Lighting the Lamp of Hope! The Joy of Fostering Youth!

Ahhhh the brilliance of introducing youth to this practice! Some of my golden memories are of the youth I took under my wing. They are living the lives of their dreams with the ultimate tool for creating happiness and value for themselves and others...this practice!

The other day someone magical...seeking...young and vibrant came happily into my life. I was at a restaurant with  my new friend Mari Beth whom I'd just introduced to chanting. She came up to my apartment and chanted with me for the first time. 

Our server was this delightful, beautiful young woman...she looked like she couldn't possibly have a care in the world. We had some laughs with her and a great time. At the end of the dinner I said "I have something for you!" and took out my card and wrote Nam-myoho-renge-kyo on it and the connection was INSTANT. 

It was as if she had been seeking this her whole life. She said "Oh! I really need this right now, my Mom's in the hospital in pain and I'm all alone caring for her!" I asked her if she wanted to come over to chant after she got off - my apartment was right across the street and she said SURE! 

She said she'd get our by about 10:30, but she got some last minute customers and was able to come around midnight (!!!)...and I was waiting for her and so happy to see her! She told me the story of her young life (she just turned 20), and I could see what a fighter she is, against all odds. She's faced extreme challenges and is intent on fulfilling her dream of helping people with artifical limbs. She is such a Bodhisattva already. 

We sat in front of the Gohonzon. I put the bell in front of her, taught her how to chant, and told her she could ring the bell when she was finished. She chanted almost half and hour!  

Yesterday her Mom was released from the hospital! Last night she came over at 10:30 pm and we chanted and talked. She is so grateful to be embraced into this practice and my life. There is nothing better than having experience, knowledge and HOPE to give someone who is soaking it up! She is my Mother's Day gift! Last night we watched the Ben videos and she got to know and love my boy. What a wonderful life I lead! 

I am dedicated to raising her. I am dedicated to helping her achieve each of her dreams. I see her as a leader of our bright, positive movement that will attract 50,000 youth and more!  

I am grateful for all your Daimoku for the youth. We can feel the groundswell... feel them arising...and RISE to meet them! We all have determination to raise capable, happy, bright beacons of hope. And introducing her has brought ME such happiness...a new vibrancy in my step...a fresh determination to live as a brilliant beacon of hope, to overcome my sufferings and achieve my dreams. 

It is time for our youth to find relief and stop suffering. It is time for them to gain human connection...and hope. It is time to stop losing so many to despair! It is up to us to reach out and be available. And it is the greatest joy to watch them blossom like flowers! 

As Daisaku Ikeda writes in the May 2017 Living Buddhism study material on Fostering Successors, (page 44):

"The right time 

is not something one waits for; 

one creates it!"

Now is the time! We can carry cards everywhere we go. 
Introducing people who work close to where I live is now a focus for me. I live on the beach. There are countless restaurants and stores close by. If I meet someone who is receptive they can pop on over before or after they work to learn to chant! 

So happy to be sharing this journey with YOU! 

PowerPrayer to Make Each Moment Count!

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How do we approach our lives powerfully? 
How do we make each moment count? 
How do we generate "earnest resolve"?

We KNOW that each moment contains the seed and power of the entire universe within our lives (ichinen sanzen) We KNOW THIS MOMENT is important. What do we need to harness and activate and use this knowledge with every fiber of our being? Here are some insights from the September Gosho study on the Gift of Rice:

The Gosho, the Gift of Rice states: 
"When we carefully consider what exactly "earnest resolve" refers to, it is the doctrine of observing the mind." 
(From the Gift of Rice by Nichiren Daishonin, Living Buddhism September 2015, page 29)

President Ikeda states "Everything is determined by the direction in which our "earnest resolve" orients our minds. When we focus our "earnest resolve" on our Buddhist practice, believing and practicing the Mystic Law that enables all people to attain enlightenment, our inner Buddhahood reveals itself, pervading our lives and the environment." 
LB, 9/15, page 38

How powerfully can earnest resolve work in our lives? 

