I just wanted to post a somewhat more condensed description of some of my SGI experiences, and I hope that sharing some of my long history with the SGI will help to explain my interest in being involved with posting as an anti-cult activist.
I was a member of the Soka Gakkai (SGI) for 31 years. I held several senior level leadership positions in the organization. When I first joined in 1972, I was on a youthful spiritual quest, endeavoring to learn more about how to become a practicing Buddhist. Being an enthusiastic and capable young man, within weeks I was appointed to a low-level leader position and began emcee-ing meetings. Within 3 months I was made a district (mid -level) leader, where I had to lead meetings despite the fact that I had yet to master the rudiments of the practice (chanted recitation of 2 chapters of the lotus sutra). Then I was "encouraged" to join both the Brass Band and Sokahon/Traffic Control Division. At six months, I was appointed as an area youth division leader. At seven months I was chosen ahead of many other members with years of seniority to attend a very, very special Tozan (pilgrimage) to the head temple in Japan. By the time I was approaching my second year in SGI, I was promoted to area brass band chief, and sokahon chief, along with being appointed as Texas Chapter Chief. Possessing a youthful American face in a Japanese organization comprised mostly of older Japanese women gave me a fast pass to the top, because highly desirable American faces were sorely needed to present a public image in this country - a more attractive and acceptable image of American leaders. Round-eyed leaders were used to distract attention from the fact that the SGI organization was, and still is, tightly run and controlled by SGI HQ leaders in Japan.
Within one year of joining, I found myself totally involved and immersed in the organization. All, and I mean ALL of my spare time and energy became focused on doing SGI daily practice along with organizational activities day and night, leaving me in a constant state of severe sleep deprivation. I became completely absorbed into the organization's goals and movements - to the point of completely subjugating myself along with my own identity to the organization. Before I knew what had happened, my life was completely shackled to my new identity as an SGI leader. More and more aspects of my life continued to fall under control of my senior leaders and their so-called "guidance". I drifted away from my old friends and my family - I felt they didn't 'get" my new "mission" in life. For almost three years, I even agreed to endure special "training" that required refraining from enjoying any sort of girlfriend or intimate relationship - a discipline not easily embraced by a young man (and former hippie) in his prime. Somehow, I even abandoned my aspirations and dreams of becoming a successful professional musician. Instead, doing SGI activities, following guidance, and pursuing higher leadership positions in the SGI hierarchy became the prime focal points of my life. Nothing else really seemed as important or exciting – I was completely hooked. Although I vehemently denied it at the time, I had become hopelessly entrapped in a religious cult – but still didn’t know it!
After three years of intensive Japanese style "leadership training", I slowly began to suspect that the organization and its leaders were using me for nefarious purposes. I began to lapse into a deep identity crisis as I struggled to understand what had happened to the person I used to be, to re-discover my own identity, and to caste off the false identity and image of the picture-perfect leader that I had been molded into, and subsequently held up to all the members as an example for wannabe Jr. leader ladder climbers to emulate. But eventually, I "succumbed" to having sex, and word of my dastardly deed quickly put me in a position of disfavor in the eyes of my senior leaders. I was humiliated and punished for my discrepancy, and then passed over for expected promotion. I was afraid my torture would continue on and on. Even though I had been deeply indoctrinated by the cult with horror stories of how terrible my life would become IF I dared to leave the SGI organization, I concluded that the only way to regain control and balance in my life was to make a quiet departure. I made no announcements, as I suspected and feared that my HQ leaders would come after me and not allow me to resign my org positions, but I had no idea just how hard getting away from a cult could be, nor how long it would eventually take for me to fully accomplish.
I moved 75 miles away from the city - out to the country to live with my brother and his family for a while. I thought I would be safe from the reaches of the SGI tentacles way out there in the boonies. But I was wrong. One sunny afternoon on the farm, my Sr leader drove up the long dirt driveway that lead from the paved country lane. She had scoured the countryside house by house in a dogged search to find me and browbeat me into submitting to a return back into the fold. I could hardly believe they had managed to locate me. Fear immediately took over me body, and I fled far into the woods to hide. I knew my leader's great power of persuasion, and I was afraid that engaging in a talk might lead to my surrender and submission, for I had no confidence that I would be able to resist being mind controlled and to agreeing to return once again into the clutches of the cult. I waited in the deep darkness of the woods with no food, water, or jacket to keep warm with until after well after midnight before returning to the house. But their car was still there! They had talked my brother into letting them into his house to "check and see if my Buddhist alter was okay". Then they had planted themselves in front of my gohonzon alter and had been chanting for hours upon hours while waiting for me to come back into the house. My brother was outside waiting for me. He pleaded with me, "these nutty people are driving us crazy - we can’t sleep and they don’t want to stop chanting and leave until they see you. You have to go inside and talk to them and get ‘em to leave my house so that we can get some sleep." I couldn't refuse his request - I would have to go in and let them confront me. Within less than an hour of talking (mind and arm twisting), I halfheartedly submitted and agreed to return to the cult that very night. They had me pack all my stuff up right then and put it in the car - there weren't going to allow me any chances to change my mind about going back. I was reluctantly returning against my will, and I already knew in my gut that I was making a big mistake.
