May
2018- Nam Myoho Renge Kyo
First of all Happy Beltane! I talk at length about the Wiccan festival of
Beltane in my May column from last year (2017), but in brief it is held at the
beginning of May and marks the joining together of male and female energies,
heralded by the climax of Spring. It’s a
time for celebrating the differences between the sexes, a time of procreation
and fertility and rejoicing the sun which is now high in the sky and enabling
our crops to grow ready for harvest in August. (Lammas). If you live somewhere that still celebrates
May Day with the old fashioned maypole and dancing and the May Queen, enjoy the
day and remember that in times gone by the May Queen would have been the young
fertile woman in the village who was about to be betrothed. Indeed, May 1st eve may have been
the consummation of that union…..!
I spoke in my last column (March 2018) about how much
chanting I did to try to bring about the positive changes my sister needed in
her life. I promised to tell you about
this journey, which although is a form of Buddhism, in my mind is not a million
miles away from Wicca in its reverence towards all living things and its take
on karma. I guess most ‘religions’ are
not that far apart from each other, only we have different names for our ‘gods’. I will attempt to explain in my own words
what Lotus Sutra Buddhism is, although please bear in mind this is just my
understanding of it and how it has worked for me. For further information look up your local Buddhist
centre as there are groups all over the country who would be happy to welcome
you into their fold and tell you more!
My friend introduced to me this and explained that the Lotus Sutra is a
scripture (sutra) of Buddhism and its key message is that Buddhahood (boundless
compassion, wisdom and courage) is inherent within every single person
regardless of colour, gender intellect etc.
It teaches that we must engage within life, both the mundane and the extraordinary. It is not an escape: it provides us with an
inexhaustible source of positive energy with which to transform the sufferings
and contradictions of life and create happiness. It teaches empowerment. It teaches that we are all Buddha. When we chant we are chanting for the
transformation of our lives which will in turn transform others’ lives, rather
like the ripples on a pond. If we are
determined in our chanting we can transform anything and everything. Nam Myoho Renge Kyo is the Lotus Sutra chant which
basically means ‘devotion to the ultimate truth of the universe’. By chanting this we are stimulating the
Buddha nature within us to come forth and manifest itself in our lives and
manifest those positive changes we want to bring about.
I was advised to decide on what I wanted to change. My sister was in a dire place emotionally and
physically, both without a job and suffering at the hands of noisy neighbours,
and when I say noisy I mean constant noise and bullying towards her. So my ‘Determination’ for my chanting was to
change her situation somehow with her neighbours, before she had a nervous
breakdown. I decided to chant about this
for 10 minutes at the beginning and the
end of the day for 3 weeks. It is
important to give yourself a time limit on both your chanting and the time period
you are going to chant for, as at the end of this period you are asking for
proof that it is working. Proof works in
two ways: conspicuous and non-conspicuous.
Conspicuous proof is when something really tangible happens: a new job, financial
gain, a house move, and non-conspicuous is the ‘slow burn’ if you like. It’s the feeling of deep contentment inside and
the changes within that you start to observe after a long period of practising Buddhism. So I chanted for 3 weeks. At the end of this time my parents rang me to
say they parked outside my sister’s house about to drop something off to her
whilst she was on a temping job. They had arrived in time to see the neighbours
upstairs putting their last remaining boxes into a removal van and driving
off! YES! They moved out:conspicuous
proof.
Needless to say I continued my chanting. It took a long time, almost 18 months before
she got a permanent job, but with the help of my friend who also chanted for
her, which I really believe made a difference too, she got there. I know the cynical amongst you will ‘pooh
pooh’ this and say it was coincidence, or she was going to eventually get a
job, but I really believe this helped us all as a family. I spent many months worrying and feeling ill
but when I started to have faith and see my chanting as a way of life too,
things did change, albeit slowly. But
moreover, I feel I have been given a gift here.
The gift of Lotus Sutra. I still
chant, I chant for myself primarily, (one has to tend to one’s own lawn before
you can tend to others), I also chant for family and friends and I continue to
find my chanting a source of peaceful pleasure if that makes sense.
