From a certain perspective, Nichiren Daishonin’s struggle can be seen as a struggle to humanize Buddhism. He sought to return Buddhism, which had grown divorced from people’s actual lives, to the people, teaching it as a practical way to live. His message is that the Buddha is an ordinary human being, and we ordinary human … …
When we make efforts on our own initiative and challenge our goals cheerfully, we will be filled with joy and an upsurge of energy. Let’s challenge ourselves joyfully. Those who advance with joy accumulate good fortune. From The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, part 2, revised edition, p. 203
A writer once remarked, “Whether seen by others or not, still I will bloom.” 2 The Gohonzon is aware of all our actions. It is important to live in our own unique way, always embraced by the Mystic Law, whether or not anyone is watching. This is what the principle of cherry, plum, peach, and … …
Although physical resources are finite, human potential is infinite, as is our capacity to create value. The real significance of sustainability is, in my view, as a dynamic concept in which there is a striving or competition to generate positive value and share it with the world and with the future. From The Wisdom for … …
In the course of life, you are bound to face all kinds of difficulties. At times, you may become stuck. That is when you need to strengthen your faith and chant daimoku in earnest. Difficult as it might be, once you surmount the steep mountain of your karma, a new horizon will open wide before … …
The poetic spirit has the power to “retune” and reconnect a discordant, divided world. True poets stand firm, rooted in life’s complex, conflicted, and fissured reality. Harm done to anyone, anywhere, causes agony in the poet’s heart. Yet the poet intrepidly steps forward to offer people words of courage and hope, seeking to share a … …
To read the Daishonin’s writings with one’s life means to read them not as something that concerns others or as an account of something that happened long ago but as something that directly relates to us and the present, and to apply it to the challenges we face in our own lives. This is the … …
Mr. Toda taught me an important leadership lesson: “You cannot become a powerful driving force for our movement unless you always remember to be strict with yourself and generous and accepting of others.” From The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, part 3, revised edition, p. 296
Though we are practicing Nichiren Buddhism to become happy, why then do we have to overcome obstacles? The reason is that we need to undergo the trials of difficulty to forge and strengthen within us the diamond-like and indestructible “self” of Buddhahood. From The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, part 1, revised edition, p. … …
Kosen-rufu is a long journey, extending into the distant future. There is no need to rush or be impatient. The important thing now is to foster capable individuals one by one and build an unshakable foundation. From The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, part 3, revised edition, p. 166