Doing It Naturally

When I see people always being attentive to putting others first and doing their utmost for the happiness of other people as if it is the natural thing to do, I am deeply impressed and think they are truly admirable. The reason such people are able to do this is that they find joy in making the happiness of others their own. They seem to have few of the burdens of ego and so can really enjoy life.
When we develop the mind of putting others first, we can better understand their suffering and sadness. Misfortune is no longer something for someone else to deal with, and thus we cannot help but reach out to those who are experiencing sadness and pain. In doing so we gain new vitality not only from the joy of our own happiness, but from the happiness of others as well.
In other words, putting others first is no longer something out of the ordinary, it becomes a natural part of everyday life. For example, a mother who takes care of the family home and the children and the father who goes to his work each day do so not only for the sake of their family, but also as a contribution to society in the wish to bring happiness to others.
Similarly, when we keep the details of our daily lives in good order, we are no longer at the mercy of our personal likes and dislikes and our own judgments of what is good or bad. We can then help those around us to live more fully and at the same time enrich our own lives.

Always Remember to Repent

There is a poem that goes, “We love the flowers, their petals scatter; we hate the weeds, they only flourish.” This means that flowers fade and fall despite being valued, and weeds take over the garden although they are despised, and this explains something about human nature.
For instance, in our hearts we may find consideration and the desire to help someone who is in trouble, but we may also find the selfish wish for our own happiness even if it requires pushing others aside.
We human beings are complex, with two sides to us, but when we awaken to the real and true aspect of our lives?the fact that we and others are caused to live by the same one great Life-force?then we become aware of the importance of ourselves and others being as one, and cannot help but wish for the happiness of others.
Then, even if we do not see the result that we expected from some situation, we can still think of the happiness of the other person without hesitation and without being tired of doing so. Making this possible is the Buddha Way?practicing the bodhisattva way.
There is an expression in the Jodo Shin sect of Japanese Buddhism, “Moment to moment, recite the Name, always repent,” which means continually chanting the name of Amida, and while being constantly grateful for salvation, always repenting for one’s selfish desires. Since we members of Rissho Kosei-kai chant the o-daimoku, we could say, “Moment to moment, chant the o-daimoku, always repent.”
Our faith resides in chanting the o-daimoku every day, strengthening our attitude of taking refuge from one moment to the next, always remembering to repent, and walking the bodhisattva way.