TO BECOME A PERSON OF HIGH SELF-ESTEEM
By Danny Nagashima, SGI General Director

You can analyze your situation all you want. You have to get to the root of why "I don't believe in the greatness of my life". You have to grab it by the roots and yank it out of your life. The answer is probably so simple, but we tend to over-analyze, it gets complicated and the solution seems far away. Your mission as a Buddhist is to become happy - not to master suffering. We have the negative and positive sides of us - one says "who are you kidding", the other "you can do it". You have to fight to not to give in to your negativity. This is not about being a writer, an artist, an actor, etc. It is about becoming the man or woman that you always wanted to become, a man or woman who really values his/her life.

The obstacles you face are the answer to your prayer.

Those feeling of self-doubt, those feelings that "I am a failure" - those are the feelings that I have to face and to address. How you feel about yourself, that feeling of self-loathing, of not being good enough, of being a sham. Those are the feeling you have to face. Your talent is not being questioned; it is about how you feel about yourself. That is the karma; You have to value your own life, to appreciate that it has nothing to do with anybody else validating you. Follow your heart, follow your buddhahood, and the effect from that , the benefit from that will be massive.

You need to follow your heart, truly treasure your life. When Nichiren Daishonin inscribed the gohonzon, he was already chanting daimoku out of the greatness of his life, his buddhahood, his enlightened state, he inscribed the gohonzon for all humanity so that everyone could relieve his or her suffering. When you sit in front of the gohonzon and chant, you have to have the most reverence for your life, the same as the Daishonin's, therefore your life deserves that kind of reverence.

If you chant for two weeks to really be a person of unlimited self-esteem and to really, truly appreciate your life including your flaws, your accomplishments, your defeats and your losses, your victories, all that you have created and to truly appreciate your talent as XYZ for two weeks, everything will change.

Forget about the past garbage. Put it away. That will only make you feel impotent. From today on really chant about being that man/woman of unlimited self-esteem. Really appreciate everything about your life; all the things that make you incredibly unique and wonderful. All your sufferings, problems, heartaches, will be the stuff you need, in order to share your experience, to encourage and to inspire others.

Focus on really, truly awakening to your greatness. This is the opportunity (sufferings, obstacles, lack of self-esteem) you needed to go through in order to become outrageously successful - so you can fulfill your dream. If you focus on this - really valuing your life mow, then everything will fall into place in a much bigger way. This is something no one can give you; the universe is showing you what you need to tackle. When you first chant this way, a lot of garbage may come out of your life, a lot of negativity, awful feelings may surface, let it enlightened side of your fear. We always bring into our lives what matches our life condition. Chant to feel incredible joy about your worth. You will feel and know self worth and greatness.

You not being able to do whatever you determine is a manifestation deep down of your feeling of fear, that you are not good enough, that you do not have it in you. You must get yourself to a place where there is the greatness of your life, then everything will be transformed. We have to believe in our buddhahood. When we face the Gohonzon, we should say, " I am going got praise my wonderful life". It is important to awaken to your own greatness. Your life is the Gohonzon. Now is the time for you to start over.

When you pray to a deity, your prayer becomes passive. Our voice is the Mystic Law. This law is not outside of you. When you get a benefit, it was you who created it. You must awaken to your greatness, appreciate and value your own life. It is no different to the enlightened life of Nichiren Daishonin, embodied in the Gohonzon.

Just as a beautiful piece of art elicits a response, or a great book touches your life in a certain way, we must elicit the Buddha nature from our own lives. It is right there, and the Gohonzon is the perfect vehicle to bring out that strength, joy and vibrant life condition then you take that to the world and change the environment. We are not necessarily chanting for the house, the car, the job, the relationship; but we are chanting to elevate out life condition to attract that happiness. The result that we see in our lives are a reflection of our life condition.

Every day as you chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo consciously call forth your Buddhahood to manifest itself consistently. Chant to rise above your basic tendency of disbelief,or continually thinking that you are a common mortal who does not deserve good fortune in this life. Do not negate your life when you sit in front of the gohonzon. Do not beg. Do not scream. Do no berate the gohonzon. Believe in the greatness of your life; manifest the extraordinary side of you. The gohonzon is the toll we need to bring out our buddhahood.

My life is the gohonzon. Do not slander your life. The doubt is necessary to prove to myself that " I am a Buddha. I will fulfill every one of my dreams for myself". We already possess something incredible - our Buddha nature, the gohonzon. But we do not believe that the good fortune, the "million dollars" is truly mine. I will not be able to get it, or to enjoy it. Trust that the gohonzon, your prayer is the absolute means for you to transform your life. Trust and faith are the key words.

Chant with the expectation that every one of your wildest dreams will be fulfilled beyond your wildest imagination. Chant to believe in your buddhahood. Trust in the greatness of your life of your life. In "On Attaining Buddhahood", Nichiren Daishonin made a primary point. To free ourselves from the suffering of birth and death which we have endured in this lifetime after lifetime, and to attain absolute happiness, we need to awaken to the mystic truth that has always been within our lives. That truth is Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. That truth is I am a Buddha. Trust that you have everything you need for your happiness.

TEN POINTS TO BECOME A PERSON OF HIGH SELF-ESTEEM:

1) Chant to become a person of unlimited self-esteem.

2) Chant to awaken to your own greatness.

3) Chant to appreciate your life, including flaws, accomplishments, defeats, losses, and victories and truly appreciate all that makes you a unique and wonderful person.

4) Chant to make the impossible possible.

5) Chant to consistently manifest your Buddha nature and rise above your basic tendencies and overcome your inherent negativities in your life.

6) Believe that you are a Buddha and create all the benefits for yourself.

7) Believe you are the gohonzon.

8) Trust that in the gohonzon, you have the means to fulfill each and every desire to become extraordinarily happy.

9) Chant to display your buddhahood and to bring forth that strength, joy, vibrant life condition,

10) And then take it to the world and then change the environment.