Chanting Growers Group

[SoCal Hippy]

Chanting for the missing chanters here today. Been a long time since some of you have posted here ??? not sure whats up??

Babba and every Bodhisatva checking in; I truly apologize not being in the loop here for quite some time. Now that my position at work has changed it has limited my internet time daily to 0%. Still don't have a puter at home which should change in the next month.

So I am not here physically posting but my spirit and prayers are with everyone.

Keep the faith; be back in a few!!

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

 

[Hitman]

Hi SoCal

Happy Belated Birthday, Easy!

So glad to hear and see the Bubba's spirits have risen! The cream always rises to the top! Nam Myoho Renge Kyo!

Hi Doob!

I'd sing along with the fat lady but I've got the mean double barrel sore throat and it hurts to swallow! Nam Myoho Renge Kyo!

To all!

Thank you all for helping me strengthen my faith!

 

[EasyMyohoDisco]

Thanks Hitman! Your the man, I'll be sending recovery daimoku after this post...

Thanks Hitman! Your the man, I'll be sending recovery daimoku after this post...

My friends,

Thanks for the daimoku! WOOHOOO I feel over 50% better, Babbas' victory couldn't have come at a better time, it was simply awesome the huge amount of encouragement I got, and I did some really strong chanting last night and today as a result. I'm very pleased how I have learned to rely on Nam-myoho-renge-kyo! When I say rely I mean my life is becoming so much richer and fuller thanks to chanting daimoku and living this practice. I was able to chant today with a friend who came over then my gf joined in and it felt awesome!!!

I love chanting and am learning to really enjoy my life, during good times and bad. Glad to see my amigos posting up, good times eh!

Wishing you all the very best,
Myohodisco


“In the end, no one can escape death. The sufferings at that time will be exactly like what we are experiencing now. Since death is the same in either case, you should be willing to offer your life for the Lotus Sutra. Think of this offering as a drop of dew rejoining the ocean, or a speck of dust returning to the earth.”

WND Page 1003
Page 1002 The Dragon Gate
Written to Nanjo Tokimitsu on 6 November 1279 from Minobu

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"There are not two lands, pure or impure in themselves. The difference lies solely in the good or evil of our minds."

(On Attaining Buddhahood in This Lifetime - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Volume 1, page 4) Selection source: "Kyo no Hosshin", Seikyo Shimbun, March 19th, 2008

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"Those who dedicate themselves to the very end for the cause of kosen-rufu and the welfare of others will savour the state of Buddhahood in lifetime after lifetime, being reborn as victors whose lives are pervaded with the good fortune of Buddhas."

SGI Newsletter No. 7505, 16th SOKA GAKKAI HEADQUARTERS LEADERS' MEETING--PART 1 [OF 2], March 5th, 2008, translated March 18th, 2008

 

[Babbabud]

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

A translation of President Ikeda's "To My Friends" published in the Seikyo Shimbun.

Saturday, March 15th, 2008

-- TO MY FRIENDS --

What we visualise in our mind determines what kind of life we will lead. Let's make a great vow and enthusiastically devote ourselves towards fulfilling it.
Let's always try to have a great, positive and hopeful perspective.

* "My wish is that all my disciples make a great vow." - "The Dragon Gate", WND-I, page 1003


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"Whatever trouble occurs, regard it as no more than a dream, and think only of the Lotus Sutra."

(Letter to Brothers - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Volume 1, page 502) Selection source: "Kyo no Hosshin", Seikyo Shimbun, March 20th, 2008

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"Whose turn is it now? It's the turn of all of you. 'It's my turn!'--this is something for each person to decide in their own hearts. Those who can make such an inner resolve are truly admirable. It has nothing to do with one's age or position in the organization. This is the way of Buddhism."

SGI Newsletter No. 7505, 16th SOKA GAKKAI HEADQUARTERS LEADERS' MEETING--PART 1 [OF 2], March 5th, 2008, translated March 18th, 2008

 

[PassTheDoobie]

Much love and deep respect to the Babbas!

Good to see you two, SoCal and Hitman! Gotcha covered on that prayer, MyohoDisco. Say hey Baccas! Say hello Sleepy.

Much respect to you Scegy! You rock dude!

Where the hell is Bonzo? (and finger???)

 

[GeorgialouWho]

BIG BIG WHOOOOP FOR THE BABBA'S AND THEIR VICTORY MUCH LOVE MUCH LOVE MUCH LOVE!

loving everyone and supporting all through my heartfelt prayers and daimoku!Took my kids to the March 16th meeting and "passed the torch" and it was such a full circle moment for me as they are the third generation to be practicing this great buddhism; what a tremendous cause for the past seven generations and the next seven! We had well over three thousand youth present and such support from the md/wd; it was just awesome! And so thankful that I had the opportunity to do such activities when I was a "youth" and feel fillled with blessings and benefit because of it!

NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO to all and to all a goodnight!

GeorgialouWho........So Be it Will it so

 

[GeorgialouWho]

OH yeah one more thing....

Friday, March 21st, 2008
--- DAILY GOSHO ---
"What does Bodhisattva Never Disparaging's profound respect for people
signify? The purpose of the appearance in this world of Shakyamuni Buddha,
the lord of teachings, lies in his behaviour as a human being."

(The Three Kinds of Treasure - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Volume 1,
page 852) Selection source: "Kyo no Hosshin", Seikyo Shimbun, March 21st,
2008

Saturday, March 22nd, 2008
---- DAILY ENCOURAGEMENT ----
"As Nichiren Daishonin points out: 'If one in body but different in mind,
they can achieve nothing remarkable' (WND-1, 618). Without unity, the path
to achieving kosen-rufu would be closed off. If that were to happen, the
biggest problem would be that the path to everyone's happiness would also
become blocked. This must be avoided at all costs.

"The Daishonin also declares: 'Although Nichiren and his followers are few,
because they are different in body, but united in mind, they will definitely
accomplish their great mission of widely propagating the Lotus Sutra'
(WND-1, 618). Even under adverse circumstances, so long as everyone is
united based on faith, they will be able to open the way and advance
kosen-rufu. Unity is power."

SGI Newsletter No. 7504, The New Human Revolution-- Vol. 21: Chap. 1, SGI
49, translated March 17th, 2008

Happy Spring! G

 

[EasyMyohoDisco]

Giving thanks to Tony Matsuoka, Ted Osaki, PasstheDoobie and Babbabud

Giving thanks to Tony Matsuoka, Ted Osaki, PasstheDoobie and Babbabud

From the Writings of Nichiren Daishonin
Saturday, March 22, 2008

If a tree is deeply rooted, its branches and leaves will never wither. If the spring is inexhaustible, the stream will never run dry. Without wood, a fire will burn out. Without earth, plants will not grow. I, Nichiren, am indebted solely to my late teacher, Dozen-bo, for my having become the votary of the Lotus Sutra and my being widely talked about now, in both a good and bad sense. Nichiren is like the plant, and my teacher, the earth.

(The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, "Flowering and Bearing Grain" (118) page 909)

This Gosho further reads:

The Bodhisattvas of the Earth have four leaders. The sutra says, "The first was called Superior Practices... and the fourth was called Bodhisattva Firmly Established practices." If Bodhisattva Superior Practices appears in the Latter Day of the Law, so must Bodhisattva Firmly Established Practices.

I have not heard from either of you since that time. But I was very pleased to learn that you had read at Kasagamori the two documents I wrote in the Kenji era in memory of the late Sage Dozen-bo.
If a tree is deeply rooted, its branches and leaves will never wither. If the spring is inexhaustible, the stream will never run dry. Without wood, a fire will burn out. Without earth, plants will not grow. I, Nichiren, am indebted solely to my late teacher, Dozen-bo, for my having become the votary of the Lotus Sutra and my being widely talked about now, in both a good and bad sense. Nichiren is like the plant, and my teacher, the earth.
The Bodhisattvas of the Earth have four leaders. The sutra says, “The first was called Superior Practices . . . and the fourth was called Bodhisattva Firmly Established Practices.” If Bodhisattva Superior Practices appears in the Latter Day of the Law, so must Bodhisattva Firmly Established Practices.
The rice plant flowers and bears grain, but its spirit remains in the soil. This is the reason the stalk sprouts to flower and bear grain once again. The blessings that Nichiren obtains from propagating the Lotus Sutra will always
return to Dozen-bo. How sublime! It is said that, if a teacher has a good disciple, both will gain the fruit of Buddhahood, but if a teacher fosters a bad disciple, both will fall into hell.
If teacher and disciple are of different minds, they will never accomplish anything. I will elaborate on this point later.
You should always talk with each other to free yourselves from the sufferings of birth and death and attain the pure land of Eagle Peak, where you will nod to each other and speak in one mind.
The sutra reads, “Before the multitude they seem possessed of the three poisons or manifest the signs of distorted views. My disciples in this manner use expedient means to save living beings.”
Understand these matters in the light of what I have stated thus far.

Respectfully,
Nichiren


The fourth month in the first year of Koan (1278), cyclical sign tsuchinoe-tora
To Joken-bo and Gijo-bo

(The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, "Flowering and Bearing Grain" (118) page 909)

 

[EasyMyohoDisco]

Daily Encouragement by Daisaku Ikeda
Saturday, March 22, 2008

I call to each of you: Strive for prosperity! Strive for development! Strive for victory! Life is about striving all out to achieve our aims; it is about hard work and effort. Regardless of how smart you may be, intelligence alone cannot guarantee your future.


