Vincent Leong’s Inspirational Experience (SGI NZ)

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1. My name is Vincent Leong from City District.

My Practice

2. I began my practice of Buddhism 26 years ago in Auckland in 1990 having been introduced to it by 2 Malaysian couples, Daniel &Jossie Chan, and Desmond &Serene Foo.
3. I took up faith not because of any problems but because these people were a happy gathering of members having wonderful time together at a wedding dinner and also because I was really able to sense the greatness of the SGI through its charter that details its movement for Peace, Culture and Education.

4. When I first started my practice, I participated in activities with the young men’s group and behind the scenes supporter activities with the VCG. Every week together with the youth leader, we studied President Ikeda’s Human Revolution Novel which is a blueprint for living the most successful and happiest of lives. From that time, my passion for Gakkai activities grew except for a 3 month period when my whole family returned to Malaysia in 1996 to settle down.

5. It was the reading of the novel Human Revolution and meeting with Sensei in 1991 in Japan which really make me change my priorities and outlook on life. Everyone needs to be able to rest from time to time and enjoy life, but I came to understand that I could actually benefit others and help create a better society rather than just idling my time away.

6. Indeed, I have received many benefits throughout these past 26 years of practice.

The first is Financial Benefit and Protection

7. When I initially came to work in New Zealand and establish my family, my income was just enough to make ends meet and that’s all. Because I was active in the organization and travelled a lot from city to city, I didn’t have much saved, certainly not enough to go to Japan or even return to Malaysia for holiday. However, every time I made a determination and chant for the extra money, it always came. I would have extra projects in the company where my boss would ask me to work overtime and paid me extra. Eventually, I was able to travel to Japan and in 1991, I had the good fortune to meet President Ikeda for the first time and then again for a second time in Hawaii in 1995.

8. In the early days, I was also praying to get a second car for the family so that my wife and I could go out individually and do activities freely. I would normally take the bus to work, then after work, walk 30mins to the SGI Centre. Sometimes, I took bus to home visit a member before going to work. My prayer was answered when after about 9 months of prayer, my boss gave me a company car to drive even though I was just a regular employee. My boss even allowed me to use the car for personal use as well.

9. When I returned to Malaysia in 1996, I started a business selling wireless technology equipment. 6 months after that, I had the opportunity to take part in a tender that was worth 5 million Malaysian Ringet. However, my UK principle was very bad, and by-passed us going direct to the customer. I wondered why I had to endure such karma, but prayed to Gohonzon for the wisdom to overcome the circumstances. I was convinced that there must be reason for it and decided to stop selling the product and take no legal action against them even though I had a sole distribution agreement signed with them.

• Sure enough, later, the project was awarded to the UK company in 1997, but this was was after the currency exchange crisis in Asia when the UK Pound increased in value from 4.2 before the financial crisis to 6.8 after the crisis. I calculated, if I had won the tender, I would have easily lost RM1-2m. This, I realized, was the protection I received through my sincere practice.

• In 1998, because my company lost the tender, we were struggling and my salary was affected. I had difficulty trying to service the loan for the new house I bought in in the city of Klang. My sister and I decided to sell off our 2 houses before the bank started to chase us.

• For six months, because my prayer was not focused, there were no interested buyers at all. Then in Sept 1998, I made a determination to chant for 1 hour daimoku a day for 90 days to sell off the 2 houses by 25-Dec-1998 (Xmas day).

13. I prayed that the buyers who are going to buy my house will find their happiness there and it will be a house and place that they are really looking for.

14. Until Nov-1998, there had been only 1 interested party who was looking for 1 house not 2. My real estate agent told me the buyer rejected the offer because I tried to sell above the purchase price because I tried to cover extra costs incurred through additional wiring, plumbing and grill. In fact other sellers at that time were offering their homes at prices below their costs.

• There were no calls from my agent, not even on Xmas eve, 24-Dec-1998. My wife reminded me about my deadline. I told her I still have another 24 hours to go. Even though the next day was Xmas when most people would be on holiday and taking a rest, I determined to chant until the last moment.

• I did my chanting and Gongyo at 10am on 25-Dec. Suddenly, there was a call halfway thru my chanting. I decided to wait till I finished my chanting before calling back.

• Immediately after I finished my chanting at 11am, my phone rang again. It was my agent telling me there is an interested buyer wanting to buy the 2 houses. He wants to see you within an hour, I was told.

• I was excited and agreed to meet them at 12noon. The buyer was interested in buying the 2 houses, one for himself and the other for his brother. He decided to pay me the deposit after lunch. Before he left, he asked me if there had ever been any flooding in the area. I told him honestly that there had been none to date.

• As we adjourned for lunch, heavy rain hit the area and caused the whole of the new housing area to be flooded. As I was waiting for him at the new house, the water was about 6 inches high. I chanted fervently in my heart that the buyer would not change his mind.

• True to form, my prayer was answered. My real-estate agent explained to him that the flood was due to construction debris. Surprisingly he accepted the explanation. He paid the deposit for both houses and decided to settle the balance with cash. The whole sales and purchase transaction went thru very smoothly.

• The power of chanting is unfathomable. The moment we set our determination and chant sincerely, our prayer will be answered.

Secondly, Family Protection

• In 2003, I decided to closed down the company and found myself a job with a US firm. However, one of the conditions was that I had to go to the US for training within a month before I start my job. I knew that, getting a visa to enter US during this period would be a challenge, especially from a Muslim country like Malaysia in the wake of the 911 incident.

• My colleagues explained how others had to wait for more than 6 months or a year for a visa and warned me it would be impossible to get a visa within a month.

• I told them I would pray for miracle to happen. I prayed that the US Embassy Officer who is going to process and interview me would be a friendly person. I prayed that there wouldn’t be any problem with my documentation.

• Because I submitted my document with air ticket information, the US Embassy called me in for interview within a week. However, they questioned me about one of my old missing passports that I used to travel to Hawaii to meet President Ikeda. They accepted my explanation that I destroyed it when I was migrating back to Malaysia from NZ in 1996.

• Within 3 weeks, I got my 10 year US Visa approved. I was able to travel to US for training and eventually work full-time.

• I even had the good fortune to receive share options in the US company. By Sep-2004, I accumulated enough shares that if I were to sell them off, because of the good price, I would be able to take my whole family to Thailand for a holiday during Xmas. So, I submitted my request to sell the shares in early Sep-2004. I received the confirmation on my computer in the office in a report saying it would take 3-5 working days. I waited until 15-Sep but nothing happened. I called the US share broker firm and remonstrated with them.

• They asked me to submit the request a second time but 2 weeks later, the same thing happened. I was very angry and frustrated. I decided to do the submission in the middle of night so that I could talk and confirm with them on the spot.

• They guided and monitored the transaction. It was finally recorded in their system. They were puzzled why the 2 requests were not transmitted to their system in US. By the time they sold my shares and paid me the money in early December 2004, it was too late for me to buy cheap Air-Asia tickets to Phuket. I cancelled my holiday to Phuket. Instead, I took the money as a down payment for my new house.

• Do you all still remember what happened during Xmas 2004 of that year in Phuket? It was the Aceh Tsunami. Tens of thousands of people died. I was shocked but thankful to the Gohonzon that my whole family was protected. Looking at the devastation on TV in Aceh and Phuket, I believe that I am truly fortunate to have my whole family with me here today.

