What is GLA? : For the Radiance of People and the World

The world is currently facing full of problems, and it is harder than ever to predict what the future could bring. Because it is in times like the present, we most need a center axis; our own soul. Instead of spending our lives preoccupied with materialism, quantitative numbers, and monetary gains, GLA’s focus is the power residing inside of humanity. We hope to realize a future where each individual and the world shine using our inner power.

Now, more than ever, human power is needed

In this 21st century, through scientific and economic advances, we have solved numerous problems and achieved things that were once only dreamed of.

And yet, where has this brought us? We still struggle with our lives and the world continues to be burdened by great problems.

If we are to cause each life to shine, if we are to solve the trials and tribulations that beset our times and societies, we need something more than scientific and economic power.

We need to release the inner strength within ourselves that is the source of such power, and that inner strength is our soul. In these uncertain times, we must draw upon the soul within each person that is our central core of strength.

Advocating the Soul Doctrine

Since its founding in 1969 and to this day, the soul has been GLA’s focus.

GLA considers the dimension of the soul to have special import and calls for thought and action that is grounded in the Soul Doctrine.

The soul is the energy of wise volition, the source of humanity’s infinite potential, an invisible mass connecting us to other dimensions, the timeless hope and purpose that shines through our lifetime.

Today, Keiko Takahashi is reviving the sense of soul that so many of us have lost touch with, providing guidance on a path that she first pioneered with the founder, Shinji Takahashi.

Keiko Takahashi’s Study of the Soul provides systematic guidance to the theory and practice of the Soul Doctrine in a way that enables not only the enlightened but also ordinary people to awaken to their soul and draw upon their inner strength.

GLA’s hope is for the radiance of each individual and the world

The Study of the Soul guides each of us as we struggle against the limitations imposed by the circumstances of our birth and upbringing, shows us how to draw on our own hidden inner strength, and invites us to a state of true freedom in which we can radiate as we should.

At the same time, it also helps us to identify the root causes of the many problems that burden our world and provides guidance on finding fundamental solutions.

The Study of the Soul is neither impracticable theory nor empty idealism. It is a practical philosophy with real-life effectiveness. It is GLA’s hope that through the practice of the teachings in the Study of the Soul, more people will be able to draw on their inner strength, and their numbers will grow, spreading beyond the boundaries of local regions and countries to create a new world filled with the radiance of the soul.

To this end, GLA offers diverse activities at its general headquarters, eight district branches, and 110 sub-branches, known as “terminals,” in Japan. There are as well lectures by Keiko Takahashi, a range of seminars on the Study of the Soul, and numerous other events and activities.

Overseas, GLA has bases in the United States (San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Atlanta), Brazil, and Australia, and also holds gatherings in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Taiwan, and South Korea.

Q&A

For answers to frequently asked questions about GLA, go here .
Some representative questions include the following.
・In our teachings, GLA refers to the “Divine Truth,” “Study of the Soul,” “Total Life Human Principles,” and other such terms. What is the difference?
・Reading your books should be enough. Is it necessary to become a member?
・There are some critical things being said about GLA on anonymous social networks and the like on the Internet. Are what I read true?
・I have seen books critical of Shinji Takahashi and GLA, such as Takahashi Shinji no Reigen [The Spiritual Sayings of Shinji Takahashi] . Is what I read in these books true?
・In a search for “GLA” on the Internet, I came across a website called “GLA Kansai.” It refers to Shinji Takahashi but makes no mention of Keiko Takahashi. Yet it has the same “GLA” name. why is that?

An Outline of GLA

Name	Religious Corporation GLA (GLA stands for “God Light Association.”) NOTE: GLA’s official corporate name was changed in January 2013 from GLA General Headquarters to Religious Corporation.
Established	April 8, 1969
Incorporated	March 28, 1973
Publications	The Path of Prayer, Revised Edition; Seimei no Yohaku Ni [In the Blank Pages of Life],, Shingyō [Exercises of the Mind], more
Members	58,408 as of April 1, 2019. (This number includes 10,343 deceased members.)