Akeymi Bailey Haynie, our National SGI Leader said one day she heard her mother cry out from a nightmare, and realized that her mother had been having nightmares every night. (Her mother is a survivor of the WWII bombings in Japan). Akeymi developed a deep resolve in her heart and sat down and chanted 15 minutes of focused Daimoku that her mother would NEVER AGAIN have another nightmare. She reached that level of "now or never" or "NO WAY!" that is so powerful, and her Mom never had another nightmare. 

We all have this power in our lives. Sensei tells us this every day. When we are in front of the Gohonzon it is up to us to summon this resolve, and to focus our minds.

We all have this power! Today I offer you: 

PowerPrayer to Ignite and Focus
Our Inner Resolve
by Jamie Lee Silver from ChantforHappiness.com

LIFE! 
Now it the crucial moment! 
THIS MOMENT 
While I am chanting I am drawing a line in the sand! 
I am changing this KARMA Forever - 
I am rooting the cause from my life now! 
This shall happen:__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
and/or THIS shall STOP happening:________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I NOW summon all the power vested in me as a worthy votary of the Lotus Sutra. 
My life is Powerful!
I am turning my attention and focus to this powerful intention:
__________________________________________________
My daimoku is Powerful
Shoten Zenjin activate your forces NOW! 
Each Daimoku summons my power!
Each Daimoku has an effect NOW
For the sake of World Peace, I ignite my vow!
I will show actual proof -  inspire myself, inspire others, 
and change the world! 
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo!
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo!
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo! 

THIS Daimoku is changing my karma NOW!

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What kind of daimoku (the chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo)
changes our lives? 
The answer is ALL kinds of daimoku - 
the chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the mystic law, changes our lives and changes our karma...

But I have a question. Do you sometimes chant with all the best intentions while thinking "I don't know why I'm doing this...it's just one more time to chant but I don't feel it, and really, I'm feeling kind of hopeless?" 

And the first thing I'll say is "Congratulations for keeping your promise to yourself and showing up to chant. THAT in itself will change your life. 

So, I've been thinking about the quality of my own chanting and I have something I want to share with you. (As you know, I do not represent the Soka Gakkai, I belong to it, but this is not a Gakkai publication. I love the organization and have been a member since 1985. And I started this blog in 2009 to overcome my own heartache, and to show, through my own example, that anything is possible when we base our lives on the Gohonzon.( 

And lately my daimoku has been very strong, 
because as I chant I am thinking:

NOW! With THIS Daimoku I am changing my karma. 
Now this very Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is THE Nam-myoho-renge-kyo that is changing_____________________________on the inside of my life. 
Whatever you want to change...have the conviction that:
THIS Daimoku!
THIS Daimoku!
THIS Daimoku!
Is the one that does it! 

Here's to YOU and your happiness and success! 
Go Buddha GO! 

GO Buddha GO! PowerPrayer to MAKE IT HAPPEN. Rock Your World! Change Your Karma!

My view as I write this blog. What a benefit! 
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We chant for ourselves. 
We chant for others. 
We chant for this life and this world. 
We change our karma 
for the sake of changing the whole world's karma.  
We are the noble Bodhisattvas of the earth 
and Votaries of the Lotus Sutra.

We TELL our lives what we want - in our prayers - while chanting.  
We ARE Nam-myoho-renge-kyo! 

And....Sometimes it seems like it is taking FOREVER for a benefit to come or an obstacle to go away, doesn't it? Even though we KNOW the answer lies within us - inside our own karma, and in doing our human revolution, sometimes we just have to get mad at our own life and wake those Shoten Zenjin UP! (Shoten Zenjin = protective forces within all life)

In the February 2015 Living Buddhism Magazine
(published by the SGI-USA and available by calling 800-835-4558) one of my favorite Gosho passages appeared. In this Gosho, Nichiren Daishonin has been persecuted by the government and is being taken away to Tatsunokuchi Beach to be beheaded. On the way, he sees a statue of Hachiman. 

