I just wanted to write a note to anyone who happens to read my blog (or my posts in other forums for that matter) and is an SGI member that you had better be careful. If you want to remain an SGI member in good standing, it would be best if you don't let any of your fellow members, and especially not senior leaders, know that you are reading anything I have written or that you have had anything to do with me or those who have had anything to do with me. You may end up getting drummed out of SGI if you do. I am sure the same goes for any association with other Nichiren Shu ministers.
The fact is that you cannot credibly have Daisaku Ikeda as your mentor in life, if you are also learning about Buddhism from other sources - esp. Nichiren Shu sources. From the SGI point of view it is disloyal and undermines the unity of believers.
From my point of view, it has seemed to me that those who are open to learning from all sources have already decided that they are not going to have Daisaku Ikeda as only mentor in life, and I have to wonder how long they will be tolerated by their more true beliving members and by the leadership.
In any case, in Nichiren Shu, those of us who are ministers certainly feel a responsibility to learn, and teach, to foster study and practice. But at the same time I was told in Shingyo Dojo that, "We should always preach with the sutra in hand." This is a quote from the gosho by the way. In other words, we are not to have people just following our own opinions, but to lead them to the Dharma. We are to teach people not to follow people but to follow the Dharma. My own sensei, the Ven. Ryusho Matsuda, some years back confirmed for me that people should "inherit the Dharma directly from the rolls of the Lotus Sutra." He has also said to people taking Jukai (reciving the precept to uphold Namu Myoho Renge Kyo) from him, "Let us study together." There is no presumption that one should pick a person, even a minister, as one's sole mentor in life. As in the Shugo Kokka Ron (On the Protection of the Nation) by Nichiren, we teach that in the Latter Age, the one teacher to rely on is the Lotus Sutra itself.
So in addition to this warning to SGI members who read this blog or my posts or the writings of other Nichiren Shu ministers, I must also offer a challenge. If you are belonging to a Buddhist organization that demands you must take a person (or even an organization) as your mentor over and above the Dharma, and you find that you cannot in good conscience do that, then how long will you be able to really remain in such an organization? Do you pick a person as your mentor for life, or do you follow the Dharma rather than the person? Can you choose the latter and still be a member of an organization that requests or even demands that you follow the person?
So there it is in stark terms: Choosing the person (as demanded by an organization) or choosing the Dharma?
This, by the way, is why I emphasize Jukai (receiving the precept to uphold Namu Myoho Renge Kyo). Jukai is what is important, not picking a mentor, or receiving a gohonzon, or becoming a member in some group or organization. Jukai is indeed taken in the context of a Buddhist lineage and a Sangha, but it is an act that goes much deeper than a commitment to a personal mentor or particular institution. It is a public avowal of a commitment to the Eternal Shakyamuni Buddha, to the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Flower Teaching, and to the Sangha of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth (who appear wherever they are needed and not just inside some organizational boundaries, but neither do they reject organizations, even their boundarylessness has no boundaries) - all contained in Namu Myoho Renge Kyo. There are no other rules or regulations or contracts or pledges to sign. No secret hand shakes or decoder rings. Nothing but a commitment to Namu Myoho Renge Kyo itself and all that is implied by it - something that we must work out for ourselves through our own faith, practice, and study (without which Nichiren said there could be no Buddhism).
Namu Myoho Renge Kyo,
Ryuei
Posted by Ryuei at April 7, 2008 03:17 PM
"faith, practice, and study (without which Nichiren said there could be no Buddhism)"
Without Buddha there would be no Buddhism.
Screw the study, you could end up like Petry.
Seems like you have taken some softer views, thats great Michael. The idea of chanting is Nichiren's idea, and if you read carefully, it is only for people who do not understand Ichinen Sanzen. I think it leads to magical thinking, and it is definitely not something Sakyamuni would have said to do, nor would he have said to chant to a Mandala, or call something an Object of Worship, or pray for things. Sakyamuni never prayed for anyone, and I hardly think he would ask us to start praying in Mappo knowing we are screwed up, and would make us even worse! Just my thoughts, thanks for your blogging,
Maltz
Posted by: Bruce Maltz at April 7, 2008 11:52 PMGee, Michael - That's what I like about you, you're so subtle. Looking forward to seeing you all soon.
;)
Wahzoh
Huh. Maybe it's a well-calculated lead-in to up the sales of publication of World Tribune. Maybe they recognize that the minute you are the "Most Wanted Traitor" centerfold, people who find this hilarious are going to have to go out and purchase reams of that edition.
But seriously, any religion that strongly, urgently discourages outside study, hanging out with people that aren't the "right religion and that marginalizes those who do.... well, it is well to wonder if that religion is seeking to spiritually free or shackle its adherents.
But, there you are.
Kris
No one comes out of this looking good.
Posted by: Vanya at April 9, 2008 11:16 PMNo secret handshakes or decoder rings? Rats! I am definitely no longer a member of SGI. As of now, I am not in any hurry to become an official Nichiren Shu member. I do think that is the best choice for most people, especially those who are new to Buddhism. Also, if people feel they must be part of a Sangha, Nichiren Shu looks like the most viable option. If I were close enough to an activity center, I would likely be making plans for jukai.
robin
Posted by: robin at April 11, 2008 10:35 PM