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GUIDANCE FOR JANUARY "When you live up to
your own individual mission, chant sincere daimoku, and completely devote
yourself to this practice while encouraging others to do the same, your
"identity" or "self" will be totally blessed by Myoho,
thus becoming united eternally with the Buddhahood of the universe itself.
When you realise this kind of life-condition, you will enjoy eternal security
and total freedom." [Ikeda Sensei] |
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Guidance for February "Many of us have some problems that we
avoid chanting about, because we are afraid to look at them directly and
prefer not to think about them. Others may have dreams locked up in their
hearts that they are afraid to admit even to themselves let alone chant for,
because they feel they do not deserve to be happy, or because they are afraid
of being disappointed should they not succeed in attaining their goal.
Nichiren Daishonin teaches us that the power of the Gohonzon has no limit. It
is we who impose limits on it with our doubts and fears. How tragic it would
be if, having encountered the Mystic Law, we could not fully enjoy it's
benefit because we lacked the courage to pray with all our hearts for what we
truly wanted. Surely nothing would be more bitter that to have to look back
over one's life and feel, 'I never accomplished what I really wanted to.'
Nichiren Daishonin, out of his compassion, teaches us how to live so that we
will have no regrets. Since we have been fortunate enough to meet the
Gohonzon, why don't we place our full trust in it, pray courageously for what
we desire and fulfil all our dreams this lifetime." [Ikeda Sensei] |
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Guidance for March "If your dreams are too small at the
outset, you will end up accomplishing nothing great. - Ikeda Sensei –n |
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Guidance for April "The power of faith is boundless. It cannot be judged
merely on the basis of immediate phenomena. As long as you maintain strong
faith, you can change even a seemingly negative situation into something
positive and make it a source of happiness." - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for May The purpose of life is to realise absolute happiness. Absolute
happiness is something that does not change with time; it is eternal; it is a
sense of happiness that is unaffected by external factors, welling forth from
the depths of one's life. It is not a transitory thing like worldly status,
fortune or satisfaction. - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for June The Lotus Sutra is an all-encompassing teaching, which expounds
that every form of life possesses the supreme state of Buddhahood. When this
grand idea spreads throughout the world, war will never again break out. This
is what makes our movement of kosen-rufu so important. - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for July Unless you reach your destination, all your travels will be
meaningless. The same principle applies to faith: unless you fulfil your
mission in this lifetime, you will have to repeat the same suffering in
future existences that you experience now. This would be a great waste. - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for August As the Gosho states, "One cannot strike fire by giving up
halfway." Advance today, and again tomorrow, if even a step, or half a
step, unswayed and undaunted by anything, completing your mission, one task
at a time. Never forget that herein can be found the shining crown of victory
in kosen-rufu and victory in life. - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for September Even gigantic buildings will collapse some day. Something that
has been built upon Myoho, however, will never collapse. Our movement of
kosen-rufu for world peace and mankind's happiness will enable us to save
ourselves along with our ancestors and descendants. This is the most valuable
and praiseworthy undertaking. - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for October When you carry out strong faith, you will surely meet with the
major and minor obstacles of sansho shima. These storms of obstacles,
however, will help dispel the dark clouds of negative karma from within your
life, as a full moon of peace begins to shine brightly in the boundless skies
of your heart. The sun of freedom and happiness will also powerfully rise
within your life. - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for November The Soka Gakkai exists for the whole world. Whatever
circumstances you may find yourselves in now, please remember that you are
accumulating abundant fortune and building a boundless ''savings account'' of
blessings every day through your sincere practice of true Buddhism. In this
sense, please forge on joyfully, with the conviction that you are the
happiest individuals in the world. - Ikeda Sensei - |
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Guidance for December Our lives are infinitely precious. To not attain a state of
absolute happiness in this lifetime is a great loss. Our Buddhist practice
exists so that we can attain indestructible happiness. We must fight to the
fullest now, not sometime in the future. - Ikeda Sensei - |