George Leonard and LOOK Magazine, part 1 of 2: Stanford Zen +^

[Chas.]

Toxic Zen Story #27, part 1 of 2: Stanford Zen: George Leonard before Esalen, LOOK Magazine and Attacking the Soka Gakkai

part 1 of 2.

The central injustice of this article is that the most famous Japanese Buddhists who were lined up to criticize the Soka Gakkai (D.T. Suzuki of Zen, and Rev. Dr. Shobun Kubota of Nichiren Shu Minobu Sect, vice-president of Rissho University of Tokyo), were central components of Imperial Way Buddhism during the Second World War, and were willing and knowledgeable co-conspirators (in Suzuki's case a prime instigator) to the Rape of Nanking and other atrocities committed by the Imperial Japanese Army.

These indisputable facts, are compared to the wartime behavior of the founders of the Soka Gakkai: that First President Tsunesaburo Makiguchi and the Second President Josei Toda, were the ONLY TWO Buddhists in Japan to successfully resist to the very end of the war, these very criminal enterprises:

(1.) The militarization and support for the war effort which was mandated by Laws made and enforced by the Tojo Regime upon the Imperial Way Buddhist organizations in Japan.

(2.) The Laws made and enforced by the Tojo Regime to subjugate all religious sects under the Shinto faith by accepting and incorporating the Shinto Talisman into every Temple and personal altar.

(3.) The Laws made and enforced by the Tojo Regime which required all Japanese citizens to speak only of Emperor Hirohito as a god, descendent from the Shinto goddess of the Sun.

That resistance ended in Tsunesaburo Makiguchi's imprisonment and death in the Tokyo Detention Center, and in Josei Toda's imprisonment and torture there until the end of the war.

THIS JEALOUSY of complicit wartime criminals (D.T. Suzuki and Shobun Kubota) masquerading as peaceful Buddhists, waging a campaign of slander against those that stood alone against the evils perpetrated during wartime by the Tojo Regime, and who fearlessly withstood the brunt of their withering oppression throughout the war, IS THE PRIME MOTIVE for the viciousness, and venomous nature of the attacks against the Soka Gakkai.

It is literally the guilt of the many, pulling down the virtuous few of the one and only virtuous Buddhist organization existing during the war. It is worse than the ostracism of Aristides by the people of Athens, as noted by Plutarch, that lead to the fall of Athens.

What makes it an astonishing and mind-numbing attack, is that the charges of militarism and religious oppression by force, are made by those falsely wearing the cloak of peaceful Buddhists: the very instigators and perpetrators of war-crimes AND religious oppression by Imperial Way Buddhism and Imperial State Zen, during the Second World War.

____ Background for Toxic Zen Stories _____________________

https://groups.google.com/group/alt.zen/msg/b4ad0ce368728934?hl=en

____ Introduction ________________________________________

We know the basic story of D.T. Suzuki, and the fact that he had one face showing towards Japan's Imperial Way Zen, and a different face showing towards the West. And that, for obvious reasons, never the twain would meet.

We know that Suzuki went to America as a young man, to accompany his master, the Rinzai priest Soyen Shaku, to LaSalle-Peru, Illinois, at the behest of Dr. Paul Carus, a German who was the managing editor of Open Court Publishing, which was owned by Zinc magnate Edward Hegeler.

We know that after leaving America, Suzuki influenced people around the world and was one of the stalwart supporters of the Japanese War with Russia, and then in China.

We know that Suzuki's influence in academic circles in Europe was profound, and particularly in mentoring Eugen Herrigel. Herrigel's work erroneously describing the Zen influences on Japanese archery was a twisted mirror to Suzuki's work describing the Zen influences in Bushido swordsmanship.

We know that he had a variety of collaborators, a flock of followers, and influenced many others:

Collaborators in the propagation of Soyen Shaku (D.T.'s Master)-D.T. Suzuki Zen:
Beatrice Lane (wife), Paul Carus, Edward Hegeler, Martin Heidegger, Frederic Spiegelberg, Father Thomas Merton, Alan Watts, Eric Fromm, Carl G. Jung, Richard de Martino, Karen Horney, and a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation to lecture extensively at Columbia University and other East Coast schools in the 1950's.

Followers of Shaku-Suzuki Zen:
John Cage, Jack Kerouac, Alan Ginsberg, Gary Snyder, and Philip Whalen.

Those strongly affected by the Shaku-Suzuki Zen Influence:
Aldous Huxley, Karl Jaspers, Arnold Toynbee, Gabriel Marcel, Herbert Read, and Lynn White Jr.
___________________________________________________

What is basically wrong with Zen Buddhism? The problems become apparent when you look closely at the Buddha's own words, relayed in the Buddha's highest teachings (Sutras) and writings (Gosho).

In the Nirvana Sutra it states "Rely upon the Law and not upon persons".

On the topic of "evil friends", who are a "friend" to you, but an enemy of the Law, and who gradually pull you away from the truth and into hellishness, Nichiren writes:

. 'The Buddha states: "Have no fear of mad
. elephants. What you should fear are evil friends!
. Why? Because a mad elephant can only destroy your
. body; it cannot destroy your mind. But an evil
. friend can destroy both body and mind. A mad
. elephant can destroy only a single body, but an
. evil friend can destroy countless bodies and
. countless minds. A mad elephant merely destroys an
. impure, stinking body, but an evil friend can
. destroy both pure body and pure mind. A mad
. elephant can destroy the physical body, but an
. evil friend destroys the Dharma body. Even if you
. are killed by a mad elephant, you will not fall
. into the three evil paths. But if you are killed
. by an evil friend, you are certain to fall into
. them. A mad elephant is merely an enemy of your
. body, but an evil friend is an enemy of the good
. Law." (Nirvana Sutra) Therefore, even more than
. venomous serpents or malevolent demons, one should
. fear the evil friends who follow Kobo [japanese
. true word/shingon founder: tantric buddhism],
. Shan-tao [third chinese nembutsu patriarch], and
. Honen [japanese pure land/jodo sect founder]. This
. is just a brief clarification of the error of
. holding distorted views.'

"Reply to Hoshina Goro Taro" - Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, p. 159
___________________________________________________

On the topic of Zen, and "transmissions" apart from the teachings of the Buddha. Would these somehow not constitute teachings, in and of themselves? Actually, they are a hidden supplemental teaching, added to the Buddha's golden words. Because of this, they can only serve to distort Buddhism. Nichiren writes:

