August 29, 2014
davidhare3000
Buddhahood, Buddhism, Buddhist book, Depression, Fundamental Darkness, Happiness, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren, SGI
Bodhisattva Blues, Eddy Canfor-Dumas, Geoff & Me, Happiness, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren Buddhism, The Buddha
To write a book about the most profound philosophy on the planet is difficult. To write a novel based on Nichiren Buddhism is even harder. But Eddy Canfor-Dumas achieved this in 2005 with The Buddha, Geoff and Me, and has done it again with Bodhisattva Blues the delightful and much anticipated sequel to ‘Geoff’. One man’s search for meaning in a world of confusion and uncertainty, ‘BB’ is a thoroughly absorbing read, not least because when we catch up with our hero Ed, he has long since abandoned his Buddhist practice and is stuck in a rut – no career, no love life and no cash.
Plunged unwittingly into a world of street crime and dodgy property deals, Ed finds himself dusting down his beads and reluctantly picking up his Nichiren Buddhist practice to guide him through a series of dramas, dilemmas and big decisions.

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August 15, 2014
davidhare3000
Buddhahood, Depression, Happiness, Life, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren
Alastair Campbell, Buddhism, depression, hope, joy, mental health, Robin Williams
The death this week of Robin Williams has put depression back in the headlines. The media coverage is welcome because by talking openly about mental health challenges we can create some good from a desperately tragic suicide. The rhetoric around a previously taboo topic has been changing rapidly in recent years, thanks in part to the courageous candour of celebrities such as Stephen Fry, Gwyneth Paltrow, Alastair Campbell, Ruby Wax and of course, Robin Williams himself.
As a result, the ‘pull yourself together’ school of encouragement has mostly disappeared into the shadows, along with the ‘stiff upper lip’ brigade. Even the ‘what did he have to be depressed about?’ gang have been mercifully quiet. This more open and enlightened mindset now views depression as a recognised illness, which, like cancer, diabetes or high blood pressure, needs proper treatment.
But as I chant about Robin Williams’ suicide, I find myself wondering if ‘illness’ is always the most useful way to look at clinical depression. I ask myself whether Nichiren Buddhism, with its rich insights into the workings of the human mind, can bring a different perspective to the topic. And I think the answers are No and Yes. Let me explain…
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July 27, 2014
davidhare3000
Buddhahood, Buddhism, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren, SGI
Buddhism, Happiness, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren Buddhist blog, SGI
I think we have our biggest breakthroughs when we stop trying to solve our problems with our heads and simply TRUST our daimoku (reciting Nam Myoho Renge Kyo). Then we truly fuse with the Gohonzon. We realise we ARE Nam Myoho Renge Kyo. We see that we are One with the Law. Almost as if, when we chant, we are simply allowing the rhythm of the Universe to express itself through us. Do you have experiences of chanting in this way and do you notice the difference when you do?
Dx

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July 11, 2014
davidhare3000
arrogance, Buddhahood, Buddhism, Compassion, Gratitude, LOVE, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, SGI
Buddhism, chanting to change others, conflict resolution, Daisaku Ikeda, Happiness, marriage problems, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, SGI
One of the questions I get most often from readers is this: Should I chant to change other people? The short and simple answer is ‘No. Change your own karma first.’ But before exploring this in more detail, here are the kinds of comments people send me:
Q: When you know that the other person is wrong and ill-treating you, why should I change? Shouldn’t they change instead?
Q: I am chanting for my husband to stop being so lazy. When will he?
Q: I want my daughter to change for the better so that she respects me and treats me with equality in front of my in-laws. How do I chant about this? 
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May 4, 2014
davidhare3000
Buddhahood, Buddhism, Buddhist book, Happiness, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren, SGI, Soka Gakkai
book review, Clark Strand, Daisaku Ikeda, Nichiren Buddhism, SGI, Waking the Buddha
As a member of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) Buddhist movement since 1985, it’s always exciting when a new book about SGI is written by a distinguished scholar outside my faith. That’s why I couldn’t wait to get my hands on Waking the Buddha by Clark Strand, a former Zen monk and a contributing editor to Tricycle, the world’s most famous Buddhist magazine.
![Waking Buddha book [2]](https://thankingthespoon.files.wordpress.com/2014/05/waking-buddha-book-2.jpg?w=224&h=300)
Strand is one of a growing band of eminent, independent experts intrigued by SGI’s rapid growth and by its social and racial diversity. Yet this book is much more than just a sociological or academic study. What draws you in and moves you most is not so much the author’s expertise, but his humanity and his concern for the planet. What impressed me was not just the rigour of his intellectual enquiry, but the warmth of his seeking spirit, as he sets out to discover why SGI has become more successful than any other school of Buddhism in the contemporary world. These are the questions he asks:
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March 1, 2014
davidhare3000
Buddhahood, Buddhism, Buddhist book, Happiness, JOY, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren, SGI
Buddha in me Buddha in you, Buddhism, Daisaku Ikeda, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren, SGI
The answer to this question, when people first start chanting the mantra Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, is, very often, ‘not a lot’ or maybe even ‘nothing’. Because the truth is, you don’t need to adopt any new beliefs or lifestyle to give Nichiren Buddhism a go. Most people come to the practice looking to change a situation in their life and are encouraged to give try it out for 100 days or so and see what happens.

Buddha
Others stumble across Buddhism because they want to make the world a more joyful, peaceful and fairer place, but don’t quite know where to start… Others (like me) start chanting to prove that it does not work… Incidentally I don’t think many people start chanting just because of a book or a blog like this, it nearly always begins from a heart to heart connection with someone they trust who’s already practising Buddhism.
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January 10, 2014
davidhare3000
Buddhahood, Happiness, hope, Life, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren, SGI, Soka Gakkai
cast off transient & reveal true, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, Nichiren, Nichiren Buddhist blog, SGI, Tatsunokuchi
More than 10 years ago I started writing this poem about Faith, Human Revolution, the Mentor-Disciple spirit and relative and absolute happiness. The picture shows Nichiren Daishonin in 1271 before an unsuccessful attempt by government soldiers to decapitate him. Just as the axe was about to fall, a luminous object, thought to be a comet, shot across the sky, brightly illuminating the beach at Tatsunokuchi. Terrified, the soldiers called off the execution. Nichiren taught that this event was actual proof of the Buddhist principle of casting off our transient identity and revealing the true nature of our lives – Buddhahood. Dx
THE BUDDHA’S INVITATION
Will you come to eternity’s tentative edge
then teach the world of its unspoken power?
Will you plunge filthy waters with only your faith
then fly to the heavens on hope’s thinnest breath?
Will you squeeze yourself through to the middle of you
yet still keep a space for those who might hate you?
Will you sit with the scream at the core of your soul
and then share your song with those who might love you?

Nichiren survives attempted execution
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