As much as everyone speaks about the S.G.I, that it only attracts those who are desperate and in dire circumstances, I did not match that criteria at the start of my practice. I realized that I was unusual when I first entered the organisation but I later understood, for my journey, it was necessary. I had a husband. my own home, two children and a job I wanted and not forgetting good health. I met someone who told me about it and they even said that chanting got rid of their kidney stones. I wasn’t very sympathetic, I just thought, I do not want to know, as it conjured up this image of him passing them while he was chanting. No, I decided to go to a meeting because my friend was having problems with her relationship and I thought it might help her. I can’t think why I thought that, as I was not particularly interested at the time.
Well I was blown away by the first meeting they started to talk about what I believed in, karma, cause and effect and reincarnation. So it was for that reason I joined immediately because I wanted to mix with what I thought were like minded people. As time went on I realized these philosophies were not really looked at. The emphasis was to chant and get benefits. Well looking back thats when my problems really started. Both my children joined because they saw a big change in me as I thought I had found the answer to the problems in this world.
Immediately things fell apart my husband was against the chanting so I had to become a closet Buddhist. I saw this as sansho shima and was able to work around this problem and only chanted when he was not at home.
If I experienced any difficulties it was my karma and I was expiating them. Better out then in as they use to say. I was made a leader pretty quickly and went on a big course to Japan called Tozo. You think this would have put me off when I gave a small contribution to the head temple of Nichiren Shoshu. This little priest pulled it out of the envelope and gave a sneer. I though at the time silly idiot and thought well it cost me enough to get here thats all your getting.
Then another time when I was on a course in Trets, a centre in the South of France. I had been put in charge of first aide. At the beginning of the course someone came to me saying they were having a miscarriage. I immediately went to the head leader of the course at that time, informing him that it would be best to send her to the nearest hospital. Well he decided she was probably exaggerating and it would not be necessary . I was livid and started to tell him she could be in danger and it would be better to be on the safe side and lets not let the ego get in the way. To be quite honest I thought he was going to hit me he looked so angry. Here I was trying to over step his authority as the course leader.I didn’t care I was right .In fact I think I said why make me in charge of the First Aide if you are not going to respect my judgement. It turns out later he said he took her to the hospital and everything was ok. He did not have the decency to ask me to come along. I felt he was more interested in his ego rather then doing the right thing. Of course, it could have been money as they would have had to pay for the hospital visit.
I didn’t leave because of peoples behavior but looking back I think I should have taken it more seriously especially when I heard someone was raped and they held a big meeting about it. The women should have gone to the police instead of it being discussed in the organisation. Looking back it was obvious that they wanted to keep things quiet. I realized now that they saw the organisation as more important then what was right or wrong. A dangerous place to be in for you sanity and you spiritual well being.
Also we were asked to volunteer to guard a building that had been bought as a new centre in England. We were expected through the day and late evening to do this. I suddenly dawned on me this was not at all common sense. What would I be able to do if someone came to burgle the place. The building was in a rather bad area in London which did not help matters. I spoke out about it and soon after they decided to employ proper security guards. Everything was all to save money. It eventually had a suspicious fire that led to it being sold and the larger building was purchased and called Taplow court.
I do not have any animosity to S.G.I members because I have walked the walk and talked the talk but now I am beginning to realize that most people are really motivated by their emotions which come from deep within. So, trying to convince people putting forward incidents like these will not have any effect but others who are not really that deep in or those thinking of entering into the organisation, it may convince them.
It has all to do with needs which is where our emotions are based. In my case, it was wanting to be with like minded people A strong tendency in humans, is to be part of a herd and the safety of a tribe.
Because of my journey I have realized that the truth and staying true to yourself is more important then people agreeing with you. And if along the way you find certain aspects you have been mistaken about you can adjust them accordingly. Many people are hanging on to their ego of being right. To admit that they have devoted many years to an erroneous cult is too hard to face. Others feel that if they leave the cult they will lose their prestige of being a leader and their so-called friends. These needs will be fearfully guarded in order not to lose them.
What is disturbing about SGI is that it appears to meet some needs, especially if you are not too concerned about problems and deeply care about the future of the planet. For example, their false promise of a soon to achieve peaceful world (Kosen Rufu)*.
Most people, however, are quite selfish. They enter SGI because they want to get personal benefits and achievements. This blinds them to the truth. The Lotus sutra stresses that we should become detached from our desires whenever possible, save for the desire to follow and revere the Lotus Sutra. That way one will always be working for the truth, the good of the planet, and ourselves. Soka Gakkai urges you to put the organisation first which is not the Law. If we do not put the Law first, there will always be something other than the Law which SGI uses as a carrot.
I believes the SGI is losing its power precisely because it fails to revere the true teachings while stupidly following the New Age babble of President Ikeda. Their so-called benefits are benefits in name only. They are not the benefits of the Lotus Sutra and Eternal Buddha. Hence, we are starting to see long term members giving up. The false reasons you joined SGI will be the very reasons you will leave. The bottom line, your needs as a Bodhisattva and Buddha to be have not been met. If you do not put the truth of Buddhism above your selfish needs you will be a slave to them and therefore, blind to the truth.
*Actually, Kosen Rufu means widepread propagation of the Lotus Sutra amd what SGI propagates is not the Lotus Sutra but Ikedaism.
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