Today at noon I start reposting the quotes I’ve selected from the books above. I’ll begin with the book introduction and then follow with a quote from each book every 10 days. As of last count, I have 839 quotes. The 9 am posting from Lecture on the Lotus Sutra will continue until Sept. 10, … Continue reading Quotes Redux
So personally I had a bad day. For the past few services I’ve been trying to learn the basics of using the uchiwa daiko, a traditional fan drum, during the service when everyone is chanting . It’s not really complicated. Pause on the namu and then strike the drum on myo-ho-ren-ge-kyo. Pause on the namu … Continue reading Matsubagayatsu Persecution Service
Sunday was the annual Urabon (Obon) ceremony in which prayers are said by the priest for our ancestors. In a coincidence of sorts, today was also the day I brought in a photo that Ven. Kenjo Igarashi had asked to be framed. As you can see above, it is a much-enlarged copy of the central … Continue reading Chanting for Our Ancestors and Ourselves
Another 500 yojanas anniversary has come and gone. (For those confused, see the 500 yojanas explanation here.) That’s how long it has been since I chose to start chanting a portion of the Lotus Sutra each morning. I use the Nichiren Buddhist Sangha of Greater New England’s Myoho Renge Kyo Romanized as my morning service. … Continue reading 500 Days Divided By 32
Attended Sunday service with four others at Myosho-ji, Wonderful Voice Buddhist Temple in Charlotte, NC. Rev. Ryusho Jeffus had a guest at the temple and I joined three others online. Here’s a minute of Odaimoku. We live in interesting times, especially this availability of “attending” remote events. Ryusho Shonin will be hosting the Second Annual … Continue reading Service Retreat
Attended Sunday services online with Myosho-ji, Wonderful Voice Buddhist Temple, Charlotte, NC. Rev. Ryusho Jeffus has been working on a project where he takes one chapter of the Lotus Sutra each month and creates illustrations and then writes a commentary. I keep a directory of this project here. Following the service, Ryusho Shonin showed off … Continue reading Previous Existences
We believe in Shakamuni (Sakyamuni) Buddha. He is eternal. He lives in this world. He is our Teacher. He is the Saviour of this world. We express our faith by uttering the Daimoku (Sacred Title): Namu Myoho Renge Kyo (We devote ourselves to the Myoho Renge Kyo). The Myoho Renge Kyo represents not only the … Continue reading Nichiren Shu Creed
On April 15, 2016, at 6:10am Eastern time, my wife’s mother died. She had been in hospice care at home for several weeks. The end was not unexpected, but as happens it was still a surprise. This is the first death of a close relative since I became a Nichiren Shu Buddhist. One of the … Continue reading Mother’s Day
Today’s Daily Dharma contains this advice: The thoughts we have are mostly words, and the words are about the things we want. Words can help us make sense of the world around us, especially the words the Buddha uses to teach us. But words can also confuse us when we mistake our expectations for the … Continue reading My Thoughts Exactly
I missed the opening of the Myoshoji service this morning waiting for my computer to restart after it refused to open the GoToMeeting software needed to participate in the service. Learning patience while chanting Odaimoku for 10 minutes. Following the service, Rev. Ryusho Jeffus discussed how each of us can show the Lotus Sutra in … Continue reading Technical Difficulties