Showing posts with label EFT emotional freedom techniques. Show all posts
Showing posts with label EFT emotional freedom techniques. Show all posts

Friday, August 7, 2020

What Does Nam-myoho-renge-kyo Mean, and Why Do We Chant it?


What does Nam-myoho-renge-kyo mean, 
and why do we chant it? 


By Jamie Lee Silver of ChantforHappiness.com -


The literal translation of Nam-myoho-renge kyo is:


"I fuse my life 
with the mystic law of cause and effect 
through sound vibration (or sutra)." 

It is the title of the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha's highest teaching~ that declares  
ALL people possess the Buddha Nature...all people ARE Buddhas...
and we can access this nature by calling it forth in our lives using this phrase. 

Being a Buddha - 
is tapping the river of life that runs through ALL life - 
summoning the mystic law 
by realizing 
we ARE the Mystic Law. 
We chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo ~ 
we ARE Nam-myoho-renge-kyo ~the Mystic Law. 

I like to think of it as "I am one with the rhythm of all life." It is the rhythm that exists within all of life...the reason for the turning of the tides...the reason for the seasons...the atoms that exist within every single cell...from an elephant to a spec of dust...to the cells in our hearts and minds. Everything possesses this connectedness...this rhythm.  
It is all-encompassing and contains the wisdom and energy of all of life itself...the whole universe. 

When we chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo we tap into that energy and access it for our lives...directed towards our desires and for the fulfillment of happiness for all. In this practice, it's okay to have desires. More than okay! We don't have to alleviate them. Desires make us who we are and lead us to chant. 

When we chant we change the internal life within our lives. We change the core and fiber of our lives. We change our karma. And when we make that internal change, our ENVIRONMENT (meaning everything that is not within our own skin, our jobs, our relationships, our sense of self, everything we experience and think) ALL of that changes to reflect our internal change. We call this "Human Revolution."

When we chant, we harness the energy that is our birthright. We chant twice a day, every single day, to get and keep our lives in rhythm. 

When we are in rhythm we are in the right place at the right time... to find out about and get the job...or to meet the man of our dreams...or to protect our child from danger. When we are in rhythm life isn't so much of a struggle as it is a joy...we see the beauty in everything and we feel our lives overflowing with appreciation. 

We chant for something and get it or something better. We get access to internal happiness and strength that cannot be blown away by any event or obstacles. 

In fact, we view obstacles themselves as benefits, as strange as that may sound....because obstacles make us chant more, and when we chant more we draw even higher life conditions and deeper satisfaction into our lives. 

What can we chant FOR? Anything. 

We chant for others, we chant for our planet, our countries, and ourselves. 
We can chant for whatever our desire may be...even if it might not be the "right" desire for us. In the act of chanting, we will change our karma and our desires themselves will naturally begin to shift. We will open our lives to the deeper wisdom within...the deeper yearning, the REAL desires that we have forgotten or given up on. We will grow. We will prosper and we will blossom. 

We will gain the wisdom of the right action to take - because ACTION springs from wisdom. 

The challenge is...we need to DO it. We have to chant to bring all this rhythm and harmony out. And that's why we practice together as an organization, the SGI, The Soka Gakkai, our fellowship of friends who support each other, chant for each other, and create a new Soka family for each practitioner. We are so fortunate. 

I hear from people all over the world, and some have strong SGI groups in their towns and others are completely alone. I love that we can connect through the power of the internet. From the moment I began chanting 35 years ago I have had the deep desire to share this practice, this practice that WORKS, with everyone who is looking for the real, practical means of creating happiness and results in their lives. 

We are in this life together...sharing our challenges and our successes. If you are not yet connected to the SGI please go to sgi-usa.com and find your local members. You will be so glad you did. 

Some Powerful Quotes from Daisaku Ikeda from Ikedaquotes.org:

THIS moment, this instant, is important, 
not some unknown time in the future. 
Today, this very day is what matters. 
You must put your whole being 
into the time that exists now. 
For future victory rests in the present moment.

BUDDHISM holds that everything
 
is in a constant state of flux. 
Thus, the question is 
whether we are to accept change passively 
and be swept away by it, 
or whether we are to take the lead 
and create positive changes on our own initiative. 
While conservatism and self-protection
might be likened to winter, night and death, 

the spirit of pioneering and attempting to realize 
the ideals evokes the images of spring,
morning and birth.

DO gongyo and chant daimoku with a fresh spirit. 

And, filled with renewed vitality, 


Build a history of accumulating fresh benefit."

Daisaku Ikeda, from Ikedaquotes.org
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~


In Kauai with my son Aaron last September!

Sunday, March 29, 2020

Power-Full Encouragement from Kate Randolph for Right Now!


