Sufferings Are the Fuel for Our Happiness

When we do gongyo and chant [Nam-myoho-renge-kyo] before the Gohonzon, the good and evil capacities of our lives begin to function as the exalted form of fundamental existence. Lives that are full of the pain of hell, lives that are in the state of hunger, lives warped by the state of anger—such lives, too, begin to move in the direction of creating their own personal happiness and value. Lives being pulled toward misfortune and unhappiness are redirected and pulled in the opposite direction, toward good, when they make the Mystic Law their base. It is as if sufferings are made the fuel for a fire of joy, wisdom and compassion. It is the Mystic Law and faith that ignite that flame. (My Dear Friends in America, third edition, p. 46)

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In short, it is important to become people who view things not in terms of tiny, selfish concerns but from a larger, more generous perspective. We have to pray to the Gohonzon to become more broadminded and tolerant. We have to chant and look unflinchingly at the people and things in our lives that are making us unhappy. Running away from things we find unpleasant is what causes suffering. But if we face and challenge such situations, they will enrich our lives. (Discussions on Youth, pp. 99–100)