The Odaimoku in the center of the Mandala Gohonzon is manifesting the entity of the Original Buddha in our mind. As such, it contains all the Buddhas of the ten directions — the four cardinal points, the intersections between each, and the zenith and nadir. It also contains all the sentient beings of all the Dharma realms, the lands of those realms and, in fact, everything in them. In other words, everything is contained in and embraced by Namu Myoho Renge Kyo.

There is no division between us and them or self and other. Namu Myoho Renge Kyo manifests what’s in our mind and everything beyond our minds from the perspective of the Original Buddha. The trick is for us to operate from that perspective of the Original Buddha within us. That’s incredibly difficult to maintain in every moment of one’s life. It’s not impossible; just hard. There is no easy path to enlightenment, as you can see. The work of the Buddha, our work, is never fully done.

Whether the focal point of your gazing or veneration is a mandala Gohonzon or a statue arrangement Gohonzon, there is no doctrinal distinction. They are all equal. In Nichiren Shu, there are five versions of the object of worship that are recognized: a full statue arrangement, a full calligraphic scroll, the single phrase Namu Myoho Renge Kyo, a statue of the Buddha, a statue of the Buddha and Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. Each is equal to the others. Never fear that because you don’t have all the statues you are somehow missing out. Regardless of which one you have or if you have none, it is your faith and practice that is most important.

In Nichiren Buddhism, whether using calligraphy on paper or statues [as an object of worship], we are not some disconnected observer. On the calligraphic mandala we are gazing up at the two Buddhas, Shakyamuni and Taho, seated on either side of the Odaimoku, which represents the great Stupa in the ceremony in the air. On either side of the two Buddhas are the Four Great Bodhisattvas, leaders of the Buddha’s original disciples, who rose up from under the ground. Everyone else depicted on the mandala is looking up at the two Buddhas. We join this gathering when we gaze upon the mandala.
In some ways there is no ceremony until we join. Everyone in the congregation, every character on the paper mandala, every wooden statue is waiting on you to begin the ceremony. The ceremony is being held just for you. They could have finished up 3,000 years ago, but at the request of the Buddha they have waited. The Buddha told them someone of great importance was coming and now finally you have arrived. Go to them and tell them you are ready to begin the ceremony in the air.

When we place faith in our practice, what best represents our faith is our actions. If, in our prayers, we somehow believe we are no longer responsible for taking appropriate actions on our own behalf, or that we no longer need to change our patterns of behavior, then our prayers are misguided and potentially harmful.

When I lead Daimoku chanting at my temple I always tell people as we begin to “chant with great joy and confidence.” I do this because I’ve experienced the difference. I can feel the difference from chanting with joy and confidence deep down in my life. Even if my voice is weak, as it sometimes is now as I age, in my mind, in my heart, I hold the thought of strength, confidence, and joy.

When we can approach our practice with the thought that what we are doing is huge, it is phenomenal, it is significant, it is powerful, and we are doing this thing and we are a part of it and we are making it happen in our lives, that is when we can begin to approach the tremendous joy that the Lotus Sutra holds for us. The Lotus Sutra is there waiting for us to enter and enter in a big way.

Our practice … is larger, much larger, and more significant than we appreciate as we recite the sutra. We are no small speck of life in an infinite universe. We are grand and noble beings whose thoughts, voice, and actions reverberate across the cosmos, witnessed by all the Buddhas of the past, present, and future. These actions are witnessed and heard by every deity, every protective force, and even Mara King Devil. Our voice vibrates endlessly far beyond the space in which we are chanting, far beyond the walls surrounding us, far beyond the building, and even further still beyond our solar system.

When we can begin to shift our self-awareness to the grandeur of our actions as connected with and expressed toward the Lotus Sutra, then our lives begin to shift and expand. It is as if you sometimes feel like your physical body is not large enough. At times I’ve almost felt like I might explode.

Recent scientific studies exploring the effect of the mind’s thoughts on the actions being performed at the time have shown that when the mind thinks an activity is exercise and not simply work or chores, then the body burns more calories and muscles actually gain strength more so than if we hold in our mind thoughts of chores or tedium. Walking to the bathroom, an action we may do mindlessly, when thought of as walking exercise burns more calories than mindlessly walking to relieve one’s bladder. These are small things, yet show how powerful the mind is and how important framing our thoughts can be.

“Chapter one of the Annotations on the Words and Phrases of the Lotus Sutra says, ‘The calling of the Wonderful Dharma is not just the main part of the sutra. All the 28 chapters together are called wonderful. That is why each chapter contains the entity and each phrase converges in the wonderful name.’ We bow to Myoho Renge Kyo, the Saddharmapuṇḍarika, in one set with 8 fascicles, 28 chapters, and 69,384 characters. Each character is a true Buddha. The preaching of a true Buddha benefits all sentient beings. Therefore, all sentient beings have already attained the Buddha Way. That is why we bow to the Lotus Sutra.”

Sutei Hoyo Shiki, page 395

When we carry out our practice of the Lotus Sutra, when we venerate the Lotus Sutra, when we bow to or lift the sutra, we are doing all of these things not simply because of the word Wonderful in the title. Everything contained within the sutra is wonderful. It is a collection of wonderfulness. Each of the 69,384 Chinese characters that comprise the text of the sutra is a Buddha and each of those Buddhas benefits us. We bow to each of them when we bow to the Lotus Sutra.

Let me interject a caution here. I’m not sure I would have even mentioned this say 10 or so years earlier, but I need to address the increase of religions that teach prosperity as an indicator of faith or that prosperity must come first before helping others. While it is true that we benefit from our practice, it is not true that our benefits are the indicator of our faith or practice. Prospe