. The sage replied: "You must first of all set
. aside the doctrines for the moment and consider
. the logic of the matter. Can anyone, without
. inquiring into the essential meaning of the
. Buddha's lifetime teachings or investigating the
. basic principles of the ten schools, presume to
. admonish the nation and teach others? This Zen
. that you are talking about is something that I
. have studied exhaustively for some time. In view
. of the extreme doctrines that it teaches, I must
. say that it is a highly distorted affair.
.
. "There are three types of Zen, known
. respectively as Thus Come One Zen, doctrinal Zen,
. and patriarchal Zen.[72] What you are referring to
. is patriarchal Zen, and I would therefore like to
. give you a general idea of it. So listen, and
. understand what it is about.
.
. "It speaks of transmitting something apart
. from the teachings. But apart from the teachings
. there are no principles, and apart from principles
. there are no teachings. Don't you understand the
. logic of this, that principles are none other than
. teachings and teachings none other than
. principles? This talk about the twirled flower,
. the faint smile, and something being entrusted to
. Mahakashyapa is in itself a teaching, and the
. four-character phrase about its being 'independent
. of words or writing' is likewise a teaching and a
. statement in words. This sort of talk has been
. around for a long while in both China and Japan.
. It may appear novel to you, but let me quote one
. or two passages that will clear up your
. misconceptions.
.
. "Volume eleven of The Supplement to T'ien-
. t'ai's Three Major Works states: 'If one says that
. we are not to hamper ourselves by the use of
. verbal expressions, then how, for even an instant
. in this saha world, can we carry on the Buddha's
. work? Do the Zen followers themselves not use
. verbal explanations when they are giving
. instruction to others? If one sets aside words and
. phrases, then there is no way to explain the
. meaning of emancipation, so how can anyone ever
. hear about it?'
.
. "Farther on, we read: 'It is said that
. Bodhidharma came from the west and taught the
. "direct pointing to the mind of man" and
. "perceiving one's true nature and attaining
. Buddhahood." But are these same concepts not found
. in the Flower Garland Sutra and in the other
. Mahayana sutras? Alas, how can the people of our
. time be so foolish! You should all put faith in
. the teachings of the Buddha. The Buddhas, the Thus
. Come Ones, tell no lies!'
.
. "To restate the meaning of this passage: if
. one objects that we are hampering ourselves with
. doctrinal writings and tying ourselves down with
. verbal explanations, and recommends a type of
. religious practice that is apart from the
. teachings of the sutras, then by what means are we
. to carry on the Buddha's work and make good causes
. in this saha world of ours? Even the followers of
. Zen, who advocate these views, themselves make use
. of words when instructing others. In addition,
. when one is trying to convey an understanding of
. the Buddha way, one cannot communicate the meaning
. if one sets aside words and phrases. Bodhidharma
. came to China from the west, pointed directly to
. people's minds, and declared that those minds were
. Buddha. But this principle is enunciated in
. various places even in the provisional Mahayana
. sutras that preceded the Lotus Sutra, such as the
. Flower Garland, Great Collection, and Great Wisdom
. sutras. To treat it as such a rare and wonderful
. thing is too ridiculous for words. Alas, how can
. the people of our time be so distorted in their
. thinking! They should put their faith in the words
. of truth spoken by the Thus Come One of perfect
. enlightenment and complete reward, who embodies
. the principle of the Middle Way that is the true
. aspect of all things.
.
. "In addition, the Great Teacher Miao-lo in the
. first volume of his Annotations on 'Great
. Concentration and Insight' comments on this
. situation by saying, 'The people of today look
. with contempt on the sutra teachings and emphasize
. only the contemplation of truth, but they are
. making a great mistake, a great mistake indeed!'
.
. "This passage applies to the people in the
. world today who put meditation on the mind and
. various other things first, and do not delve into
. or study the teachings of the sutras. On the
. contrary, they despise the teachings and make
. light of the sutras. This passage is saying that
. this is a mistake.
.
. "Moreover, I should point out that the Zen
. followers of the present age are confused as to
. the teachings of their own school. If we open the
. pages of The Continued Biographies of Eminent
. Priests, we find that in the biography of the
. Great Teacher Bodhidharma, the first patriarch of
. Zen in China, it states, 'By means of the
. teachings one can understand the essential
. meaning.' Therefore, one should study and practice
. the principles embodied in the sacred teachings
. preached by the Thus Come One in the course of his
. lifetime and thereby gain an understanding of the
. substance of the various doctrines and the nature
. of the different schools.
.
. "Furthermore, in the biography of
. Bodhidharma's disciple, Hui-k'o, the second of the
. six Chinese patriarchs, it states that the
. Meditation Master Bodhidharma handed over the four
. volumes of the Lankavatara Sutra to Hui-k'o,
. saying: 'Observing this land of China, I find only
. this sutra to be of real worth. If you base your
. practice on it, you will be able to bring
. salvation to the world.' Here we see that, when
. the Great Teacher Bodhidharma came from India to
. China, he brought the four volumes of the
. Lankavatara Sutra and handed them over to Hui-k'o,
. saying: 'When I observe the situation in this
. country, I see that this sutra is of outstanding
. superiority. You should abide by it and put it
. into practice and become a Buddha.'
.
. "As we have just seen, these patriarch-
. teachers placed primary emphasis on the sutra
. texts. But if we therefore say that one must rely
. on the sutras, then we must take care to inquire
. whether those sutras belong to the Mahayana or the
. Hinayana, whether they are the provisional
. teachings or the true teaching.
.
. "When it comes to making use of sutras, the
. Zen school relies on such works as the Lankavatara
. Sutra, the Shuramgama Sutra, and the Diamond
. Wisdom Sutra. These are all provisional teachings
. that were preached before the Lotus Sutra,
. doctrines that conceal the truth.
.
. "These various sutras expound partial truths
. such as 'the mind itself is the Buddha, and the
. Buddha is none other than the mind.' The Zen
. followers have allowed themselves to be led astray
. by one or two such sentences and phrases, failing
. to inquire whether they represent the Mahayana or
. the Hinayana, the provisional teachings or the
. true teaching, the doctrines that reveal the truth
. or the doctrines that conceal it. They merely
. advance the principle of nonduality without
. understanding the principle of duality,[73] and
. commit an act of great arrogance, claiming that
. they themselves are equal to the Buddha. They are
. following in the tracks of the Great Arrogant
. Brahman of India and imitating the old ways of the
. Meditation Master Sanchieh of China. But we should
. recall that the Great Arrogant Brahman, while
. still alive, fell into the hell of incessant
. suffering, and that San-chieh, after he died,
. turned into a huge snake. How frightful, how
. frightful indeed!
.
. "Shakyamuni Buddha, with his understanding
. that had penetrated the three existences, and by
. the light of the clear wisdom-moon of perfect
. enlightenment and complete reward, peered into the
. future and, in the Sutra on Resolving Doubts about
. the Middle Day of the Law, made this prediction:
. 'Among the evil monks there will be those who
. practice meditation and, instead of relying on the
. sutras and treatises, heed only their own view of
. things, declaring wrong to be right. Unable to
. distinguish between what is correct and what is
. erroneous, all they will do is face monks and lay
. believers and declare in this fashion, "I can
. understand what is right, I can see what is
. right." You should understand that it is people
. like this who will destroy my teachings in no time
. at all.'
.
. "This passage is saying that there will be
. evil monks who put all their faith in Zen and do
. not delve into the sutras and treatises. They will
. base themselves on distorted views and fail to
. distinguish between false and true doctrines.
. Moreover, they will address themselves to men and
. women believers, monks and nuns, declaring, 'I can
. understand the doctrines, but other people do
. not,' in this way working to spread the Zen
. teachings. But you should understand that these
. people will destroy the correct teaching of the
. Buddha. If we examine this passage and observe the
. state of the world today, we see that the two
. match each other as perfectly as do the two halves
. of a tally. Be careful! There is much to fear
. here.

"Conversation between a Sage and an Unenlightened Man" - Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, pp. 117-119.
___________________________________________________

There is the Fivefold Comparison as described in the Soka Gakkai Dictionary of Buddhism:

. Fivefold Comparison (Jpn goja-no-sotai): Five
. successive levels of comparison set forth by
. Nichiren (1222-I282) in The Opening of the Eyes
. (Gosho) to demonstrate the superiority of his
. teaching of Nam-myoho-renge-kyo [The essential
. form of the Lotus Sutra for the Latter Day of the
. Law] over all other teachings.
.
. (1) Buddhism is superior to non-Buddhist
. teachings. Nichiren takes up Confucianism and
. Brahmanism, and concludes that these non-Buddhist
. religions are not as profound as Buddhism in that
. they do not reveal the causal law of life that
. penetrates the three existences of past, present,
. and future.
.
. (2)Mahayana Buddhism is superior to Hinayana
. Buddhism. Hinayana Buddhism is the teaching for
. persons of the two vehicles, or voicehearers (Skt
. shravaka) and cause-awakened ones
. (pratyekabuddha), who aim at personal
. emancipation; its ultimate goal is to put an end
. to the cycle of rebirth in the threefold world by
. eliminating all earthly desires. It is called
. Hinayana (Lesser Vehicle) because it saves only a
. limited number of people. In contrast, Mahayana
. Buddhism is the teaching for bodhisattvas who aim
. at both personal enlightenment and the
. enlightenment of others; it is called Mahayana
. (Great Vehicle) because it can lead many people to
. enlightenment. In this sense, the Mahayana
. teachings are superior to the Hinayana teachings.
.
. (3) True Mahayana is superior to provisional
. Mahayana. Here true Mahayana means the Lotus
. Sutra, while provisional Mahayana indicates the
. Mahayana teachings that, according to T'ien-t'al's
. system of classification, were expounded before
. the Lotus Sutra. In the provisional Mahayana
. teachings, the people of the two vehicles, women,
. and evil persons are excluded from the possibility
. of attaining enlightenment; in addition,
. Buddhahood is attained only by advancing through
. progressive stages of bodhisattva practice over
. incalculable kalpas. In contrast, the Lotus Sutra
. reveals that all people have the Buddha nature
. inherently, and that they can attain Buddhahood
. immediately by realizing that nature. Furthermore,
. the provisional Mahayana teachings assert that
. Shakyamuni attained enlightenment for the first
. time in India and do not reveal his original
. attainment of Buddhahood in the remote past, nor
. do they reveal the principle of the mutual
. possession of the Ten Worlds, as does the Lotus
. Sutra. For these reasons, the true Mahayana
. teachings are superior to the provisional Mahayana
. teachings.
.
. (4) The essential teaching of the Lotus Sutra is
. superior to the theoretical teaching of the Lotus
. Sutra. The theoretical teaching consists of the
. first fourteen chapters of the Lotus Sutra, and
. the essential teaching, the latter fourteen
. chapters. The theoretical teaching takes the form
. of preaching by Shakyamuni who is still viewed as
. having attained enlightenment during his lifetime
. in India. In contrast, the essential teaching
. takes the form of preaching by Shakyamuni who has
. discarded this transient status and revealed his
. true identity as the Buddha who attained
. Buddhahood in the remote past. This revelation
. implies that all the Ten Worlds of ordinary people
. are eternal just as the Buddha's are, and confirms
. that Buddhahood is an ever-present potential of
. human life. For these reasons, the essential
. teaching is superior to the theoretical teaching.
.
. (5) The Buddhism of sowing is superior to the
. Buddhism of the harvest. Nichiren established this
. comparison based on the concept of sowing,
. maturing, and harvesting that T'ien-t'ai (538-597)
. set forth in The Words and Phrases of the Lotus
. Sutra. In The Profound Meaning of the Lotus Sutra,
. T'ien-t'ai cites the process by which the Buddha
. teaches, described in the "Parable of the Phantom
. City" (seventh) chapter of the Lotus Sutra, as
. well as the relationship of the Buddha and his
. disciples from the remote past explained in the
. "Life Span" (sixteenth) chapter of the sutra. All
. these ideas illustrate how the Buddha begins
. teaching his disciples by sowing the seeds of
. Buddhahood in their lives, helps those seeds
. mature, and finally harvests their fruit by
. leading them to the final stage of enlightenment
. or Buddhahood.
.
. The Lotus Sutra [28-chapter comprehensive form]
. describes this process as ranging over countless
. kalpas. The sutra does not, however, explain the
. nature of these original seeds, though it is clear
. that the seed of Buddhahood is essential for
. attaining Buddhahood. Nichiren identifies the seed
. as Nam-myoho-renge-kyo and states that it can be
. found only in the depths of the "Life Span"
. chapter. By implanting this seed in one's life,
. one can attain Buddhahood. From this viewpoint,
. Nichiren identifies his teaching as the Buddhism
. of sowing (the teaching aimed at implanting the
. seed of Buddhahood) and Shakyamuni's as the
. Buddhism of the harvest (the teaching aimed at
. harvesting the fruit of enlightenment borne from
. the seed planted in the remote past). He explains
. that Shakyamuni appeared in India in order to
. harvest the fruit of Buddhahood borne from the
. seed he had sown and caused to mature in the lives
. of his disciples until that time. The people of
. the Latter Day of the Law who have no such seed
. implanted in their lives cannot harvest its fruit.

