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Thursday, July 21, 2016

Gokuyo [donations] in the Lotus Sutra and gokuyo in the SGI

Gokuyo [in the LS Chapter 16 it is "ko ku-yo"] or donations means something very different in the Lotus Sutra than taught in the SGI. It means donations to cultivate the mind of adoration for the Buddha, not so it will come back to you as a "benny" [material benefit]. Also, donations to the Lotus Sutra are not monetary because: The relics [the Gohonzon and scriptures of the Buddha] to which donations are offered have no need for monetary donations, the poverty stricken Supreme Votary of the Lotus Sutra [Nichiren] is no longer alive, and there are very few priests or lay leaders alive today who are needy and worthy of our donations. 

On the other hand, the top seniors in SGI certainly have a need for money. That is how they pay their children's tuition, live in the heart of Tokyo, and buy life insurance. Real estate holdings are not the object of a Lotus Sutra Buddhist's donations because the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren Daishonin teach that the day for the widespread building of stupas and temples has long passed.

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