• As an IT person, having computer problems like what I went through seldom happened. Furthermore, there were 13000 employees worldwide and many of them buy/sell shares every day. I think I was the only employee who had such a problem at that time. Truly, how mystical is the power of our practice- doesn’t it work in amazing ways.

• Another benefit that that came out of this is that the value of the house that I bought has doubled since then.

Third, Family & Members

• For me, the most important benefit I have accumulated is my harmonious, healthy and happy family. My wife, son and daughter also join in Gakkai activities. In fact, our children have been joining in Gakkai activities since they were born. I remember the days where our car would be filled with milk bottles, milk powders, diapers, a bouncer, and walker etc.

• I wish to say a sincere thank you to my wife who gives me all the support and understanding she can, making it possible for me freely participate in any Gakkai activity, while using all of her own free time to take care the children.

• I would also like to express my gratitude to President Ikeda for all the wonderful guidance which I read every day that lead my life to the right perspective and which I try to put into practice.

• Lastly, I need to acknowledge the Soka Gakkai, this wonderful organization and the members that allow me to polish myself to become a better person.

• In conclusion, I would like to quote a passage from President Ikeda’s guidance: Faith is not a matter of how you appear to others, but how you behave and what you actually do. In the long term, our invisible determinations and unseen actions will definitely become manifest as visible results. As time passes, a person’s true nature naturally comes to be revealed. An honest person always enjoys ultimate victory. (Vol 3, 5-Jul)

Thank you for listening

Jason’s Inspirational Experience (SGINZ)

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Good morning everyone. I’m a disabled person and I contracted polio 7 months after I was born.

Today’s, I would like to share with you all my journey of life during my 20s 30s and 40s

During my 20s, I began understand and deepen my faith in the Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin when I was at technical college.

I learnt from the practice that everything, sentient and non-sentient, be it an ant or stone has its own unique mission in life. But how about me? I was a disabled person and I wanted to find out what my purpose in life.

I set myself 5 goals to achieve within a 10 Year period and chanted sincerely for their manifestation. I determined that they would be achieved by the time I was 30.

Here I will share those goals with you….

My first goal was to complete my education to at least degree level because President Ikeda always encouraged the youth to study towards a degree. In fact I completed my Degree and even my Masters by the time I was 27.

My second goal was to have my own transport, which may not seem so difficult for some, but if you have a disability, it’s a huge challenge. And guess what, I achieved that too.

My third goal was to own my own home. I achieved that goal in my late 20s.

My fourth goal was to have a successful career as an IT senior project manager and work with a Bank. This I also achieved and become a senior team leader as well in a Bank that fully supported me even when I had health challenges.

My fifth and final goal was perhaps the hardest, to find my life partner. I had previously been rejected by an able bodied female because of my disability and it’s often the way that disabled people end up having to marry other disabled people. Amazingly I was able to marry beautiful able bodied women who together with her family accepted me for who I am.

The story of my life was taken up by a newspaper in Malaysia featuring the lives of ten youth from several Asian countries who had challenged the difficult circumstances of their lives and won. In this way, the newspaper hoped to inspire other young people to go beyond their perceived limits.

There were 2 things I learnt from this experience. The first is that no prayer will go unanswered and the second is that as the writings of Nichiren Daishonin say, “we have to become the master of our mind instead of our minds mastering us”.

Now I’d like to tell you a little about my life during my 30s….

In fact, I had a good job, worked as a senior team leader and manager with a good Bank. I had a happy family and created a lot of financial wealth. Yet even with 3 houses, plenty of money and a great family, life can change very quickly and such things are no guarantee that anyone can live happily ever after without any problems at all.

The writings of Nichiren Daishonin specifically warn about getting into complacent comfort zone. Actually, I was in exactly that place and something was going to shake me out of it. That something happened one day when suddenly I felt my left hand go very weak and couldn’t support my leg when walking. My life started to spiral down as I couldn’t walk anymore either. I found myself having to use my wheelchair or having to crawl around the house. I was worried and didn’t know what to do. I knew everything happens for a reason and chanted strongly to encounter a good doctor. My prayer was answered when I encountered a German Orthopaedic specialist from Singapore who custom made a special brace for me.

From that day, I managed to stand up independently for the first time in my life. This all happened in my late 30s. It’s just as Buddhism says. Even unchangeable karma can be changed in this life time. I was able to walk without anyone’s help! It was a dream come true!

Now to my life in my 40s….

I decided to migrate to NZ and got NZ PR approval for my whole family in 9 months under skilled employment category. It was remarkably quick and we migrated to NZ in Aug 2012. I migrated to New Zealand for my children’s education and the better environment. I got PR in spite of having polio, which was a great benefit.

Although New Zealand was everything we imagined, problems are not geographical, they are common to everyone. So although in the beginning I become employed as an IT Project Manager, the contract was only for 4 months and after that I had to start looking for employment again. But challenges are what make us grow and I now had the opportunity to really do that.

I was unemployed for 10 months, and sometime in the state of hell. But I sough encouragement from a senior leader who enabled me to realize that happiness does not exist for oneself alone; we should also try to bring happiness to others as well. I had been practising for myself alone. I hadn’t realized that it was so important to consider other people. I challenged myself to talk with 100 strangers about their inherent Buddhahood nature and over 3 months I chanted 6 hours daily in front of Gohonzon.

Amazingly I was able to talk to 100 people during my regular Saturday beach walks. From the start I could feel my joy of life increasing and my perspectives changing. Yet the conditions of my life and my family’s life were still tough. I still didn’t have a job and my wife, who like me is well educated had to take a simple job. My children didn’t understand what we were going through and were a handful.

I sought further encouragement and advice from a senior leader. He pointed that the challenges that the founder of this Buddhism, Nichiren Daishonin’s hardships and suffering were far greater than any of my problems and yet he was able to overcome them all. I had to agree that my situation was not that bad in comparison. I was still financially stable after all and I have a wonderful family that I love very much. This was not a major setback to me. I decided to challenge myself further with a never give up spirit. I must have a strong conviction in faith, I thought. In the writings of Nichiren Daishonin he says “Winter always turns to Spring.” This quote is very true and applicable to every one of us.

In truth, I was just about to give up and go back Malaysia when mystically I was offer a business opportunity that enabled me to payback the purchase price over one year which I was grateful for because I didn’t have enough money to buy it outright. Even more amazing was that I was able to repay everything in just six months. This is made more remarkable because my wife and I both from a Banking background with zero knowledge and experience to run a commercial laundry business. Our customers are not just customers. They are people we respect, people who all have the Buddhahood nature within them.   Our shop is not just a shop. It is the Buddha land. Because this is our attitude, the business is a happy and thriving one. Alteration is part of our laundry service.

One day I saw a flyer with the title “Free Sewing Class”. I called up and explained my situation to them, saying that I’m a disabled person and I can’t manage the sewing machine padder which needs to be operated by foot. Surprisingly the person in charge was understanding and told me to come to her class to try it out. Although the padder should be operated by foot, with a little wisdom let me show you how I managed to use it. (Show the video).

Amazingly, I able to find a new potential and skill and on top of that my sewing teacher is ranked amongst the NZ top 25 designers and with her support I managed to make a lot of products like bags, shirts, dresses and the like, or by myself using my elbow.

