Showing posts with label absolute happiness. Show all posts
Showing posts with label absolute happiness. Show all posts

Wednesday, August 29, 2018

Great Insights from Kate Randolph

My Dear friend Kate

Hello, my friends! Thanks for all the emails prodding me back into writing. You have always been on my mind! 

I'm sitting here in paradise on St. Pete Beach with a few moments on my hands because I'm off work today. I have a great full-time job helping families go through the difficult maze of figuring out the best place for their loved one to live when they can no longer take care of themselves. I enjoy giving people hope, changing the lives of seniors, and infusing love into my community.

There's so much to share! Ben's Memorial Mile (Bensmemorialmile.com) took place in June with hundreds of attendees running, walking, playing and having fun in my son Ben's name. We are about to reach our goal of contributing $50,000 for research to cure schizophrenia, and taking concrete action to prevent suicide through "Hope for the Day." We're already planning an amazing event in Downers Grove, Illinois, USA next June. I'll keep you posted. 

And, many of you know that Kate Randolph is battling the same kind of cancer that just killed John McCain, a glioblastoma brain tumor. Kate was diagnosed right after we went to the Florida Nature Culture Center together in November of 2017. She's challenging three hours of daimoku (chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo) a day, and is fighting a fierce battle. 

The other day I reached her in LA and she had important words for all for us when I told her about a goal I'm determined to reach. Kate said: 


"There's only one thing you need to do. 
There's only one prayer you need to have. Along with chanting for the youth of the world and the 50K Lions of Justice Festivals in America and around the world, 

Chant for 
absolute and total conviction
 in your Buddha Nature

and everything you want will fall in line. 
Don't keep searching for what you desire - 
use this prayer, use the power of your daimoku. 
Pray that THIS TIME you are changing your karma forever...for you, for your parents, 
for your descendants. 
Pray that THIS PRAYER changes your karma forever."

Let that sink in! 

I'll tell you it's a challenge. When I'm chanting I latch onto that prayer, and I'm quickly pulled off of it by some distraction (fundamental darkness) in my mind. But it's real. And powerful. It takes strong determination to stay on this prayer...and let other prayers bubble up...for my family, my coworkers, the youth of the world. It's a daily challenge to keep praying while chanting - not just letting my mind wander and wondering about stuff. But that's where the magic is...the sustained launching of our prayer on the wings of Daimoku.  

I hope this post finds you well...and that you keep strong determination. As Nichiren Daishonin states in the Gosho Letter to Nikke, 
"Chanting nam-myoho-renge-kyo is like the roar of a lion. What sickness can, therefore, be an obstacle?"

Whatever you are facing don't give up. Don't give up! We are here for a reason. We chose this life. We even chose our problems. In the August 17th World Tribune on page 7, Daisaku Ikeda, my mentor in life, quotes the words of the Argentine poet Almafuerte: 

"Sometimes a great destiny sleeps to be awakened by anguish."
He goes on to say: 
"Buddhism teaches that suffering is the springboard to enlightenment. No one is free from problems and worries - nor is any family or region. 
"Life is a struggle against problems. What's important is how we solve the problems that weigh down on us. We need to call forth all our wisdom and make repeated efforts to overcome those problems and reach the victory that lies beyond them. 
"Dreaming about what life might be like if only you didn't have any problems is just an escape from reality into a fantasy realm. It only leads to defeat in life. People who are always making positive efforts, thinking about how to overcome each problem and transform it into a source of value and victory are the winners in life. 
"Your resolve determines your life. I hope you will all be great actors in your own dramas of victory, brilliantly proving this truth, and be people who encourage and impart self-confidence to everyone around you."

Yes! Write that drama brilliantly! Smile and carry on! Chant and study and encourage your fellow members! Sending love to you!




Wednesday, November 18, 2015

3 Ways to Become the Buddha of Absolute Freedom Today!!! Happy 85th Birthday SGI!

Happy Soka Gakkai Day! 

It's November 18th, The Soka Gakkai's 85th Birthday! There are many places you can go to read about November 18th's significance ~  sgi-usa.org is one of them. The history of the Gakkai is rich and inspiring. 

Three Ways to become the Buddha of Absolute Happiness!

1. Write your goals right now. Write them in any format you like. I write a narrative in present tense describing my life exactly as I want it. This is powerful. Our written words are important. Date your list! Dream big as my mento Amos says "You're a Buddha - Dream Big!"

