HARMONY - Jan 2012

Special Feature: Creating Hope

One of the greatest benefits of chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is that, quite naturally, a sense of hope is created within us. ?Regardless of the circumstances, with a strong Buddhist practice, anyone and everyone can be triumphant. ?This is a natural result of chanting. We are challenging and overcoming our fundamental darkness and opening the door that allows our inherent Buddhahood to shine forth.

When we lack hope, we allow our negativity to take hold. We question ourselves, our worth; we succumb to the situations around us, and can feel that there is no way out or that no better future lies ahead.

But as President Ikeda reminds us, “A life filled with hope is strong. Hope is the greatest weapon in the world.”?(DOY p. x)

As is discussed in our special features, hope is something that we create; it is something that comes from within us, not from outside ourselves.? Sure, we all respond to our external environment, but to seek hope just from the outside is setting us up for disappointment. Especially when we are constantly bombarded by news reports that seem to focus only on negative events or the dark side of humanity.

So again the question becomes, how do we create hope, especially when things look so bleak? How do we find and open that door, revealing the beauty and wonder that awaits us on the other side? Simple, we chant.

“Whether in suffering or in joy, even in the face of an insurmountable deadlock, if one continues to chant daimoku (Nam-myoho-renge-kyo) wholeheartedly, then tremendous hope will naturally well up from within.” (Daily Guidance vol. 2 p. 352).

Hope is optimism.?

“There is no pessimism in Buddhism-not in the past, present or future. There is only optimism.? Therefore, let us advance eternally with hope and optimism, come what may.” (FIA p. 127)

Nichiren Daishonin teaches us how to live our life to the fullest and reminds us that courage and perseverance are essential qualities to attain happiness. Let’s create hope and encourage others as we move along this path.
Robert “Skip” Williams
Editor-in-chief

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