[NutChusty]

Sorry guys, I should have been more specific, I was meaning to ask if continuous chanting of the words "nam myoho renge kyo" really makes a difference in a person's life? If so, how please?

Depends on who you ask, I guess. The chant you're referring to is part of Nichiren Buddhism, so somebody who practices Nichiren could probably tell you more about it.

Here are some links (to an information site with a forum, a Yahoo group, and another forum)

http://nichirenhokkekyoshu.org/
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SokaGakkaiUnofficial/
http://ichinensanzen.org/forum/index.php

Be aware that Soka Gakkai (a lay movement within Nichiren) is controversial and some consider it a cult.

[PaulCameron]

Be aware that Soka Gakkai (a lay movement within Nichiren) is controversial and some consider it a cult.

Thanks for the links and yes that is EXACTLY why I am inquiring into this specific chant which Tina Turner used in her movie.

[XYTommy]

Hi mystic, The phrase nam- myoho- renge- kho is taken from the teaching which I know as the Lotus Sutra, which declares that all living beings, regardless of gender or intelligence have the potential to attain Buddhahood - the chant recognises that inside each one of us there is a universal truth, which is often known as the Buddha nature - whilst the chant is not one I have had a lot of personal experience with, I know from my own limited exposure to it's use that it assists with focus on individual needs, aspirations, problems which need to be addressed.

[mitiaycatq]

Forgot to mention that I had spoken to a guy back in the mid 80s and if I remember correctly, I think he had said that if you chant those words as many times as you can you will get whatever it is you're seeking, be it a job, something material or whatever. Christianity has similar specific prayers for this, I just wonder if those things are true or if it makes sense to do this?

[Avaindimik]

What do you think, mystic? Have you tried chanting this phrase ... or any phrases?

[JohnVK]

I had tried it briefly back then when I was first introduced to it back then, after having attended one prayer meeting with a few people but it did not do anything for me that I could see. One of my closest friends believes in Hare Krishna and he goes to the mountains to meditate and have shared some of his knowledge with me and I hear him chanting sometimes but looking at his failed marriage and other family problems I wonder which puzzles me. This is one of THE best human beings I know who never did anything wrong purposely in his life and has always been doing good so this raises the question, if life is about about cause and effect then why do a lot of people who only do good have bad things happen to them?

[BrianGoldsmith]

Hi, again, mystic. Like it says in the Kalama Sutta I linked to earlier, hearsay and authority are not good reasons to believe anything. If you tried the chanting in order to get something you wanted and then didn't get it, you have first-hand evidence, no?

[Laqswrnm]

Well, that would be the "logical" answer , ok but I really do wish to get to the bottom of this question I asked about earlier and would love to hear the opinion of EVERYONE who's participated in this thread and anyone else, question again is:

if life is about about cause and effect then why do a lot of people who only do good have bad things happen to them?

[carreraboyracer]

Forgot to mention that I had spoken to a guy back in the mid 80s and if I remember correctly, I think he had said that if you chant those words as many times as you can you will get whatever it is you're seeking, be it a job, something material or whatever. Christianity has similar specific prayers for this, I just wonder if those things are true or if it makes sense to do this?

Yeah, Sokka Gakkai has been described as "prosperity Buddhism" because members chant for stuff like a big car, nice house, and so on.

I had tried it briefly back then when I was first introduced to it back then, after having attended one prayer meeting with a few people but it did not do anything for me that I could see. One of my closest friends believes in Hare Krishna and he goes to the mountains to meditate and have shared some of his knowledge with me and I hear him chanting sometimes but looking at his failed marriage and other family problems I wonder which puzzles me. This is one of THE best human beings I know who never did anything wrong purposely in his life and has always been doing good so this raises the question, if life is about about cause and effect then why do a lot of people who only do good have bad things happen to them?

I don't know the situation, obviously -- based on the details you provided, though, it seems to me your friend's story actually demonstrates cause and effect. Having a successful marriage requires things like practical skills, a steady job, and a willingness to stay home instead of trekking off to the mountains to meditate. If he was busy chanting Hare Krishna, who got stuck with all the mundane stuff like paying the bills and repainting the porch?

If ya plant radishes, don't be surprised if ya get radishes...

[seperalem]

http://"http://www.urbandharma.org/p...f%20Kamma.pdf"
The classification of the natural laws in that link are archaic, but they make the point that most things that happen are not the result of anything like kamma. Sometimes you're the bug, sometimes you're the windshield. You could drive yourself crazy tring to find patterns of meaning in randomness. Statistics and probability are probably your best source for answers regarding that. There may be some psychology involved, too. The person who only does good may be giving off signals that s/he is an easy target who can be taken with little fear of revenge, for example.

[wrbwrbwrb]

if life is about about cause and effect then why do a lot of people who only do good have bad things happen to them?

Kamma is about one's own intentional action.....e.g. how one responds/reacts to events in one's life, and how that reaction impacts on self and others. Its not a punishment and reward system

[mxzjxluwst]

Mystic,

It is very recommendable not to speculate about Kamma. World happenings are highly complex. Many variables are set into action. Most of the time, world happenings will not accomplish our desires. Our margin of control of external events is very limited but not our mental disposition toward them. Mind is the real thing with which you can really work with. The teachings of the Buddha are about that.

