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sixtyseven
The following article from the sgi side, is another inconsistence about Mr. Presidents appearance. http://www.sgi.org/news/events/events2013/760th-anniversary-of-the-establishment-of-nichiren-buddhism-celebrated.html]www.sgi.org[/url] Guess why the org doesn't show us a photo of April 27? Oh oh maybe the dear leader looks so weak, that a lot of followers may raise questions why the chanting doesn't work at all for himself. Sensei, why do you look so dead-yellow in your face? ....caused by all these shitty songs you've engraved in sensei's heart?

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sixtyseven
Haha, that's also a nice joke. How do you call that in English when you do something what makes no sense, ...cut into melted butter? http://www.sgi.org/news/education/edu2013/ssa-talk-on-depression.html]sgi org[/url] To talk about depression to a group of unhappy people, at least Mrs. Ong has eight strategies how to become happy ( as long as the chanting alone will not make you happy), I would like to add a ninth strategy: take the EXIT of SSA headquaters/ SGI.

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Education
Back to listMay 8, 2013

Ms. Ong speaking
On May 8, Singapore Soka Association (SSA) and the Agency for Integrated Care organized a talk on depression titled "The Happy You." The talk was given by Ong Choon Ming, an occupational therapist from the Singapore Association for Mental Health, at a meeting of SSA's senior citizens group held at the SSA Headquarters.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), depression affects more than 350 million people of all ages around the globe. Ms. Ong explained that it is usually brought on by a combination of factors and cited several possible causes, including hereditary, hormonal and environmental elements.

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In her talk, which was focused on how to stay well and manage negative emotions, Ms. Ong put forward eight strategies in the prevention of depression. These included confiding in someone; engaging in constructive activities and meeting with friends; dividing big tasks into manageable parts and doing one thing at a time to promote a feeling of progress; challenging one's negative thinking and being prepared for setbacks; identifying and tackling the causes of depression; challenging one's preconceptions using rational and empathetic ways of thinking; exercising and looking for reasons to smile and laugh.

[Adapted from an article in the June 21, 2013, issue of SSA Times, Singapore Soka Association; photos courtesy of SSA]

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sixtyseven
The calendar motto for Aug 1 posted by a Malaysian Ikedabot:


A mirror, somebody should buy him a mirror.

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_{"Be a man of right, never of might.
Be a leader of the people, never a tool of authority.
Be a friend of the masses, never the slave of wealth.
Be a wise man of good, never a cunning evil one."}

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The Buddhist Value Creation Society (BVCS) made its debut on campus in January. It focuses on Nichiren Buddhism while helping others achieve enlightenment.

President Daisy Manivong and vice president Maj Yang created the club after beginning to practice Nichiren Buddhism more than a year ago.
In December, Manivong and Yang began gathering people willing to join BVCS. They wrote up a constitution based on current by laws of Fresno State, and by January the club was approved.

Yang said the club really wants to connect with people during these meetings.
“We want to express our philosophy so anybody can understand it and apply it to their daily lives,” Yang said.

The club meets on the second Monday of each month at 6:30 p.m. in the University Student Union pavillion. These meetings revolve around discussion, where members study magazines in small groups.
The members discuss how to apply the teachings in the text to their lives and how to relate them to college students.
The club has 10 members and is looking to expand. Manivong said the meetings and Nichiren practice are open to people from all backgrounds.
“We’re not against anyone,” Manivong said.

He began practicing Nichiren Buddhism in January last year. She went to a meeting with two friends at the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) center in Fresno to see what it was about.

The members told her to try their practices for 90 days as a trial run.
“They told me that if it didn’t work, I had nothing to lose,” Manivong said.

Soon after, Manivong invited Yang to go to the meetings.
“I questioned a lot of things,” Manivong said. “But the members always had an answer.”

BVCS is a segment of SGI, and the Nichiren Buddhist organization founded in 1975. SGI has more than 12 million members in 192 countries throughout the world.
SGI and Nichiren Buddhism are based on Nichiren, a Japanese priest from the 13th century. Nichiren lived in a time of struggle, and wondered why Buddhism was not fulfilling his people.
He studied the Buddhist sutras and discovered that the lotus sutra contained the key to enlightenment. The lotus sutra established that everyone contains the quality of the Buddha and deserves respect.
From this, Nichiren established the chant “nam-myoho-reng-kyo,” which Manivong translated as devotion to oneself, mystic law, the lotus flower and the voice or teaching of the Buddha.
“Through chanting, we are coming in to the rhythm of the universe,” Manivong said.
Yang said chanting helps her think more clearly.
“It helps me focus and have a better mindset when it comes to problems,” Yang said.

Manivong said the basic teaching of this type of Buddhism involves practice, faith and study. She said the methods make this form of Buddhism different because it is about changing oneself from within, while traditional temple Buddhism seeks external help.

A major symbol of Nichiren Buddhism is the lotus flower. The flower blooms in muddy water, which represents overcoming situations and problems.
The lotus flower not only blooms, but also seeds, which represents simultaneous cause and effect in life.

