Sunday, March 28, 2010

Article for Starbulletin

I wrote an article titled, "To Protect Beautiful Earth," for Starbulletin, a Hawaii local newspaper.

Tetsuya Abe

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   Did you sleep well last night? Some of you might not have been able to sleep for some reason; however, I think most of you slept soundly in your bed. But what if you were thinking the world may completely change the following morning?

   It is not only in the world of movies that the world changes overnight. Many scientists agree that we will see the earth in a catastrophic state 20 or 50 years from now if we do not take effective measures immediately and seriously. However, there is a line of thought that it is a matter of such global scale that we cannot make any difference. In response to such an idea, 2004 Nobel Peace Prize winner Wangari Muta Maathai retold the following African story about "little hummingbird."

   A big fire started in the woods. Great blazes were everywhere and every single animal ran in fear out of the woods except for a little hummingbird who said, "I have to do something about that fire." Then, the hummingbird flew to the nearest spring and took some drops of water with his tiny beak. He flew to the fire, came back for more water and went back again to the fire. And he kept doing it. Meanwhile, the bigger animals looked at the hummingbird and said, "Little hummingbird, stop doing that, you can't fight this fire." But the little hummingbird didn't pay any attention to them and said to himself, "I'm doing the best I can."

   In Seicho-No-Ie, we consider our environment as a shadow of our minds; therefore, it will change when our minds change. We think this principle can also apply on a global scale. Since what is taking place on the planet is a shadow of people's collective minds, it is important to change individual minds from a mind of taking from the earth to a mind of compassion for the earth.

   We in Seicho-No-Ie have been dealing with this issue from our religious standpoint: to worship and be grateful for everything as manifestations of the life of God, to hold a belief that we are sustained by the whole universe, and to practice and spread this mindset, which is of utmost importance in solving this problem. If these ideas seem interesting, please visit the following site: http://www.seicho-no-ie.org/eng/environment/index.html
 

Monday, March 15, 2010

2010 March Message

Let Us Actively Spread the “Child of God Realization” to All
Tetsuya Abe
Acting Chief, Seicho-No-Ie Hawaii Missionary Area

  It has been just 80 years since Seicho-No-Ie was founded on March 1, 1930. I would like to extend my sincerest gratitude to our founder Masaharu Taniguchi who started this movement with all his might, former President Rev. Seicho Taniguchi who succeeded our founder and carried out his will perfectly, and President Masanobu Taniguchi who assumed the post of Seicho-No-Ie presidency just 1 year ago and has been warmly guiding all SNI followers around the world.

  Rev. Seicho Taniguchi taught us the meaning of Founding Day as follows:

  Seicho-No-Ie was founded on March 1, 1930. This is the date on which our Holy Master Masaharu Taniguchi first published the magazine named "Seicho-No-Ie." It is the memorable day when the Truth which had been treasured in the True Image World came into this world for the first time. That is why all SNI members around the world celebrate the day. (Nobiyuku Hibi no Kotoba, or Daily Words for Growth, p. 64)

  The reason why Seicho-No-Ie exists on earth, grants hope for a better life to many people including ourselves, and promotes the movement to bring about world peace is because our founder Masaharu Taniguchi brought "the Truth treasured in the True Image World" into this world. I believe the only way to repay our sense of gratitude to him is to propagate the teachings to as many people as possible.

  There is an anecdote in the Buddhist scriptures that tells how valuable it is to meet the Truth. Once upon a time there was a blind turtle that came up to the ocean's surface once in a hundred years to breathe. Floating in the same sea, there was a 10-foot-square board with a small hole that was almost the same size as the turtle's head. The chance that the head of the turtle which came up to the surface once in a hundred years fits in the hole of the floating board is extremely small; however, the chance for us to meet the Truth is almost as rare and valuable as the blind turtle's head fitting in the hole.

  We are very fortunate to know the Seicho-No-Ie teachings and meet the most excellent master ahead of most of the world's population ― about 7 billion people. Founder Masaharu Taniguchi led various kinds of movements to contribute to society by applying the SNI teachings according to the need of the time. Now is the time when people in the world have to address global environmental problems hand in hand. Based upon the spirit of the Divine Message of Grand Harmony, all SNI leaders and members worldwide are promoting the "Movement that Grows with Nature" with one heart. These efforts are shown as the Movement Policy that is presented every year; the 2010 Movement Policy will be coming soon (it will appear in the May issue of this Newsletter).

  To convey the teachings in accordance with the Movement Policy is to carry out the priceless deeds of love that increase happy homes, manifest the True Image of all sentient and non-sentient beings, contribute to the resolution of global warming problems, and realize world peace. Please read the following article on propagation written by founder Masaharu Taniguchi and actively spread the Child-of-God realization to our surroundings with courage and a bright mind. Thank you very much.

   The reason why I am spreading this bright-thought philosophy―“Seicho-No-Ie" ―is not for material gain or to satisfy my own personal quest for fame as the highest esteemed teacher who expounds the Way to the people. It is only when I realize that I am Buddha [divine] and others are also Buddha, that I feel unbearably sorry for those people who have manifested forms unlike Buddha in spite of being one themselves. I am Buddha. That person is also Buddha. Nonetheless, there are those who do not realize that they are Buddha but present themselves in various aspects of poverty, sickness, and misery. When I realize this, I am overcome by an irresistible desire to let them know that their image is the same as that of Buddha. After all, this impulse comes from the Truth that "self and others are essentially one." When you realize that you are a Buddha, you cannot help but to let another know that he also has Buddha-nature. When you realize that you are God, you cannot help but to let him know that he is also God-like. This is the "self and others are one" realization, i.e., love of Buddha and love of God. To practice this love is an act of bodhisattva.
  There may be people who think that to spread Seicho-No-Ie means to spread the Seicho-No-Ie magazines. However, this is not to spread the magazines but to spread "Buddha," the "child of God" realization. It is to spread the vibrations of the words that would make every person a "Buddha," a "child of God." (Seimei no Jisso, or Truth of Life, vol. 28, pp. 53-55)