Having a Karma Attack?

OK, first of all, the phrase "karma attack" is not an official Buddhist phrase. I have to admit, I made it up! Sometimes, it's the only way to explain what it feels like when part of your world is spinning in what looks like a downward spiral. Right now I'm having an experience like this in a certain area of my professional life. 
Have you ever felt this way? Like something very familiar (and not positive) is happening...a repeat of something that has happened to you before, and it's rearing its ugly head yet again? What are some examples? How about when you seem to be having the same relationship problems over and over...only with different people. Or the same job problems in different jobs. 


So what do you do? How do you chant when it seems that the same problem (each time a little less severe, because you ARE changing your karma) has come up. 


First of all, don't let your own inner darkness defeat you. It is all too easy to say "this chanting doesn't work anyway...why even try." It is all too easy to let doubt take over. But don't surrender! That is truly the voice of your inner darkness, not your Buddha self.  And, sometimes it becomes agonizingly hard to chant. Has that ever happened to you? It does to me! And I start hearing negative thoughts all day as I'm working. This is a karma attack! 


What do I do? What can you do? 


First of all, I contact my Buddhist friends and let them know I need some daimoku. I chant for many people, and sometimes I need a boost from my friends too! And I call the people who inspire me most and get some words of wisdom and guidance. I MAKE myself chant even when it's so hard. I know I am busting through something life changing. I study and chant as much as I can, and I take the time to encourage other people who are struggling. I listen carefully to the advice I give others such as: you know you are going to have a big breakthrough and a big benefit when you have a big problem. 


I once had a friend from Japan who said "Really big problems make me really happy...I KNOW a really big benefit is on the way!" I'll tell you, THAT'S the attitude to have, isn't it? 


I also chant to have an incredibly high life condition....so that no matter what happens I am focused, I say and do the right things, and I can generate the wisdom to make the right decisions. 


And I take the opportunity to really connect with the Gohonzon. Suffering can be the cause to deepen your prayer so that you get the results you want to get! Sometimes it is the best thing for your practice (and I do not mean to say that suffering is the way of the Buddhist. It is NOT. Happiness is the way of the Buddhist...and forging our lives through suffering is a means of strengthening our lives. But the goal is happiness!) 


And I sit in front of the Gohonzon and VOW to be happy...and VOW to show actual proof of the Gohonzon. I tell the Buddhist gods (the functions within my own life) that I MUST win. I am the votary of the Lotus Sutra. I HAVE to inspire my district, my friends and family and my beloved blog readers! That's how I am chanting right now. If you have challenges JOIN ME!!! You can have the same prayer. You are all votaries of the Lotus Sutra! Write me and share your stories with the other readers of this blog! Be strong and break through your karma as I am determined to break through mine!!! 

On the Beach!

Miami Beach this weekend....What an interesting place...
And I'll you one thing I had to relearn this weekend...that if you take a "vacation" from chanting WHILE you're one vacation...well...you might be in for a few surprises! 


I really didn't want to do much chanting on this trip for various reasons. And it was a pretty great trip...only I nearly missed my flight on the way back. And that wasn't really the worst part. It was my emotional reaction to almost missing the flight that was the really hard part...and that proved to me yet again that the greatest fortune is having a high life condition. If you have a high life condition it really doesn't matter what happens. A high life condition comes from chanting enough daimoku! With a high life  condition everything is a snap. No problem really gets you down. If I'd had a higher life condition I would have been less emotional at the airport!


May you always chant enough daimoku that YOU have a high life condition!


Just  a few words of wisdom for a sunny day in March in Chicago. 

Two kinds of benefits

I got an email from someone who recently started chanting 15 minutes a day. They said the first few months they saw lots of changes...it felt like miracles were happening...but now, the benefits have slowed down for a time and they don't see any changes. 


My first response is to keep going and do not give up. My second is to say fight even harder for your life!


When you are not seeing huge benefits coming forth you are still getting results from your practice. I'll explain how it works. 


There are two kinds of benefits, the kind you see right away, Conspicuous benefits, and the kind that go deep into your life creating fortune just when you need it, called Inconspicuous benefits. You are getting both kinds every time you chant. It can be frustrating to think "I'm chanting and nothing is happening" but that is really not the case. Seasoned buddhists know exactly what I'm talking about. The fortune from chanting is building a daimoku bank for you. Those inconspicuous benefits will emerge from your life just when you need them...at a crucial moment!