Buddhism Day by Day, Wisdom for Modern Life by Daisaku Ikeda

Life is full of unexpected suffering. Even so, as Eleanor Roosevelt said: “If you can live through that [a difficult situation] you can live through anything. You gain strength, courage and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You are able to say to yourself, ‘I lived through this horror. I can take the next thing that comes along.’” That’s exactly right. Struggling against great difficulty enables us to develop ourselves tremendously. We can call forth and manifest those abilities lying dormant within us. Difficulty can be a source of dynamic growth and positive progress.

WWW.SGI-USA.ORG


Springtime is upon us, sow your seeds, clean house and get moving!

 

[EasyMyohoDisco]

From the Writings of Nichiren Daishonin
Sunday, March 23, 2008

If only you chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, then what offense could fail to be eradicated? What blessing could fail to come? This is the truth, and it is of great profundity. You should believe and accept it.

The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, page 130
Conversation between a Sage and an Unenlightened Man
Recipient unknown; written in 1265

 

[EasyMyohoDisco]

Great day for chanting!

Lets make this the best week yet! Who's with me!

Like the roar of the Lion, Nam-myoho-renge-kyo!

 

[Babbabud]

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

SPIRIT OF THE BODHISATTVAS OF THE EARTH

Selection Source: "Upsetting Attachments and Arousing Doubts":
Inducing a Revolutionary Leap in Consciousness, The Wisdom of the
Lotus Sutra, Vol. 3, Pg. 215

Ikeda: Nam-myoho-renge- kyo is the wellspring of the universe and the
fundamental power of life. It is the ultimate expression of wisdom
and the foundation of all laws and principles. The Bodhisattvas of
the Earth embody that fundamental energy. Moreover, they are
committed to the bodhisattva ideal.

 

[EasyMyohoDisco]

From the Writings of Nichiren Daishonin
Tuesday, March 25, 2008

A wife who leads her husband to take faith will enjoy the same benefit as Lady Pure Virtue. All the more fortunate is a case like yours, in which both wife and husband have faith! It is like a bird possessing two wings, or a cart having two wheels. What is there that you two cannot achieve? Because there is a heaven and an earth, a sun and a moon, the sun shines and the rain falls, and the plants and trees of benefit will surely blossom and bear fruit.

The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, page 915
An Outline of the "Entrustment" and Other Chapters
Written to Nichinyo on June 25, 1278

 

[Babbabud]

DIFFERENCE OF DAIMOKU

Selection Source: From SGI President Ikeda, World Tribune, 02/27/98,
pg. 11

The first thing is to pray. From the moment we begin to pray,
things start moving. The darker the night, the closer the dawn.
From the moment we chant daimoku with a deep and powerful resolve,
the sun begins to rise in our heart. Hope — prayer is the sun of
hope. To chant daimoku each time we face a problem, overcoming it
and elevating our life-condition as a result — this is the path
of "changing earthly desires into enlightenment" taught in Nichiren
Daishonin's Buddhism. (July 5, 1996, World Tribune, P. 17)

 

[Babbabud]

When you purify your lives with daimoku, you will definitely develop
an utterly indestructible state of absolute happiness that abounds
with great fortune. In such a state of life, everything will become
a source of joy. You will feel a deep sense of fulfillment even if
you have neither worldly fame nor wealth. Each moment will be
totally satisfying. Your heart will be filled with joy and all
things will appear beautiful to your eyes. You can instantly
discern the truth, distinguish between good and evil. You will
think about the welfare of others in any circumstances. This is the
state of mind you can develop through faith. (April 1993 Seikyo
Times, P. 40)

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

 

[Babbabud]

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

Selection Source: SGI Newsletter No. 7473, LEARNING FROM THE GOSHO:
THE HOPE-FILLED WRITINGS F NICHIREN DAISHONIN, [4] Follow the Path
of Your Mission, Just As You Are: Actualizing the Principles of the
Lotus Sutra, from the December 2007 issue of the Daibyakurenge, the
Soka Gakkai study journal

Attaining Buddhahood in one's present form is not about acquiring
some kind of special, superhuman qualities, but rather it means
achieving as ordinary human beings an eternal and boundless state of
life characterised by the virtues of eternity, happiness, true self,
and purity.

"The benefits and blessings of the Mystic Law are immeasurable. All
life--no matter in which of the Ten Worlds it may reside--is
originally an entity of the Mystic Law. Therefore, even if at
present we are in a state of Hell, by changing our mind-set or focus
at that moment, we can immediately manifest our pure and highest
state of life as entities of the Mystic Law. This is what it means
to attain Buddhahood in one's present form."


Nam Myoho Renge Kyo