2. Chant about anything you want to change. Stop thinking things are impossible or you are undeserving. Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the power of the entire universe...when you chant you are tapping into a power that we haven't even begun to fathom. We know belief is part of it, and we also know it works without belief. Go for it. What do you really want to change. 

3. Tell others of your successes and Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. You are the Buddha of Absolute Happiness!!!! 

Today in the short time I have to write this blog I am going to answer a question I am receiving by email often. What do the Nam-myoho-renge-kyo cards I hand out look like? These are what I designed. I have them printed up at Staples. 
You can make your own or use the SGI's cards. I share this with you because I was asked!


Chant: Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
(Nahm Meeyooho Raingay Keyo)
To be happier than you ever imagined possible!
ChantforHappiness.com
Your blog for daily encouragement
Jamie Lee Silver
email: ChantforHappiness.com
630-926-3001, SGI-USA.org


Of course actual card looks a little different, but this is what I use. I also carry the SGI designed cards that don't have my telephone number on them just in case. My cards are white and I can write on the back easily - so I write the closest culture center to wherever I am when I give it out. I hope this helps!

Sunday, November 24, 2013

PowerPrayer for Believing In the Greatness of Your Life!


My dear friend Morag in the UK wrote this PowerPrayer based on the guidance I posted a few days ago by Dr. Obo. Thank you Morag! Read this before chanting and infude your Daimoku with this power-full resolve!

PowerPrayer 
for Believing 
in the Greatness of Your Life

From this moment on, 
no matter what, 
I believe in the greatness of my life!
I rejoice in my life; 
delight in my proof and benefits,
I want my life to shine and encourage others! 
I summon my faith and strengthen my practice.
I uproot hunger and fear OUT of my life 
and replace it with great seeds of bodhisattva
I offer gratitude and appreciation to those who brought this practice to me and those
who support and inspire me now.

I PRIASE MY LIFE!  NMRK,NMRK,NMRK!

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

PowerPrayer for a Harmonious Family


As Nichiren buddhist, 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). 

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. Usually we read PowerPrayers before chanting so that we can keep our determinations and prayers fresh in our minds while sonorously chanting 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! 

The following PowerPrayer is an excerpt from the upcoming book The BuddhaZone, PowerPrayers for Chanting Your Way to Absolute Happiness and Success by Julia Landis and Jamie Lee Silver. 
Please do not copy and past the PowerPrayer. You can share it by emailing the url chantforhappiness.com or using the sharing buttons at the bottom of the post. Thanks! 


PowerPrayer for a Harmonious Family

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:______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________



Wednesday, October 2, 2013

Nam-myoho-renge-kyo PowerPrayer for Absolute Happiness


What is absolute happiness? It is the strength to withstand anything. The courage to be unbowed in the face of any storm. No Matter What! 

Daisaku Ikeda states (from Ikedaquotes.org)

"It is vital to have a resilient spirit so that without complaints or feelings of disaffection, one is able to always look on the bright side of a situation and find in it a source of hope and happiness. Such wisdom makes it possible to lead a thoroughly fulfilled life."

"Relative happiness is happiness that depends on things outside ourselves, such as affluence or social standing. While the happiness such things bring us is certainly real, it shatters easily when external conditions alter. Absolute happiness, on the other hand, is something we must find within. It means establishing a state of life in which we are never defeated by difficulties, and where just being alive is a source of great joy"

Right now I am finding absolute happiness amidst the winds of life. This morning, as I was chanting, I had the words of this PowerPrayer in mind: 

PowerPrayer for Absolute Happiness 
(even in difficult times)

Gohonzon! Life! 
Today, all day,  I will see through the eyes of the Buddha that I am. 
Every cause I make, 
every thought I think, 
every word I speak 
is the best, most positive cause for my life 
and the lives of all others I touch. 
Life! Bring me the wisdom to know the right actions to take, the right words to say...all the wisdom is springing forth from my highest life-condition possible! 

I am determined to experience my brilliant Buddha-self. 
I am determined to raise my life condition. 
I am determined to develop a strong — strong 
core of life  
I am determined to strengthen my life from deep within 
and to radiate happiness wherever I go. 

