosphere of mutual help at the center which contributed to the community-oriented atmosphere of the seminar.

How the allocated hinokishin sessions of the European Seminar, and those of other organized “hinokishin” engagements that took place at both TEC and in other Tenrikyo contexts, were approached was a purposeful construction reflective of an idealized mode of Tenrikyo sociality that seemed to come about “naturally.” The manner in which these hinokishin tasks were assumed was reflective of Tenrikyo values such as living joyously, mutual help, and evidently, the performance of hinokishin that were enacted in specific ways not belonging to a precise location but rather to the broader whole of Tenrikyo. This “Tenrikyo manner” of enacting these values via their hinokishin activities was evidenced to similarly exist in other Tenrikyo contexts<fnref n="427" /> through my firsthand observations in Japan, by speaking with followers based

<footnote n="425">⁴²⁵ This is an approximate estimate of the amount of time it took to walk to a bakery. In my experiences of participating in this hinokishin task, we went to two different bakeries because one was closed during part of the seminar for their annual summer vacation. The time between TEC and these two bakeries varied slightly.</footnote>

<footnote n="426">⁴²⁶ This is excluding the ritual space at the front of the sanctuary because it was not possible to casually join this highly ritualized duty mid-way through its execution</footnote>

<footnote n="427">⁴²⁷ I do not wish to imply that all Tenrikyo sites were in strong accordance with this social modality and manner of engaging in organized hinokishin activities as I did not observe all Tenrikyo sites or regions in which this religion was present to know how they existed in all contexts.</footnote>
elsewhere, and via textual and online exploration of other contexts, with most of the information I
was exposed to outside of Japan and Europe being reflective of Tenrikyo as it exists in the US<fnref n="428" />.

These cultivated ways of being that contributed to a broader Tenrikyo culture were notably
transmitted and reinforced in concentrated Tenrikyo contexts, such as the seminar, thereby further
developing this behavioral modality in the involved participants, in the greater Tenrikyo group(s)
of which they were a part, and in the social ambiance and mode of operation of the sites, such as
TEC, themselves. It also encouraged the individuals engaged in such efforts to be included,
during those moments, as members of the group with which they were collaboratively working,
largely regardless of if they were established members of the group and/or the broader Tenrikyo
social world or if they were new or peripheral to them. Such moments of purposefully
constructed collective engagement contributed to the social cohesion between the participants,
which then contributed to a feeling of community that expanded out to the broader “TEC
community,” and for some not-yet established members of it, to their connection to this broader
social world and to the broader social whole of Tenrikyo due to the commonly shared mode of
sociality and commonly engaged activities.

The culturally imbued character of these organized hinokishin sessions was not unique to
Tenrikyo, but rather was also included in numerous other “Japanese” contexts, thus rendering a
discussion of how such a model exists elsewhere within the broader cultural framework from
which this religion originated and was based interesting in relation to its engagement and
meaning. One such instance of this can be seen in the parallel between the ritualized cleaning
framed as “hinokishin” in the Tenrikyo tradition and that of “samu” (meaning work) in the Zen
Buddhist tradition, as discussed by Reader (2005). To examine the deeper meaning and purpose
of *samu*, he used the example of his being charged with sweeping leaves outside a temple one
winter morning along with five others despite there being no broom for him to use, in contrast to
the other five who had one at their disposition, nor there being many leaves to remove from the
ground due to the combination of this task already being orchestrated daily and that no new
leaves were falling as the autumn season had already passed.

<footnote n="428">⁴²⁸ This accentuated look into Tenrikyo's existence in the US was mainly due to the sizeable presence of the religion there, the connectedness Tenrikyo in Europe and Tenrikyo in the US and my shared linguistic and cultural commonality with followers there that facilitated our exchanges.</footnote>
As a result, I came to reflect on the extent to which *samu* was not simply a functional procedure. It also made it clear to me that the importance of work, in this respect, was in the performance of an action rather than with its practical ends, and that, for those of us in the garden, or at least the lucky five with brooms, the central issue was of going through the motions, with a ritual performance that stated both to themselves and to all around that they were doing the right thing in the proper way at the correct time. Cleaning and sweeping the garden was a ritual performance, and hence, as with ritual in general, its importance need not primarily, or at all, be with the external actions involved but with the inner meanings they symbolized.

The concept of work is intrinsic to the whole of Zen Buddhist thought and practice. Although Zen, as its very name implies, is centered on the practice of meditation, the life of Zen monasteries has, from the outset, incorporated various other activities as well, all of which may be seen as forms of meditation in their own right. (Reader 2005: 92-93).

Reader goes on to explain that the routines and life patterns of Zen temples incorporate periods of work that are treated as meditations in which all staying at the temple are obliged to participate. This is similar to the inclusion of organized hinokishin sessions into numerous Tenrikyo contexts, including that of its religious trainings such as the European Seminar and the largely analogous trainings that occurred elsewhere throughout the Tenrikyo diaspora. It was also present in a variety of shorter organized Tenrikyo events, particularly those which included an overnight component, as well as in the daily practice of residential life at TEC, as discussed in chapter four. The communal nature of these hinokishin sessions, which were positioned as a means of promoting spiritual advancement, too, were a feature of Tenrikyo that was shared with similar Zen temple practices.

In performing these tasks, trainees were expected to maintain the concentrated mind of the meditation hall, and to use the periods of work as a form of moving meditation. Like all spiritual exercises in the Zen temple, which stress the importance of the community of monks and hence of the idea of enlightenment itself, as a social as well as an individual event, work was as much social as individual. By contributing to life of the temple, by working with one's fellows, and improving oneself, one is considered to help and contribute to the lives of others- a social contribution that brings further benefit to the individual (Reader 2005: 93).

During the seminar and other organized hinokishin sessions I participated in at TEC and elsewhere, including multiple Tenrikyo sites in Japan, their communal nature was a prominent feature which functioned as a solidifier of group cohesion. They encouraged a feeling of
membership in the group and the creation and reinforcement of social bonds both between the individual participants and between these individuals and the broader collective group. Supporting this observation is that in the above discussed work, Reader (2005: 93) goes on to state that it is not only Zen Buddhism which elevates mundane work into a spiritual practice and transforms cleaning into a symbolic and ritual performance, but that similar motifs are also present in many Japanese new religions. He specifically discusses the performance of hinokishin in Tenrikyo regarding the enactment of ritualized cleaning as a spiritual act akin to how it exists in Zen Buddhism.

While *hinokishin* can refer to all types of actions (for example, missionary work) done for others, one prominent expression of it is in the voluntary work members put in at Tenri centres to keep the place running smoothly and, as with the ritualized polishing activities in Tenri corridors<fnref n="429" />, clean.

Again, as with Zen temples, it seems not to matter all that much whether the surface that is swept and polished actually, in purely practical terms, needs cleaning... Behind the action of cleaning and working in conjunction with the notions of active service to others and joyous participation in organized group and social activities, there is, as with Zen, a definitively metaphorical dimension to such ritualized cleaning, and one which relates not just to the idea of 'polishing the soul', but, in Tenrikyō, to the religious interpretation of the causes and healing of illness. (Reader 2005: 97-98)

In the concept of *hinokishin* in Tenrikyō, acting for others is an integral part of the creation of a sense of group cohesion, belonging and identity which provides the individual with a framework in which *s/he* can feel at home. The humble attitude that one should take in performing such menial tasks as cleaning helps to sublimate the ego and bring all members of the group into a feeling of community and harmony in which all strive for a communal good that is equated with the individual good...

(Reader 2005: 93).

