From Shinto, with its passion for poetry and court ritual, came the love for and dedication to traditional arts which has come to typify Oomoto. At the same time, Onisaburo went beyond Shinto and brought teachings from Buddhism, Christianity, and other religions into Oomoto.

More seriously, Shinto as taught at Oomoto was a "return to the origins", going back in time to the pure spirituality of ancient ages, before the rise of political institutions such as the Imperial House. Shinto for Onisaburo transcended the Imperial system, and even Japan itself. Onisaburo saw Shinto as part of a universal religious revival destined to bring in the new age predicted by Nao.