I remember in the early days of my practice...in the first year or two. I spoke to a senior leader (one who'd been chanting much longer than myself) about an aspect of my life I was challenging through my prayer. I think it was job related. She compared my life to a glass of water that had dirt in it. She said we easily stir up the dirt at the top when we first begin chanting, but to get to the dirt (karma - things we want to change) on the bottom we had to really dig deeper. That was the day I sat down on a bright and beautiful day and determined to chant 10 hours to change this suffering. 


Believe me...I saw changes right away after that. I felt like I was walking on air for days.


The person who wrote me the email said they'd been chanting 15 minutes a day for some time. I think 15 minutes a day is great, and your life will tell you when you're ready to chant for longer periods of time. Perhaps that is what this person should do...increase their level of daimoku. And study! And go to as many meetings as possible, and encourage others to chant. If your benefits slow down...that is the time to dig deeper, go further, be even more determined than ever you show proof of the power of this practice, and don't give up!!!!

Chant to Open the Way Forward

How do you chant when you really don't know what to chant for? What if you feel stuck and there doesn't seem to be a good solution...at least one that you can think of? 


You can chant to open the way forward and keep increasing your capacity to help more and more people. 


I chanted to increase my capacity and my territory was expanded three times at work. I am making new friends and have the chance to use my talents on two new campuses. And through this transition I am focusing on several things. The first is to honor and praise my life. My drive time is over a half hour to these new campuses, so I'm chanting an hour before I leave and then all the way in the car. 
The second is to open the way forward into my expanded capacity to fulfill my vow as a Boddhisatva of the earth. I don't have to know this very second how it is all going to turn out. I just have to keep focused on fulfilling my vow and moving forward every day...seeing my district members grow, and hearing from the readers of this blog. 


I am interested in you. Do you have things you would like me to write about? Do you have experiences you would like me to share on the blog? Do you have questions?  Please let me know. This blog is for YOU. 

Hope is Life's Treasure

The purpose of this blog is to give you hope....to keep that fire burning in you --- even when it seems like everything is rising up against you. Hope is the most important thing. It is important for me. It is important for you. It is important for all those around you that you maintain hope!
I hope you enjoy this poem as much as I do.
I am reading it over and over as I face the challenges in my life!
Enjoy!

Daisaku Ikeda wrote this for us on January 2nd, 2012...his 84th birthday.

 "Hope Is Life's Treasure"

Hope is
life's treasure.


Those
who have hope
are always happy.


One can have
all the wealth, power and fame
in the world,
but if one loses hope,
one will falter and stumble
in life.


The ancient Roman orator
Cicero wrote:
"Our capital is invested in hope
rather than in money;
if that hope be abandoned,
all else will be amassed
only to be lost later on."


The arrogant
who ridicule the hopeful
invariably fall in defeat,
left with naught but regret.


On no account
must we ruin
our lives,
which shine with such promise!


Hope is
a jewel that inspires and uplifts.
As long as we have hope,
we will never be deadlocked.


Victory always awaits
and happy smiles spread
where there is hope.


In the words of
the admirable Wangari Maathai,
the Kenyan environmental activist
and friend whom my wife and I
will never forget:
"Hope is like a flower,
which, when it blooms,
does so no matter
what mood it's in
or who is watching.
It always gives its best.
We can too."


Hope is
a flower that blossoms
in effort and perseverance.
Hope is
the noble visible reward
of those who accumulate unseen virtue.


People who live out their lives
with hope
never become jaded
or apathetic.


A contributive life
of giving hope
to those who are suffering
is a source of growth,
fulfillment,
learning,
creativity
and solidarity.


The great Spanish author
Miguel de Cervantes wrote,
"Just as light shines
more brightly in darkness,
so hope should be
more steadfast in trials."


Hope is the hallmark
of invincible fortitude.
Life is a struggle -
hence, our challenge is to live
with optimism and strength,
year after year.


InazoNitobe,
the great Tohoku-born educator,
friend of first Soka Gakkai president
Tsunesaburo Makiguchi,
declared that hope
can be found
even in the darkest gloom.


