Soka University Study Abroad Student

[nottu]

[Osakadave]

Well, I may have just pissed off the very person who helped me, but I had to send her this email. I need her reassurance that this is safe. This is what I sent to her,

"Dear Mazzotta Sensee,

I'm sorry to trouble you, but a few worrisome articles have been brought to my attention and I would like some reassurance that this university is both safe and well respected in Japan. As you know, I would like to conduct business with other Japanese organizations, will this university help or hinder me? Also, I am Christian, will this be a problem while I am there? Please answer at your earliest convenience.

Articles references in the wiki entry on Soka Gakkai:
1. http://www.time.com/time/internation...120/japan.html
2. http://www.nytimes.com/1999/11/14/wo...-in-japan.html
3. http://www.rickross.com/reference/gakkai/gakkai39.html (more articles here: http://www.rickross.com/groups/gakkai.html )

From a site covering cults around the world:
4. http://www.culthelp.info/index.php?o...d=57&Itemid=11

From a blogger (both good & bad) but nevertheless insightful:
5. http://yellowpeep.blogspot.com/2006/...les-japan.html
6. http://yellowpeep.blogspot.com/2006/...-of-north.htmlReply With Quote"

What do you think?

Be careful how you approach this person, especially with the "c" word, as they are a member. I had a rather negative experience dealing with someone who was pushing $cientology as part of a class I was taking `0 years ago (Butch Read for anyone in the Osaka area), after I looked into it and started asking questions.

Ask your minister/priest and parents for some help.

[Yokohammer]

Did you try wielding a chainsaw?

Didn't have one handy, unfortunately.

[FG Lurker]

Well, I may have just pissed off the very person who helped me, but I had to send her this email. I need her reassurance that this is safe.

[... Snip ...]

What do you think?

Ohh, to be young and naive. What do you expect her to say?

As a christian, I imagine you believe that going to a christian university would be a "safe" thing to do, right? From my perspective though, christianity is just another cult. A large cult to be sure, but a cult all the same. (If you think about it objectively, christianity is the cult of jesus christ. No, I don't really expect you to be able to think about it objectively...)

Anyway, to a gakkai member it looks the same with regards to their own universities. I can't imagine that a non-gakkai member would encourage you to go to a gakkai university any more than I would encourage someone to go to a christian university (or any other cult controlled university for that matter).

Since gakkai doesn't match with your own particular cult and since Japanese people in general (well, 90% of them anyway) don't want anything to do with gakkai, you should stay away. There are hundreds if not thousands of universities in Japan and a high percentage of them are seriously short of students. You can find another university.

[Doctor Stop]

There are hundreds if not thousands of universities in Japan and a high percentage of them are seriously short of students. You can find another university.

And a high percentage of those so-called universities exist only as a means of organizing club activities. If you consider Soka Gakkai beliefs as being just another kind of academically irrelevant club, there's not much that separates Soka University from other Japanese universities.

[Takechanpoo]

looks like Sillgirl and Dr Stop are Soka believers or its stakeholders.
My harmless post depicting tacit common knowledges between ordinary Japanese was deleted as dp.
creepy dudes

[Mulboyne]

...My harmless post depicting tacit common knowledges between ordinary Japanese was deleted as dp...

If you mean this one:

Probably some Soka believer might already detected and observed this thread.
They always hide themselves next to you and prick up your ears.
Yeah, you know, that is like North Korea or former communist bloc. And this is the reason Japanese people never talk about Soka in public.
Be careful, dudes.

It's on page 2 of this thread.

[FG Lurker]

And a high percentage of those so-called universities exist only as a means of organizing club activities. If you consider Soka Gakkai beliefs as being just another kind of academically irrelevant club, there's not much that separates Soka University from other Japanese universities.

You mean apart from typical club activities being harmless time wasting bullshit and gakkai being a freakzoid cult, right? Right?

[Mulboyne]

Personally, I don't want anything to do with Soka Gakkai but if I was young and had the opportunity to come to Japan on an exchange for a few months, I might consider the Soka Uni programmes. On balance, I reckon the experience of the country would trump the sponsor. It would be little like having a dull homestay host family.

