Tina Turner

There are hundreds, maybe thousands, of tributes all over the news and social media about the life of this amazing artist and woman. I grew up listening to and loving her music and her story of survival and success are inspiring.

That we have anything at all in common is wild to me, but I do get to claim more than humanity and being a woman. She and I practiced Nichiren Buddhism.

If you know anything about her story, you know that she credits her faith for being able to leave Ike. She said it saved her life. I didn’t have an Ike, but I did escape a life that was killing me even though I didn’t recognize it as such at the time.

Through my Buddhist practice I discovered me and while I’m not the most faithful practitioner, I continue to learn and try to internalize many tenets of Buddhism.

–We, each of us, are already a Buddha so we must treat ourselves and each with respect and dignity.

–We are all connected through the power and energy that flows through the universe so what we do to one we do to all.

–Since we are all connected through the universe, we can tap into that power to change ourselves for the better.

–When we change, those around us are impacted by this change and this ripples through the universe one being at a time.

Tina Turner touched so many people’s lives through her music and her life and she will be missed. Maybe in our next life I’ll be fortunate enough to meet the bodhisattva she will be.