That is a very good point.
Its unreal that there were 176 lawsuits.

And as stated, Japan is different than India, and there is more justice in the civil legal system in Japan. (that area of India with Sai Baba is off the charts of corruption)

So SGI lost 84% of those lawsuits.
Who filed them? Was it SGI?

But yes, it proves factually that in fact SGI is just a big crooked business, using your donation money to pay lawyers fees.

These are those lawsuits filed in Japan. The article had no other details. Probably, many had to do with ownership of temples. It is like a man who gives a woman an engagement ring and then she gets cold feet. She gets to keep the ring.

Nichijew

It is a big crooked business! The business scheme is very symple. While Japanese husbands are out working, go from house to house, talk to housewives, mess with their heads, seduce them by the charm of "Buddhism" and get their money. The definition of "SEDUCE" by Oxford dictionary: to persuade somebody to do something that they would not usually agree to do by making it seem very attractive. SGI is very good at seduction. They persuade Japanese housewives to give them large sums of money. So, how do they get away with this scheme? There is no criminal punishment for doing this! There is no article in the criminal code that punishes that. Another reason they get away with this scheme is the passivity of Japanese husbands. What would you do if you found out that your wife was seduced by someone, and later she gave to that person a large sum of money? You would go to that person and demand the money back, right? It's time for Japanese husbands to wake up! Guys, you are being conned! It's time for you to get together and to go SGI headquarters and demand your money back! Maybe it's time for you, guys, to stop giving your whole salary to your wives! The simple fact is - if Japanese husbands stopped giving their wives the whole salary, and gave them only a half, the amount of money that flows from Japanese housewives to SGI would also be reduced by a half! We are talking about 8.27 million households in Japan!

@bobze39

Quote

if Japanese husbands stopped giving their wives the whole salary, and gave them only a half, the amount of money that flows from Japanese housewives to SGI would also be reduced by a half! We are talking about 8.27 million households in Japan!

I don't think you understand the nature of the Japanese Male and Female. First off, the japanese legal system is somewhat different than what you have here in the US. going to court over something is a much bigger deal than over here. Taking SGI to court to demand your yen back is very unlikely to ever see the light of day. :)

Secondly, Japanese men give their paychecks over to the women because it is "customary" and is expected of them. The women expect to be in control of the family expenses because they are expected to be the family's "anchor". Men on the other hand (esp. "Salary-man types") have spent their lives grooming for a position in business, and once they have done that they also have risen to the pinnacle of what Japanese society expects of them (Handing over the pay envelope keeps the women out of their hair). They bury themselves in their work and the women bury themselves in the family. The images of mom, dad and the kids are far less typical than here. Japanese husbands, besides commute times, work long hours, and often return from work to just eat, sleep and turn around and go back to work. Once the kids are old enough to go to school, the Japanese wife has nothing to do with herself besides watch soap operas "hiru gekijo" and have dinner waiting when hubby and family come back home. Kind of like living in an anthill.

Based on what I've seen, the women seem to hate the men for "holding them prisoner" or "robbing them of their youth", and the men hate the women for being controlling and "out of reach" emotionally and physically. There is very little in the way of "partnership" between women and men in japan, and they seem to prefer it that way given how society has arranged itself.

But Japanese people don't make waves! Despite outrageous situations they just "deal with it". Oriental patience plays a big part of it all, and so you see people buried in their outlets.

Men golf, go to the bars, fantasize about being samurai, read nasty manga and bury themselves in their work. Women shop, socialize, rat-hole their money until the day they can dump hubby and do various other "diversions". It is easy to see how a "religious" organization could win its way into the ladies' hearts. It also would provide them with a way to manage hubby as well - make him a Men's Division leader and you know where he is all of the time. MD and WD are segregated so you can even have an expectation that he won't be hitting on other women as well. Women exert a level of control over their "environment" which makes them feel more in control.

This is all pretty cynical I admit but that's how folks over there cope. (And to be fair, here in the US we have similar sorts of things going on too)

Suffice to say Bobze39, it isn't quite as cut and dried as you state it. The Japanese culture is a perfect breeding ground for cult-like activities to flourish.

Wakatta1



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 04/26/2011 06:31PM by wakatta1.