Nichiren states,

. "This teaching was not propagated in the
. Former or Middle Day of the Law because the other
. sutras had not yet lost their power of benefit.
. Now, in the Latter Day of the Law, neither the
. Lotus Sutra [28 Chapter comprehensive form] nor
. the other sutras lead to enlightenment. Only Nam-
. myohorenge-kyo [essential form of the Lotus Sutra]
. can do so. This is not my own judgment.
. Shakyamuni, Many Treasures, the Buddhas of the ten
. directions, and the bodhisattvas who emerged from
. the earth as numerous as the dust particles of a
. thousand worlds have so determined it. To mix
. other practices with this Nam-myoho-renge-kyo is a
. grave error. A lantern is useless when the sun
. rises. How can dewdrops be beneficial when the
. rain falls? Should one feed a newborn baby
. anything other than its mother's milk? No addition
. of other medicines is needed with a good
. medicine."

from "The Teaching for the Latter Day", Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, p. 903

____ Toxic Zen Story ______________________________

In 1963, LOOK Magazine decided to do an issue focused on Japan.

The entire focus of the Japanese issue was an unbelievably savage cult-attack article on the Soka Gakkai lay organization of Nikko's Fuji School of Nichiren Buddhism of the Lotus Sutra, which at the time had 10,000,000 adherents (clearly too big to be objectively called a cult).

Hovering over the Table of Contents for LOOK Magazine's issue for September 10, 1963 (VOL. 27, N4), was a grinning picture of Edwin O. Reischauer, JFK's ambassador to Japan:

| ' [Caption box to picture of Reischauer over
| Table of Contents] At left, and at ease, our
| Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to
| Japan. Edwin 0. Reischauer is extraordinary -- our
| first envoy to speak, read and write Japanese,
| first to be born in Japan and married to a
| Japanese wife, and the only one ever to go rowing
| on Aburatsubo Bay in dungarees. Reischauer has
| other credentials. A former professor at Harvard,
| he can get through to Japanese intellectuals, and
| does, with blunt eloquence. See Our Man in Japan,
| pages 31-34.'

Reischauer was young, bright and well-educated. He was the perfect guy for the job, seemingly, having been actually born in Japan of missionary stock. Also, he had studied and written about Japanese historical figures and art history.

In 1936, he worked on his doctoral thesis at the University of Kyoto, on the life of the 9th century Japanese Tendai Buddhist monk Ennin (794-864), who traveled to China 500 years before Marco Polo. At the same time he was doing this work on Ennin, his brother Robert traveled to Shanghai and was killed in a hotel bombing during an air attack on Japanese warships by the Chinese.

He published that work which glorified the life of Ennin, and upheld Tendai Buddhism in 1955, the same year that his wife Adrienne, the mother of his two children, died on January 17th of a heart blockage.

Edwin Reischauer knew all the Asian Studies experts in both Eastern and Western Academia, and after the death of his wife, he visited universities all over Asia. In Tokyo, he met his second wife Haru Matsukata, who was the grandchild of a Japanese Imperial Prince - Matsukata Masayoshi.

At this time he changed his focus to writing about geopolitical and trade issues between the U.S. and Japan, which is how JFK noticed him and appointed him.

In his own writings about new religions in Japan, he would later mention the Soka Gakkai and their troubles with the government, the Socialists and with other established religions dispassionately, and with objective non-hostility. To be quite clear, he is not LISTED as connected to the attack article. That does not mean that he DIDN'T help the writer(s) and editor(s) to sign up distinguished Buddhists to line up and attack the Soka Gakkai, which they surely did.

Certainly, the Japan edition of LOOK Magazine does center primarily on the hatchet job article on the Soka Gakkai, and the puff piece which gushes all over Reischauer and his family, and the fine job he is doing as "our man in Japan". He had many associations with Japanese government and the Diet (Parliament), Japanese Academia and the established religions. These are the associations which could bring together the attacks from all over the broad spectrum of Japanese life, in the manner in which the piece was written. He could have been very helpful, and did gain much positive exposure from that edition of LOOK.

In March of 1964, five months after the LOOK Magazine on Japan hit the stands, he was attacked and stabbed by a mentally disturbed Japanese youth, who was determined to be part of the anti-nuclear and Socialist movements. Instead of going to a U.S. Military Hospital, his concern for the offense that might be taken, after the embarrassment of the host country, caused him to go to a Japanese Hospital, where he received a blood transfusion which gave him hepatitis. There he suffered irreversible liver damage that, even after a long recovery, caused him great suffering for the rest of his life. He resigned from the post in 1966 and returned to Harvard.

After raising a million dollars from the Japanese government and millions more from Japanese industry, he started the Japan Institute at Harvard and was appointed Director in 1974. The next year he suffered a stroke at his office at the Japan Institute.

Eventually, problems with the stroke and internal bleeding from the hepatitis took their toll and he scaled back his activities. In 1981 he retired, due to tiring quickly and recurring bouts with illness. He died in 1990, surviving his President, JFK, by 27 years.
___________________________________________________

And now, the attack article itself ...

| ' [Title in Large Type] JAPAN - A booming
| economy has spawned a militant new religion with
| 10 million adherents bent on dominating the world'

Well, this article really starts out with a bang. This claim of world domination didn't appear to be accurate, since 40 years has passed since this edition of LOOK Magazine came out, and the Soka Gakkai (SGI) has appeared to foster programs for peace and in support of the United Nations. The SGI is now located in over 180 countries, without becoming an empire. Why would someone make such an outrageous claim, with so many ridiculous charges based on questionable evidence? We will look closely at who makes the charges, and why they would want to shut down the SGI in its early stages of development in the United States.

The central injustice of this article is that the most famous Japanese Buddhists who were lined up to criticize the Soka Gakkai (D.T. Suzuki of Zen, and Rev. Dr. Shobun Kubota of Nichiren Shu Minobu Sect, vice-president of Rissho University of Tokyo), were central components of Imperial Way Buddhism during the Second World War, and were willing and knowledgeable co-conspirators (in Suzuki's case a prime instigator) to the Rape of Nanking and other atrocities committed by the Imperial Japanese Army.

These indisputable facts, are compared to the wartime behavior of the founders of the Soka Gakkai: that First President Tsunesaburo Makiguchi and the Second President Josei Toda, were the ONLY TWO Buddhists in Japan to successfully resist to the very end of the war, these very criminal enterprises:

(1.) The militarization and support for the war effort which was mandated by Laws made and enforced by the Tojo Regime upon the Imperial Way Buddhist organizations in Japan.

(2.) The Laws made and enforced by the Tojo Regime to subjugate all religious sects under the Shinto faith by accepting and incorporating the Shinto Talisman into every Temple and personal altar.

