I express my sincere
congratulations to you on this occasion of the 15th General
Meeting of the Myoshin-ji Chapter of the Hokkeko. I
am certain that the Daishonin would be truly pleased to see so many of you in
attendance today, on this significant occasion marking the ceremony to
commemorate the establishment of True Buddhism. We have just heard the powerful
determinations of five individuals. As the Chief Priest, I am truly heartened
by them and am convinced of the further development of Myoshin-ji
Chapter. I extend my sincere
appreciation to you. I ask each and every one of you present here today to
uphold a solid determination and objective to achieve the kosenrufu of True Buddhism and
to advance forth in your faith and practice, based on the directions of our
High Priest. I have also created a prayer sheet
for the “Achievement of Our Shakubuku
Objectives.” After much thought about how I, as a priest, could promote your shakubuku efforts, I decided to create
this prayer sheet. The sheet is designed to be cut in half. The same
information is entered on both the top and bottom halves. One half remains at
On the 28th day of the
4th month of the 5th year of Kencho
(1253), 753 years ago, Nichiren Daishonin, the True Buddha of the Latter Day
of the Law, chanted the daimoku – Nam-myoho-renge-kyo – for the first time. Thereafter,
many people came to uphold True Buddhism, as a result of the Daishonin’s shakubuku
efforts. As a matter of course, propagating True Buddhism was not an easy
feat. We are all aware that the Daishonin encountered numerous persecutions
and slanders, as he preceded forth in his shakubuku
efforts. Indeed, shakubuku is not
an easy practice; however, when we accomplish shakubuku, we will appropriately receive immeasurable benefits.
There is no better practice than to enable people to achieve happiness. This
means that we will receive commensurate benefits for such practice. The
teachings of Nichiren Shoshu are not characterized by small-minded,
restrictive notions such as those that promote happiness and salvation only
for oneself. How then, can we accomplish shakubuku? There is a Nichiren Shoshu publication
titled “To Achieve Shakubuku” (Shakubuku joju
no tame ni).
It contains 15 suggestions for the successful achievement of shakubuku. 1.
Share this
Buddhism with 10 individuals. You will not be able to perform shakubuku without first conversing
with them. 2.
Make a firm
commitment to come to the temple. If you understand the significance of
performing shakubuku but are
reticent about sharing this Buddhism with others, you should form a solid
karmic bond with the Gohonzon at the temple by chant daimoku. If you live in the
outlying areas, you should attend as many meetings as possible. 3.
Make a firm
commitment to chant daimoku.
Shakubuku cannot be accomplished
without chanting daimoku. 4.
Be able to
discern obstacles. When you try to perform shakubuku, obstacles will inevitably appear, since they
essentially function to prevent you from attaining Buddhahood. When you are
able to detect the true nature of these obstacles and to overcome them
through chanting daimoku,
you will advance forth, without fail, in a positive direction. 5.
Telephone
conversations. If you live a hectic lifestyle and you cannot find time to
share this Buddhism with others in person, you may wish to keep in touch with
relatives and friends in distant areas through friendly phone conversations.
If you keep in touch with people, you may find ideal opportunities to share
this Buddhism with them. 6.
Ask for
support. After you have initiated shakubuku
efforts with someone, you may want to enlist the help of a priest or a fellow
believer. Those whose help you have requested may be able to clearly address
issues which you found difficult to explain and convince that individual to
embrace True Buddhism. 7.
Do not shy
away from difficult individuals. Rather than seeking out only those who seem
to be receptive to your shakubuku
efforts, you should chant daimoku and courageously share this Buddhism with those
who may seem relatively impervious. 8.
You must
initiate your shakubuku efforts
today. No one who commits to starting something tomorrow is ever successful.
When you make a decision, act today. 9.
Immediate
action. An essential characteristic of a person who is able to perform tasks
smoothly is that he puts his thoughts into immediate action. This is also
true in performing shakubuku. 10.
It may be helpful
to keep a personal notation of those with whom you have shared Buddhism. A
simple list of the names and contact information of such people may help to
remind you of those you have not spoken to in a while. 11.
Listen
carefully to what a person says. If you pay attention to an individual, he
will, in turn, listen to you sincerely. You must be careful not to overwhelm a
person by placing him in a situation in which a group of people talk
unilaterally to him. You must gently ask questions and engage him in
conversation. 12.
You must
confidently tell people that the Gohonzon is wonderful and that
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is wonderful. You must clearly verbalize your assertions
and try to touch the essential core of their lives. 13.
You must
denounce slander. An important aspect of performing shakubuku is to inform people that the source of unhappiness lies
in the proliferation of erroneous teachings. Truth cannot be manifested if
slander is not eliminated. 14.
You must make
certain that the person you are addressing understands that you sincerely
want him to live a life of true happiness. Performing shakubuku is never a forum for arguing theories, for debating, or
for quarreling. Shakubuku represents
a compassionate act that is based on your sincere desire to save another individual.
Earnest words rooted in your sincere concern for the person to achieve true
happiness will break through the most obstinate barrier of the heart. 15.
You must never
give up in your shakubuku efforts.
You must put one foot in front of the other and proceed forth. You will never
succeed if you abandon your efforts. The point at which you are ready to
resign marks the very beginning of your true shakubuku effort. These
represent the fifteen suggestions to follow in your performance of shakubuku. Some of you may feel that
these suggestions seem harsh, but there are temples that have successfully
proceeded forth by implementing these points. Without a doubt, life and
society in the However, Nichiren Shoshu
believers, in propagating the Law, must never lose sight of common sense in
society. We must never be rude or disrespectful to others, since that would
tarnish the Law. It is most essential to sincerely care for the feelings of
others. The Daishonin stated: The entirety of Buddhism can only be propagated by
people.
(Gosho, p. 289) True
Buddhism cannot be propagated, if we do not devote ourselves to it and
advance forth. All of you in attendance here
possess great conviction in the Dai-Gohonzon, a sincere willingness to
believe in and follow the directions of our High Priest, and true compassion
and caring for others. We are prepared. I would like to conclude my
guidance for today by praying that you will all use this opportunity of the
ceremony to commemorate the establishment of True Buddhism and the General
Meeting of the Myoshin-ji Chapter of the Hokkeko to
increasingly strengthen you faith and to advance forth in your performance of
daimoku
and shakubuku. Finally, I would like to inform
you that there are plans to hold the 4th Overseas Believers’
General Tozan at the I extend my sincere appreciation
to all of you from the outlying areas, who have
traveled long distances, in spite of your busy schedules, to be here today.
Furthermore, I express my heartfelt gratitude to all the local Bay Area
believers for their attendance since the early morning. Thank you for your kind attention
throughout this long service. I sincerely appreciate the efforts that you
have made to come to the temple today. |