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Chanting Growers Group

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After that.....I'm Scared of Me!

After that.....I'm Scared of Me!

I've been hearing all that my whole life just cuz I'm a Scorpio, a year older now, I might add. So I guess I have the double wamy. I just stayed away from the vengenace part, the karmic retribution is not worth it.
However, I trust my intuition over everything and everyone. When I have ignored it, I have been wrong. What I do know is that my whole life is about to change in some fashion. And we are all here connected together, so being one of the females of the group.....I'm telling ya "Look Out". All of our lifes are about to be completely different with us all on another level. The New Year is around the corner as a New Moon, but before waning to the new moon, we reap the harvest of the Full Moon. So if you are not in place, have not learned what you need to to be where you need to be, we are about to go into overtime, or I should say we are all in it now.
So that is my response to Mr. Kipling! :moon: (Smile on my face)
Love, SG
 

SoCal Hippy

Active member
Veteran
my puter crashed...

my puter crashed...

I am on a freinds computer as mine has some frikkin virus that is not allowing me to do anything with it. Nice to have a 21yr old livin with ya explorin the net and downloadin bullshit that eats the frikkin puter up. Anyway, I am still here and chanting for everyone. (altho some nice long posts took me awhile to get caught up) Love ya all.

Take care
 

PassTheDoobie

Bodhisattva of the Earth
ICMag Donor
Veteran
SoCal, remember when we were 21?

SoCal, remember when we were 21?

A-man is a good kid. That's why he is back home. The solution is in your heart as this is the ultimate way to control (be in rythm with) your environment. Why not make him an opportinuity to demonstrate to yourself your Buddha Nature? It will either change or he will decide to leave and be happy in doing so. Everyone will be happy, including his mother. You can do it! You are on a roll. I am encouraging you to do something I or any of us would find hard to do; BUT! You know the recipe for victory. You have said it clearly here recently. If you can change your karma with A-man, it might lead to changes with other ones you have been having issues with. It is all in your heart. Compassion will lead to wisdom. Don't get confused and start looking for it to happen the other way around. SG and Gordy are our shining beacons of life-examples. Action is more important than knowledge. Compassion more important than wisdom. Compassion always leading to True Wisdom.

All you have to do is clear your mind and make it so.

(With profound love to you Brother)

Thomas
 

PassTheDoobie

Bodhisattva of the Earth
ICMag Donor
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This is for BOG

This is for BOG

Aspiration for the Law. (Jpn Gyobo-bonji): The name of Shakyamuni in a past existence when he practiced bodhisattva austerities. The story appears in 'The Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom.' The ascetic named Aspiration for the Law had been seeking the Law in every corner of the land, but had not yet met a Buddha. A devil disguised as a Brahman appeared to him and said that he would teach him one verse of a Buddhist teaching if the ascetic was ready to transcribe it using his skin as paper, one of his bones as a pen, and his blood as ink. When the ascetic gladly complied and prepared to write down the Buddhist teaching, the devil vanished. Instead, in response to his seeking mind, a Buddha appeared, and taught him a profound teaching. As a result, he attained the stage of bodhisattva practice in which one realizes that nothing is born and nothing dies.
 

PassTheDoobie

Bodhisattva of the Earth
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Aspiration for enlightenment

Aspiration for enlightenment

(Skt, Pali 'bodhi-chitta'; Jpn 'bodai-shin'): Also, desire for 'bodhi' or aspiration for the way. "Aspiration for enlightenment" is the mind or spirit to seek 'bodhi', or enlightenment, or to pursue the Buddha wisdom. 'Bodhi' of the Sanskrit word 'bodhi-chitta' means enlightenment and 'chitta' means thought, intention, aim, wish, longing, or mind. 'Bodhi-chitta' is also called 'anuttara-samyak-sambodhi-chitta', which means the aspiration for supreme perfect enlightenment. In Mayhayana Buddhism, to arouse aspiration for enlightenment is regarded as the basis and starting point of Buddhist practice. Bodhisattvas arouse the aspiration for enlightenment and pronounce the four universal vows: to save all living beings, to eradicate all earthly desires, to master all the Buddhist teachings, and to attain the supreme enlightenment.

