Kansai Culture Festival in the Rain

Daisaku Ikeda, our mentor in life

This weekend I was at the Chicago Buddhist Center on Saturday and Sunday and saw the film of the Kansai Culture Festival in the rain in 1966 twice. I found a link on youtube for you. It's in Japanese and the quality isn't so great but you might want to see it. Here's the link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Lk-2bvPm0E
or:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5vjQQo1PZIY

Imagine 22,000 people in the stands being a human billboard and creating countless works of art with colored boards...imagine over 1,000 young men dressed in white laying down in huge puddles of mud as part of their performance. It was really incredible to see how people can be even more galvanized and determined through the power of the mystic law. Their faces shown with the victory of determination. The young women were dressed all in white in beautiful ballet dresses, and they also had mud all over their faces, dresses, arms...

It was as if the rain came just to help these determined members prove the power of the law. 

The reverberations of the Kansai spirit continue today. Their efforts may be one of the reasons we are all practicing today. So inspiring. 

A few years ago there was a Santa Monica parade in the cold rain of February. The film of that day is also truly amazing. All the young people performing and smiling in the cold California rain...and I lived in California, I KNOW how cold it can get! But their shining faces inspired EVERYONE. 

We are so fortunate to be a part of this organization...a group of lay believers with one inspiring mentor and many devoted and committed members. 

I hope you are all part of our warm Gakkai family. If you haven't started going to meetings in your area I really encourage you to connect! The SGI link to the right will help you. If you have any challenges connecting write me at chantforhappiness@gmail.com and I will do what I can to help. 

Happy Monday  Everyone! 

Conspicuous and Inconspicuous Benefit - what we see, and what is revealed later

"There are two kinds of benefit 
that derive from faith in the Gohonzon: 
conspicuous and inconspicuous. 
Conspicuous benefit is the obvious, 
visible benefit of being protected 
or being quickly able 
to surmount a problem when it arises, 
be it an illness 
or a conflict in a personal relationship. 
Inconspicuous benefit 
is good fortune accumulated slowly but steadily, 
like the growth of a tree 
or the rising of the tide, 
which results in the forging 
of a rich and expansive state of life. 
We might not discern any change from day to day, 
but as the years pass, 
it will be clear that we've become happy, 
that we've grown as individuals. "

Persistence Can be Frustrating! I KNOW~ But it is the only way ~

As Soka Gakkai members who base their lives on the mystic law, we are changing ourselves, and the world, through our prayers, and I know, we all know, that some prayers are just harder to manifest, right? And they seem to be different things for different people. Some people fall in love and marry their soulmate and are happy for life...others search and search and chant and chant and still have to persevere to find the love of their lives. Some are born healthy and stay healthy and others fight for their health over and over...some have great careers...you get the picture. 

But it all comes down to one thing, our karma. 
If we really do persevere, and TELL our lives what we want we will eventually achieve it. 

My co-leader Kathy was out of work for over a year, then she got a job that did not turn out to be the right job for her and she was laid off again. This time she said - 

"No way! I am changing this karma forever and I will find the job that I deserve so that I can encourage others for Kosen Rufu" 
- and she began chanting 3 hours a day. 

She only had to do that for a few months and now she has a job where she feels really appreciated and she's learning all kinds of new things. 
If we want to succeed we have to dig in and wrestle our karma to the ground. It's August 2nd, what new determination can you create within your life for you? 

En-Courage-Ment

Yes! We must Plant the seeds of courage. 
Courage is so important. 
Without courage we are just alive, 
but not 
living...with all the full force of our being. 
With courage we strive. 
With courage we move. 
With courage we inspire others just by who we are. 
Courage and strength are essential to our happiness, 
and to kosen-rufu. 

How do we "get" courage? 
We are so fortunate, you know. As daily practitioners of Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism, we strengthen our lives and add to our bank of courage every time we chant. Over time we build a reservoir of courage by chanting every single day. I think it takes courage to chant...to sit in front of the mirror of our inner lives, and tune ourselves through chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo every morning and evening. 

And we have the added benefit of being able to connect with our fellow practitioners to gain strength and courage when we feel lacking. Last night we had a small meeting and we talked about how wonderful it is to not have any priesthood telling us what to do. We all learn from each other. One moment I am teaching and inspiring people, the next moment a fellow member is teaching and inspiring me. 

I learn from all of you, too!

Thank you for your notes of thanks. Thank you for sending your inspiring experiences. Thank you for emailing me at chantforhappiness@gmail.com. And thank you for sharing these posts with your friends. We had 22,500 hits last month! I appreciate YOU! 

