Today, due to the approaching typhoon, we made the decision to cancel the event that had been scheduled at Komaya. A level 4 alert had been issued, and the news reported that strong winds and heavy rain were on their way. We canceled out of concern for safety, yet by evening the rain had stopped, patches of blue sky appeared, and an extraordinarily beautiful twilight spread across the heavens. Divine Mount Fuji emerged, and I was deeply moved. The space was pure and clear, and the scene of nature told us that a new era had been opened. The birds sang all at once, letting us know that the time had come. It was a strange and wondrous day, and yet I now feel a profound joy and sense of purpose in feeling with certainty that now “when we move, things come to be.” For a long time we have held concerts in pursuit of peace, and now, at last, I can see that things will truly begin to come to fruition—I feel that the time has come, and that fills me with deep joy.
The world is in a difficult state, and each person’s life is shadowed by the sorrow of being unable to live as a truly human being. This is precisely why I deeply feel that we must change now. Each moment lived as a human being, moment to moment, is what shapes the world in which humanity can live—this is something I understand with ever-deepening clarity, day by day. It is each individual who creates peace. If each person lives as a true human being, lives with richness of heart, lives with the most beautiful heart, then surely the world will change all at once. The more sorrowful events are, the more earnestly I long from the heart to create a peaceful world soon, and the greater the urgency I feel. Wishing and praying for a world in which no more human lives are sacrificed, I start anew, with a fresh spirit. Thank you very much.