Great Construction

Truthful Love and False Love


     It is often said that faith is love, but even so, there are various kinds of love. Varieties such as correct love, false love, encompassing love, and small love. Because this is the way things are, those of faith must not lose the correct awareness of what love is.
     To begin, let me give some examples. The types of love that belong to the category of truthful are those among family members such as between husband and wife, parent and child, brothers and sisters, etc., and then those as between ordinary human beings such as friends, relatives, acquaintances, and so forth. The love of this type, no matter how fervent it may become, does not particularly deserve criticism. The problem is false love.
     False love does not require a detailed explanation. It is the opposite of truthful love, a lack of harmony between husband and wife, coldness between siblings, disagreement between friends, relatives, all of which lead to estrangement. Accounts of disagreement and estrangement are often heard, sometimes due to false love, and other times, to a weakened love.
     The preceding is a simplified classification of truthful and false loves, but of all the types of love, that which requires comment is romantic love. I have written about this before. Briefly, romantic love is for the most part, truthful love. Of course, a pure and mutual love between a young man and a young woman based on the goal of marriage is a truthful love, but capriciousness, being overrun by temporary impulses, that is, feverish romantic love of the moment is false love. Simply, it is sufficient to think that love without the flash of wisdom is false love. Moreover, as false love advances, the more it gives birth to tragedy. Whether there are other partners involved or not, another love object is created, so the situation is awkward and prickly. The result of a temporary pleasure is falling into the fate of a life being ruined, and in some cases, lost. Nothing is more useless. False love is to be avoided.
     Above I have discussed in general terms truthful and false love, but what I want to emphasize most is the range of love. In other words, love of family and those around oneself is shojo love which even so does belong to the category of love for others. Probably it is the kind of love most ordinary people have. It is the type of love in good people and even in those without faith, so there is nothing particular to criticize, but when it comes to individuals with faith, circumstances differ completely. The love of a person with faith is daijo and altruistic. When daijo love has expanded to its greatest extent, it becomes a love of humanity, a love for the world.
     At this point, what should be noted is that until the end of the war, the Japanese did not understand daijo love. What was considered the ultimate was a love of country. All know that to give one’s life for the nation was the greatest human goal. This is a shojo love, and as a result of believing such to be the greatest goal, the reality of Japan became the tragedy we see today.
     Accordingly, since a love of national or social group is not real love, even if it temporarily flourishes, ultimately will fail. Thus, to speak of that such as a certain ism or ideology, when efforts are made under a limited goal, there is no possibility of great success. Of all the isms, world-ism is the only true ism. And, as for religions, a religion must be of a global scale or it cannot be said to be true salvation. The name World Messianity starts with the word “World” for this reason.

Eikō, Issue 74, page 1, October 18, 1950
translated by cynndd


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“Seiai to Ja-ai,” which originally appeared on the front page of Eikō, Issue 74, October 18, 1950, and while Meishu-sama still alive, reprinted in the essays anthology for ministers Goshinsho: Shūkyōhen (Divine Writings: Volume on Religion), page 74, March 25, 1954, has appeared in translation. Citation is given below for reference.


Love,Foundation of Paradise, 1984, page 391.

“True Love and Wicked Love,” Meishu and His Teachings, no date, page 68.