Practicing with SGI in 2021, how do you view the organization?

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jayislost
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Joined: Mon May 18, 2020 3:12 pm

Practicing with SGI in 2021, how do you view the organization?

Post by jayislost »

Hi everyone.

I have been practicing with SGI for around 3 years now and have long been interested in Buddhism, and wanted to hear from others who practice with/attend SGI meetings.

There are many pros to being involved in SGI for me. The biggest positive is the diverse membership and accessibility, which as a young black man allows me to practice Buddhism in a way that feels relevant to daily life for people from my community. I enjoy the community aspect, and have received helpful guidance and support from other members.

I do sometimes feel frustrated with the ways it can feel like SGI is not adapting to the times however. While I respect pres. Ikeda and his books and teachings have formed an important foundation for my practice, I feel like the lack of transparency of the organization is becoming a bit of an elephant in the room. I heard one leader encouraging us at a meeting to prepare for an important meeting coming up because she knew that Ikeda would be watching via zoom :shrug: . Many members are rehearsing to sing for sensei at larger regional meetings, while we are all aware of his absence.

While these issues bother me, I ultimately feel like the community I find and the support for my practice is something I dont know if I would be able to find in many other Buddhist groups. I have come to the point that I take what I can from meetings and tune out some of the other aspects that I don't necessarily agree with/relate to.

I wanted to hear others thoughts about how they view their practice with SGI in 2021, and how they feel about the future of SGI. As I am a member I don't mean any of this disrespectfully and just want to start a discussion! :namaste:
narhwal90
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Re: Practicing with SGI in 2021, how do you view the organization?

Post by narhwal90 »

I've been with SG since the old Nichiren Shoshu of America in the 80's, and have shared your concerns since then lol. There is a deep streak of "Ikeda-ism" that goes way back, sometimes attaining a creepy intensity. Its a double-edged sort of thing; on one hand it clearly inspires practice, on the other it sure looks like grasping to say the least. Personally I think the organization is stuck until he passes away, I don't mean that in a nasty sense but that while he's around the history and the various loyalties surrounding him won't permit deviation from the old, curated stories.

In the study pubs you may well notice how they keep rehashing the old stories from the 50's and so on.. over and over the stories of the propagation campaigns, his speeches and activities of the time. It was getting old for me in the 90's... I'm not disparaging those old stories, only suggesting that the endless repetition suggests a lack of innovation in the organization and practice. OTOH I did gongyo this morning and used the SGI app to time the daimoku- at first I thought I wouldn't be caught dead using it but it sure has turned out to be handy on a few occasions, so I am shown my attachment to old habits.

That said, one of the things about the SGI that continues to attract me is the lack of cultural baggage. I miss the old Japanese terms for lots of things related to the practice, but paring such things away does help me not gasp at the appearances. When Mr Ikeda passes away I think we will see the future of the organization start to appear. Personally, I would like to see SGI be less insular and work towards establishing more cordial relationships with the other Nichiren schools.

I stay in touch with my district, study/discussion mtgs and so on- one aspect of practice I have only recently been appreciating is the importance of staying in contact with the "sangha", however conceived. I tried practicing in isolation for a while, didn't work.. as mixed a bag as SGI often is, I've found it a much better practice than solo.

I keep thinking of how the San Francisco Zen operation has changed and evolved since Suzuki Roshi- they wouldn't be there without him, but in order to survive they have to get past him.
illarraza
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Joined: Fri Dec 09, 2011 4:30 am

Re: Practicing with SGI in 2021, how do you view the organization?

Post by illarraza »

narhwal90 wrote: Sun May 09, 2021 7:20 pm I've been with SG since the old Nichiren Shoshu of America in the 80's, and have shared your concerns since then lol. There is a deep streak of "Ikeda-ism" that goes way back, sometimes attaining a creepy intensity. Its a double-edged sort of thing; on one hand it clearly inspires practice, on the other it sure looks like grasping to say the least. Personally I think the organization is stuck until he passes away, I don't mean that in a nasty sense but that while he's around the history and the various loyalties surrounding him won't permit deviation from the old, curated stories.

In the study pubs you may well notice how they keep rehashing the old stories from the 50's and so on.. over and over the stories of the propagation campaigns, his speeches and activities of the time. It was getting old for me in the 90's... I'm not disparaging those old stories, only suggesting that the endless repetition suggests a lack of innovation in the organization and practice. OTOH I did gongyo this morning and used the SGI app to time the daimoku- at first I thought I wouldn't be caught dead using it but it sure has turned out to be handy on a few occasions, so I am shown my attachment to old habits.

That said, one of the things about the SGI that continues to attract me is the lack of cultural baggage. I miss the old Japanese terms for lots of things related to the practice, but paring such things away does help me not gasp at the appearances. When Mr Ikeda passes away I think we will see the future of the organization start to appear. Personally, I would like to see SGI be less insular and work towards establishing more cordial relationships with the other Nichiren schools.

I stay in touch with my district, study/discussion mtgs and so on- one aspect of practice I have only recently been appreciating is the importance of staying in contact with the "sangha", however conceived. I tried practicing in isolation for a while, didn't work.. as mixed a bag as SGI often is, I've found it a much better practice than solo.

I keep thinking of how the San Francisco Zen operation has changed and evolved since Suzuki Roshi- they wouldn't be there without him, but in order to survive they have to get past him.
I think you, Narwal, don't want to hear from me but I won't criticize you in the least.. These are my thoughts. The Lotus Sutra and Nichiren (who was solo for much of his practice) teach that even solo, we are surrounded by the Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, and protective functions within (and without). Chapter 15 of the Lotus Sutra delineates that even solitary Bodhisattvas who embrace the Lotus Sutra are leaders of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth. I realize that nowhere have either of you criticized solitary Bodhisattvas so I won't continue in this vein. Also, Chapter fifteen teaches that there are leaders of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth with a multitude of followers, with millions of followers, with tens of thousand of followers and with hundreds of followers, and with ten five and one follower (I paraphrase). Therefore, we can form our own group, following Nichiren's instructions, to teach the Daimoku and Lotus Sutra to the best of our ability. Still, there are four general Bodhisattvas of the Earth, priests, nuns, laymen, and laywomen. Even if we as laymen have many thousands of followers, only priests and nuns? may accept alms, according to traditional Buddhism. Just my two cents.

Mark
narhwal90
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Re: Practicing with SGI in 2021, how do you view the organization?

Post by narhwal90 »

My only concern as moderator that you conform to the terms-of-service- as I've noted any number of times.

Speaking personally, as far as I'm concerned the Lotus Sutra is upaya. I am more interested in Chapter 13 and choosing my own conduct than I am in Chapters 14 & 15. I have no opinion about other peoples' choice of practice, I just hope it is fulfilling for them & if not they seek methods which are.
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