Encyclopedia of Shinto

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カテゴリー1： 8. Schools, Groups, and Personalities
カテゴリー2： Modern Sectarian Groups
Title
Tenshōkyō
Text
A Shinto-derived new religion founded by Senba Hideo (1925-) and his wife Senba Kimiko, both of whom were born in Hokkaido. Senba Hideo's family were devotees of Tenrikyō, but when Hideo became ill in March 1953, the couple went to the Terahama branch of Ontakekyō in Hokkaido and became members of that religion. Thereafter they commenced religious activities, with Hideo making omikuji (divination oracles) in which he transcribed oracles revealed by the kami, and which Kimiko then distributed in various areas. Three weeks after commencing these activities, the couple experienced a visitation from the deity Amaterasu ōmikami. They later received revelations once again from the kami, leading them to decide in May 1953 to found the church Tenshō Kyōkai (Tenshō is another reading for the same characters read elsewhere as "Amaterasu").
The couple built their headquarters at Muroran City and in 1955 registered the movement as a religious corporation. In 1956 they began publishing the movement's magazine Tenshō Kyōkaihō and opened branch centers throughout the region. In 1971 they moved the headquarters to its current location and changed the movement's name to Tenshōkyō. They also engaged in welfare activities and in 1982 opened an home for the elderly called Senjuen (Garden of the Fountain of Longevity). Although the movement is relatively small, it also has developed overseas branches.
While drawing ritual influence from Ontakekyō, the group have adopted the three deities Daikoku ōkami, Amaterasu ōmikami, and Ebisu ōkami as their main objects of worship. Daily counseling regarding personal problems is provided at the headquarters, and the group observes regular New Year's rites of providing divinatory oracles for the coming year. The movement has fifty five branch centers, many of these being located in Hokkaido.
Headquarters: Hokkaido
Nominal membership: approximately 70,000 (S)

—Inoue Nobutaka

Pronunciation in Japanese/用語音声

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