May 2024 Japan Retreat

80 members from all over the world came together for an international retreat in Japan.

They visited seven different Happy Science shoshinkans and shojis (temples) over six nights and seven days, including a stop at the future site of the Amenomioyagami Memorial in Gora.

Testimony: “This is the gift that Master Okawa has left us human beings. This is the training ground where we come to train our souls.”

“The trip was amazing. The amount of happiness that was generated was too great. I had been to Sohonzan Shoshinkan in 2016. When I arrived and saw the temple, I instantly had the thought, “This is the gift that Master Okawa has left us human beings. This is the training ground where we come to train our souls.”

The next temple, Miraikan, houses a gohonzon of Hermes. It is beautiful. The head minister there also gave his small but powerful enlightenment. He said, “Devils cannot create a future; they can only interfere in yours.” That blew me away. Everywhere we went we continued to receive a little bit of enlightenment to help us on our path.

When I was in Tokushima, I realized that there was a complete shift in what I feel attracted to and what I am not attracted to. Leaving the temple will feel like going back down to the secular world; a return to always combating a cloudy and muddy mind. But this retreat has given me the tools to do that. Since the retreat, I have been practicing the Eightfold Path. A fellow participant and I are keeping each other accountable by calling each other to make sure we’re practicing it daily. We learned so much. My goal is to go on this retreat every year.”
– from a participant

Next Japan Retreat: December 2025!

The next retreat will coincide with its opening along with the opening of Kobe Shoshinkan and a visit to Nagoya Shoshinkan where Master Ryuho Okawa quelled the devil and attained enlightenment.

Contact ny@happy-science.org for more information