study guides
study guide for superdomain03a ["Creating reality"]
Material from: Kawada, Y. (2009). The SGI within the historical context of Buddhism and its philosophical basis. The Journal of Oriental Studies, 19, 103-123.
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1. Know whether or not both SGI organizations aim for the worldwide promotion of and place as its central focus, the principles in the Lotus Sutra, or whether it’s only one of them. Know whether or not SGI boasts over 12 million members in 192 countries and territories throughout the world. Know whether or not the Eternal Buddha is a representation of the Eternal Law which encompasses a universal value that transcends time and space. Know whether or not the third president of the Soka Gakkai, Daisaku Ikeda, by establishing the SGI, has broadened the scope of activities to a worldwide scale. Know whether or not it is true that in order to spiritually unify the nation behind the war effort, State Shinto was imposed and a majority of Buddhist sects in Japan complied with the government’s agenda.
2. Know whether or not global warming and extreme weather patterns are all manifestations of the devilish function to rob the life of all living things. Know whether or not the most fundamental principle of the Soka Gakkai’s peace movement is to challenge devilish functions. Know whether or not Shakyamuni used his inner cosmos as a starting point and delved into the self-conscious, or the other way around. Know whether or not the third president of the Soka Gakkai, Daisaku Ikeda, by establishing the SGI, has broadened the scope of activities to a worldwide scale. Know whether or not SGI carries on the Buddhist tradition started from Nagarjuna and Vasubandhu of India.
3. Know whether or not Makiguchi, as well as most of the initial membership, were political officials. Know whether or not Toda, who had a momentous religious experience while in prison, set out to rebuild the organization after his release. Know whether or not, through austere practices and deep meditation, Shakyamuni was able to discover a fundamental cosmic law, which is the basis for all life. Know whether or not Nichiren wrote a major treatise during a time when the people of Japan were suffering from extreme weather patterns, epidemics and famine.
4. Know whether or not the most fundamental principle of the Soka Gakkai’s peace movement is to challenge devilish functions. Know whether or not Shakyamuni used his inner cosmos as a starting point and delved into the self-conscious, or the other way around. Know whether or not Shakyamuni found within himself the fundamental law that lies at the base of the universe itself.
5. Know whether or not, using the Dhamma, or Dharma, Shakyamuni stayed put in a single village. Know whether or not Nichiren used the Ceremony in the Air in the Life Span of the Thus Come One Chapter of the Lotus Sutra as a motif for the object of worship. Know whether or not Nichiren created a methodology for all people to manifest their own Buddhahood by further developing the teachings of T’ien T’ai, the Lotus Sutra and Shakyamuni Buddha. Know whether or not, according to Nichiren, the true essence of the Buddha’s teaching starts well after the Emergence of the Treasure Tower Chapter. Know whether or not the realization that Toda finally came to is that the universe is life itself. Know whether or not, in the fifteenth chapter of the Lotus Sutra, there is a description of the appearance of nearly two dozen of Bodhisattvas from deep underground. Know whether or not, when illuminated by the light of Buddhism, devilish functions are the desires that appear in the world of Animality.
6. Know whether or not the “land” contained within the title of Nichiren’s treatise includes all human beings as well as all of nature’s ecosystems. Know whether or not SGI is actively involved in contributing to a wide range of global issues including those dealing with the environment. Know whether or not the Immeasurable Meanings Sutra was considered by T’ien T’ai as a followup to the Lotus Sutra. Know whether or not Toda’s awakening is described in the novel, The Human Revolution, written by Ikeda. Know whether or not nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the state of Buddhahood itself.
7. Know whether or not SGI boasts over 12 million members in 192 countries and territories throughout the world. Know whether or not the Eternal Buddha is a representation of the Eternal Law which encompasses a universal value that transcends time and space. Know whether or not the third president of the Soka Gakkai, Daisaku Ikeda, by establishing the SGI, has broadened the scope of activities to a worldwide scale. Know whether or not it is true that in order to spiritually unify the nation behind the war effort, State Shinto was imposed and a majority of Buddhist sects in Japan complied with the government’s agenda. Know whether or not Makiguchi, as well as most of the initial membership, were political officials. Know whether or not Toda, who had a momentous religious experience while in prison, set out to rebuild the organization after his release.
8. Know whether or not Shakyamuni used his inner cosmos as a starting point and delved into the self-conscious, or the other way around. Know whether or not the third president of the Soka Gakkai, Daisaku Ikeda, by establishing the SGI, has broadened the scope of activities to a worldwide scale. Know whether or not SGI carries on the Buddhist tradition started from Nagarjuna and Vasubandhu of India. Know whether or not Shakyamuni found within himself, the fundamental law that lies at the base of the universe itself.
9. Know whether or not, through austere practices and deep meditation, Shakyamuni was able to discover a fundamental cosmic law, which is the basis for all life. Know whether or not Nichiren wrote a major treatise during a time when the people of Japan were suffering from extreme weather patterns, epidemics and famine. Know whether or not global warming and extreme weather patterns are all manifestations of the devilish function to rob the life of all living things.
10. Know whether or not the Eternal Buddha is a representation of the Eternal Law which encompasses a universal value that transcends time and space. Know whether or not, using the Dhamma, or Dharma, Shakyamuni stayed put in a single village. Know whether or not Nichiren used the Ceremony in the Air in the Life Span of the Thus Come One Chapter of the Lotus Sutra as a motif for the object of worship. Know whether or not Nichiren created a methodology for all people to manifest their own Buddhahood by further developing the teachings of T’ien T’ai, the Lotus Sutra and Shakyamuni Buddha. Know whether or not, according to Nichiren, the true essence of the Buddha’s teaching starts well after the Emergence of the Treasure Tower Chapter.
11. Know whether or not, in the fifteenth chapter of the Lotus Sutra, there is a description of the appearance of nearly two dozen Bodhisattvas from deep underground. Know whether or not, when illuminated by the light of Buddhism, devilish functions are the desires that appear in the world of Animality.
12. Know whether or not the “land” contained within the title of Nichiren’s treatise includes all human beings as well as all of nature’s ecosystems. Know whether or not SGI is actively involved in contributing to a wide range of global issues including those dealing with the environment. Know whether or not the Immeasurable Meanings Sutra was considered by T’ien T’ai as a followup to the Lotus Sutra. Know whether or not Toda’s awakening is described in the novel, The Human Revolution, written by Ikeda. Know whether or not nam-myoho-renge-kyo is the state of Buddhahood itself. Know whether or not Shakyamuni surpassed the dimension of the transpersonal and entered the dimension of the individual, or the other way around.
"As Below, So Above"
