All true religions have historically placed great value on education. Shakyamuni's dialogues with his disciples (sangha) resembled academic seminars. After his death a series of three councils were called to collect Buddhist canon. Great Buddhist universities flourished for centuries wherever Buddhism spread: India, China, and Indo-China.
Befitting any great world religion, Nichiren Buddhism should be accompanied by a great study movement that will enrich practitioners and infuse society-at-large with Buddhist values.
Questions for Shinga Takikawa and Yuzui Murata:
If NST is serious about education why is there such a paucity of books and study material? Why are NST study materials so limited when compared to those of other Buddhist schools (including the SGI)?
Why has NST been so lax in providing its members with English translations of the Gosho? Why do its members have to pay exhorbitant prices to purchase used copies of English translations from Amazon resellers?
In comparison to the Sokagakkai and SGI-USA websites (www.sgi.org and www.sgi-usa.org) why are the NST websites so weak in content? What are the plans to change this?
Although NST has a monthly magazine, why doesn't it have a weekly newspaper such as the SGI's World Tribune to share news about the members?
Why does the NST study magazine feature articles by priests so prominently and relegate the voices of laypeople to margins? There are lay members who have been practicing for more than 30 years. Don't their knowledge and wisdom match those of much younger priests?
Why don't NST study materials seriously take on real world problems such as violence, racism, poverty, environmental degradation, and education?