(3.) The Laws made and enforced by the Tojo Regime which required all Japanese citizens to speak only of Emperor Hirohito as a god, descendent from the Shinto goddess of the Sun.

That resistance ended in Tsunesaburo Makiguchi's imprisonment and death in the Tokyo Detention Center, and in Josei Toda's imprisonment and torture there until the end of the war.

THIS JEALOUSY of complicit wartime criminals (D.T. Suzuki and Shobun Kubota) masquerading as peaceful Buddhists, waging a campaign of slander against those that stood alone against the evils perpetrated during wartime by the Tojo Regime, and who fearlessly withstood the brunt of their withering oppression throughout the war, IS THE PRIME MOTIVE for the viciousness, and venomous nature of the attacks against the Soka Gakkai.

It is literally the guilt of the many, pulling down the virtuous few of the one and only virtuous Buddhist organization existing during the war. It is worse than the ostracism of Aristides by the people of Athens, as noted by Plutarch, that lead to the fall of Athens.

What makes it an astonishing and mind-numbing attack, is that the charges of militarism and religious oppression by force, are made by those falsely wearing the cloak of peaceful Buddhists: the very instigators and perpetrators of war-crimes AND religious oppression by Imperial Way Buddhism and Imperial State Zen, during the Second World War.

| ' [Author in Large Type] BY RICHARD OKAMOTO '

Who is Richard Okamoto? I have not been able to locate him in either the Reader's Periodical Guide (over all publications at the time), with the exception of the listing for this article, or by using database and Lexis-Nexis searches. I will keep looking, but I am coming to the suspicion that Richard Okamoto was a nom de plume for some writer that wanted to keep his identity covered, so that he could duck any charges of unfair religious persecution.

My favorite guess as to who Richard Okamoto is, is George B. Leonard, who now runs Esalen with Michael Murphy, and who was the West Coast Editor for LOOK Magazine in the Table of Contents (under the grinning face of Reischauer). He served in post-war Japan, was expert in Aikido (Physical Zen), and had many connections in Japanese society and the American authorities in Japan in the early 1960's.

I will continue to try to identify Richard Okamoto, to see what connections there are. (Agenda Item 1)

| ' JAPAN'S RECORD-BREAKING economic growth
| since World War II has brought prosperity to its
| millions of white-collared "salary men,"
| businessmen and enterprising younger people. For
| the first time in their lives, factory workers,
| housewives and housemaids alike are investing
| monthly in mutual funds that yield enviable
| returns. '
|.
| ' Tokyo, with the largest mass of urban
| population in the world, is a sprawling, hideous
| metropolis whose ugliness is aggravated by its
| seeming lack of any city planning. The
| unsightliness, which has been described recently
| by a world traveler as the "most incredible pile
| of junk I have ever seen anywhere." is further
| intensified by the Government's all-out
| preparations for the Olympic Games, to be held in
| Tokyo in October. 1964. The 24-hour, seven-days-a-
| week demolition of condemned buildings, streets
| and parks, and the construction of new buildings,
| hotels and superhighways clog the already heavy
| atmosphere with smoke, oppressive stench, soot
| and ear-shattering din, and the sidewalkless
| streets and alleys with mountains of dirt and
| filth. Like many other principal cities throughout
| the old world, Tokyo is losing its national
| character and changing its facade into an
| unidentifiable international one. '
|.
| ' The Westernization of Tokyo's 10 million
| citizens, which has aspects both good and bad. is
| near completion, albeit without total
| understanding. The graceful kimonos of tradition
| are gradually being displaced by copies of Dior or
| Cardin and Simplicity-patterned dresses. Status
| demands that company presidents ride to and from
| their ferroconcrete or glass-and-steel office
| buildings in chauffeur-driven Mercedes-Benzes or
| Chrysler Imperials. The ancient Japanese theater
| (Kabuki) and modern Japanese films are both being
| bypassed in favor of Westerns from America,
| nouvelle vague films from Europe. Television, now
| entering one third of all Japanese homes, is heavy
| with commercials for Japanese wines, Japanese
| "scotch" whisky, Toyopet and Prince automobiles
| and "Mama Macaroni." '
|.
| ' Coffee mills, jazz bars and soda fountains
| are the clubhouses and rendezvous of the teeming
| young, while the green tea and Japanese sweets of
| the old folks lie untouched and deserted in the
| comparatively few remaining teahouses of Tokyo's
| five entertainment and amusement areas. Neon
| signs, blazing in nerve-wracking discordance, are
| invariably anglicized, generally meaningless and
| probably not understood. English phrases, some
| German (arbeito for albeit, part- time work or
| sideline) and French (odoburu for hors d'oeuvre)
| leap out in many Japanese- language conversations.'
|.
| ' To the visitor, the whole or any part of the
| new Japan is either entertaining or disappointing.
| To those millions of the modern Japanese
| generation who can suddenly afford to become
| identified with it, it is all-consuming. '

So far, this a typical LOOK Magazine introduction to the country and the scene: setting the scene for the article. Abruptly, this travelogue transforms into the attack piece ...

| ' Yet the remarkable recovery and
| transformation of this vital industrial nation
| after the near devastation of World War II have
| not been felt personally, or seen (except as
| window-shoppers see them), by untold other
| millions of Japan's 96,000,000. Their eyes look
| elsewhere. For these millions, a gripping
| religious-political- sociological-psychological
| movement has abruptly emerged from behind the
| postwar face of modern Japan. Ingenious and
| insidious, this movement is proving overwhelmingly
| and alarmingly appealing to those who still seek
| identity: the frustrated, the depressed and
| oppressed, the rootless, the sick, the poor. '

"Ingenius and insidious, ..." Yes, giving people hope and helping them to lead victorious and happy lives: this is insidious, and ingenious ... and revolutionary, as well.

Any movement that would seek to help those on the lower rungs of society must be suppressed by traditional Japanese society. Why? Because those who are lower in status bring comfort to those who are just above them on the ladder. This is pure animality at its most ugly.

| ' Soka Gakkai (Value Creating Society), or
| "True Buddhism," as it is called, today ranks next
| to the "in" Liberal-Democratic party and the
| opposition Socialist party. It has become the
| Third Voice of Japan. Its personable 35-year-old
| leader, who claims a following of 10,000,000
| (including Americans, Europeans and Southeast
| Asians), has proclaimed that "Soka Gakkai's
| ultimate goals are happiness for the Japanese
| people and world peace." By respected detractors,
| the new faith is variously labeled as
| "militaristic," "fascistic,"
| "ultranationalistic" and "dangerous,"
| "sacrilegious," "deceptive" and "fanatic." There
| is no question that Soka Gakkai's significance
| within Japan is of the first magnitude. '

Of the seven epithets hurled above, two are accurate. The Soka Gakkai is "dangerous" to the established order in Japan, which in 1963 was not very different from that which took them to war against the Allied Forces. Those guilty voices speak very loudly in this article.

The second accurate epithet is "sacrilegious", which from the perspective of the distortions of the Buddha's teachings promulgated by most Buddhist Temples and Priests in Japan, is also correct. For these Priests, who have become fat over the centuries by dreadful parasitism over their subjugated parishioners, anything threatening their continued control over, and draining the lifeblood of their private herds of believers, would be viewed as "sacrilegious".

The other epithets are demonstrably misdirected, and are instead far more appropriate to the enemies and the sharpest critics of the Soka Gakkai.

The first three: "militaristic," "fascistic," and "ultranationalistic" are much more correct when pointed at Imperial Way Buddhists and Imperial State Zen adherents like D.T. Suzuki, the Rev. Kubota and others who propelled Japan into a half century of preparation for war and the war of Asian conquest itself. Was not militarism, fascism and ultranationalism espoused by these, and the other elements who behind the scenes supported the cronyism of the LDP in the Diet, and mercilessly attacked the Soka Gakkai for 50 years? Unquestionably. These were the forces that resisted the efforts of Soka Gakkai President Daisaku Ikeda to make contacts with China (Foreign Minister Chou En-lai) before Kissinger did, and make a deep friendship with Gorbachev at the beginning of his time in power.

The Soka Gakkai (SGI) has demonstrated time and again that it is an organization for peace, in support of the United Nations peaceful efforts around the world. Furthermore, members of the Soka Gakkai are good citizens in their communities, wherever they dwell.

The final two epithets are: "deceptive" and "fanatic." Let's address those directly.

Most of the condemnation of the Soka Gakkai is directed against their strong faith in the Lotus Sutra. And the admonition of the Buddha to "honestly discard provisional teachings".

Documentary Validity
--------------------

The 28-chapter Lotus Sutra, is described by the Buddha himself in his final teaching: the Nirvana Sutra, as the highest teaching of the Buddha (himself), in the past, present and future. Those are his golden words, and must be heeded regarding his teachings, foremost over ANY other's words regarding his teachings.

