Eli and Aaron and Ben!

Here we are at Millenium Park in Chicago yesterday. Now Eli, who lives in Australia, with his wonderful daughter Debbie,  is a part of his Grandson's lives. We've sat around telling stories and enjoying each other all weekend. Eli is 80 years old. 
This is truly an example of actual proof. 

Happy Easter

Another beautiful thing about being a Buddhist is you can celebrate any holiday you want to! 


Some years we have a Passover Seder...some years we celebrate Easter...and some years we do both. 


I was raised celebrating Easter...culturally. We got our Easter dresses and had an egg hunt and a family brunch. 


Today, on this holiday celebrating spring, we had a great time! 


My sister and her fiance, and my nephew and his girlfriend joined us along with Eli and we had a blast! 


Eli and I hid eggs filled with money and candy and my sister cooked a great meal at my house. Fun Fun Fun. 


And yesterday we went downtown and showed Eli Chicago and took him to some live jazz...


At every moment I am thinking how grateful I am to have the practice I have...the chanting I do brings me above any of the things that used to annoy me...and puts me constantly in the right place at the right time...like having the email about free live jazz tickets come to me a few days before Eli arrived. NICE. 


We all watched the jazz and laughed together and just had a great time...every moment I am so appreciative...thank you life! Nam Myoho Renge Kyo! I hope you are enjoying this day too!

Incredible Benefit...the most authentic happiness ever!

We have had an amazing benefit here for our family...something some might call a "miracle", but I know it had a profound cause...chanting Nam Myoho Renge Kyo.


My husband has been separated from his father since he was five years old. We had one picture of his father (Eli) holding him and laughing with him when he was just an infant. I could see so much love in that photo...and warmth. No one knew where Eli was...but there were rumors that he was in Australia.


I had a picture of Eli on my altar for many years. I chanted for them to be reunited, and to have a relationship. I looked at my beautiful children and thought how sad it was that Eli did not know his grandchildren, and I kept chanting. For many years I saw no result...but I just kept chanting.


A few years ago Eli was found in Australia.


Yesterday, on my first son's 21st birthday, Eli arrived in Chicago to stay with us for a long weekend.


Amazing actual proof.


Just looking at him, his grandsons, and his son...is mind blowing.
He looks just like them...of course!


Whatever you are chanting for....do not give up!!!!


Daimoku WORKS absolutely!!!!

Beginning Chanting

Does is matter how you sit when you chant? 

First of all, there are no "rules" to how to sit. You do not have to cross your legs or sit on the floor or kneel in any kind of uncomfortable position. I do recommend that you keep your back straight so you can feel the energy flowing through your body. Many times when I chant I am focusing and feeling the energy flowing up from my root chakra, and I can feel the power of nam Myoho Renge Kyo in my body. That's not something that's prescribed by anyone ~ I just like it. If you never feel the energy it DOES NOT mean you are chanting WRONG! So don't worry about that. 

Chanting Nam Myoho Renge Kyo is supposed to sound like horses running...it is supposed to have energy and drive. I usually chant pretty fast, but there are times I slow it down as well. It's important when we all chant together to match each other's rhythm and harmonize together. That's what makes it so beautiful. In the Patch article there was a video of me chanting. I'll see if I can either put that video on this blog or make a new one. 

And of course, the most important thing is what you are thinking when you are chanting. At first, you are probably just concentrating on the words, but after you get the words to flow let your mind flow to your desires....ALL your desires...don't hold back. You deserve to be happy...you deserve to let your desires flow....

And most of all...coming to SGI District meetings is the absolute best way to practice. You make friends, learn about the practice and strengthen your practice, your prayer and your FAITH. Faith in this practice means expectation...you KNOW that you will either achieve what you are chanting for...or something much better! THAT is faith!!!

Every Wednesday night we have a meeting at my house in Downers Grove Illinois! Join us! Send me a comment if you need directions! 

To Hoshi and all, About Overcoming Obstacles...Changing Your Karma!!

Dear Hoshi and readers, 


Congratulations Hoshi! You told me you have been chanting for a few months and all your smaller prayers have been answered...and now you are faced with your biggest desire and suddenly it is harder to chant and you seem to be stepping away from your practice.  There are three things I want to say:


1. Congratulations! You are meeting a chunk of karma that will make a difference throughout YOUR WHOLE LIFE when you overcome it! It is TOTALLY NORMAL to WANT TO STEP BACK AT THIS POINT, because this is when the "the three obstacles and four devils" come into play. They are nothing but functions within your own life that seek to HOLD YOU BACK. 
THIS is why we practice together and have friends in faith! These obstacles are nothing to be afraid of...it sounds like they are appearing as DOUBT and HOPELESSNESS. 


