PL Kyodan

Britannica Concise Encyclopedia: PL Kyodan

Religious group founded in Japan by Miki Tokuchika in 1946 as a revival of his father's group, Hito-no-michi. Unaffiliated with any of the major religious traditions of Japan, it teaches that the goal of human life is joyful self-expression. Misfortune and suffering come from forgetting God, but the believer may pray that his troubles be transferred to the patriarch, who is strengthened for vicarious suffering by the group's collective prayers. Today PL Kyodan claims more than 2.5 million adherents worldwide. The sect's headquarters are at Habikino, near Osaka.

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