God in Tenrikyo

In 1869, when the first verses were composed, God initially identified as kami (神), a spirit in the Japanese Shinto tradition.

The designation kami was broader than the Abrahamic notion of God, as it could be applied to any object that possessed divine power or inspired awe, such as animals, trees, places, and people.

Some Tenrikyo authorities suggest that two of these figures, Kunitokotachi-no-Mikoto and Omotari-no-Mikoto, represent tsukihi, or more precisely the duality tsuki-sama (月様) and hi-sama (日様).

At the end of most of the songs, God is invoked with the name Tenri-Ō-no-Mikoto (てんりおうのみこと or 天理王命), or "absolute ruler of divine reason."

The historical sources written during Nakayama Miki's lifetime and in the years following her death suggest a number of other appellations of God.

In early attempts to obtain religious sanctions from the Yoshida Administrative Office of Shinto and a Shingon Buddhist temple, the name of God was recorded as Tenrin-Ō-Myōjin (天輪王明神) and Tenrin-Ō-Kōsha (転輪王講社) respectively.

[7] The doctrine claims that the changes in God's names in the Ofudesaki, from kami to tsukihi to oya, were made in accordance with the spiritual growth of the early followers.

However the physical laws of the world can be superseded at times in order to produce miracles, which suggests that God's power is not purely mechanical or rigid.

God moves, plans, acts, and expresses emotions such as love and regret in order to guide human beings toward greater spiritual maturity and joy.

[15] Tenrikyo's doctrine claims that God was revealed through Nakayama Miki on the lunar calendar date of 26 October 1838, in order to clarify the means of humankind's salvation.

In 1880, in order to evade continuous persecution by the government, Tenrikyo placed itself under the administration of a Shugendo temple named Jifukuji.