Thursday, September 12, 2013

The Most Powerful Prayers to Get Results Lead to ACTION! Part 2


Part 2.
Written by By SGI-UK Advisor Mitsuhiro Kaneda, UK Express March 2000. Reprinted from the Facebook page The Power of Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Taking action

Very often, however, members chant a lot of daimoku but do not take any action. Some people don’t take action because they are afraid of the results they might see. They are afraid that they won’t see the result they want, so they don’t take any action. For example, a salaried employee with a fixed income might want to become self-employed, or start his or her own business, but might not take any action for fear of accumulating a lot of debt.

Another common example is found amongst young people who want to get married. Because they’re not sure that the marriage will work out, and that they will live happily ever after, they are full of anxiety. So, before they get married, they think, “Well, maybe we should live together.” Some end up not getting married as a result of having lived together.

So, even when people chant a lot of daimoku, other factors such as personality and human character come into play and prevent people from taking action, even if they are praying.
Of course, taking action also includes Soka Gakkai activities. When you participate in Soka Gakkai activities, you are encouraging others. So you are actually working as a messenger of the Buddha. Inevitably, therefore, all those who participate in Gakkai activities will accumulate good fortune. And because these people accumulate good fortune, they will be able to achieve their goals and show actual proof.

I know that all of us have very different circumstances and situations – some of us may not have that much free time. Nevertheless, I really want to encourage all of you to participate in Gakkai activities because this will allow not only you, but your whole family, to be bathed in good fortune. So in order to achieve our goals, not only do we need to take concrete action, we also need good fortune. That is why Soka Gakkai activities are crucial.

Make up your mind

In Italy, we have a couple who have been living together for fourteen years. Once they came to me because they wanted to receive guidance. I said to them, “You’ve been trying out your relationship by living together for fourteen years now. The fact that it has continued this long, is this not a sign that it is working?

Even though their relationship had been successful and they still wanted to live together, they still weren’t sure whether they should get married. Of course I gave them all kinds of encouragement, but there is one particular point that I would like to share with you. I asked them, “In order to make a firm determination, how much time do you need?” To make a determination requires less than one second. So I asked, “How many seconds there have been in fourteen years?”

You may laugh at this story but please, reflect on your own life.
To sum up, to put Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism into practice, we need to decide, chant and take action.

FAITH AND PRACTICE DOUBT-FREE FAITH
DECIDE
Clarify the goal and make a determination

DECIDE CHANT CHANT
If you have a problem,
Chant one million daimoku

ACT ACT
Make maximum effort;
strive to resolve the problem

EXPERIENCE
Accumulating experiences deepens one’s faith
Theories without experiences are no more than pure idealism

RESULT
Show actual proof DON’T DOUBT
Faith means having no doubts
BELIEVE

Written by By SGI-UK Advisor Mitsuhiro Kaneda, UK Express March 2000

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

From the Muddy Swamp we turn Mud to GOLD!

The Muddy Swamp is where we are "born." 
The Muddy Swamp is where all our stories begin. 
Our own personal muddy swamps are the mud that we transmute to GOLD as modern-day alchemists. 
And we have found the secret formula to transmute mud to gold: chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo over and over...and over and over...every day of our lives...not giving up for ONE second. (Well, maybe we do give up for one second, until a fellow SGI member (and good friend in faith) hauls us back onto the boat and we make a fresh new determination to win once again!) 
Here's an excerpt from our book The BuddhaZone, PowerPrayers for Chanting Your Way to Absolute Happiness about the Lotus Flower:

The lotus is a very special and unusual flower. It is the only flower in the known natural world that produces both blossoms and seeds simultaneously, whereas other flowers tend to flower first, then  dry up and then produce seed pods. Others, still, make seeds and then flowers. In either case, neither one does it simultaneously as does the lotus. But wait, there's more: the lotus exists on both land and water, more accurately in land and above water. Each lotus seed eventually finds its way down to the bottom of the pond and makes of its rich murky and dark loam a profound root bed. It draws the composting muck at the bottom of the pond up though its body and turns it into the precise nourishment needed to produce an astonishingly beautiful blossom that hovers just above the water through which it came. When we talk about the Lotus as Buddhists, we are talking about peace  of mind, self sufficiency, happiness, and most importantly, simultaneity. 

Simultaneity is a big word for people. What the heck does it mean, really? The Buddha taught through the  Lotus Sutra the astonishing fact that all causes and effects exist simultaneously. In fact, all time truly exists simultaneously. Because of this, when we pray as Buddhists, things start to manifest right away. And, if we really look, we will begin to recognize the signs that our prayer is having an effect as soon as we begin chanting. 


