When I began my practice of Buddhism my life condition was in hell. I had lost hope, courage and confidence. My self esteem was low and life had not been good. My primary spiritual practice for 37 years has been the study of the Lotus Sutra. I also study other Buddhist traditions and methods for self awareness. Chanting raises my life condition, clears my mind and centers me. It brings me into balance and harmony with myself; this balance and harmony extends into my environment. I am aware of the prison issues and problems with bringing Buddhism into most prison systems. Some are changing, but many people and organizations make the choice not to become involved. I am happy that I and others are finding ways to do what we can to help inmates who are interested in Buddhism. We help with spiritual support and friendship. We are all teachers and students and have much to share and learn from each other. There have been many people in history that have been in prison who have gained great insights. We are all Prisoners of discrimination, judgement, addiction, emotion, hate, fear and Karma. But we are only prisoners of those afflictions until we find true freedom from within. This in no way is making light of your environment. The only true freedom we have is the freedom to choose the thoughts we think. For me, prayer {Chanting "Namu Myoho Renge Kyo"} IS talking to God, Buddha, the Great Spirit, Life Force, or whatever name one chooses to descibe the undescribable. Silence {Meditation} is listening to the answers from within. Observing Ones Own Mind allows all of that and more. I believe that Karma can be changed. We have made the choices for what we have experienced. Life is eternal and we are Spiritual beings having a human experience. At some level we made the choice (cause) for our life experience. Renge = cause and effect. When we are born we get amnesia and forget who we are. Buddhist practice is about Awakening, finding the light in the darkness. For me it is a true miracle, seeing beauty for the first time is beyond my words to describe. Being able to love myself and others. Being able to trust is a blessing no words can convey. To have the desire to live one more day and find inner freedom from my bondage of old ideas. To have the freedom to turn sadness and loneliness into Joy. I have transformed my world in many ways and enjoy an environment that I could never have believed possible. I have appreciation for life. It has been a long hard painful journey to reach this point. I have shared this practice with many others and have watched their lives transform, heal and grow. I have lived in the forest for 15 years with my husband of 20 years, Bob, who is also a practicing Buddhist for 30+ years. We are bound by spirit, common goals and mutual respect. We each have a unique special life purpose that only we can fulfill. I have a mission. You have a mission. It is important to pay attention to where a person spends their energy. We must learn what we are here to learn and teach what we are to teach. One person can make a difference in a negative or a positive way. All life is interconnected and at the depth of life we are all one. We are Buddhists of many traditions that have united to support Buddhist inmates by writing letters and doing what we can to get Buddhist books into prisons and help spiritually. Our numbers are few, our resources small, we also try to get qualified people into prisons for Buddhist services. ITAI DOSHIN is a Buddhist term that means few in number, one in mind. A few people united toward a common goal can make the impossible possible. All rivers run into the ocean. What we all will understand someday is that ALL RIVERS ARE THE OCEAN. Namu Myho Renge Kyo is a primordial sound of the universe. A song/music of the cosmos. Life is a Circle Within a Circle With no Beginning and Never Ending. We are the Flow, We are the Ebb, We are the Weavers, We are the Web. |
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| I am Betty Buck, a.k.a. Chanterkyo, the founder of The BIS {The Buddhist Inmate Sangha}, a non-sectarian support group for Buddhist inmates. |