With little meaningful argument to the contrary, those who question the validity of the Nirvana Sutra and the Lotus Sutra must of necessity question ALL of sutras of the Buddha, since they all arrive through the prodigious and precise memory of Ananda at the First Council 30 years after the death of the Buddha, which was presided over by Mahakashyapa.

After that historic gathering collected and organized the sutras, they were memorized and recited by the followers of the Buddha for centuries before being written down (in Sanskrit/Brahmi, see note) and then translated by Tripitaka Master Kumarajiva into classical Chinese, which is the most superior translation of the Buddha's intent, according to all of the greatest Buddhist scholars in history: T'ien-T'ai, Chang-an, Miao-lo, Dengyo and finally, Nichiren Daishonin.

NOTE:

. Brahmi is syllabary, a kind of phonetic and
. written language. Languages which used Brahmi as
. their script: Indo-Aryan (Vedic, Sanskrit,
. Prakrits, Pali), Iranian (Sacian), and Tocharic.
. http://www.pratyeka.org/buddhist-history/
.
. The oldest Buddhist manuscripts are found in
. the Dunhuang (Dunjuang) Caves in China, along the
. Silk Road. The International Dunhuang project has
. identified 12,252 Buddhist manuscripts found along
. the vast network of caves in many countries (as of
. October, 2003) ...
.
. International Dunhuang (Dunjuang) Project
. _________________________________________
.
. Dunhuang cave manuscripts:
. http://idp.bl.uk/
.
. There are 12,252 Buddhist manuscripts, of
. which 810 are digitized, and the breakdown of
. these manuscripts is as follows:
.
. 12,202 Chinese, some mixed - 400-1000CE
. 12 Brahmi, Khotanese - 600-799CE
. 4 Khotanese, Chinese - 600-799CE
. 1 Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan - 800-900CE:
. this is a mediocre text with some charms,
. also a simple translation chart.
. 14 Sogdian (some also Chinese) - 400-1000CE
. 43 Tibetan, Chinese - 400-1000CE
. 2 Uighur, Chinese - 1200-1399CE
.
. The reason so little of the Buddhist canon has
. survived in written Indian languages is that (1)
. translation to Chinese was the strong wish of the
. Chinese rulers at the time and (2) the Indian
. manuscripts that existed at the time were located
. in India, or did not survive the years since
. translation.
.
. As Buddhism died out on the Indian
. subcontinent, they were all destroyed. The
. culminating act of Islamic aggression was the
. sacking of the Buddhist University at Nalanda in
. North India in 1197 CE, which resulted in the
. complete elimination of Buddhism in any form, from
. the Indian subcontinent. (This is not to be held
. against Moslems in any way, since it was predicted
. by the Buddha himself, and they merely bore out
. his prediction.)
.
. The only surviving Buddhist texts from the
. Indian tradition are in Pali, and are Southern
. Buddhist, or Theravada manuscripts from the island
. kingdom of Sri Lanka. Some have deduced
. incorrectly from this that the sutras were
. originally written in Pali instead of
. Brahmi/Sanskrit syllabary writings.
.
. That incorrect assumption is not supported by
. the earlier Chinese texts which contain the entire
. Northern Buddhist or Mahayana canon and which are
. found in conjunction with Brahmi, Sanskrit and
. many other languages, but NOT Pali Buddhist texts,
. in the Dunhuang Cave collection.

END NOTE.

ALL of the Northern Buddhist or Mahayana sutras, the teachings of the Buddha which collectively constitute the Buddhist Canon (Tripitaka), arrive to us through this one route, and by no other route. It is literally all or none, as far as documentary validity is concerned. All of it traces back to the memory of Ananda.

Translation Validity
--------------------

Then there is the question of which translation into Chinese should be considered the highest translation of the Sutras.

401-411 CE: Tripitaka Master Kumarajiva, who was taken prisoner by General Lu Kuang and his army at the behest of Fu Chien, ruler of the Ch'in Dynasty, translated the Sutras, and especially the 28 Chapter Lotus Sutra, the Buddha's highest teaching of his last 8 years, from Sanskrit into classical Chinese at Ch'ang-an. In all he translated 35 works in 294 volumes, in a mere ten years. He stated that if his tongue burned when he was cremated, that all of his translations should be discarded. It didn't and they weren't. His translation of the Lotus Sutra, is now translated into English by Burton Watson. The full 28 Chapters of the Lotus Sutra (and many other wonderful things) are online at the SGI website:

. http://www.sgi-usa.org/buddhism/library/Buddhism/LotusSutra/index.html

From "The Selection of the Time - Nichiren, disciple of Shakyamuni Buddha", the Writings of Nichiren Daishonin pp. 554-555:

. 'When both old and new translations (80) are
. taken into consideration, we find that there are
. 186 persons who have brought sutras and treatises
. from India and introduced them to China in
. translation. With the exception of one man, the
. Tripitaka Master Kumarajiva, all of these
. translators have made errors of some kind. But
. among them, Pu-k'ung is remarkable for the large
. number of his errors. It is clear that he
. deliberately set out to confuse and mislead
. others.'
.
. 'Question: How do you know that the
. translators other than Kumarajiva made errors? Do
. you mean not only to destroy the Zen, Nembutsu,
. True Word, and the others of the seven major
. schools, but to discredit all the works of the
. translators that have been introduced to China
. and Japan?'
.
. 'Answer: This is a highly confidential matter,
. and I should discuss it in detail only when I am
. face to face with the inquirer. However, I will
. make a few comments here. Kumarajiva himself
. said: "When I examine the various sutras in use
. in China, I find that all of them differ from the
. Sanskrit originals. How can I make people
. understand this? I have only one great wish. My
. body is unclean, for I have taken a wife. But my
. tongue alone is pure and could never speak false
. words concerning the teachings of Buddhism. After
. I die, make certain that I am cremated. If at
. that time my tongue is consumed by the flames,
. then you may discard all the sutras that I have
. translated." Such were the words that he spoke
. again and again from his lecture platform. As a
. result, everyone from the ruler on down to the
. common people hoped they would not die before
. Kumarajiva [so that they might see what
. happened].'
.
. 'Eventually Kumarajiva died and was cremated,
. and his impure body was completely reduced to
. ashes. Only his tongue remained, resting atop a
. blue lotus that had sprung up in the midst of the
. flames. It sent out shining rays of five-colored
. light that made the night as bright as day and in
. the daytime outshone the rays of the sun. This,
. then, is why the sutras translated by all the
. other scholars came to be held in little esteem,
. while those translated by Kumarajiva,
. particularly his translation of the Lotus Sutra,
. spread rapidly throughout China.(81)'
.
. 'Question: That tells us about the translators
. who lived at the time of Kumarajiva or before.
. But what about later translators such as Shan-wu-
. wei or Pu-k'ung?'
.
. 'Answer: Even in the case of translators who
. lived after Kumarajiva, if their tongues burned
. up when they were cremated, it means that there
. are errors in their work. The Dharma
. Characteristics school in earlier times enjoyed a
. great popularity in Japan. But the Great Teacher
. Dengyo attacked it, pointing out that, though the
. tongue of Kumarajiva was not consumed by the
. flames, those of Hsüan-tsang and Tz'u-en burned
. along with their bodies. Emperor Kammu, impressed
. by his argument, transferred his allegiance to
. the Tendai Lotus school.'
.
. 'In the third and ninth volumes of the Nirvana
. Sutra, we find the Buddha predicting that when
. his teachings are transmitted from India to other
. countries many errors will be introduced into
. them, and the chances for people to gain
. enlightenment through them will be reduced.
. Therefore, the Great Teacher Miao-lo remarks:
. "Whether or not the teachings are grasped
. correctly depends upon the persons who transmit
. them. It is not determined by the sage's original
. pronouncements."(82)'
.
. 'He is saying that no matter how the people of
. today may follow the teachings of the sutras in
. hopes of a better life in the hereafter, if the
. sutras they follow are in error, then they can
. never attain enlightenment. But that is not to be
. attributed to any fault of the Buddha.'
.
. 'In studying the teachings of Buddhism, apart
. from the distinctions between Hinayana and
. Mahayana, provisional and true, and exoteric and
. esoteric teachings, this question of the
. reliability of the sutra translation is the most
. important of all.'

Footnotes:

80. The translations made before Hsüantsang (602--664) are called "old translations." His and subsequent translations are known as "new translations."

81. The Liang Dynasty Biographies of Eminent Priests.

82. On "The Words and Phrases." "The sage" referred to here is Vasubandhu. Miaolo attributed an error in Vasubandhu's commentary on the Lotus Sutra, The Treatise on the Lotus Sutra, to the translator. In this context, the Daishonin employs Miao-lo's statement to indicate the Buddha. Thus, he says in the following paragraph, "that is not to be attributed to any fault of the Buddha."

