Prayer by Daisaku Ikeda
Prayer is the courage to persevere.
It is the struggle to overcome our own weakness
and lack of confidence in ourselves.
It is the act of impressing
in the very depths of our being
the conviction
that we can change the situation without fail.
Prayers are invisible,
but if we pray steadfastly
they will definitely affect clear results in our lives
and surroundings over time.
This is the principle of the true entity of all phenomena.
Faith means having confidence in this invisible realm.
Faith means having confidence in this invisible realm.
Prayer is the way to destroy all fear.
It is the way to banish sorrow,
the way to light a torch of hope.
It is the revolution
that rewrites the scenario of our destiny.
Prayers are neither light dreams nor vague wishes.
They should be firm pledges of determination.
Prayers made with such strong resolve
invite clear results just as magnets attract iron.
Prayer entails an intense challenge
to believe in oneself and stop diminishing yourself.
To belittle yourself
is to disparage Buddhism
and the Buddha within your life.
Prayer is an attempt
to merge the inner workings of our life
with the rhythm of the universe.
When we pray in such a way,
all the workings of the universe
will function to protect us
and the endless cycle of painful reality
will be transformed
into a cycle of victory and happiness.
Prayer is the key to open the door
to unleash that infinite human potential within our lives.
Prayer is not a feeble consolation;
it is a powerful, unyielding conviction.
And prayer must become manifest in action.
To put it another way,
if our prayers are in earnest,
they will definitely give rise to action.
Daisaku Ikeda