Nichiren demands they stop at the statue. He looks at Hachiman and shouts: 

'Great Boddhisatva Hachiman, are you truly a god?...Now I, Nichiren, am the foremost votary of the Lotus Sutra in all of Japan, and am entirely without guilt...If I am executed tonight and go to the pure land of Eagle Peak, I will dare to report to Shakyamuni Buddha, the lord of teachings, that the Sun Goddess and Great Boddhisatva Hachiman are the deities who have broken their oath to him. If you feel this will go hard with you, you had better do something about it right away!' (WND - 1, 766-67)

Nichiren yells at the Buddhist God and says "you better protect me RIGHT NOW because that is the pledge you made. If I die I will report you! Get to work!" Of course, after he yells at the statue, a huge orb comes out of the sky lighting up the faces of his would-be assassins, they all run scared, and he is saved from death. 

Nichiren's strong attitude when he addresses the statue shows us we can summon the forces within our life. We can all pray in front of our own Gohonzons with fury and with fire. 

PowerPrayer to MAKE IT HAPPEN!
These words represent some thoughts we can have in mind while chanting. Our minds will naturally fluctuate as we chant, and that is absolutely fine. I offer these PowerPrayers because they represent the moments I am most connected to my desire...and I offer them to help you. They are my unique contribution based on my Bodhisattva vow to use my life to inspire. 
By Jamie Lee Silver of ChantforHappiness.com

"Gohonzon! 
Shoten Zenjin! 
Life! 
SOME KIND OF WAY 
this________ HAS TO CHANGE NOW!!! 
My life has to move. 
I Don't know HOW to make it happen. 
And I don't have to know. 
I just know it HAS TO!!
Every Daimoku I chant is changing this karma now! 
It is time for me to see results in this area. 
NOW!
______________________________________________________________________________________________________Nam-myoho-renge-kyo! 

We can all summon this fiery attitude at the crucial moment - we are ALL dignified votaries of the Lotus Sutra, we can all command the fundamental forces that are within our lives and represented on the Gohonzon.

When I first wrote this PowerPrayer last year, I was visiting my nephew in St. Petersburg Florida, certain that my life was unfolding JUST as it should. My beloved son Ben had died the summer before, and I was setting out to create my new life...mostly alone, but fortified by this practice and the power of my own life. Through chanting strongly, like THIS, I was able to happily move to this paradise. 
As I write this I am looking over the Gulf of Mexico, listening to the waves, and shortly I'll be swimming and walking on the beach. These prayers, this practice made it all happen. 

Last year I wrote this: "I am seeing the benefit come from the pain I've been through. Life is getting happier for me, and I have more to look forward to with each passing moment. I will have lots to share with you over the next coming months!" And it was true! By June 30th I was in St. Pete Beach! Nam-myoho-renge-kyo! 

Look at the power of YOUR Life! 
You can have anything you wish. 
You have the power within YOU. 

Added bonus: Here's one way to explain the practice for others: 

What we Nichiren Buddhists do;
As practitioners of the Lotus Sutra, 
we chant the Mystic Law every single day. 
Intoning Nam-myoho-renge-kyo 
(which means: I fuse my life with the Mystic law of cause and effect through sound vibration) is a noble cause. 
It brings forth our greatest human potential, 
elevates our life condition, and the life condition and vibration of all of life. 
Our life undergoes a complete human revolution...and as our life changes...we change everything. We raise the vibration of the planet. 

2 Great Keys to Developing Friendships ~ Treasures of the Heart

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From Daisaku Ikeda from Ikedaquotes.org: 

"As the Buddhist teacher Nichiren states: “More valuable than treasures in a storehouse are the treasures of the body, and the treasures of the heart are the most valuable of all.” “Treasures of the storehouse” refer to money and other forms of material wealth. “Treasures of the body” are skills and abilities, as well as physical health. “Treasures of the heart” are the riches that we build within our lives. This indicates the kind of inner strength that cannot be defeated by any tribulation. It refers to the power to live out our lives in a creative way, with constant joy, fulfillment and vitality."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

And how do we live our lives in a creative way, with constant joy, fulfillment and vitality? I think one of the keys is through the rich friendships we make. Having good close friends to be there for us, celebrate with us...share their lives with us and create close community...Aaaahhhh, THIS is true treasure.

But not everyone is skilled at making friends...and there IS a skill to making friends. AND we can use our Buddhist practice to fulfill our desire for new friends...along with actions to take as well. 