Through this practice, one realizes that the Lotus, which is emblematic of our very life, blooms not in spite of the murky depths, but because of them. Thus, the deeper the swampy mess of our life, the more "dross" or base matter we have at our disposal, so to speak, to use as we make of it our very own alchemical golden happiness. No trouble is too serious, no disaster too tragic, no loss too painful for the mystically beautiful process of value creation that is our essential and true purpose, once we have come to understand who it is that we truly are: The Lotus aka The Buddha.

We owe the brilliance of our lives to the Muddy Swamp! Tina Turner turned her Muddy Swamp into a world of gold...and in her mid-seventies shines forth with the radiance of the mystic law. 

And throughout our lives we return to our own Muddy Swamp to dig up something that we can turn to gold. As Daisaku Ikeda says " We summoned this storm!" Usually it looks as though something has "happened" to us. But in reality is something from our own lives...a challenge...an obstacle...an opportunity to turn poison into medicine through chanting the name of the mystic law. 

And all of us are alike. We all share challenges together - which is what makes the SGI organization of Buddhist practitioners so important. We each grow and learn from each other. In August, as you may know, I launched the Worldwide Million Daimoku Campaign (It's not too late to join the Worldwide Million Daimoku Campaign. Just set your goals, make a chart that represents 300 hours and start your own Million Daimoku Campaign. You can have a set end date if you want (mine is the end of the year so I am chanting 2 hours a day), or you can have no set end date and that's okay too...just check off one space for each hour you chant. Email me at chantforhappiness@gmail.com to let me know you're in!)

Right after I launched this campaign I went deep into the muddy swamp with someone I love with all my heart. It's too early to share the details, but I can tell you that it is getting better and better and better, and my fierce determination to win in every aspect of the situation has never wavered, no matter how wildly my emotions were jumping about. I will use this experience to inspire others. And my loved one will do the same! 

Just like being on a boat...I have a rudder to my life...the rudder of Nam-myoho-renge kyo. And as long as I keep my hand on that rudder by chanting abundant daimoku, encouraging and chanting with others, doing shakubuku and studying...I know I WILL WIN. There is no doubt in my mind. One dear friend received her Gohonzon in August, and another will receive theirs next week. 

Just remember, no matter how muddy it seems...and sometimes it feels like we are really stuck in that mud...by basing our lives on this practice we will WIN. Winning means happiness. Winning means actual proof. Winning means inspiring other. Winning means strength and fulfillment in life. 

We are all winners as long as we don't give up!

Join me in Bali in November! I will be leading a workshop from November 16th through the 22nd on brining out your inner Buddha. We'll explore Bali together and deepen our faith in our own innate, powerful Buddhahood! 
Visit Love Your Spirit Tours to enroll! 


Monday, September 9, 2013

Kate Randolph's Experience of Absolute Victory in Career and in Life!

Kate Randolph

(Kate is my dear friend and Buddhist sponsor. 
She introduced me to this practice 30 years ago next fall)

This experience is based upon several pivotal concepts, which, through my Buddhist practice, have revolutionized my life.  First, “Faith lies in continuing.” Second, “No prayer of a votary of the Lotus Sutra goes unanswered.”  And the third has to do with confidence, true, real, absolute, unshakeable confidence: how to get it, how important it is, and how destructive we can be to ourselves and others when we don’t have it. 

I began practicing Nichiren Buddhism 37 years ago. I was extremely skeptical.   Although still very young, I was already a jaded New Yorker.   I had given up on many of my dreams. I was a young girl with a lot of health issues and a profound lack of self-confidence.  At the same time, I had a strong desire to make a difference in the world.   Much to my surprise, I experienced dramatic changes in the first year of my practice.  There were undeniable conspicuous benefits.  Recurring health problems disappeared completely, I got a wonderful part-time job doing gratifying work that supported me while I pursued a professional acting career, and I had the opportunity to study in London (which had always been a dream of mine) and live rent-free with a young English woman who practiced Buddhism. 

After several years of practice I began to hit up against walls; what I might now describe as the “walls of my karma.”  I suffered deeply over a lack of self-worth.  My identity was strongly based upon, and wrapped up in, what I did for a living.  When I wasn’t acting I felt like a failure, a loser.  My lack of self-worth would emerge and paralyze me.  

At one of these junctures a chapter leader, and dear friend, said to me, with great conviction: “If you commit unwaveringly to this practice and never stop seeking, put the practice in the center of your life and make it the foundation of everything you do,  you will arrive at a point in your life when every single talent and skill you have will be fully utilized and all of your desires will be fulfilled.  You will be deeply and totally fulfilled.”

