From Original post by Paul Wersant to alt.religion.buddhism.nichiren and Seikyo Shimbun translations, I added some commentary and html, and have posted tthese letters to help present the issues from the various points of view for people who might find what happened as perplexing as I did while it was going on. A while ago I removed some of my own more partisan remarks and added other comments in their place.
Seikyo Shimbun July 26, 1999.
There is no doubt about the supremacy of the Dai-Gohonzon. It is the history of the Nikko school to protect the Dai-Gohonzon and promote kosen-rufu with absolute faith in the Dai-Gohonzon.*1
I'm stil trying to find out about this document the "Nikko Ato Jojo no Koto". [when I find it I'll replace this note with a link] I've been told that it refers to one of Nichiren's many Paper Dai-Honzon. (All about the same size as the wood one.) It is usually cited as evidence for the Dai-Gohonzon, and since it supposedly exists in Nikko's hand, it is better than the other two "transfer documents" which exist only as copies.
Akiya then says:
No other high priest than Nikken has questioned its authenticity*2 in Nichiren Shoshu. No other high priest than Nikken has ever asserted that it is counterfeit. This fact alone shows that Nikken is a fake high priest.
Since almost everyone but the priests and layleaders of Nichiren Shoshu have asked these same questions, and P. Akiya knows this. This statement made me laugh when I first heard it. It turns out that there have always been issues about the Dai-Gohonzon, and Nittatsu Shonin in his defense of the Dai-Gohonzon threw in a comment about Nichiu caving a "backup" (see page on Nichiu and "Backup" for more) that had his own handwriting on the signature.
Anyway he goes on to say:
The way Nikken questioned the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon is unique. He holds a view that no one has ever held -even in other sects, including the Minobu sect. His idea is indeed unprecedented. He says he has had a handwriting analysis done on the Dai-Gohonzon. Then, the question is who did it? When and where? He should make these points clear, first of all. According to one handwriting analysis expert, we can only judge the authenticity of paper documents, not carved. Deciding factors will be information on the paper's quality, the shade of sumi ink used on it or the force of strokes applied to each character. In this way, a comprehensive analysis is needed to judge if a document is authentic or not. These criteria can not be applied to characters carved on wood and painted gold. We have never heard of any Nichiren Shoshu high priest in the past who was interested in examining the Dai-Gohonzon. If this analysis has actually been done, Nikken is the one who had it done. And then, it must be Nikken's own amateurish analysis. A normal high priest wouldn't want to do such a thing. What Nikken actually wanted was to childishly show how he was the most well-informed on the Dai-Gohonzon and how great a scholar he was -- that his knowledge surpassed anyone else's. Nikken is, in essence, childish.
Do we detect a bit of anger here?
Akiya writes:
It is important to note that Nikken, in those days, was Study Department leader of Nichiren Shoshu and in the position to protect his mentor, High Priest Nittatsu. In this Kawabe Memo, Nittatsu is referred to as 'G' to indicate Geika*3, the high priest. Nikken vehemently criticizes Nittatsu. The memo reads in part:
"G has no ability to raise young capable priests and restore order to this sect - nothing will be done properly under his leadership in the future of Nichiren Shoshu. G simple-mindedly believes that even if we did sever ties with the Gakkai, they would be restored in two or three years."
Akiya Says:
Nikken claims that he verbally received the heritage of Nichiren Shoshu from the previous high priest on April 15, 1978, only two months after the Kawabe Memo was written. How could transferring the heritage from the previous high priest to Nikken have really happened, as the latter's hatred of the former high priest ran so deep at that time? While claiming that he has received the heritage of the Daishonin's Buddhism from the previous high priest and while questioning the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon in his heart at the same time, Nikken transcribed his Gohonzon as if he were a legitimate, faithful high priest. The Nikken-transcribed Gohonzon should be branded as a counterfeit Gohonzon, through which no benefit can be tapped.
The Gakkai didn't question the inheritance when the Sho-shinkai priests (who had also criticized the Gakkai) were being kicked out of NS during the 80's. These questions seem to be being asked a little late. Everyone knew that Nikken was ambitious, brilliant, and had a big ego, why didn't they argue against these positions from the beginning? But leaving that aside, it is obvious that the inheritance of a position doesn't imply that the person in that position is omniscient. Not HP's or General Directors either. This comment about Nikken Gohonzon sounds like "sour grapes."
member, Association Concerned About Nichiren Shoshu and Devoted To Protecting the Law.
It has been revealed that Nikken, before he became Nichiren Shoshu high priest, asserted that the Dai-Gohonzon of the High Sanctuary of True Buddhism, the Gohonzon that serves as the basis of the Three Great Secret Laws and is the foundation of the heritage of Nichiren Shoshu, is counterfeit. � This has been disclosed by the so-called Kawabe Memo, dated Feb. 7, 1978. The author of the Kawabe Memo is Reverend Jitoku Kawabe of a Nichiren Shoshu temple in Hokkaido. He is known for his habit of taking notes of anything that he finds interesting. Operation C was also revealed through Kawabe's notes.
