27th May

CHERRY trees blossom beautifully, adorning themselves with colour and fragrance in the spring. Likewise, human beings must allow their lives to blossom, expressing their true potential to the fullest extent. What makes this possible on a most fundamental level is nothing other than a profound sense of mission and responsibility for kosen-rufu.


NOW is the time when you should cultivate strong intellectual ability. It is for this reason that in my speeches I try to discuss things from a wide range of angles. This is a point that I would like to strongly emphasize for the sake of the future of kosen-rufu.


TO take the nonchalant attitude that things will somehow work out all right simply because you are practising faith is an erroneous way of thinking. Faith means earnestly praying and making efforts to find the best solutions to the problems confronting you. The highest wisdom emerges from this ichinen, or determination, to challenge things.


A beautiful sunset colouring the western sky in brilliant hues of pink and crimson is supposed to indicate that there will be clear skies the following day. Similarly, a person whose life glows brilliantly in the final years will go on to a future existence that is bright and sunny. That is why it is so important that we strive to accumulate enduring good fortune and benefit while we are alive.


IT is scaling life’s mountains, crossing life’s valleys and traversing life’s precipitous peaks, ever advancing with integrity and fortitude, that happiness is found. A magnificent palace can only be built when we work unceasingly on its construction day after day with all our might, until it is finally completed. The same is true of life.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

26th May

IN one’s reading as well as in one’s encounters with people, unless you can clearly discern and judge what a fact is and what is true, you will end up on the wrong path. The higher one’s standing in the organisation, the greater his responsibility in this regard.


WE must use our faith to tap the great wisdom and life force within us to brilliantly triumph over difficulties and adversity. Those who can do this are practising Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism correctly. They are, in other words, people who “understand the meaning of all worldly affairs.”


NICHIREN DAISHONIN taught, “Life does not go beyond the moment” (WND, p62). Buddhism focuses on this moment of life. The great life-entity of time without beginning is also contained in this fleeting, transitory life-moment. We cannot postpone life to some vague future date; it is the here and now that counts, upon which all depends.


ALL of us undergo various sufferings in life. No human being is without worries and problems. That is why Buddhism, which teaches that earthly desires are enlightenment, is necessary in our lives. We need to transform our karma. That is what Buddhism is for. Be brave! That is Nichiren Daishonin’s cry to us all.


FAITH in the Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin is sure to be accompanied by obstacles. Remember, it is at such times that you can take a great leap towards your happiness.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

25th May

CORRECTLY discerning what is true and what is false requires strong powers of intelligence. If one lacks intellectual power, one will be unable to see through a lie; he will make mistakes and be misled.


JUST as all things on Earth are illuminated when the sun comes out, those who embrace faith in the Mystic Law are able to wisely discern the truth of events and happenings in society. They are able to manifest actual proof of validity of their faith in their daily lives and in society.


THOSE who have really struggled possess the “flavour” of profound character and humanity. There are those who give up when things are tough and consequently fall into despair. This is comparable to how you will determine your health if you eat too much at a time when your power to digest and assimilate food is weak. Therefore, having a strong life force is important. When our life is strong, we can turn all of our toils into a source of spiritual nourishment.


SOME of you may have family members or relatives who do not understand your faith but there is no need to be anxious about this. This is where your human revolution starts. All you have to do is show, by your example, steadily, little by little, how wonderful Buddhism is.


GONGYO is the basis and foundation of the practice of faith. If one who has practised gongyo regularly up till now should stop doing it, it is – to give a readily understandable example – like switching off an electric current. Even though one has the Gohonzon, which is absolute, without the practice of gongyo, he can gain no benefit.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

24th May

WE live in the realm of human beings. By the very nature of that realm, there are no obstacles in it that we, as human beings, are unable to overcome. What is more, we uphold the great Mystic Law, and because of that, there are no obstacles that we cannot surmount.


WE are people of faith, and faith is the ultimate conviction. Nothing could be sadder or more short-sighted, therefore, then complaining or giving up when we encounter some small obstacles in our path. A Buddhist is a person of wisdom and conviction.


FAITH means infinite hope, and infinite hope resides in the SGI. As long as you have sincere faith, infinite glory, boundless good fortune and endless victory will unfold before you. You will never find yourself at a dead end.


