The history of Tenrikyo concerns the social and institutional development of Tenrikyo, from the day the teachings were founded by Miki Nakayama on October 26, 1838, to the present day.
Confraternities Since the early 1860s, Miki Nakayama had asked her followers to form confraternities (kō 講). One of the earliest examples was the Shinmei confraternity, formed sometime in April 1878.The Life of Oyasama, p.106
Obtaining government authorization From the 1870s, Miki Nakayama and her followers were constantly being persecuted by local government authorities and by members of established religions for expressing their beliefs and performing the Service. Because followers often made large financial contributions, they were taunted with:
Yashiki o harōte / ta uri tamae / Ten-Binbō-no-Mikoto (屋敷を払うて、田売り賜え、天貧乏命) Please sell away our homes and rice paddies, Heavenly God of Poverty.
This was a parody of their most commonly chanted verse (currently the opening verse of the Mikagura-uta),
Ashiki o harōte / tasuke tamae / Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto (悪しきを払うて、救けたまえ、天理王命) Sweeping away evils, please save us, Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto.
To put an end to the persecution, various followers sought recognition from different religious and state authorities, even though this was against the wishes of Nakayama. Tenrikyo could not apply as a completely independent religion because Japanese law during the Meiji period did not grant civil authorization to churches outside of the established traditions, which at the time were Shinto, Buddhism, and Christianity.Tenrikyo: The Path to Joyousness, 59.Tenrikyo Overseas Mission Department. A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo. Translation of Oyasama Nensai to Tomoni. Tenri, 1990. p.6-7.
In 1880, Nakayama's eldest son, Shuji traveled to the Jifuku Temple () at the foot of Mount Kongō, a Buddhist temple belonging to the Shingon sect. The Jifuku Temple agreed to Shuji's request to establish a church, and on September 22, 1880, the "Tenrin-Ō-Kōsha" (転輪王講社) church was formally inaugurated with a Buddhist fire rite and sermons by Buddhist priests.The Life of Oyasama, p.110-1.
The Meisei confraternity spread Nakayama's teachings as moral philosophy and thus escaped persecution. Following this example, a petition was submitted on May 9, 1884, to establish an organization named, "Tenrin-Ō-Sha: Institute for the Study of Practical Ethics." Though the office denied the request because of the lack of authority to grant the request, an office called "Tenrin-Ō-Sha" was nevertheless opened in Osaka.The Life of Oyasama, p.200.
In March and April 1885, the followers approached the Shinto Headquarters for the appointment of Shinnosuke Nakayama (Nakayama's grandson) and nine others as religious instructors. On May 22, Shinnosuke was appointed as a religious instructor, and the next day, May 23, the other religious instructors were also appointed, and permission was granted for the establishment of a sixth-degree church to be directly supervised by the Shinto Headquarters. On June 2, a letter accepting these appointments was sent to the Shinto authorities.The Life of Oyasama, p.202.
The first attempt to obtain civil authorization happened on April 29, 1885, when the followers filed a petition to the governor of Osaka for permission to form the Tenrikyo Church. Attached with the petition were four texts – The Twelve Songs, Ofudesaki Part IV, Ofudesaki Part X, and the Story of Creation. The request was denied. On July 3, the followers filed a second petition to the governor of Osaka, which read, "Request to Establish the Shinto Tenrikyo Church." Again, the request was denied.The Life of Oyasama, p.202-4.
Death of Nakayama Miki
On February 18, 1887, the founder of Tenrikyo, Nakayama Miki, died at around two o'clock in the afternoon, after a performance of the Service.Tenrikyo Overseas Department. An Anthology of Osashizu Translations. Tenri, 2007. p.20-1.
On February 25, 1887, a funeral for Nakayama Miki was conducted, with over 10,000 people in attendance.A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo, p.3. Initially, she was buried in the graveyard at Zenpuku-ji (善福寺, a Buddhist temple in modern-day Tenri City), along with other members of the Nakayama family. However, in 1892, Tenrikyo followers, led by Nakayama Shinnosuke, constructed a new cemetery on Mount Toyoda (豊田山), and the ceremony for her reburial was held on December 13. The reburial ceremony was attended by over a hundred thousand people.A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo, p.10-12.
Under the Shinto Main Bureau A petition for the legal recognition of a church was sent to the government office of Tokyo prefecture. On April 10, 1888, the governor of Tokyo approved this petition, establishing Tenrikyo Church Headquarters as a "sixth class" church belonging to the Shinto Main Bureau (神道本局 Shinto Honkyoku).A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo, p.6. The legal authorization removed the threat of suppression and allowed followers to seek permission to establish branch churches and to gain official recognition for missionary work.Tenrikyo: The Path to Joyousness, 56-58. Later in 1888, Koriyama and Yamana were established as the first two branch churches under Tenrikyo Church Headquarters.A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo, p.7.
On April 6, 1891, the Shinto Main Bureau changed Tenrikyo's designation from a "sixth class" church to a "first class" church.A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo, p.10.
Rise in membership
The membership rose sharply in the first decade of the Headquarters' existence. In 1892, the number of Tenrikyo followers had allegedly reached over one million, a thirtyfold increase in membership in five years. By December 1896, Tenrikyo had 3,137,113 members belonging to 1,078 churches, and there were 19,061 ministers. This growth invited negative reactions from Buddhist institutions, which were concerned about losing adherents, and from newspapers such as Chuo Shinbun, Yorozu Chouho, and Ni-Roku Shinbun, which labeled the religion as "anti-social."A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo, p.19.