from the 'Dictionary of Buddhism'

At a minimum, everyone even just reading this is doing some 'chitta'. Congratulations! You have met the Buddhism of the Sowing and can attain supreme perfect enlightenment in this lifetime (anutara-samyak-sambodai), whether you felt you were seeking it or not. Whether the seeds of Buddhahood were present before or not, you are a Bodhisattva of the Earth because you chant. You do not chant because you are a Bodhisattva of the Earth. This, to me, is another example of compassion far surpassing the merit of wisdom. If we have compassion first, our wisdom will follow. As SoCal said, it is easy to be aware of the Bodhisattva Ideal, another thing entirely to be constantly striving to live it. SO HARD! But daily efforts based on a spirit to "NEVER GIVE UP" will get you where you want to go.

Guaranteed.

Thomas
 

PassTheDoobie

Bodhisattva of the Earth
ICMag Donor
Veteran
And nattynattygurrl! I am counting on the fact that you ARE chanting as much as you can every single day... There is nothing in this world that someone like you does not deserve. Love yourself as much as you love everyone else and you'll be OK! (note to self: Keep this in mind for your life too Thomas)
 

BushyOldGrower

Bubblegum Specialist
Veteran
I am chanting...

I am chanting...

I don't know if you can see this pic or not but it is a note taped to my computer monitor. I have much to say.

Firstly I see Jesus as a great master much like other great masters throughout history. My knowledge of what is true tells me that there is a force of good in the universe.

The reason I cannot return to the temple of love and power is because I have a purpose as do we all.

Everything happens as it does for a reason and this connectedness makes us one in reality. If we are indeed one then it makes perfect sense to be kind to each other.

Tom, don't you think everything happens for a reason? If I say that I will re-enter the place I described then I will. Perhaps there is a reason I was shown something so young. I have told you some things about my past since you wrote some of the things here. This is too real for some people to face but I believe I have a role beyond my self. We have a purpose larger than we can imagine is my belief.

The reason you lost that post wasn't the 6th devil tom. I know what you did and you can't do that. ;) I think you wrote too much truth too directly and possible right to me. Don't worry Tom...all happens just as it should in its proper time to be synchronistic with other events. Like the election.

I say to you all..."Don't despair" :) This is all part of the master plan and we don't have to worry because there is an intelligence. We are a power in the universe and we do make our fates. Therefore there is nothing to fear because no mistake can't be fixed. In fact our mistakes are a learning process. I never considered myself a teacher either Tom but we are both seen as such by many.

We are all teachers and seekers. The fun part is that the universe evolves with us as we evolve. Nothing has to stay the same and there is no problem really. Buddhists don't believe in a personal God but they do believe in a universe with justice for all. Either way it means the same thing. We have nothing to worry about. All is well and chanting will make us well. I believe you now Tom because you are a teacher. Thanks for teaching me something.

I hope that we can all continue to share what we have with each other. Love, BOG

You are right you know...I always hated do gooders but I have a drive to help. My sister called me selfish once but before she died she took that back.
 

BushyOldGrower

Bubblegum Specialist
Veteran
I am sending you a calendar Tom and Stonergirl. I will send you one tomorrow. BOG

Southern Girl you are a wise teacher too. What is enlightenment if not the opposite of ignorance?
 

BushyOldGrower

Bubblegum Specialist
Veteran
Whoa...

Whoa...

Back to Start...Tom wrote this at the start of this long thread.

We have experienced something personally that has led us to believe that the ultimate Law of Life and karma is, cause and effect. There is individual karma and there is collective karma. Why do all of the people from varying backgrounds sometimes have collective fates (9/11 for example)?

We believe that the environment reflects the collective karma of those who inhabit it. We have come to accept a view, based on personal experience, that there is a means for individuals to change their Karma, and bring out their Buddha Nature. That is why we chant.

The belief is that the more people that chant, the more the environment of all living things is influenced as an effect of that cause. We are all devoted to achieve happiness in our daily lives and to hopefully express to society through our efforts, a reason to be curious about this NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO, and try it for themselves.

