Great Construction

Possession by Dragon Spirits

     A young girl just turning six years old could not walk. Holding herself off the floor with one hand, she could only move along the floor by crawling. When I looked at her legs, I could see there was no strength in them at all; they were wriggly like soft bones. Because I thought it was a case of possession by a dragon spirit, I treated mainly the legs, and in about half a year she recovered. I had the family dig a small pond in the garden, build a shrine beside the pond, and had the dragon enshrined there. Several days afterward, the girl, her name was Emiko, saw a picture on a calendar. Now, that year was the year of the dragon and there was a picture of a dragon on the calendar. When she saw the picture, Emiko, pointing to the picture, said in a way only a child could that at the time of the ritual (enshrinement), this terrible thing came out of Emi’s hand. The parents, conveying their appreciation, told me that the reason Emiko’s legs were so bad was due completely, as I had said, to possession by the spirit of a dragon.
     In addition to the account above, there are countless examples of various kinds of cases. I have already written about most of the noteworthy episodes in my books, so I omit them here. Since the period I was personally involved in treatment was so long, there are many cases I could well have forgotten. I am often asked how I learned to treat illness and disease. This is how I respond. My teacher are my patients. I listen to my patients and am taught by them. Because I learned about such matters as the cause of disease through listening to and being taught, it is a fact that my teacher are my patients. That is how I answer the question.

The Pathway to Light, Jikan Library, Volume 9, page 62, December 30, 1949
translated by cynndd