Thursday, October 14, 2010

Wisdom for Modern Life by Daisaku Ikeda

Knowledge and wisdom
Knowledge gives rise to wisdom. If you like, knowledge is the pump; wisdom is the water that we get from the pump. If we can't obtain water, the pump is useless. At the same time, without knowledge, without the pump, we won't be able to obtain water. 30/9


The mighty sword of the Lotus Sutra
A sword is useless in the hands of a coward. The mighty sword of the Lotus Sutra must be wielded by one courageous in faith. Then one will be as strong as a demon armed with an iron staff. -Nichiren 29/9


My Home
Your home is where your loved ones live. Your home is the place where you work together with your fellow human beings to build a paradise, a realm of peace and prosperity for all. When we are asked where our home is, we can answer: "My home is the world. Everywhere in the world where my fellow human beings live, all of it, is my home." 28/9


Developing Wisdom
The wise course is to control and make correct use of knowledge. Buddhism is a means for developing wisdom, and it teaches how to overcome the four inherent sufferings or sorrows—birth, aging, illness and death—in order to lead a happy, meaningful life. In addition it teaches how to control desire rather than be controlled by it. 27/9


Live in a way that is full of life
Live in a way that is full of life—for yourself, for your loved ones, for your friends. People who do so will find the courage to transform sufferings into hopes. Not only that, but they will be able to light the lamp of hope in the hearts of many others, as well. 26/9


Universal Law
In the true reality of life as viewed from the enlightened state of the Buddha—who has broken free of all delusion—all things are equal, transcending distinctions and differences between subject and object, self and others, mind and body, the spiritual and the material. In its true aspect, life is infinitely expansive and eternal, without beginning or end. Life is dynamic; it is wisdom and compassion; it embodies the principle of the indivisibility of life and death; it is a universal law. The cosmos is not so big that life cannot embrace it, nor a particle of matter so small that life cannot be contained within it. 25/9


Achieving world peace
We are all human beings, whatever our positions. If we open our hearts and speak with sincerity, we can communicate and touch others on the deepest level. World peace starts with trust between one individual and another. 24/9


How to attain Buddhahood
Now, if you wish to attain Buddhahood, you have only to lower the banner of your arrogance, cast aside the staff of your anger, and devote yourself exclusively to the one vehicle of the Lotus Sutra. Worldly fame and profit are mere baubles of your present existence, and arrogance and prejudice are ties that will fetter you in a next one. -Nichiren 23/9


Illness as an opportunity to attain higher state of life
Buddhism views illness as an opportunity to attain a higher, nobler state of life. It teaches that, instead of agonizing over a serious disease, or despairing of ever overcoming it, we should use illness as a means to build a strong, compassionate self, which in turn will make it possible for us to be truly victorious. 22/9


Dailogue
Efforts to reach out and engage others in dialogue with the aim of fostering mutual understanding and bringing people closer together may seem ordinary and unexciting, but they in fact constitute a bold and daring challenge to create a new era of human civilization. 21/9

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