We believe at a point in time in the future, through the efforts of really nothing more than our daily practice, we can influence the numbers of people it will require to "Pacify the land, through the propagation of the law." Kosen Rufu. I.E.: If enough people chant, the ozone layer will heal, the droughts and floods will stop, the earth will become benign to it's inhabitants and people throughout the world will respect the sanctity of life, based on respect for the Buddha Nature in all things.

I never thought I would be discussing it in a reefer forum, but there you have it. TPD

Tom, there you have it... BOG :wave: *BOG Chants* "nam myoho renge kyo" :)

Hey! I am back editing this because I just got word that my Sour Bubble seeds made it ok to England. I was worrying and I think that maybe my chants made my will be done.
 
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Answering a Page of Writing!

Answering a Page of Writing!

Happy to See everyone as always,

Not to worry about the birthday thing! I told everyone I wasn't having birthdays anymore and so everybody forgot. Gordy P remembered and a horrifying call from "The Mother" which would have been better had she forgotten. This birthday was the last of the 40's. My mind and time has been spent reflecting on the laid back life style of Florida. Seeing the fast paced, stressed out in a hurry and don't know where they are going. People just several years older than me looking like my Grandparents. No more overtime!
If I have to eat ramen noodles and hot dogs so be it. No more working at night! Any extra money will be spent on my home. which is my seclusion from the crazy world I am now in.

Bog, there are probably more similarities between us than you know. One of my greatest challenges with my practice was finding a good space for me. I was raised Southern Baptist and ended up in a Temple of Love that practiced and celebrated the New Testament, particularly Corinthians. I think that Jesus was a wonderful master. I read alot of books on the missing years. I find buddhist behavior in alot of what he was to have done. And I struggled with it. I even have a book that has statements of Jesus on one side and Buddha on the other and they say the same things. But I find that living the buddhist philosophy comes closer to his teachings than what ya get at Sunday School. And NamMyohoRengeKyo has more power for my life. So it is what you make it.

I do not believe in coincidences, everything and everybody has a reason and purpose in your life. And all of lives tragedy our the things we learn from. So to be a wise teacher just means you have allowed yourself to live and experience. Some good and some bad but always something to share. So I take what you say as a compliment.

What is the opposite of enligtenment but ignorance? Well that was profound.
For me it is Cindy not bringing myself down into the ignorance and trying to fix things that are not mine to fix. To be happy myself, send diamoku and love to those who are suffering and have COMPASSION for what they must experience and go through. Thanks for the question.

Southern Girl
 
G

Guest

So Cal Hippy

So Cal Hippy

Sorry to hear about your puter buddy! I'm sure I could be right behind you. I have a 28 year old that occasionally blows through and a 20 year old on my puter. I put my foot down when the T & A started flashing on. Now its motocycles and drums. I constantly keep it cleaned up. It sucks but it is part of our evolvement into old people! :bashhead: I'm sure there will be a day when we love having them around but at this point its not now. We're just anxious to get to that part.
I was asked the other day what I wanted to be called when the grandchildren come, which is a sore subject for someone that doesn't want to be a Grandmother, because of waiting on that free space thing. I thought about it and said, Cindy. Well that wasn't acceptable. So it was Miss G, and I only wanted one, it had to be a girl and her name Savannah. So that was the end of that.
Have I cheered ya up yet? Be glad ya got a fucked up puter! SG :canabis:
 

GordyP

Member
Weighing In on These!

Weighing In on These!

BOG-man: You're asking good questions and making good points. Such thoughts, skepticism, re-interpretations, and comparisons to other spiritual beliefs and events are pretty common topics I give much thought to. About everybody here in this thread, except me, can tell you the Buddhist name for this type thinking and contemplation. It's a GOOD thing! Maybe you're taking many of the same steps I took only a couple months ago. Sometimes you come up with answers to those troublesome questions. Many times you come up with a new group of troublesome questions to find answers to. Occasionally you get fast answers and good fortune. Occasionally you get squat (so you think). For all you know, your chanting WAS responsible for getting those seeds to the U.K. (Why the fuck didn't you send them to Indiana, by the way?). Stay with it, man. You WILL feel it.

