Today's post is the next installment in my series, the first of which was entitled "TO: SGI (Part 1)," which was posted on August 24.
These "TO: SGI" posts are primarily addressed to current and former members of the Soka Gakkai International. Of course, anyone else is invited to read and ponder this post, but please keep in mind that it would be helpful if you are familiar with the details of SGI Buddhism's practices and terminology.
This link will connect you to the homepage of my Lotus Sutra Champions blog so you can access links to other essays I've posted and so you can read a general introduction to this new site:
http://lotussutrachampions.blogspot.com/2013/07/lotus-sutra-champions.html
Specific Introduction
Today's post will cover two topics:
- Back in 1976, I destroyed my gohonzon; but in 1996 I was issued a new one.
- On Aug. 28, 2013, I was banned from the Chicago SGI Culture Center by "director" Ethan Gelbaum.
My Gohonzons
Background
I first joined the SGI (known as NSA - Nichiren Shoshu of America - at the time) in 1974, which is when I received my gohonzon. When I quit NSA in 1977, I secretly destroyed my gohonzon by setting it on fire, dousing it with water, and tossing it into a trash can. What I should have done was return my gohonzon to NSA. However, I destroyed it because I wanted to prove to myself that I hadn't been brainwashed into thinking this was some kind of amulet with magical powers that could destroy my life should I mistreat it.
I didn't have any contact with NSA/SGI until 1993 when I rejoined, but this time - under my terms. I was asked if I had a gohonzon due to my having been a member 16 years earlier. I confessed that I had destroyed it. SGI offered me another gohonzon, but I declined, insisting that I could practice by using a "gohonzon" of my own creation. This was just an ordinary piece of paper on which I typed (in English) a variety of names and phrases that I could focus on while I chanted. The names were of persons in my life who were important to me, while the others words were representative of a variety of Buddhist concepts.
At no time did the SGI inform me that I was engaging in heretical behavior by chanting to my own gohonzon. I do remember, though, one leader gritting his teeth and saying, "That's not a gohonzon." To which I replied, "Since the word 'gohonzon' means 'supreme object of worship, veneration, or focus,' and that's how I view it, this typed sheet of paper fulfills the purpose and definition of 'gohonzon' as far as I'm concerned. But I'm not asking for your approval nor am I expecting that you would ever chant to it."
Ethan Gelbaum
At this point, I will introduce Ethan Gelbaum who runs the Chicago SGI-USA Community Center. He introduced himself to me as the regional director upon my first meeting him about a month ago, but I've seen him mentioned on-line as an SGI Vice President and Vice General Director. In any event, he's pretty high up the chain of command, which means he gets paid for his services as a leader. And by that I mean, "paid" in terms of this being a full-time job. Try as I might, I couldn't find much info on-line regarding Ethan's long-runnning stint with the SGI. So it seems to me, he's pretty good at keeping a low profile.
I will mention Ethan more prominently in the next section of this article. But for now, I will highlight his unique reaction to the news that I had destroyed my original gohonzon - he was angry. And that's unique because none of the other SGI leaders or members I'd told about this back in 1993 reacted that way. In fact, they tried very hard to get me to accept a new gohonzon. But I demurred, preferring the "gohonzon" of my own creation instead.
My New Gohonzon
After a couple of years, though, I did finally apply for a new gohonzon and was issued one. And, to this day, I still have this gohonzon enshrined in my home. But I rarely chant to it, preferring instead to read aloud from my English-language translation of the Lotus Sutra, with my eyes riveted to the pages of this translation. I usually recite in my own home, but on occasion I'll recite while sitting on a park bench.
As far as the gohonzon itself is concerned, I do not cherish it (as Nichiren urged) nor do I worship it. When I do chant to it, I feel a sense of comfort and find it to be a useful focal point for my concentration during those rare times when I do gongyo or chant daimoku. Nowhere in the Lotus Sutra - which I've recited over 150 times - is there any mention of the gohonzon. Shakyamuni never had a gohonzon nor did any of the other Buddhas or bodhisattvas mentioned in the Lotus. So, as far as I'm concerned, the gohonzon was an expedient means invented by Nichiren meant to serve as a focal point for the faithful.