Manivong, a senior at Fresno State majoring in civil engineering, attributes her success to her practice. She believes that her practice is what gave her the opportunity to do research in South America last summer, as well as become a Sally Casanova Pre-Doctoral Scholar.
“This practice has helped me achieve my mission,” Manivong said.

On April 8 through 10, the club is hosting an event, called “Victory over Violence.” BVCS will have booths and displays that will explain how its practice can help overcome violence and bring peace. At the discussion meeting on April 8, the club will explore these topics.

Manivong said this event parallels SGI’s goal in preventing violence. She said one of SGI’s main goals is to abolish nuclear weapons by 2030.
Yang said that the purpose of BVCS is to get the word out about its faith.

“We want to spread the news that this club is active and what we’re about,” Yang said.
The club, Yang said, wants to let the community know that Nichiren Buddhism exists to help others be their best and to achieve happiness for others.

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SGI's Multilevel Marketing Approach To Personal Failure
From the Italian website No Alla Soka Gakkai

HOW TO LABEL THE DISAPPOINTMENT

In all religious communities always develops a model for label
information and to manage them in order to channel them and make them
acceptable. On the surface simplicity of $ oka is that:

Information management is a question of quantity and quality. These
two aspects imply an analysis of how many similarities you are dealing
with cognitive dissonance, and in what form and what. In the
“external” society there are special labeling requirements, and so
strident dissonances are recoded at some point so spontaneously from
the “social brain”, the cult there can sometimes be potentially
explosive contradictions, however, be classified into a single global
schema of thought, even at the price of rielaborazzioni boldly
convoluted. In fact, it is essential to guarantee $ oka still has all
the costs and the squaring of the circle. Translating the above into
practice, it is clear to insiders that, given the weight given by the
desires of all’esaudimento Gohonzon (the object of worship), to
neutralize and redefine all situations in which desires were not
realized. It is a nonsense to say that 99% of the $ okista philosophy
is everything in this stronghold. The militant proselytizing it
focuses exclusively on this concept and its labeling. The adepts and
hagiography argue that the Gohonzon elegantly fulfills all (ie 100%)
the wishes of the faithful. If ever you will attend a meeting $ oka,
after the demonstration phase of the acting and all its sophistry, you
will notice a phase of confrontation between the followers all geared
to the resonance of the mutual benefits of the practice. Commit a
positive and phases of elation following various interventions are the
norm. Then if someone complains instead of not being able to acquire
what you want, then snap the labeling.

Labelling of disappointment, or because my desires are not fulfilled:

1) The desire was badly formulated: it was not clear, was ambiguous,
too big, too small, unreachable … etc.etc.,

2) you have practiced evil, or little, or too little,

3) for long-time followers: are severely attacked by the demon,

4) for all: they represent the last exit before the bad karma of good
karma created by the practice manifests itself,

5) for more: the protection of the Gohonzon appear to the adept, who
does not know that, now if he was satisfied his desire, that would in
some way harmful to him,

6) for beginners: the practitioner “not ready” to support the
fulfillment of desire,

7) for all and for that particular desire: the practitioner was not
deeply determined, did not wish to sincerely

for many: the practitioner has not acted properly, that has not
completed all the necessary actions to get to the meeting.

The “dogma” to achieve their objectives reads: “establish-pray-
act” (see the ceremony at the end of calendar year in which you write
a little book wishes to achieve in the coming year).

In conclusion then , if the goal was not achieved, then there must be
a defect in one of three dogmas and go back to points 1, 2, 7 and 8,
then if you have absolute certainty (and who really knows ?) that the
State has well-established, prayed and done, you can always raise
questions karmic (point 4), demonic (point 3) or
“protection” (paragraphs 5 and 6).

Hence the great bluffs which followers rarely resist (echoes usually
does is short-lived). Points 1, 2, 7 and 8 are easily accepted and
understood their logic and then leave them aside. The remaining
points, or as it is entitled, the remaining labels being absolutely
unprovable, are generally accepted as true without question. The
“trinity” of dogma, ultimately, well-stocked, and if there are
particular problems, neuroses, crises, etc.. It really works to
increase the sense of self-efficacy, collective resonance of self-
esteem; increasing expectations of success and personal resources, in
this sense the practice “works”, no doubt, even if its benefits do not
actually go beyond the normal statistics possibility of any other
citizen of the world with a good sense of self-esteem. In other words,
all the hubbub of activity, recitations, meetings, proselytizing
(sorry, shakubuku) is a little high for a cost that gives the result.
Especially since there are also … possible contraindications.

Most of all what has been written is taken from the application of
principles of multilevel marketing.

Tenji-ma

Original Text:Il proselitismo militante fa perno infatti solo ed
esclusivamente su questo concetto e sulla sua etichettatura.
Show alternative translations
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Taken from: John AR Blacking (1928 – 1990), Michael S. Gazzaniga
(1939) et al.