Soka buddhism
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Soka are more neutral , extreme is not what they do .
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Originally posted by Poolman:
All buddhism is similiar , only some Buddhist to practise Vegetarian , in Soka , they don't go vegetarians .
They are about chanting , to sakubuku , as in to spread the message across all religion .
No, soka gakkai is not the same as mainstream Buddhism. You should really look into the mainstream Buddhist teachings and learn what it is about. Buddhism emphasis is on enlightenment and liberation. However SGI idea of Buddhism and Buddhahood is very warped. It's teachings is skewed towards humanism and not awareness and awakening. Nothing about liberation and realising our true nature.
Vegetarianism is never a compulsory part of any Buddhist tradition. Theravada and Vajrayana Buddhist monks continue to eat meat. Mahayana monks do not eat meat, but Mahayana lay practitioners may eat meat. It's really a personal choice.
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Our Tina Turner is a Soka Asscociation fellower .
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Today, I met with Kenji Yoshigo, the Vice President and Executive Director of Soka Gakkai Office of International Affairs. Soka Gakkai is a Buddhist sect which is one of the largest and most influential in Japan. One of the key things that sets it apart from other Buddhist sects is their active involvement in society including education, International relations and politics. They are the force behind the Komeito Party.
I had heard about Soka Gakkai from a variety of people, usually with negative connotations. Some people alluded to conspiracy, others refer to them like some sort of cult. The only real first hand negative interactions that I had heard of were interactions with overly enthusiastic members trying to recruit people. I had always been curious about the Soka Gakkai, but not curious enough to overcome the FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) and actually approach them.
Kana, a young woman who works for me is Soka Gakkai. I found out when I learned that she was marrying a staff member of the Komeito and I asked her whether she was Soka Gakkai. She is one of the hardest working people on our team and has a passion for justice that exceeds ones expectations. She invited me to give the toast at their wedding. At this wedding, they showed video messages from the young children she was mentoring, and I met many of the Soka Gakkai people she worked with. I was very impressed with how intelligent, aware of current issues, and friendly they were. The impression I got at the wedding changed my mental image of Soka Gakkai.
Early this year, Lou Marinoff, a well known philosopher who I had met several times in Davos visited Japan. He had been invited by Soka Gakkai. I had dinner with Lou and his Soka Gakkai host. Lou told me how impressed he was with their efforts and urged me to contact them and learn more about Soka Gokkai. I respect Lou's opinions greatly and he is quite knowledgeable and objective. His description of the variety of things Soka Gakkai was doing made me decide to try to contact Soka Gakkai to try to get a first hand impression.
After the dinner with Lou, I asked Kana if she would help me learn more about Soka Gakkai. It took a bit of scheduling, but she coordinated this meeting with Mr. Yoshigo.
Continue reading Meeting with Kenji Yoshigo of Soka Gakkai.I asked Yoshigo-san to explain Soka Gakkai to me. Soka Gakkai is Buddhist sect and their core principles are very much in tuned with the teachings of most Nichiren Buddhists. Soka Gakkai was originally set up as an educational institution and has worked very hard to try to make society a better place by actively participating in it, unlike many more "passive" sects. I think it is the active participation in politics that causes those in power to fear Soka Gakkai. Yoshigo-san said that they teach people to question authority, think for themselves and be very active. These are also my core principles. Although Soka Gakkai has a large organization with "management" he said that they do not control the thinking of their members and have quite a diverse group of people. They do not worship their founder, nor do they teach people to blindly follow.
Since I am quite curious about the definition of "evil", I asked Yoshigo-san what he thought was "evil". He said that in Soka Gakkai, they believed very strongly in life and believed that those who destroy life, either through murder or the destruction of humans rights were evil. In the same context, those who ruin their own lives were in a way, "evil". Killing human beings, especially in the name of religion, he believed was evil. This definition works for me.
He also said that Buddhist teachings say that 1/3 of the world will be "believers" or "followers of the path," 1/3 of the world will be people who will be supportive and part of the same community, and 1/3 of the world will be actively involved in trying to hurt or subvert "believers." According to these teachings, this was the proper "balance" and that trying to make the whole world peaceful or "converted" was not only impossible, but unnatural. So, although there are some overzealous young Soka Gakkai members who try to convert all of their friends, Yoshigo-san made no attempt to try to make me join and made it clear that Soka Gakkai is open to interaction and cooperation with everyone. In fact, the head of one of their schools is Muslim.