There are 2 things I hope you will get from this experience, I hope there are you can place a 100% trust in your chanting to the Gohonzon and secondly, The Gohonzon will definitely bring out the best in you. With the Gohonzon and Nam Myoho Renge Kyo nothing is impossible.

Thank You Very Much.

 

Helen’s Inspirational Experience

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In May 2011, I was introduced to this practice by a woman I met in a course, she told me she is Buddhist and I got so excited as I was looking for something of that sought. Soon after that, I started attending meetings but I used to practice daimoku on and off.

In May 2014, I was sick of my job so I resigned. Having nothing to do was an unknown experience for me, to be honest I had no idea what to do and I was just spending my savings. I was overthinking and during a trip I experienced my first panic attack. 3 months later I decided to come to NZ for a year under the work and holiday visa, I didn’t plan that much, I came with the idea to do something different (something I had never done before) and to improve my English, but because it was not good enough I just found a part time job with the minimum rate per hour so the money I was earning was just enough to sustain my daily life. I am an IT professional and every meeting I attend in NZ people used to asked me why I didn’t apply for that kind of job here, so I started sending my CV, but during the next few months the only replies I got were that my profile don’t meet the job requirements. This made me feel down and since first panic attack I used to have the feeling that I was going to give another one. I was on a very low state of life as a result I started experiencing sever panic attacks soon thereafter. One day, I crashed my car while driving because of my panic attacks. Being alone in this country (NZ), so far from my family and friends and with no money, I was thinking about coming back. I talked via Skype with my Buddhist friend in Peru, who is a psychologist and she advised me to contact SGI members in Auckland and start chanting to overcome this obstacle. Immediately I set a goal to overcome this panic attacks in one month otherwise I will have to return to my home country to have a proper treatment. I decided to chant for half or one hour per day and during that month I just had one more panic attack and so far I haven’t had any of them, so in May 2014 I decided to receive my gohonzon. I also realized that we cannot just think about our own obstacles and goals, while we help others we get even more benefits.

I received the omamori gohonzon since I was on a year trip and I was not sure if I would like to stay longer or not. A few months later, I started over thinking about it but one day I determined to get a work visa before my actual visa expired. I knew it was going to be very difficult because I just had two months left for it. As soon I started to chant for it I had an obstacle, I had a misunderstanding with my boss and I didn’t have the courage to face him. Luckily a SGI friend supported me a lot and when I finally faced my boss we didn’t come to any agreement so I decided to leave that job. Because I had no money, my friend and I decided to do housesitting to save accommodation, we had to move almost every week though. Luckily I found another part time job as a caregiver just twice per week and the rest of the time I was applying for jobs and getting ready for interviews and practicing my English. Two months later my visa expired but I didn’t feel discouraged as I was sure about my chanting so I applied for a tourist visa and a few days later I got a job outside Auckland. Although I was very grateful for receiving this job, I had always wanted a job that was in Auckland, close to the SGI center in Auckland so I could continue to participate in SGI activities. One week later I got this other job in Auckland, 5 minutes away from the SGI center. And this job offered much more salary than the first one with the same position I used to have in my home country, also they sponsored me for a work visa for 2.5 years.

Daisaku Ikeda says “A person who can profoundly distinguish between true and false and who possesses a solid self will not be swayed by trivial rumors and hearsay”. I truly believe that we all human being posses Buddhahood so if we really think we can achieve something, we will. We have to be sure about what we are chanting for no matter what obstacles we have to overcome in order to achieve it, these are lesson we also need to learn. I got two amazing actual proves by chanting this past year, but personally I feel even more thankful for the inconspicuous benefits than the conspicuous ones, like feeling happy and having inner peace, Daisaku Ikeda says “nothing is more precious than peace, nothing brings greater happiness.”

– Helen (SGINZ)

 

Rumi’s Inspirational Experience (SGINZ)

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Good morning everyone, my name is Rumi, and I would like to share my experience about chanting, perseverance and shakubuku.

I would like to begin with a quote from President Ikeda.  “No matter what happens, the important thing is to continue chanting. If you do so, you’ll definitely become happy. Even if things don’t work out the way you had hoped or imagined, when you look back later, you’ll understand, on a much more profound level that it was in fact the best possible result. This is the way of tremendous inconspicuous benefit.” (Faith Into Action, p.91)​

It has been 3 years now, since Mr. Sasaki first moved to NZ, and started the 6:30 morning Gongyo & Chanting sessions.

I was the first youth to attend these gatherings, and in the first year, I found it incredibly difficult to consistently to be there every day. Sometimes I would attend for 3 months straight and then take a month or two’s break before returning again.

At the outset, I only attended because of my parent’s encouragement. I didn’t enjoy listening to the heavy monotonous guidance; “We only have 2000 membership and there are 4.5 million people in NZ,” Mr. Sasaki would say every morning, which was invariably followed by, “We need to do more Shakubuku!”

And every morning in that first year, I would think to myself “Are you seriously saying the same thing again?! I’m tired of hearing this every single morning.”

In spite of these negative feelings, I continued to attend, and by the 2nd year, I was attending the morning chanting regularly. By this time, Mr. Sasaki’s guidance had seeped into my life and, although his encouragement had barely changed, my attitude had. I found myself agreeing with him, even when he repeated much of he had been saying over the previous two years. And rather than grimacing when he spoke, I had become a more compassionate person with a far deeper understanding of the spirit of why we try to awaken others to their inherent Buddhahood nature. 

On top of that, somewhere in my heart, I had also determined to stand up and change the way our district functioned. My district was seriously struggling and constantly needed the help and support from senior leaders. The meetings were so bad it had reached the point where it was embarrassing to invite the members, let alone friends. I knew I had to stand up rather than sit back and complain about how awful the meetings were.

And as soon as I began to take action within the district, all the woman’s division also stood up as great pillars to support the very few active youth. And as a direct result, our district flourished within the year, and in respect to the 4 pillars, it is now one of the top achieving districts in the country.

In the 2nd year of the morning sessions, I chanted for active young women to emerge in our district. Initially I had been the only active one, however, as of this year, I can proudly report that we now have 8 active young women; an 800% increase!!

In the month of October of last year, I was suddenly made redundant from my work. I didn’t know what I was going to do, but as the November celebration was drawing closer, I decided to put all my efforts into SGI activities, home visiting at least 1 young woman every week, and challenging myself to speak openly to friends about Buddhism.

It was a great struggle for me during that period and sometimes it seemed as if everything would turn to custard. In spite of the internal challenges, and on Mum’s suggestion, I asked my boyfriend who had been attending meetings for a while if he wanted to receive his Gohonzon. To my surprise he’d been meaning to ask me about it and in December he was able to become a member and receive his Gohonzon.

Going back to the November celebrations, as the days drewcloser, I began to struggle more than ever with my own devilish functions that tried to prevent me from doing Kosen-rufu. I was vigorously working behind the scenes for the celebration – sometimes up to 15 hours a day in the final week before the event, while continuing to home visit the young women and have dialogues with my friends about Buddhism.

During this hectic period, I just happened to look at an email from my old Animation school which was offering a Bachelors Degree in Animation. Usually I wouldn’t bother with such mail, but as I didn’t really have a career direction for 2015, I decided to take a quick look.

As I sifted through the content, one section caught my attention; the school offered work while studying. The reason this caught my attention was because I was not entitled to a student allowance, but because the school offered work, I thought I would give them a call to see what it was all about.

