Part 1: Happiness; Chapter 3: The Practice for Transforming Our State of Life [3.17]
3.17 Chanting with Unwavering Conviction
President Ikeda responds to the question of a member who asked: “When we were chanting daimoku together with you earlier, the desire and courage to realize my dreams came welling forth from my life. How can I chant with this kind of feeling and live with courage all the time?”
Even one daimoku can pervade the entire universe. Truly heartfelt and determined daimoku, therefore, has the power to move everything.
To illustrate, the words “I love you” can have a completely different impact depending on whether they are said from the heart or merely as an empty gesture.
Daimoku chanted with the deep conviction that one’s life is the entity of the Mystic Law, or with the resolve to dedicate one’s life to spreading the Mystic Law as an emissary of the Buddha, cannot fail to resonate with the Gohonzon or reach the universe. A person who chants in this way will definitely attain a state of complete freedom.
Of course, no one becomes an expert in anything right away. It is by overcoming obstacles again and again and continuing to press forward that we gain a degree of expertise or mastery in a given field.
The same holds true for faith. There may be times when we give in to self-defeat and our determination wanes, or when things don’t go as we’d hoped and we begin to feel anxious or fearful. But the important thing is to continue chanting daimoku, no matter what. Whether our prayers are answered right away or not, we must keep chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, without harboring any doubts. Those who maintain such faith will eventually attain the supreme path and highest pinnacle of value, and savor the conviction that everything unfolded in the very best and most meaningful way. They will build immensely fulfilling lives and come to regard everything as a source of joy and a part of their mission. Such are the workings of the Mystic Law and the power of faith.
Why is the Gohonzon important? Because, through having faith in it, we can bring forth the Gohonzon, or the state of Buddhahood, that is inherent in our own lives. The Daishonin states that the Gohonzon is found only in the faith of each one of us (cf. WND-1, 832).
We ourselves and all human beings are worthy of respect because every single individual is an entity of the Mystic Law. The Gohonzon is important above all because it enables us to manifest the Mystic Law that exists within us.
From a question-and-answer session during a North Italy representative leaders meeting, Italy, July 3, 1992.
The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace brings together selections from President Ikeda’s works under key themes.