Revised Silent Prayers ~ For SGI Members

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The full explanation of the changes to the silent prayers 
will be found in the December 11th World Tribune. 
I offer you what was given out at the Chicago Kosen-Rufu Gongyo 
meeting on Sunday, December 6th. 

We are no longer doing the prayer to the Shoten Zenjin 
at the beginning of morning gongyo. 
Now morning and evening gongyo are the same. 

Revised Silent Prayers:

Appreciation to the Gohonzon

I offer my profound gratitude 
and appreciation to the Gohonzon, 
which embodies Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, 
the essence of the Lotus Sutra. 

I offer my profound gratitude 
and appreciation to Nichiren Daishonin, 
the Buddha of the Latter Day of the Law. 

I offer my profound gratitude 
and appreciation to Nikko Shonin. 

Chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo three times. 

Appreciation for the 
Three Founding Presidents

I offer my deepest appreciation 
for the three founding presidents of the Soka Gakkai ~ 
Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, Josei Toda, and Daisaku Ikeda ~ 
the eternal mentors of kosen-rufu, 
for their selfless dedication to propagating the law. 

Chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo three times.

Prayers for 
Worldwide Kosen-rufu 
and the deceased

I pray that the great vow 
for worldwide kosen-rufu be fulfilled
and that the Soka Gakkai International 
will develop in this endeavor
for countless generations to come. 

I pray to accomplish my own human revolution, 
change my destiny, 
and fulfill all of my wishes.

(Offer additional prayers silently here)

I pray for my deceased relatives, 
fellow members, friends, 
and all those who have passed away, 
particularly for these individuals: 

(Sound the bell continually while offering prayers)

Chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo three times. 

I pray for peace throughout the world 
and the happiness of all living beings. 

Sound the bell and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo three times to conclude (if in a group chant in unison). 


Note: if you are not a member yet please go to the SGI-USA.org website to find out more (see the link to the right)

Akemi Bailey-Haynie at Kosen Rufu Gongyo in Chicago!

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We had a great Kosen Rufu Gongyo at the Chicago Culture Center today! 

I hope all of you were able to attend Kosen Rufu Gongyo today.
(Also called World Peace Prayer in some areas). 

My son Aaron came with me, and Akemi Bailey-Haynie spoke. 

I'm not going to write her speech word-for-word, but I am going to tell you what I got out of it, and I thought her message rocked. 

You know how I am always writing about how important it is to do Gongyo twice a day, and how our attitude is so important? 

Well here are some things Akeymie said that really made sense:

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

She reminded us that Sensei says:

"Our attitude towards gongyo practice 

is a reflection of how we live our lives."

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

Akeymie advised us to 

~correct our gongyo and become more sincere. 

~do gongyo every day twice a day

~chant every single daimoku, and every gongyo as if it is the last time we are ever going to chant 

~read from the book as we do gongyo

~read the silent prayers at the end...don't make them up. Do a correct gongyo. 

~put our phones in the other room and turn then off when we chant. No texting. No Facebook. 

We can do this, can't we? 

She said, (and I paraphrase): 

"We are living in very serious times. There's no way you can transform the basic core of your life if you can't do gongyo twice a day."

So I invite you once again. Let's all chant like we mean it...and do gongyo like it matters. It matters! 

Let's chant twice a day every single day, put our phones away, use our books, and get even more sincere than we've ever been. 

Are you up for this challenge? What's it mean to you? What are your goals...

Write them down. 

Let's win in our lives right this very moment. 

Lets get benefits TODAY that will inspire us, lead us to do shakubuku and change the world! 

Lately I am hearing from people who have reached personal goals through reading this blog and chanting. 

Write me or call me - I'd like to know! 

chantforhappiness@gmail.com

Jamie Lee Silver 630-926-3001

Chanting for a Harmonious Family

PowerPrayer for a harmonious Family
By JamieLee Silver

As Nichiren Buddhists, we know that wars begin and end within our own hearts. and I know from personal experience that we sometimes turn against the ones we love when we are really stressed and challenged. But we know, we really know, that the answer lies in our determination to create a harmonious family, and to change our own, and our family's karma with our determined Daimoku. (Chanting of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo). 