When I visited Koyasan, a monk told us that during the Meiji Restoration, the Japanese government visited most of the European countries in power those days and realized that they were able to use religion as part of the State and used it in war. Japan took the decentralized animist religion, Shinto, and centralized it under the Emperor. When Japan lost WWII, they lost their religion. Similarly, the student uprisings in the 60's and 70's were squashed. Images of young soldiers dying for their divine Emperor as well as the images of youths wearing helmets and fighting with the riot police are considered silly and quite unfashionable to youths in Japan today. Young people in Japan today believe that fighting for a cause, either religious or political, is stupid and un-cool. This lack of spiritualism and activism makes Soka Gakkai's role quite clear.
We talked about Japan. We agreed on nearly every point about the lack of democracy, the apathy among the people, the risk of a right-wing popular uprising, and other issues. We agreed that the notion of unquestioning dependence on authority is still prevalent in Japan and was the cause of much of the problems. We talked about how those in power abuse power and those who follow do not have the will to rise up. Having recently had more and more experience with those in power in Japan, I began to realize how dangerous the Soka Gakkai was to those in power.
It makes sense that those in power would spread FUD about Soka Gakkai and try to discredit their efforts. The more I listened, the more I saw how the negative image Japanese have of Soka Gakkai was part of the standard operating procedure of those in power. If you can't co-opt them, marginalize them in any way possible. Call them, lefties, freaks, extremists, a cult... what ever it takes. Being quite sensitive to how powerful the mass media FUD machine is these days, it was a great feeling to discover yet another mental stigma, planted in my head by "the machine" that I was able to yank out and make my mind more clear.
I have still only had one meeting with Yoshigo-san, but we spent nearly two hours and he answered every question I had directly and without hesitation. He said I could blog anything we talked about. He also agreed to be available if I had any further questions. Now I ask YOU -- Especially all of you who told me that I shouldn't even meet with them. What do you actually KNOW about Soka Gakkai and why do you think they are so weird/bad. Could it be that you are also just a subject of Japanese mass media FUD? If you have any questions for Soka Gakkai, please let me know. Obviously, this can not consume ALL of my time, but my intention is to try dispel some of the FUD and understand more clearly.
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Many people has got the impression to Soka as cult .
NO , definitely not that !
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Please don't talk about politics.
In the first place, I never said SGI is bad. In the same way I never say Christianity, Islam, etc are bad.
It's not a question whether they are bad or evil, if they are they would have been banned in Singapore.
Just that they are not in line with the Buddha's teachings and intentions. And does not lead to the goal intended by Buddha. SGI's interpretation of the teachings are warped.
All religions teach people to avoid evil, do good, and teaches qualities like compassion and so on -- but only true Buddhism teaches the way to attain insights about our own nature and gain liberation from all sufferings and afflictions. Other religions result in good karma and rebirth in better realms, only Buddhism teaches one to escape the cycle of rebirth and sufferings.
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Originally posted by Poolman:
Today, I met with Kenji Yoshigo, the Vice President and Executive Director of Soka Gakkai Office of International Affairs. Soka Gakkai is a Buddhist sect which is one of the largest and most influential in Japan. One of the key things that sets it apart from other Buddhist sects is their active involvement in society including education, International relations and politics. They are the force behind the Komeito Party.
I had heard about Soka Gakkai from a variety of people, usually with negative connotations. Some people alluded to conspiracy, others refer to them like some sort of cult. The only real first hand negative interactions that I had heard of were interactions with overly enthusiastic members trying to recruit people. I had always been curious about the Soka Gakkai, but not curious enough to overcome the FUD (fear, uncertainty and doubt) and actually approach them.
Kana, a young woman who works for me is Soka Gakkai. I found out when I learned that she was marrying a staff member of the Komeito and I asked her whether she was Soka Gakkai. She is one of the hardest working people on our team and has a passion for justice that exceeds ones expectations. She invited me to give the toast at their wedding. At this wedding, they showed video messages from the young children she was mentoring, and I met many of the Soka Gakkai people she worked with. I was very impressed with how intelligent, aware of current issues, and friendly they were. The impression I got at the wedding changed my mental image of Soka Gakkai.
