Honmichi

{{Infobox religion

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| name = Honmichi

| native_name = ほんみち

| native_name_lang = ja

| image = Honmichi Sennan Temple - zoomed in view from Irino-ike.jpg

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| caption = The Sennan Temple, Honmichi's main temple

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| type = Tenrikyo-derived Japanese new religion

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| scripture = Ofudesaki, Mikagura-uta

| theology = Monotheistic

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| language = Japanese

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| headquarters = Takaishi, Osaka, Japan

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| founder = Ōnishi Aijirō

| founded_date = 1925

| founded_place = Nara Prefecture, Japan

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| separated_from = Tenrikyo

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| separations = Honbushin

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{{Nihongo|Honmichi|ほんみち|}} (also 本道 or 天理本道, {{lit|The True Way [of Tenri]}}) is a Tenrikyo-based shinshūkyō (Japanese new religion). Honmichi became formally independent in 1925 under its founder, Ōnishi Aijirō (大西愛治郎), also known by the title {{Nihongo|Kanrodainin no Ri|甘露台人の理|The Principle of the Living Kanrodai}}.{{cite book |last= Bocking |first= Brian |date= 1996 |title= A Popular Dictionary of Shinto |url= https://archive.org/details/populardictionar0000bock_j3l8/page/54/mode/2up |location= Milton Park |publisher= Routledge |page= 55 |isbn= 978-1138979079}}{{cite book |author= |editor-last1= Staemmler |editor-first1= Birgit |editor-last2= Dehn |editor-first2= Ulrich M. |date= 2011 |title= Establishing the Revolutionary: An Introduction to New Religions in Japan |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=MYw6r8gUkIcC&pg=PA323 |location= Münster |publisher= LIT Verlag |page= 323 |isbn= 978-3643901521}}{{cite web |url= http://hdjongkyo.co.kr/news/view.html?section=33&category=34&page=465&no=447 |language= Korean |title= 혼미치 |author= |date= 2008-04-25 |website= 현대종교}} Despite the religion being derived from Tenrikyo with a different interpretation of doctrines such as {{Nihongo|Sanken Mimune|三軒三棟|}},{{cite thesis |ref=none |last= Forbes |first= Roy Tetsuo |date= 2005 |title= Schism, orthodoxy and heresy in the history of Tenrikyō : three case studies |url= https://scholarspace.manoa.hawaii.edu/items/e66d96e2-112f-478f-a17b-e31174258fb7 |publisher= University of Hawai'i Department of Religion}}{{rp|133}} Honmichi's religious structure still maintains the same basic overall characteristics as Tenrikyo. It was reorganized from the earlier {{Nihongo||天理研究会|Tenri Kenkyūkai|Tenrikyo Research Group}}.{{rp|3}} It had 319,031 followers in 2022 according to the Reiwa 4 (2022) [https://www.bunka.go.jp/tokei_hakusho_shuppan/hakusho_nenjihokokusho/shukyo_nenkan/pdf/r04nenkan.pdf Religion Almanac] published by the Agency for Cultural Affairs.

Scriptures and practices

Honmichi considers itself, rather than Tenrikyo, to be the true, original religion of Nakayama Miki.{{rp|171-2}} Devout Honmichi members are called {{Nihongo|"people of the way"|みち人|michibito}} rather than yōboku (ようぼく) as in Tenrikyo.

The term Honmichi comes from the Ofudesaki and can be found in Ofudesaki 1:49, 3:37, 4:75-77, 5:30, 5:82, 6:17, 6:28, and 17:22.

Some of the main scriptures used in Honmichi include the Ofudesaki and Mikagura-uta, which also form the basic scriptural canon of Tenrikyo.{{cite encyclopedia |author= |editor-last1= Melton |editor-first1= J. Gordon |editor-last2= Baumann |editor-first2= Martin |encyclopedia= Religions of the World: A Comprehensive Encyclopedia of Beliefs and Practices |title= Honmichi [Original Way] |url= https://archive.org/details/religionsofworld0000unse_k8t7/page/606/mode/2up |language= English |year= 2002 |publisher= ABC-Clio |volume= 2 |location= Santa Barbara, California |isbn= 1-57607-223-1 |page= 606}} The Osashizu, written by the second spiritual leader of the original establishment, Iburi Izō, was also sometimes consulted by Ōnishi Aijirō. The {{nihongo|Kyōgi Ichiban|教義一斑|}}, written by Ōnishi Aijirō, is also used.

