Conquering Challenges with a Courageous Attitude

Richard (centre) with his brother and sister, David and Naomi  

To this day, I appreciate that I was challenged as a child to try chanting in order to conquer my illness. Ever since then, I would not let myself get down because I could turn to my younger self, who determined to overcome asthma and accomplished that. I hope all the youth division members learn to seek challenges! It’s the only way to gain valuable experience in practising Nichiren Buddhism.

Your parents raised you to have an undefeated spirit, and we can see how you manifested that in your life. How were you able to maintain your Buddhist practice during your teenage years?  

What cemented my faith as a teenager was being driven to my district discussion meetings by my district leader, the late Sam Watanabe and his late wife Kay. At the time, my parents were the senior leaders of the Vancouver organization, and they therefore supported all the districts. As they carried out their responsibilities, my brother David and I got to learn about the practice on a personal level with our district leaders. Because our parents weren’t watching over us all the time, we were able to become independent in our practice. Thanks to the support and encouragement of my district and youth leaders, my practice really bloomed. They helped me develop a well-rounded attitude and a seeking mind in understanding Nichiren Buddhism and the spirit of the Soka Gakkai. They answered our questions, and they would genuinely ask us questions and listen to my brother’s and my answers. To have adults respect us as teenagers gave us tons of confidence.

This brings to mind the actions that President Ikeda took to foster the next generation and how each of us can play an active role in that endeavour. Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada explains: “President Ikeda’s nurturing of the Future Division was based upon trust. He put his whole life into every interaction with young people, respecting each as an individual. It was as if he was engaging in a solemn yet cheerful ceremony in which he bestowed a jewelled crown of hope upon every one of them” (NEW CENTURY, July 2024, p. 2).

 

You were also a Brass Band leader in Vancouver at an important time. Can you please share your experience about taking on that responsibility?

When I was 15 in Vancouver, the Brass Band was restarted by Ron Wong, the Vancouver Area young men’s leader. I was trained well by the senior young men’s leaders who supported the formation of the band. Shortly after we started, at the end of May 1983, my dad was one of the Canadian representatives who attended an SGI meeting in Alaska with President Ikeda. He showed a photo of the band to President Ikeda. On seeing the photo, President Ikeda decided to bestow the name “Great Harvest” to the Vancouver Brass Band. The symbolism of “Great Harvest” had to do with a fisherman catching a great harvest of fish. He knew my dad was a salmon fisherman. It was a metaphor encouraging the band to generate a great harvest of youth, learning and developing skills to benefit the SGI and society, and sending out many capable young people into our respective communities.

With all this encouragement—being named by President Ikeda and being in a band named by him—I felt a responsibility to protect and develop our SGI organization. I was then appointed the assistant band leader at the age of 18. Yoshi Sakaue, the Soka Group^[2] leader at the time, encouraged me, saying that the assistant’s role is very important in accomplishing the goals set by the leadership. I made sure I was victorious in helping to raise capable leaders for the achievement of kosen-rufu.^[3] Many are now leaders in their respective roles in their workplaces, and many are also leaders in their local SGI communities.

To this day, I am proud to have played a part in over 160 young men participating in the Brass Band during my time as one of its leaders. My goal during my leadership of the band was for everyone without exception to have fond memories of their time in the band. Now, 41 years since its inception, the Great Harvest Youth Band has continued to produce many capable youths.

It is very encouraging to hear about your efforts to foster successors. President Ikeda encouraged the youth saying: “I hope you will give your lives to being the staunchest friends and supporters of those suffering or in distress. And I hope you will cherish the Soka Gakkai, an organization of and for the people—that you will revere it, support it and work for its development. This is my heartfelt request of all of you” (Discussions on Youth, p. 240).

 

You had a health challenge in June 2005. How did you face it?

Honestly, only for a brief second did I feel sad for myself when I was told I have Parkinson’s disease. My next thought after receiving this diagnosis was that I have to become a radiant source of encouragement for anyone challenged in life. I was only 37 at the time, a year into being in the men’s group, so I purposely avoided seeing anyone with Parkinson’s because a part of me was scared to see what might happen to me in the future. Since I was very new to the disease, I had no clue where to turn for insight. But I started to slowly emerge from being alone, and I began engaging with others.

