The following message by Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada was translated from the October 2025 issue of the Soka Gakkai’s monthly study journal, Daibyakurenge.
Life is a grand drama, and each of us is the protagonist, striving to fulfill our great mission of worldwide kosen-rufu.
Ikeda Sensei lived as a true protagonist, embodying the noble spirit of the mentor-disciple relationship to the highest degree. When he took his first step on the path of worldwide kosen-rufu on Oct. 2, 1960, he carried in the inner pocket of his suit jacket a photo of his mentor, second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda, with Toda’s final words—“The world is your true stage”—resounding in his heart. At the very core of this great human drama was the shared struggle of mentor and disciple.
The expansion of kosen-rufu in every country and community has always begun with one courageous individual—someone who stood up alone with the vow “together with my mentor.” Nichiren Daishonin described the start of his own great struggle as “the single speck of dust that marks the beginning of Mount Sumeru or the single drop of dew that spells the start of the great ocean” (“The Blessings of the Lotus Sutra,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 672). In that same spirit, our fellow members throughout the world have become such “single specks of dust” and “single drops of dew”—protagonists of kosen-rufu who have boldly opened new paths. Their shared struggle is a “wonderful story [that will endure into the future]” (“Letter to the Brothers,” WND-1, 499).
In October of 1967 and again in 1970, Sensei engaged in a series of dialogues with Count Richard Coudenhove-Kalergi (1894–1972), renowned as a pioneer of European integration. These discussions, later published [in Japanese] as Bunmei: Nishi to higashi (Civilization: East and West), marked the true beginning of Sensei’s numerous dialogues with leading thinkers worldwide.
Today, the Soka Gakkai was embroiled in the so-called Freedom of Speech Incident of 1970 [when it sought to defend itself against malicious libel].[1] Despite the surrounding controversy, Ikeda Sensei’s gaze was set firmly on bringing true happiness to people throughout the world. Through profound insight and leadership, he set a powerful example of how the Soka Gakkai could open itself to the wider world.
At a time when people everywhere are beset with problems and crises, the sight of members praying morning and evening for “peace throughout the world and the happiness of all living beings” and taking action for the sake of others shines as a powerful resurgence of the Buddha’s compassion. It is a force that infuses society with fresh hope, inspires human renewal and can rightly be called a modern-day miracle. The Soka Gakkai, in Count Coudenhove-Kalergi’s words, represents “a revival of Buddhism, the world’s first fraternal movement.”[2]
This month, many specialized divisions and departments within the Soka Gakkai, including the Academic and Science Division, the Victory Isles Division and the Business Professionals Division, mark their respective anniversaries. It is deeply inspiring to see members of all such groups—artists, writers and authors, medical workers, scholars, business professionals, those involved in community activities, educators and members with international experience and interests—winning trust by demonstrating actual proof in their lives, causing flowers of benefit to blossom in their diverse fields of endeavor.
A true actor in the grand drama of the Mystic Law does not seek the spotlight. Rather, they brighten the world from within—through the principle of “illuminating and manifesting [one’s] true nature” (“The Essentials for Attaining Buddhahood,” WND-1, 746). In the afterword to The New Human Revolution, Sensei affirmed: “As long as suffering and misery exist anywhere on our planet, … our mentor-disciple journey to realize the great vow for kosen-rufu will continue forever.” In the spirit of Shin’ichi Yamamoto, the novel’s protagonist, let us each make our lives a magnificent stage for fulfilling the mission of worldwide kosen-rufu—and joyfully dance upon it together with our treasured fellow members!
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