"Our Forever Ben" and the Secret to Achieving Your Human Revolution

Breaking news! 
Hope for the Day published "Our Forever Ben, One Mom's Letters to her son-in-spirit and his poetic replies."

Our Forever Ben is the story of turning poison into medicine. The book has two main goals: 
1. By telling Ben's story I hope to find a way to fix the sad state of mental health care in this country. 
2. And by sharing Ben and my writings since he "died," I hope to help those who are currently grieving see how easy it is to connect with their loved ones in spirit. 

I am chanting to continue to open to my mission to help others.  

Every day I am chanting the prayer that Daisaku Ikeda says is the key to our Human Revolution.

The Secret 
to Achieving Your Human Revolution

"Pray that instead of devils 
or negative, destructive forces 
infiltrating your being, 
Brahma ("Bonten"in Japanese),
Shakra ("Taishaku" in Japanese),
and the gods of the Sun and the Moon
~ the positive, protective forces of the universe ~
will enter your life!
Pray that they will enter the lives 
of all members in your region
and the entire membership of the SGI, as well.
If you do this, 
your strength will multiply 
a hundredfold, a thousandfold.
With such prayer,
with such faith, 
you will realize a fundamental transformation
in the depths of your life. 
This is the secret to achieving your human revolution."

SGI President Daisaku Ikeda, World Tribune, 9/8/2000

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!

Chanting for Kate Randolph, and 12 Buddhist Quotes on Overcoming Illness

Kate Randolph introduced me to chanting 32 years ago, and has been my dear friend ever since. Many of you know her from the experiences I've posted, and the guidance from her I've passed along. 

Well, last weekend we were at FNCC together and she was having some symptoms that were troubling. When she returned to LA she found out she has a mass in her brain, and is having surgery tomorrow at 4:00 pm Pacific Standard time to remove it.  She's at Kaiser in Los Angeles. 

Kate has always felt a connection to you throughout the years. Occasionally she has helped me answer your emails. She is incredibly sincere. Next year is her 40th anniversary of chanting. 

Please join me in chanting for Kate tomorrow and throughout the week. I'm chanting for her total and complete protection...for all the protective forces of the universe to surround her...for the surgeon to be having a really great day and for complete success in removing the mass. 
Read on for 12 quotes on overcoming illness: 

12 Buddhists Quotes for Overcoming Illness

From President Ikeda's Lecture series "The Hope-filled Teachings of Nichiren Daishonin: On Prolonging One's Life Span - Faith for Leading a Long and healthy Life" in the July-August 08 Living Buddhism. (Thank you to my friend Melissa Bradford for compiling these great quotes!)

1. “Suffering from illness is a means by which you can eradicate your negative karma.”  
President Toda, as quoted by President Ikeda. - pg 70 

2. “To see illness as an opportunity to transform our karma – this strong spirit and resolve can break through all obstacles and devilish functions and open wide the path to happiness.  Like a rocket blasting out of the earth’s atmosphere, the passionate conviction of faith that comes from viewing illness as an opportunity to transform our karma can become a powerful engine propelling us forward not only in this existence but throughout eternity, enabling us to freely savor everlasting happiness.”  Pg 74

3. “Becoming ill in itself is certainly not a sign of defeat.  Even the Buddha, who is said to have ‘few ills and few worries’ (LS, 214), struggles with sickness from time to time.  Accordingly, there will be times when we are confronted with illness.  The important point above all is not to be defeated mentally or emotionally by the prospect of being ill.  Faith is the source of the fighting spirit to stand up to illness.  Therefore, as we noted earlier, Nichiren Daishonin first of all talks about the ‘treasure of faith’.  Pg 77

4. “As Nichiren says, ‘Illness gives rise to the resolve to attain the way’ (The Good Medicine for All Ills, WND-1, 937).  If a practitioner who upholds faith in the Mystic Law becomes ill, it definitely has some profound meaning.  It could be said that confronting illness is one route to awakening to the eternity of life.  President Toda often said, ‘A person who has overcome a major illness knows how to deeply savor life.’” Pg78

