Soka Gakkai (leaders) are constrained to test the faith of their adherents through artificial constructs because their members NEVER encounter the Three Obstacles and Four Devils. Therefore, according to Nichiren Daishonin, their members never attain Buddhahood in this lifetime. There is no need to create artificial constructs to challenge one's faith, let alone excommunication, if one has a correct faith and practice. If one has a correct faith and practice, LIFE itself creates the conditions necessary to attain Buddhahood.
Truthfully, the Nichiren Shu is as guilty as the SGI with the priests cold water over the head baths daily for like 1? or 2? months.
ReplyDeleteRather, their priests (and SGI leaders) should be going out and remonstrating with the leaders of their governments.
ReplyDeleteHello!
ReplyDeleteHow are the two kinds of obstacles different from one another?
Nichiren Answers your question:
ReplyDelete"The three obstacles in this passage are the obstacle of earthly desires, the obstacle of karma, and the obstacle of retribution. The obstacle of earthly desires is the impediments to one’s practice that arise from greed, anger, foolishness, and the like; the obstacle of karma is the hindrances presented" by one’s wife or children; and the obstacle of retribution is the hindrances caused by one’s sovereign or parents. Of the four devils, the workings of the devil king of the sixth heaven are of this last kind.
I disagree with your theory having experienced severe hardships, devilish functions from the onset of my practice as a member of SGI. I utilized the Gosho, purchased in a SGI bookstore rather than leader guidance and was disliked then expelled, but I’m still grateful I encountered exactly what I needed from the SGI.Faith in Nichiren’s teachings has protected me from holding a grudge or embarking on a campaign to destroy the organization of people who chant and propagate the daimoku to people who have the potential to choose to follow Nichiren.
ReplyDeleteI often think of how the Buddha was able to bring his children safely out of a burning house they could not perceive correctly because they had drunk poison. The Buddha constructed a beautiful carriage that his children boarded of their own accord.
How foolish is it to claim others have drunk poison and then chastise them for falling victim to its effects? Would a doctor admonish a patient for being in a diabetic coma? Of course not! She would administer Insulin and render proper care , teaching the patient when he fully recovered from his debilitated state!
The parable of the excellent physician is more important in this Latter Age. Through the forceful practices the excellent physician saved his children gone mad from drinking the poison. Through their grief, the expedience that their father had died that they awoke. From Nichiren's perspective, you encountered the Daimoku through auspicious causation. I never forget for a moment that Nichiren viewed his persecutor, Hei no Saemon, as his best friend in the world. Today, SGI persecutes Nichiren by altering his teachings.
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