A reader asked me if an hour is the minimum time we should chant.
There is absolutely
no mimimum time to chant. You can break your time chanting into as many segments as you want.
If you're aiming towards an hour a day you can chant 1/2 an hour in the morning and 1/2 an hour at night, or intermittently throughout the day. Just turn your cell phone off, get off Facebook and chant for as long as you like any time you like.
Although many SGI Buddhists who have practiced for a while feel it is beneficial to chant at least an hour a day. When I was a "Baby Buddhist" I could only chant 5 minutes in the morning and 5 minutes in the evening. That was it. That was all I could do. As I gained strength and the sailboat of my life picked up wind and resistance, I started chanting an hour a day to power the boat forward. I began to realize that I could change my karma...I chanted a bad boss out of my life and changed my "boss karma" forever with one hour a day every morning.
Never underestimate the power of a few moments of Daimoku. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the name of the Mystic Law within ever atom and cell in the universe. it is in the far-off stars and in the eyebrows that we cannot see on our faces. When we chant the name of this Mystic Law all forces in the universe begin to move in our favor. And this happens whether we believe in the power of the Mystic Law or not. It's a Law - when we chant it, things will change. That's just the way it is!
When we are practicing correctly, obstacles will arise. This is pure physics. We then chant to overcome these obstacles and become happy. To support ourselves and others we chant in the SGI. Soka Gakkai International. We foster each other. We educate, inspire and encourage each other in faith. If you are not connected to the SGI, be assured that your Buddhist Family is waiting for you, chanting for you, and will be so glad to see you when you click on the SGI link to the right and connect.
As Daisaku Ikeda states:
"When we practice Gongyo and chant Daimoku in front of the Gohonzon, the good and evil capacities of our lives begin to function as exalted forms of fundamental existence. Lives that are full of the pain of Hell, lives that are in the state of Hunger, lives warped by the state of Anger - such lives, too, begin to move in the direction of creating personal happiness and value. Lives being pulled toward musfortune and unhappiness are redirected and pulled int he opposite direction, toward good, when they make the Mystic Law their basis."
(Faith in Action page 119)
We can change whatever karma we have. I was born with a deep well of sadness, and that sadness went everywhere with me until I faced it and chanted it out of my life. There came a time when I felt I was strong enough, and sad enough to sit in front of my Gohonzon for 2 hours a day and chant using this PowerPrayer from my wonderful mentor Kate, who led the way by chanting depression out of her life.
What is your suffering? Lack of self-confidence? Lack of hope? Anger? Loneliness? Physical pain? Whatever it is, you can use this Nam-myoho-renge-kyo to break the bonds of your karma once and for all. While chanting you may want to keep this PowerPrayer in mind from time to time.
If you want to share it, please share a copy of the link chantforhappiness.com. The share buttons are at the bottom of this post.
PowerPrayer to Overcome ANYTHING!
"I don't CARE how many times this depression
(or ___________) resurfaces.
I am Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and I will get it out of my life.
I WILL WIN!
As I am chanting I am rooting the cause of this suffering
out of my life forever!
And I will defeat this depression (or _____________)
not just for me,
but for all who who are suffering from any affliction, because if I can rid my life of this sadness,(__________)
If I can do this,
then I can inspire anyone
that they can overcome their deepest suffering too
by chanting the name of the Mystic law itself...
the law that is WITHIN my life and all of Life,
I am Nam-myoho-renge-kyo!
I can change my karma and create a better world for us all!
Please email me your comments, questions and experiences to me at chantforhappiness@gmail.com!
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