As a child, and throughout most of my younger life I had very few friends. I found myself living in San Francisco as a young mother, a fairly new Buddhist, with very few friends. And I knew I could change this, and that something had to change within me. AND I had to gain some friendship making skills. 

How did I chant? 
What did I do? 

I chanted to change the karma of not having friends. I chanted to change whatever needed to be changed within my own core...within my own BEING, that would change my environment and bring loving, lasting friendships into my life. I chanted to BE a friend. 
I did tons of shakubuku. I chanted for my members everyday. AND I consulted my father, the world's best friend maker. 

And what happened? I TOTALLY changed that karma and developed the skills to make new friends. Now I have more than 20 people I consider BEST friends, and the list is always growing. I love them all, and they love me. I love you too, my readers. My capacity to love just grows and grows. 

How has this changed my life? How could making new friends, lasting friends, real friends - gaining the ability to really open your life to others in a way that allows you to blossom like the Buddha you are...how could that change your life?

Well, for me, it got me through the worst, most challenging times when my sweet son got so, so sick. My wonderful Buddhist friends surrounded me and chanted with me. One friend came every morning. And when Ben died, I flung open my doors and called out to my friends and they filled my house from morning till evening - because I wanted them to. They cried with me, reminisced about Ben with me, chanted with me, and sometimes just sat in silence. 

They helped me plan Ben's Life Celebration, and showed up to be there for me. And they gave me a fantastic send-off when I left Chicago and moved to Florida last June. And although I was sad to be leaving my friends in Chicago, I knew I would make great new friends in Florida, and I HAVE!

THIS is a treasure of the heart. THIS is what really matters in life. Something has unfolded in the core of my life...some energy that opens me to be real...to be ME...to be love and forgiveness and alive...and to love and be loved. 

Key # 1

We can start with the sincere prayer to open to loving friendships, and to change our friendship karma. 

Key #2

Using a mirror - look yourself in the eye. Every morning, and say: 

"I am ready to make new friends now! I am ready right now to bring new friends into my life. I have a lot to offer. My new friends are waiting to meet ME! I am ready!" 

Try this one incredible key.  

Have a beautiful day! 

What Does Nam-myoho-renge-kyo Mean and Why Do We Chant it?

What does Nam-myoho-renge-kyo mean, 

and why do we chant it? 

By Jamie Lee Silver of ChantforHappiness.com - 

(You can subscribe by putting your email in the box to the right. 

Translate button is at the top right.)

The literal translation of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is:

"I fuse my life 

with the Mystic Law of cause and effect 

through sound vibration (or sutra)." 

It is the title of the Lotus Sutra, 

the Buddha's highest teaching 

that declares  

ALL people possess the Buddha Nature...

all people ARE Buddhas...

and we can access our own Buddhahood ~ our inherent wisdom, determination, power to take the best action for our lives while benefiting others, sense of vitality, ability to make a difference, find fulfillment and happiness, and the strength to turn 

EVERY POISON INTO MEDICINE 

~by chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. 

That's it. We don't need to change our diets, memorize lists of paths, change our lifestyles, shave our heads, wear robes, or "purify our desires." This form of Buddhism is radically different than most forms you may have encountered. SGI (Soka Gakkai Buddhism is accessible to ALL. 

AND the most important aspect of our prayer is to do our own human revolution...to change the very core of our lives...change our karma, and by doing so, change the world around us as well. 
We chant for "Kosen-Rufu," a world of respect for all life, and for all who are suffering to be happy. Through our own happiness, we create happiness for all. We can all win in life together. 

When we chant, we harness the energy that is our birthright. And we chant twice a day, every single day, to get and keep our lives in rhythm. 

When we are in rhythm we are in the right place at the right time... to find out about and get the job...or to meet the man of our dreams...or to protect our child from danger. When we are in rhythm, life isn't so much of a struggle as it is a joy...we see the beauty in everything and we feel our lives overflowing with appreciation. 

In fact, we view obstacles themselves as benefits, as strange as that may sound....because obstacles make us chant more, and when we chant more we draw even higher life conditions and deeper satisfaction into our lives. 

What can we chant FOR? 
Anything. Make sure to write your list, and rewrite it when you achieve those goals. Ultimately, our goal is to change our own selves...to overcome our doubt and negativity, and to experience life as the Buddhas we are. When WE change, our environment changes. We are all interconnected. 

