No matter how great the misfortune may appear to be, the question is whether you yourself fully believe this principle of the Mystic Law. You may suspect that since the trouble is so serious, it may not be followed by great good fortune. That is not believing in this principle at all. The passage does not say, “Great misfortune is always followed by great good fortune, but super-great misfortune is not.”. If one of your practising friend (or you yourself) is faced with a serious problem, you must emphasize the above passage and sincerely try to convince him of the Gohonzon’s power. His victory or defeat, so to speak, lies in whether or not he can bring himself to believe in this teaching. If he takes faith in it, then all he has to do is practice exactly as the Daishonin teaches.
There is no problem whatsoever which cannot be turned into a springboard for happiness, no poison which cannot be changed into medicine. Even if one fails in business, he will be able to recover as long as he maintains his faith. If often happens, however, that when one fails in business, he also allows himself to fail in faith. This is something about which we must be careful.
Anyone would think that victory is impossible and that’s probably how you feel right now. But don’t forget this marvellous Gohonzon we have. It has the power to transform something you’d normally think is impossible into something possible. Those who give up before they try, thinking that it’s impossible, don’t really know the power of the Mystic Law. Only people who can bring forth the Mystic Law’s power can succeed at anything they try. The strategy of the Lotus Sutra means to put faith in the Gohonzon first in whatever we do, and then make our very best effort upon that basis.
In this way, we can bring the impossible within reach. If one devotes himself to the practice of faith in this way, good fortune is sure to follow. Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism is a teaching for accumulating inexhaustible good fortune. No matter how well educated, healthy or wealthy a person may be, or how comfortable his circumstances may appear, when his good fortune comes to an end, life will be miserable. No matter how high one’s status or position, if the direction of his life is not in harmony with the fundamental Law of life, he will not be happy.
Those people who practice to the Gohonzon already have good fortune, because they have been able to meet this supreme Law. And, as they continue to practice, they are accumulating more good fortune all the time.
