"Ho-nim-myo" - From this Moment Forth...Each Moment Begins A New Life

My heart is filled with appreciation for you. 

Yesterday I felt the spirit of "Ho-nim-myo" (meaning "from this moment forth") the Buddhist phrase our practice uses to signify that this moment is the decisive eternal moment. The past does not matter. The present and the future are all now. Each moment begins life anew. Each moment can be full of hope, vibrancy and energy.   

Yesterday, all day long, I could feel the Daimoku you have chanted for my son Ben and me...and I felt as if all of you who have written me were right by our sides all day long. Many of your emails came to me in times when I needed them most, when the way seemed impossible and my heart was so full. Each and every one of you are forever embedded in my heart.

Isn't it amazing really? Every day I chant to write a blog that touches your hearts...that will be exactly what you need to hear so you can get back in front of the Gohonzon, connect even more deply to Sensei and the SGI, wipe the tears from your eyes and say "YES. I can do this! NOW I can do this!" And your words come to me and touch my heart in exactly the same way. 

Yesterday was the first day in more than six months that Ben and I were able to spend time outside in fresh air.  

He is now living in the town where I was born, Evanston Illinois. My family moved from there when I was a baby, but I have always loved this liberal gem of a town on the shore of Lake Michigan. Together, we drove the beautiful blossom-filled streets, and explored this new world. 

It was a warm, breezy sunshiny day. I took him to a place I've loved since I was a child, right by the lake, and we sat together taking in the beauty. 

I looked up and every cell in my body rose together in gratitude for the life of this boy - this boy who can feel the sun on his face and the breeze on his skin - this boy who can write, and learn, and laugh and love. And I could feel your Daimoku. I could feel each and every Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. And in the silence I let tears of appreciation roll from my eyes. 

And we went to the beautiful Evanston Art Center - on the lake by the lighthouse -  where they were having a show on Art Therapy - of all things. 

We wandered outside and found ourselves in the garden between the building and the dunes and the lake. And we just sat on the bench looking at the water - two sunlight and warmth-starved souls soaking it up for the first time in forever. It has been a long winter. But as we know, "Winter always turns to spring."

Next we headed to the beach and soaked in the energy of the earth while laying in the sand ~  with nowhere pressing to go and nothing to do...just us and the sky and the birds, the water and kite-flying children...on a Sunday before memorial day weekend (the official start of summer in America) - when all is quiet and calm. I felt that all is possible - everything is possible - I can touch my dreams. We can all make the impossible possible. 

The day was winding down and we followed it. 

And we found ourselves again outside in the sun at a restaurant called, I think, "Lyfe." Where we had food that tasted like the best food we'd ever had. Ben says Evanston is like Disneyland, only better. Everything enchants him. Imagine - bike lanes painted green that cars can't drive in - and public garages with plug-ins for electric cars...and street signs saying "You are beautiful." Here he can have a fresh start towards a beautiful future. 

So I thank you all for your thoughts and prayers and kind, kind words. We truly are a Gakkai Family. We are fortunate beyond words to all have each other. 

If I can be here today writing these words to you today - YOU can achieve whatever happiness you wish. 

Thank you my friends. 

4 Ways to Change Ourselves -

As you know, this blog represents my own ichinen (will and desire put into action) to share this practice and encourage you. It does not represent the SGI, although I am an enthusiastic member. 

Being a Buddhist means taking full responsibility for our lives, the good and the bad...responsibility, not blame. When we take responsibility we can change. When we change, our environment changes. As simple as it sounds, it can be incredibly difficult to change! 

When we change, 
our entire environment changes. 
Our change of heart 
is the key to happiness.

Here are some ideas for all of us:

3 Ways We Can Change Ourselves

1. Have a Problem you MUST change. Be motivated. Give yourself the gift of having passion for your own life and your own outcomes. 

2. If at all possible, go for guidance from a senior leader. Chant before the guidance to be able to absorb the guidance with your life. Chant afterward to understand and follow it. Also -  let Daisaku Ikeda guide you.  I read his guidances every day, and often feel as if he is speaking directly to me.  

3. Don't give up. I know ~ We hear this all the time. And it is true. The only way out is by going through it, and not turning back. 

4. Chant in appreciation. If you don't have appreciation - chant to have it! 

Even though It's not always easy to see our lives ~ 

Awareness leads to change.  

And we need to keep going. Sometimes we are in the middle of the lake, and the only answer is to keep swimming. (Chanting!)

Embracing Buddhism = Banishing Fear!

Embracing Buddhism 
gives us access to living a fearless life. 
I can personally say that chanting the name of the mystic law - Nam-myoho-renge-kyo has been my key to tapping into the vital life resources that has sprung me depression and unhappiness into a life of never-ending wonder and happiness. 

