Meishu-Sama conceived the Sacred Grounds as prototypes of Paradise on Earth. In addition to harmonizing natural beauty with man-created beauty, the spiritual atmosphere of these places has a very positive impact on the mood of people who visit them. This happens because every single part of the Sacred Grounds is impregnated with the love of the people who somehow helped to build them.
Hakone Sacred Grounds
Also known as Divine Land, the Hakone Sacred Grounds occupies a 76-thousand square meter area. Located in the city of Hakone, district of Gora, in the central portion of Hakone Soun-Zan Mount, the Sacred Grounds is located 600 meters above sea level. In May, 1944, Meishu-Sama moved from Tokyo to Hakone, and immediately after World War II, he began to build the Grounds. It took seven years for the work to be completed.
In addition to gardens and other buildings, the magnificent Hakone Art Museum was built to house more than 1,200 art pieces. Three of them are national treasuries, and more than 60 have been declared part of Japan´s cultural heritage.
Meishu-Sama designed every single corner of this Sacred Grounds, from the placement of a single rock in the garden, to the building of paths and waterfalls. The place and its buildings symbolize the fire spirit.
Atami Sacred Grounds
Atami is a thermal water resort, blessed with a balmy climate, mountains, sea, sinuous coastlines, varied landscapes and fabulous views. It was the city Meishu-Sama chose to build the Sacred Grounds also known as Celestial Land. The Atami Sacred Grounds is located on the coast, by the sea, and it currently stretches over 176 thousand square meters. The construction was initiated in the spring of 1956, under Meishu-Sama’s direct supervision.
The site is home to the Atami Fine Arts Museum, considered the biggest private museum in Japan, and the Crystal Palace on the Azaleas Hill, a modern architecture building of rounded lines and a huge glass hall. This Sacred Grounds symbolizes the water spirit.
Kyoto Sacred Grounds
Located in Japan’s central region, Kyoto was the country’s capital until 1868. In 1951, Meishu-Sama, during his missionary travels, explained that the city would be the ideal place to construct the third Sacred Grounds, representing the earth element. Kyoto would then form a trilogy together with the other two Grounds: Hakone – fire, and Atami – water.
Having remained practically untouched for more than 50 years, in the fall of 2002, 50 years after its purchase, the first construction phase was initiated, including a landscape project and the construction of a modern Enhancement Center, dedicated on February 15, 2004. The Kyoto Sacred Grounds is still in expansion, and it is also known as Tranquility Land.
Guarapiranga Sacred Grounds
In Brazil, the prototype of paradise was built on the banks of the Guarapiranga water reservoir, in São Paulo, in an area stretching 371,500 square meters. It is known as the Guarapiranga Sacred Grounds, the first to be built outside Japan. It was dedicated in November, 1995, and today it is considered one of the biggest areas for contemplating nature and meditating in Brazil.
Harmonizing the beauty of the West with that of the East, its construction began in 1991, after an elaborate project where every detail was carefully studied to provide people with a place to meditate and harmonize with nature, elevating their spirits. This Sacred Grounds continues to be expanded.
Thailand Sacred Grounds
The Thailand Sacred Grounds was built in the city of Saraburi, and it was dedicated in 1996. It was the second Sacred Grounds built outside Japan and it currently covers a 160-hectar area.
It houses a Messianic Temple with enhancement rooms, a botanical garden, an Enhancement Center, and an Agricultural School that offers high school-level education in Nature Farming.
Cacuaco Sacred Grounds
In 2006, the government of Angola gave the World Messianic Church of Africa, a parcel of land measuring 1,770,000 square meters. The area is part of a rural village on the banks of Bengo River, and is located 18 kilometers from the capital city, Luanda, and that is where the Cacuaco Sacred Grounds will be built, the first in the African continent.
Today, the area is home to the Cacuaco Nature Farming Hub and the Cacuaco Nature Farming School, where courses are taught. A project to build the Messianic University in that area is well under way.