Thank you Caley-san for this pink Sausalito California sunset!
I think it must be our own fundamental darkness showing up as a feeling of hopelessness...
We think:
"Why will it matter if I chant? I've been chanting about this problem for_____ days,/years, I don't think it will ever be solved..."
We have all felt this way at times, right? Well, I hate to say it but this is our fundamental darkness attempting to get us to stop chanting.
Having our fundamental darkness attempt to defeat us is PART of this practice. It HAS to happen, right?
We all know it is something we have to look out for...yet sometimes when it arises we are 'Fooled" not "Fueled".
How do we become Fueled not Fooled?
How can we take our own fundamental darkness and say
"No how, no way, I AM WINNING TODAY!"?
Every time we chant we WIN. When we muster appreciation to the Gohonzon and our own life we FUEL our lives.
In The Heart of the Lotus Sutra by Daisaku Ikeda he writes:
"Fundamentally, the Buddha's benefit is life force,
it is the power to thrive.
In the "Life Span" chapter,
Shakyamuni clarifies that
the Buddha's life span is in fact immeasurable.
Each day, we receive this immeasurable life force,
this immeasurable benefit from the Gohonzon.
Therefore the more we praise
the great beneficial power of the Gohonzon,
the more our own lives increase in majesty and power
and shine with brightness."
Every time we win over our own weaknesses and bring ourselves to chant in appreciation ~ we win in life.
Can I chant for someone to forgive me? And how do I go about doing this? When I sit in front if my gohonzon I just feel lost and. Everything seems to be going wrong i know obstacles arise to test our faith but I feel like that's all I'm getting at the moment.
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