As also discussed by Reader (2005: 94-95), the emphasis placed on organized cleaning, even when there is little or no visible need to do so, serves as a demonstration of discipline in the individual and of their dedication to the group. This functions as an important contributor to the development of a feeling of community present not only in religious contexts in Japan but also in numerous other settings that take place in Japan, such as “volunteer” community trash clean-ups

<footnote n="429">⁴²⁹ This comment was made in reference to Reader's slightly earlier reference to the constant presence of followers polishing the wooden floors of the outer areas of the Main Sanctuary of Tenrikyo in Tenri City as hinokishin.</footnote>
that are, in fact, largely socially mandated. Similar to Reader's experience of being charged with
the sweeping of leaves at a Zen Buddhist temple despite the lack of a broom for him to use nor
any significant presence of leaves, such "voluntary" community clean-up activities commonly
involve little actual clean-up as there is often little trash to pick up in the areas they are held.

This community building feature of organized collective cleaning sessions was also present in the daily cleaning of school buildings included at the end of each school day which school children throughout Japan collectively take part in as a component of their contribution to the social and physical world of which they are a part. During my year-long study abroad exchange at a Japanese high school, I participated in these end-of-the-day cleaning sessions. Like all the other students at the school, I was assigned to a group of five or six students from my homeroom class that rotated through various tasks to contribute to the upkeep of our school. This pattern was mirrored in how our hinokishin activities of the seminar were organized.

Through such ongoing contributions to the well-being of the group via the bodily engagement of cleaning even when such efforts did little to improve the actual cleanliness of the setting toward which their labor was being directed due to it already being clean, dedication to the group and discipline of the individual through a particular embodied structure was cultivated. The underlying meaning and purpose contained in organized cleaning activities, such as the three discussed above, may not be actively enunciated in the expressed thoughts of Japanese people. Nonetheless, because such structured efforts, complete with their numerous associated meanings, are contained in diverse contexts of Japan, they are interwoven into the cultural logic and matrix of logical engagements that religious actors coming from this country, or closely rooted to it, have included in their habitus. In this, we can see that one factor among many which contributed to the two-tiered nature of the "TEC community" with mainly Japanese followers positioned at its core and non-Japanese people positioned at its periphery was the manner in which such organized hinokishin sessions fit more neatly into the broader cultural framework of Japanese people.

Conversely, for religious actors not coming from a Japanese cultural context, like the French
participants mentioned above who vocally questioned the logic of mandated "hinokishin"
sessions, a less than direct approach could be difficult to accept as a naturally logical engagement
when the pragmatic reasons for their orchestration appeared to be largely absent. Despite their
vocal questioning of these scheduled “hinokishin” sessions, in my observations, everyone present nonetheless actively took part in them, thereby embodying the emphasis placed on communally working together for the collective good of the group, despite their intellectual skepticism of the activity. This was an example of the sometimes-present discordance between intellectually based positions and enacted engagements in components of the religion.

Often in such cases, it was not belief in the religious meaning of an activity that served as
motivation for its engagement but the socially encompassing nature of it. Their transformation
into or solidification as members of a Tenrikyo-based mode of sociality and identity was not
based exclusively, or perhaps even primarily, in the domain of intellectual belief. Rather, its
construction and solidification took place largely in the realm of repeated embodied engagement.
The actions performed by the body played in contributing to the relationship that the eclectic mix
of social actors had to the religion, and to each other, was, as discussed previously, a prominent
component of my research context. In the following subsection, I will discuss the occurrence of
this in the highly scripted ritualized attendance of the altars and the surrounding space that was
included as one of our structured hinokishin activities.

*Uniting with others and with the faith through structured moments of sacrality that took place in the sanctuary through ritualized tasks*

As indicated in the previous subsection, the ritualized attendance of the altars and the surrounding area on which the Service ritual was performed that was located on the raised “sacred” area at the front of the sanctuary was a highly scripted and ritualized task that was included among the organized hinokishin activities we took part in during the seminar. This task was of significant importance to TEC, as it was to other Tenrikyo sites, because it was these altars (and what they symbolize) that were at the center of the religion and its practice<fnref n="430" />. Although the other hinokishin tasks were largely focused on the visible and concrete orchestration of the material functioning of the seminar and of TEC, this task was primarily focused on the spiritual importance of the ritually based attention it was accorded.

<footnote n="430">⁴³⁰ In a literal sense, it is the sacred point of the Jiba in Tenri City that is of central focus in the faith, but as the altars to God the Parent at TEC and other Tenrikyo sites are representative of this sacred point, and furthermore, are</footnote>
Those charged with this important religious duty would first put on special white clothing<sup>431</sup> reserved for this task consisting of a white happi coat and white pants worn over one's regular attire along with white *tabi* socks<sup>432</sup>. They would have a white paper mask reminiscent of a medical mask<sup>433</sup>, as mentioned in chapter three when I first saw this material facilitator of purity during my initial attendance of a Monthly Service, that would be worn over their nose and mouth when placing offerings in front of the altars, preparing the offerings beforehand, and/or cleaning the altars. This ensemble which denoted purity was worn by those orchestrating this ritual task for both the more "public" scenes of it, such as during the seminar when it was jointly carried out by generally four or five people as part of the program's training in the religion, and also in more "private" scenes when these tasks were attended to by a lesser number of people when only "insiders<sup>434</sup>" were at TEC. The donning of this white ritual wear in "private" contexts when only TEC residents were present demonstrates that it was not worn as a sartorially focused performative act for onlookers but for inter-relational reasons with the entities represented through the altars, with the ritual space, and with oneself while engaging in this ritually-based act of care.

Through a posture of reverential respect enhanced through sartorially enacted purity directed toward the entities represented through these altars and toward those with whom one participated in this ritual that entailed scripted synergetic cooperation with others for its execution (except when executed by a solitary religious actor); this demeanor was further solidified by means of its embodiment in those who participated in it. This enacted and embodied demeanor was then

materially and spiritually linked, a concordant importance is accorded to the altars at Tenrikyo sites. I will expand on this point later in my text.

<footnote n="431"><sup>431</sup> The use of white clothing is to symbolize purity and is similar to the Shinto practice of wearing white clothing to symbolize purity, which is of great importance when approaching a *kami* (god/spirit). From a pragmatic perspective, the white socks which must be worn to walk on the area where the Service is performed easily show dirt, thus their cleanliness can be much more easily guaranteed than darker colored socks.</footnote>

<footnote n="432"><sup>432</sup> Japanese socks with the big toe separate from the others, which accommodates the wearing of thong sandals.</footnote>

<footnote n="433"><sup>433</sup> It is the same type of mask that the ritual actors wear during TEC Monthly Services when placing offerings in front of the altar dedicated to God the Parent. As discussed in chapters two and three, these masks are worn as a symbolic expression of respect by avoiding contamination via one's breath toward this highly revered figure that is reflective of the broader importance placed on purity in Japanese culture.</footnote>

<footnote n="434"><sup>434</sup> This refers to TEC staff and other core members.</footnote>
transferred to the wider Tenrikyo spheres, including that of the “TEC community,” of which they
were a part. This component of the seminar, that was also included as a component of residential
or often highly participatory involvement with a Tenrikyo site of worship was similar to
numerous other components of religious engagement through which particular relational
dispositions toward the religion, others, and oneself were cultivated through structured means.
Such engagements were influential to these three spheres of engagement through both the action
of the task itself and the intention with which it was conducted.

