Sound
of the Universe
By Diane Conti-Tuncay
I had returned
to New York after living out of town for some time and discovered that
everyone that I had known were no longer living in the area.
In an attempt
to meet new people, I answered a personal advertisement by a man who described
himself as a "gentleman."
Well, I did
not feel any chemistry for Atilla, and after a bit of a rocky start we
decided to be friends. We were very good at that and he began to tell me
about Buddhism. I agreed to attend a discussion meeting one evening.
After a flat
tire along the way, we eventually arrived to a rather rough neighborhood
in Brooklyn. I was angry that he would take me to such a place and began
to feel afraid of going into the apartment where the meeting was being
held. There had been recent warnings on the news about cult groups abducting
people in the New York City vicinity.
The elevator
was broken and so we took the steps up 6 flights to the meeting place.
Along the way I was stepping on glass crack vials and the stairwell stunk
of urine. Atilla was bounding up the steps, but I was dragging my feet.
Then suddenly
I heard a droning sound, like bees in a hive. I asked Atilla what that
sound was. He said it was just the members chanting daimoku. I asked again
"No! What's that sound?" He was annoyed and replied "I told you it's just
the members chanting daimoku; come on we are going to be late!"
He was ahead
of me up the steps when I suddenly planted my feet firmly, reached up,
grabbed his wrist from behind and pulled him down on one knee. I said "That
sound. I know that sound. Dogs bark, cats meow. If man could only make
sound — this is the sound. This is the primal sound of man." I then closed
my eyes to deeply think of the right words to express what I felt. I opened
my eyes and said "This is the sound of the universe! Even in deep space
there is a rhythm, a sound. This is it! This is that sound."
Atilla began
to panic and shout loudly "How do you know that! How do you know that!"
I calmly replied "I do. From my life I do." I pulled up my sleeve and showed
him the goose bumps on my arm. I said "Look at that! My body is like a
giant antenna picking up these waves."
Then Atilla
tried to dismiss what had just happened and said "You don't know anything!
You're still out on the steps! Come on, we're late!"
And that was
eleven years ago. I have been practicing Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism
ever since. A baby knows the sound of its mother's voice.
Isn't it true?
After one year
of my practice, Atilla decided to return to Turkey permanently. He gave
me some things from his apartment before he left. I came one Saturday to
pick them up.
The living room
was empty with the exception of an armchair and the butsudan. When I arrived
he showed me in, quickly sat in the chair and motioned for me to do daimoku
sansho by myself. I thought that was strange because you always to do it
together. As I was bowing my head on the last daimoku my eyes fell upon
a an old pink book marker from what looked like the 1970's on the kyo table.
It must have been used for shakubuku. It said "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo = The
Sound of the Universe."
It was like
ichinen sanzen; it felt like a subway train of everything in my life coming
to a crashing halt inside my head. I instantly knew that this Buddhism
was true and correct for my life. I hadn't made any mistake by accepting
this faith. I felt 100% at one, at peace, and confident that my instincts
about myself/life were trustworthy. I could trust in my judgements about
what was right for me and my life. This was the "it" I was talking about
on those steps a year ago.
Instantly my
face just crumbled and the tears began to flow. I turned my head to look
over my shoulder at Atilla sitting in his chair. He sat silently, with
a small smile on his face, and just nodded his head as if to say "Now you
know why I went crazy on those steps."
Until that fateful
night, I had no real knowledge of Buddhism. No exposure in any way to SGI
— or NSA as it was called back then. How could I know that this was "the
sound of the universe"? How could I know such a phrase as "I know this
from my life"? This was the really mystical part of it all. Now I understand
Atilla's shock and disbelief, when he shouted "How do you know that! How
do you know that!" I just do.
I still marvel
when I tell this account today. It makes me wonder about how much we actually
do know from our lives and dismiss because of self doubt.
For me this
is doubt-free faith.
P.S. Atilla
returned to the USA. He is now living in New Jersey where he's a district
leader, if I'm not mistaken. We've lost contact since his marriage, but
we will always be connected.
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