Much writing about reading here lately. My one experience about being inspired by President Ikeda and reading some of the classic novelists who inspired Ikeda was met with blank stares and no dialogue at a large home meeting. At this large gathering they couldn't wait for me to change the subject. Reading other material was so off base. I'll never forget that tense look on Rob Eppsteiner's face, and, especially at another meeting when I said, immediately after gongyo, that I had to leave...before Mr. Eppsteiner had a chance to to step into our trance. The look on his face when I spoke first. I heard there was a lot of tense talk at that meeting. Maybe they keep control for a reason. I haven't seen many, if any books at long term members' homes other than SGI related. Back in the day I heard that Mr. Eppsteiner was one of the few non-Japanese Ikeda trusted. This was stated by a member to emphasise Eppsteiner's influence with no regard for the lack of trust on Ikeda's part.

An SGI friend was noticing in this latest May contribution campaign, that emphasis was being placed on who contributed but not how much they contributed. She said they needed to know who did not contribute so they could 'home visit' them, according to her leader. Who cares about the individual's life really during the 'home visit', just get them to open their bank account.

An additional rant: No one in the real world says, or writes about, 'having a dialogue'. Maybe: "It was nice discussing some points"... 'discussing' or 'exchanging ideas', 'talking', 'debating'...but not 'having a dialogue'. That rings shallow to me. Part of the cult speak from the book. Part of the viral language.

Dear All:

Really good stuff and you certainly are a funny lady, Blue.

Nichijew

Hey DavidM, you wrote, "A quick question to anyone who's been to an SGI study meeting recently. Does SGI mention Ichinen Sanzen anymore?"
OMG. I am glad you mentioned this because I had forgotten it existed. The answer is definitely NOT. I have helped out with countless study meetings for the past 10 years and I can agree with the others who indicate that once upon a time, SGI did do a much better job at study. In fact, I once helped out with an ichinen sanzen study which was over my head but with the help of a leader on the spot, I managed to get through it. That was over 10 years ago. Difficult, thought-provoking concepts like that have disappeared completely. Instead we get a steady diet of mentor-disciple, Ikeda is the mentor, you must choose him as yours; and the really irritating one: practice this Buddhism to make your dreams come true. Where in h-- did they get that one? There's nothing wrong with encouraging people to reach for their dreams but there is everything wrong with equating the pursuit of dreams with a Buddhist practice. SGI will never succeed in this country as long as they continue dressing materialism up as Buddhism. Some people will be taken in by that for a while. Most will immediately know SGI's practice is many things, but not Buddhism. Post-war Japan was a fertile ground for people who had lost everything and were living in a defeated, once-proud nation. I reiterate, in middle class countries people do not want to hear that their religious practice is the ticket for material gain. Most world religions preach that those things are not and should not be related since most other teachings have their own version of impermanence. Perhaps SGI went wrong when they decided to do away with the Japanese names of concepts, like esho funi. First we got their English equivalents. Then they disappeared completely. I'm not sure why since those terms were precisely the things that hooked me. In fact, I used to share them with non-SGI people and they were always impressed. But I have to admit to something(and I welcome your responses) when I start getting lots of Buddhist history, names, jargon etc I can't say most of these things stick with me. There is a foreign-ness to it all that makes me feel it's not my cultural background or terminology. It's also difficult. Ichinen sanzen is an excellent case in point. It is really important. Tien-tai got that ball rolling, but to understand it is phew!!! I even have Stone's book on Nichiren and Swanson's book on T'ien-t'ai. I am a pretty educated person and that stuff was extremely hard to grasp and tedious. I came away from each reading wondering how much this was really helping my Buddhist practice. Is it possible that SGI knows that a doctrinal approach will probably not attract very many people? Is that why they then pitch the goal/dream business, since that appeals to most people's immediate needs( and the world of Hunger)? Yet, despite the doctrinal challenges, when I chant daimoku consistently and abundantly to the Gohonzon, everything is great in that moment or experience. Yes, I know that might just be brain waves and euphoria but those of us who have chanted probably did so because the actual experience was rewarding--and yes, sometimes there was a synchronicity to my day which I could not really explain logically since I knew when I did not have it. So I ask, is the calming and uplifting effect produced by chanting actually changing karma or does it just feel good? SGI does encourage people to chant and I feel chanting is a good thing but what is it that they really want? World Peace, come on. Okay, I have admitted to having a limited attention span/memory for hard core doctrinal and historical(oh boy forget that one) material but I am definitely educable! Are most of the members even less interested than I am in more actual study for some reason? If they are, what does that say? If they are not, what does that say? Why is SGI so desperate? Big deal if the organization does not grow that much. Am I wrong, misguided, simple--or just plain stupid?