I spoke to the school administrator and explained my situation after which I inquired as to whether any student could apply for the work they offered.

Unfortunately, not anyone could. Only 2 students from the entire school could be selected as they would be working for prominent companies. And because the school’s reputation was also on the line, they could only assign 2 people to the task. The administrator, however, spoke about the various changes in the school and about the new tutor who would be coming from America to teach for just one year. I was stunned to hear that this person was an animator from the world famous Pixar Company.

Although it would be a fantastic opportunity to study with a great animator who has worked on huge films, I couldn’t overlook my financial situation. I told the administrator that I would think about it and talk to a few people first before making any decisions. After speaking with all the people who would support me if I were to return to study, in the end, I concluded that it was probably best to just look for a job in 2015 rather than going back to study.

Just 3 days out from the November celebration, I suddenly received a phone call from the school, offering me the opportunity to work while I studied. They had looked at my past records and remembered that I had graduated as the top student in both 1st and 2nd years as a student there. I was sceptical at first as I knew I would only be working part-time, but that evening, I spoke again to the people who would support me and to my surprise, everyone was happy to support whatever decision I made. The only thing that was holding me back now was the pay. I surmised it probably wouldn’t be very good, but chanted and decided I wouldn’t to go back to study if the pay was under $20/hr.

After the November celebration, the school called me again wanting my answer immediately as they had to fill the two positions before 2015. I asked them about the pay and to my surprise I learned that alumni students are offered a much higher rate than students who are still studying – and to top it off, the salary was higher than my expectations.

At that, I agreed to return to study with the school again.

When I looked at the overall plans for 2015, I realised, not only was I going to study under a great animator, but I was also to be given a chance to work for huge companies like Vodafone and Fonterra making commercials, and in this way, I would be able to create an abundant portfolio which would help me find jobs in the future.

Finally, with the support of my parents, I have also been given the opportunity to attend the LA TC in Feb. I would also like to report that a third of the youth who are attending the LA TC are from my district; 3 from the young women’s division and 1 from the young men’s. In Buddhism, there is no such thing as coincidence – all of this was made possible due to the tenacious efforts of the women’s division in our district. It is because of their tireless efforts and support for the youth, that we are able to have this great good fortune.

Allow me to conclude with a quote from President Ikeda who says: “Nothing is wasted in faith. One never loses out. Please be confident that all your efforts to help others and promote Buddhism are accumulating immense treasures of good fortune in your life. This is what is meant by inconspicuous benefit.” (Faith Into Action, pg.90)

Thank you.

Bharat Soka Gakkai (BSG): Kushal’s Inspirational Experience

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Note: This is Kushal’s experience (Bharat Soka Gakkai member) which has been circulating on Whats app. I have in no way contributed or altered the experience at hand. I am simply sharing it in the hope that it may inspire others as much as it has inspired me.

Second experience from AGM , held in Delhi India Good Second experience from AGM , held in Delhi India Good Afternoon. My name is Kushal and I am actively practicing this wonderful philosophy since previous one and a half years. I had lost my father when I was 12. I was brought up by my mother and my maternal family. I came to Delhi in 2005 at the age of 18, for graduation. Due to financial challenges, I had to stay in Meerut with my uncle and commute to Delhi University, every day. After graduation, I decided to do M.B.A. from F.M.S in Delhi University as it offered the cheapest program in the world. I gave my life to preparations and got national rank 11th in the entrance. M.B.A meant staying in Delhi and my problem was again money. So I stayed with 22 different friends across Delhi, for a month each. To meet my other expenses, I did petty jobs. Worked as a guide, took English tuitions and even slept at railway stations. I stayed hungry for many days. But somehow, I managed to complete my studies. These struggles made me cynical and cold. Though I finally got a job, but my mind was restless and I longed for peace. This was the time in 2010 when I got introduced to this practice. Initially I rejected it by being critical of it as I believed that no one can change things which are bound to happen. But the person who introduced me didn’t give up and continued to have dialogue with me to restart the practice. Gradually my financial situation improved. Last year I started a business venture alongside my job with a friend of mine. I took private loan and gave my entire savings to him. After sometime, all of a sudden, he became inaccessible. I tried all the means to trace him but failed. Now I was given four days to pay the entire loan, failing which; I would have to face strict legal action. This was the time when I was encouraged by my friend to apply this practice once again. So I finally spoke to a senior in faith at 2.30 in the afternoon. My deadline was 6.30 in the evening. He said, “You have all the time in the world, nothing will happen to you. Just have courage – and Chant”. I was completely moved by his conviction. Having exhausted all alternatives, I chanted continuously and had dialogue with my creditor in the evening. Surprisingly, he apologized for his behavior and allowed me to pay the loan as per my convenience. This was my re-introduction to the power of Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo. I got immensely inspired by reading Toda sensei’s financial struggles and ultimate victory in Human Revolution volume 4 – 6 and decided to give my 100% to seek this practice. I started taking part actively in all Gakkai meetings and slowly things became smooth. Soon, my faith was tested again. On October 19^th last year, I was in Allahabad for my birthday, to celebrate it with my mother. The very next day, my mother passed away.  My world changed completely. I kept asking myself, why this had happened as she was perfectly fine, without any health issues. I felt very lonely and afraid as she was the only one in my life. At that time chanting abundant daimoku and absolute faith in gohonzon gave me courage from within, while the warmth of the Gakkai family never allowed me to feel alone even for a moment. Soon I realized that though I had lost her but surprisingly I was not mourning or lamenting. I understood that my mother has not passed away, but only changed her form. And none of us would be here forever so I must develop a life where I am creating value every day. I determined to become the person whose “life itself” encourages others. I started taking every discussion meeting as a campaign and gave my 100%. With a firm determination I met all the YMDs of my district and participated in all activities specially concepts as they helped me a lot in understanding this philosophy better. I also helped members with their experiences, especially those who had victories but were not able to share them in the meetings because of lack of confidence. The more I exerted in faith, the more challenges appeared. I was given more responsibility at work and was asked to give 15 hours daily. This used to exhaust me completely. But one guidance from, “Current of the times” chapter of Human Revolution, “Danger comes soonest when you ignore it with the easy going attitude that you will be protected because you embraced the faith” encouraged me to challenge the situation. I started going for home visits directly from work. Slowly, the discussion meetings started becoming more joyful and inspiring. As a result, many YMDs reported victory and their attendance have reached 90 to 95% in Gosho and discussion meetings. I can proudly share that all the members of our district are fighting progressively and today the district is a strongly united family of 88 members. Today, though I miss my parents, but I remember them joyfully. The heaviness of the world that had crashed upon me has been replaced by the lightness of a new beginning. Last year I participated in the 1st BSG general meeting of the new era of worldwide kosen rufu. I was a part of the Pledge group and I consider every word of that pledge as my very own personal commitment to sensei. I happily report that out of the 22 friends who had supported me during my days of struggle, 19 have started chanting. Today, I am working with one of the best and most desired organizations in the world – United Nations as a Language Partner. I am happy to share that five of my students made to the Oxford University. As a result I got appreciation at work and received Star employee of the year award with three months additional salary. I had an interest in writing since I was a child and wanted to write a book of my own. So I started writing my own piece of literature two years ago and I am happy to report that my maiden English novel has been accepted by a renowned international publisher and will be out soon. My children story books are already published and have reached the international market. I always had a dream of studying without the fear of financial constraints. I also had a deep desire of working with Dr. Zahi Hawass, world famous archaeologist. In February this year, I had applied for Ph.D. in few universities in India and abroad. I wanted to get to the best college but going overseas for studies was really a big challenge financially. I continued persevering in faith and didn’t miss any opportunity to contribute in Gakkai activities believing that there will be a way out. I am happy to report that I made to the Kellogg’s university U.S.A. and my program is fully sponsored by United Nations and Dr. Zahi Hawaas will be my guide. I will forever be grateful to those who helped me in being what I am today. I have immense gratitude for my mentor Ikeda sensei who encouraged me every moment of my life through his writings and prayers and I can repay the debt of gratitude only by having a victorious life based on Daishonin’s Buddhism. I determine to do at least 40 shakubukus in the coming year. As a Young Lions in charge I determine to raise new Young Lions in my chapter and contribute fully in the year of dynamic development in the new era of worldwide kosen-rufu. I feel my journey in life has just begun, this very moment, as Kosen-Rufu starts from where I am right now. For devils, hindrances and obstacles I say – challenge accepted…