I was a trained actress who wanted to touch others’ lives through performing.  I also wanted to travel widely, and to grow spiritually. I wanted a healthy marriage to a man who was loving and supportive.  I wanted financial stability.  But most of all, I wanted to do what I love and make a living doing what I love, while having a positive impact on others.

After training and doing theatre in New York, and practicing consistently for 7 years, I moved to LA and pursued work in commercials and television.   Very soon, I was again suffering.  Gradually I came to the realization that I was pursuing someone else’s dream, not my own.  I didn’t train to sell toilet tissue or to have a guest starring role for which I was paid well to say 10 lines on an episode of LA Law.  And although the pay was more than anything I had ever earned doing theatre, I was not happy.  I was gauging my success upon someone else’s standard.  And my identity was based on that success, or lack of it.  

So I tried other things related to my field, in search of the fulfillment I was seeking. I joined theatre companies, acted in more plays for less money, became an acting teacher at a studio, started my own acting studio, founded and ran a theatre company, directed and produced plays and even a few short films.  With each new venture, because it was unknown territory for me, I would begin from a place of fear, then rely on faith, use my practice to produce a breakthrough, and experience a victory. This brought great fulfillment and satisfaction.  But I observed a pattern:  as I became more comfortable with each new role of teacher, or director, or producer, I would gradually and imperceptibly become identified with that new role.  And that is when I would again begin to suffer.  When I thought of myself as a “director” or a “producer” or an “actress,”  the degree of my happiness directly corresponded to the degree of success, or lack of it, that I was having in that arena.  And the old, painful lack of self-worth would re-emerge. 

At every crossroads I encountered however, I would ask myself: Has my practice become just one more thing that I am doing? or is it in the center of my life? and I would return to the guidance of that first chapter leader: Practice unwaveringly, put the practice in the center of your life, and never stop seeking - through guidance, studying the gosho, and reading Daisaku Ikeda’s writings - to deepen your faith and understanding of Buddhism. When that lack of confidence emerged, which it did frequently and painfully, I always moved, always chanted, always took action, sought guidance, and always took a risk. I would force myself out of my comfort zone. 

I was at just such a crossroads once again when Sensei wrote: “You must decide that pursuing the oneness of mentor and disciple is the primary quest of your life.”  Wow!  Those words shook up my life.  In all aspects of the practice, I had always been skeptical, but had always challenged myself to push through my own resistance.  Here I was again.  This “mentor/ disciple” thing made me very uncomfortable.  Frankly, I didn’t get it.  So, for many months I grappled with this one statement, one word at a time.  I challenged my doubt and disbelieve, my lack of understanding, my resistance and fear of idealizing a person. I  challenged myself to grasp what this man, this enlightened teacher, was trying to convey.  I spent many many months chanting about it one word at a time: “You” “must” “decide” that “pursuing” “the oneness” of  “mentor and disciple” is the “primary” “quest” “of your life!!!!”

Meanwhile, I was once again stuck in my professional life.  I went for guidance to a senior in faith whom I deeply trusted.  She said:  Kate, you are an artist.  You have to pursue your art, your dreams.  Pick a dream, any dream, get it out of the closet, dust it off, and go after it.  Once again, challenge your fearfulness, stop waiting for clarity or for the fear to lift or for your environment to show you the way. Take action in spite of your fear.   Look it in the face, stare it down, move through it. 

There was a play that I had performed many years earlier, a one-woman show based on the life and poetry of Emily Dickinson.  I had been much too young for the role when I was originally cast in it.  I had always wanted to play that role again, when I was the right age and could bring my life experience to it.  Now was the time.   I hired a director. rented a theater, found the costumes and props, had a set built, memorized 80 pages of dialogue, and put my butt on the line once again, based upon prayer.

But now I was a new me.  Now I had been chanting to deepen my understanding of the mentor/ disciple relationship.  Now I had come to the profound realization that the source of my lack of self-worth was that I was basing my life on the transient.  As a result of this realization, I now chanted to grasp what it means to live life as a “Votary of the Lotus Sutra.”  Once again, time to apply the guidance of my chapter chief: Put the practice in the center of your life.   