Is any one suggesting that the programmes are actually a front for some kind of indoctrination regime? I have the impression that Soka University operates in Japan on the same kind of level as a place like Brigham Young University in the US. I don't have a lot of time for mormons either but I wouldn't particulary worry about someone spending a term or two there any more than I would about someone heading to Notre Dame. Sure, a secular institution would be preferable but, if there aren't other options, then a religious-funded body isn't always bad if the opportunity is unique.

Then again, I would have reservations about the Sun Moon University in Korea so I guess it's just a question of how invidious you think a religion is, mainstream or not.

[Taro Toporific]

.... typical [university] club activities being harmless time wasting bullshit and gakkai being a freakzoid cult, right?

She-e-e-it. Japan is a "freakzoid cult, right?"

[FG Lurker]

She-e-e-it. Japan is a "freakzoid cult, right?"

I agree, but the Japanese cult not only doesn't try to recruit/convert others they don't allow outside members at all.

[ebrown42]

Here are the two replies I recieved;

Dear Emily,

Thank you for sharing your concerns with me. I assure you that there is
no problem either with Soka University or Soka Gakkai. Please be aware
that media/internet is full of untruthful information. As Dr. Mazzotta
mentioned, Soka Gakkai has been attacked by media, due to jealousy for
its rapid growth and success, and has always won in the court and has
proven its justice.

KSU has already verified Soka University's status and considers it as an
ideal partner. From GSU, Dr. Takatori, Dr. Reati (Chair of MCL), and
Dr. Reimann (Director of Asian Studies and a specialist of Japanese
politics) visited Soka University and all of them strongly feel that
Soka University is a great partner. Dr. Takatori, who has seen
criticisms against Soka Gakkai was reluctant about the exchange program
initially. But her opinion changed completely after meeting the faculty
of Soka University 3 times and visiting the campus twice. She is a
Christian, too, and she finds Soka Univerity as an institution open to
students of any religions and have no concerns about sending GSU
students there. In fact, she considers Soka University as a much better
partner than Osaka University. Soka University is not a Buddhist
university. It is just that it was founded by Mr. Ikeda who is also a
president of Soka Gakkai International. To further illustrate this
point, Christian Universities in Japan, courses on Christianism is
required and full-time faculty must be a Christian. Soka University, on
the other hand, requires NO courses on Buddhism, and faculty members
don't have to be Soka Gakkai members.

Lastly a few notes about Founder Ikeda. His humanitarian activities
have been recognized world wide. Just to mention a few things related
to America, he is an honoraly citizen of Atlanta/Georgia along with many
other cities in US. He was invited by UCLA and Harvard University as a
guest speaker.

I hope this information helps.
Mazzotta

and

Dear Emily,



Please rest insured that KSU diligently verified Soka University of Japan's suitability as a partner institution before entering the academic agreement.



In addition, in my experience Soka University of Japan is a fine an well respected institution. Having studied at Soka University has never hindered me in any way. On the contrary, the command of the Japanese language and culture that I gained by studying at Soka has resulted in high profile employment, including for instance Japanese-Italian interpretation for the Italian embassy in Tokyo, or a job as journalist for the largest Italian news wire-service.



I do not believe that fact that you are Christian should be a problem at all. You will be among dozens of students coming from different countries, cultures, and faiths. That said, one of the purposes of exchange programs is to be exposed to different cultures. If exposure to different cultures is a problem for you, you should reconsider participating to this exchange program.



As for the articles, they and are quite outdated and refer to Soka Gakkai and not Soka University. The exchange is with Soka University.



However, even if not relevant to your exchange, you may want to be aware of some background. Soka Gakkai supports a political party, the Komeito. In Japan, political attacks take often the form of allegation about people and institutions. There is a large part of the media business that thrives on this objectionable practice. Sometimes the foreign media piggy back on less than reputable Japanese sources with mixed results. If you search the web, you will find large quantities of material criticizing as well as praising Soka Gakkai. As you know, on the web anybody can say anything, but as far as I know, Soka Gakkai has always been able to come out clean from accusations in court trials.



