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Friday, January 23, 2015

SGI teachings are not even similar to Nichiren's

"If you are a devout Christian, i don’t mean to offend you by posting this. Actually, i don’t consider true Buddhism to be a religion. It’s actually a Life Philosophy practiced by a large number of Christians. Since Quantum Physics now proves with out a doubt, that everything is really just Energy disguised as physical matter; Nam Myoho Renga Kyo (the Chant) is simply a very high vibration, that gives more power to that which you desire. Because it is of such a positive frequency, when you repeat it over and over again, it can only give off a harmonizing effect, grounded in Causality. In other words if you make good positive causes, you will receive positive results more frequently and faster. But, if you continue to foster negativity the effect will also come much faster. This is actually a good thing if you need a mirror to see what's wrong with you. This is the Law Of Attraction on steroids so to speak." -- Ikeda cult member

"But the sutra says, “How much more will this be so after his passing?” By this we know that, in a future age after the passing of the Buddha, there are bound to be persecutions and difficulties even greater and more fearful than those that occurred during his lifetime. If even the Buddha had difficulty bearing up under such persecutions, how can ordinary people be expected to bear them, particularly when these troubles are destined to be even greater than those that occurred during the Buddha’s lifetime?

Though one might wonder what great persecutions could possibly be more terrible than the huge rock thirty feet long and sixteen feet wide that Devadatta rolled down on the Buddha or the drunken elephant that King Ajātashatru sent charging after him, if persecutions greater than those that arose during the Buddha’s lifetime keep occurring again and again to someone who is not guilty of the slightest fault, then one should realize that that person is a true votary of the Lotus Sutra in the age after the Buddha’s passing."

An open letter to Daisaku Ikeda -- Arthur James Vidato

https://nagabuddha.files.wordpress.com/2010/05/an-open-letter.pdf

"There are no priests in SGI"

Italian SGI leaders [responsabili] are known as "Ministers of Worship".

A critique of SGI's Burton Watson translation of the Lotus Sutra

Burton Watson translates a passage from Chapter 21 of the Lotus Sutra as follows:

"At that time the Buddha spoke to Superior Practices and the others in the great assembly of bodhisattvas, saying: "The supernatural powers of the Buddhas, as you have seen, are immeasurable, boundless, inconceivable. If in the process of entrusting this sutra to others I were to employ these supernatural powers for a measurable, boundless hundreds, thousands, ten thousands, millions of asamkhya kalpas to describe the benefits of the sutra, I could never finish doing so. To put it briefly, all the doctrines possessed by the Thus Come One, the storehouse of all the secret essentials of the Thus Come One - all these are proclaimed, revealed, and clearly expounded in this sutra.

For this reason, after the Thus Come One has entered extinction, you must single-mindedly accept, uphold, read, recite, explain, preach and transcribe it, and practice it as directed. In any of the various lands, wherever there are those who accept, uphold, read, recite, explain, preach, transcribe, or practice it as directed, or wherever the sutra rolls are preserved, whether in a garden, a forest, beneath a tree, in monks quarters, in the lodgings of white-robed laymen, in palaces, or in mountain valleys or the wide wilderness, in all these places one should erect towers and offer alms. Why? Because you should understand that such spots are places of religious practice. In such places have the Buddhas gained anuttara-samyak-sambodhi, in such places have the Buddhas turn the wheel of the Law, in such places have the Buddhas entered parinirvana." 

Bunno, Kato, Etal. translates the same passage:

"At that time the Buddha addressed Emminent Conduct and  the host of other Bodhisattvas: "The divine powers of buddhas are so infinite  and boundless that they are beyond thought and expression. Even if I, by these divine powers, through infinite, boundless hundred thousand myriad kotis of  asemkheya kalpas, for the sake of entailing it, were to declare the merits of  this sutra, I should still be unable to reach the end of those [merits]. Essentially speaking, all the laws belonging to the Tathagata, all the mysterious, essential treasuries of the Tathagata, and the very profound conditions of the Tathagata, all are proclaimed, displayed, revealed, and expounded in this sutra.Therefore you should, after the extinction of the Tathagata, wholeheartedly receive and keep, read and recite, explain and copy, cultivate and practice it as the teaching. In whatever land, whether it be received and kept, read and recited, explained and copied cultivated and practiced as the teaching; whether in a place where a volume of the sutra is kept, or in a temple, or in a grove, or under a tree, or in a monastery, or in a lay devotee's house, in a palace or a mountain, in a valley or in the wilderness, in all these places you must erect a caitya and make offerings. Wherefore? You should know that [all] these spots are the thrones of enlightenment. On these [spots] the buddhas attain Perfect Enlightenment; on these [spots] the buddhas roll the wheel of the Law; on these [spots] the buddhas [enter] parinirvana." (Lotus Sutra, Chapter 21, The Power of the Tathagata)

Leon Hurvitz translates this same passage;

"The Buddha then addressed Him of Superior Practice along with the others in the great assembly of Bodhisattvas. "The spiritual powers of all Buddhas are similarly immeasurable and boundless, beyond conception or imagining. Were I, for the sake of entrusting this scripture to others, to expound its merits and virtues for untold and limitless hundreds of thousands of myriad millions of eons by means of these-spiritual powers of mine, I would still not be able to exhaust its riches. In short, all the Teachings that I as a Tathagata possess, all the spiritual powers that I have at my disposal, all my unseen storehouses and all my extremely profound activities are expounded, revealed and explained in this scripture. For this reason, after my parinirvana, you should wholeheartedly accept and hold to it, study and recite it, understand and expound it, write it down and make copies of it and, just as you preach it, so practice in accordance with it.

