By Dr. Yukitaka Yamamoto

Tsubaki chief priest

Tsubaki Grand Shrine was founded as the first shrine of Ise, a year after the establishment of Ise Jinju in the 27th year of Emperor Suinin. Tsubaki observed the 2,000th anniversary Oct. 10-12 in conjunction with the annual autumn festival anniversary.

In 3 B.C., following an oracle of Yamato-hime-no-mikoto, the sanctuary of Tsubaki Grand Shrine was constructed at the present site of Mifune no Iwakura at the foot of Mt. Hikiyama Tsubaki-gatake. The mitama or spirit of Sarutahiko-no-ohkami was moved from the top of the Mt. Takayama Nyudo-gatake and enshrined in the Tsubaki sanctuary.

We were fortunate to have many distinguished guests, representatives and friends from all over the world, including representatives of the Jinja Honcho (the Association of Shinto Shrine), the Ise Jinju, Shinto shrines throughout Japan, sectarian Shinto organizations, the Federation of Religious Organizations of Japan, the Federation of New Religious Organizations of Japan, the International Association for Religious Freedom (IARF), the Unitarian Universalist Association (UUA) of the U.S.A., the World Conference on Religion and Peace (WCRP), the Japanese Religious Committee for World Federation, Tsubaki America and the Kannagara Shrine of the State of Washington.

I would like to express my sincere appreciation to the many people who kindly sent warm messages to us on this occasion, and to all of those who came to participate in the anniversary ceremonies and events.

I also would like to report the completion, after five years of effort, of one of the anniversary projects--the planting of 5,000 camellia trees on the hill behind the Shrine. Another important accomplishment is the completion at the end of September of reconstruction of the inner and main sanctuary of the Betsugu Tsubaki Gishi Jinja or the Shrine of Amenouzume-no-mikoto, and addition of a storage hall for the portable shrine.

Completion of both the shrine office and a reception room are expected this month, and we are now planning to construct a Culture Hall. I would like once again to express my sincere appreciation to all of you for the important contributions which made these projects possible.

Also it should be noted that the Symposium held during the anniversary celebration entitled "Preparing ourselves for opening the door to 2001," had tangible results in suggesting a new direction in which the co-existence and co-prosperity of all human beings is possible following principles of Shinto, the law of Great Nature.

Establishing a life and earth ethics is urgent

That brain death is the death of the human being has been admitted in Japan. On Oct.16, a law on human organ transplants went into effect, stating that only if human organs can be transplanted is brain death regarded as the death of the human being. The Japan Organ Transplant Network has started to register those who hope to receive transplants, and to search out medically suitable heart and liver organs.

It is logical that the transplant of an organ removed from the body of someone who is brain dead should be decided by the will of the deceased or by the bereaved family. However, this matter should also be discussed from the view of life ethics. Today, the issue of cloning and the ways in which advanced medicine is practiced are being questioned. Therefore, I believe, establishing a life ethics is rather urgent.

Why can't we solve the ethnic confrontations which have broken out in many parts of the world? How can we prevent the destruction of our environment and earth, something which is related to insufficient measures to deal with economic conflict?

Our experience in trying to deal with economic issues has made us think that unless these problems can be solved we cannot survive on this earth.

To sustain our lives and to live in peace we should practice religious cooperation at the level of each individual with a global perspective and a keen awareness that we are responsible for the earth. This will lead to organizational dialogue by overcoming differences in teachings and through the magnanimous tolerance which Shrine Shinto emphasizes. It is therefore important that we recognize protecting the earth as our common goal and that we can only do this by action.

Now, we should seek to realize the will of Amaterasu-ohmikami, the supreme kami enshrined at Ise Jinju, who declared "My spirit lives in the sun." And we should join our efforts with those of the heavenly kami and the head of the earthly kami, Sarutahiko-no-ohkami, the kami of guidance, so that every human being on earth cooperates and helps each other toward realization of world peace.

It is necessary to establish an earth ethics to live with appreciation for Amaterasu-ohmikami who shines on the whole world equally and boundlessly and to become aware of the Kannagara, that is, to go along with the restless and infinite movement of the universe.

This, I believe, will open the door to 2001, the great transformation from a materialistic world to a more spiritual world.