Such hope, he said,
is "visible only
to the eye of
faith and courage."


Even while imprisones dor his beliefs,
President Makiguchi wrote serenely,
"Depending on one's frame of mind,
even hell can be enjoyable."


Josei Toda later said
in gratitude to his martyred mentor,
"In your vast and boundless compassion,
you let me accompany you
even to prison."


As the third Soka Gakkai president,
I have steadfastly walked
the profoundly solemn
path of selfless dedication
of mentor and disciple.


I have given my life
to realizing all
the cherished hopes of
my mentor.
My heart is clear and bright,
without a cloud of regret.


As Nichiren Daishonin writes,
"The sun breaks through
the pitch-black dark."
Courageous faith is
the sun of limitless hope.


Mentor and disciple
committed to the noblest cause
will rise above all trials and adversity;
the unsurpassed brilliance of their lives
shining on forever.


Infinite hope!
The mystic law is the source.
A boundless state of life!
Faith and practice are the key.


In the Lotus Sutra,
we find these truly generous words:
"We beg that the merit (we have) gained...
may be spread far and wide to everyone,
so that we and other beings
all together may attain the Buddha way."


Kosen-rufu us
the supreme and colossal hope
of elevating
all humanity
to a vast life-state
of peace and happiness.


Ah---
Hope! Hope! Hope!
Hope is life's treasure.


At the start of a new year,
a new day,
let us set forth,
brimming with bright hope,
the sun of time without beginning
brimming in our hearts!


Let us boldly break through
even the deepest turmoil
of these troubled times,
and be the ones to create new hope!


Let us advance in triumph,
imparting the hope
of absolute victory
to one person after another!


The French writer and activist
Romain Rolland said,
"The last hope of our day
lies in youth."


I now wish to declare for all to hear:
"The greatest hope for the future lies in Soka youth."


My young friends,
never be defeated!


No matter what trials and hardships
may befall you,
never lose sight of
the golden light of hope!


Oh my friends,
my beloved friends
whom I trust with all my heart,
live out your lives with hope!
Be victorious without fail!


Daisaku Ikeda
--on my 84th birthday,
January 2nd, 2012







 

Treasures of the Heart

Valentine's Day is always a challenging day for me...here we are in the middle of winter...it's dark...dreary...and I am mindful of the people who used to be in my life who have died...so I chanted really strongly this morning, and came home after work and headed straight for the Gohonzon...vowing one more time to be absolutely happy for the sake of Kosen Rufu...

And now I'm taking a moment to share the following with you:

As Nichiren Daishonin says, the treasures of the heart are most important of all. 

This is the Valentine I received today from my sweet Benjamin who is a freshman at Miami University of Ohio. 

He wrote this for me, and gave me permission to share it with you:

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

You make me strong

You make me creative

You make me compassionate

You make me courageous

You brighten my world from an uninspired monotony

You help me see beyond my narrow-mindedness

You love me fully even when I am difficult

You accept me fully not just my future potential

Its amazing to have a mom like you

...unbelievable really

I don't know who I would be today

If I didn't have your love and support

Love You Mom!

Ben

What beautiful words from my spectacular boy. I love words more than anything...more than flowers (well, I love flowers too) and more than almost anything else!

Sending all my love out to you, my blog readers! May you bask in whatever love means to you today...all day...and every day! Love Jamie

A great experience of someone who reconnected with the SGI

Here is an experience I received just the other day... so inspiring!!! Hi, I feel so fortunate to have found your blog.~!  You are my inspiration.  I read it everyday, & the entry  "What does Nam Myoho Renge Kyo mean?" often.   You help me to stay focused.  I finally noticed the link to finding SGI-USA.org Saturday. I immediately called the number,  & I went to the meeting/service today = Sunday.   I'm excited to be embarking on a new journey.  I have been chanting at home alone since September,  like 2X /day for at least 10 minutes.  I learned how to chant "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo"  & received Gohonzon in 1992  in Rancho Cucamonga CA.  I can not do any of the whole prayer  that they did at Center this morning.   Thank You for reading this.  I started chanting hoping to find happiness,  it is already here.  Now, if i could just find the right man  to share my happy life with.....  Sincerely John St Louis, MO