I Am The Buddha
By Gilbert Trent
I began my Buddhist practice in May 1988, after seeking a deeper and more self-autonomous spiritual connection between my environment and myself. I guess I always pondered over life and questioned why it was necessary.
Couldn’t the environment and nature simply just be, as I presumed it did thousands of years before the evolution of man?
Early on, as a child, I would look up at the sky, or at the ceiling at night, and sometimes on the toilet, gazing out the upstairs bathroom window, and ask, WHY?
Very early on, like age six or seven, I was constantly examining my world and the experiences taking place before my very eyes. I was born in 1956 in Richmond, Virginia, and raised near there. You got it. The South.
Well, the ole south presented a particular set of circumstances and experiences for blacks at that time, and, unfortunately, still does. But yes, so why do some have it so nice? Beautiful homes, cars and nice schools. Parents decked out in fashionable clothes, working at great jobs and with housekeepers. My mother was beautiful, made some of her clothes and was also a housekeeper.
I thought, “something just ain’t right with that.” I would flush the toilet and go back downstairs to finish my homework, reading second-hand textbooks.
So, I’m just setting the stage and giving you a glimpse of what was spinning around in my head as a little child, events that started my questioning of life, Christ and God. My brother died at age 20, after his ‘56 Chevy fell off the jack and on top of him.
I was 16, and before I could ask the question, I was told: “It’s God work, He’s testing our faith.” I moved on, as we all have to, but I was never the same. It really shook me and propelled my spiritual journey.
“What if we have chosen everything in our life? Our race, gender, parents, sexual orientation, health, financial status, etc., the acts we created from our past life. Pure and simple. Cause and effect. ”
I finished high school and college, and, quite naturally, continued to have more questions about life and God. I became really intrigued by Shirley McClaine and her conversations about reincarnation. What if we have chosen everything in our life? Our race, gender, parents, sexual orientation, health, financial status, etc., the acts we created from our past life. Pure and simple. Cause and effect.
So, who we are? What we are enduring - our gifts, our misfortune - are karmic.
Yes, very heavy and very difficult to digest. But I get it, and I see how we all are personally responsible for our own life and well-being. I always found it difficult to believe that there is one source of energy or power that’s managing and responsible for all humanity, for each human life on this earth.
I was completely intrigued when I first heard about Nichiren Daishonin Buddhism, and using the practice to eradicate negative karma and causes from the past. It’s one thing to accept that you are the cause of your current life and life condition, but it’s another thing to be given a tool to change it.
Chanting Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, which basically extracts the essence of the lotus sutra, ignites the buddha nature that exists within all human beings. Spoken together, these words connect one with the karmic law of the universe.
I believe that this chant vibrationally aligns one with the frequency of a natural energy that pervades life. Call it the Mystic Law, Law of Attraction, Universe, God, or whatever. It is something that we are all connected to, and this practice brings you into alignment with it, opens your soul to it, connects with It.
So, yes, this is that self-autonomous spirituality that I was seeking. I do not worship Shakyamuni, Siddhartha Gautama or Nichiren Daishonin. The latter is the 13th century Buddhist reformer who developed a practice accessible to all people, that enables them to bring forth their inherent Buddha nature. I have an alter that houses my Gohonzon. You will not see images or statues of these Buddhist founders in members’ homes because we are not worshipping them, but their teachings and practices.
The Gohonzon as inscribed by Nichirin Daishonin
The Gohonzon is a mandala inscribed by Nichirin Daishonin embodying the law of Nam Myoho Renge Kyo. It serves as a mirror that enables us to perceive the true nature of our lives. Chanting to the Gohonzon helps me to bring forth the inexhaustible life force of Buddhahood from within.
The individual characters that make up Nam Myoho-renge-kyo express key characteristics of this law. Nam translates to devotion. Myo can be translated as mystic or wonderful, and ho means law. This law is called mystic because it is difficult to encounter and comprehend. It is very difficult to fully understand how a television works, but we know it does by pressing a button. Hence, to explain how this all works can only be understood by those who practice and embrace the law.
Renge, meaning lotus blossom, is a metaphor that offers further insight into the qualities of this Mystic Law. The lotus flower is pure and fragrant, unsullied by the muddy water in which it grows. Similarly, the beauty and dignity of our humanity are brought forth midst the sufferings of daily reality. Once the lotus flower begins to expire, the pod folds down and dispels seeds back into the soil. This illustrates the principle of simultaneity of cause and effect.
Kyo literally means sutra, and here indicates the Mystic Law likened to a lotus flower, the fundamental law that permeates life and the universe, the eternal truth.
To believe in the Mystic Law and chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is to have faith in one’s unlimited potential. It is not a mystical phrase that brings forth supernatural power, nor is it an entity transcending ourselves that we rely upon. It is the principle for those who live normal lives and make consistent efforts to overcome adversity.
To overcome or transform adversity develops through the practice. Once again, it is not magic, and prayers are not often answered overnight. We all have issues and problems that are very difficult to overcome. It could be your health, relationships, career, home, family members or seemingly never-ending problems with money and finances.
We kinda want it all; or, at least to cease the suffering from our problems. I feel that this transformation takes place when one develops the confidence and the correct attitude from within. More specifically, my financial karma and finances changed once I developed the correct attitude for wanting more money.
Once I developed the attitude to have money to support others and my community, there was a shift. There is a huge focus on world peace and the happiness of others in this practice. Thus, all our earthly desires are to be fulfilled, so long as they can support world peace and/or the happiness of others.
I know that if I had it “all” I could not be at peace or content if others around me were suffering. That’s why I like to share this practice and extend this gift to all. This attitude and shift in viewing the world is also called human revolution. We have to look deep down into our hearts and minds and examine closely how we perceive and respond to our environment.
“Once I developed the attitude to have money to support others and my community, there was a shift. ”
It is so important to avoid delusion and perceive life clearly. We respond to events and experiences based on how we perceive them. I feel that if you perceive them correctly, you will respond correctly. This human revolution, or inner-transformation, happens naturally because your life is pulled into this force, directed through chanting.
I also have to mention that the time to eradicate or lessen the effects of a particular issue is related to the severity of the cause that created it. We know thoughts, words and actions produce effects. So, stealing and using someone’s debit card is a deeper cause than thinking about it.
To chant Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is to bring forth the pure and fundamental energy of life, honoring the dignity and possibility of our ordinary lives. I am empowered and comforted in knowing that I am completely in control of my life and destiny.
Chanting connects me with this universal law. It offers protection, wisdom and the amazing gift to transform my negative karma and develop and enhance my positive karma.
Yes, I am the Buddha.