So I threw myself into the Emily Dickinson endeavor with a greater sense of mission than I had ever embraced when pursuing a professional goal. I began to understand how to marry faith and daily life.  I began to understand turning “karma into mission.”  I began to identify myself first as a votary of the lotus sutra, first as a bodhisattva of the earth, who happens to be an actress, among many other things.   “I will use my unique skills to fulfill my true identity, to contribute to the happiness of others, to touch the lives of others and bring them hope.”  This wish began to emerge as my real and genuine primary desire.   

Once I had total conviction in myself, my role, as a Bodhisattva of the Earth, my way of praying changed.   My entire understanding of what prayer is, changed.  I could confidently chant as a demand, not a plea.  My prayer was no longer an “ask” but a demand, a determination, a vow ...that I would make happen....that I MUST make happen to encourage others and to prove the validity of the law, of this practice.  Also, this was a vow that the shoten zenjin, or supportive forces in my environment, MUST and would support .  After all, “no prayer of a votary of the lotus sutra goes unanswered.”

My life has not been the same since that point.   One door after another has opened up for me professionally.  The show was a huge success.  I received embarrassingly good reviews.  I won an award for Best Actress in a Dramatic Role.  I began touring to schools with the show.  I had an opportunity to train with the prestigious Los Angeles Music Center as a Teaching Artist.  Against all odds, I was the only artist of the 30 that went through the training to be hired by the Music Center's Education Division to be a Resident Theatre Artist, traveling from school to school.  It is the most deeply rewarding work that I have ever done.  And I am paid well.  I am an independent contractor so I can work as many or as few hours as I desire.  And I have the opportunity on a daily basis to powerfully and positively impact the lives of young people of all age groups. 

I am happily married to a loyal and devoted man, I have a beautiful daughter who attends Soka University on an almost full scholarship, and after years ups and downs, we are completely financially stable.   

I also had the opportunity to travel to Europe 2 years ago to be part of the International Youth Media Summit.  I have since been asked to be on the Board of Advisors, traveling to Serbia, all expenses paid, to guide young people how to use media to shape the future.  Next year’s Summit will be hosted by Soka University of America, with whom I served as liaison for the Summit to arrange a partnership based upon the mutual mission statements of both parties. Last year in Belgrade I had the opportunity to introduce three young people to this practice.  One of them just sent me a message via Facebook and signed her message: NMRK.  I will reconnect with her in 10 days and continue the dialogue. 

I truly feel that I am living the life of the Buddha of absolute freedom whenever I chant with the deep conviction that I am a votary of the lotus sutraThe environment always arises to support me and doors open.  Here I am 37 years of practice later, many years after my first chapter chief made that promise to me, and I can now say, he was absolutely right.   Faith lies in continuing.  Every skill is being utilized, every dream is coming to fruition, and my life is one of supreme satisfaction and fulfillment.  


Finally, through my sincere and ongoing prayer, I have come to understand - and to decide - that pursuing the oneness of mentor and disciple is the primary quest of my life.  

Kate Randolph (Development & Community Outreach Director, International Youth Media Summit) is deeply committed to projects that foster and develop youth.  She served as the Managing Artistic Director for YOUR OWN SKY (YOS), a professional theatre company based in Los Angeles that grew out of her classes with young actors.  She also functioned as the Executive Producer, producing and directing the company’s shows. A small non-profit that received accolades for excellence, the company always functioned in the black.  Kate also ran her own professional acting school, The Randolph Studio for Actors, for many years in Hollywood.  Subsequently, under the YOUR OWN SKY banner, she produced herself in the Tony-award winning one-woman play, The Belle of Amherst, for which she won The Valley Theatre League Best Actress Award.  She currently tours in her acclaimed portrayal of Emily Dickinson.  As a Theatre Artist-in-Residence, she uses the Arts to enrich the lives and learning of thousands of young people each school year.  In addition, she conducts professional development workshops for classroom teachers, guiding them in ways to integrate the Arts into their curriculum. She has served on the Board of Advisors of the International Youth Media Summit for two years and has three times traveled to Serbia to support the activities of the Summit and the youth participants. She has been practicing Nichiren Buddhism for 36 years.www.belletheplay.comwww.iyms-usa.org

Friday, August 9, 2013

Experience in Faith to Start Your Weekend!



From a reader from India who now lives in the US:

I started this practice in 2005. I moved to the US from India in 2003 all alone. As per indian tradition I got married in 2004. My marriage was not successful; we had lots of hardship during my marriage. 
I left the house so many times but always came back due to lack of courage and I was always scared what people would think. But somehow I got connected to my friend who had moved to the US. She introduced me to this wonderful practice. 

