"In closing, I would like to share the view of a Theravada Buddhist, Alubomulle Sumanasara (1945–), who is quite widely read in Japan. He is known for having propagated early Buddhism within the Japan Theravada Buddhist Association and guided people in meditative practices. Rejecting the idea that the disaster represented some form of divine retribution, Sumanasara emphasized that the natural disaster was no one in particular’s fault. The real question is whether one experiences this as suffering and is spiritually overwhelmed by it, or whether one can live as a truly wise person. He does not consider the disaster in terms of karmic causality, but rather in terms of how people experience suffering in the face of a particular phenomenon, in this case a natural disaster, emphasizing a more agentic interpretation of the meaning of karma and the importance of living with wisdom.7 In the immediate aftermath of the disaster, the Japan Theravada Buddhist Association made its place of 46 buddhist organizations and natural disasters practice available as a temporary shelter and organized the cooking and delivery of meals for victims along with donations of books to libraries, the collection of relief funds, and other activities. In this way, the disaster relief activities of Buddhists and Buddhist organizations were widely recognized within contemporary Japanese society. These individuals and organizations fulfilled a role within the public sphere, gaining, in the process, a greater voice in society."
I'll tell you what Nichiren would think because I know Nichiren much better than the SGI scholar Onishi... He would think that without a shadow of a doubt Japan's ongoing calamity is divine punishment for Japan's slander of the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren. Cause (slander) and effect (retribution for the Japanese peoples slanderous thoughts words and deeds of men such as those of Katsuaki Onishi) is the workings of karma. What else could it be?
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