Early this year, Lou Marinoff, a well known philosopher who I had met several times in Davos visited Japan. He had been invited by Soka Gakkai. I had dinner with Lou and his Soka Gakkai host. Lou told me how impressed he was with their efforts and urged me to contact them and learn more about Soka Gokkai. I respect Lou's opinions greatly and he is quite knowledgeable and objective. His description of the variety of things Soka Gakkai was doing made me decide to try to contact Soka Gakkai to try to get a first hand impression.
After the dinner with Lou, I asked Kana if she would help me learn more about Soka Gakkai. It took a bit of scheduling, but she coordinated this meeting with Mr. Yoshigo.
Continue reading Meeting with Kenji Yoshigo of Soka Gakkai.I asked Yoshigo-san to explain Soka Gakkai to me. Soka Gakkai is Buddhist sect and their core principles are very much in tuned with the teachings of most Nichiren Buddhists. Soka Gakkai was originally set up as an educational institution and has worked very hard to try to make society a better place by actively participating in it, unlike many more "passive" sects. I think it is the active participation in politics that causes those in power to fear Soka Gakkai. Yoshigo-san said that they teach people to question authority, think for themselves and be very active. These are also my core principles. Although Soka Gakkai has a large organization with "management" he said that they do not control the thinking of their members and have quite a diverse group of people. They do not worship their founder, nor do they teach people to blindly follow.
Since I am quite curious about the definition of "evil", I asked Yoshigo-san what he thought was "evil". He said that in Soka Gakkai, they believed very strongly in life and believed that those who destroy life, either through murder or the destruction of humans rights were evil. In the same context, those who ruin their own lives were in a way, "evil". Killing human beings, especially in the name of religion, he believed was evil. This definition works for me.
He also said that Buddhist teachings say that 1/3 of the world will be "believers" or "followers of the path," 1/3 of the world will be people who will be supportive and part of the same community, and 1/3 of the world will be actively involved in trying to hurt or subvert "believers." According to these teachings, this was the proper "balance" and that trying to make the whole world peaceful or "converted" was not only impossible, but unnatural. So, although there are some overzealous young Soka Gakkai members who try to convert all of their friends, Yoshigo-san made no attempt to try to make me join and made it clear that Soka Gakkai is open to interaction and cooperation with everyone. In fact, the head of one of their schools is Muslim.
When I visited Koyasan, a monk told us that during the Meiji Restoration, the Japanese government visited most of the European countries in power those days and realized that they were able to use religion as part of the State and used it in war. Japan took the decentralized animist religion, Shinto, and centralized it under the Emperor. When Japan lost WWII, they lost their religion. Similarly, the student uprisings in the 60's and 70's were squashed. Images of young soldiers dying for their divine Emperor as well as the images of youths wearing helmets and fighting with the riot police are considered silly and quite unfashionable to youths in Japan today. Young people in Japan today believe that fighting for a cause, either religious or political, is stupid and un-cool. This lack of spiritualism and activism makes Soka Gakkai's role quite clear.
We talked about Japan. We agreed on nearly every point about the lack of democracy, the apathy among the people, the risk of a right-wing popular uprising, and other issues. We agreed that the notion of unquestioning dependence on authority is still prevalent in Japan and was the cause of much of the problems. We talked about how those in power abuse power and those who follow do not have the will to rise up. Having recently had more and more experience with those in power in Japan, I began to realize how dangerous the Soka Gakkai was to those in power.
It makes sense that those in power would spread FUD about Soka Gakkai and try to discredit their efforts. The more I listened, the more I saw how the negative image Japanese have of Soka Gakkai was part of the standard operating procedure of those in power. If you can't co-opt them, marginalize them in any way possible. Call them, lefties, freaks, extremists, a cult... what ever it takes. Being quite sensitive to how powerful the mass media FUD machine is these days, it was a great feeling to discover yet another mental stigma, planted in my head by "the machine" that I was able to yank out and make my mind more clear.
I have still only had one meeting with Yoshigo-san, but we spent nearly two hours and he answered every question I had directly and without hesitation. He said I could blog anything we talked about. He also agreed to be available if I had any further questions. Now I ask YOU -- Especially all of you who told me that I shouldn't even meet with them. What do you actually KNOW about Soka Gakkai and why do you think they are so weird/bad. Could it be that you are also just a subject of Japanese mass media FUD? If you have any questions for Soka Gakkai, please let me know. Obviously, this can not consume ALL of my time, but my intention is to try dispel some of the FUD and understand more clearly.