Cornered by this revelation, Nikken recently made Kawabe issue comments such as:
"The notes are totally based upon my subjective observation." And: "It was a mistake in recording on my part."
Nikken thus tried to avoid his responsibility by making Kawabe look bad. However, it is well known that Kawabe himself proudly says that his notes are always as precise as a tape recording. Therefore, the memo in question can't be dismissed as a subjective statement or a mistake in recording.
Reverend Kawabe was given a much more lucrative and busy Temple to administer as "punishment" for this transgression. So it looks like, if the memo was leaked intentionally, the "ploy" worked. NST tries to explain that the wooden Gohonzon that they were talking about was a copy made by Nichiu as a Backup to the Dai-Gohonzon in case it were ever lost. A plausable explaination that raises it's own questions. Like why would they need a backup, and what didfference would it make if the Dai-Gohonzon were lost and the "backup" were used. The fact that they never retracted the memo shows that Nikken could very well have as easilly been talking about the "Dai-Gohonzon of Koan" carved by Nippo out of a floating log of sandlewood, so long ago.
The memo continues as follows:
[Shiina introduced the memo.] Feb. 7, the 53rd Year of Showa (1978). Met with Mr A. at Imperial Hotel.*4
- Re: The Gohonzon of the High Sanctuary of True Buddhism "The Gohonzon of the High Sanctuary of True Buddhism is counterfeit. I found this out through various forms of graphology (such as examining the brush strokes of the Chinese characters). Somebody copied on to the Dai-Gohonzon the daimoku and seal part of a Gohonzon conferred upon Nichizen, which was stored at Hodo'in temple and later transferred to the head temple. The rest of the Dai-Gohonzon was created either during the time of the sixth high priest Nichiji or ninth high priest Nichiu. There is evidence on the Gohonzon conferred upon Nichizen that somebody copied part of this Gohonzon."
The Reverend Continues:
'A' signifies Nikken Abe, a fact that is admitted to by both Nikken and Kawabe. In its notice about this memo to all priests and lay believers, Nichiren Shoshu tries to gloss over this issue. They now say that at the time High Priest Nikken was trying to refute� other sects' allegations about the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon. They now claim this was his elaboration of the correct view of the Dai-Gohonzon.� I've examined many documents regarding the allegations against the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon. I cannot find the information that Nikken related to Kawabe anywhere else. In the Kawabe Memo, Nikken says that there is evidence that in creating the Dai-Gohonzon somebody copied a Gohonzon conferred on Nichizen. But since this Gohonzon conferred on Nichizen is held at Taiseki-ji, no outsiders can worship it, much less compare it to the Dai-Gohonzon. In other words, Nikken's allegation against the Dai-Gohonzon is one of a kind, and something that never came from anyone else. It's Nikken's ownidea.
How did Nikken come to harbor such an appalling view? Eishuu Miyazaki, who was the head librarian of Rissho University, a school related to the Minobu sect, published a thesis to the effect that the Dai- Gohonzon is counterfeit in the publication Monthly Penn in October 1976. The content of his criticism of the Dai-Gohonzon was nothing new. To deal with Miyazaki's erroneous view, Nikken, then Study Department chief, wrote a rebuttal in the Nichiren Shoshu magazine Renge. In researching this article, he decided to inspect the Dai-Gohonzon himself and came to hold his own conclusions about its authenticity.
I have wondered for a long time why the Gakkai/NST didn't at least try to more professionally prove the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon. You would think that if he were to be criticized it would be for not bringing in a team of experts to assist him. It's not "lack of faith" to verify the truth of fundamental doctrines and traditions. What is really a shame is that Nichiren Shoshu doesn't do more to verify and conserve the literal accuracy of it's treasures and to share the results with the world. That is my opinion anyway. I think it is a little hypocritical for us in the Gakkai to put in Nikken's mouth concerns that we in the Gakkai are only justified in having ourselves. After all if we can do without the Dai-Gohonzon then we certainly don't need to think of it as a "super Gohonzon" or an "ur Gohonzon" that we "must" have faith in or fall into hell.
The revelation of the Kawabe memo has initiated a new wave of criticism towards Nikken within Nichiren Shoshu. Some say:
"This concerns the foundation of our sect. We should clarify the truth of the matter." And: "I wonder what the Administrative Office will do to cope with this disclosure."
For the next three years, toward the year 2002, which marks the 750th anniversary of the foundation of Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism, the Nikken sect aims to gather $120 million to build the new Hoando temple to house the Dai-Gohonzon. Nikken, who is soliciting this donation, is himself unclear about the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon. If he doubts the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon, then toward what purpose is he building the Hoando temple with temple members' money? This is indeed a case of religious fraud.
This revelation of Nikken's doubt about the authenticity of the Dai-Gohonzon is incomparably serious and undermines the� basis of faith in the current Nichiren Shoshu.*5
Note; Despite all of our protests and concern, Nichiren Shoshu is still happily raising money to build the new Hoanden to house the Dai-Gohonzon. It seems to be willing to do quite well without us.
More information and allegations on these subjects can be found at these links:
From the Gakkai view:
In defense of Nikken (at least a little):