5. From Matilda Buck’s guidance, World Tribune 4/27/01 pg 10 “When We Face Disappointment” – regarding SGI leaders who overcame cancer and chanted this way:  

Through this experience, I will become someone who does not doubt the Gohonzon (my life), no matter what happens.
As a Bodhisattva of the Earth, I have the mission to experience this, and as a Bodhisattva of the Earth, I have the mission to create a victory.
I will share the power of Buddhism with others, even as I grapple with this experience.
I won’t let my spirits stay down.  I won’t make a place in my life for negativity to settle.

6.From The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra Volume 6:  “Praying with doubt is like trying to keep water in a bathtub with the plug pulled.  Our good fortune and benefit will drain away.  A passage from the ‘Perceiver of the World’s Sounds’ chapter reads, ‘from thought to thought never entertaining doubt!’  A confident prayer will reverberate powerfully throughout the entire universe.”  Pg 88

From Buddhism Day by Day:

7. “Buddhism views illness as an opportunity to attain a higher, nobler state of life.  It teaches that, instead of agonizing over a serious disease, or despairing of ever overcoming it, we should use illness as a means to build a strong, compassionate self, which in turn will make it possible for us to be truly victorious.”  pg 300

8. “The expansive world lies not in some distant place; it exists right where you are.  That is why you need to win where you are right now.  Today’s victory is linked to your eternal victory.”  Page 314

9, “No matter what the circumstances, you should never concede defeat.  Never conclude that you’ve reached a dead end, that everything is finished.  You possess a glorious future.  And precisely because of that, you must persevere and study.  Life is eternal.  We need to focus on the two existences of the present and the future and not get caught up in the past.  We must always have the spirit to begin anew ‘from this moment,’ to initiate a new struggle each day.” Pg 315

10. “The air around us is filled with radio waves of various frequencies.  While these are invisible, a television set can collect them and turn them into visible images.  The practice of chanting Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo aligns the rhythm of our own lives with the world of Buddhahood in the universe.  It ‘tunes’ our lives, so to speak, so that we can manifest the power of Buddhahood in our very beings.”  Pg 314



11. From "For Today and Tomorrow" Daily Encouragement by Daisaku Ikeda: Sept 20 pg. 288:  
When your determination changes, everything else will begin to move in the direction you desire.  The moment you resolve to be victorious, every nerve and fiber in your being will immediately orient itself toward your success.  On the other hand, if you think “This is never going to work out,” then at that instant every cell in your being will be deflated and give up the fight, and then everything really will move in the direction of failure.

12. From "For Today and Tomorrow" Aug 15 pg. 249:  
The first thing is to pray.  From the moment we begin to pray, things start moving.  The darker the night, the closer the dawn.  From the moment we chant daimoku with a deep and powerful resolve, the sun begins to rise in our hearts.  Hope – prayer is the sun of hope.  To chant daimoku each time we face a problem, overcoming it and elevating our life-condition as a result – this is the path of “changing earthly desires into enlightenment,” taught in Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism.

Chanting for Kate Randolph, and 12 Buddhist Quotes on Overcoming Illness

Kate Randolph introduced me to chanting 32 years ago, and has been my dear friend ever since. Many of you know her from the experiences I've posted, and the guidance from her I've passed along. 

Well, last weekend we were at FNCC together and she was having some symptoms that were troubling. When she returned to LA she found out she has a mass in her brain, and is having surgery tomorrow at 4:00 pm Pacific Standard time to remove it.  She's at Kaiser in Los Angeles. 

Kate has always felt a connection to you throughout the years. Occasionally she has helped me answer your emails. She is incredibly sincere. Next year is her 40th anniversary of chanting. 