A Note to Us All from Sensei ~ Daisaku Ikeda

"One should not fall into the trap 
thinking that just by praying alone, 
everything will be all right. 
The true power of prayer is only manifested 
to its fullest extent 
when it is accompanied by action. 
Buddhism is a teaching of reason.
Your constant practice for yourself and for others 
will enable you to lead a true sense of fulfillment 
in the depths of your life. 
At the same time, 
you will greatly develop your life-condition. 
Such efforts in practice 
will also allow you to accumulate immeasurable benefits while setting your life on a course towards happiness. Please keep this in mind.
TO actively promote young people of outstanding ability 
to positions of responsibility, 
and allow them to give free rein to their potential, 
accords with the spirit of Buddhism. 
It is also the spirit of the... SGI, 
and it ought to be the spirit of each member-organization. The reason for this is that 
the dynamic activities of young people 
are the fundamental driving force for fresh development.
Having faith in the Gohonzon is important. 
When we as common mortals 
chant daimoku with sincere faith, 
our lives are naturally polished 
and come to emit the brilliance of Buddhahood. 
This brilliance is manifested 
outwardly 
in our daily lives 
in the form of benefits and good fortune, 
and inwardly 
as refreshing humanity, 
rich wisdom and 
vigorous life force.
LIFE is making practical efforts. 
It is challenging ourselves. 
It is advancing. 
Your youth will never come again. 
Please leave behind some achievement; 
please create something, 
as a record of your existence in this world.
By Daisaku Ikeda

Another Cool Experience in Faith ~ From a High Schooler in India

Here's an unedited experience from a reader in India. 

Thank you!

I would like to share my experience of my life after entering to this divine practice.Myself Shreya from India has been into this practice from last one yr.

I was introduced to this practice from my relative in June 1st 2012.She has been into this practice since 6yrs. Initially i started with the practice then bagged faith in it and now iam doing study to know more about this practice as this is a vast sea of knowledge and Wisdom .Iam of a student of Xth .I do attend SGI meetings whenever i get tyme. As this is my last year of high schooling, my aim is to do well in my exams with a high score to get a best colleges in town.I have full faith on my practice that i can achieve success with my utmost efforts.In my home my dad is also into this practice and my sis.

Through this Nichiren Buddhism we saw so many miracles in our lives.I wanna share one of those experiences i.e this year my dad went through bad health karma and had to undergo two surgeries at a tyme. At home it was a tense environment that how would we handle this situation as we didnt had enough funds in our reserves because a month before my sis got married and the expenses were been encountered for her marriage. On May 17th the operation took place and it was successful to some extent.now the major aspect was the expenses of the hospital bills as we need to pay it through cash and the bill amount was upto 1.5 lakhs INR , my brother had a health insurance through his company wherein the expenses of the family member can be borne offf...But the hospital authorities didn't accept sayng that this particular insuarance doesn't account in their netwrk. We were totally upset how to find a solution for this. But i didn't loose hope , i chanted as much as i can and had full faith on my Diamoku that i will find a way ....All of a sudden i got a call from my bro that they accepted the Insurance and the expenses are been taken care from their company and a small amount had to be paid from our end , i was really surprised by this Mystic law of chanting and things get solved, At present the medicines are still in continuation and i know my dad would come out with his health karmas through this devine practice to the earliest.. Now my only aim is to Shokubuku others by sharing my experiences through this practice and my strongest belief on my" Kosen Rufu".

I strongly believe on these lines that transforming our life through Nichiren Buddhism is a process .It doesn't happen overnite. It is a struggle..It starts from our own Human Revolution..Iam also inspired with the blogs and power prayers you post...My heartfelt thanks for  the good works you have carried on for these many years for the betterment of the human revolution.    

By sharing this true experience i guess people who are disheartened and lost hope in lyfe would indulge themselves in making their practice much stronger and carve themselves to attain the victory through their "Lotus Sutra".This practice has changed my inner revolution and made me stronger in each phase of my lyfe and help me to move forward.

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Actual Proof ~ Experience of Faith

When you actually accept your karma, 

and are dedicated to changing it - 

you can make the impossible possible. 