Home Ministry's directive On April 6, 1896, the Home Ministry (内務省 Naimu-shō) issued "Directive No. 12," which ordered strict and secretive surveillance over Tenrikyo Church Headquarters under the pretense of maintaining and strengthening the state polity of Japan. Issues raised by authorities were the congregation of both men and women together (which could potentially lead to disgrace), the obstruction of medical treatment, and the alleged policy of enforced donations.Tenrikyo: The Path to Joyousness, 59-60.
The Tenrikyo leaders complied with the state demands in several ways. They changed several aspects of their prayer ritual, known to adherents as the Service.As for the exact changes made in the prayer ritual: "Only the second and third sections of the Service were allowed to be performed; only male performers could perform the Service; only men's instruments could be played; and the kagura masks were to be placed in front of the Service performers instead of being worn by them" (Tenrikyo: The Path to Joyousness, 61). The name of the Tenrikyo deity Tenri-O-no-Mikoto was changed to "Tenri-no-Okami."A Historical Sketch of Tenrikyo, p.21. Tenrikyo Church Headquarters' conformity with the state demands resulted in a dual structure of the Tenrikyo faith, where on the surface, Tenrikyo complied with the state demands, while adherents disregarded those changes and maintained the teachings and rites as initially taught by Miki Nakayama.Tenrikyo: The Path to Joyousness, 61-63.
Drive toward sectarian independence In 1899 the Shinto Main Bureau advised the Tenrikyo Church Headquarters officials about the possibility of official recognition as an independent religion (independent meaning to be classified directly under the Meiji government, which upheld State Shinto ideology). Tenrikyo leaders worked to systemize the Tenrikyo doctrine and institutionalize the organization so that the petition for independence would pass. Tenrikyo Church Headquarters made a total of five attempts before it finally achieved independence in 1908.
On April 1, 1900, Tenri Seminary, Tenrikyo's first educational institution, was founded as a training school for ministers. In 1902, Tenrikyo arranged its mission administration system in Japan, which divided the country into ten dioceses and appointed superintendents to supervise regional missionary activities.
In 1903,A Glossary of Tenrikyo Terms, p. 4. an edition of Tenrikyo's doctrine was compiled (known today as the Meiji kyōten (), or the Meiji version of Tenrikyo's doctrine). This edition of the doctrine differs significantly from the present editionFor instance, the Meiji kyōten contained ten chapters: 'Revering God,' 'Respecting the Emperor,' 'Loving the Nation,' 'Morality,' 'Accumulating Virtues,' 'Cleansing of Impurities,' 'Founding of the Teachings,' 'Repayment to God,' 'the Kagura', and 'Peace of Mind.' See Tenrikyo: The Path to Joyousness, p. 64 because the teachings of State Shinto were incorporated to gain the Home Ministry's approval. Although Tenrikyo Church Headquarters complied with many of the state's requests, it did not compromise on the request to eliminate the Mikagura-uta ("The Songs for the Service"), one of Tenrikyo's main scriptures.
Around this time, Tenrikyo began to open its first churches overseas in Taiwan (1897) and Korea (1904).
Sect Shinto The fifth petition for independence was submitted to the Home Ministry on March 20, 1908, and accepted later that year on November 27. Tenrikyo Church Headquarters set up its Administrative Headquarters, formally appointed Shinnosuke Nakayama as the first shinbashira, the spiritual and administrative leader of Tenrikyo, and established its constitution. On February 25, 1912, the Home Ministry invited representatives from seventy-three religious groups to the Three Religions Conference (三教会同 Sankyōkaidō) including a Tenrikyo representative (the three religions represented were Shinto, Buddhism, and Christianity, and Tenrikyo was categorized under Shinto). This conference initiated a program of national edification, and with the support of the government, Tenrikyo was able to hold lectures at 2,074 places throughout Japan, drawing nearly a quarter million listeners.Tenrikyo: The Path to Joyousness, 64-7 Due to the relative relaxation of state control on Tenrikyo rituals, the performance of section one of the Mikagura-uta was restored in 1916, after two decades of prohibition under the Home Ministry's directive.
In 1925, a school of foreign languages was established for missionaries, including what would become Tenri Central Library. The same year saw the establishment of a printing office, a department for researching doctrinal and biographical materials, and a major expansion of the church's education system, including a new girls’ school, nursery, kindergarten, and elementary school.
In 1928, the Ofudesaki was published. Three years later, in 1931, the publication of the Osashizu was completed, making the three main scriptures of Tenrikyo available to all followers for the first time.
On the occasion of the completion of the South Worship Hall of the Main Sanctuary in 1934, the Kagura Service was restored for the first time since it had been prohibited in 1896.
During this period, churches were opened in Manchuria (1911), the U.S. (San Francisco Church, 1927),The Headquarters of Tenrikyo Church. The Short History of Tenrikyo Church. Nara, 1956. p. 159. Brazil, and Southeast Asian countries. In 1910, missionaries were sent to England to propagate the Tenrikyo teachings, but they were not able to establish themselves permanently there.The Short History of Tenrikyo Church. p. 157. It was only about a century later, in 2000, that a mission center (Tenrikyo UK Centre) was established in England.
Wartime Japan