Now that I think of it, this coincided with the death of my dad. His ability to talk with anyone about anything was something I felt that in some ways I had adopted. I like to think this ability was transferred to me, but I realize that it was always there and just had to be awakened. My dad passed away on Saturday, May 3, 2008, and I was at work on Monday, May 5, because my dad would have wanted me to be at work. So, to honour him, I went. My co-workers all knew I am a Buddhist, so they were moved by my faith, since they all expected me to be depressed and down. But I told them that my strength comes from my understanding and acceptance of the role that death plays in the cycle of life from a Buddhist perspective. It felt great to know that by announcing to everyone that I am a Buddhist—and at a time when I had just started a new marketing role at work—I was enabling others to understand and recognize me through my actions, based on my faith in this philosophy. To this day, I’ve maintained my friendship with a co-owner of that business, and he still asks me questions about life and current topics from a Buddhist perspective—when we’re not talking about hockey and the Vancouver Canucks.

Your spirit to face your health challenges with courage and hope is inspiring. I understand that you have been involved with Parkinson Society British Columbia (PSBC). What kind of work are you engaged in within the Parkinson’s community?

From 2005 to 2016, I participated in the PSBC’s annual fundraiser called SuperWalk, and I collected donations. That was the extent of my involvement with the Parkinson’s community at that time. In June 2016, I decided I wanted to do more, and I got involved with the board of the PSBC. I felt that the board needed to be more representative of the diversity of our community.  Since that time, our board has become more diversified, but there is still more work that needs to be done. This year, I became Secretary of the Board of Directors.

Knowing what I know now, I wish I had connected with someone from the Parkinson’s community as soon as I found out I had this illness, because it is the most encouraging group of people that someone with the disease can be around. Although each person’s illness is unique to their own situation, we all have a common goal, which is to find a cure. In pursuing this goal, our camaraderie is heartwarming.

Richard at the annual SuperWalk fundraiser
for Parkinson's disease in Vancouver
in September 2024  

In April 2024, you received an award from Parkinson Society British Columbia (PSBC) in recognition of your volunteer work. Congratulations! How did you feel when you received this award?

For me, it was actual proof of the validity of myself as a Bodhisattva of the Earth. In 2019 and 2023, I had the great fortune to be fully supported financially to travel to the Kyoto World Parkinson Congress (WPC) and the 2023 Barcelona WPC by the PSBC. I really appreciate the PSBC for recognizing my contributions to their organization and granting me the opportunity to travel to both of these wonderful cities, representing the PSBC as a board member and as an active constituent of their organization.

You are active as a volunteer in other organizations as well. Can you tell us about that work?

There are a number of places where I volunteer.

I participate in several support groups, and I run one group online via Zoom from Vancouver for the South Okanagan, as they don't have a person who lives in the region who can facilitate their group. I also volunteer my time in a PSBC program called PD Link, which is a buddy system. I was matched with an individual who is new to Parkinson’s and wanted to know how I had faced a surgery he was about to have. Since he’s had his surgery, we’ve decided to keep in touch, and we have a call once a month to talk to each other about life. Sometimes, we compare notes on our respective symptoms and how we’re dealing with the disease.

I am a volunteer patient for the University of British Columbia’s (UBC) second-year medical students. These students are getting an overview of neurology and are given an opportunity to speak with someone with lived experience of a neurological condition. It’s really rewarding to hear how much the students appreciate meeting and talking with me about how I deal with Parkinson’s.

I also do advocacy. I have shared my experience with Parkinson’s to the B.C. government finance committee to advocate for action on a long list of items we want to be initiated. I provide my feedback as a patient advocate for the Canadian Open Parkinson Network (C-OPN), which is a group of 10 universities across Canada that have movement disorder specialists. Each university manages the input of data from research into a central database. My volunteer work here is to keep the researchers connected to the wants and needs from a patient perspective. This organization is still getting its bearings, and my biggest contribution has been to initiate one of four working groups, called Diversity. It is responsible for strategies to achieve more diversity in the data retrieved.

