Anthony Elmore, on his website www.proudblackbuddhist.org/ has written a lot about Ghana and Joseph Asomani --some of this information has also been copied and is quoted on page 154 of this thread:

[forum.culteducation.com]


-------------Beginning of Quote---------------------------------------------------------------------

(SGI and Ghana)In Ghana members were told that the Gosho was to difficult to read and members were given the Ikeda book "From Today Onwards" as the teachings in Ghana.

In 1990 the SGI summoned Ghana leaders to Japan and Ikeda changed the leadership. In Ghana the law mandates that religious leaders be hired or fired by Ghanaians. When Ikeda decided to replace Joseph Asomani as Ghana’s General director of the SGI, Ghanaians asked the SGI to respect their country’s constitution and let them decide who was the best leader for Ghana. The members in Ghana having breaking the shackles of colonialism resisted manipulation of the SGI and The SGI excommunicated 90% of the Ghanaians members who stood by Joseph Asomani The Ghanaian members stood firm in unity against the SGI and today they just built the first Nichiren Shoshu Temple in Africa with 90% of former SGI members joined Nichiren Shoshu.  

---------------------End of Quote---------------------------------------------------------------------------

The situation in Ghana was part of a larger picture. In the early 1990's, many NSA leaders in many countries were replaced with leaders who were more willing to toe Ikeda's line. Chris Holte writes about this on his website:

[webspace.webring.com]

-------------------------------Beginning of Quote-----------------------------------------------------------------

Ghana:
In Ghana, Joseph Asomani had taken the lead for propagation around the area of Accra (the Capitol) and had converted a number of his native Ashanti people to True Buddhism. In 1989 allegations were made about sexual improprieties and aimed at him. He was married to a Japanese Woman who was also a top local leader. When that relationship went sour, his relationship with the Gakkai also went sour. The central organization didn't seem to care that he was the central figure and not his wife. So when the two began to feud they sided with his wife and a few otehrs who had grudges (legitimate or not) with him. Whether the allegations were true or not SGI removed him from his position and replaced him with a Japanese Leader without bothering to hold a proper inquiry or involve the general membership in the decision.

Where have we seen this before? When SGI wants to get rid of a leader, it's very common to claim that the individual was involved in some kind of sexual impropriety. The leader's reputation is smeared, and he never gets a chance to present his side of the story.

Europe:

In Britain, Richard Causton established a good attitude towards the Dharma, so that most members were insulated from leadership problems or efforts to treat Ikeda as if he were sacrosanct. Mr. Causton's relationship with Ikeda was a genuine mentor/disciple one and he was free to run things as he felt was right. Since his death, the organization has been taken over by the same kind of leadership that we see in other countries, and the result is that people have been becoming "independent", joining some of the rival Nichiren Sects, or joining the Hokkeko. Some members were offended by the erasing of Richard Caustons imprint on the organization following his death, and by first the encouragement of a "Reassessment" of the organization, and then the squashing of efforts to do so.[/b]

Though you have to wonder. If Richard Causton had lived longer, would he too have suddenly become a persona non grata as George Williams did? Causton seems to have been very popular. How long would Ikeda have tolerated that?


Italy was spared the kind of internal fighting that occured in Spain, until Mr. Kaneda decided to make a few internal changes. According to reports from Claudio Michelli (A disgruntled Itallian member).The fight there seems to have little to do with Nichiren Shoshu directly. Instead "fighting" Nichiren Shoshu has been an excuse to ease out older indiginous or non Japanese members and replace them with "loyalists," loyal ostensibly to President Ikeda but actually loyal to themselves as "direct disciples" of Ikeda. Among other things they cracked down on the older members and started replacing them with younger people.

Again, were some of these older leaders too inclined to think for themselves? Can't have that!

The way this works is that leaders would say totally outrageous things. For instance, a member from Central Europe reports to me that; M. Hasagawa (the leader for all Europe) alleges that:

"The Nikken version of the gohonzon has no power to give benefit at all since our 'excommunication'", and that that "the flow of benefit was stopped" for those who kept their Nikken Gohonzon.

All this as insistance that people trade in their Nikken gohonzon for Nichikan Gohonzon. And all of it patent nonsense since even as late as 1992 the Gakkai was teaching that "A gohonzon is a gohonzon is a gohonzon. Your faith is what makes the difference" {Dick Causton, among others}.

This sort of lie seems to be directed towards raising money from people making "donations" to trade in their old Gohonzon or towards enforcing some sort of strange loyalty test on members by using orwellian language. It seems that it "sparked off a wave of ordinary members (spurred on by various leaders) into doing a witch-hunt against those members who did not change and resulted in a deeply twisted idea of what a gohonzon is."

In any case, there seems to be a pattern of "leaders" using their purported ties and loyalty to President Ikeda in order to feather their own beds and positions.

I guess these "leaders" have done a little too well at taking Ikeda as their mentor, using SGI to feather their own beds.