Practical
Magic
Try it! It’s a
form of meditation really. Decide on
what you want to chant for. Decide on
how much time you can devote to it per day (even 5 minutes is worthwhile and
will get results) Give yourself a time
frame (2/3 weeks, a month, whatever) after which you will want to see
results. If you google ‘Nam Myoho renge
Kyo’ you will find examples of people chanting so you can hear it which will
help you find your own pace and get comfortable with it. If you don’t want to chant for anything
specific you can always use it as a form of meditation. Think about what you want an answer on, then
empty your mind and focus on the chant.
Chant for 10 minutes, concentrating on the chant, every time a thought comes
into your head bat it away gently and come back to NMRK. After the 10 minutes write down your
immediate thoughts. Don’t dwell on them,
just get them down on paper. Do this for
a week and see how your feelings change or stay the same or give fresh
perspective on your question.
Crystal
of the Month- Tigers Eye
This stone is a long held talisman, a protective stone
and one used to enhance luck. The
ancient Egyptians used it in place of the eyes in their deity statues to
symbolise the all-seeing divine wisdom which would be bestowed upon the person
who was carrying the stone. Thus Tigers
eye is said to help the bearer see beyond what is in front of your own eyes,
behind the closed door if you like. It
gives both wisdom and insight and will help you find balance in your
decisions. It is a good stone to use if
you are starting a new business or building up your business. It takes no prisoners, you must be determined
in your goals as it will only support you if you show your hardworking vision
and take practical steps to achieve your goals.
It is also said to be useful in combatting addictive behaviour, so it’s
great to have around if you are trying to lose weight or stop smoking. You will
find that wearing the stone or holding it will automatically reduce your
cravings for the things you are trying to avoid! Due to its beautiful gold colour it was
associated in Egyptian times with the sun god Ra, and so has a great energy to
it which is infectious and overall will help and support you make those
positive changes in your life.
Angel
Card of the Month- Pay Attention to Your Dreams
This month’s card focuses on what is going on whilst you
are sleeping! Archangel Michael has been
working with you during your dream time, helping you to release old fears and
find new ways of happiness. Although you
may not remember your dreams be sure that the information resides within your
subconscious and will help you in many ways.
It’s worth keeping a dream journal right now and upon waking jot down
your dreams or how you feel as soon as you wake up. They may not make sense right now, but in a
few weeks or months’ time you may start to see a pattern or a message in what
you have been observing. Possible specific
meanings: recurring dreams are speaking to you be sure to pay attention.,
respect and act upon your hearts desires, consult a dream expert or a book of dream
meanings, make sure you are getting enough sleep, go to bed sober as chemicals
can interrupt REM sleep (dream sleep).
Moody
Moon
This month the new moon falls on May 15th at
12.47 in the sign of Taurus which is a sign of stability and material
security. It’s a great day for choosing
a big home purchase like a sofa or car or new TV as you will be influenced by
the Taurean need to be surrounded by lovely things and will probably choose a
real classy piece, just be careful you don’t end up spending too much money
just to keep up with the Jones’!
The full moon is on the 29th at 15.19 and falls
in the sign of Sagittarius, the adventurer, the traveller. Of course this is a fantastic day for travel,
a great day for a new adventure. Any news today will be treated by you with an
open philosophical mind, you won’t be goaded into any rows which is good news
and are able to see the positive in any situation today.
On May 5th there is an Eta Aquarids Meteor
shower which will produce up to 40 meteors per hour at its peak. Best viewing will be from a dark location
after midnight. Meteors will radiate
from the constellation Aquarius but can appear anywhere in the sky.
Eat:
asparagus, new potatoes, radishes, lamb, salmon, and gooseberries
Play: Do
something different one evening in the week now we have lighter evenings…. A
walk, a swim, gardening….
Love:
language. Try some new words out on your tongue, try Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, try
to learn a new word from the dictionary every day this month! Enjoy the ‘foreignness’ of it on your
tongue. How does it make you feel?
