Sound at HeartNo.33(Updated on February 7, 2006)

Hello, everyone,
I'm Fuyo Haruna.
It'll be cold for the time being, but the days are getting longer-a harbinger of spring.

The other day, I celebrated my 74th birthday. I'm more sound and vigorous now than ever-not only physically but also mentally. My heart is sound and vigorous; it is filled with a sense of gratitude and happiness every day, all the time. I can't help but feel thankful for everything I see and experience. Even when I am not uttering my thanks, ripples of gratitude are constantly coming back and forth and overflowing from my heart. It is as if I had a spring in my heart from which a sense of happiness continuously wells up.

My life so far hasn't always allowed me to stay this calm and happy. But I've always warned myself that I shouldn't forget to feel joy. I've said to myself, "I was that weak and sick but I'm still alive! What else should I give thanks for?"
In facing problems or difficulties, I unconsciously tried to change them into joy. Such a habit of mine, my desire to turn the negative into the positive, or my state of mind which has always been willing to accept things as they are and to give thanks for them has built up in layers around me and protected me. So when something difficult happens to me, my happy sense prevents my mind from falling into a world of worries and points me towards the sense of reassurance that I'll somehow be able to cope.

Having seen a wide variety of people, I've come to think that man's character is a product of his consciousness that has built up in layers. People who have lived surrounded with thick layers of an agonizing consciousness look depressed. One's state of mind appears on one's face. People who have always urged themselves to "keep trying" with things give off just such an aura.
Among various consciousnesses in this world, I think that the consciousness you experience when you are relaxed is the most important. When you are at ease, your heart is released from all preoccupations and a sense of peace and joy will prevail. I want to make such a world of relief grow more and more within me and I want to invite people there. This is what I live for and it is the source of my pleasure.

We can change people around us in the way we want by changing the way we control our own consciousness. I've always wanted to change people so that they can live with happy feelings. I've always wished to help people go through their lives by giving them advice like "Your way of thinking might get you in trouble." or "Try to think this way　
Such wishes of mine have also built up to form thick layers in my life. After all, whether you can make yourself happy and invite people into the world of your happy consciousness entirely depends on how thick you've made the layers of your gratitude. To create these layers, you need to build up consciousness day after day. You may find it difficult to feel grateful for things in the beginning. As you try to build a sense of gratitude, however, the layer gets thicker and you'll find it increasingly easy. And your thick layers will also protect you, and help you accept things in a positive way. When you've come this far, the layers of your gratitude will start to turn into energy that will change the negative-not only for you but also for people around you-into the positive.

To help people, it is vital to make the layers of your positive consciousnesses thicker. Suppose you have someone near you who is deeply saddened or worried and you have a strong urge to save her by any means. It would be nice if you could do specific things for her. But if the problem lies in her heart, it will be extremely difficult for you to get rid of the source of her agony. You cannot heal her ailing soul unless you build up an extraordinary amount of energy in yourself and send it to her.

When a child is worried about something, for example, whether the child can get rid of the worries or not solely depends on how the parent controls his or her consciousness. A worrying mother may be too worried herself and unable to help her child to surface from the worrisome world. One time when one of my children was suffering, I strongly sensed that I, as a mother, shouldn't be worried. Instead, I felt that I had to surround him with even greater pleasure and gratitude, as well as with love. "Don't worry. You'll be fine", I said, "If you can change the way you see the world, things will be much easier for you　 Having said this, I realized that the energy that got my son to feel reassured and confident came solely from my sense of gratitude that had been built up in layers so thick and so strong.

Why don't you make the layers of your consciousness thicker so that you can give thanks for the tiniest little things in your daily life?