Just some correction. The Komeito is no longer a branch under Soka Gakkai and is no longer related to Soka Gakkai officially as Soka Gakkai would like to have more neutral stand on politics in Japan. Komeito still do have a lot of supporters from SGI Japan though.
Another thing to note. SGI and SGI Japan are different entities.
Just some inputs.
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Another point to note, I'm not a SSA or SGI member. Just have family members and friends practicing that's all.
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if not explain this fellow
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their god statues are kept in a wooden box.
my ex bf practises tat.
alot of chanting and meditation..
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Originally posted by Poolman:
The Nichiren School founded in Japan by 13th-century Buddhist priest Nichiren, belongs to the Mahayana stream of Buddhism.
The doctrines of Nichiren Buddhism are derived from the Lotus Sutra widely regarded to be Shakyamuni Buddha's most definitive teaching. Nichiren (1222 - 1282) taught that the core teaching of the Lotus Sutra is to be found in its title Myoho-Renge-Kyo, which expresses as the universal Law underlying all phenomena. Nichiren also emphasized that the key teaching in the Lotus Sutra is the Buddha's revelation that all people can develop a life state similar to his own, called the Buddha nature or Buddhahood.
Nichiren established a practice of chanting the phrase Nam-myoho-rengekyo, an invocation that brings the individual in harmony with the universal Law, and thus unlocks the potentiality of an enhanced self empowered with wisdom and life force characteristic of the Buddha nature. Besides, Nichiren taught that this personal practice for one's happiness should be complemented with one is selfless act in enabling others to awaken likewise to their innate potential, an act that is synonymous with the Buddha's compassion.
wow Poolman, are you a buddhist? I thought you are a football fanatic, you are religious also eh? -
Originally posted by youyayu:
if not explain this fellow
this one doesn't exist in Soka Singapore as far as i know ...
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Originally posted by marcteng:
wow Poolman, are you a buddhist? I thought you are a football fanatic, you are religious also eh?
Not me , me always a free thinker ....My mum is , still is .
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Originally posted by Poolman:
Not me , me always a free thinker ....My mum is , still is .
oic. why not start reading on Buddhism and keep an open mind. -
Originally posted by An Eternal Now:
From Nichiren Buddhism:
Dear all,
Nichiren Buddhism has been in the mainstream Buddhist circle as seen in the website of Japan Buddhist Federation (http://www.jbf.ne.jp/) where Nichiren Buddhist schools are members with exception to Nichiren Shoshu & Soka Gakkai.
Probably what needs to be banned from this forum is actually "Nichirenism". Well, I'll make a summary explanation of this.
In Japan, Buddhism is almost exclusively of the Northern tradition (Mahayana). The lineages are mainly from Tiendai (Tien-tai), Shingon, Jodo (Pure Land), Zen, Nichiren & Nara schools. Due to the sectarian nature of Japanese Buddhism, each lineage consists of subsects together with the main sect.
For Nichiren Buddhism, the main sect will be Nichiren Shu with subsects such as Kempon Hokke Shu, Honmon Butsuryu Shu, Honmon Hokke Shu & 3 offshoots of Hokke Shu. There are 2 sects that advocates "Nichirenism" instead & they are Honmon Shoshu, Nichiren Shoshu & its one-time lay organisation Soka Gakkai.
Here's the brief difference between Nichiren Shu, Nichiren Shoshu & Soka Gakkai:
3 Treasures of Buddhism
- Buddha
- Dhamma
- Sangha
1) Nichiren Shu
- Buddha : Eternal Sakyamuni Buddha
- Dhamma : Mahayana Tripitaka with the Lotus Sutra as base, Namu Myoho Renge Kyo
- Sangha : Nichiren Shonin (with the monastics & lay community)
2) Nichiren Shoshu
- Buddha : Nichiren Daishonin
- Dhamma : The Lotus Sutra, Nam Myoho Rengo Kyo (with emphasize on the Goshos)
- Sangha : Nikko Shonin & successive High Priests
3) Soka Gakkai [2 types]
{A} Official
- Buddha : Nichiren Daishonin
- Dhamma : The Lotus Sutra, Nam Myoho Rengo Kyo (with emphasize on the Goshos)
- Sangha : Nikko Shonin
{B} In Reality
- Buddha : President Daisaku Ikeda
- Dhamma : Writings & Teachings of the President & Soka Gakkai
- Sangha : Soka Gakkai organisation & members
Reason for stating the above 3 organisations is that they are more known thru out the world & are ones with branches in Singapore.