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 06/26/2010 02:36PM by doubtful.

Quote
tsukimoto
Back in the eighties, SGI did have real study, at least in some areas. This one leader that I had was very big on it. We were expected to read various Gosho and come prepared to discuss them, as well as studying concepts like ichinen sanzen. Then I moved to another city...and our "study" was just reading aloud from The World Tribune and Living Buddhism. That still sounds better than what Morgaine is describing now. In the past, the publications actually did have some decent study material, something besides mentor and disciple.

As to why SGI has so dumbed down their study:

1. The senior leadership really doesn't want members who think too much or know too much about Buddhism. Such members would realize how far SGI has truly drifted from practicing real Buddhism. They might feel more allegiance to Nichiren, the Lotus Sutra, the Gohonzon, or Nam-myoho-renge-kyo than they feel for Ikeda. Can't have that!

2. The senior leadership really believes that Ikeda is the true Buddha, and that truly, all a person needs to do is dedicate themselves to following him.

3. The senior leadership just doesn't think much of the members.

Hi Tsukimoto:

Yes, I remember back in the day, I was teen division whatever that is called now, and they made us study , study, study. That is why it is so evident to me what is going on now, if I had to pick one of the three of your reasons for the dumbed down study. I would have to pick number one. I think it is deliberate. I have been told that I am too "Sharihotsu", oh well, on to another sangha, can't do this craziness anymore. On another topic my friend who was a chapter leader just got relieved of his position. He was honest enough to tell his senior leaders that we need to study more and talk about Nichiren more, he was removed the next day. Scary.

Quote
doubtful
There's nothing wrong with encouraging people to reach for their dreams but there is everything wrong with equating the pursuit of dreams with a Buddhist practice. SGI will never succeed in this country as long as they continue dressing materialism up as Buddhism.

Is it possible that SGI knows that a doctrinal approach will probably not attract very many people? Is that why they then pitch the goal/dream business, since that appeals to most people's immediate needs( and the world of Hunger)?

Why is SGI so desperate? Big deal if the organization does not grow that much. Am I wrong, misguided, simple--or just plain stupid?

Oh, but it is a big deal if SGI does not grow that much. Not to us, but to Ikeda and his hangers-on. Ikeda is an old man; he knows that he has a limited amount of time to establish his fame, his legacy. He wants to be internationally known, like Gandhi and King. He wants a Nobel Peace Prize. He seeks constant attention with his photo-ops with politicians, and useless peace proposals and ghostwritten books. He wants to be on the world stage while he is alive, and quoted and remembered after his death. (He probably hates Thich Nhat Hanh and the Dalai Lama for being more famous Buddhists than he is.) I think that Rock the Error is a desperate push to get SGI, and Ikeda, noticed.

Doubtful, it's interesting. What you're talking about sounds like how to market Buddhism, as if it were a car or a brand of shampoo. This is what SGI does -- that's the problem. SGI is a business, selling a brand of Buddhism. When you start mixing religion with business and politics, how can you not compromise the religious teachings?

Someone with a background in marketing, sales or business could think of many ways to market Nichiren Buddhism. They would know niche marketing, how to identify different groups that this Buddhism might appeal to -- and what strategies to use to appeal to each market. I think that the SGI leadership has consulted such experts -- and has decided upon this "Make your dreams come true" approach as the best for the market they want to reach.

The "Make your dreams come true" folks are more pliable, and easier to lead than the people who want to study. This is what SGI wants, members who can be led. Sure, SGI could try to attract and keep people who want to study and argue about what the Lotus Sutra or a certain Gosho actually means. But does SGI really want to do business with this kind of people? No. Studiers are just too hard to lead; we think far too much for SGI's liking. We ask too many questions. We don't follow well. Leading us is like trying to herd cats.

There is a big enough market for magical thinking, make-your-dreams-come-true. Look at how wildly successful "The Secret" was. Just imagine what you want, and it will come to you! There is this market, this segment of the population, that doesn't want to have to study, think, or work hard. This approach will appeal to them and SGI knows it.

Sure, many of these individuals will drift away once they realize that visualizing/chanting doesn't get them the Mercedes/great job/gorgeous girlfriend or boyfriend. SGI is certainly seeing that, with all the individuals who join SGI and leave.

As someone else said, though, it's a numbers game anyway. You have to get a lot of people to at least try your product, to get that percentage of customers who will become the loyal, life-long customers.

SGI has been a successful business -- and a failure as a religion.

@tsukimoto, Blue Lady, rattyboy

Reading is one thing that helped me get out of the SGI mindset.