Although the precise tasks in the morning and in the evening for this important hinokishin
activity differed slightly, the underlying current of its ascribed meaning and what it cultivated in
the religious actors was the same. In the morning, this hinokishin task entailed cleaning the raised
area on which the Service was performed, the musical instruments of the Service, and the altars
themselves. It also included placing the food and drink offerings in front of the altars. In the
afternoon, this task involved again cleaning the three altars, taking down the offerings placed
there in the morning which would be later consumed by those at the center, and preparing the
majority of the food offerings to be placed in front of the altars the following morning. In the
morning segment of this hinokishin task, we first used specified white cloths to wipe the floor on
which the Service was performed by hand and, with separate cloths, to clean the five musical
instruments used in the daily Morning and Evening Services. Then, in the morning just as in the
evening, the altars were cleaned with ritualized care by wiping them with other white cloths
allocated specifically for this purpose to clear away any dust that had accumulated since they had
been last cleaned a half-day before.

In my experience of participating in this task of highly detailed cleaning, no dust (or only an
extremely small amount) was visible when we started the task, yet, an attentive cleaning of each
of the altars was performed each morning and evening. The metaphor that was enacted through
this task, and in other cleaning-based hinokishin activities, in relation to the importance placed on
“sweeping away dusts from one’s heart” twice daily through performance of the Morning and
Evening Services should not be overlooked. I was told by numerous followers throughout my
research that Tenrikyo is not something one understands through intellectualization but through
practice and interaction with it over time. That this ritualized hinokishin task was reflective of the
importance placed on cleaning away metaphorical spiritual “dusts” is an interesting component of
how followers increasingly internalized the faith. By engaging in such tasks, they were
developing the faith in their physical and spiritual selves in a way different from, but connected
to, the intellectually based study of it.

Included in this cultivation by means of this hinokishin task was the physical dust being something separate from the altars that was removable through religiously prescribed actions executed with care in relation to the spiritual “dusts” that were removable, in like manner, through religiously prescribed actions (and their accompanying prescribed thoughts) executed with care. In both, it was the removal of foreign pollutants that was regarded as important to the maintenance of, or restoration to, the subject of focus. Relevant to a discussion of this paradigm is its presence in other contexts. For example, the demons discussed in Csordas’ 1994 work on Catholic charismatic healing bear a close resemblance to the “dusts” taught to exist on the hearts of people in Tenrikyo. As noted by Csordas, in both Catholic and Protestant demonologies, evil spirits cast out of a person were almost invariably named for how they act on a person, such as those named Anger, Depression, Lust, etc. (1994: 181).

Similarly, the “eight dusts<fnref n="435" />” were named tendencies that were viewed to negatively affect a person. In these Catholic and Protestant charismatic healing practices and in Tenrikyo, it was their removal from the “real” person, regarded as separate from these negatively viewed tendencies, that was thought to be restorative in bringing the person back to a physically and emotionally improved state. In these frameworks, religiously prescribed treatments were enacted to decontaminate the person’s authentic self. That a physical manifestation of the importance placed on regularly clearing away “dusts” was included as part of the seminar and as part of life in general at TEC through the ritualized cleaning of the altars and their surrounding area is pertinent to how the religion’s ontology was instilled in those who took part in it through the body. Not only were the religion’s core teachings instilled via theoretical discussion, they were also imparted through enacted engagement with them.

The offerings given daily to the entities represented through these three altars that were also included in this hinokishin task further facilitated the enactment of another key Tenrikyo tenant,

<footnote n="435">⁴³⁵ Miserliness (*oshii*), covetousness (*hoshii*), hatred (*nikui*), self-love (*kawai*) grudge-bearing (*urami*), anger (*haradachi*), greed (*yoku*), arrogance (*koman*).</footnote>
that of “mutual help” (*tasuke ai*). In the morning after the ritual space, the musical instruments,
and the altars had been cleaned, our next step was to bring out the day’s offerings to the altars.
When bringing out the offerings, and when taking them down each evening, we followed the
same prescribed ritual procedures that were enacted at the beginning of the TEC Monthly Service
by passing each offering from one religious actor to another through officially scripted bodily
movements conducted in the same manner at all Tenrikyo sites<sup>436</sup>. Through the prescribed
motions that were performed by each religious actor in mirrored accord with the people they
received and passed these offerings to and from, dispositions of discipline, respect, and working
harmoniously with others were embodied in those who took part in this task. For some, this ritual
act was something that was only experienced for a short period of time during the seminar. For
others, these actions were a familiar part of their lives through which the bodily dispositions
enacted through this ritual became part of their habitus of behavior, interpersonal relations, and
discipline.

The inclusion of attending to this sacred ritual space, among the other organized hinokishin
activities, was not simply for its functional orchestration. This duty could have been attended to
by staff members already familiar with the involved ritual procedures in a much more time-
efficient manner as it was an activity which necessitated the guidance of multiple staff
members<sup>437</sup>. Its inclusion served as an instructional component of the program aimed at having
participants take part in a component of the religion that generally occurred “behind the scenes.”
Through including participants in this task, the boundary between the “inside” and “outside”
realms of the religion was partially transcended. As discussed in chapter four, the differentiation
between the “inner” and the “outer” is a commonly present theme in, and an important
component of, Japanese culture. Thus, the purposeful creation of a partial bridge between these
two levels of interaction with the religion through the inclusion of this hinokishin activity was a
noteworthy method of integrating seminar participants into the faith and rendering them more
intimately connected with it.

<footnote n="436">436 In some more private settings, the offerings may be put out with slightly less strict adherence to the precisely specified movements, depending on the site and the people charged with overseeing them.</footnote>
After our morning hinokishin duties and again toward the end of the day's structured seminar program, we would assemble together in the sanctuary for the Morning or Evening Service, composed of the Seated Service and one of the thirteen Mikagura-uta dances, which we rotated through in subsequent order, performing one each Service. Through our engagement in this performative ritual that lasted approximately fifteen minutes, numerous relational interactions were brought about. Firstly, through engaging together in the sonoral, visual, and kinesthetic components of it in unison, participants were observably uniting themselves with each other in a sensorially-rich manner through their bodies. Secondly, they were returning to their inner selves through the practice of this ritual that served as a meditative pause through this familiar form of embodied prayer. Lastly, theoretically and often in practice, those taking part in the Service were uniting their hearts/minds with God the Parent, the foundress, and the sacred point of the Jiba and also with fellow followers both at the point of the Jiba in Tenri City and elsewhere throughout the world who were also directing their intention in performing the Service toward this spiritual aim. The three-tiered relational engagement that was encouraged through this short, twice-daily ritual contributed in numerous ways to the feeling of community that was a notable part of the seminar.

These three levels of relational connection was a theme that ran throughout the collection of religious actors included in my study which was renewed each morning and was returned to each evening when the day was nearing its end through the enactment of this ritual. The most obvious of the three relational factors mentioned above which encouraged this social ambiance was the unison brought about through their physical bodies' engagement in the ritual through which a synchronicity between participants was brought about in a sensorially tangible manner. Not only was the religion a set of teachings processed through the intellect, it was also one experienced through the body. One's engagement with it, such as during the ritualized twice daily hinokishin sessions for the altars and their surrounding area and also through the Service, was one that took place actively by means of the body.

The inner meditative quality of this ritual and the prescribed unification with God the Parent, the foundress, the Jiba, and other followers throughout the world further contributed to the

<footnote n="437">437 Generally, a young adult staff member and an older staff member jointly guided us through this activity in which the young adult largely assumed the role of an assistant and the older staff member served as the main instructional authority.</footnote>
community-centered nature of the seminar in two important ways. One was that its introspective quality encouraged an amiability in their interpersonal interactions. The other was that it served as a shared experience that was a subtle, yet key point of unification between those who engaged in it. Similar to Monthly Services held at TEC, the Morning and Evening Services of the seminar also functioned as key social unifiers which contributed to the overall sociality of participants and of the program. In both the performance of this ritual and in the ritualized attendance of the altars and surrounding area, an important feature which magnified their impact was the sacred meaning that was attached to these engagements. Through this, although the amount of time invested into these endeavors was moderate, the importance attributed to them was substantial, thereby enhancing their influence in the group.