A month passed by as I repeatedly questioned myself regarding my coerced decision to return. All the joy and excitement of being involved was gone, replaced by feelings of anger and resentment at having been forced into coming back to the org (cult). Once again, I was required to cut my hair short, shave, wear approved cult attire, and put on a fake smile for the sake of the newbie members (potential cult victims). I realized that I was in a serious fight for control of my life. After less than one month of being coerced into returning, once again I decided to slip away quietly into the night. Only this time, I would make sure the cult leaders couldn't find me, and mentally/emotionally beat me into consenting to returning as had happened before. I removed myself by a distance of 1,500 miles and thoroughly covered my tracks, finally ending my first phase of practice with the sgi.org. I didn't tell my family or friends where to find me, so they would be no chance to give into pressure and provide any clues of my whereabouts to the cult. SGI HQ leaders harassed my mother for weeks with phone calls, repeatedly demanding that she tell them where I was. She finally convinced them she didn't know anything and not to call back again.
After a while, I was able to return to Texas. The cult had finally given up on finding me, and had moved on to other marks. Still chanting occasionally, I enjoyed six peaceful years of solitary practice independent from the sgi cult before org contact was re-established. I had gotten married, had kids, and had resurrected, then realized my dream of being a full-time road musician. In 1981, a Japanese woman's division member accidentally discovered where I lived, and had been periodically dropping by to (home visit) knock on my door and "inquire" about me. One day, she came by and caught me in a depressed mood due to having suffered through some huge arguments with my wife. In my weakness and despair, I succumbed to her "suggestion" for me to return to SGI meetings and to start chanting again with others to help me "overcome" my problems. Out of desperation I said okay. And just like that, I was back on the road to becoming involved with the SGI cult once again, and so began my second phase of practice with the sgi.org.
But I was determined that this time around, I would remain in control and not allow the sgi.org to dominate my life as had happened before during my first stint. I decided to refuse any leadership appointments offered to me (FYI: members are never asked before being appointed and are unlikely to refuse a chance at having a position due to the cult placing such high value and celebrity status upon its leaders.) SO, I created the concept of a "position-less leader". I endeavored to practice within the org without desire for position or control, and to lead others by example and gentle encouragement alone, instead of accepting the usual "celebrity" leadership dynamic that allowed the highest leaders to stay in complete control of the lower leaders, and consequently control the membership as well. By the way, here’s another fun fact - there are no democratically held nominations or elections of leaders within the SGI org - only higher leaders can appoint lower leaders - and they're criteria is to choose those folks for their lower leadership positions that are the easiest to manipulate by the higher echelons of the cult. I thought I could avoid conflicts with the org by simply refusing any official position and remaining a lowly and unimportant member, yet continue finding ways to help SGI with achieving stated goal of world peace. But I was wrong about all that - very wrong. And I was still too naïve to be able to recognize how the SGI is deeply entrenched in cult behavior.
During the years that passed after returning once again into the halls of the SGI, I introduced a fellow musician and close friend (we also studied karate together for 8 years), who in turn introduced dozens and dozens of new members into the SGI. The number of pro musicians in our little ‘family’ rapidly expanded (along with the number of stoners) and we began to frequently provide free music and entertainment for meetings and activities, and a sizeable amount of the local young men’s division. I enjoyed having a group of my peer musicians to chant and smoke out with. On the surface it seems so different from my first phase of SGI experience. We were having lots of uncontrolled fun as our small gang of misfits grew ever larger. However, many of our little family had unwittingly accepted SGI leadership positions when offered. For the most part, things went along okay until one day, the local cult leadership looking to concede to the popular politics of the time decided that the Bush era (failed) drug campaign against marijuana should be rigorously applied to the local youth division leaders. They issued an ultimatum for all youth division leaders to completely stop using cannabis - if they refused, then they would have their leadership positions revoked. Nobody buckled under and quit smoking, so the majority of my friend-members were forced into lying to their SGI leaders about their choice to continue imbibing - because they felt they had little choice but to lie about quitting in order to retain their org positions. However, the Sr. leaders never mentioned a word to me about weed – probably because they had nothing they could threaten to take away from me if I didn't comply with their over-controlling cultist demands.
