Buddhist nun speaks out over Tendai priest sexual abuse allegations — Part 1

So it is not just Christian priests and clergy but also Buddhists too.

Pretty much every religion... gods are nothing before a horny clergy.

... let me rephrase that....

Gods are nothing against men/women in a power position

There are no Buddhist gods.

There are no Buddhist gods.

I know, but its a very simple way to generilze religion (which buddhism is).. don't be so picky

If the allegation of sexual abuse is true, the Tendai sect needs a thorough cleansing to purify itself, much like the way Oda Nobunaga did in 1571 by burning down Enryakuji Temple and killing off all the corrupt Buddhist priests.

Chanting namu-kanzeon-bosatsu invocations during sex to reach the peak at the summit of Mt Hiei sounds like quite an ascetic practice. Is this the 80 year old vicariously living through the abbott?

Only thing you need to legitimate a religion,is get an IRS exemption

Daniel Neagari

There are no Buddhist gods.

> I know, but its a very simple way to generilze religion (which buddhism is).. don't be so picky

Being a Buddhist of more than 50 years makes me "picky". Most Buddhists don't regard it as a religion.

why does "the Buddha" have quotation marks? This is extremely condescending and oddly ethnocentric. English translators take note!

All "religions", sects and spiritual groups attract more than a fair share of creeps and sociopathic weirdos.

Question may be taboo to some, but is worth asking, are there persons in entire life without sex. drive? We may say God bless us with sex to enjoy and sustain life thus religions forbid sex is ungodly. Sex is good as long as it is consensual. Also wonder,do those claim to be strict flowers of religions have access to porn?

Name me a traditional Buddhist sect that does not have roots in China.

the traditional Tendai sect, which has roots in China

Creepy priests are creepy priests everywhere.

Name me a traditional Buddhist sect that does not have roots in China.

You do know that Buddhism was founded in India right?

Theravada Buddhism practiced in Sri Lanka and South East Asia has nothing to do with China. Nichiren Buddhism was founded in Japan.

Nichiren Buddhism is not a traditional sect. My point being the use of Chinese is not even needed in that sentence. Buddhism was transformed as it meshed with Chinese culture. Most of the teachers and translators who visited Chinese were from Central Asian kingdoms, definitely not Indian.

Buddhism was transformed as it meshed with Chinese culture.

Only Mahayana Buddhism spread in China.

Buddhism was not transformed because it's based on the teachings of the Buddha, which are eternal and immutable. However, incorrect and shallow interpretations of Buddhist teachings were made which were appropriate for certain times and certain cultures.

Most of the teachers and translators who visited Chinese were from Central Asian kingdoms, definitely not Indian.

Yes, because Buddhism spread from India to China and not the other way round. Chinese scholars like Fa Hien, Hieun Tsang visited India, learned Sanskrit and translated the Buddhist texts to Chinese and from China, Buddhism traveled to Central Asia and Japan. Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen, was supposed to be an Indian.

Nichiren Buddhism was born from the Tendai sect.

Is Nichiren Buddhism also called Tendai Buddhism?

"This Buddhism spread in Japan under the name Tendai Buddhism, Tendai being the Japanese rendering of the Chinese T'ien-t'ai. The T'ien-t'ai doctrines, which are based on the Lotus Sutra, form one of the chief elements in the teaching of Nichiren Daishonin."

If a woman gets nine years in prison for "sweet-talking" men into relinquishing their money for a phoney relationship, I wonder how the courts will deal with a man/men who deceive a woman into relinquishing her will in an abusive relationship using "religious retribution" as the stick. Any bets?

It stands to reason that some monks will take advantage of their positions of authority. What matters now is, will the organizations investigate in order to purge these corrupt individuals, or respond with Zen-like silence?

Priests and monks are human like all of us and some have serious personality faults. When they are exposed they must be removed and prosecuted.

So it is not just Christian priests and clergy…

Er, no. And you might to checkout the massive, but curiously under reported, abuses among muslim imams, teachers, etc.

It's so brave. You have no idea how much pressure there would be for this woman (or any woman in Japan) to speak out. Like any woman in Japan, she gains little, if anything, and risks a lot by speaking out.

wallaceApr. 25  07:42 pm JST

Daniel Neagari

There are no Buddhist gods.

I know, but its a very simple way to generilze religion (which buddhism is).. don't be so picky*

Being a Buddhist of more than 50 years makes me "picky". Most Buddhists don't regard it as a religion.

This man was not a practising Buddhist devotee for him to end up like this. It's just not possible.

Yes, Buddhist practitioner of 35 years here.

I recently transitioned beyond Buddhism to Non-Dualty, but it's all ultimately the same thing.

