GONGYO AND DAIMOKU

GONGYO AND DAIMOKU

Let me now talk about why we do Gongyo and Chant Daimoku. 

Life is eternal, without beginning or end. It continues from the past to the present and from the present to the future, strictly at the mercy of the individual’s karma and fate, according to the law of the cause and effect."The Opening of the eyes”, reads 

“If you want to understand the causes that existed in the past, look at the results as they are manifested in the present. And if you want to understand what results will be manifested in the future, look at causes that exist in the present”. 

At this present moment, we are creating causes while at the same time receiving the results of the causes we have created since the infinite past. Think, for example, of a water pipe. If it is not used for a long time, it will rust and the water which runs through it will become turbid. In this example, the turbid water is compared to the unhappy life-condition of the human being which is bound by the negative karma. One’s life has stored up negative karma, and it has become “turbid” for aeons from the infinite past. However, as you continue chanting to the Gohonzon everyday with strong faith, sending clean water into the water pipe, that is, your life, you will eventually change your karma fundamentally without fail just as the water becomes clear. Therefore it is necessary to do Gongyo and chant Daimoku every day without interruption.

Daisaku Ikeda

(Buddhism in Action 1, page 61-2)