Recently I heard from another member (this one from Switzerland) who corrobrates Claudio's story with one of his own about what these so called "leaders" are doing to his country and the members there. It seems to be a pattern of disenfranchising local leadership and pushing faith in "person" over Dharma and common sense.

Again, with the disenfranchising of local leadership. God forbid any leader should fail to toe the line from Tokyo!

------------------------------------End of Quote------------------------------------------------------

In short, it seems to be the same everywhere, starting in the 1990's, though it actually started decades earlier. Leaders are replaced, with no explanation, by leaders handpicked by Ikeda. SGI will change its teachings to suit its own ends. Members have no say in anything; they are expected simply to follow along with whatever Ikeda says, without question.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/13/2012 11:12AM by tsukimoto.

Thanks for posting Tsukimoto. They have been saying for years that only the SGI Gohonzon, Gohonzon conferred by SGI [the only "united" body of true believers are valid, throwing even the Nichiren Gohonzons to the wayside]. Yet, out of the other side of their mouth they teach that the Eye Opening Ceremony for Gohonzon are useless and it is the faith of the individual that is paramount. Their teachings are so full of contradictions because like politicians, money and power [not truth] is all that counts.

Nichijew

The $oka Gakkai (International), a democratic, multi-cultural, peace loving Buddhist organization, from the outside. On the inside, an ethnocentric dictatorially governed, evil, vile, manipulating & lying, pseudo-buddhist, personality (Dai$aku Ikeda = messiah complex) worshipping, scam, cult organization.

Quote
Hitch
On the inside, an ethnocentric dictatorially governed, evil, vile, manipulating & lying, pseudo-buddhist, personality (Dai$aku Ikeda = messiah complex) worshipping, scam, cult organization.

.

Of course you are correct. The problem is that when they see their ugly faces they invoke the Lotus Sutra Chapter 13 about hatred and jealousy in the Latter Age, so they close their eyes and cover their ears. For me, the key is to demonstrate how their doctrines and practices deviate from those of the Lotus Sutra and its votaries. Since that is so, the Lotus Sutra is certainly not talking about them.

Another problem, when we point out their reprehensible behavior, they either trot out Ikeda's guidance on compassion and place the blame on human imperfection and failing to follow the mentor's guidance or they again invoke the Lotus Sutra [Chapter 10] and writings of Nichiren that it is slanderous to point out even the major misdeeds of the votaries of the Lotus Sutra. Then again, it is worthwhile to point out that they are certainly not votaries of the Lotus Sutra because votaries uphold and protect the Lotus Sutra while they abandon and defame the Lotus Sutra [and we can cite examples] or we can point out that, at the very least, their teachings have no power to elevate the human condition We may also highlight that Nichiren Daishonin always placed the blame squarely on the shoulders of those at fault.

Sometimes they proclaim that we can't possibly understand the great wisdom and compassion of their mentor and top leaders, that what we see as black is actually white. Then it is wise to point out the principle of thusness or suchness which is not altered in the slightest by human perception.

Their mentor is particularly reprehensible in light of the Lotus Sutra and the behavior of the Buddha and Nichiren Daishonin because he has taken something noble and turned it into something base, his words, failing to match his actions, and both his words and actions failing to match those of the the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha, and Nichiren Daishonin. The general members too, except for the most neophyte, are complicit and can't hope to escape the horrible destiny that they are creating for themselves and others. In real Buddhism, there is the principle of personal responsibility. Even SGI mind control can't absolve them of turning the Lotus Sutra into a cult of personality and hatred of the authentic teachings of the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren Daishonin

Nichijew.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/15/2012 02:35AM by Nichijew.

I get a kick out of the unique thorn in the side that you are (Nichijew) to the sgi cult org.. In the end, though, I think the vast majority of deluded cult members are simply going to have to just live and die with their own spoon-fed dogmatic version of events.

Hehe. Here is a pitchfork in the side you might find interesting. This fellow appears to get personal, reporting on such incidents as an SGI leader arrested for reckless driving who killed three children after leaving a meeting, a top leader conman who made millions selling bogus shark cartilage to desperate cancer patients, violent trial incidents, SGI member extortion, and even SGI member murder trials:

[sokanetcult.blog119.fc2.com] [The Truth About The SGI]

If you would read some of the articles and give us a better gist than google translate, I think it might be worthwhile. I wish they would stop calling themselves Buddhas. A bit of humility in the face of such abhorrant behavior is in order.

Nichijew



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 07/16/2012 11:56AM by Nichijew.