At first I chanted alone and not much. Whenever I would feel lonely, I always chanted (as my family as in India). I never wanted to tell them what I was going through. One day I got into big fight with my Ex and the next day I chanted - if this relationship is not going to work then I should know right away. 
No wonder, within 1 month I was out of that house. Not sure where that courage came from but I was really happy that I made that decision. Since then my faith is stronger and stronger day by day and I have never looked back. 

I used to chant for hours and received benefits beyond my imagination. A few years later I was chanting for a partner who would accept me with my chanting. I am married now and my partner fully supports my practice.  
I even have my own chanting room in my home (Beyond my imagination). I have two wonderful kids. I always chanted for a Harmonious family. My husband is so understanding and kind hearted that at one time in my life it seemed impossible. 

I have succeeded in my professional life as well. I will share that experience later. 

At the end all I can say this practice is my soul. 

Nothing is impossible - Keep chanting. 

Wednesday, August 7, 2013

PowerPrayer for Absolute Happiness


What is Absolute Happiness? 

It is unshakable confidence in our OWN life.
It is the knowledge that 
what we do makes a difference... 
Who we ARE makes a difference...
Our lives are meaningful everyday, and we are using our potential to bring out the best in ourselves and others. 

Absolute Happiness is being strong 
in the face of any blowing wind
and having the courage to sit down, once more, face the Gohonzon (our lives) and chant truthfully with a seeking spirit to be able to change on the inside so that what we can overcome any hardship or reach any goal. 

Absolute Happiness is 
NEVER being defeated...
never giving up, 
and somehow,having the faith to en-courage others even while facing our own storms. 
Absolute happiness lies in being able to chant wholeheartedly for others, no matter whether we feel they wronged us or not. It is the knowledge that we are all connected, and when we light the way for another, we light it for ourselves. 
Absolute happiness is KNOWING that every one of our obstacles or problems can be a springboard for growth, a reason to chant harder with deeper concentration, and for a longer time...and that we WILL win!
Absolute happiness is knowing that never, never, never is the way lost, because we chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, we have a wise mentor in life, and we have our friends in the Soka Gakkai by our sides. 

The following is an excerpt from our upcoming book

The BuddhaZone, 
           PowerPrayers for Chanting Your Way 
                                           to Absolute Happiness


PowerPrayer for Absolute Happiness

You have arrived! Go ahead, chant your way to absolute happiness. We've done it. We've proved the power of this prayer. Now it's your turn. If we can do it, you can do it.

Core Strengthening PowerPrayer to chant when experiencing unhappiness of any kind

I am determined to experience my brilliant Buddha-self. 
I am determined to raise my life condition. 
I am determined to develop a strong— 
strong 
core of life 
so that NOTHING 
will bring me to this state of unhappiness ever again. 
I am determined to strengthen my life 
from deep within 
and to radiate happiness wherever I go. 
I don't CARE if unhappiness 
keeps rearing its ugly head along the way. 
I WILL WIN and I will defeat it forever. 
I will defeat you, unhappiness.
I am determined to become happy so I can inspire others to become happy. 
If I can become happy, anyone can become happy.
As I am chanting I am strengthening my life now!
I now embrace absolute happiness 

as my mission.
I will use my happiness to inspire others to chant! 

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

How Does Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo Work? What's this Practice all about?




The following is a Passage from Julia Landis' and Jamie Lee Silver's upcoming book, The BuddhaZone, PowerPrayers for Chanting Your Way to Absolute Happiness:

As Nichiren (SGI) Buddhists we chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo to summon up our fathomless wisdom while steering our life-craft in the direction of our innermost desires. We chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo over and over and over again. We call this chanting Daimoku 
(Die-MOH-Koo). Daimoku means title and the title of the Lotus Sutra is  Myoho-Renge-Kyo.  The founder of this practice, Nichiren Daishonin, added to Myoho-renge-kyo  the syllable Nam which means “I devote my life to.” 

So, a brief translation of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is, 

“I devote my life to the mystic law of cause and effect through sound vibration,” or, “I am one with the very rhythm of life.”

“Myoho-renge-kyo is the name of the ultimate mystic truth, and Nam-myo-ho-renge-kyo  is the name of the life state of Buddhas who embody and reveal this truth.” 
p.28 On Attaining Buddhahood in this lifetime.

