I had a patient Rosebud R. In 1977 she was diagnosed with colon cancer Dukes Stage C with 5 of 20 extracolonic lymph nodes sampled positive for metastatic disease. She shook it off like a bad cold. Then, 5 years ago, she was diagnosed with inoperable Stage IV bronchogenic carcinoma. She never missed a beat and hardly ever coughs. In december she was having belly pains and an endoscopy revealed cancer of the stomach. Within a week or two, all her symptoms disappeared. She has an appetite like a horse and is more clear of mind than my SGI readers. She attributes all her good fortune "to the man upstairs".
Her experience rivals that of any SGI, Kempon Hokke, or Nichiren Shoshu believer but that doesn't make her belief in God correct. From a Buddhist perspective, her good fortune is the result of the good karma she created for herself since time without beginning, particularly her faith and practice of the Lotus Sutra. Likewise, we must place the various experiences of Soka Gakkai members in perspective. Their belief in the DaiGohonzon, Nichiren as True Buddha, interfaith "based" on the Lotus Sutra, and Ikeda as "eternal mentor" are incorrect. Good fortune in this life doesn't guarantee good fortune throughout eternity, let alone the next lifetime. The very best good fortune, according to the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren, is having a correct faith.
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