*Feeding bodies, feeding community: the important role of women's efforts in the kitchen*

After we performed the Morning Service, facilitating a feeling of connection with ourselves, the faith, and each other, we then descended two floors to have a prolonged breakfast that began at 8:00 am. During this morning meal, participants, instructors, and other staff members chatted leisurely, with some retreating earlier than others to get ready for the day or relax before classes began at 9:00 am. This meal that was prepared through the collaborative efforts of those assigned to this morning hinokishin task was simple and consisted of freshly purchased baguettes<sup>438</sup>, butter, various jams and other such spreads, as well as yogurts placed on each of the tables that participants and staff sat at together. Also placed out for participants were with cold cereal, milk, and fruit on one table situated on the side of the room, and coffee, tea, juice, and water on another.

At the beginning of breakfast, beverages from this table were served by young adult staff members. It was common for this manner of serving others to continue throughout the meal. When one person sitting a table would get up for a drink, they would generally ask the others at their table if they would like something, thus enacting the Tenrikyo value of "mutual help" in a very basic manner. It was also common for young adult staff members to pass by the tables with

<footnote n="438">438 These baguettes are a special treat for residential staff who only have them on special occasions, such as when there are guests at TEC, in comparison to the industrially produced sliced white bread from a supermarket that they usually have.</footnote>
pitchers of coffee and tea, asking those seated if anyone would like some. In both instances, this
serving of drinks was reflective of a Tenrikyo behavioral model commonly present during TEC
gatherings in which a specific type of helping others reflective of a Tenrikyo mode of sociality
was enacted and encouraged.

Similar to the meal served after TEC Monthly Services, which as discussed in chapter five played
a pivotal role in cultivating the feeling of community for those coming together for this ritual
gathering, the three meals served daily during the seminar were an important part of the program
that helped strengthen the connections between those present. While getting breakfast ready was
included in the morning hinokishin tasks, it was the TEC head wife, Eriko Kawakubo, who was
largely responsible for the orchestration of these morning meals by leading their preparations.
Moreover, in accordance with Eriko's head wife role, during the seminar, she worked from
morning until evening, attending to multiple "foundational" tasks of the program along with other
women who also took part in this foundational role of the seminar as hinokishin. This included,
but was not limited to making sure that the three daily meals and numerous other small details
necessary for the seminar to run smoothly were attended to with care. Although the breakfasts did
not involve extravagant preparations and were largely arranged by the rotating collection of
people at the seminar through these hinokishin groups, the lunches and dinners prepared
exclusively by these women helping with the seminar as support staff were more elaborate and
labor intensive, often including a significant number of dishes made with care for others to enjoy.

Some of the women who helped with this important component of the seminar were Japanese
followers living in the local Paris area who were core members of the “TEC community.” Several
others were Japanese non-local core members of the “TEC community” who came annually, or
most years, from other locations in Europe where they resided to help with this component of the
seminar. Despite their geographic distance from TEC, they were included as core members of its
“community” through both their semi-regular presence at such events and also through their
maintained connectedness with TEC and its social world. During my two years of participation in
the program, all women serving as staff members had been born and raised in Tenrikyo
families<sup>439</sup>, often at Tenrikyo churches. Thus, the particular social modality of Tenrikyo culture

<footnote n="439">439 It should be noted that two Japanese women who are core members of the TEC community, both of whom entered the religion through marrying men of the faith, who have mission-stations at their European homes were</footnote>
present in dispersed Tenrikyo sites was a central part of their upbringing and connectedly, of their habitus.

Commonly, these “core” women hosted mission stations in their European-based homes and thus organizationally and in practice were positioned at the center of Tenrikyo efforts to spread the faith to this continent through its lineage system, which, as explained in the previous chapter, was the organizational system through which new followers came to officially be a part of the religion. Several other women who regularly served in this foundational role of the seminar did not host mission stations but were nonetheless key members of the broader “TEC community” that spanned across numerous European countries. I will use the Japanese woman in her mid-thirties named Haruka mentioned previously in relation to her “non-believer” Dutch husband as an example. Haruka was a core member of the TEC community who generally came to TEC to help prepare meals at the seminar for one-week every year along with usually several other annual occasions, most commonly for gatherings that brought together members of the wider TEC community.

Haruka did not have a mission station at her home, and thus was not involved in making efforts for the path through welcoming new followers into her own mission station. She was, though, a core member of Tenrikyo's efforts on the European continent in other ways, such as having started the three-day youth retreat of Palette at TEC for young adult European-based Tenrikyo followers (and other interested persons) at the request of the Tenrikyo Overseas Department⁴⁴⁰. She continued to organize this program, along with the collaboration of several other young adult core members of the TEC community, for a number of years before handing the responsibility to another young adult core member “to let someone else have the opportunity.” Thus, although she was not making efforts for the path through the operation of a lineage-based site, she was making efforts otherwise to strengthen its presence in Europe, including through her coming to TEC to assist with the orchestration of these programs on an average of several times a year.

<footnote>not helping with the seminar because they were in Japan with their children for the Tenrikyo Pilgrimage to Jiba festival and to visit family and friends over summer break. These women are otherwise quite active in helping with the orchestration of other TEC events and thus it would be incorrect to insinuate that there was a solid divide between the level of involvement between followers born into and not born into Tenrikyo families, though to a certain extent making such a generalization would be accurate.</footnote>
While a motivation to come and assist with the seminar and other Tenrikyo endeavors at TEC was to perform hinokishin by helping orchestrate events where participants may deepen their understanding and practice of the path and those working as staff may also advance spiritually, another motivating factor to serve as seminar staff, and likewise to come to TEC for a variety of other events, was to share in the atmosphere cultivated at these functions. The particular mode of sociality and operation that took place in these contexts contained a recognizable Tenrikyo character that could be found at Tenrikyo sites elsewhere as well. Such events that took place at TEC functioned as a bridge to a broader social (and cosmological) context situated principally, though not exclusively, in Japan.

Almost all seminar staff were Japanese or of Japanese Tenrikyo parents born abroad. Most were raised at Tenrikyo sites of worship or in the case of several who were not, were otherwise strongly connected to Tenrikyo sites of worship, such as having lived at one during a portion of their life. As numerous individuals indicated to me, and as was demonstrated during my own time at multiple Tenrikyo sites of worship in Japan, although sites in Japan, and TEC, contained their own uniqueness in terms of organization, tradition, and theoretical interpretation, they also shared a strong thread of similitude. Thus, although TEC contained its own site-specific features, it also functioned as a partial experiential portal to Tenrikyo sites in Japan with which these seminar staff were closely linked. Included in these sites' congruity with each other was an adherence not only to Tenrikyo culture, but also to traditional Japanese culture more broadly.