Bharat Soka Gakkai (BSG): Aastha’s Experience

Picture From: https://cherokeebillie.files.wordpress.com/2011/08/l-21-2110-offering-z00de7ix.jpg

Just like how everyone faces challenges in life, even I did. Rather, I still am. When faced with these challenges, I always used to wonder, “oh God why me? Why have all the difficulties been bestowed upon me only?” I felt like the entire world’s difficulties were on my head and only I faced challenges while others lived happily. There came a time when I faced massive temperament issues which lead to behavioral changes within myself, which wasn’t acceptable by my dear ones. Through my chanting, I realized that my behavior was hurting my loved ones. However, I still felt like a confused soul who didn’t know how to manage challenges POSITIVELY because I held so much negativity deep inside me.

Then, one fine day my well-wisher, my very dear friend of mine spoke to me about her life events that had been filled with cruel challenges. It was then that I realized that what I was going through wasn’t as bad as hers. I was simply over thinking everything because of which all the confidence and determination in me had drained out of myself. After she introduced me to this practice, I was welcomed into my beautiful Buddhist family. They were and still are very supportive and loving.

With my friend’s guidance and encouragement, I was able to gradually alter my negative state of mind, which in turn made me gain a lot of strength to face and overcome my other challenges. I was determined to keep chanting. Chanting makes me feel so pure and positive now.
There came another challenge at my home where I was asked to not practice Buddhism without being well versed with Hinduism. To be very honest, I believe in God’s existence and have utmost faith in all the gods and goddesses and am not biased towards any religion. My family feared I was being converted from being a Hindu to A Buddhist. One wouldn’t believe this, but through my chanting in no time at all, my family’s attitude transformed! Now, my granny keeps reminding me to do my chanting regularly and she has even started asking me about this Buddhist practice. My granny is now convinced that I am not converting. This was a very quick victory for my family and me.
My friend’s uncle was diagnosed with cancer a few months into 2014. Doctors had given up hopes and said he wouldn’t live for more than 6 months. I informed my dear friend who shakabukued me about this and with her and all my other Buddhist friends’ help and strong daimoku my friend’s uncle recovered from cancer! He was declared cancer-free within 2-3 months from the day of his diagnosis.

I have been practicing alone for about a year and a few months now. Through my chanting, I was able to meet my Buddhist friends who live just a block from me! They are now helping me become consistent with my Buddhist practice. Having company to chant, to study and to share experiences really makes a lot of difference. With the help of my Buddhist family, I will be able to strengthen my roots in this practice.

So far my journey in this practice has been beautiful and with the help and support of my Buddhist family and friends, I know it will be even better.

NMRK

– Aastha Oza

Aarush’s Inspirational Experience

Note: This is Aarush’s experience (Bharat Soka Gakkai member) which has been circulating on Whats app. I have in no way contributed or altered the experience at hand. I am simply sharing it in the hope that it may inspire others as much as it has inspired me.

Dear All

There were 3 experiences selected from .all over India for the AGM  (A WD from Mumbai /

a YMD from Ahmedabad one from Noida -future division.Aarush Bhatt .

Fortunately we have a copy of Aarush’s experience and taking the liberty to share it with you all..  as below…

Experience by Aarush Bhat at BSG AGM.. Vth standard – DPS Indrapuram

Visully impaired – blind in both eyes since birth ..  hearing him speak with great confidence and without paper  is a very  inspiring experience itself.. However.. am happy to share his text with you

————————————————–

“The important thing in practicing the Daishonin’s Buddhism is having courage. Courage is what makes us Lion like champions.

Ohayo Gozaimas! (Good morning in Japanese)  I am Aarush Bhat studying in class 5th practicing this beautiful philosophy since the last 3 years. This wonderful philosophy has given me courage to accept that I am a boy who is visually impaired with no vision in my both eyes, but having no vision has not stopped my world. Top of FormBottom of FormBefore encountering this practice I was always fearful, shy, and dependent and remained in my own shell. Many fears haunted me such as falling down, riding school bus, eating lunch or going to toilet all alone. Other kids used to bully me because of my impairedness .When the entire class would write with pencil, I would write with a stylus that would hurt my fingers. Even wearing shoes was a big problem for me. Most of the time I used to come back home without wearing shoes or with bleeding toes because of wearing wrong shoes. All these challenges started making me feel  frustrated and I used to cry in front of my mother and questioned her about my limitations .Eventually  I started believing that I am a differently abled Child.

It was this timein2011, when my mother introduced me to this life changing philosophy. When I attended my first cubs meeting, I learnt that the basic of this practice is doing regular gongyo, studying gosho and sensei’s guidance. This seemed a big challenge.  My mother and I prayed for this and she got wisdom to record gongyo in my mobile. I heard it regularly and memorized it. The following Gosho Passage gave me immense strength. I Quote,“Suffer what is there to suffer, enjoy what is there to enjoy. Regard both suffering and joy as facts of life and continue chanting Nam Myo Ho Renge Kyo no matter what happens” Unquote.

Daimoku gave me immense hope and courage. I became regular in my morning and evening gongyo, joyfully participated in all Gakkai meetings. Every day I ask my mother to share one gosho passage with me, I would listen to it, write it in my gosho diary and memorise it   Practicing these gosho passages became my daily life and I started sharing this beautiful philosophy with everyone. The fear started vanishing and I became more confident.  I started focusing on my potential rather than on my limitations. My world outside was still dark but within me there was a bright light of hope and I could clearly see my strengths. Working on laptop and mastering my braille skills made me more independent and faster in my studies. My friends started calling me Technology Master.  Earlier the teachers who found it difficult to teach me now guide and encourage me to participate in all school activities confidently. Now I play Cricket, swim and participate in all games.

I always wanted to become the Prefect of the school for which I have been applying for past three years and being rejected. This hurt me and I started comparingmyself with other students. Sensei’s Guidance from Bodhi tree gave me a new direction, I quote

“Before comparing yourself with others, win the battle with yourself. Strive to be better today than yesterday, and better tomorrow than today.” Unquote.

