Taken from a blog: kaminoge.blogspot.com

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(SUNDAY, MARCH 29, 2009)

Wolves in Sheep Clothing

This Sunday afternoon the Kaminoge family drove over to the Fengyuan Culture Center (apparently there is culture in this city after all) to check out some kind of fair that was being held there. Various government and local groups had set up booths to display a variety of things, including a number of arts and crafts. It all sounded innocent enough, but once we got there something started to bother me, something about all the tricolor (blue, yellow and red) flags flapping in the wind:

Photo of tricolor flags - [ic.pics.livejournal.com]

I was trying to work out the connection between this fair and an as-yet-unidentified European country when the answer appeared right in front of me, on the backs of the vests being worn by hundreds of volunteers at the event:

Photo of vests - [ic.pics.livejournal.com]

SGI - Soka Gakkai International, for those of you who don't know, bills itself as a "Buddhist lay organization". In reality, it's about as Buddhist as the Mormon Church is Christian, and is more like a cult, led by the Kim Il-sung-like figure of Daisaku Ikeda. Like the Mormons, SG has been around long enough, and has grown large enough in size, that it has become respectable - almost. SG members still have a reputation of being aggressive, intolerant proselytizers, which combined with the group's supposedly unaffiliated political wing, the New Komeito Party has resulted in most ordinary Japanese being distrustful and wary of the organization.

Soka Gakkai and I have had a long, mutually antagonistic relationship, going back to my early days living in Tokyo. I used to date a woman who was a member, and through her, I was able to witness firsthand the level of control and brainwashing the organization had over its followers. She tried her best to convince me to join - by going to concerts to see bands made up of SG converts, eating out at restaurants owned by SG followers, and most of all, by giving me lots of English-language literature by and about Ikeda the Great One. Instead of seeing the benefits of chanting "Nam Myoho Renge Kyo" day and night, I only saw a group that was preying on...er, recruiting those in Japanese society who did not already belong to large groups - the self-employed, homemakers, part-timers and bar hostesses and others from the nighttime "entertainment" business. After 18 months of subtle and not-so-subtle attempts at getting me to see the light, my Dedicated Follower pretty much gave up and our relationship came to an end. I may have been a waste of time, but judging from the number of people serving as staff for today's event, it seems Soka Gakkai International has established a significant presence in Taichung County. Are all those Mormon missionaries I see around Fengyuan (Hogen) aware of the formidable competition they are up against?

SGI-organized though it may have been, we still enjoyed ourselves at the fair today.

Photo of event - [ic.pics.livejournal.com]

****

(Please note, I have not included any photos of the author's family in the above excerpt.)

It's a modus operandi of the $oka Cult Org. to shroud their "sponsoring" of community events behind a vague veil of fog that requires a bit of effort to blow away in order to see clearly *who* and *what* is standing before you (e.g., N$A Liberty Bell Campaign [www.culteducation.com] in the $GI-USA branch and there are many other examples that could be cited).

Loved that last sentence, "SGI-organized though it may have been, we still enjoyed ourselves at the fair today." - Caveat Emptor.


- Hitch

There are many people who enjoy associations that are destructive. Many are not even aware that their dysfunctional relationships are detrimental to their well being. Enough evidence of the poison of SGI has been given to keep them at arms length, fair or no fair, pleasure or no pleasure.

Mark

This may or may not have been posted before, but, for all the Korean $oka cult members out there, they may find this interesting:

[www.youtube.com] $GI-Korea

All in Korean, I don't understand it, but it's pretty self evident as to what it's all about. (The Dear Leader epicenter of the pseudo-buddhist cult, lots of footage of some intense Korea CULTure festivals, etc..)

Another perspective for current and prospective $oka cult members to see, learn about and inform themselves. It doesn't matter what country the gakkai cult is in, it all is basically the same beast.

****

On that note, I've just finished this book [en.wikipedia.org], "Cults In Our Midst - Singer." Everything now is much clearer; it's like shining massive stadium lights onto the beast, exposing and revealing every square inch of it for all to see clearly, understand and learn how to deal with it. Highly recommended reading. This book covers it all and explains everything.

