Chanting Growers Group

[PassTheDoobie]

"The reason that you have survived until now when so many have died was so that you would meet with this affair."

(Reply to Yasaburo - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Vol.1, page 829) Selection source: Soka Gakkai member's experience, Seikyo Shimbun, April 25th, 2010

 

[EasyMyohoDisco]

At 4 years of practice for me I was a YMD Chapter Leader and a acting MD District leader in the SGI. Doing shakubuku activities practically 7 days a week...

Mugi Wasshin! Let's do it.

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

I'm also a Chapter Leader and the Area Soka Spirit YMD Leader. Thank you so much brother!!!

PasstheDoobie, thank you.

:salute:

 

[Babbabud]

Nam myoho renge kyo

Nam myoho renge kyo

From "On Attaining Buddhahood In This Lifetime", in The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Vol. 1, page 3.

Nevertheless, even though you chant and believe in Myoho-renge-kyo, if you think the Law is outside yourself, you are embracing not the Mystic Law but an inferior teaching.

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"On the other, it is to voice what one truly has in mind. Thus one's thoughts are expressed in one's voice. The mind represents the spiritual aspect, and the voice, the physical aspect. The spiritual aspect manifests itself in the physical."

(Opening the Eyes of Wooden and Painted Images - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Vol.1, page 86) Selection source: "Kyo no Hosshin", Seikyo Shimbun, April 26th, 2010

 

[PassTheDoobie]

Let's chant with strong determination and confidently and dynamically put our faith into action! Let's also make every effort to have cheerful conversations with others, (helping and showing people what our movement is all about.) The Buddhist gods, the protective forces of the universe, will definitely assist those who dedicate themselves to achieving kosen-rufu.

Daisaku Ikeda

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"Employ the strategy of the Lotus Sutra before any other. 'All others who bear you enmity or malice will likewise be wiped out.' These golden words will never prove false."

(The Strategy of the Lotus Sutra - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Vol.1, page 1001) Selection source: "Kyo no Hosshin", Seikyo Shimbun, April 21st, 2010

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"All humanity owes a profound debt to women and mothers. Having a sense of gratitude for them is the guiding light of a culture of peace. Nichiren Daishonin writes: 'In order to repay my debt to my mother, I have vowed to enable all women to chant the daimoku of this sutra [i.e., Nam-myoho-renge-kyo]' (WND-1, 931).

"The undertaking of 'establishing the correct teaching for the peace of the land,' set forth by the Daishonin, is the endless challenge of ridding the world of tragedies that inflict pain and suffering on mothers and children and instead creating peaceful societies that are radiant with their happy smiles.

"The Daishonin continued to warmly encourage the lay nun Ueno, the mother of Nanjo Tokimitsu, who was mourning the loss of her husband and young son. In one letter to her, he writes: 'One who embraces the Lotus Sutra will realise that hell is itself the Land of Tranquil Light' (WND-1, 456). Through her steadfast faith, the lay nun Ueno paved the way to victory for her entire family.

"The lotus flower blooms with unsullied purity from the midst of the muddy waters. We of the SGI are propagating the Mystic Law precisely so that mothers and indeed all those who have experienced great hardships and travails can attain unsurpassed happiness in life."

SGI Newsletter No. 7980, Celebrating May 3, Soka Gakkai Mother’s Day, from the May 2010 issue of Daibyakurenge, translated April 20th, 2010

 

[PassTheDoobie]

Oneness of Body and Mind

Oneness of Body and Mind

Materialists claim that the physical or material world which can be measured and touched is the only "reality," whereas some spiritual traditions see the physical as mere illusion--or something inherently corrupt which exists in order to be transcended, and the spiritual as the ultimate truth.

Buddhism regards life as the unity of the physical and the spiritual. It views all things, whether material or spiritual, seen or unseen, as manifestations of the same ultimate universal law or source of life defined in the Nichiren tradition as Myoho-renge-kyo. The physical and spiritual aspects of our lives are completely inseparable and of equal importance. This is expressed in the Japanese expression shikishin funi. Shiki refers to all matter and physical phenomena, including the human body. Shin refers to all spiritual, unseen phenomena, including reason, emotion and volition. Funi literally means "two but not two."

Nichiren expressed this in a letter to one of his followers, stating:

A person can know another's mind by listening to his voice. This is because the physical aspect reveals the spiritual aspect. The physical and the spiritual, which are one in essence, manifest themselves as two distinct aspects.

A person's inner emotional state will be revealed in his or her physical appearance. The feelings of someone in a happy and optimistic mood can be read in their face; there may even be a skip in their step. In contrast, the painful gait and drawn features of a person weighed down by suffering can communicate his or her inner torment even from a distance.

Our inner mental state also affects the physical functioning of our bodies. The most dramatic manifestations of this are laughter and tears, physical signs of our inner feelings. Mental or psychological stress has been linked to a range of illness from skin disorders, allergies, asthma and ulcers to cancer. Depression and hopelessness lower the body's resistance, making us vulnerable to a variety of afflictions. On the other hand, a positive determination to overcome illness can "inspire" our organs and even individual cells toward health.

As Daisaku Ikeda writes, "When our determination changes, everything will begin to move in the direction we desire. The moment we resolve to be victorious, every nerve and fiber in our being will immediately orient itself toward our success. On the other hand, if we think, 'This is never going to work out,' then at that instant, every cell in our being will be deflated and give up the fight."

