QuoteNichijewYou keep this up Hitch and the top leaders will give strict guidance to all the members to avoid you like the plague, neither to contact you nor even to read your messages. But they themselves will be reading your notes every day. Nichijew In that case, my advice (I'd never be as presumptuous as them and give guidance), is that they should chant more.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

This thread is a great walk down memory lane for me. Some more thoughts: Quotequiet oneMany pages ago I talked about the "membership card campaign" that occurred a few years ago. Danny Nagashima reported that he got yelled at by President Ikeda because the numbers in the US had slipped. So we were asked to get many new people who didn't want to become active members to fill o
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Found some more posts that I'd like to comment on: QuoteTheVoidQuoteShavoy He has the charisma for many who need and want a father figure, . I never understood this, how does he have charisma, no one sees or get to talk to him, to me his charisma is a phantom. It is made up by the org, by people that have never met him, by the leaders who recieve letters from Sensei which make them cry
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SGI-USA is WINNING! (They should hire him as a spokesman.) It's all how you "perceive" things, that is the key to "winning." It has always been a numbers game with sgi-usa. Elaborate nonsense planning meetings with elaborate padding of the numbers. I'm not sure, but I think this kind of thing may have also played a role in Williams' downfall. I believe
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuoteTibbsQuotetsukimoto Where is the Buddha in all this busy-ness, and how does putting on this dog and pony show to impress some big zone leader actually leading to world peace? Yes!! This is how I felt so many times. Usually as I was going off to attend yet another planning meeting to plan the next planning meeting. Dog and pony shows and planning meetings to plan the next dog and pony
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QuoteNichijewThanks to the lack of sleep and the forced, self or otherwise, as you say "hyperdrive", some people have similar reactions to hallucinogens, amphetamines, or a cocaine binge. It landed me in the psychiatric hospital for a few days after two such "movements" when I was 27 and 28 years old. For me, it was wanting to be in and being unable to extricate myself from su
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Quoteholly_golightlyI just wanted to ask people, how do you handle seeing friends or other SGI members, etc who are still practicing? Do you try to keep off the subject or do you welcome a discussion about it all to put your side across? I've found that a substantive dialogue isn't possible with them if they can't think critically (and they can't). It's like a little
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuoteShavoyYou can chant until the cows come home, but if you can't address the things that are really hurting your inner life, and/or the lives around you, then it's all for naught. I've actually had this discussion with members. Their response: "Well, then if I can't change my karma in this life, then I will at least cut it and lessen it for the next." There i
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Corboy, your post reminded me of the fact that when not all family members practice, they (other gakkai members) make a point of coming around to say thank you and express their appreciation for the family's "cooperation" & "understanding." They are also instructed (from higher leaders) to do this and make an extra effort in such cases. They use it as an opportunity
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

And the brainwashing continues . Danny Nagashima's speech starts at around the 2:00 min. mark. What drivel. Are people really impressed by this crap? I have another general question: are they going to ever get a general director that can speak English properly? That accent and grammar, drive me up a wall. I really feel sorry for those kids, too (and not just because they got to listen
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuoteNichijewI don't know if I read this experience here or somewhere else but it is instructive about the reality of the Soka Gakkai practice and resulting effect. I titled this experience, Able Enough To Do a Zillion SGI Activities But Not Able Enough To Work "My mother is a member and put our whole family in hell! They have meetings every single week and tell you that you are
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuoteShavoyHitch, you are right on again with your explanation of the leader's behavior with ScoobyDooby. The whole purpose of shakabuku is to help others become happy/change poison into medicine/double and triple the shakabuku-ers' fortune and benefits. That's what we were told, right? Double and triple the benefits....that's a huge dangling carrot right there. Because
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Corboy, I can vouch for the fact that I saw a ton of "power poisoned" "leaders" back in my day. It's definitely a real phenomenon, because I lived it (on the receiving end) in the nsa/sg/sgi-usa cult. ScoobyDooby, I could be totally off base, but purely as an intellectual exercise I can offer you a cult-filtered view of your situation (fwiw) - QuoteScoobyDoobyAs
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Some posts regarding "leaders gone bad" that I can relate to: QuotetsukimotoQuotebacknforthSince we are talking about the craziness of recruitment i.e. shakabuku campaigns, I'll share an experience I had in the 1980's. It was street shakubuku time one evening at the kaikon and I was fairly new and not really on-board with the whole shakubuku thing, afterall I was brought u
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Quoterattyboy I was watching The movie "The Wave" which is about a classroom experiment in totalitarianism. Also known as "The Welle German" on Youtube. The students are separated from their naturally formed friendships by being made to sit in assigned seats and for the sake of unity wear white shirts. You can see this 30 minutes into the movie. The teacher also leads them in
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

