From Harry Thomsen's "The New Religions of Japan" (1963), p. 98:
The election campaign in 1956 was carried out by Soka Gakkai with no regard for election laws, and many members were arrested. One of them said: "To win we had to carry out the most effective election campaign. We therefore simply had to disregard the election laws. But we cannot have committed anything wrong, for all we have done is only for the good of our Gakkai!"
SGI Hoben-pon [Expedent Means] = to lie, cheat, and steal for the sake of the Soka Gakkai.
I have noted from several sources (to be posted over at SGIWhistleblowers within the next couple of days - stay tuned) is that the media became afraid to publish anything critical of the Gakkai. The Thomsen account, from 1963, was before the Gakkai started flexing its muscle, so it is a particularly valuable source.
ReplyDeleteIkeda decided to change the rules of Nichiren Buddhism by declaring in 1964 that "shakubuku" would be replaced by "shoju", despite the fact that Nichiren explicitly forbade this. That is why, if you consult sources after 1964, you find little about Shakubuku Kyoten and much about Ikeda's Guidance Memo.
In the end, the Nichiren Shoshu priesthood had to excommunicate Ikeda because he was trying to rewrite the entire religion. Say what you will about priests, but they *believe* their religion! Nichiren Shoshu loved Toda because he was absolutely intolerant and promoted the view that every person in Japan must convert before the "Grand Ordination Platform", the "honmon no kaidan", could possibly be established. Ikeda decided to change the rules, stating that, oh, hey, 1/3 of the population is enough and in the Sho-Hondo construction campaign, pushed as far as he could go in seeing just how much money people would believe was coming from his followers - who by all accounts were from the poor and lower classes of society. Sincerity and devotion do not produce money, sorry! Imagine, inviting *outsiders* to "invest* in the Sho-Hondo! How would these non-member "investors" ever get any return on their investment from a *religious building*???
SGI is nothing more than a money-laundering front for organized crime - Ikeda's had yakuza ties from the very beginning.
I am a Nichiren Shoshu member and I agree that no priests or cleric in this world is perfect. I have spoken with my temple priests and pointed out their doing in taking out revenge and retribution against Soka Gakkai, who intentionally wanted to usurp priestly authorities in Nichiren Shoshu.
ReplyDeleteDaisaku Ikedas plans, according to Nichiren Shoshu failed. We don't need his modern building of Shohondo, we financed our own and made a traditional building for the Dai Gohonzon.
More importantly, now that Soka Gakkai rejected the Dai Gohonzon and further modernized their Gongyo prayers, we truly feel validated and we move on, march on towards Kosen Rufu. I get that you people feel our beliefs are more restrictive than Nichiren Shu but I assure you they are solid, consistent and orthodox. Soka Gakkai, according to our new members doublespeak their beliefs and practices. They have even done away with Japanese religiosity. They Butsudan is simply called "altar" now in English, and Juzu prayer beads are sold in many colors and long tassels, which is traditionally for priests in Nichiren Buddhism. Just like Nichiren Shu. Their meetings are nothing but therapeutic shrink events for people who are problematic, terminally ill, and in need of solution to drug abuse. They feed on this propaganda which you people refer as a cult. Aside from whitewashing Nichiren Buddhism by turning it into an American McDonald's style of Nichiren Buddhism, we are getting reports that Daisaku Ikeda will write his own Gohonzon before he passes away. It makes us SO thankful to stay with the Nichiren Shoshu temple. We protect our priests and the priests protect us. And we will always have the Dai Gohonzon in our territory, no Soka Gakkai or Minobu heretic can take this away.
Orthodox? The fake DaiGohonzon? Shingon type Guru Yoga? Zen patriarchal transmission? Fake transfer docs and Goshos? Give us a break!
ReplyDeletenichiren shoshu produced the sgi with their bullshit teachings. dirham, study real teachings for yourself. follow nichiren. rotten roots will produce rotten fruit. incorrect faith and practice will cause a deeper delusion. may you open your eyes.
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