We chant for others, we chant for our planet, our countries, and ourselves. 
We can chant for whatever our desire may be...even if it might not be the "right" desire for us. In the act of chanting, we will change our karma and our desires themselves will naturally begin to shift. We will open our lives to the deeper wisdom within...the deeper yearning, the REAL desires that we have forgotten or given up on. We will grow. We will prosper and we will blossom. 

We will gain the wisdom of the right action to take - because ACTION springs from wisdom. 

The challenge is...we need to DO it. We have to chant to bring all this rhythm and harmony out. And that's why we practice together as an organization, the SGI, The Soka Gakkai, our fellowship of friends who support each other, chant for each other, and create a new Soka family for each practitioner. We are so fortunate. 

We are in this life together...sharing our challenges and our successes. If you are not yet connected to the SGI please go to sgi-usa.com and find your local members. You will be so glad you did. 
If you live in or around St. Pete Beach Florida you can connect with me through chantforhappiness@gmail.com. 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Some Powerful Quotes from Daisaku Ikeda:

THIS moment, this instant, is important, 
not some unknown time in the future. 
Today, this very day is what matters. 
You must put your whole being 
into the time that exists now. 
For future victory rests in the present moment.

BUDDHISM holds that 
everything is in a constant state of flux. 
Thus, the question is 
whether we are to accept change passively 
and be swept away by it, 
or whether we are to take the lead 
and create positive changes on our own initiative. 
While conservatism and self-protection
might be likened to winter, night and death, 
the spirit of pioneering and attempting to realize 
the ideals evokes the images of spring,
morning and birth.

Do gongyo and chant daimoku with a fresh spirit. 
And, filled with renewed vitality, 

build a history of accumulating fresh benefit.

All quotes from Ikedaquotes.org

Kate Update! She's doing great. Please Keep Chanting!

Kate sounds great! Thank you for your patience! I'm in Chicago for book signings for my new book, "Our Forever Ben." I'll make announcements about that shortly. 

For the moment I'm still focused on Kate. 

She came through the surgery with flying colors, as my sweet Mommy would say!

I talked to her on Saturday and she remembered everything, and was extremely grateful for her life. You know, we have those moments, if we're lucky, to sit back and say "Wow, I have a new lease on life. I can see through clearer eyes. I can appreciate everything like NEVER before." Kate was crying tears of gratitude. FOR YOU! She knows you are chanting for her. She can feel your daimoku. And it's the Randolph family's determination that every single person who is chanting for Kate has a great breakthrough in faith and benefit. 

Kate's illness gives us ALL a chance to breathe that gratitude in. 

As I write this, we are not quite sure what kind of tumor they removed. So I am chanting as vigilantly as before. I think back to FNCC, just a few days ago. Kate and I spent an hour alone in the peace garden, taking in the quotes by Daisaku Ikeda, really feeling our gratitude towards our mentor. 

And Kate reminded me of the address he gave us in 2010 before Rock the Era. She said there was a quote in that address that she chanted to understand - with her life - what every word meant. I'm sure she'd be really happy to share it with you now: 

Daisaku Ikeda stated: 

"You must decide 
that the oneness of mentor and disciple 
is the primary quest of your life." 

What does this mean? I cannot tell you. It is something each person can glean for themselves. What happens to you when you chant to understand this with your life? 

And here we are, in the states, coming up on the holiday season. in Chicago we just had our first snow...and it's the holiday season. (I'm visiting from Florida) As I was driving today I realized the holidays are so poignant because we are longing for a moment, a glimpse, a scent, a song, of our past. And, if we are lucky, if we are generous in our hearts, we can let the feeling in. We can see the images of our childhood, feel the hugs of our grandchildren and gaze into the eyes of our children who are now all grown up. 

And bask. Bask in the beauty that we are. Bask in the lives we have. Bask in the eternity of each life. This is my second Christmas without my son Ben in physical form, but through our writings he is more with me than ever. Kate always says, "We are Buddhists. We breathe rarified air." 

Yes we do. 

Sending you love from me and Kate and her family!

