hi Mark, long time no see, great to encounter you again via your blog!
to all, I'm formerly known as the artist named karmagrrl ;)
my history: I have been practicing Kempon Hokke since I first encountered it in the '90s. I joined SGI in 1988, then Nichiren Shoshu in 1992, dissatisfied with both I simply prayed and studied. when I came across Kempon Hokke, I felt comfortable with the practice, and found fellowship with the members. some of the members had a schism and I don't care for drama, so I simply began again - alone again - with nothing but Namu Myoho Renge Kyo and the Lotus Sutra, plus various Nichiren writings I have collected.
I'm sad to hear, Mark, of your dissociation with KH and would like to learn more about your current spiritual practice. my email is mandalamama@me.com, contact me!
having been a sole praticioner for so long, with all sects of Nichiren seeming too tumultuous, I prefer to look at things from the outside. I have never understood why *anyone* who has encountered the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren's teachings are threatened with the Avici hell ... it's said that one word of the Lotus Sutra places you on the path to enlightenment. though some may not visibly be on a path to enlightenment, surely all those people have had the seeds of enlightenment planted in their life?
so I figure as an American, without the funding to go to Japan and research everything for myself, the best I can do is keep it simple. I recite the Hoben and Juryo chapters, and Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. I don't allow myself to get entangled in drama of any kind. I'm just a single mom trying to raise my child as best I can.
I sorely miss having other people to study and practice with! I have no family, and live in an area with few Buddhists who openly practice anything. it is tempting to just "give up" and go to a SGI meeting in another town, just so I can take comfort in the crowd, hearing the bells and chanting, smelling the incense, enjoying the most simple fellowship. but my conscience always stops me, it says "you've progressed past this, go forwards not backwards."
so, where can I go now? I'm looking to connect with other people who practice similarly to me, but I'm not looking for any drama or squabbling over doctrine. even though it's very lonely, I feel being a sole practitioner for so long has had a soul-cleansing affect on me. getting caught in dogmatic conflict only wore me out and made me feel like less of a person for not practicing the "right" way. :(
mostly, I want to be able to teach my 9-yr-old daughter how to be a Buddhist, without confusing her with sectarian lines and arguments. she's learning about all religions (we attend some of the Unitarian Universalist church's services and she's enrolled in the education program) and she is very savvy, a great critical thinker. she knows something's "off" with me because my religion/ philosophy has no church or temple she can go to, no one to ask questions of, no book that explains everything clearly. she loves to chant and meditate, but doesn't understand why I remain alone.
sorry for the wall of text. *sheepish grin* Mark, and anyone, please shoot me an email and give me some ideas on how to move forward and be more involved somehow, and how to raise as Lotus sutra Buddhist child in the U.S.
to all, I'm formerly known as the artist named karmagrrl ;)
my history: I have been practicing Kempon Hokke since I first encountered it in the '90s. I joined SGI in 1988, then Nichiren Shoshu in 1992, dissatisfied with both I simply prayed and studied. when I came across Kempon Hokke, I felt comfortable with the practice, and found fellowship with the members. some of the members had a schism and I don't care for drama, so I simply began again - alone again - with nothing but Namu Myoho Renge Kyo and the Lotus Sutra, plus various Nichiren writings I have collected.
I'm sad to hear, Mark, of your dissociation with KH and would like to learn more about your current spiritual practice. my email is mandalamama@me.com, contact me!
having been a sole praticioner for so long, with all sects of Nichiren seeming too tumultuous, I prefer to look at things from the outside. I have never understood why *anyone* who has encountered the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren's teachings are threatened with the Avici hell ... it's said that one word of the Lotus Sutra places you on the path to enlightenment. though some may not visibly be on a path to enlightenment, surely all those people have had the seeds of enlightenment planted in their life?
so I figure as an American, without the funding to go to Japan and research everything for myself, the best I can do is keep it simple. I recite the Hoben and Juryo chapters, and Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. I don't allow myself to get entangled in drama of any kind. I'm just a single mom trying to raise my child as best I can.
I sorely miss having other people to study and practice with! I have no family, and live in an area with few Buddhists who openly practice anything. it is tempting to just "give up" and go to a SGI meeting in another town, just so I can take comfort in the crowd, hearing the bells and chanting, smelling the incense, enjoying the most simple fellowship. but my conscience always stops me, it says "you've progressed past this, go forwards not backwards."
so, where can I go now? I'm looking to connect with other people who practice similarly to me, but I'm not looking for any drama or squabbling over doctrine. even though it's very lonely, I feel being a sole practitioner for so long has had a soul-cleansing affect on me. getting caught in dogmatic conflict only wore me out and made me feel like less of a person for not practicing the "right" way. :(
mostly, I want to be able to teach my 9-yr-old daughter how to be a Buddhist, without confusing her with sectarian lines and arguments. she's learning about all religions (we attend some of the Unitarian Universalist church's services and she's enrolled in the education program) and she is very savvy, a great critical thinker. she knows something's "off" with me because my religion/ philosophy has no church or temple she can go to, no one to ask questions of, no book that explains everything clearly. she loves to chant and meditate, but doesn't understand why I remain alone.
sorry for the wall of text. *sheepish grin* Mark, and anyone, please shoot me an email and give me some ideas on how to move forward and be more involved somehow, and how to raise as Lotus sutra Buddhist child in the U.S.
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