The only other significance my gohonzon has for me is my promise to return it to the SGI, should I decide I don't want to keep it any longer, rather than destroy it as I had done in the case of my first gohonzon. Looking back on how I destroyed my first gohonzon over 35 years ago, I regret having broken my word to protect it. In my defense, however, I will say the SGI bears some responsibility for what I did. Nothing happens in a vacuum; so when I destroyed it, that was in reaction to the oppressive, cult-like behavior of NSA/SGI at the time. Yes, I was angry because I felt NSA misbehaved in terms of how it treated its members - expecting much from them, but not even giving much in the way of respect back in return.
A blackly humorous anecdote
NSA/SGI was also at fault for how easily they conferred gohonzon, not really treating it as the object of respect it was supposed to be. This brief anecdote highlights my point:
A couple of years before I rejoined SGI in 1993 (I think it must have been around 1987), I ran into my brother-in-law who had been out partying at a local dance club. We sat down on a bench and chatted for a few minutes, when two people came up to us. These two were doing street shakubuku on the last day of a month-long shakubuku campaign. They asked if we wanted to go to a Buddhist meeting. My brother-in-law wanted to go, since he was curious about this Buddhist thing I used to do. So we hopped into a cab and went to the SGI Community Center which was on Wrightwood Avenue in Chicago at the time.
I made it clear to the SGI members that I was a former member who was there only because my in-law asked me to join him. Did I mention that he was very drunk? Like I said, he had been out partying. So I couldn't help but laugh (to myself) as he was guided through the process of filling out a membership application (at this, his first meeting!) and paying a $15 fee so he could get his gohonzon that night! So I was treated to the amusing spectacle of watching my bro-in-law stand in line with the other new members to receive their gohonzons from a visiting priest. As he walked down the center aisle toward the priest, I could see he was drunkenly weaving instead of walking straight. So I thought, "Looks like SGI will give anybody a gohonzon these days in order to jack up the shakubuku numbers. Has it really come to this?"
Yes, I'm afraid it has (or at least "had") come to this. So when Ethan Gelbaum chose to express a degree of anger toward me for having destroyed my gohonzon, he should have realized that the disrespectful attitude the SGI itself had toward their supreme object of worship might have been an indirect cause for a member, in turn, disrespecting it. Besides, as I've already pointed out, the SGI was eager to get me to accept a new gohonzon knowing full well that I had destroyed my first one.
My banishment from the Chicago SGI-USA Culture Center
What happened?
Ethan banned me from the SGI Center on August 28, 2013. I arrived around 12:30, started to chant in the Round Room, and after about 10 minutes Ethan taps me on the shoulder. I follow him to a point about 10 feet or so from the Round Room's entrance. After Ethan asked how I was (and I said I was okay), he told me the Center is only for SGI members. I added, "And guests?"
He said, "Not for guests who diss the organization and blog about it."
I replied, "So...we're not going to have a discussion meeting or a dialogue about this?"
He said, "We've already done that."
Me: "That was one time weeks ago for scarcely 10 minutes and I did most of the talking." And that brief meeting was before I'd sent him e-mails asking a variety of questions. He didn't respond to any of them or respond to my invitation for a one-on-one dialogue.
And then I started to leave but added, "You should be ashamed of yourself." When he said, "I'm not," I said, "You should be."
After he said something like have-a-nice-day, I said, "I hope you enjoy your epic failure." And I left. I hope he got that point about "epic failure," which perfectly describes the decline of this layman's Buddhist movement. Back in the mid-seventies, SGI boasted of having 12 million members - 10M in Japan and 2M elsewhere. Today, they "boast" of exactly the same numbers.
"We've just got 20 years to go."
Back in the seventies, we SGI members used to sing the "Shakubuku Fight Song," which included these lyrics:
Do your Gongyo early in the morning.
Daimoku late at night.
Going to follow President Ikeda.
Make this planet peaceful and bright.
Shakubuku is the way to Kosen-rufu.
Twenty years and we'll see Kosen-rufu.
Keep chanting! Keep chanting!
We've got just twenty years to go.