I used to live in China and therefore had a good idea what a communist country is like (although now it is in transition, so to say). I remember going back to the meetings wondering why many things seemed so similar to the Cultural Revolution, the videos, the adulation, the singing, and so on. It was then when I read Mao's Red Book, it all made sense to me. Dust off your old copy of Ikea's Daily Guidance and compare it to the Quotations of Mao Zedong and see what I mean. By the way, there is nothing lost in translation from Chinese to English.

Although I don't consider myself a Nichiren Buddhist per se, one thing I did learn (in what little we studied) is that if you want to change your life, change yourself. The biggest question is how. In SGI, you are told to chant 25 hours a day in order to enact that change. I still find it a nebulous concept at best as to how chanting changes a person. It was one day when I read other Buddhist books that I saw they also believe in the same thing as Nichiren, yet have actual methods. For example, do you have anger problems? There is the loving-kindness meditation. Have trouble focusing? There is the silent walking and silent eating methods.

It was through reading other books that made me think that something is rotten in the state of Ikea (his sanity, I mean).

@ tsukimoto.

I agree so much with you , I had to ask myself why the sudden push with the whole Ikeda is mentor thing and I realized it is branding. They are definitely, as many on these posts have said , trying to brand the SGI form of Buddhism, I guess from a business sense it does make sense but as you said from a religious sense it is a travesty.

@tsukimoto You wrote, "As to why SGI has so dumbed down their study:

1. The senior leadership really doesn't want members who think too much or know too much about Buddhism. Such members would realize how far SGI has truly drifted from practicing real Buddhism. They might feel more allegiance to Nichiren, the Lotus Sutra, the Gohonzon, or Nam-myoho-renge-kyo than they feel for Ikeda. Can't have that!

2. The senior leadership really believes that Ikeda is the true Buddha, and that truly, all a person needs to do is dedicate themselves to following him.

3. The senior leadership just doesn't think much of the members."

#2 is the one that really scares me because I suspect that this is the reason behind SGI's pattern for the past 5 years. They want to present Ikeda as the living Buddha probably because in "Letter to Niike," the Daishonin says, "if a person has the wisdom to know the true meaning of the Lotus Sutra, no matter how lowly he may appear, pay respect to him and make offerings to him as though he were a living Thus Come One."(WND 1028) I really hope that is not their official or unofficial position because anyone who has watched those dreadful videos can see that Ikeda is NOT comparable to Nichiren Daishonin or Shakyamuni! For years I cringed, snuck out, and then stopped attending these videos altogether after witnessing some extremely disturbing things. First, there was the way Ikeda would ridicule other leaders. Eventually there appeared a disclaimer asking everyone to understand the style of Ikeda's humor or rapport with these men. BULL. That kind of rapport only works when it goes two ways. I would love to see what would happen if anyone of those men ever gave it back to him. What if they poked fun at his height, his weight, his ridiculous poetry, The Human Revolution, his limited education, the way he moves his arms, etc. What would happen? We know the answer. None would ever dare do that, especially with an audience present. So there is no rapport. Ikeda simply enjoys himself as he humiliates these men and leaves them no room to retaliate. That is NOT a Buddha and I would say that to his face if he were in front me! Once I watched Danny Nagashima practically get down on his face as he bowed and withdrew from Ikeda. I thought OMG, I just lost respect for you--and don't give me that bulls-- about cultural traditions. I know servility when I see it. Then at FNCC and other places D.N. related the numerous times Ikeda publicly disregarded him so much that he cried, him the leader of the SGI-USA! When you read the Gosho, the beauty of the Daishonin's spirit clearly shines through as he tries to encourage his troubled followers. He does not put them down! Then there is another matter. Shakyamuni and the Daishonin focused on the singular greatness of the Lotus Sutra, not themselves. Meanwhile, Ikeda often starts those videos by indicating yet another of his meaningless honorary doctorates or he talks incessantly about his promises to Toda, which is another of way of saying, "Look how great I am." Then there is the rock star adulation, the silk suits, and the handmade shoes others like Polly Toynbee have pointed out. In short, Ikeda has succeeded at introducing Nichiren Buddhism to many and getting others fired up enough to introduce more in and outside of Japan. That is a great accomplishment, I think. But that does NOT make him the living Buddha. No senior leader, poetry, exhibits, Gosho passage, list of honorary doctorates, or testimonials will ever convince me of that.

Hi guys,

I discovered your site just two days ago and I'm furious about that. Had I discovered it 2 or 3 years ago, I would be a free man by now.
My story with SGI is a piece of work and I'm writing about it. I still have the GOHONZON that I hope to send back next week.
I'm gonna your support (advice mainly) on how to cope with the aftermath of what I've been tru. You won't believe it but I went tru so much that I think the best way not to let my personal crisis go to waste is to write about it.
I'm now on board with you guys and I read all your writings. Bravo.

Welcome, John Traficante.