Women serving in an idealized foundational role was not unique to the Tenrikyo religion. As indicated in chapter four in reference to Eriko's assumption of the role of “TEC head wife,” it was also a central component of the traditional role of Japanese women in which women often made exhaustive efforts for the well-being of their family in accordance with the traditional emphasis on the group, rather than the individual, and the ideal role of Japanese women being positioned as “good wives, wise mothers”<fnref n="441" />.” Thus, the core Japanese women of the “TEC

<footnote n="440">⁴⁴⁰ Based in Tenri City.</footnote>

<footnote n="441">⁴⁴¹ I heard this female tendency to overexert oneself in domestic tasks and the risk it holds to adversely affect women's well-being cautioned against at a talk given at the end of a monthly mother-toddler group for Japanese mothers held at TEC. In this talk, the group's organizer, who was a key female member of TEC, told the young mothers that the most important thing for their children is for their mother to be well, or more specifically “genki.” She cautioned them to not overexert themselves in their motherly endeavors but instead to be okay with preparing</footnote>
community” who assumed this role during communal moments at TEC were enacting a key component of their socially idealized identity as it existed in both the Tenrikyo and Japanese cultures in which they were born and raised<sup>442</sup>. In participating in such contexts, they were returning to a central component of their culturally promoted selves. This mode of being was often one that they had normalized and enacted from an early age that was transmitted and encouraged through both formal and informal discourse and observation. While each person was encouraged to be their own agent of reflection, they were also taught to follow the foundress’ teachings that included the divinely established naturalness of gendered differentiation and the importance of working toward the benefit of the whole through complementary collaboration (the principal of two-in-one<sup>443</sup>).

During my time at TEC, as a woman myself, I spent more time in female spaces. Thus, I often found myself in the kitchen where communal meals were prepared while chatting with other women, most but not all of whom were Japanese. This was one of the many examples of the commonly present subtle divide between Japanese followers, many but not all of whom were born in the religion, and people of other nationalities. Though as noted previously, this was not the center's intention. For the women involved in such communal domestic tasks, time spent together in the kitchen provided mutual social support in a casual, familial environment from which they derived strength to take with them into the rest of their lives. In speaking with various women about their time spent at TEC, much of which was dedicated to domestic tasks such as cooking and cleaning, it was often conveyed that they enjoyed and benefitted from their participation in such collective efforts and, though less often directly stated, from the sense of community that it encouraged. In this, we can see that although their efforts were namely directed toward the benefit of others, they were also benefitting from such collective endeavors rooted solidly in their Tenrikyo and Japanese-based habitus.

just simple meals because if they are genki, then their children will also be genki, thus it is important to prioritize their own well-being so that they can then share it with others. (To refresh the reader's memory, genki (元気) is an extremely commonly used Japanese word composed of the kanji characters 元 origin) and 気 energy.)

<footnote n="442">442 As mentioned previously, several of the core women of the TEC community were Japanese women who came to follow the Tenrikyo faith later in life. In such cases, although they were not born and raised in the Tenrikyo religion, they were raised in Japanese culture with which Tenrikyo culture strongly intersects.</footnote>

<footnote n="443">443 Futatsu-hitotso</footnote>
In accordance with the enunciated goal of their work, the meals that came about via the efforts of these women also provided key enjoyable, informal moments through which social bonds were formed and strengthened. Such shared moments of dining strongly contributed to the feeling of community that came about during the seminar which helped construct, maintain, and strengthen the existence of the longer term and multi-layered "TEC community." Although the women serving in this role were not charged with the instruction of the book-based seminar classes that I discuss in more detail in the next subsection, they were key agents in the creation of the experientially based learning that occurred in this and a variety of other contexts by means of the community atmosphere that they fostered. They laid a foundation for the mode of sociality at the center of the faith and of the "TEC community." Thus, although their role was often largely unseen, their influence was central to the construction of this group.

Despite not being a markedly religious component of the event, these meals were an important component of the seminar (and other TEC events) that contributed significantly to the overall experience of the seminar. The importance of these often-elaborate meals was highlighted, for example, by a male instructor from elsewhere in Europe who came to TEC every year to help with the seminar who told me, somewhat jokingly, that he came for the delicious food. While this comment was said with humor, it showcased the central role these meals had in the program and in the experience of those taking part in it.

Another comment made by a different male staff member also showcased the importance of these meals. In this case, it was a young adult residential missionary helping with certain aspects of the seminar for a part of the day as hinokishin while also teaching Japanese at ACFJT during another part of the day. As the youngest residential staff member (aged twenty-six) in a group where hierarchy was culturally associated with age, I noticed that this young man was often attending to a variety of small tasks quite late into the night and was then awake with us the following morning at an early hour for our structured morning hinokishin tasks. During the day, he spent a significant amount of time at ACFJT and often arrived back at the center during or after our dinner that began at 7:30 pm. One evening, I commented to him over an evening meal he arrived late to after returning from work that I didn't know how he had the energy to do all that he did
with so little rest and sleep<fnref n="444" />. He replied that he sometimes was tired but that social moments of conversation, such as the one we were having, gave him energy (made him genki<fnref n="445" />). Though stated in a slightly indirect manner, he expressed a view that these communal meals which fostered prolonged moments of amical togetherness provided him with vitality and well-being which helped counteract the busyness and fatigue that was also part of his experience as a residential young adult staff member.

The socially important nature of such commensal moments was a common theme of TEC gatherings. During the seminar, congruent to these three daily meals, the fifteen-minute breaks that were scheduled between each of the class sessions also provided moments of informal sociality which played a key role in the construction of interpersonal relationships between those present. During the time of these breaks, which were most often spent in the lounge/library room of TEC where coffee, tea, and other light refreshments were available, we commonly chatted with one another about a variety of topics, often but not exclusively related to the material we were studying during the seminar and other Tenrikyo topics. These relaxed moments contributed to the social connections which came together to form the “TEC community.” They also encouraged integration into a broader Tenrikyo mode of sociality through the localized site of TEC. Through this, the construction of both the intergroup “TEC community” and a connection to the broader Tenrikyo realm was facilitated. These and other similar key moments were largely facilitated by women who often operated in the background to ensure the “foundation<fnref n="446" />” for the well-being and successful functioning of the group was in place.

In this, we can see that the warm “foundation” of the center and its connected community was largely constructed through the meals (and somewhat through the refreshment breaks) people at the center gathered for and over which relationships were created and strengthened over time. This served as a key component in the well-being that this center, its community, and the religion provided to its members and was often the key point of attraction to newcomers. Traditionally

<footnote n="444">⁴⁴⁴ I would like to note regarding this that he often did seem quite tired.</footnote>

<footnote n="445">⁴⁴⁵ As a reminder, genki (元気) is a frequently employed Japanese word composed of the kanji characters 元 (origin) and 気 (energy).</footnote>

<footnote n="446">⁴⁴⁶ In Tenrikyo, women are regarded as the foundation of the collective whole, whether that be a marital relationship, a family, a group of Tenrikyo followers, etc.</footnote>
both in Japan and elsewhere, people most commonly became Tenrikyo followers after having received healing through the Sazuke for physical ailments, often grave in nature. In Europe, though, where the faith was relatively new and where there was, in modernity, a good standard of healthcare, people were more commonly attracted to Tenrikyo not for the physical healing it could offer but rather for the non-physical benefits in their overall well-being that the faith and its connected community could provide. This feature of TEC, and of the broader religious world of Tenrikyo it was a part, was largely put forth by the warm atmosphere promoted through the efforts of such core women.

Though commonly discreet, these women were key actors in the transmission of the faith and the largely non-physical healing it provided in this modern European context. Furthermore, they were also the main facilitators of the warmly communal social ambiance of the center that was a main draw of individuals not born and raised in the Tenrikyo faith who came to TEC and were involved in its social world, including in the case of some seminar participants. Thus, although the structured classes positioned organizationally as the central component of the seminar were most commonly instructed by men, the overall program was jointly constructed into what it was through the complementary collaboration between these two largely, though not entirely, gendered components of it.