To summarize, if your purpose is to learn Japanese, better understand the Japanese culture, and become a global citizen, I believe you will be exceptionally well served by participating to the exchange with Soka Univeristy of Japan. Don't expect it to be easy, though.



At any rate, with respect to these or some broader questions you may have, you need not to take my, or anyone else's word for it, as you can go and find out for yourself. I have cc'ed Ms. Takayanagi, Dr. Paraka and Dr. Noiset. Please feel free to ask any other questions you may have to any of us.



All the best,



Honestly, I probably will go, especially after reading the words of my teachers.

[FG Lurker]

Honestly, I probably will go, especially after reading the words of my teachers.

I wouldn't go but I wish you luck (sincerely).

May as well hang out on the board, you're about to become an FG anyway. Would be interested in hearing about your your gakkai adventure goes too.

[Osakadave]

[quote="ebrown42"]Here are the two replies I recieved]

The tl,dr version of all that is "don't worry, the internet is full of lies about us by people who want to harm us".

How did you expect them to reply? "Yes, it's all true"?

Color me sceptical, as this is almost exactly how the $cientiology guy reacted.

[jingai]

My understanding of SGI is that they're a harmless Buddhist sect, not like some of the more extreme cults in Japan. I think the explanation above that they're persecuted because of ties to the Komeito party are ridiculous. Soka Gakkai and Komeito haven't been officially connected for decades and I don't see what Komeito has done to incur such ire. I think any ill-will is more likely aimed at SGI directly.

I think the biggest concerns are whether the institution is academically competent. Try to find other students from your school who did the program and interview them.

[Osakadave]

Also, check some reviews:

And yes, within the campus there is certainly discrimination. A whole bunch of faculty and staff have left the university because they were treated differently from their counterparts that were Soka Gakkai (SGI) members (the organization that built Soka University). They were paid less simply because they were not SGI members and not because they had less credentials.

Among students, there is also certainly an in-group out-group phenomenon that resembles dicrimination. Studying at Soka as a non-SGI member (I say "MEMBER" because they have this in-group out-group thing and refer to themselves as "members") is hard, isolating, and extremely overwhelming - even if you are a social person like I am. There is constant pressure to conform to Japanese culture as well as SGI culture. Also, everything seems to revolve around "THE Founder" - SGI President Daisaku Ikeda. It is almost as if he is deified. Students say that it is merely appreciation for his founding the school. But anyone who knows anything about the Soka Gakkai would know that this is an extension of SGI's utmost devotion and "worship" of its President Emeritus Daisaku Ikeda.

Students may say they love it because it is diverse but it is diverse only in as far as there are token representatives of different races/countries. By far, MOST students are either Japanese or of Japanese ancestry (i.e., Japanese-American, Japanese-Canadian, etc.) and they count this as diversity. The biggest issue is that MOST students are "members" of Soka Gakkai, a dangerous and militant cult that hides behind its slogan of peace and Buddhism - although there is much debate on whether this cult is itself worthy of being associated with peace nor Buddhism. There is certainly no true cultural nor IDEOLOGICAL diversity (i.e., political and religious). In terms of political ideology, the SGI swings toward the democratic party and students (the majority of who are SGI - domestic and even foreign students) generally follow. There is nothing wrong with choosing a party you identify with per se --- but where there is no diversity in thought there would be no meaningful debate because everybody thinks the same way. And this is supposed to be a university!

All in all, if you are an SGI member then this would be a terrific university for you! No doubt about it. But If you are not an SGI member then you will surely regret it --- that's unless you are converted into the SGI and of course at that point you'll love it. And there is certainly pressure (from students not the administration) to convert non-SGI members. Oh, and you will inevitabley be well-versed (although reluctantly) with Japanese culture.