Make absolutely no mistake about it, the $oka Gakkai (International) is a CULT, one of many out there, but essentially no different from the rest. A perspective changing book.


- Hitch

I found this fellow's comments to be accurate and worth sharing:

****

"Hello,

Firstly, Soka Gakkei is NOT a Buddhist sect it is the "lay" organization of Nicherin Sho Shu (sic) Buddhism.

Unfortunately, this lay group is more of a cult than a religious organization and has actually broken with the priesthood and the "religion" itself because of arguments over control. Their "leader" a guy name Ikeda is around 90 now, and still runs around with a gaggle of young women "assistants" and "translators" and spends his time jet setting around the world spending his tax free billions. They require HUGE amounts from their members and here in Japan they are generally, shall we say "disliked" by non members because of their pushy proselytizing.. They run a political party and own huge amounts of real estate, including properties in Malibu and Irvine California where they have their "University". It is a huge money making empire, all under the control of one guy.

Their "religious practice" consists of repeating "Namu Yo Horenge Kyo" (sic) 1000's of times, the faster the better. If you say it enough times you will receive whatever it is you want. Money, new car, girl friend etc. There is NO philosophy, no study, except reading from the dear leader's books, which are rambling essays on "world peace", you know, if you give enough money and say enough magic phrases world peace will break out, that sort of thing.

It is popular with some celebrities and others not willing or incapable of putting any thought into religion. Say the words...........that's all that is required.

Their "gohonzon" is a small paper scroll with the words "Namu Yo Horenge Kyo" written on it. THAT is what they "pray" in front of.

I know this because my wife's sisters are members, and my wife was when I met her. She has since seen the error of her ways. They are like zombies, giving 25% of their income, working for the cult every weekend and donating time and money for their political campaigns. They are required to sell so many subscriptions to the cult newspaper, and on and on. Like all cults they prey on the weak and lonely. They are very friendly and encouraging until they get their hooks in and then they never let go. A few years ago 10 million dollars was found in a suitcase thrown in a rice field. It is widely suspected that this was Soka Gakkai money that was "hidden" and disposed of for unknown reasons.

I would do NOTHING to encourage your friend's participation in this. It will damage him greatly in the end I'm afraid. This is SO not a religion, and will never lead to any peace for your friend."

****

And ....

****

"My "analysis" of Soka Gakkai is based on 30 years experience. Take it for what it is worth to you. They are not "affiliated" with Komeito, they own it. All candidates are high level members of Soka Gakkai. And NO they do not study the writing of Nicherin, the religion does, Soka Gakkai studies Ikeda's writings. Sorry, I live in the middle of it, I know how it works, at least here in Japan.

Their falling out with the priesthood was over control of temple properties and money....what else! Ikeda considers himself more important than their high priest. The high priest thinks he is the head of the religion, so they split and have nothing to do with each other. Soka members are PROHIBITED from even visiting the religion's temples by the dear leader.

To me it is a cult. Nicherin Sho Shu is NOT, Sokka Gakkai IS. Sorry that's my opinion after watching it and being around it as long as I have. I was married in their temple for goodness sake, so please do not assume my opinion is baseless and "uncharitable".

Actually their chanting means "hail to the Lotus religion (sutra)" in old Japanese. Their morning and evening prayers are in Heian period Japanese that NOBODY can read or understand, it is archaic and contains parts of the "lotus" sutra supposedly dictated by the buddha. None of the members that I know understand but a few words of it. They are far more interested in the "meat" of the meal so to say, the repetitive "gongyo", for hours on end.

Have they sold your friend his Soka approved "Budsudan" to house his scroll yet? You MUST buy it from them. Over here they cost anywhere from 2-10K for the wooden box with doors. They are very interested in the money side of things.