I became incensed at the unjust treatment of my friends, and the rampant hypocrisy many were forced to choose. My little 'family' was intimidated and afraid to stand up to the interfering bullies that required complete compliance to their demands. But I was no longer afraid of SGI leader/bullies. So I stood up and fought against their whimsical newly invented weed policy that interfered with the privacy, freedom, and rights of my friends to make their own choices about how they want to live.
During a special meeting at the kaikan (community center) I passed out copies of a letter of remonstration against the SGI to the members as I took to the podium to read my letter of dissent. Unapproved speeches and letters are serious taboo at meetings. As I began my speech, all the fake happy smiles quickly disappeared, replaced by a seething sea of faces twisted in anger at hearing me speak out against the SGI, its leaders, and its unjust policies, such as a lack of democratic elections and overt demands of compliance by juniors. I don't believe I even brought up the ex-communication debacle, as there were too many others pertinent problems closer to home to deal with, instead, I spoke out passionately about many nagging issues that members were discussing away from leader's ears out of fear of reprisal. I brought up lack of democratic leadership and elections. I pointed out the secret financial records that could not be viewed. I addressed the corrupt, backbiting, self-serving games of power that Sr leaders were always playing out behind closed doors. At times while I was speaking at the podium, I thought that I might be physically attacked before I could get to the end of my statement. Then I realized that the members were so mind controlled and indoctrinated that no amount of logic or persuasion would be able to move them from their delusions and illusions. The majority of the members were going to defend any criticisms of the SGI, and blindly support whatever they were told to support without question. For the first time, I had directly and publicly stood up to SGI tyranny, and had subsequently become "the enemy". No more love bombing ever for me! But I felt greatly empowered from my action and encounter, enough so that I decided to stop participating in any SGI activities. And so ended my second phase pf practice with SGI. Shortly thereafter, in 1995, I decided to end my dysfunctional marriage as well, and moved several hundred miles away to reduce any chances of getting trapped once again back into either of those former abusive relationships.
A year later, I started up a traveling duo with a lady singer/musician that I had met and had begun an intimate relationship with. We toured all across the country for several years before being signed to contracts for work abroad in Europe, the Caribbean Islands, and in Asia. My new wife was interested in practicing Buddhism, and I had taught her to chant and to do the sutra recitations with me. However, she wanted exposure to practicing with a group, so I took her to a few SGI meetings. It wasn't long before I was back into doing SGI activities with my new wife - something I had previously thought of as an ideal situation (my ex didn't want to practice with me). Eventually we married and settled in Seattle before leaving for a six-month music contracted tour in Japan. We became involved with SGI both in Japan as well as in Seattle – mostly on a district meeting level. And so my third and last phase with the SGI commenced.
In 2003, my wife and I were actively protesting the impending Iraq invasion/occupation out on the streets. At the SGI Seattle Culture Center, we were trying to garnish support from the organization for the other 50 sgi members with enough self-determination to participate in the Iraqi War protests - with or without the blessings of the SGI. But we quickly realized there would be no support for an anti-war movement from the SGI, which hypocritically pretends to be anti-war while claiming to aspire to the lofty goal of world peace! Many lame excuses were made to me by sgi leaders as to why our renegade members' anti-war efforts could not be supported by the org, beginning with "endangering our tax exempt status" (which was completely false), and ending with "we can't support protesting the war because we don't want to offend our members that are in the armed services". All hogwash. I also had discovered that a higher leader upstairs suddenly removed a table with anti-war signs, pamphlets, and information that had been set up (with a lower leader’s permission) in the culture center’s lobby without discussion or chance of appeal. The sgi's hubris and hypocrisy was too much for me - the final straw. I left the SGI center that day knowing I would never return there, nor to any other SGI activity or building ever again, and so ended my third phase with the SGI. Never again would I associate in any form with this masked cult. It had taken me 31 years to realize that I would ALWAYS be much happier and better off without the SGI’s interference in my life, and that I would have much more to gain by pursuing my Buddhist practice on my own without them. But it would still take many more years to purge myself of all the years of cult indoctrination that remained deep in my psyche.
