January 1, 2019, Gathering of Prayer for the New Year organized by General Headquarters (GLA Chukyo Hall; broadcast live to 7 locations nationwide)

This year, 2019, is a special year for Japan. It is the year in which we transition from the Showa and Heisei eras to a new era.

Looking back, we see that the Showa era (December 1926 to January 1989), particularly after the end of the Second World War, was an era in which we single-mindedly pursued affluence. On the last day of trading on the stock market in the last year of the Showa era, 1989, Japan’s stock price index reached its highest point ever. Who remembers? I am sure many of you do. It was 38,915 yen.

That was truly the final point of our pursuit of affluence. Back then many people worked with feverish determination to make money. Everyone sought to get ahead of others, ride in luxury cars, wear name-brand clothing, and have a lifestyle that everyone would envy. We thought this is what we should strive for, this is what would make us happy. For all of us, there was only one kind of good life, a life of materialistic richness. We all rushed headlong into what we believed then was the only way to live. That was the Showa era.

With the start of the following Heisei era (January 1989 to April 2019), however, the economic bubble had burst, and Japan gradually slid into an era of deflation. At the same time, our passion for material wealth began to cool. When we were high on simply getting rich, no one thought about what a good life should really be. No one even thought to ask the question.

But with the advent of the Heisei era, I believe each of us began to think and ponder. Our sense of happiness became more diverse and individualized. Likewise, our values became more diversified. Such was the Heisei era. Looking back, I believe the Heisei era was a time of trial and error as we sought to learn what a really good life should be. Large numbers of people attempted to build their own good lives, creating in the process, many doubts and contradictions.

And now, after the headlong rush to material wealth of the Showa era, and the trials and errors of the Heisei era, we have come to a new era in which we must one by one strive to find the answer to what is a truly good life for each of us. Now, more than ever, we need to engage in the Study of the Past, Study of the Present, and Study of the Future.

I pray that in this year of 2019, each of you will find the answer to your question, what is a good life, and that you will make good progress on your way to achieving this good life.

January 1, 2019, Gathering of Prayer for New Year organized by General Headquarters, held at GLA Chukyo Hall