The Dharani Incantation That Can Take You To Another Dimension
- rklabuddhistcenter
- Jan 1
- 2 min read
Kyohei Mikawa
Minister, Rissho Kosei-kai of Los Angeles
May each one of us have a wondrous year of 2026! Every year at Rissho Kosei-kai, January is dedicated to a special "midwinter sutra recitation practice." The accumulated energy and blessings of our whole chanting culminate in a special ceremony, Setsubun: Buddhist Chant & Healing with Live Art by Satsuki Shibuya (RSVP Here - Seats are limited). During this special service, we chant Dharani chapters from KYOTEN. If you are new to the dharani chant, please click the video above and see how it feels like. This gives you a different kind of vibe that a regular recitation cannot offer. This morning at 9AM, I sat at the altar seat of RKLA and offered my KYOTEN recitation including the dharani chapters. I felt a ball of energy formed within my body (or heart?) and overflowed into the space I was in. That was a powerful experience.
Let us begin incorporating dharani chanting into your daily recitation at home so that we can all together chant these special words of the Buddha on Feb 1. Founder of Rissho Kosei-kai, Rev. Nikkyo Niwano, writes about dharani in his Buddhism for Today (p.470); Dharani is meant to "transcend words that, if recited, can immerse one in the feeling of being one with the buddhas." Given that the buddhahood is the true nature of life, I believe that "being one with the buddhas" means to tap into the true nature of who you are; and this nature is the pure compassion that desires the end of suffering of all living beings. Dharani chant is powerful. People have historicaly recited these words as a prayer for protection and healing emotional pain and physical sickness. Let me know how your experience of dharani is like in comment below.
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