"If there is anyone in any land or country who accepts, holds to, studies, recites, understands, expounds, writes down, copies or practices it as he preaches it, be it in a place where Scripture books reside, or in a garden, or in a grove of trees, or under a tree, or in a monk's quarters, or in the lodging of a white-clad layman, or within the halls of the nobility, or on a mountain, or in a valley, or in an open plain, therein will a stupa be raised and an offering be made. And for what reason? Know that such a place is indeed a seat for enlightenment: in such places Buddhas find Complete and Perfect Enlightenment, in such places Buddhas turn the Wheel of the Dharma, in such places Buddhas enter parinirvana."

"Because you should understand that such spots are places of religious practice."(Watson)

"You should know that [all] these spots are the thrones of enlightenment." (Bunno)

"Know that such a place is indeed a seat for enlightenment."(Hurvitz)

Now, my dear readers, don't you think that, after seeing these highlighted sentences and reading again and again the three translated passages above, that the SGI advisers to Watson had an agenda to mute the Buddha's message and passion for the Lotus Sutra? Please, think about it. Watson's passage is drab and passionless. Bunno's is vibrant and filled with passion and Hurvitz's is to the point. Do you think the Buddha was passionless or circumspect about the Lotus Sutra? The SGI are psychological manipulators. Do not be fooled or it will be your loss.

Receiving the benefit of the greatest treasure

"The two ways of practice and the resulting virtues of Shakyamuni are inherent within the five characters of Myo-Ho-Ren-Ge-Kyo. If we embrace these five characters, we naturally will be bestowed with the benefits of his cause and effect. The four great men of learning heard this teaching and realized, “We can receive the benefit of the greatest treasure without even seeking it.” -- The True Object of Worship

The two types of wisdom

"There are two kinds of wisdom, correct and perverse. No matter how wise a person may appear, if his assertions are warped you should not listen to him.”

"The mentor disciple relationship is the very heart of the Lotus Sutra" -- Daisaku Ikeda

"Do not put faith in traditions handed down orally." -- Nichiren Daishonin

Those who accept Soka Gakkai too yield to their devilish nature and foolishness

"The translators of the newer versions of the sutras learned about T’ien-t’ai’s doctrine of three thousand realms in a single moment of life when they came to China. When they translated Sanskrit sutras into Chinese, some put T’ien-t’ai’s principle into their translations, and others claimed that the originals they had brought from India already contained it. Some of the scholars of the T’ien-t’ai school were simply pleased that other schools were expounding the same doctrine as theirs, while others praised the Buddhism of India and slighted that of China, or discarded their original doctrines and adopted new ones. These scholars yielded to their devilish nature and to foolishness. Ultimately, however, without the seed of Buddhahood, that is, the three thousand realms in a single moment of life, sentient beings cannot become Buddhas, and any statue or painting would be an object of devotion in name only."

Be free

The eyes of the Buddha have perfect vision. Ikeda glasses are not necessary. No intermediary is necessary. Be free. Spread the Law and the Gohonzon to the best of your ability.

"The Victorious Future of Mentor and Disciple" or The True Heart of the Smiling Backstabbers of Soka

"The Victorious Future of Mentor and Disciple"
by Daisaku Ikeda SGI Eternal Mentor

