Paul Monaco .com

On September 8th, 1957 the second president of the Soka Gakkai Josei Toda made a declaration calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons (Full Text).

As this month marks the 50th anniversary since it’s writing, it has been the focus of many SGI discussion meetings and individual study.

On the surface, this proposal to me seems very feel-good and benign. But the more I read it, the less inclined I am to be a supporter of this document as written.

Josei Toda writes, “I wish to declare that anyone who ventures to use nuclear weapons, irrespective of their nationality or whether their country is victorious or defeated, should be sentenced to death without exception.”

To me, death without exception goes against one of the basic precepts of all schools of Buddhism, to not kill. It has always been my understanding that fundamentally Buddhist practitioners were against all forms of capital punishment and that ALL LIFE was precious.

Further more, this was written by a man who has in recent history, seen his country devastated by a nuclear attack, and there seems to be a degree of anger in his verbiage. Anger is one of the three poisons so often discussed in this practice and to me further distracts me from the celebration and support of this document as written.

In the spirit of Bodhisattva Never Disparaging, I most likely will not bring up these key points in my local discussion meetings, but would love to hear any comments here in this venue.

On Thursday, August 23rd I lost my last little buddy. At the age of 14 my precious Tabitha developed blood clots which paralyzed her from the waist down. She was rushed to The Animal Wellness Center but it was clear only one thing could relieve her pain.

Her passing was especially difficult for me as she seemed to represent the last thread that weaved the previous chapter of my life together. In the past 2-years I lost my wife Julie, cat Sylvester, dog Amber and my cats Samantha and Tabitha whom all shared my life simulteneously at one point.

There is a story in the Lotus Sutra, of the Buddha coming upon a crying woman and asked what makes her so sad. The woman tells the Buddha that she just lost her child and hopes to hear words of encouragement. The Buddha simply sits and weeps besides her.

There are times when we simply must endure our pain. The sun will rise tomorrow and life will go on.

Many thanks goes out to the Animal Wellness Center of Vernon and Doctor Donald Aronson and staff for all they’ve done for my little friends through the years. I give them my highest recommendations and strongly encourage anyone in the greater Vernon, CT area to give them your consideration. Their care goes beyond the clinical, treating each patient as their own.

Just a little teaser… The following day, my heart just broke coming home from work without my little furry friend waiting for me. Since Tabitha was a rescued kitty herself, I knew that I just had to turn this poison into medicine and take the opportunity to made some more lives a little better and I visited our local Humane Society. I will tell you of that story another time.

In an address given by President Daisaku Ikeda, the Lotus Sutra was referenced to define attributes pertaining to Bodhisattvas of the Earth. As a personal exercise and assessment I am going to compare these attributes to my own life, perhaps discovering new opportunities for development.

“[They are] firm in their intent and thought, with the power of great perseverance, the kind living beings delight to see” (LS, 216)

Since I’ve been chanting Nam-Myoho-Renge-Kyo I have certainly developed greater perseverance. Though I’m not satisfied with my current abilities to stick with the difficult problems and see them through to the end I am happy that I have been able to Chant and do Gongyo daily. Even during those times when I don’t exactly feel like doing it.

“They constantly delight in the Law of the Buddhas, diligently and with a single mind pursuing unsurpassed wisdom” (LS, 219)

Now this certainly applies! I’m constantly looking for connections between events that happen in my life and the principles of Buddhism. It never ends. Sure, one can see cause and effect is an obvious interaction but to fully understand it can unlock unlimited potential. Far to few have come to this realization outside the practice.

“Skillfully learning the bodhisattva way, [they are] unsoiled by worldly things like the lotus flower in the water” (LS, 222)

Okay, I’m going to have to study this point a little deeper. Being very new to this practice I have very much to learn but I will attempt to present my interpretation… Just as the lotus flower is able to bloom beatify from the dirty waters of the swamp, so can Bodhisattva grow through great diversity.

I’ve been divorced twice, widowed, laid-off, sued and bankrupt. Does that qualify for adversity? Though these have all happened in my life prior to discovering this Buddhism each time I overcame one of these obstacles I’ve always felt great with an “Oh yea, Bring it on!” attitude just waiting for my next battle.

“They expound various wonderful doctrines and their minds are without fear” (LS, 220)

I’m kinda doing that now, ain’t I? Also, I’ve been compiling a fully indexed and cross-referenced notebook of all my studies. It’s very thin now but I know it will be a wonderful reference to use throughout my practice.

“They are clever at difficult questions and answers… upright in dignity and virtue. They are praised by the Buddhas of the ten directions” (LS, 223)

And yet another development opportunity. One of my life-long challenges has been with using proper grammar. My parents learned English only after immigrating to the United States. They felt it import that I be brought up on English and spoke it in the house as the primary language. Learning English on their own they obviously were lacking in the finer points of the language, so you might say I picked up a few bad habits.