In my experience in sgi-usa, it was mainly the Japanese WD. If they were in shakubuku mode, they could be extra fake, extra tolerant and extra, extra kind - like an charming Jekyll. In non-shakubuku situations, out in everyday life, if anyone was ever unfortunate enough to make a social misstep (especially in the service industry) or even simply just rub them the wrong way, it would be common f
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I bet if that restaurant worker had expressed an interest in attending a meeting or learning about nmrk, they would have done a 180 in their demeanor. (Incidentally, if you ever fall out with some of these people, you'll be on the receiving end of the same behavior in the blink of an eye. I speak from experience.) In America, the worst offenders were by far the WD and to a lesser degree
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I have a general question that I would like to throw out there to see if any you former members can relate: Did you ever notice how hardcore gakkai members (I've seen it in both Japan and The U.S.) would treat fellow member encounters entirely differently than they would your average non-member out the street, in the real world? They would put on these fake Disneyland-like smiles you see
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

Excellent post corboy. I especially enjoyed the "Yes Set" discussion. This mb really has a lot of critical information that people need to educate themselves about and be aware of. QuoteShavoyReading the other posts in the last few days brings up another question, well, I've asked it before methinks, but here goes: It fascinates me that Japanese culture and mindset allows the
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuotesimplifyQuoteRattyboy"How many times did we have to hear some guest leader at a local meeting tell us how they started with the group and how their friends and family thought they had "joined a cult". It sounds like a risky thing for them to say, but it is a neurolinguistic technique that allows the listener to relate to the experience and the discomfort about the possible cul
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I can't speak for Tibbs (of course), . . . . . I may have started off in the gakkai pseudo-buddhist cult, but I've come to the "same conclusions" about all superstition and religion. To each their own, but I'm a very serious agnostic.
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuoteNichijewI was at a big Trets meeting in 1981? They are BIG on claiming they never have accidents because of their practice, telling everyone to pray for no accidents, yet, they had these inexperienced YMD putting up construction scaffolding for the event and one fell off and broke his femur real bad. The Sokahan chiefs went nuts, running around like chicken without their heads, blaming every
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I got a pm recently about some of the discussion here regarding "soft power" physical detainment at gakkai/cult activities and meetings. It got me thinking and reminded me about some things that I've seen. With their permission, I will and directly quote some of the their spot-on comments in the next paragraph: "And its part of a manipulative process that controls the
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuoteTibbsWhen I first left the SGI, if I had challenges in my life I would fight that much harder to overcome them because I just knew that, if I failed, I would be used as an example of "what happens if you stop chanting" (I still have friends in the org so they know what's going on in my life). I've relaxed a bit about that. Life is good and bad whether you chant or not and
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I have just found another interesting post that I can comment on. QuoteRothausThat leads me to another observation. During my SGI times I often heard “experiences” when people were “victorious” and showed “actual proof”, tears rolled in those meetings and everybody was “encouraged”. Maybe its just me but whenever things went wrong though like marriages breaking up, dysfunctional family situa
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

QuoteoverthetopI guess the reason I think that the SGI abuses people is that they feed off of people's hopes and dreams for something better in their lives. They promise a great way to overcome your challenges and be happy, but then turn around and skillfully take advantage of people's efforts and willingness to dedicate their lives to the organization. And it just feels to me like it
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I don't think it's an exaggeration, because it's only the first step in reaching such a point. That's also precisely why I never tolerated it. It's the subtle removal of your freedom by an unpeaceful, undemocratic, pseudo-buddhist cult that manipulates people. I agree, most of the members seemed to accept it with a shrug of the shoulders and not give it much thought (t
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

I just found another post that I can relate to from my time in the organization/cult: Quoterattyboy I offered to drive part of a family to a big 'rock the era' meeting. There was the line of clappers outside and Mr. Nagashima on a big screen looking like the great and powerful Oz, lots of beating on tires and young people dancing and doing skits. The meeting went 40 minutes ove
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

When I inquired as to the "appearance" of nepotism with Hiromasa waiting in the wings, it was brushed aside with the excuse that "there are many 'Vice General Directors' - so it doesn't really mean anything" and "he is just there to help out as a proxy for the family because his dad is getting older, can't travel or do as much." In my experience,
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families

That's an interesting and I'd also say valid take on it, especially considering the abundant material wealth that's floating around the FNCC cult retreat (facilities, recreation, food, etc.). It certainly doesn't have much to do with traditional buddhism. More like a modern manipulative Ikeda bastardized version of buddhism. QuoteNichijewDesperate for safety, they make
Forum: Former Cult Members and Affected Families