Katie

Final point: I have never been a member of your renegade group, though I profess interest in what you were actually doing. I have no interest, however, in competing with your internet renderings of your amazing personal life, as I already know you have mischaracterized key elements of your behavior towards two believers I got to know very well. You lie, Mark, or perhaps your memory fails you, or maybe you just paid very little attention to the people you assumed were "supporting you". All of these things speak to the person you are, as well as the ways in which you rewrite personal history, manipulate historical personal info and continue to exert power here on a freaking blog, for crying out loud! You are constantly justifying yourself, which is repugnant on its face and now supported by objective views of your behavior from people who simply will not continue to post here. Greg noted, when you began your moderation and shutting down the blog in response to my challenging you here, that you were threatened by me. He noted that I am a skilled writer and well versed in the teachings. With utmost humility, I attribute my meager capabilities to my faith which has always been based on my heart for others. I pray to become what is needed to actually help others and pray to have the life force as I grow older and grapple with my own health issues, to take action and manifest my heartfelt prayers. This is a brief accurate and well supported by many others, truthful testimony of the woman you call your enemy. LOL! I wonder, though, if you realize how that defines you? Just another thin skinned toxic male for whom there is no bottom when it comes to how he will defend himself and hold on to what little, insignificant power he thinks he has. Greg also noted how similar your behaviors were to Trump, though I see he doesn't share his personal thoughts about you, here. I pray for him out of concern for how his own anger and grudges have left him lonely -- or lonelier since he lost a truly beautiful life companion 2 years ago. If he was truthful that he reports to daimoku and study-- on his own to work out conflicts and contradictions , I know he will conclude as did Jerry and I that daimoku is IT and abusing other believers violates the Law. Whatever it will take for you to wake up, I also hope occurs ASAP-- but I will no longer engage here, as I fully realize the limitations of this venue for productive, meaningful discussion. You both know how to reach me personally. I never discard people, or rather, I answer my phone and am always open to reaching greater understandings through personal encounters. Best, ~Katie

My reply: continued: MARK " Yes Katie, we seperate ourselves from evil spiritual friends and bad teachers but don't for a second believe that we are alone. There are many within the Kempon Hokke and independents who embrace the same or nearly the same viewpoints as we. They have their own way of upholding the teachings and have their own sphere of influence. Some are emminently gentle beings, hurt to the core with their SGI experience. They just want to be left alone but they support me and I them." KATIE: Interesting that you consider your isolation and exclusionary attitudes to be praise worthy? Nichiren, on the other hand says: " The daimoku which, I, Nichiren, recite today, in the Latter Age of Degeneration is the daimoku of Namu Myoho Renge Kyo which, unlike that of the previous ages, is not merely the practice for personal enlightenment, but it is the practice also for benefitting others. This five character daimoku is not just the title of the Lotus Sutra; it contains the five profound meanings of the name, quality, function and teaching" "The Three Great Secret Dharmas"- Writings of Nichiren Shonin, Doctrine 2, page 290.-- I take to heart the meaning of "bringing benefit to others" heartfelt prayers for others and actions that back up those prayers. I take to heart the meaning of daimoku and what is written about the power of "hearing it" or even "reciting it once". I take to heart that bodhisattva practice via standing up for the well being of others may well incite persecution-- loss of livelihood as a whistle blower for example, but even that can be overcome with continuing faith. You say these supporters of yours have "their own way" and "some are deeply hurt", however, there is absolutely no fear of actual persecution for their faith in this country, yet seclusion and exclusionary, separatist, mutual support is your "way". WHY is that necessary , if not to protect yourselves from the obstacles that will arise, as I well know, when one takes action in our society for the sake of others? How can you, for example, claim you are persecuted just because you are moderated for abusive language- specifically asked to stop, but continuing in that vein? What exactly did you lose through no fault of your own? Zilch.. you were merely excluded from sites where civil discourse was their stipulated requirement. Your bully pulpit is secure, is it not? I call you and your ilk, cowards who cannot challenge themselves to engage others respectfully or engage in actions within our society that reflect "bringing benefit to others" outside of theirs and your comfort zone. I, on the other hand, put my livelihood on the line to protect teens from abuses on an inpatient psychiatric unit and then to advocate for a teen unlawfully held on that same unit for 9 months. I put my face in the public sphere to protect youth where I "had influence" and overcame the persecution I received through my assiduous practice and study of Nichiren's Buddhism. You and your ilk choose to rant on the internet and support each other. About the same as the extremists and domestic terrorists are doing in the moment. Unlike Nichiren, you are completely out of step with the country and the conditions of our society, acting, as Dave pointed out, like caricatures of medieval times... dystopian viewpoints, trashing groups by . Thus, I share the struggles of all who recite and seek to deepen their faith in the Law. Nichiren claimed that though he was not a sage of the caliber of Shakyamuni, T'ien -t'ai and Dengyo, he was unique in his ability to withstand persecution and in his great and deep concern for others. Nichiren is my teacher. Nichiren was my guide during persecutions -- loss of valuable and sometimes crucial means for my well being- punishment for merely protecting others and expanding my concern to include ALL others - a life long undertaking that you discarded long ago, in favor of promoting yourself as the "only one...blah blah blah" ~Katie

