5 Ways Your Faith Can Feed Your Passions

Last July a Spanish Fighting bull gored and nearly killed me in Pamplona, Spain. Many global news outlets made jokes about my predicament because I was a bull run Survival Guide author. Many online commenters wished me death, I argued with them online and the deadly infection in my leg grew. My passion for communing with bulls on the streets of Spain and writing brought me so much joy in my life now it became a target of worldwide ridicule. My faith in the powerful concept of karma made me realize that if I continued to lash out at my critics I would descend into darkness both in my spirit and my physical body. I chose instead to forgive them all. My karma transformed and the goring which nearly took my life became one of the most incredibly positive experiences in my life.

Strong Faith

Strong faith can focus your energies and help erase negativity from your life. When I set out on my path to follow my passions for bull running and writing my life was in shambles. I was struggling with substance abuse, a violent temper and psychological instability. My faith in Buddhism brought my passions into focus in my life. All the negative influences took a back seat and slowly disappeared. Praying for your passions to progress into something tangible connects your passion to a deeper spiritual urging and raises their importance in your life. When writing and bull running became my deep focus it made it easier to turn down a drink and walk away from a fight, it also helped me commit to my medication and make my behavior more conducive for a healthy mind.

Darkness

Faith in the midst of darkness can help you find the light. When I arrived in Spain last year I lost my bag. Inside that bag was my Gohonzon my sacred Buddhist scroll, my medication for Bipolar and my laptop with my un-backed up memoir. The loss drove me into a state of despair. The goring and negative worldwide reaction plummeted me into a deeper darkness. As I lashed out on my critics the infection in my leg grew. In a moment of clarity I chose to forgive my critics. Instantly My Karma changed, I received a phone call that my bag with all my belongings had been found and they were all returned. This experience deepened my faith in the Buddhist principal of Karma and our ability to change our destiny for the better.

Moving On

Faith can give you the power to move forward even in when it seems the world is against you. When I got my Gohonzon back I hung it on my IV post and began to chant for all of my critics. The worldwide media was in agreement that I was a fool and it was funny that I’d been gored. Still I accepted every interview request and each time I spoke about my passion for bull running and why I was so committed to. As I spoke to outlets the story began to transform into a story about my unfaltering passion for running with the bulls, it became a positive story and slowly outlets began to talk about my debut novel The Old Neighborhood and the book became an international success. The great Spanish runners began to visit me in the hospital and I developed friendships with them, which lead to a deeper understanding of the tradition I loved so much.

New Opportunities

Undying faith can open doors to opportunities you never saw coming to pursue your passions. After my chanting session for my critic’s happiness my editor wrote me to tell me the Washington Post and Toronto Star requested an OpEd from me about my passion for bull running and my experience being gored and why I wanted to continue running. This was the biggest opportunity in my writing career. I wrote the piece from my hospital bed transcribing edits by phone. I began to chant so that my essay would deliver the truest sentiment of my love for running. The piece was successful and I was proud of it. I believe my faith in the power of Karma opened the door to this incredibly lucky opportunity. When your faith opens the door to these opportunities you have to have the strength to walk through that door.

Endurance

Enduring faith can progress you on the path of your passions. In the aftermath of my tumultuous goring I chose to finish my memoir. I chanted vigorously to extract the meaning from my experience and deliver it to the page as powerfully as possible in my writing. I finished the Memoir Mozos: A Decade Running With the Bulls of Spain in May and it published this past July just as I returned to run with the bulls in Pamplona. The world media took notice of the memoir but I struggled in my running. Toward the end of fiesta I focused my chanting on overcoming the psychological wounds from the goring. Finally I broke through on July 13th and ran in the way I knew how, leading a bull up the street displaying my passion for the animals and the tradition I love so dearly. When you commit yourself to faith and your passions, your potential is limitless.