As Daisaku Ikeda writes in Faith into Action, page 110:(available through the SGI website - see the link to the right) 

People who have strong faith are fearless,
they can overcome anything. 
There is no obstacle or adversity 
that they cannot surmount. 
In the very depths of their lives, 
no matter what happens 
they lead lives of "the greatest of all joys." (6/10/96) 

When I first started this blog - almost 6 years ago, I was frequently crushingly depressed. There were days I had to just put one foot in front of the other and struggle not to cry all day. I would feel it upon awakening...a heaviness I could not shake. And I would tell myself "I just have to get through this day." And I would chant to defeat this feeling forever...and root depression out of my life.
I began writing this blog with the determination to practice harder than I ever had before, and to prove through my efforts and results - through my life itself that ANYTHING was possible. If I could free myself from the depression I'd had my whole life, and that my mother also experienced...I would show that the impossible is possible, and be able to inspire countless others. Now the depression is gone and close to 60,000 people see this blog every month! 

Thank you so much for passing the chantforhappiness.com link to your friends. Countless people have joined or reconnected to the SGI through this humble portal! chantforhappiness.com
(And now you can subscribe and get these posts delivered to your email every day. Just put your email address in the box to the right. Of course I'll never share it!)

Many have accessed the SGI through the SGI link to the right: sgi-usa.org

And now, this year I enter my 31st year of practice and I see this fearlessness blooming in my life like never before. 

We talk about conspicuous and inconspicuous benefits. We can SEE conspicuous benefits. They are all around us. We get the job, we make the money, we fall in love etc. But inconspicuous benefits are the treasures of the heart we build day after day after day as we sit in front of the Gohonzon (the scroll that is the mirror of our lives) and chant to bring forth our Buddha nature, chant to do our human revolution, chant to strengthen our lives. 

THAT is where the true fortune lies. For what is a new house, a new car, a new job or a new relationship when we are cowering in fear...we are afraid it is ephemeral...we're afraid we'll lose it, we're afraid of death, of life, of rejection etc. 

This practice gives us the keys to the inner kingdom where the real treasure lies. 
Strength
Security
Faith
Fresh Determination

Today, and every day is a day of great benefits! Ben moves into a new place from the hospital. Thank you for all your Daimoku. There is still a long road ahead. 

Whatever is troubling you, 
whatever you are desiring, 
whatever you do 
KEEP CHANTING every day twice a day, 
KEEP STUDYING Daisaku Ikeda and the Gosho 
with your life!
KEEP CONNECTED TO YOUR SGI FRIENDS IN FAITH
and ATTENDING SGI MEETINGS 
KEEP ENCOURAGING OTHERS and
DOING SHAKUBUKU 
and your life will unfold 
into a beautiful chapter you have written...
with every tear...with every smile...and with every effort you've made to sit down, face your life and chant!

Feeling Stuck? PowerPrayer to Open your Life to Change

When we change ourselves we change our lives. We all know this, but what's the best way to do this. How can we change? how can we trigger our lives to change? 
Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the most profound cause we can make for our lives. Here is a PowerPrayer to help us all on the road to changing ourselves. 

How can you use PowerPrayers? You might read this before chanting to get your mind focused for prayer. And when you are chanting you can bring these words to mind...maybe one sentence...maybe a few phrases. There is no need to memorize the entire prayer...just to get the feeling for it, and allow it to bring focus to your daimoku as you chant the name of the Mystic Law  ~ Nam-myoho-renge-kyo with all your heart! 

Powerful Power Prayer 
to Open Our Lives to Change
By Jamie Lee Silver from Chantforhappiness.com

I chant to realize and see the basic life tendencies that don't serve me and are holding me back. 

I chant to see them and root them forever out of my life. 

I chant to release my resistance to change!

I chant to make every action, thought, prayer and feeling a positive cause for my own happiness and for kosen-rufu. I envision a world of happiness for all beings. 

I chant for the wisdom to know what action to take, and then to take it decisively. 

I chant for my life to unfold like the brilliant Lotus it is, and for every day to brim with happiness and hope-full-ness, magic and fulfillment. Every day I chant to make a positive impact in my own life and the lives of those around me. 

I begin my day chanting in gratitude for my health, my protection, my mentor - Daisaku Ikeda, and for having the ichinen (will put into action) to continue to chant. 

Today I also focus my prayer on_____________________________________(you fill in the blank) I am determined to accomplish __________________ to show actual proof of this practice in my life, and to lead others to the law of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo through my sparkling example of happiness. 

I will defeat every negative function that attempts to hold me back NOW! 

Shoten Zenjin! (Protective forces of the universe in me and in everything) Activate in every way for me NOW!!!