Note to all: Take the other reviews with a grain of salt, most if not all of them were probably written by SGI members who would naturally and understandably be very comfortable studying at SUA. I can sense that they are SGI members from the words they use and the way they say them. As I said before, it is a great place for SGI members but a terrible one for those who are not.

http://www.viewpoints.com/Soka-University-of-America-review-ed166

[Samurai_Jerk]

Ohh, to be young and naive. What do you expect her to say?

As a christian, I imagine you believe that going to a christian university would be a "safe" thing to do, right? From my perspective though, christianity is just another cult. A large cult to be sure, but a cult all the same. (If you think about it objectively, christianity is the cult of jesus christ. No, I don't really expect you to be able to think about it objectively...)

Anyway, to a gakkai member it looks the same with regards to their own universities. I can't imagine that a non-gakkai member would encourage you to go to a gakkai university any more than I would encourage someone to go to a christian university (or any other cult controlled university for that matter).

Since gakkai doesn't match with your own particular cult and since Japanese people in general (well, 90% of them anyway) don't want anything to do with gakkai, you should stay away. There are hundreds if not thousands of universities in Japan and a high percentage of them are seriously short of students. You can find another university.

I don't know anything about Soka U so I can't comment on whether or not it's possible to go there without being constantly harrassed, but your average mainstream Christian university is definitely not a hard place for a non Christian to attend and practice their own faith (or lack thereof).

[Takechanpoo]

This thread...creepy, creepy, creepy.

By the way, recently Goto Tadamasa, ex-Goto-gumi oyabun, released his autography in which he disclosed the relationship between Soka and Goto-gumi.
According to some rumor, looks like Soka members is buying up this books in bookstores all over Japan. In fact, the used books are more expensive than the new ones.

[Greji]

This thread...creepy, creepy, creepy.

By the way, recently Goto Tadamasa, ex-Goto-gumi oyabun, released his autography in which he disclosed the relationship between Soka and Goto-gumi.
According to some rumor, looks like Soka members is buying up this books in bookstores all over Japan. In fact, the used books are more expensive than the new ones.

Good post Take. I wonder if there are any summaries of this on the net anywhere?

[IkemenTommy]

Please be aware
that media/internet is full of untruthful information. As Dr. Mazzotta
mentioned, Soka Gakkai has been attacked by media, due to jealousy for
its rapid growth and success, and has always won in the court and has
proven its justice.

Does FG count as being one of them?

She is a
Christian, too, and she finds Soka Univerity as an institution open to
students of any religions and have no concerns about sending GSU
students there. (etc etc We are a multi-faceted organization...)

I always love how every university out there tries to reach out to potential students that they are somehow hip, when they are pretty backwards when it comes to student diversity.

[Marked Trail]

Honestly, I probably will go, especially after reading the words of my teachers.

[SIZE="5"]OH YEAH! [/SIZE]

[YT]nBeUGqeYsQg[/YT]

[ebrown42]

lol Yall post as though I don't intend to have a back up plan in case this place really is as coo coo bananas as many here would seem to believe. First, I'm having a neighbor who has been an employee of Totousa look into Soka by asking his colleagues and doing some digging of his own. He hasn't heard of this group before. I will also have enough money set aside that should I feel the need I will return home at the drop of a hat. Thanks to my neighbor I will also have many contacts in Tokyo who will allow me to stay at their place while I make travel arrangements. Look, I understand that there is risk involved, but I'm not passing up the opportunity to at least try and experience it. Who knows, none of what anyone has said, which are all stories created by rumors (There hasn't been one first hand account, just stories), may be true. It could be a great university and the Soka Gakkai could be a harmless religious cult like any other religion. We'll just have to wait and see.

[Yokohammer]

... It could be a great university and the Soka Gakkai could be a harmless religious cult like any other religion. We'll just have to wait and see.

Fair enough. Go for it.
But please keep us updated about the experience.
Could be interesting.

[Mike Oxlong]

Their US campus sounds interesting...