My reply: continued: MARK: " The many dozens of scriptural passages that I present are glossed over by you. You only accept and uphold what resonates with you and you ignore the rest. " KATIE: So, you also forget that I have my own extensive Nichiren library and copy of the Lotus Sutra and numerous scholarly articles that you once were eager to study yourself, but, apparently lacked time or capacity to do so? You actually assume to KNOW what I read and HOW I interpret the teachings? Even though, i have shared many pivotal passages right here and shared how I have grown in understanding the importance of acknowledging the dignity in the lives of ALL who recite the daimoku---from the description of the daimoku and references to those who recite it... ALL TRUE TEACHINGS that you ignore and immediately attack me personally. But you don't stop there, do you? Now you claim to know what and how I study... which incites you only because I have reached far different conclusions regarding Buddhism in a non-Buddhist country, the actual cultural context that presents many obstacles and appreciating the extremely long Degenerative age before us, I see you and your self righteous crusade as a reflection of your lack of faith in what defines the Lotus Sutra as the Highest teaching, because it excludes no one and sets forth a very difficult to believe and understand premise of ALL possessing the Buddha nature with "potential" to attain the exact same benefits as the Buddha. I reject your personal views. I abhor your behavior towards Greg and Jerry and the friends I encouraged to read and post here. I have not been and will never be swayed by your arbitrary views, and I pray for those who are influenced by your rigid and arrogant approach to the teachings. Actualy, due to conditions in our society today, the rejection of those who seek to control others via their personal religious beliefs, which, I remind you is antithetical to our constitution- "separation of church and state" and "freedom to practice one's own religion" ; due to the blatant attack on the right to privacy and individual freedom , people like you are rejected by the generation I am most closely aligned with through my work and my basic nature. I know what you do not care enough to discover for yourself: Propagating Myoho Renge Kyo for those most worried about their future in this post Trump society is based entirely on earning their trust and respect, which I personally have found is greatly facilitated through my heartfelt prayers for their well being and happiness. You, Mark Rogow have established yourself as an "enemy of the people" who are seeking solutions to the havoc wreaked by Religious authorities encroaching on the personal lives of Americans. When you place another feather in your cap for being rejected, ignored by the generation charged up to employ peaceful means to regain their rights and freedoms, which you will no doubt do, you simply show yourself to be a "Law devouring hungry demon" who cares nothing for the hearts and minds of others, which, BTW anyone who consistently reads Nichiren can see for themselves. Copy/Paste, recycle and thump your aging chest all you want, you have failed miserably to uphold and exemplify the true benefit of Nichiren's teachings and you are, I'm grateful and happy to say, no threat to the precious youth who already believe in what you discarded from the Lotus Sutra. Myoho Renge Kyo permeates all phenomena in the universe. As I often reminded Greg, every fading out generation employs fear of extinction, etc. to hang on to power, but alas! the next generation emerges to prove Shakyamuni's promise that this "threefold world is His domain... cannot be destroyed... all living beings , that is; ALL living beings are His children", not yours, Mark. And the Law will endure thanks in part to Ikeda who propagated it globally, while you are left to grapple with the karma you yourself have created. ~Katie

KATIE: You claim the Buddha and Nichiren are your “ sensei’s” but treat believers with contempt. You publish all sorts of scandalous attacks on believers and incite discord thru various manipulations of info. For sample: recently you “ informed” Tanya that you received obscene threats against your wife by “:a SGI member”, but you did not provide pertinent context; that the threats were posted on “:Fraught with Peril” an internet Nichiren Buddhist forum that devolved into such horrific base discourse that it was “ taken down”. Or that Greg and Jerry, in defense of you, threatened the participants after establishing they could identify and locate them." Hey Mark, you did not address this very pertinent example of how you manipulate "history" , which you are still doing, BTW. Ironically, though you claim to have mailed me a Nichiren Gohonzon because you believed I shared "your views" on the True teachings, YOU apparently dismissed the letters I sent to you from Boston Region Leaders and MY response to them, which was exclusively about "organizational" matters NOT the teachings. AND, when I challenged your callous attitude toward the death of Pres. Ikeda's son, you defended your atrocious insensitivity with Gosho quotes that I did not readily accept as a "defense" for your cruelty, which you continue in your cruel accusations about the deaths of SGI leaders. I have been reading Nichiren's writings from the very beginning of my practice, before I attended my first SGI discussion meeting. Not knowing exactly how to respond to your pompous proclamations about the faith of others, I knew well before losing a child of my own in 1993, that Nichiren did not compound the suffering of Shiro Goro's mother by telling her her "faith was off" when her adolescent son died suddenly. Nor was Shijo Kingo admonished for "weak, incorrect faith" when his infant daughter passed away. I simply did not know how to approach your rancor as it struck at the very heart of my faith. So, I stopped challenging you and eventually stopped posting on your blog, believing that you simply did not comprehend the pain of losing a child and had no heart for those who bear this sorrow. I return here with several years of study and personal experience that leaves no doubt as to your violations of the true teachings and speaking out about your transgressions conforms to my understanding of personal;, yes PERSONAL responsibility, through personal knowledge and ongoing study. ~Katie