Fast forward to 2012. For many years I had no one available to me that I could discuss my cult experience with - someone that would understand clearly, someone that had been caught in the same web of deception, someone that had been victimized as I had by abuse at the hands of the SGI cult. I discovered an online anti-cult education forum with a thread on the SGI. It had hundreds upon hundreds of pages of comments filled with stories hauntingly similar to mine. As I spent weeks reading through all the information and experiences, I began I realize that I also have an important story to tell as well. And I also realized that I would need to work long and hard at healing myself, which in turn lead me to discover that I sometimes suffer from mild PTSD as a direct result from having "belonged" to a cult. But best of all, I realized that I had found a legitimate support group and new friends that I could rely upon whenever I needed to talk about having been the victim of a cult.
Presently, I am endeavoring to be of assistance for those who may be considering joining up (potential marks for the cult cons) – to help people avoid being bamboozled out of their time and money by the SGI - one of the world's largest and richest religious cults. I would encourage current members to wake up and realize they have made a mistake by getting involved with the SGI – that they have let themselves be used and abused by an organization whose hidden motivation is attaining riches, power, and a life of luxury for the top leaders. And I want to offer support to those that are fully awake, ready to make the break, and most importantly, to those ready to reclaim control from the indoctrination and mind control tactics stealthily employed upon them by the SGI cult.
If you are interested in reading a more detailed account of some of the early years of my SGI experiences, please visit my book website where the first five chapters of my book, "Cult of the Master" is available to read free of charge. The book's web addy is: http://spartacusrebel.weebly.com/index.html
Recommended links:
www.culthelp.info/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=867&Itemid=11
http://sokagakkailies.wordpress.com/
http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=70,4410,0,0,1,0
http://www.toride.org/eikesho.htm
http://markrogow.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-definitive-analysis-on-why-sgi-is.html
http://forum.culteducation.com/read.php?5,87661,page=1
http://redd.it/1uf0da
http://redd.it/1x7qxu
http://redd.it/1qe7oi
http://taitenwisdom.weebly.com/1/post/2014/02/introduction.html#comments
I was a member of the Soka Gakkai (SGI) for 31 years. I held several senior level leadership positions in the organization. When I first joined in 1972, I was on a youthful spiritual quest, endeavoring to learn more about how to become a practicing Buddhist. Being an enthusiastic and capable young man, within weeks I was appointed to a low-level leader position and began emcee-ing meetings. Within 3 months I was made a district (mid -level) leader, where I had to lead meetings despite the fact that I had yet to master the rudiments of the practice (chanted recitation of 2 chapters of the lotus sutra). Then I was "encouraged" to join both the Brass Band and Sokahon/Traffic Control Division. At six months, I was appointed as an area youth division leader. At seven months I was chosen ahead of many other members with years of seniority to attend a very, very special Tozan (pilgrimage) to the head temple in Japan. By the time I was approaching my second year in SGI, I was promoted to area brass band chief, and sokahon chief, along with being appointed as Texas Chapter Chief. Possessing a youthful American face in a Japanese organization comprised mostly of older Japanese women gave me a fast pass to the top, because highly desirable American faces were sorely needed to present a public image in this country - a more attractive and acceptable image of American leaders. Round-eyed leaders were used to distract attention from the fact that the SGI organization was, and still is, tightly run and controlled by SGI HQ leaders in Japan.
Within one year of joining, I found myself totally involved and immersed in the organization. All, and I mean ALL of my spare time and energy became focused on doing SGI daily practice along with organizational activities day and night, leaving me in a constant state of severe sleep deprivation. I became completely absorbed into the organization's goals and movements - to the point of completely subjugating myself along with my own identity to the organization. Before I knew what had happened, my life was completely shackled to my new identity as an SGI leader. More and more aspects of my life continued to fall under control of my senior leaders and their so-called "guidance". I drifted away from my old friends and my family - I felt they didn't 'get" my new "mission" in life. For almost three years, I even agreed to endure special "training" that required refraining from enjoying any sort of girlfriend or intimate relationship - a discipline not easily embraced by a young man (and former hippie) in his prime. Somehow, I even abandoned my aspirations and dreams of becoming a successful professional musician. Instead, doing SGI activities, following guidance, and pursuing higher leadership positions in the SGI hierarchy became the prime focal points of my life. Nothing else really seemed as important or exciting – I was completely hooked. Although I vehemently denied it at the time, I had become hopelessly entrapped in a religious cult – but still didn’t know it!