Soka's initial U.S. academic beachhead in rustic Calabasas met with bustle-wary neighbors. After an extended development fight, the 660 acres today may be home to only half a dozen linguistics students destined for jobs as language instructors for Japanese Soka emissaries.

The action shifted to Aliso Viejo in 2001, with promises of a nonsectarian institution with a first-rate library and renowned secular faculty. The new master-planned community was accommodating. Campus athletic and arts attractions, as well as the library, were open to the public. Popular U.S. author Joe McGinniss was a notable instructor hire.

But reality began to kick in when McGinniss and others complained of interference from on high. Several staff have left--McGinniss' contract wasn't renewed--and one sued. Another filed for arbitration and lost.

Earnest university officials are at pains to showcase an arts-and-letters idyll devoted to the betterment of mankind. Soka U insists it is an independent, nonsectarian school not even as religiously influenced as, say, Brigham Young or Notre Dame universities. But at least a majority of Soka U's trustees have direct Soka Gakkai connections. Today 70% of matriculants are Soka Gakkai members.

Some secular faculty felt squeezed. The university was sued in 2002 by Linda Southwell, a fired fine arts professor. Her complaint disputed a "commitment to rigorous academic endeavor, free and open dialogue, and an appreciation for human diversity" when "in reality the curriculum is intended to reflect cult beliefs and perspectives" and speech and association are limited. She also claimed Soka members were favored faculty.

Soka University settled the discrimination and wrongful termination in a "satisfactory" manner that included a confidentiality clause, Southwell's lawyer Brian Glicker says. Another professor, who quit her "frightening" job, begs off discussing the specifics of her beef.

Glicker maintains he's heard from several other non-Soka Gakkai International staff members. "Many or most non-SGI staff or faculty are at least considering leaving," says one disaffected professor. "The university was only able to hire 7 or 8 of the 21 faculty it tried to hire." University officials say they'd not heard this and attribute departures to the growing pains of a new school. They claim an 81% retention rate.

An initial goal of 1,200 students remains a ways off. Has the academic friction been a roadblock? The university says more hiring and building await full accreditation, which it expects soon. On campus, the image is of serenity and strength. The buildings use the same stone featured in the Colosseum in Rome. Ikeda insisted on using it because he intends his university to last 2,000 years, a Soka U spokesman explains. The campus also sports a security camera network rivaling that of any casino.

The university includes a sizable "guest house" and a larger "athenaeum" overlooking a regional park. The sumptuous residence is set aside for VIPs, such as, in the words of one university official, "the president of Venezuela or Daisaku Ikeda." It has ornate furniture, a portrait of Ikeda and many artworks, all covered in white cloth until the VIPs show.

http://www.forbes.com/forbes/2004/0906/126_print.html

[Doctor Stop]

You mean apart from typical club activities being harmless time wasting bullshit and gakkai being a freakzoid cult, right? Right?

Universities are not about wasting time, whether in club activities or cult activities, but that's all that most Japanese universities have to offer.

[FG Lurker]

Universities are not about wasting time, whether in club activities or cult activities, but that's all that most Japanese universities have to offer.

I agree 100%. However given the choice between general club bullshit and religious zealots I don't think it should take any (normal) person much time to make a choice.

[sillygirl]

looks like Sillgirl and Dr Stop are Soka believers or its stakeholders.
My harmless post depicting tacit common knowledges between ordinary Japanese was deleted as dp.
creepy dudes

No, I was referring to you offering your services as a tour guide....deleted dp was me being a twat and double posting....

Carry on dear.....

[BULL]

It could be a great university and the Soka Gakkai could be a harmless religious cult like any other religion. We'll just have to wait and see.

Harmless religious cult seems like quite the oxymoron. If you're going to study Japanese then it sounds like a great deal. Just don't buy into any of their BS and you'll be fine. As mentioned before don't buy the newspaper, it's crap and expensive... Good luck.

[Greji]

me being a twat

Am I supposed to be surprised by this revelation?

[sillygirl]

Am I supposed to be surprised by this revelation?

Nah, you knew it all along. Just your Alzheimers kicking in.