Today the monthly poetry gathering was held. Surrounded by the warmth of wood at Tokyo Komaya, we spend a quiet time feeling inside ourselves, sensing an interior that connects with a world with infinite depth and vastness. Today I found it very difficult to weave words from that place. Yet I have learned that when words do not come, they should remain unborn, and when they do arise, they are to be expressed. So without haste, I simply continued to sense my inner being. At the beginning of the gathering, I recited an impromptu poem. In that moment, a scene from a summer evening in ancient times appeared before me with clarity, and I could feel even the air and the breeze as though they were present. I could express a poem of souls. From that moment onward, I experienced what it means to “work” as if to learn something with life itself. When I first met Master Idaki Shin, he told me that every life in nature works so that the life to come may continue to live. I nodded in wholehearted agreement. Life itself knows deeply that to live as a human being is to work for the lives that follow, for future generations. As I recited my poem, it became an experience in which I deeply understood with clarity that if we truly continued to work, a world in which future generations can live would be created. This filled me with joy and strength for all that lies ahead. The time we gather together is an evening of nation-building. Each person living truly is how a peaceful world comes into being. When every person's inner state is beautiful and abundant, the surrounding environment likewise becomes rich. As people come together, an abundant and peaceful environment becomes created as a whole. World peace will be realized through each individual living truly as a human being.
Today again, it brings me great joy to sense that the poetry gathering at Koma-ya has spread out into the world. It gives me a profound sense of purpose, and my heart overflows with gratitude. I am deeply thankful for a life that allows me to experience such opportunities. Also, I offer my heartfelt gratitude to everyone who gathers. Thank you very much.