[xanaxonlinexanax]

Mystic,

It is very recommendable not to speculate about Kamma. World happenings are highly complex. Many variables are set into action. Most of the time, world happenings will not accomplish our desires. Our margin of control of external events is very limited but not our mental disposition toward them. Mind is the real thing with which you can really work with. The teachings of the Buddha are about that.

What Kaarine said.

Also, Buddha didn't teach that the world we know is a particularly nice, fair, stable or satisfying place. Far from it. The Buddhist term for our situation is "samsara", and it's characterized by impermanence, discontent, unsatisfactoriness and suffering.

For instance, according to the traditional cosmology, beings can get to a Buddhist heaven -- only to drop out of it into hell. You can spend your life cultivating virtue -- only to suffer the painful results of some karmic inheritance from the past. In the rebirth cycle, you could be a hungry ghost one life, a celestial deva in the next, a human after that, and then a mosquito. Moreover, the workings of karma are said to be "imponderable", so no matter how positive or negative the outlook seems, you really can't be sure.

Even if you don't take all this literally, you can see how it presents existence as ever-changing and never satisfying. So concerning the question:

why do a lot of people who only do good have bad things happen to them? ...a traditional, provisional answer is that it's due to the workings of karma, past and present. But the deeper answer is that this is the nature of samsara, and that's why Buddhists strive to liberate themselves from it.

[no02rSx2]

For instance, according to the traditional cosmology, beings can get to a Buddhist heaven -- only to drop out of it into hell. You can spend your life cultivating virtue -- only to suffer the painful results of some karmic inheritance from the past. In the rebirth cycle, you could be a hungry ghost one life, a celestial deva in the next, a human after that, and then a mosquito.

Do all Buddhists believe in the concept of reincarnation?

[Grewlybreekly]

Do all Buddhists believe in the concept of reincarnation?

Hi Aasha,

Speaking for myself 'reincarnation' seems to go against the Buddha's teaching of anatta and rebirth is something I find pointless to speculate about - so I remain neutral, because the mind spinning around the past and future isn't helpful to maintaining awareness in the here and now - which is far more relevant !

As for other 'realms' they can be seen as representing different mental states we go through.

kind wishes,

A-D

[johobuo]

Do all Buddhists believe in the concept of reincarnation?

Hi Aasha,

No, I don't think so, and in any case from the Buddhist perspective it's not really something to be desired. It's one way of iillustrating the drawbacks of samsara.

The important point, for me, is dukkha -- whether in one life or many.

[sbrscnds]

Do all Buddhists believe in the concept of reincarnation?

Many and the most part of Buddhists believe reincarnation and rebirth. Most traditions teach rebirth. Some Tibetan traditions teach reincarnation. For example, Zen traditions that came from the Cha'an Chinese philosophy, all them have a heavy emphasis in rebirth aspects like the notion of humans coming from being insects in previous life. And the like.

Of the very few traditions that offer teachings with no reincarnation or rebirth dressings are, in my experience, the Thai Forest and very few Soto "reformed" schools that, at least, do not make much emphasis in that view, as far as I know.

As a personal opinion, God, rebirth, reincarnation, or "something" that goes from here to there enduring endlessly, is nothing but only existential angst, fear, apprehension, attachment, craving for more, and the urgency of "becoming" or "being". When mind is at peace, still, awakened and clear none of such feelings abide.

[retrahdggd]

the mind spinning around the past and future isn't helpful to maintaining awareness in the here and now - which is far more relevant !

Yes, I totally agree with you there Aloka-D.

As a personal opinion, God, rebirth, reincarnation, or "something" that goes from here to there enduring endlessly, is nothing but only existential angst, fear, apprehension, attachment, craving for more, and the urgency of "becoming" or "being". When mind is at peace, still, awakened and clear none of such feelings abide.

Yes...

[Maymayfor]

Hi mystic! Nice to meet you!

Personally I see that there is a difference between Religion and "being religious".
Surely these are two different things! Any Religion is usually strongly organized and governed by strict rules and regulations. Cultural and geographic bonds add to it that its followers must obey an external authority that rewards and punishes.

Being religious on the other hand means nothing else than recognizing that all humans have a spiritual mind. That spiritual mind of ours can be found on a scale of very tiny, or moderate, or very strong..even excessive for those we call fanatics or fundamentalists.

The difference between the very complex and confusing - contradicting stories of the Bible and the simplicity of the Dharma is well known by the audience here. No need to explain why one chooses to believe in Buddhism rather than in what the Bible presents.

Of course there is always some value found in any Holy Book of any religion. The problem we have with it is that we seek leadership externally and are scared to accept the fact that we are absolutely alone when it comes to the ultimate reality of birth & dead. Call it the "Parental factor" that we so often seek an external God-Mother or God-Father instead of accepting that we are growing up and must become self supporting until the moment of our dead. There is great freedom in the realization that we all have a chance to mature and become our own parents and protectors of our destiny. This is life in action. This is the true meaning of Sangha too...having our own children, having friends and students and passing on to them the gift of the Three Jewels. All for free...without preconditions.

[Anydayhybeall]

I've just recently adopted Buddhist practice, and I've been recently reading up on anything Buddhist, just so I can get a good grasp of the teachings. However, I'm stuck when it comes to Buddhist cosmology...like the whole theory of the life expectancy of mankind throughout the ages, the lineage of Buddhas, how the teachings will disappear, etc. This stuff seems a little freaky to me, and I was wondering how I should look at this information. Is it meant to be taken literally? :/ Or is it a metaphor?