Live in the present moment.

Live in the present moment.
Live in the present moment ,and don't worry excessively about the things that have come before, or might be waiting in the future.Many sages ( I won't name them all here but I'm sure you can think of examples ) believe that it is the human ego which acts as a distraction and causes people to fret about things that have already occurred or that we cannot control in the future. Enlightenment is achieved by those who experience the present to the fullest and connect with the oneness of the entire universe and everything in it.

Ikeda quote

One who has mastered himself is truly free.Freedom lies in the heart of the sage,servitude in the heart of the fool.

Life has infinite potential, so there is reason for optimism. (Ichinen Sanzen)

Life is dynamic, constantly changing, and infinitely malleable. So we have infinite potential. For this reason, we should always be hopeful and determined, no matter what our momentary feelings or circumstances.



Life has 3000 conditions in a single moment. The point of this analysis is to show that we are never stuck in a particular life state, but that life is constantly changing and infinitely malleable through self improvement. Thus the conclusion of the theory of 3000 Conditions in a Single Life Moment is that we should be hopeful and determined at all times, because we always possess infinite potential to improve ourselves and our surroundings.



As for the details of this theory, we will first briefly summarize the theory. It might seem a little abstract. But then we will go over it a second time in more detail with analogies to make it clear. We are trying to prove that “Life is dynamic, constantly changing, and infinitely malleable. So we have infinite potential. For this reason, we should always be hopeful and determined, no matter what our momentary feelings or circumstances.”





There are: 10 life states, times their mutual possession, making 100 states, times the 10 factors, making 1000 states, times the 3 realms, making 3000 conditions in a single moment of life.



The 10 life states are: Hell (helpless suffering), Hunger (extreme want, or greed), Animality (fawn on the powerful, bully the weak), Anger (arrogance, retribution), Humanity (transient calmness, dependent on good circumstances), Rapture (transient joy, dependent on good circumstances), Learning (from books, teachers, experience, independent of circumstances), Realization (from experience, intuition, nature, meditation, independent of circumstances), Altruism (caring for others), and Enlightenment (some degree of oneness with one’s innermost nature and the macrocosm).



These 10 states are mutually inclusive, making 100 states; thus someone who is enlightened may feel anger for social justice.



The 10 Factors explain how we change from one life state to another. They are: Appearance (how you look), Nature (what you’re like inside), Entity (the essential identity that gives rise to both Appearance and Nature), Force (your life force), Influence (how your life force affects your surroundings), Latent Cause (John was compassionate), Manifest Cause (John fed a stray cat), Latent Effect (John carried the destiny for two years that someone someday would do him a kindness), Manifest Effect (two years later someone returned John’s lost wallet with all the money), and Consistency from Beginning to End (John is unlikely to kick a dog).



The factoring of these 10 Factors now makes 1000 states. Then there are the Three Realms: The first one is The Realm of the Individual Consciousness - your awareness on all levels, including subconscious and psychosomatic; it includes the elements of form, perception, conception, volition, and consciousness. The second realm is The Realm of Living Beings - plants, animals, all sentient beings. The third realm is The Realm of the Environment - your neighborhood, your region, the earth, the solar system, our galaxy, the universe.



Thus the grand total is 3000 conditions in a single life moment.

la réception du gohonzon

Dans la Soka Gakkai la réception du gohonzon en elle même est gratuite, si le nouveau membre souhaite faire un don à cette occasion, il est libre de le faire. Se sont les dons qui font fonctionner l’organisation et permettent de bénéficier des lieux de séminaires, de retransmissions et de cérémonies bouddhiques (Mariage bouddhique, cérémonie pour les défunts, remise de gohonzon...). Il n’existe aucune contrainte financière dans la Soka Gakkai, c’est important de le dire et de le faire savoir en terme de gratuité du culte et de non-sectarisme Aucune cérémonie n’est payante. Des dons peuvent se faire en différentes occasions où ils sont recueillis et restent entièrement libre.