### c. Transmitting the religion through a transnationally shared pedagogy

*Text-based classes: structured schooling of a transnationally shared Tenrikyo knowledge base*

The structured class sessions of the program functioned as a way of constructing an intellectually and ritually based foundation of the religion in the participants that was similarly present throughout much of the TEC, and more broadly Tenrikyo, social collectivities. The dispersal of this shared religious base was organized much like a school day. Each class session was fifty-five minutes in length, with a fifteen-minute break between each one. The classes were of similar content to Tenrikyo trainings that occurred elsewhere, such as the Shuyoka program in Tenri City. They were also comparable to Tenrikyo training programs held at disparate Tenrikyo
locations throughout the world<fnref n="447" />. Due to the non-place specific character of much of the program's content and structure, by participating in the European Seminar, participants were connected to a transnational Tenrikyo experience and knowledge base. This contributed to a component of an experientially and cosmologically based foundation of the wider global Tenrikyo realm that connected followers throughout the world to the religion and concurrently, with other people who had also participated in such a training or were otherwise familiar with the material. The shared foundational component conveyed through the seminar was a mechanism that connected disparate individuals and groups.

In thinking of the interplay between the local context of the European Seminar and the wider transnational Tenrikyo realm it belonged to, discussions on globalization and transnationalism are highly pertinent. Kurotani (2005:9), for example, affirms that a good anthropological study on globalization must ask and attempt to respond to two complementary questions: “How is the local constructed vis-à-vis the global, and in turn, how do locally constructed cultural ideas and practices influence social actors in their engagement with social processes?” Although the principal focus of my study is not on the topic of globalization, these two complementary questions are highly relevant to my research, and to this precise subsection focused on the employment of transnationally shared materials in a training program that is similar in content and structure across the broader Tenrikyo scene. In accordance with Kurotani’s assertion, how the participants of the European Seminar, that was by default influenced by the local context where it was occurring, encountered this locally orchestrated training that was highly similar to numerous other Tenrikyo trainings orchestrated in both Tenri City and other transnationally dispersed locations was a prime example of the “local” being influenced by the “global.” Conversely, the specific scene of the European Seminar and more generally, how Tenrikyo exists in Europe, influences how these religious actors engage in Tenrikyo in both this precise local context and more generally.

<footnote n="447">⁴⁴⁷ My personally gained knowledge of the content of similar Tenrikyo trainings held in other contexts is principally from conversations with followers from Korea, the United States, and the Republic of the Congo who have gone through and/or take part in putting on trainings similar to the European Tenrikyo Seminar in their respective countries.</footnote>
In thinking of the interplay between the transnationally shared pedagogical materials, general structure, and broader similitude of dispersed Tenrikyo sites as discussed at various points of this thesis, and more precisely for this part of my text, the European Seminar, a highly relevant perspective can be found in Mooij’s (1998) assertion that, “think globally, act locally,” is flawed because how one “thinks globally” is constructed via one’s own cultural context. Mooij uses the concept of “glocalization” developed by Roland Robertson (1995) to discuss the importance of the “local” in the expansion of businesses in faraway locations where global businesses remain sensitive to the specificities of local markets. As explained by Robertson, the concept of “global localization” and the term “glocal” are both Japanese in origin. It is a strategy, he explains, used in business to adapt global marketing strategies to specific locations and originates from the Japanese concept of “dochakuka,” which comes from the word, “dochaku,” meaning to live on one’s own land and refers to farmers adapting their agricultural techniques to local conditions. Although the pedagogical materials used and the general structure implemented in the European Seminar are both transnationally shared, how they are precisely implemented and interpreted in this specific context is reflective of the locality in which it is occurring. Interestingly, as brought to my attention by Dessi (2013:1), there is a bulletin of the Tenrikyo Oyasato Institute for the Study of Religion titled “*Gurokaru Tenri*<fnref n="448" />” (Glocal Tenri) with the explicit intent of addressing issues related to globalism and localism, clearly demonstrating that it is an active component of the religion’s focal points and outreach efforts.

Relatedly, Iwabuchi (2002) uses Mooij’s and Robertson’s works in his analysis of how Japan encounters “Asia” in modernity by examining the diffusion of Japanese popular culture in Asia and Southeast Asia, with a specific focus on Japanese television programs and popular culture. Iwabuchi discusses the presence of popular culture in Japan which commonly features a notable presence of borrowing from and indigenization of American popular culture, such as that of television programs, despite that American programs had themselves achieved limited success. Whether a program or concept originated from the US or Japan was generally of minimal importance. What was important, rather, was that it contained a “Japanese odor” from localization. Conversely, Iwabuchi contends that most Japanese cultural exports are culturally “odor free” in both name and appearance, such as the Nintendo Mario Brothers. Although the

<footnote n="448">⁴⁴⁸ グローカル天理</footnote>
Tenrikyo training materials were Japan-centric due to the religion and materials having been developed there and because the sacred site of the Jiba is located in this country, they were adequately culturally neutral because they could exist in numerous contexts outside of Japan and be filtered through and interpreted by other culturally influenced lenses.

Furthermore, Levitt and Schiller (2006) argue that the lives of an increasing number of people can no longer be understood by looking solely at what goes on in national boundaries. This is applicable to the specific context of TEC, the European Seminar, and the broader Tenrikyo sphere(s) to which the people taking part in this specific training context belong. Instead, in agreement with Levitt and Schiller's (2006) argument, our analytical lens should broaden because "migrants," which in my research includes the religion of Tenrikyo itself, many of the social actors included in my study, and the transnational Tenrikyo sphere(s) of which they are a part, are often embedded in multi-layered, multi-sited transnational social fields, encompassing those who move and those who stay behind.

Numerous social theorists, such as Beck (2000), Faist (2000), Urry (2000), and Levitt and Schiller (2006) advocate for moving away from a social container way of thinking about nation states and societies in which each, in large part, exists independently on their own. The concept of social fields, as discussed by Levitt and Schiller (2006), as a tool for conceptualizing those who leave and those who stay behind is highly pertinent to my study. It moves beyond the direct experience of migration into domains of interaction that include people who do not themselves move but maintain social relations across borders through various means of communication. They explain, for example, that there may be one central individual who maintains a high level of homeland contact and is the node through which information, resources, and identities flow. In my research context, many of the core members of the "TEC community," such as those serving as seminar staff, function as the connecting "nodes" between numerous Tenrikyo contexts, namely those in Japan and Europe. Additionally, the main textual materials used in the European Seminar and in numerous Tenrikyo trainings in other locations also serve as connecting "nodes" between disparate Tenrikyo locations.
As stated by Levitt and Schiller (2000: 1010):

> The concept of social fields also calls into question neat divisions of connection into local, national, transnational, and global. In one sense, all are local in that near and distant connections penetrate the daily lives of individuals lived within a locale. But within this locale, a person may participate in personal networks or receive ideas and information that connect them to others in a nation-state, across the borders of a nation-state, or globally, without ever having migrated.

Levitt and Schiller (2000) then go on to argue that by conceptualizing social fields as transcending the boundaries of nation-states, we can also see that individuals within these fields are influenced by multiple sets of laws and institutions. This is directly applicable to my study because as the collection of social actors positioned as the core members of my research context belong to numerous transnational social fields, they are also influenced by the particular national contexts in which they are also operating. In specific reference to their involvement in Tenrikyo, the transnational spheres they belong to include, for instance, that of their lineage, that of the European collectivity, that of the US-European Tenrikyo sphere, and numerous other spheres associated primarily, though not exclusively, with Japan. While members of the “TEC community,” and participants of the European Seminar, such as those from France, the UK, and Japan are included in the transnational social collectivity I refer to as the “TEC community,” they are also influenced by the national contexts in which they are operating (and have previously operated).