THE swells of kosen-rufu become a thousand waves, and then ten thousand waves. A single dew drop of propagation expands to the size of an ocean. The benefit of the person, who first courageously stands up, increases and shines in like measure. I hope that, with your sight set on the future of kosen-rufu one thousand years hence, each of you will exert yourself as such individual pioneering drops of dew.


WHAT really matters is how deep and pure a condition of life you can establish. The reality of problems and troubles will never disappear. One can either be influenced by them and sink into the great sea of suffering or overcome them and build a mountain of happiness.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

23rd May

WE need to rise into action right where we are, with the determination to do everything we can. That is crucial. True happiness is to be found in steadily and sincerely seeking true humanity and self-realisation in daily life. This is the start of building a great life.


IT is important to have the spirit to study the Gosho, to open up the Gosho. Even if you forget what you have read, something profound will have been engraved in the depths of your life.


TO possess both wisdom and compassion is the heart of our human revolution. If you have wisdom alone and lack compassion, it will be a cold, perverse kind of wisdom. If you have compassion alone and lack wisdom, you would not be able to save others. You are even likely to lead them in the wrong direction. You will also be unable to achieve your own happiness.


IT is by dedicating one’s existence to a great cause that one can truly lead a life of value. We are living based on the Mystic Law, the fundamental Law of life. Moreover, we are advancing towards the unprecedented ideal of kosen-rufu which aims to restore humanity and establish peace and security throughout the world. What way of life could be more respect worthy and exalted?


A magnet and a piece of iron which has not been magnetized differ greatly in their ability to attract other pieces of iron or steel. In a similar way, even among those who embrace faith in the Gohonzon, the benefit one receives will differ according to the strength of one’s faith.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

22nd May

LET us always make certain to remember, respect and protect the people who are striving with diligence and perseverance, modestly and inconspicuously, in their communities. My deepest wish is to visit these people, bow in respect to them and sincerely thank them for their admirable efforts.


MANY things happen in life. There are joyous days and times of suffering. Sometimes unpleasant things occur. But that is what makes life so interesting. The dramas we encounter are part and parcel of being human. If we experience no change or drama in our lives, if nothing unexpected ever happen, we would merely be like automations, our lives unbearably monotonous and dull.


JOY is not simply personal, egoistic happiness. Nor is it making others happy while sacrificing yourself or your own happiness. You and others delighting together, you and others becoming happy together – this is the Mystic Law and the wondrous thing about our realm of kosen-rufu.


EVERYTHING comes down to the extent to which you train and polish yourself. If, contend with summary knowledge and strategies, one avoids the efforts that building a foundation entails, you will later experience loss. Furthermore, the principle of cause and effect of the Mystic Law is very strict. Unless you polish yourself through earnest faith, you will definitely not be able to realize a life of indestructible happiness and victory.


ALWAYS bear in mind that a shining glory awaits when you are able to break through the walls which may seem to confine you.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

21st May

OUR community is important. Those who work hard in their communities, no matter how tough the challenge, are champions. We can become Buddhas right where we are now. It is a big mistake to think of the large cities as somehow superior to the countryside. I firmly believe that those who triumph in their own community are the true and most human, victors in life.


IT is important for you not to be defeated by the environment. You must not lose faith in yourself. Each of you has a mission in this lifetime that only you can fulfill. Each of you has a life that only you can live and create something of value. Whatever else you may doubt, please do not doubt this.


NO matter how healthy, intelligent or affluent we may be, if our minds are weak, then our happiness will also be frail and brittle. Our mind of faith, however, enables us to bring out the full potential in all things and situations, so it is crucial that we thoroughly strive to forge our mind of faith.


TOTAL commitment is the key to victory. No matter what happens, we must not be daunted; we must not lose, but must ever continue to challenge ourselves and our circumstances. This is what contributes true proof of our following a correct path in life. I hope that you will strongly maintain this attitude of thorough-going belief.


NO obstacles can stand for long when we act with patience and courage and when we pray to the Gohonzon in the spirit of itai doshin (many in body, one in mind). The important point for us is to have absolute conviction in this.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

20th May

WHETHER in suffering or in joy, even in the face of an insurmountable deadlock, if one continues to chant daimoku wholeheartedly, then tremendous hope will well up from within.