After three years of intensive Japanese style "leadership training", I slowly began to suspect that the organization and its leaders were using me for nefarious purposes. I began to lapse into a deep identity crisis as I struggled to understand what had happened to the person I used to be, to re-discover my own identity, and to caste off the false identity and image of the picture-perfect leader that I had been molded into, and subsequently held up to all the members as an example for wannabe Jr. leader ladder climbers to emulate. But eventually, I "succumbed" to having sex, and word of my dastardly deed quickly put me in a position of disfavor in the eyes of my senior leaders. I was humiliated and punished for my discrepancy, and then passed over for expected promotion. I was afraid my torture would continue on and on. Even though I had been deeply indoctrinated by the cult with horror stories of how terrible my life would become IF I dared to leave the SGI organization, I concluded that the only way to regain control and balance in my life was to make a quiet departure. I made no announcements, as I suspected and feared that my HQ leaders would come after me and not allow me to resign my org positions, but I had no idea just how hard getting away from a cult could be, nor how long it would eventually take for me to fully accomplish.
I moved 75 miles away from the city - out to the country to live with my brother and his family for a while. I thought I would be safe from the reaches of the SGI tentacles way out there in the boonies. But I was wrong. One sunny afternoon on the farm, my Sr leader drove up the long dirt driveway that lead from the paved country lane. She had scoured the countryside house by house in a dogged search to find me and browbeat me into submitting to a return back into the fold. I could hardly believe they had managed to locate me. Fear immediately took over me body, and I fled far into the woods to hide. I knew my leader's great power of persuasion, and I was afraid that engaging in a talk might lead to my surrender and submission, for I had no confidence that I would be able to resist being mind controlled and to agreeing to return once again into the clutches of the cult. I waited in the deep darkness of the woods with no food, water, or jacket to keep warm with until after well after midnight before returning to the house. But their car was still there! They had talked my brother into letting them into his house to "check and see if my Buddhist alter was okay". Then they had planted themselves in front of my gohonzon alter and had been chanting for hours upon hours while waiting for me to come back into the house. My brother was outside waiting for me. He pleaded with me, "these nutty people are driving us crazy - we can’t sleep and they don’t want to stop chanting and leave until they see you. You have to go inside and talk to them and get ‘em to leave my house so that we can get some sleep." I couldn't refuse his request - I would have to go in and let them confront me. Within less than an hour of talking (mind and arm twisting), I halfheartedly submitted and agreed to return to the cult that very night. They had me pack all my stuff up right then and put it in the car - there weren't going to allow me any chances to change my mind about going back. I was reluctantly returning against my will, and I already knew in my gut that I was making a big mistake.
A month passed by as I repeatedly questioned myself regarding my coerced decision to return. All the joy and excitement of being involved was gone, replaced by feelings of anger and resentment at having been forced into coming back to the org (cult). Once again, I was required to cut my hair short, shave, wear approved cult attire, and put on a fake smile for the sake of the newbie members (potential cult victims). I realized that I was in a serious fight for control of my life. After less than one month of being coerced into returning, once again I decided to slip away quietly into the night. Only this time, I would make sure the cult leaders couldn't find me, and mentally/emotionally beat me into consenting to returning as had happened before. I removed myself by a distance of 1,500 miles and thoroughly covered my tracks, finally ending my first phase of practice with the sgi.org. I didn't tell my family or friends where to find me, so they would be no chance to give into pressure and provide any clues of my whereabouts to the cult. SGI HQ leaders harassed my mother for weeks with phone calls, repeatedly demanding that she tell them where I was. She finally convinced them she didn't know anything and not to call back again.
After a while, I was able to return to Texas. The cult had finally given up on finding me, and had moved on to other marks. Still chanting occasionally, I enjoyed six peaceful years of solitary practice independent from the sgi cult before org contact was re-established. I had gotten married, had kids, and had resurrected, then realized my dream of being a full-time road musician. In 1981, a Japanese woman's division member accidentally discovered where I lived, and had been periodically dropping by to (home visit) knock on my door and "inquire" about me. One day, she came by and caught me in a depressed mood due to having suffered through some huge arguments with my wife. In my weakness and despair, I succumbed to her "suggestion" for me to return to SGI meetings and to start chanting again with others to help me "overcome" my problems. Out of desperation I said okay. And just like that, I was back on the road to becoming involved with the SGI cult once again, and so began my second phase of practice with the sgi.org.