Daisaku Ikeda states in Faith in Action (page 87):

"Buddhism means putting the teachings into practice. Practice equals faith. With a practice of sincere prayer and action, our desires cannot possibly fail to be fulfilled. When you continue to apply yourselves to your Buddhist practice towards kosen-rufu. solidifying and gaining mastery in faith, all your prayers will definitely be answered."

Conspicuous and Inconspicuous Benefit ~ What is Revealed and What We See Later

No Matter what ~ Don't give up. 

And don't waste your energy on worrying. When my sweet Mommy was alive she would tell me she was worrying and I'd say "Don't worry! Chant Instead!" and sometimes she would follow my advice, and immediately feel better.  

Even when we do not see the benefits we are chanting for appear right now, our fortune is accruing through chanting. Sensei once talked about each Gongyo being a sheet of paper on our desks. It builds slowly...but it does build. And sooner or later the inconspicuous benefits will reveal themselves in our lives...just when we need them most. Dont' take my word for it. Prove it to yourself. 

Here is a quote for your day:

"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. "

Daisaku Ikeda

Chanting "Done Deal' Daimoku on this Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day 

to all the beautiful Mothers in the world. 

As a mother I have a deep desire I share with most mothers: for our children to be safe, happy and healthy...for their lives to be filled with love, and for them to be able to find meaning and fulfillment in life. 

Some children may be fortunate to have all those things. 

And for some children that may be a far, far off dream. 

And, as one of my mentors says: "We don't chant to accomplish things we could accomplish if we didn't chant. We chant to make the impossible possible!"
And "Don't tell the Gohonzon how big your problems are. Tell your problems how big the Gohonzon (your life) is."

Today my son Aaron is coming over to make me breakfast. And tonight I will visit Ben at the hospital. My determination is stronger than ever...

After I finish this blog post I am chanting in appreciation for my wonderful children, for Aaron's continued happiness and success, and for the perfect resolution of Ben's challenges...and his happiness and health. 

I am chanting "Done Deal" Daimoku: 

Done Deal Daimoku

Thank You Gohonzon
Thank You Life! 
My victory is assured. 
Some Kind of Way  -  It is a Done Deal! 

PowerPrayer to Demand Your Results! Roooaaarrr!

Sometimes we have to get mad when we chant! 

Lions ROAR! Lions ROAR! 

When we chant 
we are chanting 
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo to our own life, and sometimes we have to chant with this thought:

 "Life! Enough is enough! I am changing this karma NOW."

Some of you have written me that you are feeling hopeless and controlled by others. Chant and take action!

RISE UP to your life while chanting and DEMAND results now. 

We are all noble Boddhisatvas of the earth. 

In The Heart of the Lotus Sutra, Daisaku Ikeda writes:

"When we do gongyo "we are in effect vowing to advance kosen-rufu in accord with the spirit of the original Buddha. Every day we pledge to the Daishonin, "Without fail, I will believe in and spread the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin and help lead all people to enlightenment." 
page 150

And to fulfill this vow, we have to win in our lives. 
  
Each of us has some negative tendency that happens over and over, don't we? For me, I struggled for years with a feeling that would just overcome me, and wash over me like a wave. Out of nowhere I would feel unloved, unlovable and hopeless. I'd call my friend in faith Kate, and she'd remind me that this feeling was a function of the fundamental darkness within my life and within all of life, and this was AGAIN my time to summon up the power of my faith. 

That's why I say 
BE FUELED BY YOUR OBSTACLES, 
not FOOLED BY THEM! 

"Get MAD at the shoten zenjin!" Kate would say. 
(Shoten Zenjin are the protective forces that counterbalance fundamental darkness. We use our practice to increase the shoten zenjin and banish fundamental darkness.) 
And I would generate some angry energy, roar like a lion and use this PowerPrayer inspired by Kate - it totally changed my life:

PowerPrayer to say, 

"No More! Enough is enough!”
I change this negative function NOW! 
By Jamie Lee Silver from ChantforHappiness.com

I am chanting with 

absolute conviction in the power of my life to declare and demand:

No more of this karma 

of feeling insecure and doubting myself.

I root this karma out of my life with every Nam-myoho-renge-kyo I chant! 

No more of this karma 

of being abused or disrespected by anyone or any thing!

No more doubting my own Buddha Nature!

No more living in fear!

No more feeling unloved or hopeless.

No more ________________ (you fill in the blank.)

I now create _________________________________in my life starting now.

I don't CARE how many times I have to chant about this. I don't CARE how many times you try to bring me down. 

I will win! 

I MUST Win because I am a votary of the Lotus Sutra. I am living my life to prove that chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo works and to help others become happy. 

I will win!!!

I am the Buddha.

I am roaring with power in my life!

I now determine with all the power vested in me that I will___________________________.

The wisdom to take the actions to create this breakthrough comes to me now!

Here are the actions I will take today:______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________