I am not trashing any religion here. Only Soka Gakkai, which is not a religion. Once again it is a group of laity founded by Ikeda, it is NOT a religion. It would be like calling the Knights of Columbus a "religion". I don't like them because I see my far from wealthy sisters in law giving them so much while the elites in the organization, ie; group leader rank and above, live quite a comfortable life with estates available only to them all over the country in the best resort areas. At one point my youngest sister in law was giving 50% of her income to the group while she lived off of the generosity of her mother. And they were pushing her to give more. That is just wrong.

Ever seen their mansion in Malibu, oh that's right regular folks can't go in. All the army of ants get for the price of admission is a promise of "changing their karma" and in so doing improve their material lives........yeah, that seems right. Sorry if I am biased, but there is just so much WRONG about Soka Gakkai that overshadows any good hidden in their message.

Good luck to you, really, and I am being totally sincere, with what ever you choose to do. It is not my life. I was only trying to share my experience with the group. Dismiss me if you choose. Others may have a different view, but I doubt they have been around it as long as I have."

****

Taken from [forums.catholic.com].

Must say, I agree with much of the above. Bolded remarks in particular:

1. You see this "gaggle" of young women's division all over inside cult HQ. buildings in Shinanomachi. Not WD, but YWD. They even push elevator buttons for you, hold doors open, pull chairs out for you to sit down and come running if you even so much as make a move to appear to be taking your coat off (so as to take it and hang it up for you). If unaccustomed to this kind of gender reversal of behaviors in Japan, it can be rather shocking for the uninitiated.

2. The amount you start giving regularly shall always be maintained, never decreased - lest your faith not be in the proper place. Subscriptions, activity preparation, Komeito campaigning (hitting the pavement, visiting houses, distributing literature on street corners) are all a matter of course and expected when the time comes. No thinking required. The word goes out and machine and members quickly hum into action following orders. It's very hard to pull back or stop once you start down the road of obligating yourself for such "practices." Again, if you do, your faith is questioned and you will be pressured back into the fold by home visitations, etc..

3. Again, there is heavy pressure to maintain the regular amount you give to the cult org., never decreasing. The more "fortune" and benefit your acquire (confirmation bias), the more you are pressured to ratchet up your gratitude in the form of $$$$$, time, commitment and more activities / meetings / taking care of other members.

4. The Malibu mansion is an incredible property located off PCH (Pacific Coast Highway / Highway 1) in California, right across from / near Pepperdine University. It was called "The Malibu Training Center." ("Training" is cult-speak, for manipulation.) Even as a kid / teenager, that property never failed to take my breath away - especially the grounds and view. Many areas of the property were officially "off limits" even to members - and strictly enforced. This property always had a different feel to it in comparison to all of the other gakkai cult buildings; more of a "mafia-don" kind of atmosphere, very plush, yet very unwelcoming, untrusting and one with a whiff of suspicion wafting in the air around every corner on the inside of the buildings. There were usually "Malibu Garden Parties" held there for The Dear Leader back in the 80's when he used to actually venture abroad. It's interesting to note that the general membership celebrations were held outside in the garden and only the hardcore high level cult leaders were allowed inside the buildings for other "guidance" meetings. If you weren't a trusted high level leader, you didn't gain access into certain areas. And once your "job" at the Malibu center was completed, you were ushered off just as quickly as you arrived.

Much of what the above fellow says resonates very well with my time in and exposure to the cult org..


- Hitch

Well I've been fascinated by what I've read here.So here's my two cents worth.

I started going to meetings in Nottingham,UK in Feb last year.It was very nice and benign (so it seemed anyway).Gongyo was a bit weird but I went with it.I read lots of books-Causton,Ikeda,the usual suspects.It seemed a great way of spiritual living,not having to renounce greed,lust and avarice.

Anyway I ended up at Taplow Court (SGI-UK HQ for those not involved) receiving Gohonzon in August last year.At the time I was on sickness benefit and had recently started on anti-depressants.So there was plenty of time to chant ,study and go to meetings.Out of the blue I got an offer to do an access course which I had previously applied for( 2 years before) but had not got on to.So natrually I'm thinking 'this stuff really works!'

