That's right, the blogs are flying fast and furious....
Rev. Greg:
Interesting stuff. What is your opinion on ordination and Nichiren Shoshu? When I first joined, I asked if I could become a priest and was told that I couldn't because I wasn't chaste - how right they were about that! Over time I noticed that there were no non-Japanese priests. Oridnation of other races is common in other forms of Buddhism. Please tell me your opinion on this subject.
Charles
Ordination equals permission. "If you have to ask permission, the answer is no".
The real question is "what does Rev. Greg think of Nichiren Shoshu?". Nichiren Shoshu has committed the gravest sin imaginable, in my book - The sin of standing in the way of the workings of man and his God just as the Catholic Church has created the greatest evil by claiming that only through their church and their high priest (the Pope) can one reach God. This thinking has ravaged the non-industrial world and hundreds of original human cultures have fallen before the spread of the virus that is catholicism (and other denominations of Christianity). This evil can only be compared to passive-aggressive genocide on a world-wide scale.
How dare a Buddhist priesthood duplicate this kind of evil deception. How dare Nikken claim that he is the embodiment of the true Buddha. It is so ironic that some time ago it was Nikken himself who composed a memo disputing the validity of the Daigohonzon as having been directly enscribed by Nichiren.
But hey, that's life in the big city, eh????
As far as being ordained. Ordination is permission, nothing more, nothing less. If one truly believes that they wish to perform the function of the clergy, in whatever context or religion, then one should seek out ordination both to nurture trust and confidence in ones congregation, and in themselves.
If what you were looking for when you sought to train as a Nichiren Shoshu priest was a deeper faith and understanding of Nichiren's Buddhism, then you my friend were truly protected at that time.
Don't ever forget that Nichiren Shoshu, and any other modern religious body is still, in the end, a corporate entity. And we shouldn't expect any more, or any less from them as such.
If you were looking for me to say that Nichiren Shoshu is ethnocentric, hell yes! Every corporation has the right to protect their own interests. You need to know Charles that Japan does not enjoy the protection of the likes of our Constitution and Bill of Rights. The Japanese are highly discriminatory, against themselves! It's not at all contrary to the values of the Japanese culture to protect themselves from Gaijin like you! Wake up and smell the sushi dude!
And while you're at it, think dammitt!!!
Thanks for your comments! Keep up your own good work!
Rev. Greg, Shidoshi
Comments
"...that Japan does not enjoy the protection of the likes of our Constitution..."
I am not sure about this. I always thought that the the japanese constitution was cast with the american as a "role model"?
Regards and thanks for thinking!
Johan
Hi Greg,
Now it's my turn to tell you how much I enjoy your blogs and posts. I frequently find myself laughing out loud at the way you put things.
I like the idea that ordination is "permission" but I have a slightly different spin on it. I think it is ideally the equivalent of being "entrusted" by one's Sangha - both the ministers senior to you and the lay people as a whole. Now I am going to speak just about my personal experience. Before I was ordained as novice (a long process which I documented on Ryuei.net along with other articles about the "priesthood") my sensei had me go to Japan and visit Kuonji at Mt. Minobu and other temples. He wanted me to see what Nichiren Shu was like on its home turf before I committed myself. He also wanted the people in Japan to check me out and make sure that I was sincere and had the right stuff (he didn't ever say that but it is my impression that the trip was a mutual checking out process). Anyway, when I was there Rev. Gen Oikawa, the grandson of the founder of the San Jose temple, told me this: "Don't worry about getting ordained. If you want to be a priest, then just be one. Go back to America and do whatever you can to study, practice, and teach Buddhism and help your sensei. That is being a priest. The rest is just an empty title, and that will come in time if it is what you want." In other words, don't worry about getting some credentials which may or may not mean anything (there are plenty of callous know-nothings with credentials). Rather, concentrate on doing the work that is meaningful.
Gen was right, and I did follow his advice. And eventually, my sensei did take me on as a novice. What that opened up for me was a lot of hard work - from menial labor to sitting in seiza for hours on end to learning how to chant the dharanis of the Lotus Sutra at a fast clip to taking exams on basic Buddhism and recitation of the Lotus Sutra. In the end, I was able to deepen my faith, my knowledge, my skills at chanting and conducting services, and I was entrusted to facilitate those things which a Sangha prefers to leave to "the professionals" as it were - like conducting weddings and funerals and leading services and giving Dharma talks (though the latter two are sometimes performed by lay members too).
Even then, my sensei has often reminded me that I should never think that the ministers and laypeople are anything but equal (not that I ever thought otherwise). He pointed out that many laymembers are just as knowledgeable and dedicated and faithful as any minister. So in the end, I see being a minister as not some kind of elite position but rather as the way I have chosen to volunteer for deeper training which I then can turn around and use for the service of my Sangha.
Are all ministers like this? Do I always live up to my own ideal? I would be a fool to say yes, but I have met many ministers who are like this and I do my best to share what I have taken great pains to learn. So I see a minister as someone who has not so much been given permission but as someone who has volunteered to take on some extra burdens and in return has been entrusted with a mission to put him or herself at the sevice of the Sangha.
Namu Myoho Renge Kyo,
Ryuei
Rev. Greg:
You're the most over-the-top Ninja I've ever encountered - but you get your point across as well as an Ali jab.
Your point that if you need permission the answer is "no," reminds me of the old adage of: "no one gives you power - real power, you take."
Your blog is excellent because you don't hold back for the recruits or the lifers'. Nice touch -kind of like the Buddhist equivalent to the drill ass-chomping sergeant in the movie "Full Metal Jacket" crossed with Menza anarchist who found the dharma. Keep the troops thinking - take no prisoners. Don't ask permission.
Charles