My first 30 day experience of Buddhism
I have come a long way in both my work & personal life particularly in the last 1 yr, where I have not just developed as a manager in self & team skills but also as an individual functioning at a level higher than I have ever before. In the eyes of an outsider my life seems perfect: awesome job, loving GF, great friends, etc in short "living the good life".
No one can see the void I feel in my heart. The light that would guide me to change my destiny and my family’s circumstances. I have been waiting for it since I was 14 and I could first understand the hardships of my family and its repercussions. Today I’m the branch of my family that needs to strive high for sunlight. I have always lived my life for my loved ones and this has been my biggest responsibility.
I can not fail, I cannot give up for all they have is me...
I turn 30 in the next 5 months and I'm tired of waiting for that ray of light that will change my destiny. I itch in my mind & my soul to find my true calling, my reason of existence beyond worldly duties & fulfillments.
They say the best things in life come by when you least expect them…
And so did Buddhism. It found me this Jan, at the most unexpected place i.e. “my work”. I was unsuccessful in my initial attempts to get connected by one of my team members but then it came through from the most unexpected person, a new team member who just joined us in on 11th Jan and had been practicing Nichiren Buddhism for 2 years with 'Soka Gakkai'. My first interaction was a monthly meeting called 'Zadankai' on 24th January and this was the day of fundamental shift
Today I attended my second Zadankai and I wanted to share my experience of the first 30 days of Buddhism.
Nam-myo-ho-renge-kyo
The 3 Realisations:
The first and immediate realisation was that my chanting routine actually reflected my state of order & behaviour. I was overtly dedicated & regular with my morning chants and equally lacklustre & irregular with my evening chants.
The second realisation to this faith dawned on me enroute to Pune when I was reading excerpts from the chapter on the 'Ten Worlds' from 'Essentials of Faith’. 'The World of Learning' which is where one dedicates oneself to create a better life by learning from the ideas, knowledge & experiences others is the exact state of mind in which I dwell today.
I had a horrible last week that shook my faith & my determination. The third realisation hit me while I was reading the following lines from the Learnings of Nichiren Daishonin ’The Great Battle’ from the Feb 2016 VC today.
The true value of religion is revealed by how it deals with the question of destiny. Does one accept one’s destiny and allow one’s life to be dominated by karma that is a source of unhappiness and misfortune? Or does one elevate one’s destiny by transforming it into one’s mission and powerfully overcome one’s karma?
Attaining Buddhahood is essentially a struggle not against external forces but against the destructive forces or negativity that reside within our own lives.
Talking to my fellow Buddhists and these words changed my point of view. Today I write this with renewed faith expressing my determination to bring forth my highest life potential.
I know I will face daily challenges and life is not going to get easier by luck for me or my loved ones but by my faith, my determination (also called as ‘Ichinen’) and my deeds.