In2014, I was allowed to apply for becoming a Prefect, but I needed to clear three rounds of interviews. I was anxious but my seniors guided me to chant and pray for my best potential to emerge. The first question that was asked was “What I liked about my school and what needs to be improved in our school.” I replied that I liked the teaching pattern of using smart board in the school and that there should be a dust bin in the play grounds. My teachers responded excellent idea which school has not recognised till date. The next question was if my friend and boys of another class get into a fight, whose side I will take and why. My response was that I will correct the person who is wrong, as a good friend is that who tells us about our weaknesses and help us to improve on those. The Last question was what was my biggest strength and weakness, I replied that my strength is that I am independent and my weakness is I want to become more independent. This answer really surprised my teachers. I am happy to report to my beloved mentor and everyone that I have been selected as a Prefect and my principal announced my name as the future star of the school. My name has also been published in the Hindustan Times as an upcoming young leader.

In an online Group of Parents of visually impaired children, I could encourage one family with Sensei’s Guidance that always presses me to move forward. I quote, “Reality is harsh. It can be cruel and ugly. Yet no matter how much we grieve over our environment and circumstances nothing will change. What is important is not to be defeated, to forge ahead bravely. If we do this, a path willopen Daimoku has boundless power. It is main source of all victories.” I unquote.  I am happy to report not only the boy but the whole group of 30 parents got encouraged with this guidance and started asking me about my mentor and about this Buddhist philosophy. Two parents out of them have started chanting also.

In this new era of worldwide Kosen Rufu I selected Japanese as a language in my school because of my earnest desire to meet my mentor by May 3rd 2015 and interact with him without any translator. I would like to report that I have scored A+ and can communicate well in Japanese. Everyday throws a new Challenge for me but through daimoku I win every day. I used to ask my mother why I was different .Now I know, I am different so that I can show the great power of Nam Myo Ho Renge Kyo.

Still I am dependent on others for my mobility but I am determined never to be defeated by my limitations and expand my capabilities based on faith in this practice. I determine to do home visit, teach gongyo to my fellow members and make my mentor proud.

 

SGI NZ: Neha’s Inspirational Experience

Picture From: https://sokacreation.files.wordpress.com/2014/12/e7122-senseinotthesameperson.jpg

Good evening everyone

President Ikeda says, I quote “The practice of Daishonin Buddhism means living with the unshakeable conviction that the most painful and suffering times, are opportunity for changing our karma, for doing our human revolution and that no matter how difficult the situation… We will ultimately be able to transform them into something positive and benefits for our lives without fail.”

My name is Neha Sayyed, a proud disciple of President Ikeda. I have experience many victories and benefits from this wonderful life transforming philosophy. Today I would like to share a few victories which I have received during my struggle towards the 50th anniversary of SGINZ.

In my 4 years of practice, this experience is very special for me because I fully understood that it is possible to transform the stickiest karma of my life through making a change within my own life, the term we all know as “Human Revolution”.

Two years ago, in 2012, my daughter Safia and I joined my husband in Auckland. It was a great family reunion for us. However, as some of you may have experienced living in Auckland on a single income is really tough. Although my husband works for a reputable firm it was impossible for us to have any savings. I began to seek employment to help ease the financial burden. My profession in India was a software engineer but I left the workforce for 2 years to settle in my marriage life. Although I had attended numerous job interviews, I was always rejected at the final round. This has impacted on my self-confidence and I began to believe that I am good for nothing. I was in a state of loss, at the cross road because I did not know what to do. Spending extra money on studies so that I can change my career was not an option. My negative attitude started to erode my relationship with my husband. Realising that this is heading nowhere, I took up the courage to transform my own situation and to establish a harmonious family. I got full support from my husband and on the significant day of Nov 18, 2013 I enshrined the Gohonzon. On that day, I was determined that I will make financial contribution from my own salary.

Mystically my life started to move in the right direction. I could see conspicuous and inconspicuous changes, like my relationship with my husband become harmonious, our permanent resident applications was approved in just 18 days from lodgement date much to the amazement of our immigration consultant. I also developed more self-confidence but despite all these positive changes my job karma remains unchanged.

I did not give up but continued to chant more vigorous daimoku. One day while chanting to the Gohonzon I realised that I was begging to the Gohonzon to get me a job, I see the Gohonzon outside myself. Deep inside my heart, I was convinced already that I will not get the job. I also realised that I do not appreciate what I already have; instead my focus is on what I don’t have. Again I seek sensei guidance and embraced this quote “Never seek the Gohonzon outside yourself. The Gohonzon exists only within the common mortal flesh of us ordinary people who embrace the Lotus Sutra and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.” I reassessed my human revolution, checked my gongyo and daimoku and also resolved again to fight for a break through. Fearlessly, I wrote down that I will get that job, the job that will bring out the best in me. From then on, while chanting I started to listen to the Myoho of my daimoku and also stopped strategizing. I chanted for wisdom and courage to recognise any opportunity.

I came to know from the WD leader that there is Level 1 exam. I took this as an opportunity to deepen my study and to learn the basics again. I enjoyed attending the study session and also volunteered to prepare and present some topics. Study deepens my faith. Little did I know that the experience gained from the study preparation and presentation has led to my next job opportunity? Two week after the study presentation I received a call from my WD leader about a teaching job opening. It was teaching business subject to International students. As I am an IT graduate I have no business studies background. I took up the challenge as I wanted to win through faith. I chanted to the Gohonzon for the wisdom and that if this is the best job for me, I must get this opportunity no matter what. I prepared well for the interview. I arrived at the college on the interview day armed with full confidence but the Principal did not interview me…. Instead he sent me straight to the classroom; he did not even check my CV and documents. I was asked to email the documents to Human Resource. I was very happy for getting the first job and it seemed to have expiated my job karma. I gave my 100% to the job but the happiness was short lived as 5 weeks later the Principal told me that I could not continue with them because I do not have a business degree. But he was impressed with my sincerity and work attitude and had offered me to use him as my referee. I trust this short term employment opened a new path for me. Although the job did not last for long but I appreciated the opportunity and accepted it as my prayers being answered.

This time around I had a huge change in attitude. It was no longer the ‘why always me attitude’. Armed with the same fighting spirit I wrote down specific goals towards Nov 18. I chanted for actual proof so that I can encourage my family. My 7 goals were

1. get a job that can contribute to kosen rufu
2. Find a place where I can open my home for SGI meetings
3. Subscribe to the Focus magazine so that I can continue to get inspiration from sensei’s writings
4. Able to do financial contribution in November from my own salary
5. Pass Level 1 exam
6. Daily chanting target of 1 hour
7. Encourage other women members and that everyone must have victories

During these challenging time, I was constantly encouraged by Nichiren Daishonin’s words, I quote “There is nowhere throughout the worlds of the ten directions that the sound of our voices chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo do not reach.” Keeping this quote in mind I started chanting to attract new opportunities from all directions. I set off to submit my CV to the colleges along Queen Street. On 21st September I sat for the Level 1 exam, the next day I received a call from the Principal of a college. At the end of the phone conversation she offered me a job and guess what, my first day of work was on Nov 18th. I am proud to say that all my goals mentioned earlier were achieved. Most importantly, the biggest achievement is my positive attitude towards life.