Please join me in chanting for Kate tomorrow and throughout the week. I'm chanting for her total and complete protection...for all the protective forces of the universe to surround her...for the surgeon to be having a really great day and for complete success in removing the mass. 
Read on for 12 quotes on overcoming illness: 

12 Buddhists Quotes for Overcoming Illness

From President Ikeda's Lecture series "The Hope-filled Teachings of Nichiren Daishonin: On Prolonging One's Life Span - Faith for Leading a Long and healthy Life" in the July-August 08 Living Buddhism. (Thank you to my friend Melissa Bradford for compiling these great quotes!)

1. “Suffering from illness is a means by which you can eradicate your negative karma.”  
President Toda, as quoted by President Ikeda. - pg 70 

2. “To see illness as an opportunity to transform our karma – this strong spirit and resolve can break through all obstacles and devilish functions and open wide the path to happiness.  Like a rocket blasting out of the earth’s atmosphere, the passionate conviction of faith that comes from viewing illness as an opportunity to transform our karma can become a powerful engine propelling us forward not only in this existence but throughout eternity, enabling us to freely savor everlasting happiness.”  Pg 74

3. “Becoming ill in itself is certainly not a sign of defeat.  Even the Buddha, who is said to have ‘few ills and few worries’ (LS, 214), struggles with sickness from time to time.  Accordingly, there will be times when we are confronted with illness.  The important point above all is not to be defeated mentally or emotionally by the prospect of being ill.  Faith is the source of the fighting spirit to stand up to illness.  Therefore, as we noted earlier, Nichiren Daishonin first of all talks about the ‘treasure of faith’.  Pg 77

4. “As Nichiren says, ‘Illness gives rise to the resolve to attain the way’ (The Good Medicine for All Ills, WND-1, 937).  If a practitioner who upholds faith in the Mystic Law becomes ill, it definitely has some profound meaning.  It could be said that confronting illness is one route to awakening to the eternity of life.  President Toda often said, ‘A person who has overcome a major illness knows how to deeply savor life.’” Pg78

5. From Matilda Buck’s guidance, World Tribune 4/27/01 pg 10 “When We Face Disappointment” – regarding SGI leaders who overcame cancer and chanted this way:  

Through this experience, I will become someone who does not doubt the Gohonzon (my life), no matter what happens.
As a Bodhisattva of the Earth, I have the mission to experience this, and as a Bodhisattva of the Earth, I have the mission to create a victory.
I will share the power of Buddhism with others, even as I grapple with this experience.
I won’t let my spirits stay down.  I won’t make a place in my life for negativity to settle.

6.From The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra Volume 6:  “Praying with doubt is like trying to keep water in a bathtub with the plug pulled.  Our good fortune and benefit will drain away.  A passage from the ‘Perceiver of the World’s Sounds’ chapter reads, ‘from thought to thought never entertaining doubt!’  A confident prayer will reverberate powerfully throughout the entire universe.”  Pg 88

From Buddhism Day by Day:

7. “Buddhism views illness as an opportunity to attain a higher, nobler state of life.  It teaches that, instead of agonizing over a serious disease, or despairing of ever overcoming it, we should use illness as a means to build a strong, compassionate self, which in turn will make it possible for us to be truly victorious.”  pg 300

8. “The expansive world lies not in some distant place; it exists right where you are.  That is why you need to win where you are right now.  Today’s victory is linked to your eternal victory.”  Page 314

9, “No matter what the circumstances, you should never concede defeat.  Never conclude that you’ve reached a dead end, that everything is finished.  You possess a glorious future.  And precisely because of that, you must persevere and study.  Life is eternal.  We need to focus on the two existences of the present and the future and not get caught up in the past.  We must always have the spirit to begin anew ‘from this moment,’ to initiate a new struggle each day.” Pg 315

10. “The air around us is filled with radio waves of various frequencies.  While these are invisible, a television set can collect them and turn them into visible images.  The practice of chanting Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo aligns the rhythm of our own lives with the world of Buddhahood in the universe.  It ‘tunes’ our lives, so to speak, so that we can manifest the power of Buddhahood in our very beings.”  Pg 314



11. From "For Today and Tomorrow" Daily Encouragement by Daisaku Ikeda: Sept 20 pg. 288:  
When your determination changes, everything else will begin to move in the direction you desire.  The moment you resolve to be victorious, every nerve and fiber in your being will immediately orient itself toward your success.  On the other hand, if you think “This is never going to work out,” then at that instant every cell in your being will be deflated and give up the fight, and then everything really will move in the direction of failure.

