Hello npsdians. So sorry as i have not update for the past few weeks. The reason being my internet connection is down. Anyway it has been solved but i like to address something in today's post
The year 2007 is coming to an end and the start of 2008 is nearing. I hope all of you will set down your new year resolutions and if able, share it at the kenshu.
It is extremely important for us to have resolutions or goals because just like when we want to shoot things, we need to have a target. The same theory applies to this. A goal, if it was never to be reach, is perfectly fine to me as i believed one will always move at a much quicker pace than your old self without a goal.
As Ghandi says, "Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment. Full effort is full victory." What matters most is whether we have given our all till we have no regrets. We ourselves know whether have we try our very best or not. If 2007 was not a very good year for you, then make 2008 the best one for you. Joy and happiness in life does not lies behind you, but in front of you.
Hereby, i like to recall what i have resolute in 2007 where i share this poem of ikeda sensei as part of my determination in front of all the student, attending the year end kenshu for last year.
" Today i rededicate my life to kosen-rufu.
To be strong, so that nothing can upset the peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness and hope to every person i meet.
To make my friend feel that there is something good and beautiful about them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and to be optimistic about them.
To think only the best, work towards doing and expecting only the best.
To be just as happy about the success of others as i am about myself.
To forget any mistake in the past and press forward to greater achievement in the future.
To give so much time in improving myself, so that i have no time to criticize others.
To be too strong for fear, too kind for anger and too happy for worry.
To lift my heart in faith each day,
So that the Gohonzon may show forth in my life
Nam-myo-ho-renge-kyo."
Daisaku ikeda
4 comments:
The guidance that is called ‘The Abundance of Life’ and is credited as being written by Sensei has actually come from a different source. It was a very inspirational poem from the early twentieth century and many years ago some one tweaked it around to put it in a Buddhist context. Then by mistake it started getting credited as being written by Daisaku Ikeda. And so it traveled round and round the globe and was propagated as being Sensei’s. People would correct this but it would pop up again. I became aware of this because of an article I saw in an SGI USA publication. So I have researched this to check the truth behind this quote and here are my findings.
The original poem (Promise Yourself) was published in 1912 in a book entitled: “Your Forces and How to Use Them.” The author was Christian D. Larson, a prolific writer and lecturer who believed that people have tremendous latent powers, which could be harnessed for success with the proper attitude. This is how the poem appears in that book (I believe from searching in the book on amazon.com that it appears on page 11).
PROMISE YOURSELF
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear; and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words but in great deeds.
To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side, so long as you are true to the best that is in you.
A slightly different and shortened version of this poem was then adopted by Optimist International, which publishes it on their website. Optimist International adopted this creed in 1922. This is how it appears on their website (http://www.optimist.org):
“The Optimist Creed
Promise Yourself
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.”
The guidance that is called ‘The Abundance of Life’ and is credited as being written by Sensei has actually come from a different source. It was a very inspirational poem from the early twentieth century and many years ago some one tweaked it around to put it in a Buddhist context. Then by mistake it started getting credited as being written by Daisaku Ikeda. And so it traveled round and round the globe and was propagated as being Sensei’s. People would correct this but it would pop up again. I became aware of this because of an article I saw in an SGI USA publication. So I have researched this to check the truth behind this quote and here are my findings.
The original poem (Promise Yourself) was published in 1912 in a book entitled: “Your Forces and How to Use Them.” The author was Christian D. Larson, a prolific writer and lecturer who believed that people have tremendous latent powers, which could be harnessed for success with the proper attitude. This is how the poem appears in that book (I believe from searching in the book on amazon.com that it appears on page 11).
PROMISE YOURSELF
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness, and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear; and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.
To think well of yourself and to proclaim this fact to the world, not in loud words but in great deeds.
To live in the faith that the whole world is on your side, so long as you are true to the best that is in you.
A slightly different and shortened version of this poem was then adopted by Optimist International, which publishes it on their website. Optimist International adopted this creed in 1922. This is how it appears on their website (http://www.optimist.org):
“The Optimist Creed
Promise Yourself
To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.
To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.
To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.
To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.
To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.
To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.
To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.
To wear a cheerful countenance at all times and give every living creature you meet a smile.
To give so much time to the improvement of yourself that you have no time to criticize others.
To be too large for worry, too noble for anger, too strong for fear, and too happy to permit the presence of trouble.”
sorry that was my first ever post so sorry it went twice
Thank you so much for that comment that gives very clear information and which shows how importance of giving precise references, and be careful with the origin of copies. Larson seems a great man.
What is fantastic with the Lotus Sutra is that based on faith in everyone Buddhahood, even our weaknesses can become strengths as we develop this spirit to always try to go beyond our limits and win over ourselves, not others... Perfection resides in being ourselves, natural in our unique way...
Maybe we've been more influenced than we think by that kind of perfectionism. The anger world is something to think more deeply in its double side dimension: controlling tendencies can be well hidden behind a polished behaviour as they focused all their attention on how they look like. An explosion of anger can be a good thing (like a lion roar) for the protection of everyone as soon as it is against a behaviour and not a person.
Also regarding forgetting mistakes, it is rather that we need to give ourselves credit that in the constantly changing reality, we are changing from now on as soon as we recognize our mistakes (and don't fix our identity on them). So we need to learn from the mistakes of the past which is the sense of studying History in order for the worst not to reappear in a new form: Daisaku Ikeda is so clear and inspiring about that in the Discussions on Youth for example.
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