I used this prayer, and chanted sincerely for a family member's happiness and totally changed years of struggle. 
If I can do it, so can you!

Daisaku Ikeda states: 

A person who respects others is respected by others in return. Those who treat others with compassion and concern are protected and supported by others. Our environment is essentially a reflection of ourselves.
From Ikedaquotes.org

Daimoku can change ANYTHING. It can change inharmonious relationships, and give us the courage and wisdom we need to make changes in our lives. 

With that in mind, I offer you the PowerPrayer for a Harmonious Family. You can read it before chanting to keep your determination fresh in your mind. We chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, the title of the Lotus Sutra and the name of the rhythm of life itself. Chanting allows us to tap into the vast resources our lives already possess, raise our life conditions and become absolutely happy...possessing the type of happiness that is not swayed by daily changes in our lives.  Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the most powerful cause we can make for our lives. 

That's it! 

PowerPrayer for a Harmonious Family
by Jamie Lee Silver, chantforhappiness.com

Life!

I am Nam-myoho-renge-kyo!

I have the power to chant happiness and harmony for my whole family

With every daimoku I am picturing us happy

I am erasing years of karma with every Nam-myoho-renge-kyo

With every Daimoku I am summoning appreciation for my loved ones. I appreciate them more and more. 

For every fault, sickness, sadness, problem I see in my family ~

I chant to change this in MYSELF so that the karma of the whole family is changed! 

I am chanting happiness and harmony into my family

My prayer is enough!

I will not give up

I am tearing every bit of karma that makes any of my family members suffer - I am tearing that karma out by the roots. 

My family will never be the same. 

I will not give up!

I will have a happy family that will shine as a beacon of hope to all who are suffering. 

My chanting gives me the wisdom to communicate with composure and compassion. 

I am the Buddha!

I chant specifically for these outcomes:______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

WE ARE the Buddhas of Absolute Freedom...

I know sometimes it's hard 

for us to believe that we are Buddhas. 

But it's true. 

Check out this quote 

from the Gosho "The True Object of Worship" 

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

With full understanding of Shakyamuni's teachings, 
the four men of learning said: 

"We have gained the supreme cluster of jewels 
when we least expected it. " 

They represent 
the world of Learning 
that is within ourselves. 
The Hoben chapter states: 

"At the start I pledged 
to make all people perfectly equal to me, 
without any distinction between us. 
By now the original vows that I made 
have already been fulfilled. 
I have led all the people onto the path of Buddhahood." 

The enlightened life of Shakyamuni Buddha 
is our own flesh and blood. 
His practices and resulting virtues 
are our bones and marrow. 

...Shakyamuni, Taho, and all the other Buddas in the ten directions represent the world of Buddhahood within ourselves. 

By searching them out within us, we can receive the benefits of Shakyamuni, Taho, and all the other Buddhas. This is what is meant by the following passage in Chapter ten: If one hears the Law for even a single moment, he will be able to attain perfect enlightenment." 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I intend to engrave this passage into my life. During the hour I just chanted, I focused on being able to truly understand this and feel this passage with my life...not my intellect...but deep inside my life. 

Have a great day ~ Go Buddha Go! 

3 Keys to Releasing Emotions

This life is an emotional journey for me. It always has been. I cured myself of depression through chanting, but I still feel emotions. 
The more I practice Buddhism, the more I see that my ability to feel and release my emotions, not run from them, is a gift I can offer the world. And every morning and evening, I face the Gohonzon with all my heart...dedicating my life to proving the power of the mystic law through my life. 

Sometimes it's hard to actually know what emotion I'm feeling. Strong emotions just overwhelm me...and I have to focus to see what they are. Lately, I am in extreme grief after the death of my son this summer, at the age of 22.

Those of you who read this blog know how hard I fought to keep him alive, but, in the end, the mental health system in this country totally failed him, and he took his own life...I say Schizophrenia killed him...because it's the truth. 

So I am left with my mission...and I cannot change the past. How do I continue to show actual proof? How do I continue to encourage people? I think it is by living my absolute best life...by turning poison into medicine in some ways I don't even know right now. 