12. From "For Today and Tomorrow" Aug 15 pg. 249:  
The first thing is to pray.  From the moment we begin to pray, things start moving.  The darker the night, the closer the dawn.  From the moment we chant daimoku with a deep and powerful resolve, the sun begins to rise in our hearts.  Hope – prayer is the sun of hope.  To chant daimoku each time we face a problem, overcoming it and elevating our life-condition as a result – this is the path of “changing earthly desires into enlightenment,” taught in Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism.

This Thanksgiving ~ Being our EnLIGHTened Selves!

(You can now subscribe to this blog by putting your email in the box to the right)

Happy Thanksgiving my dear friends. Wherever you are, in the states, in the UK, India, everywhere - I send you my deepest gratitude and thanks.  We are sharing this wonderful journey of faith together. Eternally, along with our mentor in faith, Daisaku Ikeda. 

Kate and I were just at FNCC. 

Here are some things we learned:

"Earthly Desires are EnLIGHTENment"

Every day during gongyo, 
we take our earthly desires...
desires for ourselves...
for others...
for the planet, 
go to the Gohonzon 
(the scroll that is the reflection of our highest life selves) and BURN those desires creating the LIGHT of Wisdom. 
We burn those desires. 
We chant for our own security and happiness, 
and for the happiness of others. 
We chant for our countries, 
and for a world that shows respect for all of life. 
And we light the flame of wisdom. 
Wisdom brings us to the best action. 
We move forward with conviction, courage and faith. 
Every day. 

May you light this light for yourself and those you love, 
and have it burn brighter than ever today and every day!

I am more encouraged than ever to do this, and to deepen my understanding of the ONENESS of Mentor and Disciple. What does this truly mean? At times I have felt I knew. I read President Ikeda's words, I chant to feel his heart and to see through his eyes...and I know I can deepen my experience of this through my prayer. 

Those are just two of the diamonds I received. 

Happy Thanksgiving. 
I'm off to celebrate the holiday - so grateful for you! 

4 Ways to Summon the Heart of the Lion King

Greeting my friends! 
As always, this blog does not represent the SGI officially. I write it to use my life as an example that this practice of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo works. Long time readers know I've been practicing for 32 years, most of that time as a District leader. I raised my two sons as Buddhists. Aaron is in Phoenix in his first year of residency as a med-peds doctor (He can help all ages) and my son Ben died in the summer of 2015 when he was 22. 
I am dedicating the rest of my life to turning poison into medicine and creating value from his life...and death. Just this week the non-profit organization called HOPE FOR THE DAY sent my book to the publisher. It's called "OUR FOREVER BEN, One Mom's Letters to her son-in-spirit, and his poetic replies. In a few weeks, I fly to Chicago for book signings, and the book will be available on Amazon. 

Today I'd like to share a passage from the New Human Revolution by Daisaku Ikeda:

'Lion' in "lion king" is written with the Chinese characters for teacher and child, representing mentor and disciple. In other words, when disciples align their spirit with their mentor and stand up with the  same commitment, they can summon forth the bold and fearless heart of the lion king within them. 

"Each day I tell myself: "As a disciple of President Toda I will respond to his aspirations! I will create a record of kosen-rufu that would make him proud!" By doing so, no matter what difficulty I may encounter, I can bring forth the courage to never be disheartened. 

"Those who always remember their mentor's spirit in their heart, who always are living together with their mentor, will never stray from the correct path in life, the path to happiness. When we live with our mentor in our heart we cannot allow ourselves to be cowardly or lazy; we are spurred to be courageous, challenge ourselves and cast aside our arrogance. We may be able to deceive others, but not the mentor in our hearts. 