Things soon took a downturn though.The course is very intense,enjoyable but a relentless stream of assignments.So chanting time went out the window as I was often working late in the library.Being an insomniac means getting up an hour or two earlier to chant was out of the question.I went from 2-3 hours a day to 30 minutes if I had enough energy to do it.

Then the coup de grace.My doctor suggested I could try and reduce the anti-depressant medication.I thought 'great,I've made loads of progress with the practice so why not?'.But within a couple of weeks on the reduced dose the old feelings of anxiety and depression were still there as strong as before.THE 6 MONTHS OF MANIC CHANTING HAD DONE ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!All the 'progress' was due to Citalopram and person-centred therapy rather than the Mystic Law and a piece of paper hung in a box.To say I was dissapointed doesn't nearly cover it.

Nevertheless I decided to soldier on but my realisation meant it was never the same.Add to this being stopped in mid-gongyo because I wasn't pronouncing it right,being told off for emailing someone who wasn't a member about an inter-faith event I needed help with,with the implication I was spammimg people with loads of unwanted stuff( which I wasn't),the MD Lotus Sutra Study Group (one line from the LS and about three pages of Ikeda's interpretation),the relentless optimism of the Art of Living,the mentor/disciple stuff,the fact that daimoku is nowhere mentioned in the Lotus Sutra....then the final straw.I declined to attend a New Year event and explained to a district leader that I no longer was practising Nichiren but have switched to Pureland.Apparently I should commit myself to SGI fo three years and then decide-three years is 'not a lot of your life' it seems.If I follow Pureland it is 'the road to Hell'.

Well,once the old eternal or even temporary damnation card gets played I'm offski.I will return the Gohonzon as I have no further use for it.Just glad I only took 3 and a bit months to see through the SGI BS.

"It's Buddhism Jim,but not as we know it."

SGI wants to try to hook people in for 3 years to SGI, because they know if they can hook someone in for 3 years, then they might get them for 10-to-Life.
also, if the person walks away after 3 years, then at least SGI got 3 years of dues and unpaid-labor out of them.

Yes, with SGI, you can lead the 'spiritual path' without having to renounce greed, lust and avarice.
That says it all.

SGI is like the movie Wall St..."Greed is good"...which is why SGI has invested billions of your donated dollars in undisclosed financial instruments globally, under the personal control of Ikeda and his family, like any corrupt tin-pot dictatorship...well gold-pot, as apparently Ikeda lusts for gold toilet fixtures.

As outlined before in this thread [forum.culteducation.com] large amounts of those investments would be in weapons corporations, even just through combined funds, but also directly with corps like Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, (which are now saying they are going "Green". LOL, SGI probably hires the same PR firm as Mitsubishi Heavy Industries).
So SGI-Ikeda makes a personal fortune investing your money in weapons and arms manufacturers, while simultaneously spreading propaganda that Ikeda is for "peace" like Gandhi...LOL indeed.

Very convenient for the King of personal greed, extreme avarice and lust...Daisaku Ikeda, the Anti-Buddha.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 01/03/2013 01:48AM by The Anticult.

Actually, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and SGI are a nice match.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries say they are going "Green" and a partial weapons list is below.
The difference with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and SGI, is when MHI tells their "Greenwashing" lies, no rational person is going to believe them, and understands its just corporate propaganda to maximize profits and to try to distract some of the general public who don't pay attention.

But with SGI, they try to hide behind "religion", but also work very hard to distract the public from the facts of reality.

