I shall begin this essay by stating a disclaimer. The following is a personal account of how I feel about my mentor. It is a journey through my train of thoughts which brought me to conclude that Daisaku Ikeda is my mentor. It also included a rationalizing process of the need for a mentor and the selection of my mentor.
Some of the things may not make sense to the causal readers as it includes jargons which may only be appreciated only by people who have a good understanding of Buddhism and its history as well as that of Soka Gakkai.
If any reader wishes to clarify certain points which I raised, I recommend that you approach me directly. Personal heart-to-heart dialogue will always be the best mode to exchange philosophical ideas.
What is a mentor?
A mentor is someone who we learn from. There are many types of mentors as we learn many things from many different people as we journey through life. But the most important mentor has to be the mentor who teaches us the best way to lead our lives. This is the mentor I refer to when I discuss about Sensei (Daisaku Ikeda).
Who is Daisaku Ikeda?
Daisaku Ikeda is my mentor. It is from him that I learn the surest way to become a happy human being. But who exactly is he? He is an ordinary man who, through his practice of Nichiren Buddhism, manifested the life-state of Buddhahood which is the objective of all Buddhists. He demonstrated the way. Hence, he is the person we of the Soka Gakkai follow in order to achieve enlightenment ourselves.
Am I idolizing him?
I love him. Because I learnt so much from him, I am grateful to him. But I do not worship him which a lot of people who do not understand Buddhism may mistake. I said that he manifested the life-state of a Buddha. But I understand that many non-Buddhists thought that Buddhists worship the Buddha. We do not. A Buddha is neither God nor a deity. A Buddha is simply a man who is enlightened to the nature of life and hence, manifested compassion, wisdom and courage. It is an achievable goal for all of us.
Why must the mentor be mentioned all the time in Soka Gakkai?
It is to keep us, the members of Soka Gakkai on the correct path. We know what happened when arrogant men who thought they have understood everything when they did not tried to interpret a religious teaching their own way. History had shown the horrors of misguided individuals using religion to corrupt the minds of others. The most recent examples would be the terrorists who abused religion to cause harm to others. Using a mentor who demonstrated the life-state of a Buddha is the best way to keep us on the correct path.
Do you mean that a Buddha is a mentor?
A person, who manifested the life-state of a Buddha, qualities as a mentor for practitioners of Buddhism, but Buddhahood is a process. We may demonstrate Buddhahood one moment, and loses it the next. Only when one gives their entire life for the cause of Buddhism can one maintain that life-state. Daisaku Ikeda is such a man who selflessly dedicated his entire life for Buddhism. That is why I follow him. He is the best example we have.
Why do we not just use Shakyamuni as our mentor?
Shakyamuni, or Gautama, was the first historically recorded Buddha. Hence, in most literature, when we just use the term Buddha, it specifically meant him. But Shakyamuni lived almost three thousand years ago. The cultural influences and language usage differs so much from what we are familiar with that understanding his teachings is extremely difficult and hence, prompt to misinterpretations. In Buddhist terms, we can say that our karmic relation with Shakyamuni is too weak due to temporal differences to directly practice his teachings. That is why it is necessary to update the teachings for the contemporary masses and the founder of Soka Kyoiku Gakkai, Tsunisaburo Makiguchi inherited the spirit of Buddhism via Nichiren Daishonin. Soka Kyoiku Gakkai is means Value-Creation Educational Society which is the forerunner for Soka Gakkai.
Did Makiguchi have a mentor?
In the Soka Gakkai, we acknowledge Daisaku Ikeda as our mentor. And his mentor was Josei Toda who trained him thoroughly. Toda’s mentor was Makiguchi who taught him the value of a human life. As for the mentor of Makiguchi, we say that he learnt directly from the writings of Nichiren Daishonin. Just as future generations will continue to benefit from learning Ikeda’s writings even after his passing, Makiguchi learnt from Nichiren’s writings. As mentioned, in this modern era, it may be difficult to comprehend the writings of Nichiren unless you have a firm understanding of the culture influences during the thirteenth century. But Makiguchi was one such scholar who could and did.
Is there a difference between the disciples of Daisaku Ikeda and the disciples of Josei Toda?
We are all Buddhists who have the potential to become a Buddha. As human beings, there is no difference. The only difference is who we learn from. Daisaku Ikeda himself learnt directly from Toda. But Josei Toda, knowing that he did not have a lot of time after his enlightenment in prison for opposing the war because of a badly damaged health, focused on training a capable disciple to carry on his work. This disciple is Daisaku Ikeda who after learning from Josei Toda, shared widely the wonderful philosophy of Buddhism with the entire world. Those who studied and benefited from studying under Josei Toda can claim to be his disciple. But since I learn from these sharing, Daisaku Ikeda is my mentor.