My reply...continued: MARK: I treat all believers with the utmost respect and most non-balievers. Those who would distort the teachings of the Lotus Sutra also deserve respect. That I confron them with the truth of the teachings is the epitomy of respect. Do you criticize Nichiren for calling his enemies dogs or remanding them to the Hell of Incessant Suffering?. SGI and now you are enemies of the teachings and therefore, you are my enemies." KATIE: Sorry? Do you read your posts here? You have even degraded and insulted a few friends from SGI who wanted to engage you here. You continue to "SAY" you are doing one thing, and consistently DOING the opposite... You apparently need enemies, although you fail to see how you are your own worst enemy when it comes to propagating the true teachings. You are only publishing my comments to fuel your own agenda. You care nothing about the people who chant daimoku everyday. Like the cult of Trumpism, you have to be attacking an "enemy".. every participant who tries to engage you is " a means to your end". This is what you have shown and like me, many cannot "unsee" what you have shown by way of degrading believers in the Mystic Law- Nichiren and the Buddha define a believer as one who "recites Myoho Renge Kyo"-- YOU have another definition that is not in accordance with the True teachings, publishing and not challenging this comment from your "fans": "Screw Katie.. she is a SGI slut, a whore". That says everything about you,- promoting slander of a believer and silently condoning it. So, we who see YOU for the phony you are, are YOUR enemies? In the lower worlds of Animality and Anger, that makes perfect sense. ~Katie

My reply: MARK: Mark: You are a broken record Katie. Yes, SGI is people chanting Daimoku with a warped faith. I sent you a Nichiren Gohonzon because you exhibited a will to chant with the same faith as Nichiren. Somewhere along the line your will to defend the true teachings evaporated. Leave Greg out of this. He couldn't tolerate your angry mien. KATIE: So, apparently you were judging me based on your perceptions of my " agreement" with your personal views on the "true teachings"? Likewise, you now judge me as not having the will to defend YOUR interpretation of the "true teachings"? In both cases, YOU have proclaimed yourself an authority over the basis of MY faith, via YOUR personal interpretation. Does it offend you to realize I do not seek understanding of the Law in my own life, from you? Apparently it does, though you also "preach" independent practice WITHOUT an intermediary. you insist that YOU are the exception! As for Greg, you should leave your views on our relationship out of your public discourse, as you are grossly uninformed about my relationship of about 5 years with him, and somehow forgetful of the attacks you made on him right after showing no concern for him during an agonizing personal crisis that he shared with me, perplexed about your apathy. I admit I do not understand the dynamic between the two of you, but from my perspective, you are both insincere and given to promoting yourselves as exemplary "men", which in my experience with you both, has proven to be a sick joke -- a lie, actually. Given how little you actually knew or understood about me, Greg and Jerry, I merely conclude that your perceptions and judgements are irrelevant. ~Katie

Mark: You take what Nichiren says out of context and can't really discuss the teachings and you lie so effortlessly. "You may pile up dung and call it sandalwood, but when you burn it, it will give off only the odor of dung. You may pile up a lot of great lies and call them the teachings of the Buddha, but they will never be anything but a gateway to the great citadel of the hell of incessant suffering." You support the lies of the SGI, therefore, you are complicit. I even revere you, a non-believer and Daisaku Ikeda despite your lies. Do you revere Trump? Gregorio and I?

"Bodhisattva Never Disparaging of old said that all people have the Buddha nature and that, if they embrace the Lotus Sutra, they will never fail to attain Buddhahood. He further stated that to slight a person is to slight the Buddha himself. Thus, his practice was to revere all people. He revered even those who did not embrace the Lotus Sutra because they too had the Buddha nature and might someday believe in the sutra. Therefore, it is all the more natural to revere those priests and lay people who do embrace the sutra." - Fourteen Slanders

Nichiren teaches that "one who tells little of the truth are great liars." You fit neatly into this category, especially proclaiming that i am the source of disunity when it is the Fuji Schools who you defend who are the principle source of disunity in the Nichiren community. 

Nichiren states well how I feel about you:

“Now let me ask you to close your eyes, still your mind, and apply your thoughts to the logic of the matter. If, knowing the best path, one sees one’s parents or sovereign taking an evil path, can one fail to admonish them? If a fool, crazed with wine, is about to drink poison, can one, knowing this, not try to stop him? In the same way, if one understands the truth of the Buddhist teachings and knows the sufferings of fire, blood, and swords, can one fail to lament at seeing someone to whom one owes a debt of gratitude about to fall into the evil paths? Rather one should cast away one’s body and lay down one’s life in an effort to save such a person. One will never grow weary of admonishing him, nor will there be limits to one’s grief." - A Sage and an Unenlightened Man.