Southern Girl, I think your grandkids oughta call you Queen Hopimoon, but it doesn't make a bit of difference, cause ya know they're gonna call you what they damn well please (if they're anything like their grandma).

(Recent PTDoobie quote on the rearing of children) "You have no idea how frustrating it is to never control your own schedule". Man, you've got to give a little warning before tossing a belly-buster like that out there for us to all laugh at! Had a tough time catchin' my breath on that one. Remember who you're talking to the next time you tell us about toddlers, adolescents, and (ugh!) teenagers.

Keep Em Green and Growin'

GordyP
 

SoCal Hippy

Active member
Veteran
I feel the love Doobie

I feel the love Doobie

From 240 infected files, I got it down to 38 and now at least I can get on the net. Just don't accept any emails from me. :)

"SG and Gordy are our shining beacons of life-examples. Action is more important than knowledge. Compassion more important than wisdom. Compassion always leading to True Wisdom. (quote from PTD earlier post)

Thanks for the insite PTD. I am clearing my mind, I am clearing my mind, I am clearing my mind!!! I must remind myself constantly and I will, as I am so easily influenced by my lower paths or more specifically, 'The Eight Winds'. Let me clarify and post the definition:

Eight Winds: Eight conditions which prevent people from advancing along the right path to enlightenment. As mentioned in the Butsujikyo Ron (Treatise on the Sutra of the Stage of Buddhahood) and other works, they are: prosperity, decline, disgrace, honor, praise, censure, suffering and pleasure. People are often swayed either by their attachment to prosperity, honor, praise and pleasure, or by their aversion to decline, disgrace, censure and suffering.
(Source: Dictionary of Buddhist Terms and Concepts)

I both sway and avert. Bog, great post! Enjoyed your thoughts. So great to see you coming in more and more Natty. Keep shining SG and Gordy! And Stonegirl, big party happenin on the 15th? Wish I could be there.
 

SoCal Hippy

Active member
Veteran
Bodhisativa Practice

Bodhisativa Practice

"......from within it emerges a host of bodhisattvas equal in number to the sands of sixty thousand Ganges Rivers, each with his own retinue of followers. "

From Lectures on the Lotus Sutra, Daisaku Ikeda says,

“In ‘The Parable for the Medicinal Herbs,’ it says that the great cloud of the Buddha’s compassion “covers’ the entire thousand millionfold world, that is, the entire universe. How can we cause the immense love and companssion of the original Buddha to rain down upon the world? This is the thought that constantly occupies my mind, this is my constant determination. Our struggle now begins in earnest; we are now at last entering the essential phase of the movement for kosen-rufu."

He also says,

“ Once they ascend the mountain of the Lotus Sutra and look around, the world at once opens up and they behold the vast panorama of the universe. At that point, they understand that the Buddha enlightened since the remotest past has been ceaselessly carrying out the bodhisattva practice to guide the beings of the Ten Worlds. This Buddha carries out this activity, without interruption or change, eternally - over past, present and future.

When the voice- hearers look at themselves, they realize that, as ordinary people from time without beginning, they have always been one with the Buddha. At one with the mentor, they are carrying out bodhisattva practice toward the goal of kosen-rufu.”

Wow! What a fantastic destiny and mission, I am so happy to be aligned with you all. :wave:
 

SoCal Hippy

Active member
Veteran
HaHa

HaHa

Have I cheered ya up yet? Be glad ya got a fucked up puter! SG

I tell you SG, you had me rollin on the floor with that one. And I couldn't stand not checkin in on this thread for too long so you know I worked my ass off to get this thing cleaned up. (just hope those other 38files aren't too bad)
 
G

Guest

Knew Ya Could Do It SoCal!

Knew Ya Could Do It SoCal!