My latest endeavour is that I am now part of the Dancing with Parkinson’s (DwP) Board of Directors since October 2024. DwP is affiliated with David Leventhal, one of the founding teachers from the Mark Morris Dance Group (MMDG). The movement classes for Parkinson’s played a significant role in the transformation of my confidence to walk freely without caring about how I look to other people. To me, it makes sense to support the Canadian organization that is authorized by MMDG to teach this method of movement exercise for Persons with Parkinsons (PwP).

The work and time you are investing into volunteering is amazing, to say the least. All your efforts are creating value in the lives of many people—those with Parkinson’s as well as those who have yet to be diagnosed.  

I’m able to do what I do and keep busy volunteering because of the fact that I qualified for Deep Brain Stimulation (DBS) surgery on February 17, 2021. I had to endure seven hours of surgery on my brain while awake. They drilled two holes in my skull, and through those two holes they put leads in specific areas of my brain to stimulate and improve my symptoms. Primarily, what it has done for me is to virtually eliminate the involuntary movements in my upper body. Prior to surgery, I had practically given up on working because the involuntary movements made it difficult to sit and type, or even to move my mouse around a screen.

It is wonderful that this surgery was successful in helping to improve some of your symptoms. What are your views on how to share Nichiren Buddhism with others?

To practise Nichiren Buddhism correctly, we have to practise for self and others, as taught and lived by Nichiren Daishonin. Otherwise, we’re not true practitioners. If we receive benefits from practising but we don’t share this great philosophy with others, we are not practising for others. That means we are lacking in compassion, which is all-important in attaining Buddhahood. Instead, we’re being self-centred, aren’t we?

All it takes is courage—courage to honestly share one’s faith with someone who is facing a challenge, whether they are a friend, a colleague, a family member, or someone we have just met. We don’t need to use Buddhist terminology, which might be hard to understand in the beginning. Just speaking from one’s heart is all that is needed. How the person receives our encouraging words is up to that person. All we need to do is share our faith. When a person responds positively and decides at some point to start practising, that is when the real challenge begins. If we truly care about the person, we need to sincerely support them and help them grow in their faith. But we should remember that we are not their mentor. We should guide the friends we have introduced to study Nichiren Daishonin’s writings and President Ikeda’s guidance, and to practise together with fellow members. By making such efforts, they will come to realize that all of their questions can be answered by Nichiren Daishonin and President Ikeda. Our friendship, care and encouragement are the key factors that lead each person to discover the power of the Mystic Law^[4] in their own lives.

I always tell people I introduce that I may falter in my faith at times. But the writings of Nichiren Daishonin and President Ikeda will always lead us to victory in life.

If a person we’ve introduced responds negatively, we should never push them. We shouldn’t jeopardize our friendships or relationships with anyone. We should remember that everyone has the potential to reveal their Buddha nature, but it might not be the right time yet. We should have confidence that we have planted the seed and laid the foundation for that individual to reveal their Buddha nature in the future.

Those are words of wisdom gained from experience. Can you share a few favourite passages from Nichiren Daishonin’s writings or encouragement from President Ikeda that have inspired you over the years?

“Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is like the roar of a lion. What sickness can therefore be an obstacle?” (WND-1, 412). This passage has always been encouraging. To have confidence in our daimoku^[5] enables us to defeat all obstacles.

“Those who believe in the Lotus Sutra are as if in winter, but winter always turns to spring” (WND-1, 536). Our darkest nights don’t last forever, and eventually, light wins over the darkness.

I’ve always had a liking for the concept of the “eight winds”—to not be swayed by those who praise you, nor be swayed by those who throw shade on you.

And I have gained deep insight from the principle of “voluntarily assuming the appropriate karma,^[6]” as explained by President Ikeda in many of his lectures, essays and speeches. This principle helped me to understand that in past existences, I overcame such huge challenges that I promised to prove my faith in future existences and demonstrate the validity of Nichiren Buddhism. All of these have played a significant role in my understanding of my faith in Nichiren’s teachings.

What are your goals for the future?