Thusly, documentary validity is either ALL or NOTHING.

Pursuant to the Admonitions of the Author
-----------------------------------------

If one accepts the documentary validity of the Buddhist sutras AT ALL, then one must accept the critical and final admonition of Shakyamuni Buddha in the Nirvana Sutra: that (1) the Lotus Sutra is the highest teaching of the Buddha in the past, present and future and (2) that provisional sutras which differ in the slightest way from the Lotus Sutra must be honestly discarded.

Any other view of the Lotus Sutra is not according to the Buddha, and hence, IS NOT Buddhism.

It is, instead, someone else's -ism.

This is simple and ironclad logic, and has strong implications for sects of Buddhism which do not uphold the Lotus Sutra over all other Buddhist Sutras. I will describe these implications for the major branches of Buddhism (Nembutsu, Zen, Shingon (Tantric), Ritsu (Precepts), and Hinayana (Theravada).

Nembutsu
--------

The Nembutsu (Amida, Pure Land, Jodo), according to Honen or Shan-tao casts aside the Lotus Sutra in favor of the Buddha Infinite Life Sutra, the Meditation on the Buddha of Infinite Life Sutra and the Amida Sutra.

Nembutsu believers hold that after death, if they are virtuous and devote themselves to Amida Buddha who dwells in the pure heaven in the West, that they will depart the impure world and be happy ... over there ... with someone else who will take care of them.

Hence, the Nembutsu is not Buddhism, and instead is either Honenism or Shan-taoism. Or, you could instead qualify it as Afterlife Worship or Heavenism. But don't call it Buddhism, that's identity theft, and an offense to Shakyamuni.

Furthermore, identifying living beings as lesser than, or subordinate to, the Buddha is a clear violation of the principle of Non-Duality and misses the intent of Buddhism entirely.

"Nembutsu[Jodo/Amida] leads to the hell of incessant suffering." - Nichiren Daishonin.

Zen
---

Zen (Ch'an, Dhyana), according to Bodhidharma, Huineng, Dainichi, Dogen, Ingen or Suzuki(s) casts aside the Lotus Sutra in favor of the wordless transmission from Shakyamuni Buddha to Mahakashyapa, who they identify as the First Patriarch of Zen.

Zen believers object that Buddhists who follow the sutras, or dharma, are hampering themselves with doctrinal writings and tying ourselves down with verbal explanations, and they recommend a type of religious practice that is apart from the teachings of the sutras. Nichiren Daishonin writes:

. ' ... then by what means are we to carry on the Buddha's work and make good causes in this saha world of ours? Even the followers of Zen, who advocate these views, themselves make use of words when instructing others. In addition, when one is trying to convey an understanding of the Buddha way, one cannot communicate the meaning if one sets aside words and phrases. Bodhidharma came to China from the west, pointed directly to people's minds, and declared that those minds were Buddha. But this principle is enunciated in various places even in the provisional Mahayana sutras that preceded the Lotus Sutra, such as the Flower Garland, Great Collection, and Great Wisdom sutras. '

So, whether you think that you follow sutras or not, the way of Zen is truly that of the earlier and provisional sutras listed above, and therefore is only IN ADDITION to the teachings, and not really APART from them. Undeniably, those sutras which espouse the way of Zen are provisional sutras which the Buddha himself admonished most strictly, must be discarded to understand the Lotus Sutra, his highest teaching. Staying attached to provisional teachings prevents faith in the Lotus Sutra, the Buddha's stated purpose of his advent, and thusly prevents acquiring the jewel of the Buddha's wisdom. Nichiren Daishonin writes:

. 'When it comes to making use of sutras, the Zen school relies on such works as the Lankavatara Sutra, the Shuramgama Sutra, and the Diamond Wisdom Sutra. These are all provisional teachings that were preached before the Lotus Sutra, [and are] doctrines that conceal the truth.', from "Conversation between a Sage and an Unenlightened Man" - Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, pp. 117-119.

The modern Zen school also quotes the Heart Sutra, the Platform Sutra, the precepts of the Brahma Net Sutra and the Avatamsaka Sutra, and they even quote and distort the Lotus Sutra as a means to the end of propagating their Zen, instead of upholding the Lotus Sutra as the highest teaching of Shakyamuni while honestly discarding all these other provisional teachings, as was his admonition in the Nirvana Sutra.

Hence, Zen is not Buddhism, but instead is either Bodhidharmaism, Huinengism, Dainichism, Dogenism, Ingenism or Suzuki(s)-ism. Or, you could collectively call it Acausal Nothingism. But don't call it Buddhism, that's identity theft, and an offense to Shakyamuni.

And don't identify as "the Dharma", those distorted ideas that are apart from, or are transmissions outside of the sutras, which truly are the Dharma.

From the Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, "Conversation between a Sage and an Unenlightened Man". pp. 118-119:

. "These various sutras expound partial truths such as 'the mind itself is the Buddha, and the Buddha is none other than the mind.' The Zen followers have allowed themselves to be led astray by one or two such sentences and phrases, failing to inquire whether they represent the Mahayana or the Hinayana, the provisional teachings or the true teaching, the doctrines that reveal the truth or the doctrines that conceal it. They merely advance the principle of nonduality without understanding the principle of duality, and commit an act of great arrogance, claiming that they themselves are equal to the Buddha. They are following in the tracks of the Great Arrogant Brahman of India and imitating the old ways of the Meditation Master Sanchieh of China. But we should recall that the Great Arrogant Brahman, while still alive, fell into the hell of incessant suffering, and that San-chieh, after he died, turned into a huge snake. How frightful, how frightful indeed!"

Simply stated, Zen believers embrace Non-Duality, but forget Duality - that others are not just an extension of one's own being and must not be treated as a means to self-discovery, through, for example, ritual beheading with perfect Samurai-Bushido style.

"Zen[Ch'an/Dhyana] is the teaching of devils." - Nichiren Daishonin.

Shingon
-------

Shingon (True Word, Tantric, Tibetan, Esoteric Buddhism), according to Shan-wu-wei, I-hsing, Hui-kuo and Kobo casts aside the Lotus Sutra in favor of the Mahavairochana Sutra and the Diamond Crown Sutra.

Shingon believers hold that by seeking out the hidden teaching or technique, in the form of tantras, mudras, or the appropriate mandala, that they can attain enlightenment or at least have their desires satisfied. Different tantras, mudras and mandalas would have different effects.

Hence, Shingon (Tantric) is not Buddhism, and instead is either Shan-wu-weism, I-hsingism, Hui-kuoism or Koboism. Or, you could instead qualify it as Occultism or Worship of Influence. But don't call it Buddhism, that's identity theft, and an offense to Shakyamuni.

The hidden and evil subtext is: The Buddha's highest teaching is hidden and mystical or magical. If I can just perform the correct ritual, do things in the appropriate way, say things a certain way to influence the outcome, I can be the victor in life. I just need to hook up with that person who knows the keys to success, the person with the power, because I have no power without them. Then I, too, will be successful, because of him.

The essential thing is that the worship of influence leads to the downfall of society (lobbyists in government, for instance). In religion it leads to the power of priesthoods. It leads to the power of masters over disciples.

"Shingon[True Word/Tantric/Esoteric Buddhism] will ruin the nation." - Nichiren Daishonin. (Is not the function of Lobbyists ruination?)

Ritsu
-----

Ritsu (Precepts), according to Tao-hsuan, Chien-chen, Shunjo, Kakujo and Eizon casts aside the Lotus Sutra in favor of the vinaya text: The Fourfold Rules of Discipline.

Historically, Devadatta attempted to subvert the Buddhist Order (Sangha) and murder Shakyamuni himself, because he thought the Buddha was not adhering to Precepts. Which of course, the Buddha doesn't.

There are no set of rules which can be followed without slandering the Law? Why?

Because of the power of evil to create circumstances which will undermine those rules. In the end, having faith in the Lotus Sutra, which is known as the Strategy of the Lotus Sutra, is the only rule that cannot be undermined by evil, which along with good has the Law as its source.

Hence, Ritsu (Precepts) is not Buddhism, and instead is either Tao-hsuanism, Chien-chenism, Shunjoism, Kakujoism or Eizonism. Or, you could instead qualify it as Spartanism, Worship of Discipline, Asceticism, or just plain Treason. But don't call it Buddhism, that's identity theft, and an offense to Shakyamuni.

"Ritsu[Precepts] is traitorous." - Nichiren Daishonin.

Hinayana
--------

Hinayana (Theravada, or Southern Buddhism) originated after the time of King Ashoka, and mostly follows the Pali canon. Ashoka, who was a follower of the Lotus Sutra two centuries after the Buddha's death, created many stupas, which were monuments to the great life condition of the Buddha.