The mantra {{nihongo|Namu Kanrodai|南無甘露台|}} is frequently chanted by adherents of Honmichi. Honmichi utilizes the gagaku in its {{nihongo|service|かぐらづとめ|kagura-zutome}}{{cite thesis |last= Buijs-Drăgușin |first= Cornelia |date= January 2013 |title= Liturgical Music in a New Japanese Religion : the Formation, Survival and Repositioning of Tenrikyo through Music |url= https://www.researchgate.net/publication/329143248 |degree= M. Mus. |chapter= #6: Gagaku and Tenrikyo |page= 193 |quote= The new religion Honmichi, which splintered from Tenrikyō, also uses gagaku in its service; its followers attempted to incorporate gagaku into their paraliturgical festivities , but failed.}}

Every year, Honmichi followers celebrate {{nihongo|"the establishment of the human Kanrodai"|甘露台人のおふみとめ|Kanrodai nin no o-fumitome}} to commemorate their founder.{{rp|129}}

History

Honmichi began as a religion on July 15, 1913 in Yamaguchi when its founder Ōnishi Aijirō received a divine revelation, during which God told him that he was the living kanrodai. At the time, he was a Tenrikyo missionary in Yamaguchi Prefecture. In January 1925, Ōnishi Aijirō officially established the {{Nihongo|Tenri Study Association|天理研究会|Tenri Kenkyūkai}}, which was later renamed as {{Nihongo|Tenri Honmichi|天理本道}} in 1937, and finally as Honmichi in 1950.

Honmichi was a noticeable Japanese religion before World War II due to its leader's active defiance against the Emperor of Japan. There were government crackdowns in 1928 and again in 1938.{{cite journal |last= Yamashita |first= Akiko |date= 1998 |title= Eschatology of Japanese New and New New Religions from Tenri-kyo to Kofuku no Kagaku |url= https://nirc.nanzan-u.ac.jp/journal/7/issue/235 |journal= Inter-religio: A Network of Christian Organizations for Interreligious Encounter in East Asia |volume= 33 |issue= Summer |page= 10 |quote= Nevertheless, as MURAKAMI Shigeyoshi points out, “Honmichi is the rare religious group that held a doctrine of denial of the Emperor despite arising from the indigenous Japanese spiritual climate."}} It quickly re-established itself during the US Occupation of Japan.

In 1958, Ōnishi Aijirō died. Aijirō's grandson, Ōnishi Yasuhiko (大西泰彦), took over as the leader in 1960 and was viewed as Aijirō's reincarnation, and hence as the new kanrodai.{{cite web | last=Yumiyama | first=Tatsuya | title=Encyclopedia of Shinto詳細 | website=國學院大學デジタルミュージアム | url=https://d-museum.kokugakuin.ac.jp/eos/detail/id=9821 | access-date=2025-01-19}}

In 1962, {{Nihongo|Honbushin|ほんぶしん}}, led by Aijirō's daughter Ōnishi Tama (大西玉; 1916–1969) (whom Aijirō and Honbushin followers claim was the reincarnation of Nakayama Miki), separated from Honmichi.{{rp|173}} It was incorporated as a religious organization in 1966. Originally, it was headquartered in Takaishi, Osaka, but then moved to Shiojiri, Nagano. In 1969, Honbushin moved to Okayama, where it set up its kanrodai on Mount Kami.

Locations

Honmichi is currently headquartered in Takaishi, Osaka. However, the main worship hall is located in Sennan, Osaka.

Apart from the headquarters, there are several other locations, including two {{Nihongo|main offices|支部|shibu}}:

Uda office (宇陀支部). This is the location of Ōnishi Aijirō's birth place.
Sennan office (泉南支部). Honmichi's largest building, the {{Nihongo|Sennan Temple|泉南神殿|Sennan Shinden}}, is located in Sennan.

