People will believe anything…
Posted: February 10, 2009 | Author: Doug | Filed under: Buddhism, Japan, Religion | 7 Comments »This is a good example of what happens when a dynamic personality, with a bold idea, leads unsuspecting people into ruin. A recent story came out from Japan where a CEO of a corporation tried to start his own currency, promising riches to anyone who would buy into his new currency, the Enten (円天).
A lot of people, mainly the elderly, bought into this scam and lost a lot of money until Kazutsugi was arrested. The article, among others I read, shows that Kazutsugi may be suffering from a case of megalomania as he predicts that he will save the world economy from ruin, and other incoherent ramblings. But despite the bold claims, another article stated that people believed him because of two reasons:
- One greed. People’s ideas of wealth diverged further and further from reality, as Kazutsugi’s promises got bigger.
- In one article, an elderly woman thought he was credible because he was a CEO of a successful business. How could he possibly be wrong?
People can be made to believe anything if a person is dedicated enough (regardless of whether it’s a good cause for an evil one), and can fool them with legitimate credentials. That, and if someone can play on your desires, you’ll do what he says.
I guess that’s why I get leery with any great spiritual leaders I see in Western Buddhist movements. Some of them I feel are motivated largely by ego and power than by genuine desires to change the world. Others, I fear, may be unstable, but unstable minds can be very powerful. I am sure some gurus, teachers and “masters” may be very good genuine people, but even the best people can make honest mistakes and misjudgments, or gradually corrupt when presented with too many gifts and attractive students. So, I tend to shy away from any group devoted to one spiritual leader or teacher, no matter how good his credentials or lineage is. It’s also why I tend to avoid groups with slick, polished websites. 
Also, one has to wonder what happens to that group after that leader passes away. History has shown they usually implode from in-fighting or just mismanagement.
I prefer stodgy, bureaucratic institutions that have been around for centuries, and may be boring and ineffective, but have a solid foundation that doesn’t depend on any one living person. But that’s just me.
Namu Kanzeon Bosatsu
Hello, this blog is about my life as a father, Buddhist and Japanophile. Any useful information I can pass along will hopefully make the 
That is a very sensible approach. Would probably save one a lot of suffering.
Hi NellaLou,
Welcome back to the JLR (I recognized you from your own blog
). Yes, I think this would help a lot of people avoid being let down, or even manipulated.
Hi Doug,
Nice post and one I certainly can’t disagree with. However, when you say….
“I guess that’s why I get leery with any great spiritual leaders I see in Western Buddhist movements. Some of them I feel are motivated largely by ego and power…”
…I can’t help but wonder who exactly you mean! I’m not asking you to name names, but I wonder if you have any other set of criteria for judging a Buddhist leader other than your own gut feelings? That would make a very useful post I think.
For example, let’s take Thich Nhat Hahn. Or the Dalai Lama. Would you include their groups when you say “I tend to shy away from any group devoted to one spiritual leader or teacher, no matter how good his credentials or lineage is”?
What, apart from your own instict (although that may be enough of course) would you say differentiates the value of one leader from another? After all, as you know, in some schools of Buddhism one’s relationship with one’s teacher is of huge importance and this is a vital question.
Anyway, thanks again for the post and all the best,
Marcus
Hi Marcus,
No I definitely wasn’t referring to either TNH or Dalai Lama. Beyond that, I prefer not to say who I had in mind. Coincidentally I attended a meditation class by one such teacher whom I was referring to, and found it pretty disappointing. I can’t put my finger on “why”, but just felt that the teachings were being exclusively filtered by this one teacher (who was somewhere far away anyways), and no one seemed to question it. I guess I am just being cynical.
I believe it’s important to revere one’s teachers (and I do), but at the same time not ride all our beliefs on what they say and think. Even the best teachers are still men (or women) who make mistakes. If we elevate them too much, we get disappointed. If the teacher is charismatic, but corrupt and a megalomaniac, we can get hurt or far worse. It’s a gamble I guess, and I prefer to hedge my bets on organizations that have been around long enough to not depend on one single personality for guidance.
Hello again,
And thank you so much for your comments! No, I didn’t think for a minute that you were talking about TNH or HH! LOL
And I agree entirely with the point you are making here, and I think it is a point that needs often to be made. Thank you.
But I do wonder if you could just say some more about what makes a teacher legitimate or not in your opinion beyond just gut instinct. Or perhaps that is the point – to go with one’s gut instinct.
But……
….when I first came across the organisation I took refuge with I had many reservations. It’s headed by a single teacher, whose writing appear on the walls of the temples, whose photo appears in every temple magazine, and whose followers show a huge amount of devotion.
On the one hand I was thinking ‘oh, oh, danger’ and on the other I was thinking ‘well, I’m sure it’s pretty much the same at Plum Village’.
Now, suppose I had stumbled across a dangerous cult? What are the things to look out for besides gut instinct? You see, focus on a single individual does not make for a cult – TNH and HH are the two best examples of personality dominated groups that are not cults by any stretch of the imagination.
So what danger signals do exist? I think that’d make for a great post.
And my single idea would be the group’s relationship to money.
At my temple I was never asked for a donation, never pressured into giving one, and when I think of all that I recieved from the temple compared to what little I gave, I am sure they lost a lot of money having me there! LOL
So I think one of the characteristics of a cult would be that they’d soon be taking money off you!
Anyway, I’m rambling, just want to say thanks again for a great post and a good discussion.
With palms together,
Marcus
Honestly, I couldn’t answer these questions. This is among the reasons why the old blog, old identity are gone: I didn’t want people to come to me for advice on religious issues. I am definitely not qualified to speak on it, I don’t want people to take what I say seriously, and I don’t want people holding me to my opinion 6 months later when I say something they don’t like or rankles the Western Buddhist establishment.
(I’m writing this in response to a number of queries made elsewhere, not you, Marcus.
)
Deep bow Doug. You’re very wise.