True health and genuine happiness must encompass both the physical and the spiritual. Many of the experiences of SGI members relate to improved health, physical or material conditions. Through the practice of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, they also realize the inseparability of the spiritual and physical aspects of their lives. Over time this is revealed in both a feeling of physical well-being and a growing clarity and purity of the mental and perceptive processes. What are referred to as the "conspicuous benefits" of Buddhist practice relate primarily to the physical and material planes. Most crucial in the long term are the "inconspicuous benefits" of sustained Buddhist practice--increased self-awareness, wisdom and compassion for others. The ultimate inconspicuous benefit, of course, is enlightenment.

Buddhism views a living being as the harmonious coming together of what it terms the "five components." These are: the physical aspects of life and the senses; perception, which integrates the impressions received through the senses; conception, by which we form ideas about what we have perceived; volition, the will that acts on conception; and consciousness, the function of discernment that supports the functioning of the other components. Life is the force or energy that keeps these five components functioning together as a harmonious and integrated whole.

Modern medical science is only beginning to explore the subtle interconnections between body and mind, between the physical and spiritual aspects of life. Ultimately, Buddhism views both physical and spiritual aspects as vital manifestations of the life force that is inherent in the cosmos itself. As Nichiren wrote:

Life at each moment encompasses both body and spirit and both self and environment of all sentient beings in every condition of life, as well as non-sentient beings--plants, sky and earth, on down to the most minute particles of dust. Life at each moment permeates the universe and is revealed in all phenomena.

[Courtesy April 1999 SGI Quarterly]

 

[Lapides]

Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo!

 

[Babbabud]

Nam myoho renge kyo

Great to see you post up Lap
Been pulling down some misc. work here and there the past week.. has me pretty beat.
Keep on chanting !!
Nam myoho renge kyo

 

[Dutchgrown]

Have been really busy, and caught up in travel woes...sometimes getting from point 'a' to point 'b' requires a lot more effort than accustomed to...taking the ease of airplane travel for granted, for example.

Just back from the IC Mag 420 Cup, and wanted to stop in and say thank you PTD for all your encouragement, and steadfast YOU CAN DO ANYTHING mindset you have instilled in me through your encouragement towards gaining more knowledge in Nichiren Buddhism. I am most humbled, honored and grateful of your genuine concern for others.

Much love and respect to PTD and everyone here!

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo!

 

[PassTheDoobie]

The "future" is a path that we ourselves have to open up. Be the one who therefore decides, "OK! Come on everyone let's do it! Let's go for it!" Breathing freshness into our resolve, let's spiritedly march on!

Daisaku Ikeda

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"If you want to understand the causes that existed in the past, look at the results as they are manifested in the present. And if you want to understand what results will be manifested in the future, look at the causes that exist in the present."

(The Opening of the Eyes - The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, Vol.1, page 279) Selection source: From SGI President Ikeda's Speech, Seikyo Shimbun, April 27th, 2010

 

[PassTheDoobie]

"Those who keep moving forwards, who advance towards the light of learning, and who continue to strive to improve themselves, can create true value. Please remember that herein lies the key to happiness."

SGI Newsletter No. 7982, The New Human Revolution--Vol. 23: Chap. 2, Light of Learning 43, translated April 26th, 2010

 

[SoCal Hippy]

Buddhahood is the most difficult to demonstrate. But since you possess the other
nine worlds, you should believe that you have Buddhahood as well. Do not permit
yourself to have doubts. Expounding on the human world, the Lotus Sutra says,
"The Buddhas wish to open the door of the Buddha wisdom to all living
beings."... that ordinary people born in the latter age can believe in the Lotus
Sutra is due to the fact that the world of Buddhahood is present in the human
world.

(WND, 358)
The Object of Devotion for Observing the Mind Established in the Fifth
Five-Hundred-Year Period after the Thus Come One's Passing
Written to Toki Jonin on April 25, 1273

 

[SoCal Hippy]

What matters is winning in the end; the wins and losses along the way are of
secondary significance. It's final victory in life that counts and that is the
reason for our Buddhist practice. No matter how powerful or famous or privileged
a person might be, Nichiren Daishonin says, from a Buddhist point of view it is
all nothing more than a dream, an illusory pleasure; true happiness can only be
attained by revealing the state of Buddhahood within your own life.

Daisaku Ikeda

 

[SoCal Hippy]

The five characters on Myoho-renge-kyo, the heart of the essential teaching of
the Lotus Sutra, contain the benefit amassed through the countless practices and
meritorious deeds of all Buddhas throughout the three existences. Then, how can
these five characters not include the benefits obtained by observing all of the
Buddhas' precepts?

(WND, 481)
The Teaching, Practice, and Proof
Written to Sammi-bo on March 21, 1275

 

[SoCal Hippy]

Age is not an excuse for giving up. If you allow yourself to grow passive and
draw back, it's a sign of personal defeat. There may be a retirement age at
work, but there is no retirement age in life. How then could there be any "going
into retirement" in the world of faith? The Buddhist Law is eternal, extending
across the three existences of past, present and future, and one of the benefits
of faith is perennial youth and eternal life.

Daisaku Ikeda

 

[Sleepy]

my heart was warmed a whole bunch (can't really express how much!!), i got a message from.....



BONZO!!!

woot!!!

i think he will pop in soon...

all the best to all of my friends!!

(wipes a tear from eyes)...

 

[PassTheDoobie]

Today 10:38 AM Bonzo

Hey Big Homie, ive missed you! So much to tell you. I hope you forgive me for dissapearing. How is the Family? Get back to me dude! I love ya! Im on a library PC. Ill be on tommorrow at 1:30, pac time. I miss ya!

B.

Nam Myoho Renge Kyo

BONZ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He's OK! ANOTHER PRAYER HAS BEEN ANSWERED!

NAM-MYOHO-RENGE-KYO NEVER LETS YOU DOWN!!!!!!!!!!

WOO-HOO!!!!!!!

Much love and deepest respect,

T (HELLO SLEEPY!)