SGI Women's Chronicles

Surfing the Mystic Law

02 Sep 2011 6 Comments

by Michelle Flowers in Faith, Guest Bloggers, Personal thoughts, Practice, Study

Today, I am honored to share an inspirational presentation written by my friend and fellow SGI Buddhist, David Barile. He lives and works in Los Angeles.

I have been surfing since high school, and over the years have realized countless spiritual insights about surfing which embody Buddhist principles. Here is a composite experience based on many of my experiences surfing rolled into one:

I went surfing yesterday. First, as I stood onshore stretching, I watched some beginners jump in and get pounded by the surf. Waves come in sets. Surfers learn this rhythm of nature, and can conserve energy paddling out by timing between sets. Likewise, understanding the law of cause and effect can allow us to be more effective and graceful in our lives.

(1) We chant for wisdom – timing, patience, clear perception:

As we chant Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo, we fuse with the Mystic Law, which is the undercurrent of all life. We begin to understand and recognize the patterns that govern nature, our environment, and the behavior of all beings, which are manifestations of the Mystic Law.

As I was paddling out, the waves loomed above my head and pounded me. When just beginning, or when I have not been surfing in a while, my ability to paddle out, to position myself in front of a breaking wave, to push myself up when catching a wave, are all lessened. When I have been surfing a lot, my muscles are developed and my endurance is high.

Surfing takes physical strength and stamina, just as life, with its daily challenges requires a high life condition. By chanting regularly, I raise my life condition, and consequently see higher levels of performance in my life – in my interactions with people, and ease of flow in my environment.

When paddling out, it seemed like the oncoming waves would never stop. I wanted to give up and paddle into shore. I had to summon forth the strength and determination to keep going, or never reap the benefits and the joys of surfing. I realized that the more I paddle now, the better shape I will be in for the future, and the next time the paddle out will be that much easier.

(2) We chant for courage – strength, determination:

This is true of life – initially obstacles daunt us, but as we continue to practice and gain strength and confidence in our ability to overcome them, life becomes easier and more enjoyable. It occurred to me that the VERY SAME waves pounding me as I paddled out are the waves that give exhilaration as I ride them. I realized I should not wish for the waves to be smaller, but for the ability to navigate them skillfully. Waves are like our challenges and obstacles in life. We do not chant for them to go away, but rather for the skill to use them to create value in our lives and awaken our wisdom, courage and compassion. Our challenges are the fuel for our enlightenment.

When paddling out, there is a technique which helps you get past the oncoming waves called “duck-diving” in which you sink the board and nosedive headlong into the heart of the wave – underneath the turbulent crashing crest of the wave. In Buddhism, we chant for the courage to dive into the heart of our challenges, and make causes to transform our fundamental darkness.

My arms burned as I duck-dived head on into wave after wave, then I realized if I looked far ahead, I could predict clear patches through which I could navigate around the waves. By chanting we awaken our Buddha wisdom and the perception to navigate wisely and gracefully around obstacles in life.

At last I made it out past the surf-line. As I rested my arms which felt like rubber, caught my breath, and started to watch the horizon for big swells, it dawned on me that the paddle out is like our experience of the lower 5 of the Ten Worlds: Hell, Hunger, Animality, Anger, Humanity. When we get out past the surf line, I liken it to the higher 5 Ten Worlds: Tranquility, Learning, Realization, Bodhisattva and Buddhahood.

I wanted to stay out past the surf-line forever, but if I did that, I would not be surfing. I must re-enter the zone of breaking waves to actually catch and ride the waves – to fully live a fulfilled life, just as we must continuously go back into the fray to help awaken others – the Bodhisattva vow of compassion.

Sitting on my board, waiting for the next set to come, bobbing up and down as the unformed waves rolled by underneath me, I became aware how connected I am with my environment – in fact, I felt like I was part of the ocean itself. According to Nichiren, we are manifestations of the Mystic Law – not separate. The more we can awaken this awareness, the more we can be in rhythm with it, and with others who are also manifestations of this Law. We can tap into the abundance, the wisdom, the creativity of the Mystic Law – the very same force that created the universe, and gives life to all beings.

There in the vast ocean, some sort of mystical awareness opened up inside me, and I remembered myself as an infinite multi-dimensional being having a human experience. I basked in this profound state of consciousness, embraced the deep soul-searching moment, wherein I reflected on my choices in life, and redetermined my mission. Eventually I let go of this heightened awareness, returning to my “normal human consciousness”, paddled back in to surf a bit more and then go about my daily life, re-invigorated with clarity and purpose.

When we chant to the Gohonzon, we awaken our dormant Buddha nature. From this consciousness, we can reflect on our choices and summon forth the courage, wisdom and compassion to make the causes in our lives to create value, overcome obstacles and spread goodness.

(3) We chant for patience and discernment:

Sometimes I must wait long periods for the next set. If I become impatient and swim in closer to shore to catch some smaller waves, when the big set waves come, I get caught inside, and battered into shore. I also battle a tendency to try and catch the very first set wave. Even if I get a decent ride, after I fall, the rest of the set waves pound me in to shore and I have to paddle out anew. The most enlightened approach is to patiently wait and have faith that after the first set wave will be a few even better ones, and catch one of those. If it’s one of the last in the set, once I finish my ride, I have a nice glassy ocean through which to paddle back out to the surf line.

To catch a wave requires timing and experience. If you are too far ahead of a wave, it will break on your head. If you are not far enough ahead, it will pass under you. With experience, we can develop our intuition to know exactly where to position ourselves. By awakening our Buddha wisdom in life, we learn about timing and positioning- when is a good time to ask the boss for a raise or how to tactfully bring up an troubling issue with your spouse.

At last, I saw the perfect wave… I paddled into position and caught it. Oh, the rush!!!

Riding the wave is the fun part, but once standing, the is still tons of skill required. A good surfer can milk a long ride out of one wave, while a less experienced surfer may only get a few turns. With experience, I learned to ride to the higher part of the wave when the part ahead is just about to break, and by doing so, gain the speed necessary to make it past a section of whitewater. Again, by awakening our Buddha wisdom, we can learn to clearly recognize opportunities and to avoid pitfalls. A well-timed act of service or home visit can give just the right boost to our life condition to allow us to really nail that interview the next day.

At last I wiped out, which is an inevitable part of surfing – going “through the washing machine”. The bigger the waves are, the gnarlier the tumbling we get. Sometimes we can get held underwater a long time – and it can challenge our faith, as we doubt if we have enough air in our lungs to hold out. The challenges in life test our faith, as we doubt we have what it takes to overcome them.

As we get tumbled, we often find ourselves not knowing which way is up, and therefore not knowing which direction to swim for air. The secret is to touch bottom, and from this point use a strong push from our legs to propel us in the opposite direction towards the surface. Chanting to the Gohonzon gives us a touchstone, like the ocean floor, from which we can always steer ourselves in the right direction.

–David Barile