Ahem, we've just got 20 years to go? That was the assertion based on our confidence that we would be successful based on the Rule of Thirds. If we could get one-third of the world's population to chant (and that was supposed to be a slam dunk), that would mean another third would support us but not chant themselves, and the remaining third wouldn't support us but they wouldn't oppose us either. Well, guess what, Ethan. A lot more than 20 years have gone by (more than 35 years in fact) and SGI isn't in ascendancy; it's in precipitous decline. But I suppose as long as the SGI continues to pay your salary, you needn't concern yourself about such things.
My deal with Ethan
I had kept up my end of the deal I'd made with Ethan about a month ago, when he first told me he was contemplating barring me from the Center. I didn't speak to anybody on the Center's premises about how I practice or my particular interpretations of Buddhist doctrine. I was respectful of Ethan's territory.
But he decided to extend his authority to my outside activities - that is, to what I put on my blog. That's my territory and my business. But what bothered me the most was his initial attempt to lie to me. His first shot was, "The Center is only for members." I knew full well it's also for guests and the receptionist doesn't check the status of anybody who walks through the Center's doors. But obviously he thought a lie would simplify matters and I'd be gone. Ethan didn't think I'd question his claim. I ask a lot of questions, to which the Ethans of the world must ultimately fall silent.
About that member of 40 years and Nichiren's alleged Buddhahood
About 10 years ago, I went to my SGI district meeting, being the first to arrive. I asked Mrs. Oishi, a member of 40 years or so, if she'd ever read the Lotus Sutra. She told me she'd read excerpts in the SGI organ publications but had never read it in its entirety. She found it too daunting. Now this is a woman who told me she gets up a 5 AM everyday and chants four hours of daimoku. When I told Ethan about this, I said, "It would have been better if she'd chanted only 3 hours of daimoku, and dedicated that fourth hour to an recitation of the Lotus Sutra." He didn't respond to that, but I suppose he thought my comment heretical, since reading aloud from the Lotus isn't a practice SGI recognizes.
And something else Ethan Gelbaum didn't respond to: I asked him, about a month ago, if he could cite any scriptural source in which Nichiren claimed he was a Buddha. He turned to his assistant, Marty, and asked him to send me an email response to that. I will now quote Marty's email and a portion of an email I made in response:
QUOTE:
I hope all is well with you. From our previous discussion here is a reference for your inquiry.
Question: In the Writings of Nichiren Daishonin (WND), where does he reveals his identity as the Buddha of the Latter Day of the Law ?
Answer: In the Opening of the Eyes WND-Vol. 1 (One of the 5 major treatises of Nichiren Daishonin). This treatise clarifies Nichiren’s identity as the true Buddha of the Latter Day of the Law. He reveals “casting off the transient and revealing the true”, post Tatsunokuchi Persecution.
If you want further background on intent of the Opening of the Eyes, please read Actions of the Votary of the Lotus Sutra (WND- Vol. 1). Moreover, another writing to read would be The Unanimous Declaration By The Buddhas (WND-Vol. 2).
:UNQUOTE.
QUOTE:
After reading your response, I sense a difference of styles between our approaches to answering questions. Basically, what you did was throw a library at me, saying (in effect): "Here are sources you can investigate, so go ahead and find that needle in the haystack."
By my last comment, I mean, "For instance, the Opening of the Eyes (which I had read over 15 years ago) is a very long gosho, though perhaps somewhere in there Nichiren is claiming he's a Buddha. I can't, however, remember having read any such claim within its many pages." It would have been far more helpful if you'd quoted at least one decisive and key passage wherein Nichiren makes this claim rather than burdening your reader (me) with having to sift through a lot of background material that (really) doesn't make the point.
I, on the other hand, will provide quotes from Nichiren which cast grave doubts on any claims of his being a Buddha:
ONE: "Why did I first begin to chant as I do? Bodhisattva Jogyo is the one destined to make his advent in this world to propagate the five characters of Myoho-renge-kyo. But before he had even appeared, I began, as though speaking in a dream, hardly knowing what I was doing, to chant the words Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, and so I chant them now. In the end, is this a good thing I do, or a bad thing? I do not know, nor can anyone else tell for certain." - Letter to Myomitsu Shonin.
The two areas I highlighted are hardly the words a Buddha would be speaking.
TWO: "...but since I am a common mortal, it is beyond my power to know the past. There is no doubt, however, that in my present life I am the votary of the Lotus Sutra, and that in the future, I will therefore reach the seat of enlightenment without fail."