Why Daisaku Ikeda and not other people?
Are there other selfless examples of individuals who dedicated their lives for Buddhism? Of course there are! But Daisaku Ikeda is the one who made the correct teachings of Buddhism accessible for everyone through his efforts. Hence, I acknowledge him as my mentor.
Will we need another mentor after Daisaku Ikeda (as in after his passing)?
The question is: Is it necessary? We know that the foundation of Buddhism is the countless sutras left between by Shakyamuni. But how many of us can actually understand the sutras. Teachings are always going to be affected by local cultural environment. Without an understanding of Ancient India where Shakubuku first started his preaching, and the language usage at that time, it is difficult for us to understand Buddhism correctly. Hence, Nichiren Daishonin was there to make Buddhism accessible for people of the Latter Day of the Law as Buddhism was badly corrupted by his time during the thirteenth century. Daisaku Ikeda, in turn, is the person who made the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin for us in this modern age. Therefore, unless there come a time, where culturally and language usage-wise, the teachings left by Daisaku Ikeda is no longer accessible to the common people, there is no need for another mentor.
What do we need a mentor in our efforts to achieve enlightenment?
In a nutshell, there is no enlightenment without the spirit of the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple. Note the word “oneness”. This is critical. In this Latter Day of the Law where mankind is heavily poisoned by Greed (Conflict with Nature), Anger (Conflict with Other Persons) and Foolishness (Conflict with Self), the only enlightenment is that of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth as expounded in the Lotus Sutra. And the attainment of the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple is the only way to enter the way of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth.
What are the Bodhisattvas of the Earth?
In simple terms, the Bodhisattvas of the Earth are beings who are Bodhisattvas in appearance but are Buddha in essentials. Bodhisattvas are beings who constantly strive to lead others to happiness and Buddhas are beings who manifest compassion, wisdom and courage. The lotus is said to have their flowers bloom and bears fruits at the same time. Hence, the gist of the Lotus Sutra is the simultaneity of cause and effect. The cause is the Bodhisattva way and the effect is Buddhahood. Therefore, Bodhisattvas of the Earth are beings who are both Bodhisattvas and Buddhas at the same time.
How does a mentor lead us to be a Bodhisattva of the Earth?
The mentor represents the function of the Buddha and the disciples represent the functions of the Bodhisattvas. In other words, the disciples are the causes and the mentor is the effect. Therefore, when the disciples strive to share and actualize the visions of the mentor, the causes are being laid for the effect of Buddhahood. The “oneness” between the mentor and disciples resulted in the fusing of the functions of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas which give us the enlightened state of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth.
How to achieve the “oneness” in the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple?
It is achieved when the disciples adopt the spirit of the mentor and make it their own, then praying wholeheartedly with the same mind as the mentor and taking action. I pray by chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Nam means devoting my life. Myoho means the law of the universe. Myo is the essential of the law and represents the mentor and Ho is the manifestation of the law and represents the disciple. Therefore Myoho also means mentor and disciple. Renge means the Lotus, hence the simultaneity of cause and effect. Cause represents the disciple and Effect represents the mentor. Therefore Renge also means the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple. Kyo means the voice which makes the vow to uphold and propagate this law for the sake of humanity.
How did I accept my mentor?
I was once an arrogant teenager who thought that I did not need a mentor in life. I was living a comfortable life and achieving minor successes in all aspects of my life. But one day, a senior from Singapore Soka Association was having dinner with me when he share candidly that he was feeling miserable because he was unable to feel for Sensei.
Then two thoughts hit me.
Firstly, there are people who are miserable because they cannot feel their mentor. That is an indication that having a mentor is important in our pursuit for a value-creative life. But then again, I did not feel the need for a mentor at the time. So there was a contradiction. That was when the second thought arrived.
The reason for one not to feel the need for a mentor is not the absence of a mentor. I was learning from others all the time. I did not regard them as mentors only because of a lacking in sense of appreciation. I was without gratitude and that made me a man in appearance but a beast at heart.
After some serious soul-searching, I realized that the only way to grow as a human was to open my heart and learn how to be grateful and be appreciative. When that happened, I realized the importance of the many mentors who taught me many times over the years.