[forum.culteducation.com]
Mitsubishi Corporation (Japan), CONTRACTORS
Activities/Services Commercial and military helicopters, military aircraft, aircraft engines, guided missiles and defence electronics. Satellite and space systems...
* Air-Launched Rockets
* Air-To-Air Missiles - Beyond Visual Range
* Air-To-Air Missiles - Within Visual Range
* Air-To-Surface Missiles - Anti-Ship
* Air-To-Surface Missiles - Direct Attack
* Air-To-Surface Missiles - Stand-Off And Cruise
* Analysis
* Analysis - Air-To-Air Missiles
* Analysis - Air-To-Surface Missiles
* Analysis - Automatic Grenade Launchers
* Analysis - Bombs
* Analysis - Country Inventories - In Development
* Analysis - Country Inventories - In Service
* Analysis - Gun Pods And Mountings
* Analysis - Guns
* Analysis - In-Service Combat Aircraft And Their Air-Launched Weapons Capabilities
* Analysis - Mines And Depth Charges
* Analysis - Rocket Launchers
* Analysis - Rockets
* Analysis - Torpedoes
* Analysis - Worldwide In-Service Combat Aircraft
* Bombs - Cluster And Dispenser Munitions
* Bombs - Precision And Guided Munitions
* Bombs - Unguided
* Contractors
* Glossary
* Guns - Integral And Mounted
* Guns - Podded Systems
* Underwater Weapons - Mines And Depth Charges
* Underwater Weapons - Torpedoes
* Underwater Weapons - Unclassified Projects

[Amazing. It gets/worse and worse.b]

Quote
The Anticult
Actually, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and SGI are a nice match.

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries say they are going "Green" and a partial weapons list is below.
The difference with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and SGI, is when MHI tells their "Greenwashing" lies, no rational person is going to believe them, and understands its just corporate propaganda to maximize profits and to try to distract some of the general public who don't pay attention.

But with SGI, they try to hide behind "religion", but also work very hard to distract the public from the facts of reality.

[forum.culteducation.com]
Mitsubishi Corporation (Japan), CONTRACTORS
Activities/Services Commercial and military helicopters, military aircraft, aircraft engines, guided missiles and defence electronics. Satellite and space systems...
* Air-Launched Rockets
* Air-To-Air Missiles - Beyond Visual Range
* Air-To-Air Missiles - Within Visual Range
* Air-To-Surface Missiles - Anti-Ship
* Air-To-Surface Missiles - Direct Attack
* Air-To-Surface Missiles - Stand-Off And Cruise
* Analysis
* Analysis - Air-To-Air Missiles
* Analysis - Air-To-Surface Missiles
* Analysis - Automatic Grenade Launchers
* Analysis - Bombs
* Analysis - Country Inventories - In Development
* Analysis - Country Inventories - In Service
* Analysis - Gun Pods And Mountings
* Analysis - Guns
* Analysis - In-Service Combat Aircraft And Their Air-Launched Weapons Capabilities
* Analysis - Mines And Depth Charges
* Analysis - Rocket Launchers
* Analysis - Rockets
* Analysis - Torpedoes
* Analysis - Worldwide In-Service Combat Aircraft
* Bombs - Cluster And Dispenser Munitions
* Bombs - Precision And Guided Munitions
* Bombs - Unguided
* Contractors
* Glossary
* Guns - Integral And Mounted
* Guns - Podded Systems
* Underwater Weapons - Mines And Depth Charges
* Underwater Weapons - Torpedoes
* Underwater Weapons - Unclassified Projects

Please stay on topic.

The topic of this thread is SGI not Mitsubishi.

@Hitch: about that mansion in Malibu you've mentioned, I have tried to do a little google research. Without luck, I found no information or adress of it. I simply would like to take a google earth look on it and let my little orange person stroll around. Like you've posted some weeks ago the google route of Shinanomachi HQ, that was great.

@Anticult
What a horrible list for a so called world peace organization connected with. These people are EVIL. I feel ashamed that I had not realized earlier.

@leeduffield Thank you for sharing your story and glad to hear that you are out.

Myself I'm waving goodbye to their fundamental darkness shit and the burnout they caused me.
I have returned the scroll on Dec.31th 2012 and I feel so free and easy now.My head is still one part nor was I punished by a lightning stroke. My Mitsubishi crashed a little , is this already a sign??? Finally - no big deal, easily and cheap mailed in an envelope to the HQ, I'm so glad to say I have it now out of my house. They have started their phone calls and short messaging "we miss you so much" like a lot of you here on this forum have mentioned before. That's annoying, but I feel free now. Free to choose what to do, if it's Buddhism or the Spaghetticult or non of both, I live in a democratic country and there is freedom.