First of all, before you begin, relax! Clear your head! Clear your heart. But especially your head-your mind. Relax emotionally, mentally, physically. It╒s important to be very natural.
Second, when you chant, you really need to use your eyes! FOCUS ON THE GOHONZON! THEN LISTEN TO YOUR VOICE! Focus on the center part of the Gohonzon (The character ╥Myoho-mystical!╙). You have to use your eyes. This is very important. When you really use your eyes, your mind stops. Clear your brain, clear your thoughts. When you're busy, thinking all the time, your brain sucks energy, which means that only your brain is getting stronger (which isn't healthy). But your core isn't changing, because the energy isn't going there. What you have to do is really look at the Gohonzon and relax your mind.
The Gohonzon knows your worries and your desires. Keep everything in your heart; just chant! Then when Nam Myoho Renge Kyo comes into tune with the core of your life, Nam Myoho Renge Kyo will melt away and dissolve karma. It will change it into strength, so you can become stronger emotionally. You should come to enjoy the act of chanting. When you are thinking strategies, you are not changing your karma.
Question: ╥When I chant I often imagine what I want, I picture it in my mind; picture it happening. Is that ok?╙ Positive imaginations are good, but not strategies. Positive imaginations are good, but if you get to "How to Make it Happen?" instead of the images of it, then you are strategizing. Prayer should come from the heart, the Gohonzon knows your worries and desires! Keep them in your heart, focus on the Gohonzon, and SIMPLY CHANT. If you can, do simple, good daimoku and gongyo. NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO goes stronger, deeper, to expand you, dissolve bad karma and generate good karma.
Daimoku should come from the heart. If daimoku comes from the brain, the brain becomes stronger. When you close your eyes or avert them, the power to focus on the Gohonzon weakens and the mind plays around, then the POWER TO GAZE AT THE GOHONZON becomes weaker. Include all five senses. Chant clearly, confidently, comfortably. We need to keep checking ourselves. We tend to get carried away by force of habit (our old habits) chanting uptight or chanting emotionally.
DON'T READ WHILE YOU CHANT: DON'T DO ANYTHING WHILE YOU CHANT, BUT CHANT! When you read, read. When you chant, chant. After good daimoku, you may read, or your schedule may require you to get right to work or do things you need to do. You may have a busy life, but don't have busy daimoku. Don't be busy while you chant╤FOCUS. Through good daimoku, you can melt away negative karma. Karma is going to be dissolved. After Gongyo, be busy, but during it, just focus on chanting. Chanting is a time to cultivate your life; not think about your strategies. Daimoku is the time to enrich your Buddha nature, not the time to have a planning meeting for your life (or day).
