May 22, 2005
Updates
New Comments from a new Soka Gakkai member in
New Soka Spirit Direction? It is up to you and me! April 17, 2005
There are recent up-dates to:
The Three Great Occult Dharmas April 19
Authentic Nichiren Mandara: Introduction April 20
Authentic Nichiren Mandara Part I: Aizen & Fudo Kankenki April 21
Authentic Nichiren Mandara Part II: 1266 Soseino Amulet April 22
Authentic Nichiren Mandara Part III: First Gohonzon at Echi April 23
In the Gohozon Shu Index, Gohonzon Galleries, at the Coffeehouse, I found the following Link: First Gohonzon Inscribed by Nichiren. This is one of two things which threw me off track while I was looking for Nichiren's first Gohonzon. The other was not realizing that there is a first Gohonzon, the one dated October 9, 1271; and the first 'Daimandara' Gohonzon, dated July 8, 1273.
Authentic Nichiren Mandara Part IV; Nichiro & the Odaimoku Tablet April 24
Authentic Nichiren Mandara Part V; Legend of Teradomari April 25
In GohonzonForum, Don Ross wrote:
Hello Robin,
I think I understand why you were confused... It seems you found a
Mandala a day or two older than the one I was told is the oldest (by
Bruce, if I remember correctly). If you look closely at #10, it was
not written with a brush. The story I heard is that this halograph
was inscribed by Nichiren when he was standing on the beach, waiting
to get into the boat to cross over to Sado Island into his 2nd exile.
He picked up stick from the ground, dipped it in ink, proclaiming his
homage to the Lotus Sutra, his awareness of his mission to propagate
the Lotus Sutra far into the future.
http://nichirenscoffeehouse.net/GohonzonShu/001.html
http://nichirenscoffeehouse.net/GohonzonShu/010.html
Anyway, back to my point, that is how I think of #10. So now it
seems you have identified #1 as his first Mandala. That may well be
so and you provide convincing evidence and so I will change that in
the Coffeehouse.
Ryoben:
Terrific comments, especially Joe and DharmaJim. When the split came, I became a zealous advocate to destroy NS. I believed that the SGI was without fault and NS had become evil. I was an attack dog that had been beaten and starved, so I attacked, again, again, and again.
I wrote 31 letters of remonstration of more than 31,000 words, and a new type of remonstration in the form of a novel which I sent to Nikken. It's hard for me to believe what a monster I was. I allowed myself to be turned into a complete madman. VP Tokuda from the SGI in Japan actually came to my home on his Chicago junket to offer me gifts from PI for my horrible letters.
I want to say that I was a fool, but I don't feel used by the SGI, because after an audit of what I could do personally, it was obvious that I should use my writing sills, coupled with my scholarship of SGI brand Buddhism to defeat Nikken.
Here is what happened - and I really wonder what will happen to others for all their curses and evil intentions. I want to know where the benefits of this terrible way of practicing Buddhism are. What will happen to those who continue this idiocy? My business went bankrupt, my father, brother, then mother died all in three years. My life began to rot! My 25 year marriage fell apart, and I experienced loss, loss, and more loss.
THis is no way to practice Buddhism. We were supposed to be protecting people who had become ensnared in the Nichiren Shoshu web and their eternal life was in peril. Now that I am on the outside and somehow survived my "good cause," it is obvious that SGI is imperiling its own members. This is not some great good cause but the road to ruin and may be the undoing of the SGI all together.
LIke Joe said, SGI believes in NSA doctrines, save one of the life blood, and is virtually the same religion. The probelm as I see it is that these two Nichiren teachings are both wrong.
Once I apologized to the Gohonzon for my ignorance and moved away from the madness of soka spirit, my life regained its balance.
Thanks Ryoben, for pointing out this problem that continues to eat away at the SGI like flesh eating bacteria. I'm afraid that it's too late for these movements and they will eat each other alive, taking all the members sanity with them. I hope that I'm wrong.
Charles
Posted by: Charles at May 22, 2005 03:09 PM
I do think it's a good idea to cut the legs out from under them in the U.S. where they would not have existed at all without the SGI.
Posted by: one great reason at May 24, 2005 01:09 PMWell Phil, SGI agreed to the formation of NST and donated the property. I guess it was trust. Sort of like the Financial Disclosure issue?
robin
Posted by: ryoben at May 24, 2005 02:51 PM