Return to the Teachings of Nichidatsu Fujii.
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Fear and vice of the modern man derive from the nearly complete loss of spiritual pillars from individuals,
societies and nations, due to the belief in the general notions that knowledge
is power and justice is predisposed by the sword. Mahatma Gandhi’s criticism
that politics and economics that become distant from religious faith are like
the corpse of a dog that has no other use but to be buried is an exact reference
to this. An individual, society or nation that loses its spirituality is willfully
drawn into the whirlpool of struggle for existence driven by animal instinct
and thus blindly complies with the law of the survival of the fittest -- the
law of the jungle. Murder, destruction, rape and plunder are legitimized and all of the various scientific
discoveries and inventions are made to serve the purposes of war. Even religion
and morality are used as arguments to justify war. Thusly, not a shred of scruples
or regret is shown in conducting warfare in which even nuclear weapons--weapons
of mass destruction, weapons that raze cities and are extreme in their indiscriminate
brutality and inhumanity, are freely usable.
In such an environment created by modern civilization people are uncertain of even being able to protect their own safety and eventually there may no longer be a way for any sentient being to live on the surface of the Earth. There have been several civilizations appearing on the Earth since the ancient Egyptian civilization that is memorialized by the pyramids. All of these civilizations fell without being able to sustain themselves. Strangely, modern civilization likewise gives us the premonition that it has reached the apex of fear and vice, thus compelling us to envision the possible ultimate annihilation of humanity and the destruction of contemporary civilization. From time immemorial, the spiritual pillar is first built at the rise of every civilization. Similarly, a notable phenomenon that precedes the fall of every civilization is the collapse of religion and morality, the loss of its spiritual pillar. In the Ho-on-sho Maha Bodhisattva Nichiren illustrates this:
The Zhou dynasty1 lasted seven hundred years because of the great attention King Wen paid to propriety and filial piety. The early destruction of the Qin dynasty2 was caused by the tyranny of its First Emperor.
[1] 1027-771 B.C. [2] 221-207 B.C.
Translation by Yumiko Miyazaki, 10/3/02. Used by permission. © 2003. All rights reserved by author and translator.
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