Hi Everybody,
Number 50 already! How time flies when your enjoying yourself! But it has gone quickly, for me anyway, if not for you, and 50 seems to be about the half way point in the book. It would be really great for me if at this half way stage anybody who is listening to this out there were to do me the hugest favour of introducing one other person, so in a trice we would double the circulation! Do you think it's possible? I would be hugely grateful. Anyway, today's sub heading is what do we chant for.
' That's ann important question isn't it? We are chanting essentially to tap into this potential, this resource within ourselves, that helps us to live with a higher life state more of the time. So, more optimism, more hope, more courage, more resilience, whatever the turbulence in our lives or whatever circumstance we happen to be living through. That is the dominant underlying thought. But the plain fact is, as we've said so often, Buddhism is daily life, so people chant for any goal they wish to achieve in their lives, or in the lives of those around them. People don't often start chanting because they want to save the planet so to speak, although they may of course. They are much more likely to start chanting for reasons that are much closer to home, much more personal; for courage in the face of serious nillness for example, ( as I did with my cancer ) or for a more satisfying or rewarding job, or to heal a rift in a relationship, or just to have a great day. Many people chant for these and other utterly normal worldly desires every day of the week. They are very much part of our ordinary humanity, and real enough, and therefore part and parcel our Buddhist practice.
I have no doubt whatsoeverthat my Buddhist practice brings immense value into every area of my life on a daily basis. It enriches and strengthens my marriage for example in ways that are too numerous to mention. No marriage is without tension and conflict, an din that sense Buddhism is a great marital aid! Or a great partnership aid perhaps, whichever is appropriate. Why? Because arguments between people who share intimately in each other's lives can be the most destructive, because both parties know so well the other's vulnerabilities. The point is that the daily practice delivers into the hands of both parties, a most powerful mechanism, not simply for slicing through those arguments rapidly, but for healing the wounds and for creating genuine learning out of the situation. I speak only from experience!.
What about material things?
Chanting to achieve things in our life, including material things, runs directly counter of course to a widely-held perception of Buddhism, that it is esentially about renunciation, about giving up worldly things, as a necessary step along the road to achieving a higher spiritual state. Nichiren Buddhism however teaches that the mere act of renunciation of itself brings no benefits to our lives. How can it? It argues on the contrary that desire is basic to all human life, and that as long as there is life, there will be the instinctive desire in then hearts of men and women to make the very most of that life; to live and to grow and to love and to have.
Nichiren saw with great clarity that little was to be gained from people expending huge amounts of thought and time and energy trying to extinguish a force that lies right at the core of our lives. On the contrary a great deal more is to be achieved by accepting it as an essential part of everyone's humanity and therefore harnessing it, as a powerful engine for individual growth. And indeed there are countless stories to be told of people who have started chanting driven largely by what they saw as their personal needs, who now look back and smile at those somewhat shallow beginnings, in the knowledge of just how profoundly their lives and their concerns and values have changed towards the creation of value, not just in their own lives, but taking in the well-being of family and friends and work colleagues. Perhaps I may mention purely en passant, that one of the biggest changes in my own life has been the awareness of a profound sense of compassion for everyone I encounter, and it has come completely unconsciously if I may put it that way. It's just there, and it constantly takes me by surprise.
But whatever we may be seeking for our own lives at any particular point in time, it's important to hang onto the vision, the goal. And the ultimate goal of Nichiren Buddhism is a world made up of people and communities at every level, that live in peace one with another, and with respect for one another. We chant for it, and we work for it, on a daily basis. '
That's enough for one swallow isn't it? So hope to see you next time. And it would be great if you could do that passing the blog onto another person trick.
Best wishes,
William
The Case for Buddhism is available as abook from Amazon and as a download from Kindle.
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