God is not a thing, an object, or something that can be known or understood in the way that we normally know and understand things. God is the knowing itself, the understanding itself, the aware presence that underlies all knowledge and understanding.

We reject the idea of permanent self, emphasise interconnectedness between all things, and recognize the illusion of separation, and achieve liberation from suffering through direct experience and awareness.

You do know that Buddhism was founded in India right?

Well, Gautama was born and raised in what is now Nepal and the Pali Cannon - the supposed collection of all the scriptures - was put together in what is now Sri Lanka 450 years after his death. Until then it was all oral. The claim that others have made that Buddhism is not a religion is pretty weak. It deals with matters of ultimate concern, like all religions.

Most Buddhists don't regard it as a religion.

Yes they do.

zibalaToday  10:41 am JST

Most Buddhists don't regard it as a religion.

Yes they do.

Yeah, I think most Japanese see Buddhism as a religion. I've always thought it a shame that there is such rejection of Busshdom in Japan - it would improve the mental health of the entire nation if more were practising Buddhists.

It's because of stuff like this I don't believe much into religion anymore, it is just brainwashing and used as a way to control someone's mind. There's always someone taking advantage of religion for their own gain and they don't always get caught and punished for it because of the control they have over the victims mind on top of the crazy lies they tell to protect themselves

@wallace We are in the weeds here but Nichiren-shu is from the Nembutsu 念佛 lineage which can also be traced to China although Nichiren himself did not visit the mainland.

We are in the weeds here but Nichiren-shu is from the Nembutsu lineage

LOL, read some of the writings of Nichiren where he criticized Nembutsu as leading its practitioners to the hell of incessant suffering.

Nichiren Buddhism was born from the Tendai sect.

That is correct, but Nichiren also criticised the Tendai or Tientai school for abandoning its Lotus Sutra-exclusiveness and incorporating esoteric doctrines and rituals.

In Nichiren's thinking, slandering the Buddhist law because of lack of awareness of True Buddhism and correct Buddhist doctrines is still forgivable. But slandering the law even while knowing the supremacy of the Lotus Sutra is worse.

That's why Soka Gakkai used to criticize Nichiren Shoshu the most I suppose. And vice versa.

deanzaZZR

@wallace We are in the weeds here but Nichiren-shu is from the Nembutsu 念佛 lineage which can also be traced to China although Nichiren himself did not visit the mainland.

The Lotus Sutra was introduced to Japan from China by the Tendai sect. Nichiren became a devotee of it as are all the followers in the many Nichiren sects.

"Tendai. The Tiantai school was brought to Japan by Saichō (767–822), who founded the Japanese Tendai tradition and wrote a commentary to the Lotus Sūtra, which would remain central to Tendai."

"Nichiren Shoshu was founded on April 28, 1253, when Nichiren Daishonin declared the establishment of the teaching of “Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo.” Following his declaration, despite encountering and enduring countless persecutions, he propagated Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo, the essence of the Lotus Sutra."

This coming Sunday is known as Nam Myoho Renge Kyo day.

"Nichiren Shu is a Buddhist Order that was founded more than 750 years ago. “Nichiren” is the name of the founder. “Shu” simply means “Order.” Nichiren Shu’s mission is to propagate the essential truth of Buddhism according to the teaching of the revered priest Nichiren."

Yeah, it's just chanting (parts) the Lotus Sutra bros. CHANTING lol

阿彌陀佛

WandoraToday  11:27 am JST

We reject the idea of permanent self, emphasise interconnectedness between all things, and recognize the illusion of separation, and achieve liberation from suffering through direct experience and awareness.

Blimey. Something as simple as a walk to 7-11 must be a mine field for such a disturbed mind.

Ah, ignorance is bliss, as they say. :)

Most people die, never knowing what or who they really are.

This is horrific. I sometimes feel a bit guilty about not knowing more about Japan's religions, but if this is what they are up to, they do not deserve my respect. I'll stick to just looking at the pretty buildings, thank you very much.

The point of the article is that a Buddhist nun Eicho was sexually abused by the chief priest of a major sect's temple for over a decade. This is only part one of a three-part article.

People like this monk come along in all religions. Hope they throw him under the biggest Buddha if any of the allegations are proved true. It's OK to follow the teachings of a religion but be very careful when following any teacher. Humans distort the true meaning of all religions and predators abound. Hope she gets the justice she is seeking.

As a young girl growing up my parents taught me the main tenets of Buddhism,which I still follow, I am now24. I am very not religious and will never believe in any of it, and I have always seen Buddhism as a way of how you live your life. I did go to a few local SGI meetings but not impressed at all by the people I met there so I stopped after about ten visits, as a lot of them seemed very selfish. Buddhism is not a religion but a life philosophy, if you want to believe in mythical beings, do not become a Buddhist.