Hi all. In general, the Japanese victims of the SGI are more savvy and aware of the true nature of the Soka Gakkai. We have perhaps one or two blogs reporting on the dangers [psychological, financial, and downright menacing and harrassment] of the cult but the Japanese have dozens. I suggest you go to to google translate, English to Japanese and type in anti-soka gakkai, "the truth about the Soka Gakkai", etc. and then go to google images and you will find lots of information you can use to fight them. Sometimes they [SGI] ask me why I'm not chanting hours a day or promoting my School of Nichiren Buddhism. I tell them because Nichiren teaches, "it would be better to outlaw the one evil [he was talking about the Pure Land sect] than offer up ten thousand prayers." In our day and age, the "one evil" is the Soka Gakkai which teaches that the Lotus Sutra has lost its power in this age and that Shakyamun is a husk [to be discarded] Buddha. This last transgression is the same argument put forth by Pure Land except the Soka Gakkai substitutes Amida Buddha for Nichiren in order to capture the heart of Japanese nationalists.

Nichijew

Hi, everyone. I haven't written for quite a while, and was very surprised to see that there's now 452 pages! SGI has left their mark on so many.

For those of you who don't know me, I was a 33 year member. Joined when I was in my early 20's, and then finally had enough in my mid-fifties. The reasons? Every reason that has been discussed here. I was so enmeshed in the SGI-world. I married a leader and raised my children in youth division activities. I did not have many friends on the outside. All of our social contacts were within SGI. We had huge meetings all of the time in our house. For years and years. As a result of all of this, it was so difficult for me to leave. I felt so lost. This forum helped me tremendously get on with my life.

I was inspired to write today because I went back to the SGI community center this morning. The occasion was a memorial service. A couple of weeks ago, when I learned that someone that I had known well had passed away, I wondered if I could bring myself to go to the service, but I wanted to. So after giving it some thought, I went. My husband went also. It's been three years since we left.

During the meeting, I kept feeling like I wanted to leave. Dang, that's just how I felt the last few years I was a member!! Afterwards, my old friends were just so surprised to see us. I have changed so much since the cloud of SGI is not hanging over my head anymore. I have lost almost 40 pounds since I last was in that building. I spend money on myself instead of always giving it to SGI. I have cute clothes and hairstyle. I have the time to take care of myself and to have friends and interesting things in my life. I just feel so much better about everything. My husband has also changed tremendously. Mouths dropped open when we made our appearance!

No members, however, had changed. They had the same problems. Some even worse.

One old friend was there who did look great, better than ever. We got to talking, and she told me that she hardly ever goes to meetings anymore. She thinks that SGI is just wrong. She used the word "political" to describe SGI but what she really meant was "cult". She looked happy and healthy. It's amazing what going taitan can do for you!!!

@ quiet one

Even though the occasion was a truly sad one your observations led me to think if not a good portion of people with so called responsibilty in SGI suffer from burnout.
At times people invest so much time in activiteis that would make one believe that they have two jobs at once ... the day time one and the one caused by activities.

What I gather from here and in "real life" is that a fair amount of those leaving are long time members. In due time this will be an organistational problem too and my guess is that its only a matter of time until the "good old" shakubuku campaigns will be kicking in again.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 07/16/2012 03:09PM by Rothaus.

Quote
Nichijew

[sokanetcult.blog119.fc2.com] [The Truth About The SGI]

Interesting website. Looks to be like a Japanese version of your website (in this case: chronicling lots of anti-gakkai "news" stories - members' exploits / Seikyo Shimbun horror stories - people who don't subscribe, threats, retribution, etc. / yakuza-esque - a la horse's head scene from "The Godfather" movie, involving a cat - harassment of anti-komeito political candidates / and some creative parodies making fun of the gakkai using the Harry Potter theme and some well-known Japanese cartoon kid's characters - "Crayon Shin-chan", etc.). There was also an interesting archived article about how ~ 89% of the Japanese public dislike the gakkai (to varying degrees). Sounds about right to me, too.

These kinds of stories are pretty much common place "off the record" in Japan. The cult in Japan is protected by a huge language barrier wall that prevents the International cult members from hearing about these things. Gakkai members in Japan are also told to not believe things they read on the internet that are anti-gakkai. They are kind of paranoid about the membership reading such things (and possibly thinking for themselves). I also suspect that they plant their own bizarre stories in an effort to poison the well and portray all such people who spread such information as being "crazy."

*************

Incidentally, on the subject of the gakkai not being generally well liked in Japan: a recent issue of the sgi graphic commemorating the one-year anniversary of the March 2011 disasters (known as 3-11, in Japan) made a big deal about printing excerpts of interviews by a few big city mayors who complimented the gakkai for all of their relief efforts post 3-11. The interesting thing about the interviews were comments made alluding to the fact that their pre-3-11 impressions were not necessarily "positive" ones.

The gakkai cult in Japan is kind of sophisticated in their techniques to influence and control their image to the lay public.

(Oh, and btw, the dear leader was nowhere to be found in any of the photos of any of the events nationwide in Japan honoring the 1 year anniv. of the 3-11 disasters, other than a generic statement being shared and passed around, supposedly from him. This is, IMO, very uncharacteristic of the gakkai and the megalomaniacal narcissist Ikeda, when it comes to such events in their home country. Something very "rotten in the state of Denmark" going on, indeed.)