And of course, the most important mentor is the one who teaches me the way to live my life in a righteous and courageous way – my mentor in life (faith) – Daisaku Ikeda.
Some of the things may not make sense to the causal readers as it includes jargons which may only be appreciated only by people who have a good understanding of Buddhism and its history as well as that of Soka Gakkai.
If any reader wishes to clarify certain points which I raised, I recommend that you approach me directly. Personal heart-to-heart dialogue will always be the best mode to exchange philosophical ideas.
What is a mentor?
A mentor is someone who we learn from. There are many types of mentors as we learn many things from many different people as we journey through life. But the most important mentor has to be the mentor who teaches us the best way to lead our lives. This is the mentor I refer to when I discuss about Sensei (Daisaku Ikeda).
Who is Daisaku Ikeda?
Daisaku Ikeda is my mentor. It is from him that I learn the surest way to become a happy human being. But who exactly is he? He is an ordinary man who, through his practice of Nichiren Buddhism, manifested the life-state of Buddhahood which is the objective of all Buddhists. He demonstrated the way. Hence, he is the person we of the Soka Gakkai follow in order to achieve enlightenment ourselves.
Am I idolizing him?
I love him. Because I learnt so much from him, I am grateful to him. But I do not worship him which a lot of people who do not understand Buddhism may mistake. I said that he manifested the life-state of a Buddha. But I understand that many non-Buddhists thought that Buddhists worship the Buddha. We do not. A Buddha is neither God nor a deity. A Buddha is simply a man who is enlightened to the nature of life and hence, manifested compassion, wisdom and courage. It is an achievable goal for all of us.
Why must the mentor be mentioned all the time in Soka Gakkai?
It is to keep us, the members of Soka Gakkai on the correct path. We know what happened when arrogant men who thought they have understood everything when they did not tried to interpret a religious teaching their own way. History had shown the horrors of misguided individuals using religion to corrupt the minds of others. The most recent examples would be the terrorists who abused religion to cause harm to others. Using a mentor who demonstrated the life-state of a Buddha is the best way to keep us on the correct path.
Do you mean that a Buddha is a mentor?
A person, who manifested the life-state of a Buddha, qualities as a mentor for practitioners of Buddhism, but Buddhahood is a process. We may demonstrate Buddhahood one moment, and loses it the next. Only when one gives their entire life for the cause of Buddhism can one maintain that life-state. Daisaku Ikeda is such a man who selflessly dedicated his entire life for Buddhism. That is why I follow him. He is the best example we have.
Why do we not just use Shakyamuni as our mentor?
Shakyamuni, or Gautama, was the first historically recorded Buddha. Hence, in most literature, when we just use the term Buddha, it specifically meant him. But Shakyamuni lived almost three thousand years ago. The cultural influences and language usage differs so much from what we are familiar with that understanding his teachings is extremely difficult and hence, prompt to misinterpretations. In Buddhist terms, we can say that our karmic relation with Shakyamuni is too weak due to temporal differences to directly practice his teachings. That is why it is necessary to update the teachings for the contemporary masses and the founder of Soka Kyoiku Gakkai, Tsunisaburo Makiguchi inherited the spirit of Buddhism via Nichiren Daishonin. Soka Kyoiku Gakkai is means Value-Creation Educational Society which is the forerunner for Soka Gakkai.
Did Makiguchi have a mentor?
In the Soka Gakkai, we acknowledge Daisaku Ikeda as our mentor. And his mentor was Josei Toda who trained him thoroughly. Toda’s mentor was Makiguchi who taught him the value of a human life. As for the mentor of Makiguchi, we say that he learnt directly from the writings of Nichiren Daishonin. Just as future generations will continue to benefit from learning Ikeda’s writings even after his passing, Makiguchi learnt from Nichiren’s writings. As mentioned, in this modern era, it may be difficult to comprehend the writings of Nichiren unless you have a firm understanding of the culture influences during the thirteenth century. But Makiguchi was one such scholar who could and did.
Is there a difference between the disciples of Daisaku Ikeda and the disciples of Josei Toda?
We are all Buddhists who have the potential to become a Buddha. As human beings, there is no difference. The only difference is who we learn from. Daisaku Ikeda himself learnt directly from Toda. But Josei Toda, knowing that he did not have a lot of time after his enlightenment in prison for opposing the war because of a badly damaged health, focused on training a capable disciple to carry on his work. This disciple is Daisaku Ikeda who after learning from Josei Toda, shared widely the wonderful philosophy of Buddhism with the entire world. Those who studied and benefited from studying under Josei Toda can claim to be his disciple. But since I learn from these sharing, Daisaku Ikeda is my mentor.
