Dear Fellow Friends
The year 2016 is just around the corner. We wish you a Happy New Year, to you all.
I am writing you to see how you are enjoying your life now since you paid a visit to our Gokokuji temple in Kamakura and returned home.
As our rev. Enoki announced in front of you that day, I hope you are convinced by now the way you live life has been changing better a little by little as long as you try to keep chanting Nam Myoho Renge-kyo (Daimoku) all the time in your everyday life.
This Daimoku, as you saw, is enshrined in the center of Gohonzon (principal image, object of worship) on the board hanging on the sanctuary, and is guarded with Boddhasatvas and deities or gods around it.
Nam of Nam Myoho Renge-kyo means "devote yourself to" and Myoho Rengekyo means "mystic law of Lotus Sutra (Hokekyo)" which implies the true law of the phenomenon of universe in other words as well.
Hokekyo was expounded and taught to the people by Shakamuni Buddha in his last 8 years during his 50 year teachings before he died at the age of 80. Those words of Myo Horengekyo was deeply embodied in Lotus Sutra from the beginning but no one revealed it and spoke it out in voice.
Nichiren Daishonin who is our Buddha or the first High priest, the greatest saint of our Nichiren-shoshu denomination had widely announced to all the people at last in the first place and claimed in actual voice that all the teachings in such a big volume of Lotus Sutra are dominantly set in and compressed inside the words of Nam Myo Horengekyo.
Now, why we people should carry the strong belief and faith in this Buddhism, and chant Nam Myo Horengekyo is a very clear reason that we have to seek to cut off or demolish the bad causes in the past and the present such as economical problems, personal relations, diseases, family trouble, defect in character, and finally gain the good effects of happy and peaceful life.
In the depths of life, everybody without exception possesses the Buddha’s life which is highly supreme life world.
If you can live having Buddha’s life and wisdom as a driving power, you can take action to solve any sort of adversity or sufferings, and enjoy good fortune in the future life. Therefore, we shall chant Nam Myo Horengekyo in our everyday life in order to gain enlightenment of Buddha and attain Buddhahood in the end.
That is all for today in the meantime
Thank you for your attention
Written by Sadao Kitamura,
Overseas department of Gokokuji temple
