Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!cs.utexas.edu!sdd.hp.com!wuarchive!rex!uflorida!mailer.cc.fsu.edu!sun13!vsserv.scri.fsu.edu!mayne From: mayne@vsserv.scri.fsu.edu (William (Bill) Mayne) Newsgroups: soc.religion.eastern Subject: Re: Is Nicherin Shoshu Buddhism? Message-ID: <2223@sun13.scri.fsu.edu> Date: 12 Feb 91 16:50:11 GMT References: Sender: news@sun13.scri.fsu.edu Organization: SCRI, Florida State University Lines: 58 Approved: mayne@nu.cs.fsu.edu In article moskowit@paul.rutgers.edu (Len Moskowitz) writes: >I have been concerned about Keith Evans' posts describing the Nicherin >Shoshu sect. What he describes is nothing like the Buddhism with >which I'm familiar. I agree that Nicherin Shoshu is nothing like the Buddhism with which I am familiar either, which includes Zen (of several varieties), Tibetan, Theravada, and to a lesser extent several others. In spite of some big external differences and differences in emphasis all of these have a large core in common. If that core is what defines Buddhism then Nicherin Shoshu is not Buddhism. But we don't have a trademark on the name. I support free speech in this forum, and Keith Evans is as welcome as anybody to express his opinions here. Regardless of whether or not other Buddhists consider Nicherin Shoshu to be "real Buddhism (tm)" it is clearly an eastern religion and hence within the subject of soc.religion.eastern. Since I don't like to see Buddhism misrepresented and Nicherin Shoshu is so unlike main stream Buddhism I just wish he would identify his sect and supply some sources for his assertions, rather than make blanket statements as if they were Buddhist teaching. Perhaps this concern is unfounded, though. His posts are so full of statements denigrating all but a small part of the teaching attributed to the Buddha it may be obvious even to the uninformed that his statements don't reflect the views of most Buddhists. >[Quoting a Ch'an monk, Ven. Shih Shen Lung, a.k.a "That Old Frog"] > >The Nicherin Shoshu folks are Buddhists only insofar as they call >themselves Buddhists... [Explanation of Refuges as defining characteristic of Buddhists omitted.] [Referring to Sokka Geikai [sic, sp?], the political party associated with Nicherin in Japan] >... generally they are the KKK of Japan. Statements like this invite further rancorous debate which may do even more damage to the image of Buddhism than Keith Evans' posts. I am writing this post merely as a concerned individual and not as acting moderator. I have no intention of censoring or even editting the posts of anyone. I am asking my fellow Buddhists to consider refraining from attacking or debating Keith Evans, or at least using email. This is an argument we can't win except by staying above it. If Mr. Evans will kindly make clear in his posts that he is representing the views of Nicherin Shoshu we should have no problem with that. I am much less concerns with explicit attacks on main stream Buddhist teaching than with the presentation of unorthodox teaching as Buddhism (tm). If he wishes to post answers to general questions about Buddhism from the perspective of Nicherin Shoshu that is fine. We can answer the same questions directly from our own perspectives, quite possibly contradicting the Nicherin Shoshu position but without attacking it. This is how the Buddha told monks to respond to anyone who slandered the Buddha, the Dharma, or the Sangha. I don't have the actual text in front of me, but it came down to simply stating what is factual and what is not.