Chapter 1

Chapter 1 - My mother's first contact with Nichiren Daishonin Buddhism


My mother met Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism for the first time in 1972, exactly one year before I was born, through a very close friend if hers (use his first) who had been practising for many years and had changed his life for the better since starting chanting. So what I am about to tell you are part passed on to me by my mother and a big part of it I experienced with her.

At that time my mother was suffering a lot due to my father’s unemployment; he was a designer and had been looking for a job for a long time without success and for this they were going through major financial difficulties to the point of not been able to provide food for themselves. At times they had to resort to ask neighbours, friends and family for food.

‘My mother’s friend’ (use his first name) assured her that she could achieve everything she wanted and change her karma and her family karma through chanting Nam- myoho- renge- Kyo.

Although my mother didn’t quite believe that a funny phrase (Nam myoho renge kyo) could in actual fact help her, she decided to try because she was desperate. She chanted every day for my father to find a good permanent job.  

Approximately a month later, my father got a job in a well established big company. They were ecstatic for this achievement which was actual proof the chanting worked, however soon after she stopped chanting.

Chanting for a month gave my mother the benefit but because she did not change the karma profoundly -at a deeper level - my father would soon lose the job again as he did previously. It was a repeated pattern of his. The problem did not hinge on the fact that he couldn’t find a job but on that he had to change some behaviour which was not good; the guy was irresponsible! He would turn up to work late and leave early as he pleased!

After long looking for jobs, yet again without success, he became unmotivated and depressed and turned to alcohol and drugs to escape reality falling into major debts with drug dealers and alcohol shops. We soon started to receive threats from the drug dealers, who would kill my dad if we did not pay them. My mother had a small job at that time and the earnings were barely enough to live on and pay expenses.

I remember one day a friend of family came to look for my mother as he had seen my father in the street on his knees with a gun pointed at his head by a drug dealer who wanted money. My mother took the littlemoney she had saved to pay our bills and gave it to the dealer.

Our financial situation began spiraling downward with my mother having to pay for my dad’s addiction and our daily expenses. She would be working very hard every day to give us a better life. I remember manytimes seeing my mother crying at night. The burden caused by so many difficult problems soon made mymother sick. The stress and anxiety attacked her nervous system and gastroenterology system.

The pain at her stomach was at times so debilitating so that she would be bed bound lying face down with pillows under her tummy to try and relieve the pain. No prescribed medication would work.

In 1981, my mother was working for the Yakut Company as a sales consultant selling products door to door. One day, as she approaches a house she hears a female voice chanting Nam- myoho- renge- Kyo.
She is determined to find out whether it was indeed the same chanting that her friend (use his name) had taught her back in 1972. She sits on the porch and patiently waits – a long time! – for the lady to stop chanting.

Once the chanting stops she knocks at the door…