Yeah! I'm glad you don't have my email address! ha ha That happened to me once and I just dumped everything on the puter and re downloaded all the programs. I'm sure there is some sort of proper terminology for that but Ya know my George Bush comes out every now and then! :p

And Thank goodness you guys can know-you know-the parables and teachings that go with that which I say! The Gange River.......I retained the jest of them just need a little more current exposure to them and they will come back. By the way, So Cal & PTD, I'm going to my first district meeting tomorrow night. Look out, The Earth Could Move ! The first one in 7 years. It actually makes me feel good that I have maintained my life and my belief without it. I think it makes you more solid with the ordinary people from time with no beginning. But 7 years is significant and it is time. So no telling what I might shock you guys with and bring in to our world.

I'm so proud to know all of you! Love, SG
 

stonegirl

New member
:wave: Hi everyone, I am here and try to keep it up with you all everyday, it always bring me a BIG smile (or tears sometimes) to be here, I feel so HOME here, and you are all my family :)

sorry about your puter SoCal Hippy, I am looking forward to have FOUR 20 years old at the same time :cuss: , they only eat up what ever they can get thier hands on now.....so I guess its not so bad till thier teeth grow little bigger :)

I am so happy for your first benefit NNgirl-just keep chanting and you will see more coming.

and SG, you are very appreciated for your wisdom and accepting challenges in your life. Thank you.

Congratulations on the new job GordyP.

And BOG! Thanks so much for the lovely calender. I look forward to meet you and Mrs.BOG in the near future.

Here is something I want to share with you guys. Many of you might know my face was paralyzed on the right side for the extreme stress on my body from the boys, while I was in the Hospital I was affected by virus that shuts down all the nerves in one side of your face. I am a very strong person emotionally. I was not bothered at all by the sacrifice of my appearance because all I cared was that my boys are all healthy. I couldn't do any therapy until they are six months old because I was breast feeding them. And the Doctor told me it will heal by itself. I'm still kind of young, so it shouldn't be a problem. But it didn't heal by itself, and I started to get angry and wonder why me? And I refused to chant about it. I chant about other things like my kids happiness and health and good business, but not my face. I was upset because I think I have devoted my whole life to people around me and try to be a good person and why me? So I keep chanting, and not about my face. Through chanting I see myself developed more understanding for the others and have more compassion to know how any bit of illness can cause such stress and unhappiness in peoples life. And then as I chant more I start understand and realize that if this is the price to pay to understand and feel for the others it is really not that high of a price. So I calm myself down through chanting and then I thank Gohonzon for the lesson. and strangely, not sure how to describe it, but my prayer "told" me I should go to visit this Doctor who a friend happen to tell me about and try and convince me he can help. My face respond immediately to his treatment and does so every day. It is healing. It is almost back, but my full smile is not back yet, but getting there. I never know how important a smile can mean so much to me, But ironically the triplets are the reason my face got like this yet they are the source of so many many smiles!

I am very lucky that I know Gohonzon from I think a very good teacher and I am lucky that seems my understanding pretty much correct from day one. Even with this advantage of knowing from being around Buddhism my whole life, I could still be fooled by myself or out of my own stupidity. We can only learn this way. Isn't this what we are doing?

OK I won't write for ten days! I can't feel my fingers anymore! Keep chanting!

Love to you all!

stonegirl
 

PassTheDoobie

Bodhisattva of the Earth
ICMag Donor
Veteran
sowing, maturing and harvesting

sowing, maturing and harvesting

(Jpn 'shu-juku-datsu'): The three phase process by which a Buddha leads people to Buddhahood. In 'The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra', T'ien-t'ai (538-597) set forth this concept based on the Lotus Sutra, comparing the process of people attaining Buddhahood to the growth of a plant. In the first stage, "sowing," the Buddha plants the seeds of Buddhahood in the lives of the people, just as a gardener sows seeds in the soil. Nichiren (1222-1282) states in 'The essentials for Attaining Buddhahood,' "The Buddha [is] like the sower and the people like the field." In the second stage, the Buddha nurtures the seeds he has planted by helping the people practice the teaching and leading them gradually to Buddhahood. This stage is compared to the gardeners care for the sprouting and growth of a plant and is called "maturing." In the third and final stage, the Buddha leads the people to reap the harvest of enlightenment, enabling them to attain Buddhahood. This is comparable to the gardener reaping the fruit of a plant and is called "harvesting".