There are several {{Nihongo|branches|出張所|shutchōjo}}, including one in the United States:

Central (Chūbu) branch (中部出張所) in Okazaki, Aichi (near Motojuku Station 本宿駅)
Western (Seibu) branch (西部出張所) in Yamaguchi (near Nihozu Station 仁保津駅)
Akashi branch (明石出張所) in Akashi, Hyōgo (near Nishi-Akashi Station 西明石駅)
Kantō branch (関東出張所) in Noda, Chiba
Hon-Michi Congregation of LA on Wilshire Boulevard in Los Angeles, United States

File:Honmichi headquarters.jpg|Honmichi headquarters in Takaishi, Osaka

File:Honmichi Takaishi headquarters 1.jpg|Honmichi headquarters in Takaishi, Osaka in 2025

File:Honmichi Takaishi mural 2.jpg|Mural at the Honmichi headquarters in Takaishi, Osaka

File:Honmichi Chubu Branch.jpg|Honmichi Central (Chūbu) branch in Okazaki, Aichi Prefecture

File:Honmichi-Chubu-Branch-from-inside-train.jpg|Central (Chūbu) branch in Okazaki as seen from a train

File:Hon Michi Los Angeles Shutchosho.jpg|Hon-Michi Congregation of Los Angeles

There are also facilities in Katsuragi, Nara (竹之内廟所, where Ōnishi Aijirō and his wife are buried) and Izumi, Osaka (信太山作業所), as well as a training center (花瀬山修道場) near Fudo Waterfall (不動滝) in Takigawa Valley (滝川渓谷) in Totsukawa, Nara Prefecture (located just to the southwest of Mount Shakka).{{cite web | title=ほんみち教とは – 大阪わらじの会 | website=osakawaraji.jpn.org | date=2009-09-08 | url=https://osakawaraji.jpn.org/?p=1102 | language=ja | access-date=2025-01-21}}{{Cite book |title=Tenkeisha no shūkyō Honmichi: kanrodai sekai ni itaru dō 天啓者の宗教ほんみち:甘露台世界にいたる道 |publisher=Kōdōsha 耕土社 |year=1977 |author=Umehara, Masaki 梅原正紀 |language=ja |pages=283-6}}

Schisms

The following religious movements and organizations are founded by former Honmichi members.

{{Nihongo|Shūyōdan Hōseikai|修養団捧誠会|}}, founded by {{Nihongo|Idei Seitarō|出居清太郎|}} (1899–1983) in 1929{{cite book | last=Kisala | first=Robert | title=Prophets of Peace: Pacifism and Cultural Identity in Japan's New Religions | publisher=University of Hawaii Press | publication-place=Honolulu | date=1999 | isbn=0-8248-2228-5 | pages=144-5}}
{{Nihongo|Tenri Sanrinkō|天理三輪講|}}, founded by {{Nihongo|Katsu Hisano|勝ヒサノ|}} in 1933 (now defunct)
{{Nihongo|Tenri Kami no Uchiake Basho|天理神の打開場所, 天理神之打開場所|}}, founded by {{Nihongo|Watanabe Yoso|渡辺ヨソ|}} in 1934 (now defunct)
{{Nihongo|Ōkanmichi|おうかんみち|}}{{cite web | title=おうかんみち | url=http://www.oukanmichi.or.jp/ | language=ja | access-date=2025-06-04}}
{{Nihongo|Kanrodai Reiri Shidōkai|甘露台霊理斯道会|}}{{cite web | title=甘露台霊理斯道会 | url=https://www.yamato-daijingu.jp/ | language=ja | access-date=2025-06-04}}
{{Nihongo|Kami Ichijōkyō|神一条教|}}, founded by {{Nihongo|Yonetani Kuni|米谷クニ|}} (1889–1974), originally a follower of Tenri Sanrinkō in 1942. Upon her death in 1974, her son (米谷千恵子) took over until his death in 1985. The current leader is {{nihongo|Nishi Yoshio|西義男|}}. Kami Ichijōkyō is headquartered in Higashiōsaka, near Fuse Station and Shuntokumichi Station.
{{Nihongo|Sekai Shindōkyō|世界心道教|}}, founded by {{Nihongo|Aida Hide|会田ヒデ|}}, originally a follower of Tenri Sanrinkō in 1944. It is headquartered in Toyokawa.
{{Nihongo|Honbushin|ほんぶしん|}}, founded by Ōnishi Tama in 1961. It is currently headquartered in Okayama.