The one and only Kate Randolph
Hello friends, 
Now is a good time to refresh ourselves with Kate's incredible spirit. Please enjoy her words and experience them as a fresh wave of determination toward your Happiness! 

From Kate: 


"NOW is the time to wake up to joy. 
Now, more than ever, 
SGI members need to summon joy, 
forget complaining about anything, 
and wear a radiant smile on our faces. 
Our smiles must radiate so brightly 
that light comes out of our fingertips 
and we glow as beacons 
so people can learn of the mystic law, 
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo from us, 
and be moved to happiness 
just by being in our presence.
We must have Joy 
to show the possibilities of life...
JOY is a REQUIREMENT, 
not an afterthought, 
and it comes from our determination 
to summon it from within our lives 
and express it in our smiles, 
the pep in our step, 
and our lives themselves. 
We can do this! 
We can do this for ourselves, 
and by doing this we change the world." 

"Our smile is a cause, not an effect." we can't sit around waiting for joy to come into our lives. We must be joyful, and invite more. That's how it works! 

She said: "Joy's the leading edge. Wake up and be joyful, smile at the person next to you in bed, smile at the person next to you (6 feet away!) at the store, in the elevator, and at other drivers. BE Kosen Rufu in action!" 

"It's gotta be real, but you can also fake it till you make it. Put that smile on your face and you will spark your happiness. Try to be sad with a huge grin. It doesn't work so well!

"We have to go deeper into our own lives, 
and into the Buddha we are every day. 
We've gotta do this NOW. 
This is it. 
This is our time. 
We're ALIVE! 
Whether we are 17 or 95. 
Grab the moment for all it's got 
and say 
"I am creating the deepest value that's ever been created. NOW. Right this moment. 

There's no other moment. 

There's no other person. 

How we are influencing the person next to us...it is our SMILE...beaming with joy...Joy!"

STOP complaining. 
NOW. It must be replaced, 
even if it's phony at first. 
It may feel phony but it will cause a shift inside your life. 

And we have to keep going deeper and deeper into joy. There can't be a place at which we stop. 

We need constant movement...constantly going deeper." 

~Kate Randolph 


And, if we want to continue Kate's marvelous legacy, let's all be joyful right now! Beaming JOY from our fingertips!
Thank you Kate! 






Monday, October 21, 2019

One Key to chanting a "SOLID HOUR"

Here's my Fall altar!

I tried something new while chanting today, and it worked so well I just had to share it with you right away. 

We all know we want to chant as much daimoku as we can, and we also know that the quality, the concentration, the focus of our time in front of the Gohonzon - having a chat with the core of our life itself, is very important. 

And sometimes we get distracted. I know I'm not alone with the lure of the telephone constantly calling me. When I keep it beside me it's hard not to reach for it to see if anyone's reaching out to me for something important. 

But it is a major distraction for chanting. I sometimes keep it in the other room. But that's not easy either. 

Today, the first full day of my 35th year of practice, I determined to chant a SOLID HOUR of daimoku. That means, no getting up for any reason, no checking email, no checking Facebook, no looking away from the Gohonzon, but I can have sips of water or coffee. 

Not easy. But I did it. HOW? 

I set my clock on my phone to STOPWATCH, started the Stopwatch and turned the phone over. 
The stopwatch was running on the front of my phone, so I knew I wasn't going to check it for emails or Facebook. And when I did, just for a second, consider getting up to do something (turn off the air conditioning), I looked at the stopwatch and saw I'd chanted 37 minutes of absolutely uninterrupted, super-focused Daimoku, I turned my phone back over and kept chanting until I got to an hour. A SOLID HOUR of concentration! Woohoo! 

Of course, you don't have to chant for an hour, chant as long as you can, with focus, that's the important thing. 

So that's my hack for concentration for you today. 
I hope you have a great day and week!


Tuesday, September 10, 2019

Three Keys to Building Good Fortune and being the Buddha of Absolute Happiness





Hello, my friends. 

What does it mean to build a life of good fortune? 

Here I am living my dream in Florida. I'm enjoying my friends, the sunshine, my health and my profession that enables me to teach people a method of releasing their emotions so they can be happy. I am the Buddha of Absolute Happiness and you can be too! 

Sometimes I get the question "Is it ok to chant for money?" And the answer I have always heard as a 35 year practitioner of Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism in the SGI is chant for exactly what you want. 
If you need money chant for money~! 

Note to my friends: if you are stuck in some area of your life, please get encouragement from your Soka Gakkai seniors in faith. They are there to help you. They will chant with you and bear your burdens with you. The SGI is truly a noble organization I am proud to be part of. 


If you need a job, chant for the BEST job for Kosen Rufu, where you can be the happiest, and make your life shine as a beacon for other's happiness.