The greatest of these was at Amaravati, in Southern India. It was a large domed structure (49.30 meters in diameter), surrounded by a railing with carvings and statues depicting the Buddha's life and enlightenment.

Unfortunately, over time, people began to worship the statues and forget the teachings, as Shakyamuni was deified. Deification meant that the great life condition of Shakyamuni was unattainable by ordinary mortals. Since the attainment of the Buddha's life condition was the intent of the Buddha's advent and the core of his highest teaching of the Lotus Sutra, this became the source of a great distortion of the Buddha's teachings, instead of an example of how to live.

(In the Latter Day of the Law, stupas have become places of great evil, because of the distortion of the Buddha's teachings and intent that they represent. Of these, the Amaravati stupa with its carvings is the most evil. These reside at the British Museum.)

(These places of profound evil are to be avoided like the plague that they represent.)

Following the Pali Canon leads, inevitably, to worshipping statues.

The Southern Buddhist tradition includes the worship of statues of the Shakyamuni-deity, and following Precepts which are attributed to the Buddha, but not allowing that his deified enlightenment can be attained by mere mortals, in their one lifetime. That requires many lifetimes, and constitutes a retreat back to simplistic Hinduism, with enlightenment deferred to another avatar.

Hence, Southern Buddhism is not Buddhism, but is instead either Mahendraism, Buddhaghosaism (5th century CE), Anawrathaism, or you could instead qualify it as Shakyamuni Worship, or as Islam characterizes it correctly: Idolatry. But don't call it Buddhism, that's identity theft, and an offense to Shakyamuni.

The Pali Canon spread to Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and the Philippines, where Islam is engaged in removing it. It also spread to Cambodia, Laos, Thailand and Myanmar, contributing much to the misery of those countries.

So, to repeat ... the final two epithets are: "deceptive" and "fanatic." Let's address those directly.

Most of the condemnation of the Soka Gakkai is directed against their strong faith in the Lotus Sutra. And the admonition of the Buddha to "honestly discard provisional teachings".

As I have shown, the Soka Gakkai are only following what the Buddha taught, as opposed to making their own new form of Buddhism (as in Nembutsu, Jodo, Amida, Zen, Shingon, Tantric, Ritsu, Precepts and Theravada or Hinayana Buddhists who ignore the Buddha's final admonition of his life).

Getting back to the LOOK Magazine article:

| ' Soka Gakkai regards itself as not only the
| one true Buddhist religion, but the one true
| religion on earth. '

Now ... think about this.

Is there a religion in the world, that believes that another and different religion is true, and that it is, itself, false?

Every religious tradition believes that it has the correct view on life, otherwise it would hold different views. Any religion that believes that it is incorrect, is going to have some serious difficulty in attracting and holding believers.

Similarly, religions which allow for multiple and co-existing Heavens and God, have a serious problem as well. What does Jehovah, Yahweh, or Elohim say when he/she encounters Allah? Do they argue about theology or heavenly border disputes?

Clearly, every religion that has a firmly held view of the ultimate has an ultimate co-existence problem with other religions which hold a firm view of the ultimate, that differs in any substantial way.

There are religious traditions that embrace and enfold other traditions, like Hinduism and Bahai. They have a tendency to lose the essence of what they stand for, and become a murkier picture of what the ultimate is, as time passes.

So, I think that rationally speaking, every religious view holds itself as distinct and correct. And that has obvious impacts on the correctness of differing views. This is just being honest, yes?

| ' ... Its principal aims are the propagation
| of its gospel throughout the world, by forced
| conversion if necessary, and the denunciation and
| destruction of all other faiths as "false"
| religions.'

Forceful propagation, is akin to the forcing of Imperial Way Buddhist militarism upon all sects of Japanese Buddhism during the Pacific War, and the forcing of worship of the Emperor as a God (enforced by statute, by the authorities), and finally requiring that all places of worship prominently display the Shinto Talisman.

That is force, and was supported by both D.T. Suzuki and Shobun Kubota of Rissho University, critics of the Soka Gakkai in this article.

Although propagation has been, and continues to be, a focus of any religion that is growing, like the Soka Gakkai (SGI) is ... no one that I have ever met has been able to describe what is meant by forced propagation in this article, and the Soka Gakkai clearly does not practice this.

And how, exactly, would you force people to practice what is clearly a difficult practice (an assiduous practice) to uphold? In a post-war society?

And how would you keep that going?

What a truly strange and threatening notion that would be. Even in the most oppressive Islamic Theocracy, you don't see people forced to practice, even though you may see other practices made publicly illegal. But you don't see much forced conversion, at least in the last two centuries on planet Earth.

I just can't see this: Buddhists with guns, forcing people to chant, or die. No. Not possible.

The SGI practice is simply to much assiduous effort over time. This is nonsense, on its face, even ignoring the lack of evidence.

At it's worst, the Tokugawa regime didn't force people to pray, only to sign up with a parish Buddhist priest, to prove they were not Christians, and worthy of beheading by the Shogun.

You literally CANNOT force people to pray.

And of course, the SGI has never committed anything remotely like this insane charge.

| ' .... Flushed with success at home, over and
| beyond the movement's own confident expectations,
| and armed with a. powerful organization envied by
| other religious and political interests, Soka
| Gakkai is unmistakably a church militant in Japan
| geared for a determined march abroad. Its
| significance to America and all nations cannot be
| ignored. Its target is world domination. '

Now, it would seem to me that any movement bearing any resemblance to those charges, would in the time since they were made in September 1963, have become known for that intent. Certainly, industrial Japan took a swing at world domination in the middle 1980's. Remember Japan-bashing aimed at preventing Japanese companies from taking over the world? That didn't pan out, but at least they made what might have been called a credible attempt at becoming number one. Then came the long recession of the nineties and China.

But, world domination through the SGI? Give us a break.

Like I said, every movement, religious and otherwise, has great hopes of success.

And every movement that experiences explosive growth looks like a threat, until it reaches that level of growth where the internal limitations of the organization slow it down, until it solves those issues of scalability and growth, one by one, and continues to grow again to reach the next limiting factor.

| ' The Japanese have been generally an
| irreligious but tolerant people who have made
| their country a fertile if frustrating field for
| all religions. Indeed, Japan has been called a
| "museum of religions." Today, a merger of religion
| and politics seems ready to transform that
| complacent museum into an exploding arsenal. '

Uh ... I think the writers here missed the previous century of history, when the museum became an exploding arsenal of Shinto, Imperial Way Buddhism and especially, Imperial State Zen-Bushido culture in the military. Remember Tojo and Nanking?

| ' [Caption in Large Type to B/W picture of
| believers chanting] Young Soka Gakkai members
| blindly obey their leader. '

Young people who chant in earnest unison in a crowd, can have the appearance (to the suspicious) of being blindly obedient clones ... until they stop chanting. Then you realize one is a computer geek, one is a budding musician in an orchestra, one likes to party hearty in raves, one is a rapper-poet, etc. ...

People who look the same, when they are doing the same thing, are actually still individuals. And the SGI is not filled with blindly obedient followers of anyone.

When President Ikeda stepped down at the behest of the Nichiren Shoshu Priesthood in 1979, they did not all, just up and quit, and although some did, the organization went on.

After President Ikeda came back, and when the Nichiren Shoshu High Priest Nikken demanded absolute obedience to extort vast sums, first Daisaku Ikeda was excommunicated, and then the other 10 million members of the SGI were excommunicated by the Nichiren Shoshu Priesthood.

That is NOT blind obedience.

SGI members follow the founders of the religion, by "making the Gosho your [their] mentor." - Nikko Shonin, the founder of the Fuji School at Taisekiji, Fujinomiya near Mount Fuji.

The Gosho is the writings of Nichiren Daishonin, who founded the practice of chanting Nam Myoho Renge Kyo to the Gohonzon, a mandala enscribed with the enlightened life condition of the Buddha.

The Gosho describes the highest practice of Buddhism that accords with the 28 chapter Lotus Sutra, the highest teachings of Shakyamuni. It is sutras and writings themselves that members of the SGI uphold, and without deifying people, who are not perfect. "Rely upon the Law, and not upon persons." - Nirvana Sutra.

| ' "The Japanese people either want to be
| leaders or want to be led," says an international
| business executive and learned Japanophile. "Soka
| Gakkai guarantees fulfillment for both the
| shepherd and the sheep . . . or for a Hitler and
| the hordes." '

This comment is by someone who says they like the Japanese, but who appears to simultaneously despise the Japanese people. You can't have it both ways. Japanese people, like all people, want to lead sometimes, and be led sometimes. Stating more than that is the "sweeping generalization" logical fallacy, known as Dicto Simpliciter in Latin.

Using that fallacy as a means to label the SGI and Daisaku Ikeda as "Hitler and the hordes", is frankly, the most outrageous charge I've ever heard dispensed.