But I was determined that this time around, I would remain in control and not allow the sgi.org to dominate my life as had happened before during my first stint. I decided to refuse any leadership appointments offered to me (FYI: members are never asked before being appointed and are unlikely to refuse a chance at having a position due to the cult placing such high value and celebrity status upon its leaders.) SO, I created the concept of a "position-less leader". I endeavored to practice within the org without desire for position or control, and to lead others by example and gentle encouragement alone, instead of accepting the usual "celebrity" leadership dynamic that allowed the highest leaders to stay in complete control of the lower leaders, and consequently control the membership as well. By the way, here’s another fun fact - there are no democratically held nominations or elections of leaders within the SGI org - only higher leaders can appoint lower leaders - and they're criteria is to choose those folks for their lower leadership positions that are the easiest to manipulate by the higher echelons of the cult. I thought I could avoid conflicts with the org by simply refusing any official position and remaining a lowly and unimportant member, yet continue finding ways to help SGI with achieving stated goal of world peace. But I was wrong about all that - very wrong. And I was still too naïve to be able to recognize how the SGI is deeply entrenched in cult behavior.
During the years that passed after returning once again into the halls of the SGI, I introduced a fellow musician and close friend (we also studied karate together for 8 years), who in turn introduced dozens and dozens of new members into the SGI. The number of pro musicians in our little ‘family’ rapidly expanded (along with the number of stoners) and we began to frequently provide free music and entertainment for meetings and activities, and a sizeable amount of the local young men’s division. I enjoyed having a group of my peer musicians to chant and smoke out with. On the surface it seems so different from my first phase of SGI experience. We were having lots of uncontrolled fun as our small gang of misfits grew ever larger. However, many of our little family had unwittingly accepted SGI leadership positions when offered. For the most part, things went along okay until one day, the local cult leadership looking to concede to the popular politics of the time decided that the Bush era (failed) drug campaign against marijuana should be rigorously applied to the local youth division leaders. They issued an ultimatum for all youth division leaders to completely stop using cannabis - if they refused, then they would have their leadership positions revoked. Nobody buckled under and quit smoking, so the majority of my friend-members were forced into lying to their SGI leaders about their choice to continue imbibing - because they felt they had little choice but to lie about quitting in order to retain their org positions. However, the Sr. leaders never mentioned a word to me about weed – probably because they had nothing they could threaten to take away from me if I didn't comply with their over-controlling cultist demands.
I became incensed at the unjust treatment of my friends, and the rampant hypocrisy many were forced to choose. My little 'family' was intimidated and afraid to stand up to the interfering bullies that required complete compliance to their demands. But I was no longer afraid of SGI leader/bullies. So I stood up and fought against their whimsical newly invented weed policy that interfered with the privacy, freedom, and rights of my friends to make their own choices about how they want to live.
During a special meeting at the kaikan (community center) I passed out copies of a letter of remonstration against the SGI to the members as I took to the podium to read my letter of dissent. Unapproved speeches and letters are serious taboo at meetings. As I began my speech, all the fake happy smiles quickly disappeared, replaced by a seething sea of faces twisted in anger at hearing me speak out against the SGI, its leaders, and its unjust policies, such as a lack of democratic elections and overt demands of compliance by juniors. I don't believe I even brought up the ex-communication debacle, as there were too many others pertinent problems closer to home to deal with, instead, I spoke out passionately about many nagging issues that members were discussing away from leader's ears out of fear of reprisal. I brought up lack of democratic leadership and elections. I pointed out the secret financial records that could not be viewed. I addressed the corrupt, backbiting, self-serving games of power that Sr leaders were always playing out behind closed doors. At times while I was speaking at the podium, I thought that I might be physically attacked before I could get to the end of my statement. Then I realized that the members were so mind controlled and indoctrinated that no amount of logic or persuasion would be able to move them from their delusions and illusions. The majority of the members were going to defend any criticisms of the SGI, and blindly support whatever they were told to support without question. For the first time, I had directly and publicly stood up to SGI tyranny, and had subsequently become "the enemy". No more love bombing ever for me! But I felt greatly empowered from my action and encounter, enough so that I decided to stop participating in any SGI activities. And so ended my second phase pf practice with SGI. Shortly thereafter, in 1995, I decided to end my dysfunctional marriage as well, and moved several hundred miles away to reduce any chances of getting trapped once again back into either of those former abusive relationships.