You deserve to have what you need. There are many, many examples of people chanting for money and getting it.  

AND underlying the need for money, there is a deeper and more exciting benefit that we can access within our lives. We can access and build TRUE FORTUNE in our lives.  

What is FORTUNE? How do we build it for ourselves?

No matter what our levels of fortune may be before we begin practicing Buddhism, once we begin chanting the name of the Law of Cause and Effect, the Mystic Law itself, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, our lives begin to move in the direction of fortune. 

With each day of chanting, studying, encouraging others and introducing people to this practice our fortune grows and grows.

Fortune :

Daisaku Ikeda states: 
"Governments come and go, 
economies rise and fall, 
and society changes constantly. 
Only the good fortune 
we accumulate during our lives 
lasts forever. 
True victors are those 
who cultivate the tree of Buddhahood 
in the vast earth of their lives 
while achieving success 
both in society and in their personal lives 
through true faith and a true way of living. 
(Faith in Action page 110)

18 Types of Fortune 
By Jamie Lee Silver from Chantforhappiness.com 

Fortune is being in rhythm so that we KNOW what to do, and have the spirit, conviction and courage to make the best possible causes at all times. 

Fortune is being in the right place at the right time. 

Fortune is happiness and the ability to overcome any suffering and turn poison into medicine through chanting strong daimoku and taking the wise action that arises through our prayer. 

Fortune is strength and resiliency. 

Fortune is getting a call from an associate about a job opportunity that is perfect for you. 

Fortune is having the courage and wisdom to say what must be said and do what must be done at the crucial moment. 

Fortune is always having what you need when you need it. 

Fortune is having the time to chant to our heart's content and encourage others, too. 

Fortune is doing our human revolution and joining harmoniously with our fellow SGI members creating a new family for us all. 

Fortune is being born at the same time as Daisaku Ikeda and engraving the mentor disciple relationship into our lives so that it is a living, powerful source of energy and wisdom in our lives.  

Fortune is finding solace and peace even when we have lost a loved one. 

Fortune is experiencing the true depth of friendship... knowing how to be a friend, attracting, keeping and appreciating quality people in our lives.  

Fortune is experiencing how to love and be loved in return. 

Fortune is friendship.

Fortune is health. 

Fortune is the ability to laugh.  

Fortune is the ability to sit in front of our Gohonzons and carry out a meaningful dialogue within our own lives that makes the impossible possible,and brings happiness to ourselves and our families, friends and world.

Fortune is being accident free.

There is much more to fortune.
You can add to this list...send me your ideas of fortune at chantforhappiness@gmail.com 

How do we build fortune for ourselves?

1. First we must build a strong practice.  
The more "work" we put into building our practice...the less "work" we have to put into our lives...the less struggling we have to do. We can use all the resources at our disposal to CREATE the discipline to be able to chant twice a day every day and participate in activities. Focusing our prayer on others is a powerful way to build a strong practice. Yes, it's great to chant for ourselves, and we need to do that, but chanting for others has a profound effect on their lives, and ours. Chanting, and uniting with others is the foundation of our faith. 

Being a part of the SGI is crucial. Go to SGI-USA.org to learn more.  

Having a seeking mind to understand how and why the Mystic law has such a profound effect on our lives is important. Studying our SGI publications is important. Reading the Gosho of Nichiren Daishonin is important! We call this having a seeking spirit. You can  find what is holding you back in your own nature. We all have a fatal flaw...something we can't see. We gain the most when we chant to see our OWN flaws...and chant to change them!

Fortune Comes from Having the spirit and the prayer: 

"I will WIN because my life is important. I will use my life as a shining example that this practice works!! My winning will be a real "win/win" because I will inspire others to the greatness of their own lives! And I will help them bring out the Buddhahood in their own lives by introducing them to chanting! I will win for kosen-rufu. I will win over my own negativity. I will absolutely do this!" 

2. Determine and believe we DESERVE what we want fuels our fortune. Every action we take all day long is a cause for our happiness. What do we want? Why do we want it? What can we do to fuel that desire? 
Remember the Buddhist concept Hon Nim Myo - "from this moment forth". Every time we chant we begin life anew. From this moment forth I will win. From this moment forth is EVERY MOMENT. We have the power to change. NOW. We chant the MYSTIC LAW underlying all of life. Wow. We are filled with fortune!

3. Chant for what we want, and Chant for STRENGTH of practice and strength of mind and heart! If we want money, we chant for money. If we want to NEVER WORRY ABOUT MONEY AGAIN - we chant with this in mind. If we want a job we chant for it. The world is OURS. We chant for exactly what we want!

What does fortune mean for you? Write to me at chantforhappiness@gmail.com with your experiences and comments!