"I cannot hold back my tears when I think of the great persecution confronting me now, or when I think of the joy of attaining Buddhahood in the future."
These two quotes appear on page 386 of the True Aspect of All Phenomena and show that Nichiren, even after he started chanting Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, had not yet attained Buddhahood. Instead, he speaks of doing so "in the future."
:UNQUOTE.
Not only did I send this email to Marty, but I also copied it to Ethan Gelbaum. Neither of these two gentlemen offered any further defense of their belief that Nichiren is a Buddha. If they can't even defend this critical assertion, that speaks volumes of not only their competence but the truth of this assertion.
In closing
I'm not at all surprised at Ethan or the SGI for that matter. I chose to interact with Ethan as I did, fully expecting his cowardly response. I hadn't even considered setting foot in the SGI Center until an SGI friend, whom I shakubuku'd 13 years ago, suggested we meet there. The rest, as they say, is history. Frankly? I had written off the SGI years ago as a failed enterprise hardly worth my time to engage. But for old times sake, I decided I'd try one more time to appeal to their sense of mission and to their commonsense. Having failed in that, I now move on in my own Buddhist practice in terms of trying to reach current and former SGI members with my blog posts. And, of course, in continuing to (as Shakyamuni Buddha urged) to "read, recite, ponder, and teach to the best of my ability the Lotus Sutra."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Steven Searle, Just another member of the Virtual Samgha of the Lotus
Nicheren states to "follow the law, not the person." The power of chanting nam myoho renge kyo is undeniable.
ReplyDeleteAs for reading the whole lotus sutra in its entirety, that is great. Daisaku Ikeda has a whole series called "wisdom of the lotus sutra" that goes through every chapter of the lotus sutra. Also Gosho always has the exact references of passages from lotus sutra at the end of each gosho letter.
It is unfortunate about your encounter with Ethan. At times SGI members may bump against each other, but each individual are able to human revolution and based on prayer, I have seen them more united than ever. I am chanting that both you will unite towards world peace one day.
Your post actually solidified my faith and for me to take responsibility of my causes in the tense relationships I have in my life. There is a difference between knowledge wisdom....sometimes i forget that logic can deceive and it is important to know that practice is experiencial. i cant always explain perfectly, but i know from my experiexperience in three years, this works.
All the best to you.
My reply to Anonymous,
ReplyDeleteHave you read the Lotus Sutra in its entirety? You mention that DI has a series about this, but you didn't say that you yourself had read that. I suspect you've read neither, and I can cite your very first sentence as proof.
Since Nichiren wrote about the importance of following the Law, surely he could not ignore the many times in the Lotus Sutra itself where it defines correct Buddhist practice as reading, reciting, pondering, and penetrating the meaning of the Lotus Sutra and teaching it to others. That's the Law. And that was Shakyamuni speaking (who is a Buddha) and not Nichiren (who never even once claimed to be a Buddha and even denied that he was). So, who are we to listen to - Nichiren the Non-Buddha who champions the Gohonzon and the chanting of Nam Myoho Renge Kyo or Shakyamuni the Buddha who champions the Lotus Sutra (in which he claims that all bodhisattvas who attain Enlightenment do so through the Lotus Sutra - and not (I might add) through the teachings of Non-Buddhas)?
If you've only been chanting for three years, I don't know how you could say, "I have seen them more united than ever..." That "ever" could only refer to the three years of your practice. Give yourself a bit more time to allow for a bit more perspective.
I used to say what you did about the power of chanting daimoku being undeniable. And I still believe that. I would not have reached the point in my practice of 20+ years without the expedient means of the SGI and daimoku. But, as Shakyamuni said, there comes a time to cast aside expedient means to embrace the truth. The power of chanting the entire Lotus Sutra in a language I can understand has given me far greater benefit than daimoku ever did. It's a question of having an open mind and being willing to compare.
Ethan did not have that open mind, choosing instead to assume the roles of witch hunter and liar. My encounter with Ethan was more than (as you wrote) "unfortunate" - it was enlightening and a showing of true colors. Live and learn, as I say.
Thanks for taking the time to read my piece and reply to it.