For more info about Nichiren Shu, check out http://nichiren-shu.org/ , Malaysia branch (http://www.nshumy.org/) & Indonesia branch (http://www.nishi.org/)
Homage to the Original Teacher Lord Sakyamuni Buddha
Buddha's Grace,
Supa Naga
how come the triple gem is not Buddha, Dhamma and Sangha? anything that deviates from this is mara setup. -
Originally posted by marcteng:
oic. why not start reading on Buddhism and keep an open mind.
i always believe in ONE god .... ONE god that created Prophet Mhd , ONE god that create Jesus Christ and ONE god that created Buddha .And that just do me good enough .
No need to go into further , i also not much time to commit so many preaches .
Tat's why my mum not so happy about my stubborness .
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In fact , MM Goh Chok Tong was the Guest Of Honour during that time when they first open Soka @ Tampines , Street 81 .
He officially open the Association .
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Originally posted by Poolman:
i always believe in ONE god .... ONE god that created Prophet Mhd , ONE god that create Jesus Christ and ONE god that created Buddha .And that just do me good enough .
No need to go into further , i also not much time to commit so many preaches .
Tat's why my mum not so happy about my stubborness .
hey Poolman, you got to realise that in Buddhism, there are no one god concept, unlike god religions, which is a revealing religion. I can briefly tell you that Buddhism is about realising as opposed to revealing, thats a key difference. your mom should respect your wishes if you want to be a free thinker, to each his/her own. you will be a buddhist if there is a cause planted lifetimes ago, if you believe in rebirth. another central tenet in Buddhism, besides rebirth, is karma, which is cause and effect. Buddha did not say he is a god, bringing you to heaven. he said he is a human being and everyone has a Buddha nature. -
as long as the tradition differ from what the buddha taught, please do not accept. Rather use what the buddha taught in the kalamas sutta. Come Kalamas, do not rely on the teacher or the tradition, just because it said so. instead rely on your intuition, judgement and whether it leads to goodness, peace of mind and enlightenment.
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Originally posted by marcteng:
as long as the tradition differ from what the buddha taught, please do not accept. Rather use what the buddha taught in the kalamas sutta. Come Kalamas, do not rely on the teacher or the tradition, just because it said so. instead rely on your intuition, judgement and whether it leads to goodness, peace of mind and enlightenment.
I rely on nothing for even the spirit of the Dharma is also wrong. -
Originally posted by Poolman:
i always believe in ONE god .... ONE god that created Prophet Mhd , ONE god that create Jesus Christ and ONE god that created Buddha .And that just do me good enough .
No need to go into further , i also not much time to commit so many preaches .
Tat's why my mum not so happy about my stubborness .
I suggest you open your Soka Gakkai Thread ,
Sokka Gakkai as long as One DAY DO NOT follow the Triple GEM and recognise Sakyamuni Buddha as the Founder of Buddhism
does not earn its name as a mainstream Buddhism
Homage to the Lotus Sutra title have no meaning when NOBODY wish to UNDERSTAND THE TOTALITY OF THE WONDERFUL LOTUS SUTRA
the judging of the SUTRA into INFERIOR AND SUPERIOR quality doesnt fit in BUDDHIST TENDAI or NICHIREN approach .
thank you!
I can also chant HOMAGE TO COCA COLA ..as long as i feel happy
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nope , i am not going to do anything here with this religion .
I am not a follower , my mum is .
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Originally posted by youyayu:
if not explain this fellow
Please quote the source of this picture thank you.
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Originally posted by youyayu:
if not explain this fellow
Budai, one of the 7 Nippon gods of fortune. -
Originally posted by Herzog_Zwei:
Budai, one of the 7 Nippon gods of fortune.And how would yyy explain this relation to soka gakkai or even nichiren shu? I believe this would be an assumption on his part. I understand Budai to be part of Zen Buddhism with some relation to taoism or even I kuan Dao. Relation to Nichiren Shoshu or Soka Gakkai however is non-existence.