Although the content, structure, and pedagogical materials are largely the same for the European Seminar and other such Tenrikyo trainings orchestrated in disparate locations, each location features its own particularities, largely in relation to the broader cultural (and national) context in which they are occurring. In my observations via participating in the English-language cohort the first year I took part in the program and the French cohort the second year<fnref n="449" />, differences were displayed that were reflective of the national (and cultural) contexts with which they were connected. For example, in the English-language cohort, we were reminded of and asked to respect “confidentiality” numerous times by our visiting instructor from Hawaii. Contrastingly in the French cohort, I heard no mention of this issue. Moreover, when I mentioned the issue of

<footnote n="449">⁴⁴⁹ Both cohorts had instructors and students of multiple nationalities despite being linked to the UK and France respectively.</footnote>
"confidentiality" that had been promoted as paramount in the English cohort to members of the French cohort, they expressed to regard the codified verbalization of this agreement to be excessive.

Despite differences in how the linguistically divided cohorts orchestrated the training, globally, the seminar encouraged an anchoring of participants to the religion through the solidification of their knowledge and practice of various components of it and also by means of the concentrated manner through which the seminar was conducted, thereby rendering the experience an all-encompassing one and heightening its impact. As denoted slightly previously, these transnationally imparted features were influenced in both their execution and reception through the specific context and participants involved. I will describe the program's content through a specific description of the classes from the first year I participated in the program, via its English-speaking cohort. Although the specific order of classes varied somewhat from year to year, the general format and content of the program remained the same. Through describing in detail my first year of participation in the training, I am effectively depicting the program's composition that remained constant and was generally shared between dispersed Tenrikyo contexts and followers.

In the first year I participated in this program, we began at 9:00 am with two subsequent fifty-five-minute sessions dedicated to the study of the “doctrine” of the religion, with a fifteen-minute break between each session. In this class, we studied the official “doctrine” of Tenrikyo, mainly by taking turns reading aloud an 84-page book titled, “The Doctrine of Tenrikyo<fnref n="450" />,” paired with discussion of the text. This approach of taking turns reading aloud an official Tenrikyo text and discussing it was similarly the main pedagogical approach of other theoretical<fnref n="451" /> classes of the seminar. The core content of the program remained similar to that of analogous Tenrikyo training programs orchestrated elsewhere by means of the same official Tenrikyo texts, assuring a certain

<footnote n="450">⁴⁵⁰ “The Doctrine of Tenrikyo” is an official Tenrikyo document published by Tenrikyo Church Headquarters initially in 1949, written by the second Shinbashira and designated advisors after the end of World War II once Tenrikyo was free of previous governmental restrictions through Japan’s new 1947 constitution drawn up by the Allied occupation which guaranteed freedom of religion and the separation of church and state. This new context of freedom from governmental restrictions inspired an attempt to go back to the basics of Oyasama’s teachings, before Tenrikyo went through generations of subsequent changes due to external governmental regulations.</footnote>

<footnote n="451">⁴⁵¹ Theoretical is meant to refer to book-based rather than practice-based classes.</footnote>
level of cohesion between disparate Tenrikyo sites and social actors. At the same time, it was
filtered through the specific local context through our discussion, thereby also rendering it
reflective of this precise context.

Following the two class sessions dedicated to the “doctrine,” we then had a theoretically based
fifty-five-minute class session on the Mikagura-uta songs. In this class, with the assistance of
text-based materials, we studied and discussed their words and associated dance gestures to better
understand their meanings or possible meanings as these sacred songs are understood to often
contain multiple layers of meaning that are not completely clear and upon which one should
ponder, thereby amplifying the influence that the specific participants had in their study of them.

After lunch, we then had two fifty-five-minute sessions of a class titled, “The Life of Oyasama”
which, as the name implied, focused on the foundress’ life and the early developments of the
faith. In this class, we covered both her early life until the age of forty-one during which time she
is explained to have lived as a “normal person,” unaware of her divine destiny, and also her life
thereafter when, at the age of forty-one, she became “the Shrine of God.” After this
transformative event, how she lived is positioned in the religion as “the Divine Model” which
followers are encouraged to use as a point of reference for their own thoughts and actions.
Through the foundress’ life being positioned in this divinely exemplary manner, it served as a
living, breathing sacred text bestowed by God the Parent and Oyasama to humanity as their
children to help guide our lives through her example.

Beyond this class serving as an allocated time to impart structured knowledge of a spiritual model
via the recounting of the foundress’ life, it also functioned as a history lesson on the era of Japan
when the faith came into existence which coincided with what is generally regarded as the
beginning of Japanese modernity. This historical contextualization was also explained to have
been included in the program so that followers would have a better understanding of the
numerous changes the religion has gone through over time, developing into what it is in the
present day. To cover this topic, similar to our morning classes, we again utilized the main
official Tenrikyo text on the subject, in this case a 242-page book aptly titled “The Life of the
Foundress,” by taking turns reading it aloud and discussing it.
During my first year of participation in the seminar, this was led by the sixty-some year old Hawaiian woman named Mary who was there as a visiting instructor that I first saw at the TEC Monthly Service the day before the program began. I would then see her again a year and a half later when we participated together in a gathering of English-speaking followers in Tenri City titled “Tenri Forum<fnref n="452" />,” which I discuss in chapter ten. In relation to the transnational character of such trainings and the broader interconnected transnational Tenrikyo social collectivity of which TEC was a part, it is interesting to note that at this international gathering, we also saw two other followers we both had gotten to know during the Seminar. One was a seminar instructor based in the UK and the other was Kenta, who had returned to live in Japan shortly after his participation in this program.

In addition to the official text of “The Life of the Foundress,” which was the most common means that this category of a Tenrikyo referential base was conveyed in such trainings, this visiting Hawaiian instructor also chose to include an additional text-based material of a manga-style comic titled “The Tale of Oyasama,” which told the same account conveyed through the above-cited official text, but through this different, highly popular style of textual medium. This manga was initially published in Japanese through the official Tenrikyo publishing company, “Tenrikyo Doyusha Publishing Company,” based in Tenri City. Somewhat later, it was then published in English through the efforts of North American followers via its appearance eight pages at a time in a monthly newsletter of Tenrikyo Mission Headquarters in America (Tale of Oyasama, Volume One: 2016). The manga we read in this class was in the form of copied pages of these North American newsletters brought for us by this visiting Hawaiian instructor<fnref n="453" />.

Through this, we can see how this Hawaiian woman served as a connection between TEC (and the broader scene of Tenrikyo in Europe), Tenrikyo Mission Headquarters in America (and the broader Tenrikyo scene in North America), and Tenri City (and the broader realm of Tenrikyo in Japan from which this manga (and the religion) originated). Each of these layers was simultaneously transnationally shaped and locally specific. We can also see how this component

<footnote n="452">⁴⁵² Tenri Forum is a conference to bring together English-speaking followers to discuss the faith.</footnote>

<footnote n="453">⁴⁵³ The assemblage of these pages was published in their entirety in book form the following year, along with their translations through the joint efforts of multiple local young adult core members of the TEC community.</footnote>
of the training was influenced by modernity through both the pedagogical form of manga being
used to convey this information and also the transnational character of the multiple steps through
which this manga came to be incorporated into our training that year. Regardless of the
contemporary changes to the religion and how it was conveyed through intellectual means in
modernity, its embodied practice based in the performance of the Service ritual remained
constant. The next subsection will discuss the training of participants of this centrally important
component of the religion.