It actually becomes very natural over time to focus on a personal PowerPrayer while chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.  It is nothing more than putting your deepest fundamental wish into action. By chanting and focusing on our most cherished desire, we come to steer our lives with confidence in the direction of Buddhahood. Our lives become lives of immense creativity, wisdom and value, and most of all Love. For as we chant, rhythmically and powerfully, we exude into our environment a music that evokes our deepest, innermost  capacity and transforms any manner of poison (problem) into a medicine (benefit), and further, into a nectar (deep and absolute happiness). 

Love's Got to do with it

A PowerPrayer is infused with love. That's the source of its power. When we chant for what we really want it comes from a real love for ourselves. All love begins with self love. However, you don't have to come to this practice in a state of self-love. This practice will take you there. Chanting Daimoku will itself bring about this state in your life. As the well known writer in the personal growth movement, Louise Hay, has said at the age eighty-two, “self love is the most important thing of all.” When you love yourself, everything in your environment loves you back. Your environment is a reflection of your own state of life and connection to the source of all happiness. 

Sadly, in general, Human beings tend to project this source outside of themselves. In fact, we are most comfortable, it seems in today's spiritual culture, when we project both the source of our mystical power and, also, its recipient outside of our lives. (Everyone seems to be praying to a power outside of themselves for a person who isn't them!) A great majority of souls, and you, yourself, we imagine, have prayed with love in your heart for the happiness of someone else, invoking a power that you have come to believe is “higher” than your own life. It has become commonplace.

But how often have you prayed with immense love...
for your own life, 
for your own happiness, 
for your own well-being? 
And more importantly, how often have you prayed...
from your own life
to your own life 
for the very best things 
and experiences for you
in short, for your own happiness?

We have found that, as it has been written, if we intone our voice with Daimoku of the Lotus Sutra, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, we can summon up great love, the kind of love that is required of us if we want to awaken to our true potential. And that is another name for Buddhas: Beings who have realized their infinitely positive wise and loving potentials.

It is our PowerPrayer that as you are reading, these words are activating within you the curiosity and courage it will take to sustain you on this journey. For the Lotus won't give its seed if one's hand is not open. It is our prayer that you open your hand in such a way that you open your mind, heart, and Life, as well. And you chant! 

Listen to the secret we whisper into your ear:

You are the Buddha of Infinite Potential. Yes, YOU are the Buddha. Your life story is one of awakening. Through chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo you will be able to solve your problems and awaken to your own Buddhahood that has always been your birthright. 

The above passage is part of the preface to the book Julia and I have been writing for you. It is almost finished and is packed with PowerPrayers to strengthen your life and your practice. 
On this blog I have written many posts for people who are interested in chanting, and I invite your questions and comments. You may email me at chantforhappiness@gmail.com. 


Wednesday, July 17, 2013

PowerPrayer to Establish a Strong Buddhist Practice for Chanting My Way to Happiness!


Establishing our strong Buddhist practice will lead us to happiness for ourselves and others, and to a happier world for all. Establishing a strong practice is not "hard" or difficult to figure out. It just requires putting OurSelves, and our practice first, so that we can be more useful to the world, and HAPPY! 
Absolute Happiness is the goal of chanting....establishing such a strong life-condition that no matter what happens we are unswayed and possess strong determination. 
Julia and I wrote this PowerPrayer for you yesterday. Please give me feedback on how this strengthens your practice for the book we are writing. 




PowerPrayer to Establish 
a Strong Buddhist Practice 
for Chanting My Way to 
Absolute Happiness! 

I will do Gongyo and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
every morning and every evening 
no matter what. 
I will no longer allow anything to stop me! 
I am establishing the strongest practice imaginable 
and I am becoming so fully resourced in self esteem 
that I fully commit to myself:
I keep my promise 
to myself 
first and foremost 
with the understanding that I can only really love/help others 
when I myself have become strong and self-loving.
And it’s very natural for me now 
to share Nam-myoho-renge-kyo 
because my life is overflowing with benefits. 

The more I chant, the more I want to chant. 
I look forward to my time with myself 
dialoguing with my own life
and discovering who I really am. 
I feel the connection more deeply every time I chant. 
I see actual proof that my self esteem is rising:
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________


Nothing can stop me from getting to discussion meetings 
and studying SGI periodicals and books. 
I love studying because it makes me a better person. 
Study helps me to see the connection between my chanting 
and what I see happening in my life. 
What a privilege!