The Arrow - Issue 9.2 - A Journal of Wakeful Society, Culture & Politics - "The Karma of Slavery: A Rumination"

Oct 28, 2026

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Tracy Watson recounts her introduction to Nichiren Buddhism and her personal struggle with self-hatred, describing chanting Daimoku and study of the Lotus Sūtra as a process of transforming a “tarnished mirror” into a clear one. She connects this inward awakening to jigyo keta practice for oneself and others, then explores suffering and karma through the twelve-linked chain, asking how karma and “voluntarily assuming the correct karma” might illuminate the experience and roots of American slavery.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryReligion & Spirituality

FormatPDF

Pages13

Reading Time33 min

AccessFree to download

"The Karma of Slavery: A Rumination"

Nichiren Buddhism and Inner Transformation

The Clear Mirror of Buddhism and Fundamental Darkness

The Buddha and the Mystic Law

The Fundamental Cause of Suffering and the Karma of Slavery

Which Karma Is Which? General Causality versus Mystic Law Causality

The Arrow A JOURNAL OF WAKEFUL SOCIETY, CULTURE & POLITICS !e Karma of Slavery: A Rumination TRACY WATSON In Nichiren Buddhism, attaining enlightenment is not about embarking on some inconceivably long journey to become a resplendent, godlike Buddha, it is about accomplishing a transformation in the depths of one’s being. In other words, it is not a matter of practicing in order to scale the highest summit of enlightenment at some point in the distant future. Rather, it is a constant, moment-to-moment, inner struggle between revealing our innate Dharma nature or allowing ourselves to be ruled by our fundamental darkness and delusion. —Daisaku Ikeda1 THE YEAR I TURNED 21, I found myself randomly crying for no rea son, and I began seeing a therapist. Four months into therapy, I was introduced to Nichiren Buddhism through a colleague of my mother’s, who had invited her to attend a Buddhist discussion meeting. When they faced their object of devotion (a mandala called the gohonzon2), I had a !ashback: I was three or four, and I was in a room with dozens of people facing a box. Inside the box was the sun, shooting warm and soothing rays out towards us. I felt an indescribable peace. "at box, I now realized, was the butsudan (altar) in which a gohonzon is enshrined. "at sun was the gohonzon, which is a copy of the mandala inscribed by Nichiren Daishonin roughly 700 years prior. My mother con\#rmed that we had indeed been to a similar Buddhist meeting around the time I was three. After the meeting, I remember asking several questions about the nature of life and death. "e questions were well received and roundly answered. Without asking, I was told that by practicing Buddhism I could become absolutely happy. I wanted that more than anything in the world. So it was that, 32 years ago, my journey to study and practice this philosophy began. !e Clear Mirror of Buddhism and My Fundamental Darkness As I strove to practice Buddhism, to understand the true nature of my life and the ultimate reality, I began to uncover a deep-seated self-hatred. For what seemed like a hundred lifetimes, I’d lived in fear of life. At the center of this fear was my fundamental darkness. It whispered to me, constantly,“You are insigni\#cant. Worthless. You will never matter.” Because of this, in the beginning, my daily prayer was to become absolutely happy. As I chanted Daimoku,3 my fundamental darkness assailed me. But as I persevered in deepening my faith in the Lotus Sūtra (the basis of Nichiren Buddhism),4 a !edgling consciousness (my fundamental enlightenment) began to challenge the dominance of my fundamental darkness. “A mind now clouded by the illusions ofthe innate darkness of life is like a tarnished mirror, but when polished, it is sure to become like a clear mirror, re!ecting the essential nature of phenomena and the true aspect of reality… How should you polish it? Only by chanting Nam-myōhō-renge-kyō.”5 With Buddhist study as my GPS, I polished my life daily. As my perception of the purpose of my life shifted and opened up, my prayer expanded to include the su&ering of other people. I began to strive to live based on the bodhisattva’s vow, which stems from the Buddha’s vow. !e Buddha and the Mystic Law A Buddha is “a person awakened to the truth that all people are equally endowed with the Buddha nature or enlightened nature. Awakened to this truth, to the Mystic Law, the Buddha then strives to make all people aware of it.”6 "is is the Buddha’s vow. A Buddha is humanistic praxis personi\#ed: someone who continuously takes action to validate the theory of universal enlightenment through an indefatigable vow to bring that awareness to all. We can manifest the state of Buddhahood through doing the same. In Nichiren Buddhism, this is called practice for oneself and others (Japanese: jigyo keta) . Striving to believe in my intrinsic enlightenment and that of those around me has been the key to ending my own su&ering—and the

FAQs

How does Watson describe enlightenment in Nichiren Buddhism?

Enlightenment is not a distant journey toward becoming godlike; it is an ongoing, moment-to-moment transformation in the depths of one’s being, resisting darkness and delusion while revealing innate Dharma nature.

What role does chanting Nam-myōhō-renge-kyō play in her story?

Watson presents chanting Daimoku as a practice that confronts and weakens her fundamental darkness, supporting the shift of perception and expanding prayer to include others’ suffering.

How does the article connect suffering and karma to slavery?

Watson explores Daisaku Ikeda’s explanation of the twelve-linked chain and considers whether structural racism and slavery could be understood through karma, including the concept of “voluntarily assuming the correct karma,” while questioning the original cause.

Oct 28, 2026

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