PowerPrayer ~ Fresh Determination ~ For Going from Victim to Victor!

This PowerPrayer ~ Fresh Determination
has been inspired by the Gosho Study from the August of 2013 Living Buddhism "The Three Obstacles and Four Devils" written in November 1277 to the youngest Ikegami brother, Munenega, after his brother had been disowned by his father for his faith in Nichiren Buddhism. 
It is a writing I use to refresh my faith over and over. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

President Ikeda's lecture from the August 2013 

Living Buddhism on this Gosho includes these words: 

"Though we speak of the "three obstacles and four devils" appearing, no one wishes to have to face adversity. 
That is surely a natural human reaction. 
But Nichiren says that 
the appearance of the three obstacles and four devils 
is a source of JOY. 
How could that be? 
It doesn't seem possible. 
But it is, in fact, 
by overcoming the steep hills and inclines of obstacles 
we can forge our lives 
and ascend the summit of Buddhahood, 
where we can savor the sublime vista of 
eternity, happiness, true self and purity."

He goes on to say:

"We need to "own" them (our obstacles) as something we ourselves have summoned up...we are in charge, we are the protagonists...the struggle against the three obstacles and four devils is indeed a great joy."

President Ikeda goes on to say:
"As Nichiren Daishonin writes: "When a tiger roars, gales blow; when a dragon intones, clouds gather" (The Workings of Brahma and Shakra," WND-1, 799) When we adopt this attitude ~ "I summoned this storm!" ~ our hearts will be filled with the bright sense of hope and purpose." (All quotes from the 2013 August Living Buddhism, pages 21, 22) 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~According to Daisaku Ikeda, we summon the exact set of obstacles we need to springboard our lives to the next level of practice and happiness. 
We will be better off for them.  
We summoned these storms. 

Realizing this takes our lives from Victim to Victory! This simple change in perspective brings incredible power to our Daimoku. When we are chanting we can address our lives and roar like the lions (Buddhas!) we are. What follows is a PowerPrayer I offer you to reclaim your life and move from Victim to Victor. As always, I offer you my writings from my heart, not as an official SGI representative, although I love the organization and encourage everyone to participate - if you are not yet a member please use this link to connect: sgi-usa.org 

PowerPrayer  ~ Fresh Determination

For Moving 

From Victim to VICTOR 

You may want to read this before chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and let the words and gently flow in and out of your mind while chanting. It's not a replacement for Nam-myoho-rnge-kyo...it's a focusing tool ~ that's what a PowerPrayer - A Fresh Determination is...

by Jamie Lee Silver from Chantforhappiness.com. 

LIFE !! 
I get it! 
I SUMMONED THIS STORM and I can VANQUISH IT! 
I summoned this storm and I will WIN over it !
I am a Buddha - 
I feel Nam-myoho-renge-kyo throughout my whole body - 
in every cell. I will prove the power of the Gohonzon, the Power of my own life right here, right now! My own sufferings will turn into my happiness and I inspire others and create kosen-rufu through my own life. 

Shoten Zenjin (protective forces of the universe within all life) 
Back me up! 
Support this votary of the Lotus Sutra in these ways:__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I vow to PROVE the POWER of the MYSTIC LAW 
through my own victories - 
so I can encourage everyone that 
the IMPOSSIBLE IS POSSIBLE!
I will NOW raise my life condition to a level I have never before experienced. 
I see through the eyes of the Buddha, 
I feel with the heart of the Buddha
I AM the Buddha! 
The universe exists within ME! 
I am CLAIMING power over my own life. 
No more complaining for me! 
No More "Woe is me!" 
NO! 
Starting today ~ with this Daimoku ~ 
I bring forth all the wisdom I need
                             to know what I need to do - 
All the courage I need ~ 
                             as I boldly take the right action 
All the perfect timing I need ~ 
                             to accomplish what I want
And the People and Resources I need ~ 
                             ALL appear right now! 
I am a powerful being waging a powerful war against the fundamental darkness inherent in all of life and I will WIN. 
Starting today 
I will win in:______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

For more information about 
SGI Buddhism please go to SGI-USA.org

Write me your victories at Chantforhappiness@gmail.com! 