The lines that assured me that making Nicherin Daishonin’s Buddhism as the platform of my life, I can WIN every single day with the power of my daimoku, “The power of Gohonzon is beyond the comprehension of our mind that is why we call it Mystic. Our challenge is to dream results as big as the Gohonzon which has no limit. With this attitude in faith, you can tap infinite power of joy, gratitude and victory.”

So today I reaffirm my faith in the Gohonzon and the power of my daimoku, basing my life on the platform of Nicherin Daishonin’s philosophy.

Thank you sensei, and thank you all SGI members.

 

“Winter Always Turns to Spring”

Experience by Sailesh Singh 

Good morning. Today I’m sharing an experience on how I overcame a financial challenge through this practice. I was born in Fiji and came to New Zealand as a student 26 years ago. I started my first job in the IT industry here in New Zealand in 1991 and stayed with the same company, climbing up the ranks for 17 years, reaching a senior position and earning a six figure income. Then one fine day, 5 years ago, I decided to chuck it all in and start a business in India.

To cut a long story short, 5 years later I found myself in debt of $60,000. I had gone from being debt free to having a mortgage on my home. However, not all was lost in India. During my time there I had made many good friends and one of these good friends introduced me to Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism.

I returned to New Zealand late last year with a major battle on my hands on how I was going to clear my debt. Going into business at this stage hadn’t worked for me and I had to look at other options.

Since I started chanting Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, my practice and study has been consistent. I have never missed a single day of Gongyo & Daimoku, have always attended SGI meetings and make a point of studying something on Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism every day. As soon as I arrived back home, I connected with SGINZ and a month later, I received my membership and my Gohonzon. My daily practice continued and I started to engage myself in SGI activities along with attending all the SGI meetings that were available, which included our monthly District Discussion meeting, the Gosho Study meeting, the Men’s Division meeting and the World Peace Chanting meeting. I also caught up with friends that I hadn’t met in a few years and discussed Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism with them and handed them some material or books to read and invited them to our World Peace Chanting meetings.

However, during this time I was still concerned about clearing my debt and chanted to find a way to do this. After exploring a couple of other options, I decided that since my area of expertise was in IT, I had no other option but to get back into this industry. However, being out of IT for 5 years is a very long time because the industry changes so fast. I wasn’t confident of getting back in…I would have to renew my qualifications and get up to play with the current technologies in the industry. I also worked out that if I was going to get a job paying me what I was earning 5 years ago, it could take me up to a year to clear my debt. And since I had been out of the industry for so long, I would have to start at a lower level than what I was previously doing. I was fine with this, as long as it would help me on my way to clearing my debt. I would chant every day, lookup jobs on IT recruitment sites but could not find anything that I felt confident doing so did not send in any applications. This carried on for 5 months. Then one morning, as if mystically, a guidance message popped up in front of me. This guidance was from SGI President Daisaku Ikeda. President Ikeda says “Buddhism is action. One meaning of Kyo in Nam Myoho Renge Kyo is action. Without action, we cannot say that we are practicing Nam Myoho Renge Kyo; it would merely remain a concept. Only through action are we able to truly gain the great benefit of the Mystic Law.” I realised that although I was praying earnestly I wasn’t taking any sincere action to accompany my prayers! SGI members are encouraged to view prayer as fully integrated with the actions and behaviour of daily life. Prayer only becomes genuine prayer when it is acted upon.

So that day I decided to meet with a colleague of mine who was still working with the company I had worked for previously and had now progressed to managing the team I worked in. Over coffee, I told him that I was looking for work but was not confident that I could work at my previous level and would be happy with a lower-paying contracting role if the company needed any resources for projects. A few days later, I was invited for a phone interview with a project team in Wellington. I talked to my colleague about the position and it was the role of a Senior IT Consultant…the same role I held 5 years ago. I wasn’t ready for this…it wasn’t what I had asked for! And to add to my dilemma, the work that was being proposed to me was “Design Remediation.” What this meant is that some IT solutions had been designed for a client, and not just any client, it was a high-profile Government client, and these solutions had been rejected. The project had taken onboard a couple of senior consultants 6 months ago and were looking for another one to complete this work. My first concern was that I was not ready to go back to the same level I was working at 5 years ago and then I was being asked to fix solutions that weren’t approved by the client. My immediate thought was “I cannot do this!”

The phone interview was held from Wellington with the Project Manager and the Solutions Architect on the project. The architect was someone I had worked with previously and we knew each other well. Reflecting on this interview later, it was probably one of the funniest interviews I’ve ever seen. During the whole interview, as I was being told what the role required, I was saying to them “I cannot do this.” And every time I said this, they would come back with “We have worked with you before and we know you can do this”. And then I would respond with something like “That was 5 years ago…things have changed so much”. This went on for a while and I think they got frustrated with me and the interview came to an end. I was told that they would really like to have me on board with this project and that I should take a day to think about this and get back to them.

After the interview I sat down to chant in front of the Gohonzon. The thoughts that were running through my mind were “Why am I being put into a situation that I don’t want! I’m not happy with this! What I’ve been praying for isn’t being answered!” By the time I had finished chanting, there was an email from the project manager telling me what remuneration they were offering me for the role. I took one look at the amount and my first reaction was “These guys are crazy! Have they not listened to anything I told them about lacking experience for the past 5 years and not having the confidence to start at such a level again?” The package being offered was much more than I was getting paid 5 years ago and beyond what I thought I could earn right now. These guys were treating me like I had never left the industry! I went straight back to the Gohonzon and started chanting again. This time thoughts were centred on “What is happening here, why are they offering me such a good package, what should I do? What I realised during chanting this time was that my prayer was actually being answered! Although in my mind, I had been praying for a lower level job to get started, what my heart actually desired was to clear my debt as quickly as possible.

However, I still wasn’t confident that I could handle this role and was planning on rejecting it the following day. That night I attended our SGI Men’s Division meeting. At the meeting I discussed with my friends in faith that I was offered this job which was paying good money but the work was not easy and I was afraid that I couldn’t do it. Everyone at the meeting was encouraging me that I should take the job but one thing that one of my friends’, Desmond, said really struck a chord with me. He said “What are you afraid of? You have the Gohonzon!” The very next morning, I responded to the project manager that I was willing to take the job. I was flown down to Wellington a week later and signed a 3 month contract with the company. I spent a week in Wellington getting to know the people I was going to work with and the work I was going to be doing. The more I got to know about the project, the more questions I was asking in my head on how I was going to handle this. I then set new determinations and prayers to win at work. Every morning, I would chant to win at work today and every evening I would chant for appreciation for winning at work that day. Not every day was a win. Some days I really struggled and did not know what I was doing. However, the very next morning, I would set a fresh determination to win again. This work was a huge challenge for me. I was trying to deliver solutions for the client while I was learning new technologies on the fly. This went on for 2 months and I was struggling a lot with the work. In the 3^rd month, things started to change and I was feeling a bit more comfortable. The first results I saw were the conspicuous (the visible or material) benefits we get from this practice. The first design that I had worked on and submitted to the client was approved and shortly after the second design was also approved. By the end of the third month, my contract was extended and I was given a more work on the project. Into the 4^th month, the debt that I had previously anticipated would take me a year to clear was completely paid off! On an inconspicuous level, the benefits were even greater. I discovered that all fear I had about getting back into the IT industry had melted away in the power of my Daimoku. My confidence had increased and I had transformed from the “I cannot do this” way of thinking into “I can do this, I will do this, and I am doing this!” Practicing Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism enables us to believe in ourselves, it enables us to tap into our highest potential. The amount of growth I have experienced in the past few months have been tremendous and this is exactly what I needed. And the biggest benefit I received over these months is that I found myself transition from simply having FAITH in the Gohonzon to having total BELIEF in the Gohonzon to having complete TRUST in the Gohonzon! I now trust the Gohonzon enough to know that everything that is happening in my life is for my own good and for the greater good of people that I’m connected with or yet to connect with.