Key #1
Make a Chanting Determination 
Key #2
Make a Physical Determination
Key #3 
FEEL the emotion! 

For the moment, I'm focusing on making my body strong and healthy, focusing on business success...and building healthy momentum. Every day I do my best to chant two hours a day, and most days I make it...and some days I am just crying and chanting. 

Today I was frantic with grief. I felt I must have failed my son. I'm his mother. I should have been able to protect him. Part of me knows that this is absurd...and that I did everything in my power to help him. Part of me believes I failed him.  
So I took it to the Gohonzon and exercised my spiritual muscle. I sat and chanted, even though it was really, really hard today. I chanted until I saw Ben as the Buddha he is. 
His life and death have meaning. Some has been revealed already. Some we have yet to learn. 

Then I got on the treadmill and got my heart rate up...that always makes me feel better. Later I did EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) tapping and felt the emotion of anger and loss come pouring out of me. I let myself experience the depth of the emotion...and the anger ran its course and I felt peace. 

The 3 Keys to Releasing Emotions really work! 

I offer this to you on December 1st, when the holidays are happening here in the states, and emotions are magnified...
The best gift we can give others is our own happiness. It's the truth. The best gift I can give my family, my son Aaron, my sister Alison, and my father...is to go through my grief and get to the other side...and ultimately turn poison into medicine. 

Wisdom and Strength ~ Wisdom and Strength!

Chanting for wisdom and strength, 
for wisdom and strength - 
then I read this quote below today. 
I love it when my chanting and the guidance just dovetails. 
I love being in rhythm! 

I've been keeping my two hour a day daimoku campaign going...and along with that I'm working out every day and eating on a healthy plan...I feel my life changing...the ground beneath me shifting. 

I made it through Thanksgiving, my first Thanksgiving without Ben and for the most part just kept my life condition sky high. You know, dealing with grief is similar to overcoming any emotional storm. I let it out when I need to, and I soar above it with Daimoku by my determined prayer to turn poison into medicine and create value from his life and death. 

With every Daimoku I chant "I am changing my karma with this Daimoku right thus very second. THIS Daimoku. THIS Daimoku!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ "In the course of his inquiry into the kind of religion that might best serve humankind's future, Dr. Toynbee became deeply interested in Mahayana Buddhism. He strongly asserted that the role religion should be to teach self-mastery, stating as one of his reasons that "to master oneself is the essence of religion as I see it, and...this precept is, I believe, the only effective response to the challenge of being human."

"Self-mastery means 
developing wisdom and strength through responding courageously 
to the challenges posed by unbridled desires 
and negative emotions 
such as hatred that arise within oneself. 
It means to overcome 
the limitations of one's present self 
to grow into a better and stronger person."

Daisaku Ikeda
From the December 2015 Living Buddhism, SGI president Ikeda's Lecture Series based on the Gosho 
"The Great Battle" - "Those With Steadfast Faith Enjoy Immeasurable Good Fortune and Benefit" 

Daimoku = Winning!

Aaron Michael Silver won the Bonfield 5K today in Downtown Downers Grove! Ben must have been with him...running, running, running! 

And all around the country Silver family members ran or walked in races for Benjamin Lee Silver.

Wonderful!

This has been a great week so far. 
In the midst of Aaron's busy schedule (he graduates medical school in the spring), we chanted several strong hours of daimoku together this week.  

And, because of chanting two hours a day, I am ENJOYING this day...I am loving it all. My prayer these days has been to Uphold the Dignity of my own life! 

It is a strong prayer, and I can feel the power surging through me as I chant and pray. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo - We ALL are dignified Buddhas in the midst of relearning our own Buddhahood...together in the SGI and with our mentor Daisaku Ikeda. We are so fortunate!

This week I had some financial karma come back, and I chanted for strength and wisdom, strength and wisdom, and was able to wisely change something negative into something positive. 

This practice is amazing. What could have been the saddest day ever is filled with joy. This practice truly is the key to living as the Buddha of Absolute Freedom! BAF! 


Chanting for all of you!