I can see
Those who are like demons
Milling around what,
Unbeknownst to them,
Is only an execution block.
They trample
The noble spirit
Of the Daishonin
And have become
Pitiful robbers of the Law.
Like a rapacious swarm of locusts,
Nikken and his cronies
Have exploited and persecuted
And even plotted to destroy
The Soka Gakkai,
An organization of the highest good
That has made unprecedented contributions
To spreading the Law
And worked so hard
To support and protect the priesthood.
Their evil deeds
Will go down forever in history
And they will be severely judged
According to the law of cause and effect.
This I believe
To be the unwavering position
Of the Daishonin.
It will be just as he states
In the writing "On Persecutions Befalling the Sage":
They "seem to be free from punishment at first,
But eventually they are all doomed to fall"
(The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, p. 997).
The plots and schemes of High Priest Nikken Abe and his cohorts,
Spinning a web of the most base lies
And vicious slander,
Were designed to bring us down.
Yet
We shone on brightly
Like the morning sun!
We rose boldly to the challenge,
And began our battle!
The Daishonin, too,
Was slandered as an immoral priest,
And his struggles amid persecution
Were beyond description.
Our first president Tsunesaburo Makiguchi
Used to strictly remind us
That in comparison
The persecution we encounter
Is truly small and trivial.
With silent forbearance,
The firm resolve demonstrated by the Buddha
Engraved in our hearts,
We waged an arduous struggle To overcome
Every imaginable
Haughty and arrogant utterance.
We will not be defeated.
We are fed up
With the clamoring and abusive foolishness
Of these spiritual paupers.
In fact, our mighty, passionate spirit
Only burns all the brighter.
They who are
At times frenzied,
At times coldly silent,
At times filled with excuses,
Will eventually depart this world,
Gasping and trembling in fear.
Backsliders in faith!
Are you satisfied
To lead a life
Trapped in a maze
Of hellish depths?
Slanderers of the Law!
Having corrupted the Daishonin's teachings
And veered from the eternal truth,
Are you prepared
To drift along forever in a state of life
Of agonized defeat?
Traitors!
Having turned your backs
On the Daishonin's golden words,
Are you ready
To be burned in the fires
Of the hell of incessant suffering?
To be imprisoned in a cavern
In the hell of extreme cold?
To be shut off in the darkness
Of misery and strife,
Forever deprived of the sun's light?

Soka Gakkai Italia: Indigo a deeper blue [of fascism]

http://wrap.warwick.ac.uk/2403/1/WRAP_THESIS_Foiera_2007.pdf

The Lotus Sutra itself chooses heir disciples, not the SGI, Kempon Hokke, nor Shamon Tsuchiya

"Among the disciples of the school of Nichi-ju, nobody should be chosen, directly or indirectly, as an heir disciple. However, anybody among the priests or the laymen of my congregation who spreads the teaching in Kyoto and who swears that other sects are the root of all evils and that only the Lotus Sutra leads to Buddhahood, only these people can be my disciples. And if candidates are equally gifted, they should propagate during the summer, practicing in turns. You should consider a person who spreads the teaching in this manner as the true disciple of Nichi-ju. So, in the days to come, this shall be my will."

The Third Year of Meitoku Mizunoe Saru January 29th [1392] Seal of Nichi-ju

Nichiren advances the principle of Transmission Through the Sutra Scrolls. not transmission through mentor/disciple

"Usually teachers are persons. However, trustworthy teachers do not exist in the Latter Age; so there is much evidence of regarding the dharmas as teachers.." (Shugo Kokka-ron, noppa, p.2)

Shinichi Yamamoto is one sharp dude!

From the The Human Revolution Vol. IX, Readings for September 2007 "Spark" pp. 1167-1168

"The Kempon Hokke school was founded by Nichiju in Kyoto about one hundred years after Nichiren Daishonin's death. It maintained that the Buddhist doctrines should be transmitted by the scriptures only and not from mentor to disciple..."

I just can't understand SGI [actually I can through the eyes of Nichiren but not through the eyes of an unenlightened worldling]

For example, SGI features failed mediation expert Mari Fitzduff on their Ikeda Center website. She was [is?], among other things, a mediator between Palestinians and Israelis. We see how far even the mediation of nation states has taken us in resolving this crisis, let alone mediation through individuals such as Ms. Fitzduff. Yet, they feature one of her essays on conflict resolution involving fundamentalists. 

Her approach, as is SGI's, is completely doomed to failure: http://www.ikedacenter.org/ikeda-forum/2014-dignity because it fails to take into account the wonderful power and influence of Myo to revive, revitalize, and restore. Once again we see SGI adopting all strategies other than the Lotus Sutra. How sad!

"I am Myoho renge kyo" [well maybe]..."I am Soka Gakkai" [no]

"I am not an official spokesperson for the SGI "

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SGI creates a new term for non-duality

"Non-positionality." This describes perfectly what SGI stands for... nothing.

SGI's get out of jail free card

No Soka Gakkai member or leader beneath Vice General Director may take full responsibility for their words. No one save Ikeda and the top salaried Soka Gakkai "Ministers of Worship" are considered by the Soka Gakkai as official representatives or spokespersons whose views fully accord with the Soka Gakkai's. There is always a caveat to their arguments. The bottom line is, they are cowards.

How Soka Spirit parasites are removed from the body of the Buddha

Soka Spirit[s] are parasites engorged with the blood of Shakyamuni Buddha and Nichiren Daishonin. Filled with vainglorious declarations and vows to defend what Daisaku Ikeda has entrusted to them, they burrow deep into the flesh of the Buddha and the Supreme Votary. Failing to emerge into the sun of the true teachings, they must be removed by medicament, forceps, matchstick, liquid soap, ablation, or desiccation. Occasionally, amputation or radical surgery, including enucleation and pneumonectomy,  may be necessary.

I can refute nearly every assertion of each and every SGI scholar and sympathizer as easily as a hot knife cuts through butter

http://www.iop.or.jp/Journal24.html

Particularly the assertions of Matsuoka, Kowada, and Anderson. Try me if you dare.