I’m now being offered more work by this company and I’m looking forward to taking up new challenges as I work myself back into the IT industry. Looking back at when I was first offered this job and reflecting on the thoughts I was having around “this is not what I want”…5 months into the job, I can now say that this is exactly what I wanted and more importantly, exactly what I needed. I may not have known this at the time, but the Gohonzon knew this and answered my prayer beyond the limitations I had in my mind. To all of you that are feeling that some of your prayers aren’t being answered as you would want, I would like to say “continue exerting yourselves in faith, practice, study, fresh determinations, SGI activities and action. If what you are praying for isn’t being answered yet, then you can be assured that something bigger and better is coming your way. The Power of the Gohonzon is beyond the comprehension of our minds and what you need to do is get past the limitations of your mind and turn over your heart’s desire with unlimited trust to the Gohonzon”!

Nichiren Daishonin says “Those who believe in the Lotus Sutra are as if in winter, but winter always turns to spring. Never, from ancient times on, has anyone heard or seen of winter turning back to autumn. With the arrival of spring here in New Zealand this week, not only has our winter here literally turned into spring but my winter has also turned into spring. 

In conclusion, I would like to quote the words of the infamous Henry Ford “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t–you’re right.”And to build further on that I would like to say…”If you think you can, you can. If you think you can’t, chant Nam Myoho Renge Kyo!”

My name is Sailesh and I’m winning because I practice Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism!

Thank You!

An Indian Experience

 

This experience is written by Radhika Kapoor

Source: http://www.gakkaionline.net/experiences/MailIndian.html

This is the experience of Radhika and Shivan Goel, circulated by Puja from Chennai, India

Picture From: https://sokacreation.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/a3dac-ikedameme.jpeg

“As long as there people suffering, as long as there are people who are miserable, the Buddha continues to fight. Members of the SGI cast aside fatigue, day in and day out, exerting themselves for the sake of one person after another. “

I saw these sentiments of President Ikeda come alive these last two months.

I knew a woman who desperately needed to start chanting. Her name is Bindya Goel. Mystically, she attended her first SGI meeting only three days before her life was thrown upside down.

An SGI member, Anchal Kashyap, was at Bindya’s house to help her learn to chant, when a loud scream came from the other room. Bindya’s son Shiven was on the floor of the kitchen, with a pencil that had pierced his brain. Bindya became completely hysterical and with Anchal’s help, they rushed the child to the hospital. The hospital scan showed that it was a new fully-sharpened pencil that had pierced this five-year-old boy’s brain from one end to the other. Shiven was having trouble breathing and was put on a ventilator. He was then rushed to Apollo Hospital.

The doctors at Apollo were stunned. They knew they needed to operate at once, but never before had they seen, heard, or performed a surgery like this. It was the largest foreign object they had ever seen inside the human brain. The surgery would be extremely life threatening – when they took the pencil out, there would most certainly be bleeding which could cause loss of life or huge damage to the brain.

All the members of my chapter of SGI were immediately informed. We needed to chant non-stop throughout the night for the success of the surgery and for Shiven to survive. Nichiren Daishonin says: “When Bodhisattva Jogyo emerged from the earth, he leapt forth joyfully.” True to these words, members all over Delhi put aside everything they were doing and started chanting with ferocity for the life of Shiven Goel. Almost all of these members had never seen, heard, or met Shiven or his mother in their lives.

I was in touch with Bindya every minute of that night. I kept telling her: “Chant, Bindya, chant!! Chant throughout the night! Your child’s life depends on how much you exert in faith now. This is not the time to be weak. You have to be like a demon armed with an iron staff – the staff of Nam Myoho Renge Kyo. Wield it to protect your son. Demand the protection of the Buddhist Gods – challenge the Gohonzon! Ask to see actual proof here and now.”

I soon saw the Buddhist Gods swing into action even as the ferocity of our chanting increased. The superintendent of the hospital, whom I knew because my father-in-law had spent a year in the same hospital, kept calling me throughout the surgery from the operation theater itself, reporting how the operation was progressing. We all were chanting accordingly.

Late into the night we were informed that Shiven had survived the surgery. There was no bleeding! The doctors had pulled off a seemingly impossible operation. However, they had no idea if the brain had been poisoned by the lead or what might be the extent of the damage. Since Shiven was right-handed and the pencil had entered from the left side of the brain it was highly possible that the center for his speech, comprehension, and coordination could be damaged permanently. The doctors could not say whether he would get out of the coma, and if he did, what would be the damage.

One thing was certain: our fight was far from over. Shiven became the focus of everyone’s prayers. Members got together and prayed and chanted throughout the following days for Shiven to get out of the coma.

Mrs. Asano, SGI’s WD Chief, who happened to be in Delhi at the time asked to meet with Bindya. We were scheduled to spend only fifteen minutes, but Mrs. Asano spent one full hour explaining the power of Nam Myoho Renge Kyo and the power of a mother’s prayer. Her 100% conviction in the power of the Gohonzon was completely overwhelming. Mrs. Asano ended by saying when Shiven gets well (not if but WHEN), he has to come to Japan and report complete victory to Sensei. Bindya’s tears soon stopped and the lamp of hope lit in her heart.

We started giving ourselves daily targets for prayers for Shiven’s progress. It was a collective prayer of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth. How could it be ignored?

We chanted for Shiven to start moving –in two days, he did.

We chanted that he get off the ventilator – he did it in his first attempt.

We chanted that he open his eyes – he did open them, a tiny bit at first.

We chanted that he respond – he did by moving his hand on command.

We chanted that he become fully conscious – he did only to cry uncontrollably due to pain.

We chanted that the pain would go away and he started smiling a little.

We chanted that he be able to walk – and he ran!

But he did not start speaking for a long time. We were all convinced that Shiven had to chant along with us all one day – soon – very soon …

Miraculously, within 16 days Shiven was allowed to go home, where for the first time he said the word “mama.” He then graduated from words to phrases. I am happy to report that, on Tuesday last, our chapter met to chant daimoku of appreciation. When all the members had left, Shiven came up to me and said “Radhika Masi – Nam Myoho Renge Kyo!” Bindya and I had tears rolling down our faces. The Gosho says: The Lotus Sutra is a great physician who can turn poison into medicine; because it can cure what is thought to be incurable, it is called myo or wonderful.

Shiven has already lived up to his mission in life. He has given us all a chance to reflect on, challenge, and refresh our faith. He has shown us that there is no such thing as “impossible” in front of the Gohonzon. Through the fighting spirit of all the SGI members and his mother, Shiven has shown what it is to be a Bodhisattva of the Earth.

As for the SGI members of New Dehli – they have shown that we common mortals are actually Buddhas, who can find within our lives the compassion to share others’ suffering. We have the courage to pray and to change another’s suffering into great immeasurable happiness – for that person and as an example to all humanity.