Wakatta, thank you for explaining how the relationships between men and women work in Japan. Your contribution to this forum is especially valuable, because you lived in Japan.

Hello, Thank you all for your wonderful and informative posts. I don't know what to do. First of all, I wish I knew more about the split between the temple and the SGI. I joined SGI in 2006, and I have only been brainwashed to know the SGI side of things, like how awful the temple is.

I feel so much confusion inside because although I like how I feel when I chant, I dislike the tone of the organization. I want to post some stuff, but always feel hesistant because I don't want people to identify me. I have talked from time to time, to people in the organization. I find I am really amazed about how brainwashed they sound when they talk about Daisaku Ikeda. In the last 18 months, people I once respected sound more and more brainwashed. I don't want to become like that, and I don't think I will.

I hope it is okay to mention here that I have chanted on my own the past month. Can I chant and still get benefits without the SGI? Please someone let me know! I feel motivated when I chant, to get my life in order, but I don't want to get swallowed up in a crazy organization.

You know, I have learned to not put anyone above the Gohonzon. Someone told me that there is not one person in the organization or otherwise who is the practice. Yet, that same person really idolizes Ikeda. Based on the logic, Ikeda is a person, and should not be put above the Gohonzon, but yet a new person coming to a meeting wouldn't necessarily know that. There is so much talk about what Ikeda has written, blah, blah, blah.

I wish I had known about this board when I was deciding on whether or not to get my Gohonzon. I feel like my life was normal before SGI, and I want it to return to normalcy, but now with a Gohonzon in my house, I feel confused. I do feel a correlation between the Gohonzon being a representation of my life, but I also hate the organization who gave it to me. I feel so conflicted!

I had a situation that disturbed me a little. I had struggled with a certain fear. I did chant, and made the decision to get a type of healing session done. I was really excited because I felt results from the healing session. I was really happy. I decided to call someone from the practice to tell them. I told her how good I felt, and she interpreted my good feelings because I chanted. She said that I didn't need to go this healer, and she went on to say, it is really all us. She said that now I see that I could have gotten those good feelings with just chanting. I was entirely confused. It was like she devalued what I did, and didn't listen. She basically wanted to give all the credit 100% to the Gohonzon.

Under that logic, do I not need to see a doctor or a dentist because I have Gohonzon, why get my teeth cleaned..when I have Gohonzon. Why get a check-up when I have Gohonzon.

This same woman, then asked me if I have a therapist. I do, but feel it is none of her business, and besides: why do I need a therapist when I have Gohonzon!

I am sick of the SGI taking credit for every good thing that happens to me. I also feel resentful because before the Gohonzon, I lived in a better neighborhood, and I drove. With SGI, I moved to a not so nice neighborhood, and I stopped driving.

I almost get the crazy impression, that by way of the Gohonzon, the SGI is trying to take rights to my life. What I mean to say, is that every good thing that happens to me, with or without the Gohonzon, they want to take credit for.

Thank you for letting me vent! :-)

Also, I am wondering if this organization was less rigid before the split?

Dear Findingmyway:

Nichiren's physician was Shijo Kingo. He often talked about the various causes of illnesses and their treatments, many of which can be cured by a good doctor with the proper medicines. The SGI is a sick perversion of Nichiren Lotus Sutra Buddhism. To cure them, they need a good doctor like the excellent physician Shakyamuni Buddha rather than the quack Ikeda. Read the Lotus Sutra. Read the writings of Nichiren Daishonin without the SGI footnotes. Sorry if I sound preachy but this is coming from the perspective of the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin and a former zealous member of the Soka Gakkai.

"chanting"
by itself, has nothing to do with SGI.
Many religions chant, even the Gregorians, which was like singing.

One thing no one says, is that when you chant, you are deep breathing, and slowly releasing your breath, so that calms a person. Deep controlled breathing, can slow anxiety.

So don't let the SGI Ikedabots mess with your mind! Make your own decisions, and do what you think is right.

Hello! Thank you so much! I am afraid that if I decide to chant, I will be like the Ikedabots. I don't want to sound like them or become like them. I am afraid I will be in limbo land. So I can chant NMRK, and not have to be a member?