Why Daisaku Ikeda and not other people?
Are there other selfless examples of individuals who dedicated their lives for Buddhism? Of course there are! But Daisaku Ikeda is the one who made the correct teachings of Buddhism accessible for everyone through his efforts. Hence, I acknowledge him as my mentor.
Will we need another mentor after Daisaku Ikeda (as in after his passing)?
The question is: Is it necessary? We know that the foundation of Buddhism is the countless sutras left between by Shakyamuni. But how many of us can actually understand the sutras. Teachings are always going to be affected by local cultural environment. Without an understanding of Ancient India where Shakubuku first started his preaching, and the language usage at that time, it is difficult for us to understand Buddhism correctly. Hence, Nichiren Daishonin was there to make Buddhism accessible for people of the Latter Day of the Law as Buddhism was badly corrupted by his time during the thirteenth century. Daisaku Ikeda, in turn, is the person who made the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin for us in this modern age. Therefore, unless there come a time, where culturally and language usage-wise, the teachings left by Daisaku Ikeda is no longer accessible to the common people, there is no need for another mentor.
What do we need a mentor in our efforts to achieve enlightenment?
In a nutshell, there is no enlightenment without the spirit of the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple. Note the word “oneness”. This is critical. In this Latter Day of the Law where mankind is heavily poisoned by Greed (Conflict with Nature), Anger (Conflict with Other Persons) and Foolishness (Conflict with Self), the only enlightenment is that of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth as expounded in the Lotus Sutra. And the attainment of the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple is the only way to enter the way of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth.
What are the Bodhisattvas of the Earth?
In simple terms, the Bodhisattvas of the Earth are beings who are Bodhisattvas in appearance but are Buddha in essentials. Bodhisattvas are beings who constantly strive to lead others to happiness and Buddhas are beings who manifest compassion, wisdom and courage. The lotus is said to have their flowers bloom and bears fruits at the same time. Hence, the gist of the Lotus Sutra is the simultaneity of cause and effect. The cause is the Bodhisattva way and the effect is Buddhahood. Therefore, Bodhisattvas of the Earth are beings who are both Bodhisattvas and Buddhas at the same time.
How does a mentor lead us to be a Bodhisattva of the Earth?
The mentor represents the function of the Buddha and the disciples represent the functions of the Bodhisattvas. In other words, the disciples are the causes and the mentor is the effect. Therefore, when the disciples strive to share and actualize the visions of the mentor, the causes are being laid for the effect of Buddhahood. The “oneness” between the mentor and disciples resulted in the fusing of the functions of the Buddha and Bodhisattvas which give us the enlightened state of the Bodhisattvas of the Earth.
How to achieve the “oneness” in the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple?
It is achieved when the disciples adopt the spirit of the mentor and make it their own, then praying wholeheartedly with the same mind as the mentor and taking action. I pray by chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. Nam means devoting my life. Myoho means the law of the universe. Myo is the essential of the law and represents the mentor and Ho is the manifestation of the law and represents the disciple. Therefore Myoho also means mentor and disciple. Renge means the Lotus, hence the simultaneity of cause and effect. Cause represents the disciple and Effect represents the mentor. Therefore Renge also means the Oneness of Mentor and Disciple. Kyo means the voice which makes the vow to uphold and propagate this law for the sake of humanity.
How did I accept my mentor?
I was once an arrogant teenager who thought that I did not need a mentor in life. I was living a comfortable life and achieving minor successes in all aspects of my life. But one day, a senior from Singapore Soka Association was having dinner with me when he share candidly that he was feeling miserable because he was unable to feel for Sensei.
Then two thoughts hit me.
Firstly, there are people who are miserable because they cannot feel their mentor. That is an indication that having a mentor is important in our pursuit for a value-creative life. But then again, I did not feel the need for a mentor at the time. So there was a contradiction. That was when the second thought arrived.
The reason for one not to feel the need for a mentor is not the absence of a mentor. I was learning from others all the time. I did not regard them as mentors only because of a lacking in sense of appreciation. I was without gratitude and that made me a man in appearance but a beast at heart.
After some serious soul-searching, I realized that the only way to grow as a human was to open my heart and learn how to be grateful and be appreciative. When that happened, I realized the importance of the many mentors who taught me many times over the years.
And of course, the most important mentor is the one who teaches me the way to live my life in a righteous and courageous way – my mentor in life (faith) – Daisaku Ikeda.
= = = = = = =
