Happy New Year! The clear air drifting through the cloudless New Year's Day sky made me feel the dawn of a new era. My heart too had opened. I used to greet each morning by breathing in black energy that always lurks in the air, leaving my heart dark and heavy all at once. Therefore, I am truly grateful to have been able to greet this morning with a clear, bright and open heart, breathing in fresh air. Because I am alive, I can gaze at the beautiful sky, admire the mountains, listen to birdsong, and welcome mornings that begin with a delicious cup of coffee, filling my heart with gratitude for all things. Today, at the Idaki lecture room, we live-streamed Master Idaki Shin's talk and piano concert, along with my New Year’s lecture. The renovated lecture room has excellent acoustics, and the sound resonates beautifully throughout the room. Today was filled with sounds—sounds that truly felt like New Year. Within my life, new buds were born again and again, shining brilliantly with light. Through the performance, I learnt that to live as a human being is to nurture the sprouts that are born, so that they may bear fruit and blossom. This year, I have resolved to live in such a way that I can truly live, blocking thoughts that suppress my true demands of life or prevent them from being realized. I feel the time has finally come when I can do it. The various hardships and difficulties endured until last year now feel as though they were meant to pave the way for this year's beginning. I am truly grateful for this. No matter what circumstances may surround me, being connected to Great Being and living with a beautiful and pure heart is what it means to live, and this deepens my understanding and brings me back to the origin once again. Both the piano performance and the talk by Master Idaki Shin were truly wonderful and profoundly moving. Having experienced the piano performance, I fully appreciated Master Idaki Shin's talk which followed. The more I come to understand, the more I grasp what it means to be human and how to live. At the same time, I was able to recognize that I had been living differently and was truly grateful that I could make improvements. Today, rather than giving a lecture, I wished to express words born from the sound of the piano played by Master Idaki Shin, and so I requested him to perform on the piano. I was embraced by the gentle sound that resonated with the light of life, felt myself united with all life, and the words that were born were filled with tenderness and love. The deepest core of life is gentle, overflowing with love. I find how sorrowful it is when one cannot bring to bear the most important, gentlest love in everyday life, or when one is forced to suppress it. This year, I am determined to live by thinking and acting in ways that express and make use of my feelings, so today, I could clearly see a future that will surely bear fruit, a future where beautiful flowers bloom, and it gave me great hope and courage. It is a good start to the year. I feel heartfelt gratitude. I sincerely pray for a world where people everywhere may live in good health as soon as possible, and I wish to express my desire to work each day towards that day's arrival. Thank you very much. I look forward to your continued support this year.