A year later, I started up a traveling duo with a lady singer/musician that I had met and had begun an intimate relationship with. We toured all across the country for several years before being signed to contracts for work abroad in Europe, the Caribbean Islands, and in Asia. My new wife was interested in practicing Buddhism, and I had taught her to chant and to do the sutra recitations with me. However, she wanted exposure to practicing with a group, so I took her to a few SGI meetings. It wasn't long before I was back into doing SGI activities with my new wife - something I had previously thought of as an ideal situation (my ex didn't want to practice with me). Eventually we married and settled in Seattle before leaving for a six-month music contracted tour in Japan. We became involved with SGI both in Japan as well as in Seattle – mostly on a district meeting level. And so my third and last phase with the SGI commenced.
In 2003, my wife and I were actively protesting the impending Iraq invasion/occupation out on the streets. At the SGI Seattle Culture Center, we were trying to garnish support from the organization for the other 50 sgi members with enough self-determination to participate in the Iraqi War protests - with or without the blessings of the SGI. But we quickly realized there would be no support for an anti-war movement from the SGI, which hypocritically pretends to be anti-war while claiming to aspire to the lofty goal of world peace! Many lame excuses were made to me by sgi leaders as to why our renegade members' anti-war efforts could not be supported by the org, beginning with "endangering our tax exempt status" (which was completely false), and ending with "we can't support protesting the war because we don't want to offend our members that are in the armed services". All hogwash. I also had discovered that a higher leader upstairs suddenly removed a table with anti-war signs, pamphlets, and information that had been set up (with a lower leader’s permission) in the culture center’s lobby without discussion or chance of appeal. The sgi's hubris and hypocrisy was too much for me - the final straw. I left the SGI center that day knowing I would never return there, nor to any other SGI activity or building ever again, and so ended my third phase with the SGI. Never again would I associate in any form with this masked cult. It had taken me 31 years to realize that I would ALWAYS be much happier and better off without the SGI’s interference in my life, and that I would have much more to gain by pursuing my Buddhist practice on my own without them. But it would still take many more years to purge myself of all the years of cult indoctrination that remained deep in my psyche.
Fast forward to 2012. For many years I had no one available to me that I could discuss my cult experience with - someone that would understand clearly, someone that had been caught in the same web of deception, someone that had been victimized as I had by abuse at the hands of the SGI cult. I discovered an online anti-cult education forum with a thread on the SGI. It had hundreds upon hundreds of pages of comments filled with stories hauntingly similar to mine. As I spent weeks reading through all the information and experiences, I began I realize that I also have an important story to tell as well. And I also realized that I would need to work long and hard at healing myself, which in turn lead me to discover that I sometimes suffer from mild PTSD as a direct result from having "belonged" to a cult. But best of all, I realized that I had found a legitimate support group and new friends that I could rely upon whenever I needed to talk about having been the victim of a cult.
Presently, I am endeavoring to be of assistance for those who may be considering joining up (potential marks for the cult cons) – to help people avoid being bamboozled out of their time and money by the SGI - one of the world's largest and richest religious cults. I would encourage current members to wake up and realize they have made a mistake by getting involved with the SGI – that they have let themselves be used and abused by an organization whose hidden motivation is attaining riches, power, and a life of luxury for the top leaders. And I want to offer support to those that are fully awake, ready to make the break, and most importantly, to those ready to reclaim control from the indoctrination and mind control tactics stealthily employed upon them by the SGI cult.
If you are interested in reading a more detailed account of some of the early years of my SGI experiences, please visit my book website where the first five chapters of my book, "Cult of the Master" is available to read free of charge. The book's web addy is: http://spartacusrebel.weebly.com/index.html
Recommended links:
www.culthelp.info/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=867&Itemid=11
http://sokagakkailies.wordpress.com/
http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=70,4410,0,0,1,0
http://www.toride.org/eikesho.htm
http://markrogow.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-definitive-analysis-on-why-sgi-is.html
http://forum.culteducation.com/read.php?5,87661,page=1
http://redd.it/1uf0da
http://redd.it/1x7qxu
http://redd.it/1qe7oi
http://taitenwisdom.weebly.com/1/post/2014/02/introduction.html#comments