And since this charge comes from a "Japanophile" in the middle of an attack launched partly by Zen believers (Suzuki et al), ...

... and also since Hitler's principle mentor during the writing of Mein Kampf in prison was none other than Professor Karl Haushofer of Munich University, who practiced Green Dragon Soto Zen most of his adult life, and who escaped prosecution at Nuremberg by beheading first his wife and then committing seppuku in ritual style ...

... and also since the movement for Hitler's allies, the Japanese-style Fascism under the Emperor and Shinto was led and followed by EVERY OTHER Buddhist organization in Japan EXCEPT the Soka Gakkai (SGI), this makes this slander an injustice at the highest level: the most evil perpetrators labeling the most innocent victims with their very own militancy and furthermore, guilt in war crimes.

But that is Zen, in a nutshell: lies piled upon distortions, over and over to make a prodigious mountain of slander. And after the evil is done, walk away nonchalantly, heaping dishonor on the innocent to cover your retreat.

I'd say, in the light of subsequent history, that anyone would admit that this is misdirection or projection of their own faults, in the very least.

| ' [Title in Large Type] A New Face Called Soka
| Gakkai Raises Old Problems In Modern Japan '
|.
| ' AT A REHEARSAL for the Japanese adaptation
| of Bertolt Brecht's The Threepenny Opera, in
| Tokyo's dimly lit Haiyuza Theater, actress Tetsuko
| Kobayashi said, "Yes, Christianity is dominant in
| the world today, and there will be
| 'discrimination' and 'cold war' as long as people
| believe in this false religion. In order to gain
| world peace, people everywhere must be taught to
| believe in Soka Gakkai." '
|.
| ' Tetsuko-san's voice was gentle; her vision
| of peace was unmistakably militant. The bright,
| comely 25-year-old television and stage actress
| continued: "The most important mission of Soka
| Gakkai is to show others that their religion,
| whatever it is, cannot be true religion and
| therefore cannot bring them true happiness. They
| must, sooner or later, join the only true faith,
| Soka Gakkai. It is our one purpose in life to make
| them join us and realize true happiness and the
| real values of life, now and in the life to come."
| Convinced that her artistic career would have
| ended long ago except for her strict adherence to
| Soka Gakkai, she said, "I never forget to
| worship, just as I never forget to breathe." '
|.
| ' Of the 30 "new" religions now established in
| Japan, Soka Gakkai (pronounced So- ka Gok-ki- ee)
| is the one movement that has startled, shaken,
| awakened and alarmed this once- again vigorous
| nation. Tetsuko Kobayashi is typical of 10 million
| who have rejected other beliefs to embrace "True
| Buddhism," and make it, within ten years, the
| Third Voice of Japan. '
|.
| ' By the elections of 1962, Soka Gakkai had
| installed 15 members in Japan's Upper House
| (senate) , and 99 percent of its candidates were
| shoe-ins in local and prefectural elections
| throughout the country. Leaders spoke openly of
| winning the majority of seats in both houses (a
| goal they now deny), and Japan was faced with the
| sudden intrusion of a religious movement into the
| political arena. '

As of June 2001, Komeito had 21 seats in the House of Councilors (senate) and 31 seats in the House of Representatives. They function as a reform party in a political system that is in need of much reform.

The Soka Gakkai (SGI) has clearly stated that they are not interested in forming political parties in any country other than Japan, where having a political party is the only way to avert religious oppression by those, whose voices are made clearly and ominously threatening in this very article.

>>>>>>>>>> More to come >>>>>>>>>>>

____ Epilog _______________________________________

The Buddha's highest teachings were the purpose of the Buddha's advent on this earth.

The Buddha did not appear on this earth to drain people's compassion with discussions of the emptiness and meaninglessness of life which is just a void.

The Buddha did not appear on this earth to teach people to live in such a narrow and momentary way, that there would be no context for self-examination and conscience.

The Buddha did not appear on this earth to possess people's minds with such illogic as to befuddle their ability to choose correctly between what is good and what is evil.

The Buddha did not appear on this earth to teach people how to commit atrocities and genocide, in the exploration of their "infinite possibilities", or "new states of being".

The Buddha did not appear on this earth to teach people how to maim and kill with their hands efficiently, quietly, loudly, with increased terror inflicted, or to maximize their subjugation to control the public sentiments for political ends.

These are all profoundly evil distortions of the Buddha's true teachings, which introduce infinities in the variables holding good and evil, removing all shades of gray in the propositional calculus of value.

Simply stated, the Buddha made his advent on this earth with the purpose of teaching the compassionate way of the bodhisattva, which is at the heart of the true entity of all phenomena, which is the eternal Buddha at one with the eternal Law. Which is how to navigate the sea of sufferings of birth, aging, sickness and death. He originally set out on his path, because of his observation of the sufferings of common people and wanting to understand the source of those sufferings (enlightened wisdom) and how to transform those sufferings into unshakable happiness (enlightened action).

When you embrace the void and acausality, your initial intention to experiment with and learn about Eastern philosophy doesn't matter ... the result is always the same: chaos and misery, and utter ruination and emptiness to you, your family, and your country.

But things don't have to be that way ...
___________________________________________________

Nichiren Daishonin writes (Encouragement to a Sick Person, WND p. 78):

. "During the Former and Middle Days of the Law, the
. five impurities began to appear, and in the Latter
. Day, they are rampant. They give rise to the great
. waves of a gale, which not only beat against the
. shore, but strike each other. The impurity of
. thought has been such that, as the Former and
. Middle Days of the Law gradually passed, people
. transmitted insignificant erroneous teachings
. while destroying the unfathomable correct
. teaching. It therefore appears that more people
. have fallen into the evil paths because of errors
. with respect to Buddhism than because of secular
. misdeeds."

Because Bodhidharma discarded the Buddha's highest teaching (the Lotus Sutra), and due to his lazy nature turned to shortcuts to enlightenment, he came to the distorted view that life is acausal and empty, that the true entity is the void.

This erroneous view really comes from a misunderstanding of the Sutra of Immeasurable Meanings, where the True Entity is described by negation (the only way it can be): "... neither square, nor round, neither short, nor long, ..."

The description of the True Entity is logically voidal, but the True Entity itself is not. Bodhidharma was simply confused, due to the slander of negligence (laziness), and false confidence. The truth of life is that at the heart of the True Entity is the compassion of a bodhisattva for others.

Non-substantiality does not mean empty. Life has value. Humans are respectworthy. There is a purpose to everything. And every cause has an effect, so we are responsible for our thoughts, words and deeds. Zen is acausal. Zen is the greatest poison, which compares to the even greater medicine of the Lotus Sutra.

Suffice it to say: the purpose of Zen in the world is to corrupt and undermine everything that is not based upon the truth and the true teaching. All religions, disciplines, institutions and organizations which are undermined by Zen will eventually fall after glaring revelation of their worst defects, sooner rather than later.

If there is some good in your family, locality, society and culture, or country that you would like to retain, then cease the Zen, and begin to apply the medicine of the Lotus Sutra to heal the Zen wound in your life.

"Zen is the work of devilish minds." - Nichiren

-Chas.

. a prescription for the poisoned ones:
.
. The only antidote for the toxic effects of Zen in your life ...
.
. be that from Zen meditation, or the variant forms: physical
. Zen in the martial arts, Qigong, Acupuncture, Falun Gong,
. Copenhagen Convention of Quantum Mechanics, EST,
. Landmark Education, Nazism, Bushido, the Jesuits,
. Al Qaeda, or merely from having the distorted view that life
. is acausal, and that the true entity of all phenomena
. is the void ...
.
. with the effects of the loss of loved ones, detachment,
. isolation or various forms of emptiness in your life ...
.
. is the Lotus Sutra: chant Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo
. at least 3 times, twice a day, for the rest of your life,
. in at least a whisper ...
.
. and if you can, chant abundantly in a resonant voice !!!
.
. The full 28 Chapters of the Lotus Sutra,
. Nichiren Daishonin's Gosho volumes I and II,
. the Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings
. (Gosho Zenshu, including the Ongi Kuden) and the
. SGI Dictionary of Buddhism are located at:
.
http://www.nichirenlibrary.org/en/
.
. To find an SGI Community Center:
.
http://www.sgi-usa.org/sgilocations/
__________________________________

LS Chap. 16 .....

All harbor thoughts of yearning
and in their minds thirst to gaze at me.
When living beings have become truly faithful,
honest and upright, gentle in intent,
single-mindedly desiring to see the Buddha
not hesitating even if it costs them their lives,
then I and the assembly of monks
appear together on Holy Eagle Peak.
At that time I tell the living beings
that I am always here, never entering extinction,
but that because of the power of an expedient means
at times I appear to be extinct, at other times not,
and that if there are living beings in other lands
who are reverent and sincere in their wish to believe,
then among them too
I will preach the unsurpassed Law.