Know Your Mentor-disciple (Nichiren Buddhism)

The enlightenment and happiness of both self and others:  A true mentor in Buddhism  is one who enables us to remember this aspiration. A true _______, meanwhile, is one who follows the mentor's teaching, who recalls that this most profound ________ is in fact their own, and who, convinced from the bottom of their heart that this is indeed so, launches into action in accord with the mentor's words. ~ Daisaku Ikeda

Fill in the blank:  The human ______ is the strongest force there is. As long as our ______ remains unbroken, there is no defeat. In life, ______ual defeat always precedes actual defeat. Guard against laziness, cowardice, carelessness, impatience, resignation and despair which corrode the human spirit and sow the seeds of defeat.

"Buddhism explains ______ in order to reveal how to transform it. Put another way, to hold the doctrine of _____  over people without fully clarifying the means for changing it is to wrongly interpret Buddhism. Such teachings only cause people to remain bound by the shackles of fate." ~ Daisaku Ikeda

Which one of these individuals would have seen King Kong vs. Godzilla in a movie theater?

• Winston Churchill

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Mahatma Gandhi

• Josei Toda

• Daisaku Ikeda

Who said:  "Do not be angry with people who are weak. That is the mark of a coward. There are plenty of things to be angry about in the world--people wielding political or religious authority who have been blinded by money, for example! That is the kind of evil young people should direct their rage at. Be angry about that, and you'll never lose your temper about trifling matters."

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Josei Toda

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Dr. Bruce Banner

Youthfulness originates from _____ _______ (two words). There are young people who look surprisingly old, and there are elderly people who, no matter how the years pass, always sparkle with the glow of youth, an inner vitality. ~ Daisaku Ikeda

Which of these men is the founder of the Soka (value creation) schools,  "a nondenominational school system based on an ideal of fostering each student's unique creative potential and cultivating an ethic of peace, social contribution and global consciousness", a school system that runs from kindergarten through graduate study, including a university in Tokyo and in Aliso Viejo, California?

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Josei Toda

• John Dewey

Who said:  "Somebody has to do something, and it's just incredibly pathetic that it has to be us."

• Josei Toda

• Winston Churchill

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Jerry Garcia (Grateful Dead)

• Che Guevarra

Who said:  "It's a question of whether we're going to go forward into the future, or past to the back."

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Pat Sajak

• Josei Toda

• Dan Quayle

Who said:  "Let's always strive to practice 'actual faith.' Let's stick to the actual without deviating a single step. 'Theoretical faith' is a purely intellectual pursuit, of a merely philosophical dimension. It is faith in words only. 'Actual faith,' on the other hand, is a living reality in terms of both our inner conviction and all aspects of daily life. In other words, it means giving practical expression to our faith. It means to employ our faith to the fullest, both in our work--whatever our profession, be it a bookseller or a schoolteacher--and in our private lives."

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Josei Toda

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Dr. Martin Luther King

Which of these 2 individuals was born in Tokyo, 1928?

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Shirley Temple

• Josei Toda

• Risako Uchida

Who said:  "It is not my purpose to debate matters of victory or defeat in war or the pros and cons of policies and ideologies; rather, I grieve at the thought that war causes countless people to lose their husbands or wives, and leaves countless people seeking for lost children or parents."

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Mahatma Gandhi

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Josei Toda

• Charles de Gaulle

Who said:  "Apprehension and evaluation are not the same. [The famous story of the samurai] becoming terrified seeing a ghost in withered pampas grasses is an example arising from misapprehension. We must avoid making judgments about people or events from emotion or supposition. To evaluate on the basis of rumor or reputation is risky. We must avoid evaluating even the words of a spouse or close friend on the basis of misapprehension."

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Josei Toda

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Danny Nagashima

Who said:  "A thousand sheep cannot hold their own against a single lion. A single courageous individual dedicated to the Great Good can accomplish far more important things than a thousand cowards who practice only passive and minimal good. It's not the number, but the quality of people that matters."

• Tsunesaburo Makiguchi

• Josei Toda

• Martin Luther King

• Daisaku Ikeda

• Kahlil Gibran

_______ extirpates fear, banishes sorrow, and kindles hope. It is a revolution through which we rewrite our own destiny. _______ entails an intense challenge to believe in yourself and stop diminishing yourself. To belittle yourself is to disparage Buddhism and the Buddha within your life.