IN any undertaking, one cannot win if he has a half-hearted attitude. If he does, though for a while it might seem that he can get along satisfactorily, in the end he will definitely suffer destruction and defeat. This is a fact of life. How much more so this is the case in our quest to scale the treacherous peak of kosen-rufu! If our efforts are half-hearted, we will not be able to achieve our lofty goal, nor, individually, can we attain Buddhahood.


UNLESS we are strong, we cannot win in life. Nor can we accomplish kosen-rufu. The essence of our human revolution is to become as strong a human being as possible.


THERE are many people who demonstrate admirable integrity and character. It is a mistake to judge people merely on the basis of whether or not they practice Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism. Since there are so many wonderful people who are non-members, it simply means that those of us who are members should strive to develop our humanity and character all the more.


EMBODYING the spirit of Nichiren Daishonin’s writings, we of the SGI have called on thinking people throughout the world to unite and have opened an incomparable path of peace, culture and education. We have brought people together. We have brought the world together. And we have brought diverse cultures together.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

19th May

NAM-MYOHO-RENGE-KYO is the fundamental law that purifies every aspect of one’s life. It is like an excellent medicine. Just as a single match can ignite a fire that spreads limitlessly through a plain of grass, when one does gongyo and chants daimoku before the Gohonzon, even the deeply entrenched karmic causes of past slander will be expelled before the “great wind” of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and the “flame” of Myoho.


THERE is no resting in the practice of faith. Until you arrive at the land of eternal truth, that is, attain Buddhahood in this lifetime, you must unremittingly advance in the way of faith. Though you may be heartlessly criticized and may be assailed by storms of destiny, you must continue to advance step by step, never allowing yourself to be defeated.


ONE of the Buddha’s titles is Nonin, “He who can forbear”. To courageously endure, persevere and overcome all difficulties – the Buddha is the ultimate embodiment of the virtue of forbearance. The power of faith gives us the strength to weather and survive any storm. Being able to persevere is the essence of a Buddha.


IF we keep our efforts even when the going is tough, we will earn respect. The important thing is to persevere in the path you have chosen, irrespective of how difficult circumstances may become or how others around you may change. Those who can do this will emerge as champions and victors in life. They will win in the end. Such people also make true friends.


THE SGI is an organization of truth and sincerity. As such, our efforts are guaranteed to bear fruit, without fail. On the other hand, petty, unscrupulous people who try to engineer the downfall of those working for truth and justice are bound to suffer ruin in the end. The Chinese philosopher, Hsun-Tzu said, “One who scorns the just and vilifies the sincere may wish to escape ruin but most certainly cannot.” These are the insightful words of one of the world’s great thinkers.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.

18th May

BECAUSE we are flesh and blood, we naturally get tired or fall ill from time to time. However, we must not allow our spirit to be continuously dark or heavy on that account. I hope that, through your participation in the vast world of faith that opens a solution to such sufferings, you will transform all situations for the better.


THE importance of having a refined way of expression hold true for our organisation and our activities in the community as well. I hope that leaders, in particular, will be considerate in their manner of addressing fellow members. The way you speak is indicative of the depth of your faith, character and culture. Insensitive and irresponsible language hurt not only others, but the person himself, as a believer, a leader and member of society.


AS long as you burn with faith, have self-confidence and hope, you will be young and full of energy. You will be able to say that you have truly lived, been a true victor, and winner of life’s medal of honour. This is the essence of life, of faith, and of Buddhism.


EDISON invented things that were of practical benefit to humanity. He was clear about his purpose. He was not simply interested in personal acclaim or riches. And he pursued his endeavours with a “never give up” spirit. We, likewise, are living with a conviction, determined never to give up in our efforts to help even a single person become happy. We are working for the noblest of all causes, kosen-rufu.


KOSEN-RUFU is the infinitely noble and worthy challenge of attempting to elevate the human spirit to the loftiest heights. No life could be greater than one dedicated to this glorious and everlasting cause. Of course, we all experience various problems and difficulties in our daily existence, but the important thing is to achieve exhilarating victory in each challenge before us, one at a time, day by day.

NOTE: Visit http://nichirendaishoningosho.blogspot.com/ for Nichiren Daishonin's gosho, Letter to the Brothers.