| I enjoyed this movie, and wanted to know a little more about it's background and political context. I did a little reading on the people behind it, so I checked out the "Original Creator" Daisaku Ikeda. First off, wow: there's been a ton of anime adaptations of this guy's work. Mostly OVA's released between 1983 to 2010. That kind of output is pretty unusual, right? So I looked him up, turns out he's the founder of Soka Gakkai International, an offshoot of Soka Gakkai. This is a modern day religious movement based on the writings of a Buddhist monk from the 13th century. It also happens to be tied directly with the formation of the Komeito, a right-centre political party that has been in a long time coalition with the ruling Liberal Democratic Party. I know that the label of "Cult" has some very strong normative association, and one shouldn't be too hasty in it's usage. But looking them up online, there appears to be some pretty heavy allegations against the Soka Gakkai. Of particular interest to me are allegations of idolising the aforementioned Daisaku Ikeda. Not only did he found the Soka Gakkai International division, he was also the third president of the main organization. Moreover, it seems that his writings have subsequently been given great importance to the group. In the allegations of cult-like activities, Daisaku Ikeda features as the cult leader. I don't know what entirely to make of this. Quite frankly, I wouldn't trust the testimony of many of those making the accusations. However, the sheer volume of them makes it harder to ignore. I don't have the expertise or interest to really determine the truth of the matter. I know it's rather callous, but I just want to know the story of how this anime and other Soka Gakkai productions came to be made in the first place. |
| Damn I didn't knew about that |
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by OldManHands
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Feb 16, 2021 5:43 AM |