The process of sowing, maturing, and harvesting is described as taking place over countless 'kalpas'. From the viewpoint of the essential teaching (latter half) of the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni first planted the seed of enlightenment in the lives of his disciples numberless major world system dust particle ‘kalpas’ in the past. He then nurtured them as the sixteenth son of the Buddha Great Universal Wisdom Excellence major world system dust particle 'kalpas' in the past and later as the Buddha in India by preaching the pre-Lotus Sutra teachings and the theoretical teaching (first half) of the Lotus Sutra. He finally brought them to fruition, or enlightenment, with the "Life Span" (sixteenth) chapter of the Lotus Sutra. Seen from this perspective, Shakyamuni’s essential teaching was expounded for the purpose of reaping the harvest of enlightenment and accordingly is called the teaching of the harvest. The pre-Lotus Sutra teachings and the theoretical teaching, through which Shakyamuni nurtured his disciples capacity for enlightenment, are regarded as the teaching of maturing. As a whole, Nichiren refers to Shakyamuni’s teachings as the Buddhism of the harvest.

In ‘The Object of Devotion for the Observation of the Mind,’ Nichiren states: “He [Shakyamuni] planted the seeds of Buddhahood in their lives in the remote past [numberless major world system dust particle ‘kalpas’ ago] and nurtured the seeds through his preaching as the sixteenth son of the Buddha Great Universal Wisdom Excellence [major world system dust particle ‘kalpas’ ago] and through the first four flavors of teachings [the pre-Lotus sutra teachings] and the theoretical teachings in this life. Then with the essential teachings he brought his followers to the stage of near-perfect enlightenment and finally to that of perfect enlightenment.” In the same work, Nichiren writes: “The essential teaching of Shakyamuni’s lifetime and that revealed at the beginning of the Latter Day are both pure and perfect [in that they both lead directly to Buddhahood]. Shakyamuni’s, however, is the Buddhism of the harvest, and this is the Buddhism of the sowing. The core of his teachings is one chapter and two halves, and the core of mine is the five characters of the daimoku alone.” Though “one chapter and two halves’ indicates that Shakyamuni planted the seeds of Buddhahood in the lives of his followers, the teaching of sowing is “hidden in the depths of the ‘Life Span’ chapter” of the Lotus Sutra. More specifically, it is hidden in the sentence “Originally I practiced the bodhisattva way.”

Nichiren referred to the hidden teaching as “the seed of Buddhahood, that is, the three thousand realms in a single moment of life” in ‘The Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind.’ In ‘The Opening of the Eyes’ he writes: “This is the doctrine of original cause and original effect. It reveals that the nine worlds are all present in beginningless Buddhahood and that Buddhahood is inherent in the beginningless nine worlds. This is true of the mutual possession of the Ten Worlds, the true hundred worlds and thousand factors, the true three thousand realms in a single moment of life.” This indicates the eternal Mystic Law that enables people to reveal Buddhahood from their beginningless nine worlds. Originally Shakyamuni practiced the bodhisattva way as a common mortal with this Law as his teacher and thus realized and manifested his inherent Buddhahood.

In contrast with Shakyamuni’s Buddhism, Nichiren identified his teaching as the Buddhism of sowing and defined the daimoku of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo as the teaching for planting the seeds of enlightenment. Because Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the law of the simultaneity of cause and effect, it contains within it all three stages of sowing, maturing, and harvesting. ‘The Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra’ refers to two types of people: those who [received the seeds of Buddhahood and] have good roots and those who do not. According to Nichiren, people in the Latter Day of the Law never received the seeds of Buddhahood from the Buddha in the past and must therefore first receive the seeds of Buddhahood in their lives. Then they can complete the whole process of maturing and harvesting in this lifetime. Nichiren established the object of devotion called the Gohonzon, embodying in it the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo as a means for people to plant the seeds of Buddhahood in their lives and reap the fruit of Buddhahood. In Nichiren’s teaching, the practice for doing so involves chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo with faith in the Gohonzon.

from the 'Dictionary of Buddhism'
 
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