The power of chanting nam myoho renge kyo is most certainly deniable. It doesn't work. Good things happen in life; bad things happen in life. If chanting has so much power, then why are SGI members not noticeably better off than everyone else in society? And more interestingly, why do so many SGI members quit? The one thing everybody knows how to do is chant nam myoho renge kyo - if this magic chant's "power" was "undeniable", as the first comment declares, why would anyone ever leave? Yet the SGI-USA's numbers have dropped from General Director George Williams' claimed number of 500,000 to just 35,000 today. How could this be, if the magic chant's "power" were "undeniable"?? People are indicating with their feet just what they think of the magic chant. BTW, I practiced with NSA/SGI for over 20 years. Now I'm an anti-cult activist :D
ReplyDeleteYour Slandering the SGI I WILL CHANT FOR YOU You do not need to read the Lotus Sutra in its entirety to become your true self a Buddha. You seem like the bully Ethan does not matter He hates me and has made up lies about me behind my back. I am undefeated. Connect with President IKEDA, PRESIDENT Toda and Mack.Thess men live and two died so we can practice freely and correctly You can defeat ABUSIVE BEHAVIOR with a torrent practice. I am praying for you buddy WAKE UP.
ReplyDeleteThe SGI IS?AMAZING SAFE AND A FAIR WONDERFUL ORGANIZATION OR EVERYDAY PEOPLE FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD. THE SGI IS GREAT WHO ARE YOU TO SLANDER THE SGI YOU HAVE NOT BEEN A MEMBER CONSISTENTLY.SHANE ON YOU. GO GET THERAPY SGI PROMOTES YOUTH, DIVERSITY& EAUALITY PLEASE LOOK INSIDE YOU IRONICALLY YOUR POST DEMONSTRATE just how much you don't YET understand the heart of the Lotus Sutra from the lens of N.D's brilliant teaching OWN your karma. I am trying to own all my karma.okay. I will CHANT for you Please open your broken heart Your a Buddha too...The SGI & NAM MYOHO RENGE KYO ARE GREAT. LOOK AT YOU & HEAL YOU..BECOME HAPPY. HIMBLE AND HEALTHY.
ReplyDeleteI began practicing in 1974. I became District Leader in Santa Monica. I left NSA, later changed to SGI in 1990. I told Mr. Kikamura that Ikeda was a egomaniacal fool to go against the 800 year lineage of the Nichiren Shoshu Priesthood. I never had a good feeling about Ikeda after On Tozan in 1980 he invited a blond female teacher in our group to his suite at our Tokyo hotel and exposed himself with his translator present. She came back crying and quit right then and there. “Yuck, it was so tiny” she said later. My friend and confronted the translator. The translator said it was a “Great honor for a YWD to be invited to Ikeda’s room.” It was pathetic and very confusing. I practice with www.NST.org now in San Francisco. All the Nichiren Shoshu Priests I have ever met are very humble, extremely well schooled, and often witty. Anyone that attends a meeting with a Priest will quickly see the folly of SGI.
ReplyDeleteFound in former SGI member's pile of SGI material
ReplyDeleteI found this is in my SGI pile. I thought you would
laugh...LOL
Some (brainwashed) words of "wisdom" and genius examples by $GI Vice-General Director, Ethan Gelbaum (based in New York / New Jersey) -
Japan is devastated by a 8.9 magnitude earthquake, followed by a 4 meter tsunami, 16,000+ people die and Ethan urgently reports his main #1 worry and concern:
From Ethan Gelbaum:
"I would like to report that we received a report from Japan that the area around the Soka Gakkai Headquarters in Toyko is ok and that Sensei is safe. We do not have any reports yet about the people in northern Japan where the Tsunami hit." - To The Glory Spirit Group on Facebook.
And ...
Follow The Mentor,
"Just yesterday I got this letter from Ethan Gelbaum of the Northeast Zone:
"One key element in ensuring that you will win in every aspect of your life is to make a life to life connection with our mentor, SGI President Daisaku Ikeda."
"This letter also included this note:
"The local french bakery Cafe at the corner of 15th and 5th ave [near the kaikan] is giving a 20% discount to all members when they show their World Tribune discount card! Kosen-rufu is really on the way!"" - From SokaGakkaiUnofficial Yahoo Groups.
Love that last bit. Mmm-Hmm.
Stunning display of a $oka cult leader's mind at work