My goal is to help find a cure for Parkinson’s disease within my lifetime. It’s hard to plan your future when Parkinson’s is stealing your physical abilities when you least expect it. But I remain hopeful, and I plan to live a long life, filled with abundant joy. I know that sounds like a vague answer, but I do feel joy daily—happy to be alive for another day.

If there is one piece of advice you could give to young people, what would that be?

Challenge yourself to be more than you are today and be better for tomorrow. And don’t take the easy route. Learn about what you fear or don’t understand. If you’re only used to being around your friends all the time, experience different groups of people. That’s part of learning about what you don’t understand. I had a great time in my youth because I had the opportunity to experience everything that there is in the SGI organization—working with the members and encouraging new friends and youth in the district, participating in cultural performances, participating in larger events, and working behind the scenes in Soka Group and Gajokai.^[7] My most memorable experience behind the scenes was supporting President Ikeda as one of his support staff during his visit to Vancouver in 1993.

If I can add one more thing, it is to be humble. Sometimes we might think we have all the answers, but it’s important to listen to our seniors in faith, since they’re trying to help us to be the best version of ourselves. My mom always taught me to be the better person, and that was always a hard pill to swallow. I would complain about things to her, and she would always encourage me to take the high road.

She also showed me a great example of how to live later in life and in one’s practice. She never turned down her district leaders if they asked her to share an experience or prepare for study meetings. She contributed by showing how to behave in your later years as a practitioner. She always strove to have dialogue with others, and she readily shared her faith.

I would therefore encourage our youth to please encourage your seniors in faith to contribute to your district meetings. They are a great resource, and we can learn from their experiences. They too will feel that they’re still valued by their district.

And don’t worry if you’re the only youth member in your district. See it as an opportunity for you to encourage a young friend to join you in your district. It is exciting to have youth in the district. If you’re the only youth member, it starts with you. One person who takes responsibility to share their faith with another person becomes the catalyst for growth.

As President Ikeda says:

The advance of kosen-rufu lies in the repetition of such patient, painstaking efforts to awaken one friend after another to faith in Nichiren Buddhism. This is true Buddhist practice.^[8]

Thank you very much, Richard, for taking the time to share your inspiring experience!

 

Published in February 2025 New Century

 

^{[1] Gohonzon: The object of devotion in Nichiren Buddhism. It is the embodiment of the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, expressing the life state of Buddhahood, which all people inherently possess. Go means “worthy of honour” and honzon means “object of fundamental respect.”} 

^{[2] Soka Group: A training group tasked with supporting the operations of various SGI activities and events.}

^{[3] Kosen-rufu: Literally, it means “to widely declare and spread [the Lotus Sutra]”; to secure lasting peace and happiness for all humankind through the propagation of Nichiren Buddhism. More broadly, kosen-rufu refers to the process of establishing the humanistic ideals of Nichiren Buddhism in society.} 

^{[4] Mystic Law: The ultimate law, principle, or truth of life and the universe in Nichiren’s teachings; the Law of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. This term derives from Kumārajīva’s Chinese translation of the Sanskrit word saddharma, from the title of the Saddharma-pundarīka-sūtra, or the Lotus Sutra. It has been translated into English also as Wonderful Law, Wonderful Dharma, Fine Dharma, etc.}

^{[5] Daimoku: Chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo in Nichiren Daishonin’s teachings.} 

^{[6] Nichiren Buddhism teaches that all the problems and struggles we encounter in our lives are due to the principle of “voluntarily assuming the appropriate karma.” They are trials we have willingly taken on as Bodhisattvas of the Earth to help and to guide to enlightenment others with whom we share karmic ties. With this deep awareness, limitless strength wells forth within us, making it possible for us to overcome any obstacle.} 

^{[7] Gajokai: It is a training group to support SGI centres and facilities. The literal translation in Japanese is “Fortress Group” because of its mission to protect the fortresses of kosen-rufu which are the facilities.}

^{[8] From President Ikeda’s essay series “Thoughts on The New Human Revolution,” translated from the October 7, 1998, issue of the Soka Gakkai’s daily newspaper, Seikyo Shimbun.}