By John Fletcher
When I was in the sixth grade, a bunch of us white, middle-class kids decided we needed to form gangs. I guess we wanted to imitate inner-city gangs. We wanted to look cool. We formed two gangs: the Jets and the Sharks. We would get together and make up silly songs about the other gang. We even had a spy in the other gang. The culmination of the whole thing was a huge water balloon fight. That's right, a water balloon fight. That was as violent as we got. We took it seriously, too.
Sometimes that's how I see this in-fighting among Nichiren believers. We form gangs. Then we decide we don't like how the leader, or some other member of the gang is behaving. In righteous indignation, we leave in a huff (or a minute-and-a-huff, as Groucho would say). "He betrayed us! He committed doctrinal errors!" But really, what's at stake? Money? Pride? Is anyone's life on the line? In great social movements of the past, people's lives were at stake. Maybe it's a sign of progress that that isn't the case here. Or maybe it's sign we're all being just a bit silly.
I have to wonder how this all looks to someone from outside. I think they would laugh at how seriously we take ourselves (especially considering we are Buddhists; we are supposed to be laid back). They might think, "Why would I want to join that group? So I can partake of all the petty bickering? No thanks!" Everyone involved in the bickering looks bad, even if they think they have a just complaint. I recall a psychological study that found that when someone criticizes someone else to a third person, the third person will often take a more negative view of the criticizer than the criticizee.
When I first joined SGI, I was dismayed at all the interpersonal strife that went on. We even had a name for it - "Human Bullshit." I was about to go to college, and I enrolled at one where the nearest member was 300 miles away (or so I thought. Turns out there was a Japanese woman living nearby that was a member.) Anyway, I had grand dreams of establishing a district from scratch, without all the Human Bullshit. Needless to say, it didn't work out that way. People are people and they take their bullshit with them wherever they go.
I miss the days when SGI was allied with Nichiren Shoshu. There's comfort in tradition, and Nichiren Shoshu provided that. In the 80s a study was done of NSA members' religious backgrounds. Many members were Roman Catholics, another religion with a rich history and tradition. Small wonder. Now SGI must create its own traditions in a world that is already changing too fast for any of us too keep up with. The split with NS caused a dislocation that many of us older members are still dealing with, 18 years later. When Mr. WIlliams was General Director, he kept activities at a fast pace. In events like conventions, things were constantly changing. We called this training. But even that didn't prepare us for the biggest change of all.
I know I sound like Rodney King. "Can't we all just get along?" In truth I'm somewhat of a fundamentalist myself. It's easier to live in a black-and-white world, where you're sure you're right and everyone else is wrong. I can understand where people like Bruce and Mark are coming from. Their approach to Shakyamuni is a bit too Christian-like for me, but I understand the spirit. Mr Williams used to try to infuse us with the same spirit.
Don't get me wrong, I believe there is value in a diversity of views in the Nichiren community. A religion with such diversity is growing. But I'm always hoping we can disagree and discuss views without all the Human Bullshit.
Primary question: What is the goal of Nichiren Buddhist practice in society? What are we all working towards, beyond our own personal enlightenment/salvation?
Secondary question: How is this measured? How do you determine whether your practice or that of your group/organization is having the desired effect? How does your society change from where it is today? What does your society begin to look like as we approach our goal?
These questions came to me during a discussion on another forum about “kosen rufu”. I realized that my own personal understanding of the goal of Nichiren practice in society has evolved considerably during my journey of faith. I realized that my vision of what this goal might be is a personal one, not something I have been taught (by any individual or any Nichiren organization). I also realize that most peoples’ understanding of this concept is going to be different than mine, let alone the fact that it will vary significantly by culture and location.
Thinking back, I realized that I have not really ever seen a clear and measurable definition of this goal, in all my time as a Nichiren Buddhist. I also realized that I could not recall any metrics by which we can determine if we are heading in the desired direction or not, irrespective of school or organization. The lack of metrics may actually not be an important issue, but my brain tends to think in functional terms: I want to know how it works, and how we tell if it’s working well or not.
I pose these questions to anyone who wishes to respond; hoping to bring some clarity to the question of how we (as Nichiren Buddhists) variously define the goal of Nichiren Buddhism in society, and to illustrate just how much common ground we really do have as Nichiren Buddhists, irrespective of school or organizational affiliation.
Namaste, Engyo Mike Barrett