PowerPrayer ~ Fresh Determination ~ For Going from Victim to Victor!

This PowerPrayer ~ Fresh Determination
has been inspired by the Gosho Study from the August of 2013 Living Buddhism "The Three Obstacles and Four Devils" written in November 1277 to the youngest Ikegami brother, Munenega, after his brother had been disowned by his father for his faith in Nichiren Buddhism. 
It is a writing I use to refresh my faith over and over. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

President Ikeda's lecture from the August 2013 

Living Buddhism on this Gosho includes these words: 

"Though we speak of the "three obstacles and four devils" appearing, no one wishes to have to face adversity. 
That is surely a natural human reaction. 
But Nichiren says that 
the appearance of the three obstacles and four devils 
is a source of JOY. 
How could that be? 
It doesn't seem possible. 
But it is, in fact, 
by overcoming the steep hills and inclines of obstacles 
we can forge our lives 
and ascend the summit of Buddhahood, 
where we can savor the sublime vista of 
eternity, happiness, true self and purity."

He goes on to say:

"We need to "own" them (our obstacles) as something we ourselves have summoned up...we are in charge, we are the protagonists...the struggle against the three obstacles and four devils is indeed a great joy."

President Ikeda goes on to say:
"As Nichiren Daishonin writes: "When a tiger roars, gales blow; when a dragon intones, clouds gather" (The Workings of Brahma and Shakra," WND-1, 799) When we adopt this attitude ~ "I summoned this storm!" ~ our hearts will be filled with the bright sense of hope and purpose." (All quotes from the 2013 August Living Buddhism, pages 21, 22) 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~According to Daisaku Ikeda, we summon the exact set of obstacles we need to springboard our lives to the next level of practice and happiness. 
We will be better off for them.  
We summoned these storms. 

Realizing this takes our lives from Victim to Victory! This simple change in perspective brings incredible power to our Daimoku. When we are chanting we can address our lives and roar like the lions (Buddhas!) we are. What follows is a PowerPrayer I offer you to reclaim your life and move from Victim to Victor. As always, I offer you my writings from my heart, not as an official SGI representative, although I love the organization and encourage everyone to participate - if you are not yet a member please use this link to connect: sgi-usa.org 

PowerPrayer  ~ Fresh Determination

For Moving 

From Victim to VICTOR 

You may want to read this before chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and let the words and gently flow in and out of your mind while chanting. It's not a replacement for Nam-myoho-rnge-kyo...it's a focusing tool ~ that's what a PowerPrayer - A Fresh Determination is...

by Jamie Lee Silver from Chantforhappiness.com. 

LIFE !! 
I get it! 
I SUMMONED THIS STORM and I can VANQUISH IT! 
I summoned this storm and I will WIN over it !
I am a Buddha - 
I feel Nam-myoho-renge-kyo throughout my whole body - 
in every cell. I will prove the power of the Gohonzon, the Power of my own life right here, right now! My own sufferings will turn into my happiness and I inspire others and create kosen-rufu through my own life. 

Shoten Zenjin (protective forces of the universe within all life) 
Back me up! 
Support this votary of the Lotus Sutra in these ways:__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I vow to PROVE the POWER of the MYSTIC LAW 
through my own victories - 
so I can encourage everyone that 
the IMPOSSIBLE IS POSSIBLE!
I will NOW raise my life condition to a level I have never before experienced. 
I see through the eyes of the Buddha, 
I feel with the heart of the Buddha
I AM the Buddha! 
The universe exists within ME! 
I am CLAIMING power over my own life. 
No more complaining for me! 
No More "Woe is me!" 
NO! 
Starting today ~ with this Daimoku ~ 
I bring forth all the wisdom I need
                             to know what I need to do - 
All the courage I need ~ 
                             as I boldly take the right action 
All the perfect timing I need ~ 
                             to accomplish what I want
And the People and Resources I need ~ 
                             ALL appear right now! 
I am a powerful being waging a powerful war against the fundamental darkness inherent in all of life and I will WIN. 
Starting today 
I will win in:______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


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For more information about 
SGI Buddhism please go to SGI-USA.org

Write me your victories at Chantforhappiness@gmail.com!