Traditionellement nous pouvons “faire zaïmu” (le don) vers le printemps. L’esprit du don est une chose importante du point de vue de la loi de causalité, il ne faut donc pas donner à contre coeur ou avec un sentiment de culpabilité, mais librement , en conscience de l’importance et de la fonction de celui-ci et aussi du respect de ses propres moyens financiers. C’est la sagesse qui doit nous déterminer, sachant que notre don sert un mouvement international pour la construction de la paix mondiale. C’est un acte adulte de bon sens. De plus la Soka Gakkai contribue à de nombreuses actions humanitaires et ceux qui peuvent donner des sommes plus ou moins importantes le font aussi pour ceux qui peuvent le moins. Toutefois l’importance du don dans l’esprit bouddhique relève du coeur qui le fait et non de la capacité à “signer un chèque” plus ou moins important. Rapellons nous la parabole du roi Asoka qui, dans une vie entérieure, était un petit garçon pauvre qui offrit un simple paté de sable au bouddha Shakiamuni, grâce à quoi la rétribution karmique lui permit de devenir ce grand roi qui se converti au bouddhisme, dans sa vie future !

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Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

Tsunesaburo Makiguchi (1871-1944) was a forward-thinking geographer, educational theorist and religious reformer who lived and worked during the tumultuous early decades of Japan's modern era. His opposition to Japan's militarism and nationalism led to his imprisonment and death during World War II.

Makiguchi is best known for two major works,
The Geography of Human Life and The System of Value-Creating Pedagogy, and as the founder, in 1930, of the Soka Gakkai, which is today the largest lay Buddhist organization in Japan and has 12 million members worldwide.

Consistent throughout his writing and in his work as a classroom teacher and school principal is his belief in the centrality of the happiness of the individual. This same commitment can be seen in his role as a religious reformer: he rejected the attempts of the authorities to subvert the essence of the Buddhist teachings, insisting that religion always exists to serve human needs.

Who is Nichiren Daishonin?

SGI members follow the teachings of Nichiren, a Buddhist monk who lived in thirteenth-century Japan. Nichiren's teachings provide a way for anybody to readily draw out the enlightened wisdom and energy of Buddhahood from within their lives, regardless of their individual circumstances. Each person has the power to overcome all of life's challenges, to live a life of value and become a positive influence in their community, society and the world.
Nichiren was born in 1222 in Japan, a time rife with social unrest and natural disasters. The common people, especially, suffered enormously. Nichiren wondered why the Buddhist teachings had lost their power to enable people to lead happy, empowered lives. While a young priest, he set out to find an answer to the suffering and chaos that surrounded him. His intensive study of the Buddhist sutras convinced him that the Lotus Sutra contained the essence of the Buddha's enlightenment and that it held the key to transforming people's suffering and enabling society to flourish.
The Essence of Buddhism

The Lotus Sutra affirms that all people, regardless of gender, capacity or social standing, inherently possess the qualities of a Buddha, and are therefore equally worthy of the utmost respect.

Based on his study of the sutra Nichiren established the invocation (chant) of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo as a universal practice to enable people to manifest the Buddhahood inherent in their lives and gain the strength and wisdom to challenge and overcome any adverse circumstances. Nichiren saw the Lotus Sutra as a vehicle for people's empowerment--stressing that everyone can attain enlightenment and enjoy happiness while they are alive.
Persecution

Nichiren was critical of the established schools of Buddhism that relied on state patronage and merely served the interests of the powerful while encouraging passivity in the suffering masses. He called the feudal authorities to task, insisting that the leaders bear responsibility for the suffering of the population and act to remedy it. His stance, that the state exists for the sake of the people, was revolutionary for its time.

Nichiren's claims invited an onslaught of often-violent persecutions from the military government and the established Buddhist schools. Throughout, he refused to compromise his principles to appease those in authority.

Nichiren's legacy lies in his unrelenting struggle for people's happiness and the desire to transform society into one which respects the dignity and potential of each individual life.