Re: Former SGI members
Date: January 28, 2010 06:32AM
David, that quote is right on target -- Toda's description of the Gohonzon as a "happiness-generating machine" encourages materialism, self-centeredness and the pursuit of pleasure. It enables members to do whatever they want -- and not feel guilty, as long as they're chanting.
Anyone remember the "Daily Guidance" books? I found my book yesterday when I was cleaning out my closet. I have Volume 4. The "Daily Guidance" is a book -- one page for each date of the year, with a quote from Ikeda (or his ghostwriter) on each page. The idea was, before or after gongyo, you would read the day's quote. At meetings, the day's daily guidance was always read out loud, after gongyo. February 29 is also listed. God forbid we should miss Ikeda's guidance on Leap Year.
Yet another way to program Ikeda's ideas into our brains, since chanting can make a person's mind more open and receptive.
The "guidance" itself is a mixture of love-bombing, elaborate metaphors and rhetoric, fear-mongering, Chinese fortune cookie sayings and "SGI is wonderful, you need to stick with SGI!"
September 30: "It is most important to always humbly receive guidance in faith. You have to realize that if your mind deviates from that of your seniors in faith or our organization itself, you have already reached a danger zone in your faith."
Translation: We might have members who actually think for themselves, and we can't have that! Noooo....be scared....very scared...of thinking something that the organization didn't tell you to think!
March 17: "Once you become accustomed to the organization of the Soka Gakkai, you may begin to take it for granted. If you separate from it and find yourself all alone, however, you will deeply realize its value. The organization exists to help you deepen your faith."
...deepen your faith....and empty your bank account. And look at his notion that not being in SGI means being all alone. There are certainly good, caring people outside of SGI!
June 3: "There are five billion people on Earth, yet we are the pioneers who will propagate True Buddhism..."
More of that "aren't we special?"
June 23: "Buddhism is reason. Whether you will develop like a gigantic tree into an accomplished person in your forties, fifties and sixties, or simply finish your life sadly like a weak, skinny tree is determined by how you handle obstacles at this course in your life. You should remember this point."
Remember, people, you don't want to end up being a Charlie Brown Christmas Tree! Let's all be tall, mighty oaks!
June 29: "Youth should never be swept away by materialistic greed or the desire for superficial fame...."
But President Toda said we should all make money and be successful!
July 20: "A person who feels joy in life is happy. Even if you become a great statesman, a great scholar, or a prominent businessman, or if you achieve high honors or wealth -- life without joy is miserable."
A person who feels joy is happy? Who knew? Boy, am I lucky that I have President Ikeda to tell me things that I could never have figured out for myself.
August 24: "President Toda once said, "Because I went through more hardships than anyone else, I became president of the Soka Gakkai.""
How does he know that he's been through more hardships than anyone else? Certainly he suffered during World War II -- nobody else did?
October 30: "Celebrating a new departure of my dear fellow members, I would like to give these three guidelines -- they are brightness, vitality and a never-retreating spirit."
Does this even make sense?