And I can tell you Hoshi and all, I have been there. Oh how I have been there. I can easily recite the litany that goes through my head..."Oh, I will never accomplish this...I've been trying so long and nothing has happened yet...what makes me think that chanting these words will get my life to break through...and besides...maybe I'm not good enough...maybe I don't chant correctly...maybe I'll never accomplish this"


When you have thoughts like this you should think "YES! I MUST be practicing correctly...I WILL BREAK THROUGH !!!"


And here's the crucial point:


2. If you keep steadfast...chant harder then ever....you WILL break through! This is what we mean by overcoming karma. If it were easy ...everyone would do it! IT TAKES COURAGE!!! It TAKES defeating those voices in your brain...but I'll tell you...YOU CAN DO IT...but only if you DON'T GIVE UP. If you slacken in your faith those voices will overtake your desire and you will be defeated. Don't let it happen to you. You are a Buddha. 


"Nam Myoho Renge Kyo is like the ROAR of a LION, what sickness (meaning what obstacle) can therefore be an obstacle" Nichiren Daishonin


And when I say chant harder...I MEAN what I say. 


Gaze up at the Gohonzon, which IS your own life and Tell Your Life:


"I don't CARE how many times these doubts and fears appear before me...I have the GOHONZON now...and I can chant. I will NEVER give in. MY LIfe will be victorious because I have to PROVE the power of the Gohonzon, the power of my own life, so that I can stop suffering, achieve my desires, and I can be an example to those around me that chanting works!


And when you pray like this YES, obstacles will arise. They are supposed to!!!!
Just defeat them...don't let them get the better of you. 
Study the World Tribune and President Ikeda's writings and the Gosho as much as you can. Tell people about this practice to the best of your ability, and Hoshi...you will be writing me your victories in life. Don't worry about it taking a while...if you are chanting like this you will enjoy many benefits along the way. 


3. And consider EVERYTHING in your life as a benefit. Even the bad things. They are all fuel for the fire of your desire. Say THANK YOU to your life, smile through your tears and KEEP ON CHANTING!!!

Chanting for Your Desires To Come True!

OK, so I spent all last week chanting at full strength, 2-3 hours every day. 


I had in mind exactly what I wanted....I prayed so hard for this desire to come true...

And guess what happened?

I got something better! WAY BETTER!!!

Let this be a lesson to you!!! It is true.

You can chant for what you really want.

Don't hold back.

Pour your whole heart, breath, body, mind 
into your prayer. 
Pray that you should have this for Kosen Rufu (World Peace) and that this thing you want (whatever it is) is YOUR BIRTHRIGHT! 


You deserve it! 
You want it in order to show proof of this practice. When you pray tell your life it is time...and that you want it by a certain date.

And wham!!!

Don't give up and watch what happens!

Do any of you have a similar story for me?

Write me!

Learning Gongyo

Hello!

I spent the afternoon teaching Gongyo. Gongyo is the recitation of the Lotus Sutra (just two of the chapters) that we recite every morning and evening at our altars.

It is a very deep cause we make for our lives. It is a recitation of the actual words of the Lotus Sutra...the words of the Buddha (and remember, he didn't start expounding the Lotus Sutra until he was 72 years old...that is SO inspiring to me!)

When you recite Gongyo you are speaking the words of the Buddha. I like to think of it as a renewed declaration that you know you ARE in fact, The BUDDHA!

When we recite Gongyo it has absolutely precise pronunciation and rhythm. Once you master it, you can do Gongyo with anyone, anywhere in the world...but the most important thing I can tell you is this:

Learn Gongyo correctly!!! Make a determination to absolutely master it so that you can teach anyone, and you can master your own life. It is one of the very first things to do when you begin your practice, and I promise it will make a difference in your life. I will always be grateful to Terri Wong, my District leader in San Francisco. At one point she led the way and all of us took every syllable and got it absolutely right. That is the reason I can be such a good teacher today. I can lead Gongyo anytime anywhere and feel totally confident...because early in my practice I sat down with a pencil and the gongyo book and learned it. I treated it like learning music and circled the parts I found difficult, and wrote the phonetic spelling of anything I found tricky. And it is tricky!

Gongyo is a sacred rite. When you do Gongyo and chant Daimoku (Nam Myoho Renge Kyo over and over) you are joining the microcosm of your life with the macrocosm of the universe. It is a sacred rite, and honor, NOT a duty! When you view it in that manner, living itself becomes a sacred rite...and your problems melt away. You see them instead as part of your mission, not your burden. These are important distinctions.

And the point of this blog is THIS:

It is easier to learn Gongyo correctly the FIRST time, then it is to RELEARN what you've gotten wrong. Learn it perfectly and you won't be sorry. make it a determination for your own happiness and watch your life so beautifully unfold!!!!