...It is important, therefore, that when we are facing a challenging situation, we always think deeply about what our mentor would have done or said."

From the New Human Revolution, By Daisaku Ikeda, Volume 26, Chapter 4, installments 51-67, as written in the April 2015 Living Buddhism, page 39.

Today I'm driving to the Florida Nature Culture Center for the Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra conference. I'm looking forward to spending time in the exhibit hall dedicated to President Ikeda. I could have spent all day there on my last visit. Kate Randolph is coming from LA to join me at the conference. 

As I am here, in my new chosen home of Florida I continually ask myself "What would President Ikeda do?"

I chant to see the world through Daisaku Ikeda's eyes, and to feel with his heart....and most of all...to chant with his same strength...to somehow reach into the lives of all beings suffering anywhere ...anywhere...and have my daimoku touch the entire fabric of life. I don't know if that is what Sensei has in mind when he chants, but one day, if I ever have the chance to sit and chat with him, that is what I would ask him. "When you chant, what do you think about? How do you encompass the whole world in your prayers? And how can I do the same?" In the meantime, I chant to align my prayer with his. 


Here are 3 Ways to Summon the Heart of the Lion King: 
By Jamie Lee Silver from Chantforhappiness.com

1. Practice consistently  - every morning and evening. I know, I know, I say this all the time, and there's a reason for it. When you're chanting consistently, your life condition is higher and more resilient. You'll still have problems, because life is full of hardships, but you'll greet them with an invigorated heart! 
Please don't believe me when I say this - if you aren't already doing this, try it. Do the 100 day Gongyo Challenge with us! Start anytime. Readers of this blog are challenging themselves to do the most perfect gongyo possible every day, twice a day for 100 days. Join us! (Of course the goal is then to continue for the rest of their lives, but it's nice to start somewhere~)

2. Study Daisaku Ikeda's writings and the Gosho every day...even a single line. Early in my practice I engraved the phrase "Suffer what there is to suffer and enjoy what there is to enjoy" into my life. 

3. As you are chanting express your determination. Tell your life what you want. Do not beg! Draw the power of your own life through your prayer. I picture all the power of the universe behind me...coming through my back, into my hands, into the Gohonzon, and channelled to fulfill my prayers, for myself and for others...my family...my friends...my fellow members...my colleagues...and YOU! 
Chant in appreciation. Dedicate your life to Kosen-rufu! 

4. Be part of our incredible Soka Gakkai organization. There are such riches there...so many friendships...such inspiration and strong determination. Whenever you go to a meeting you get encouragement and encourage others by sharing your own struggles and victories. We are all building the heart of the lion king together! Go to SGI-USA.org 

Lighting the Lamp of Hope - Nam-myoho-renge-kyo!

Good morning. It is a new day. As I always mention, this blog is not sponsored by the SGI, although I love and appreciate being a part of our great organization. 

Today I got the words that follow from a reader, Grace Hanson. These words get to the heart of Human Revolution. We change the world to the extent that we win over our weaknesses, battle our fundamental darkness, and continue being a beacon of hope by advancing forward chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo every single day. 

From Grace: 

I woke up Wednesday with a strange sense of determination rather than shock, which drove me to text several of my female friends at 5am the words:  “We have work to do”.  Coincidentally, those words were at the end of Hillary’s concession speech – no coincidence.  The reality of this election is that it only revealed to us the nature of the discourse in this country and the degree to which that discourse is concealed, ignored, or accepted.  There was nothing new here.  For myself, “I have work to do” – means I need to break through my own glass ceilings and walls, and demonstrate that progress is perpetuated and achieved on an individual level.  Hillary’s victory would have been symbolic but it would not have changed my individual charge.   Individual advancement is the only true solution for permanent and sustaining change.  I take this election as a challenge and I hope you do too.   I perform better when I am challenged to the utmost. 

Let’s make the next four years historic for our impact on the world.

Grace