*Learning the sacred Service, practicing a Tenrikyo mode of interaction*

Although Tenrikyo was esteemed as a divine teaching that would remain true throughout time,
numerous aspects of how the religion was conveyed were positioned within a framework of
having taken the particular form that they did in order to be comprehensible to the Japanese
agrarian population who were the original followers of the faith. This was often coupled
contemporarily with an explanation that it was taught in this context-specific framework, but with
the divine understanding of God the Parent who conveyed these teachings through the foundress
that as people evolved over time, so too would our understandings of these teachings. At the time
of my research, components of the faith that did not correspond with current conceptualizations,
views, and models of life were commonly positioned as having been symbolic rather than literal
and/or reflective of the time and place in which the path was first conveyed rather than
irrevocable components of the timeless celestial teachings conveyed to us with the parental love
of God the Parent and the foundress. Through this, there was much room for adaptation in
relation to modern life practices; allowances in their intellectually based interpretations associated
with ongoing modernization were often permitted or even encouraged as normal evolutions.

What remained irrevocably constant in the religion<fnref n="454" />, though, was the embodied teaching of the
Service ritual. While how numerous theological components of the religion were interpreted and
conceptualized were allowed room to change over time, the physical body remained an
unchanging ground of embodied instruction by means of this highly corporeal ritual. Thus,

<footnote n="454">⁴⁵⁴ There were concessions made to its embodied ritual practice during several periods due to governmental constraints, but these concessions were regarded to have been unfortunate pragmatic modifications. Modern restoration enacted by the second Shinbashira after the end of WWII sought to restore the faith as it was bestowed through the foundress, which was largely focused on the performance of the Service.</footnote>
although how the religion was understood and interpreted through the mind was somewhat flexible, its corporeal practice through which followers were trained via the ongoing embodied enactment of its teachings remained constant over time. This is highly pertinent to the internal logic of the importance placed on the performance of the Service, often regardless of conscious "belief." The ascribed importance on the external versus internal relationship to the religion helps explain, for example, the emphasis placed on encouraging people to come to Monthly Services, regardless of their religious identity.

In thinking of the evolution and constancy of Tenrikyo over time and in dispersed locations, an important component was its duality. While its central component of the enacted performance of the Service ritual remained constant, there was more room for change and development in how the religion was conveyed and interpreted in modernity and by different individuals and groups in the realm of the intellect. This rendered the faith simultaneously unchanging over time and also in constant evolution.

Although the academically framed classes based in the realm of the intellect comprised most of our instruction during the Seminar, the more constant, embodied teaching of the Service was also given a prominent place in the training. In addition to our twice daily participation in the Morning and Evening Services, we also had structured class sessions dedicated to the practice of the sacred dances and the musical instruments which culminated in an end-of-seminar "practice performance" of the Monthly Service ritual. Following the previously described classes that we studied principally through the pedagogical medium of books while seated at a desk, we then had one fifty-five-minute session dedicated to the practice of the dances and another session dedicated to the practice of the musical instruments.

At the time, I viewed the book-based theoretical classes that comprised the first part of the day as the most important part of the seminar and of learning about the religion. I mistakenly regarded the two sessions dedicated to the practice of the Service dances and instruments as being of much less importance. This initial perspective was mainly because of my lack of an emic understanding of Tenrikyo and also because I was used to operating in an academic environment in which intellectually based modes of learning ("book-learning") were generally privileged over experiential learning. Although I had heard the importance of the Service discussed during the
seminar, I did not yet understand that this ritual was truly at the center of the faith. The Service songs were not simply church hymns which existed mainly as a pleasant addition to other chiefly important components of the religion in a manner similar to the place of religious hymns in the (primarily American) Christian traditions with which I was familiar. Rather, they were positioned in Tenrikyo as the means through which universal salvation and the world of the Joyous Life may be achieved that was conveyed by God the Parent to the foundress who taught it to her followers (and extendedly, all of humanity) out of parental love.

For these practice sessions, a wide range of Japanese people raised in the religion and positioned in the inner layer of the “TEC community” who were helping with the seminar in a variety of ways as hinokishin also helped with this portion of the program through serving as instructors. They did this by working one-on-one or in small groups with participants to help them learn or improve on this centrally important performative component of the religion. Generally, the individuals charged with teaching the theoretical portions of the seminar did not teach these practice-based sessions. Instead, the teachers were composed principally of people serving as support staff, such as the women who were helping with meal preparations, men who were helping with components of the seminar other than instructing the book-based classes, and the young adult residential missionaries who most often worked at ACFJT during the majority of the day, returned to TEC to work with seminar participants for these sessions, then again commuted 20-30 minutes by train back to ACFJT to finish their workday. A significant number of people actively worked to help others as hinokishin through taking part in the program’s instruction aimed at assisting the “spiritual development” of the students and spreading the faith’s teachings. In a complementary though less direct manner, the efforts made by staff members to facilitate the spiritual development of program participants were positioned as also facilitative to their own spiritual growth. This mirrored-perspective was reflective of the often-cited Tenrikyo teaching: Through saving (helping) others, you yourself will be saved (helped)<fnref n="455" />.

The fifty-five-minute practice sessions for the instruments were generally closely shared moments between the person in the teaching role and the person in the student role. Sometimes these individuals knew each other well, but often they did not. Through the bits of conversation

<footnote n="455">⁴⁵⁵ hito tasuke tara wagami tasukaru: 人たすけたら わがみたすかる.</footnote>
that peppered these sessions, and through spending time with one another in this somewhat intimate space of working together, an important component was that in addition to the ritual instruction that these sessions provided students, they also served as time in which the paired individuals got to know each other better, often forging and strengthening their social bonds. As stated slightly previously, this instructional pairing was often composed of someone positioned in the primary tier of the “TEC community” in the role of the instructor and a person (or several people) positioned on more of the periphery of this group in the student role. In this, in addition to students being trained in the religion’s sacred music during these intimate and largely informal instructional sessions, they also received indirect instruction regarding how to socially be a Tenrikyo person as it was personified through these core followers positioned in this moment as their instructors.

The sessions to learn the dances for the Service were generally taught in small groups, depending on ability, as some participants were much more familiar with and competent in the dances than others. These sessions, too, were shared interpersonal moments, though generally with less discussion than during the instrumental study sessions. This was due to a combination of each group being composed of more people than were together during the instrumental sessions and the nature of the session itself that involved various parts of the Service songs being played via recording and/or sung, commonly at the same time in the same room, thereby creating what often felt to me to be a cacophony of sound. This, in combination with the bodies of the involved social actors being in ongoing movement during these sessions to learn the dances, discouraged lengthy conversations.

The learning of these dances, or at least acquiring a high degree of familiarity with them, was an essential component to being a “full member” of Tenrikyo in a social sense, if not a strictly theological one, as the latter was a more complex matter with varying definitions. One reason for this was that the command of these dances was necessary to perform as a dancer in the Service<fnref n="456" />,

<footnote n="456">⁴⁵⁶ At TEC, as well as at other Tenrikyo sites of significant size, it was necessary to master these dances to perform in the Service. At smaller sites, such as the numerous lineage-based sites in Europe, there was a smaller number of people at Monthly Services, and thus a smaller number of potential performers for the Service, thereby rendering the criteria to serve as a performer in any number of ritual roles less stringent. Furthermore, at these lineage-based sites, emphasis was placed on guiding newcomers to the faith and shaping them into followers, thereby prompting the encouragement of their active participation in performing in the Service in any number of roles, even if they</footnote>