Here's an experience of actual proof:

My Life Changing Experience - from a reader in India

I encountered Nichiren Buddhism in June 2012. I was introduced to this practice by one of my dear colleagues when I was under deep depression. My marriage was breaking down. I was completely hopeless and had been crying from months. As guided by my senior leaders, I started chanting for my husband and my 3 yrs old son’s happiness. I was facing challenges on a daily basis and used to feel very weak and victimized. 
Due to this personal challenge, my performance at work also went below acceptance level. I continued chanting. More information started getting revealed which was hidden for the past 5 years of my marriage. I was intensely hurt. My husband declared several times that we must get mutually divorced as I am no longer happy with him and our situation will never change. He seemed not bothered about me and our son. I always felt betrayed.
After a month, courage started building up somewhere deep inside me. And when things got above my tolerance level, I moved out of my husband’s house along with my son.
 I shifted to my parent’s house in another city. There I joined the local BSG community. My leader guided me to pray for my high life condition. I continued chanting for long hours. My desire was to be with my husband ~ however not at the cost of my self-respect. I wanted him to value us. I blamed him for my pain ~ deep wounds in my heart created lots of negativity inside me. I had even developed the fear of talking to my husband on the phone. Even his name was giving me sleepless nights. However, I didn’t want to leave him. I cared for him, but his rejection made me feel powerless and helpless.
I prayed for my Buddha nature to emerge. I started studying and taking part in kosen rufu activities. Slowly I developed acceptance that this is my karma and my environment is a mere reflection. The Buddhist concept of cause & effect gave me power. The emotional baggage started going away when I took responsibility for problems and my own life. I determined "I will change my situation." I will exert in my Buddhist practice and will make all the right causes to manifest the future I desire.
My regular daily practice of gongyo and abundant daimoku gave me calmness and courage. I was a happy person again. I was changing at a fundamental level, as if all my deep rooted sorrows (since childhood) was vanishing. Years of pain were vanishing. Earlier I used to get affected by every little thing, I was so emotionally weak. But now I was much stronger.
In the first week of November, I decided to find a job. I prayed sincerely to get a job by November 18th and made all the efforts through various job portals. I started my new job on November 18th with exactly the salary package and job location I chanted for. My faith strengthened and I felt blessed and fortunate to have this Buddhist practice with me. This was my first conspicuous benefit.
In February 2013, I was presented with a mutual consent divorce paper from my husband.  My family also agreed on this. But my ichinen was different. I cried to the Gohonzon that I do not want this divorce and want to work on our relationship with this new courage and for my son’s future. Mystically the next day my father refused for this divorce to happen. It gave me relief. When we refused to accept this divorce, my husband could not do anything about it. I started feeling powerful. Before that my decisions were focused on what others wanted or did not want. I never had the courage to refuse and say what I wanted. This practice made me a courageous person.
Although the decision of divorce was averted, there was lots of negativity between me and my husband. I then determined to change this poison into medicine. I earnestly chanted for his happiness. I prayed to over come my fundamental darkness and undergo my human revolution. Within weeks I dropped all the negativity from my heart and was fearless and compassionate enough to have a dialogue with him. I was praying consistently and doing kosenrufu activities. One day my father suddenly called him up and asked us to initiate the talk. That day we spoke for 3 hours. I could feel that through my prayers, negativity was not only removed from me but also from his end just like a mirror's reflection.
May 3rd was approaching; I determined to gain my complete victory as a real Kosenrufu person.
In May 2013, we had series of healthy dialogues and we decided to work on our relationship for the future of our son. I finished my pending assignments at work and came back to my husband’s house in June 2013. 
Our relationship is much better than ever. Our son is really happy to see his happy parents around. We are the same and there are Challenges. But fundamental changes in me through my Buddhist practice makes me realize how beautiful life is. I have learned to identify problems for what they truly are – They are opportunities to grow and actually make your life even better.
I pay my sincere gratitude to all my senior leaders and friends in Sokka Gakkai for supporting me through out with their prayers and guidance. 
I have accomplished my Human Revolution, changed my karma and fulfilled my various wishes.


I want to mention some key learnings I had during my struggle:
No matter what problems are daunting us today. They are going to change. We must accept them and understand that we are responsible for our own problems. We can only change them. Making others responsible for our problems make us feel powerless.
We must earnestly pray till the end. Some problems take more time to change. But through our prayers, life will always get unfolded in the best possible way. 
The combination of faith, study and practice always yields results. Study increases our wisdom about life and gives us right direction. It helps us remain stronger in adverse situations.
Kosenrufu is very crucial part of our practice. When we lift somebody else’s life, we lift our lives at the same time. Kosenrufu is a vow we took as the bodhisattvas of the earth.
It is our duty to do it till the end.
Transforming your life through Nichiren Buddhism is a process. It doesn’t happen overnight. It is a struggle. It starts with our own Human revolution. We must chant to make changes in ourselves  first. The changes in our environment are eventually reflected.
Prayers must be based on our own ichinen. With our profound wisdom and high life condition gained through chanting, we must take actions in the direction of our ichinen and not opposite to it. No matter who says what.

I hereby dedicate my new life for KosenRufu. 

Thank you