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Brief Guidances

Forging a Youthful Network of Bodhisattvas of the Earth

Words of Encouragement From Ikeda Sensei

This is not the first time you have shown such kindness and I do not know how to thank you. Not only am I, Nichiren, delighted, but I am sure that Shakyamuni Buddha is delighted as well. As the Lotus Sutra says, “I will surely rejoice and so will the other Buddhas” [The Lotus Sutra and Its Opening and Closing Sutras, p. 220].

“Reply to Rokuro Jiro,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 2, p. 680


The unwavering commitment to faith of our men’s division members is deeply reassuring. There is no doubt that Nichiren Daishonin is aware of, and all Buddhas rejoice at, their tireless behind-the-scenes efforts, even if they go unsung by others.

Courage, perseverance and wisdom are the hallmark of our “golden pillars” of kosen-rufu, who have withstood countless trials. The Soka family can bring forth its matchless strength when our men’s division members value the women’s division, who shine like the sun, and support the youth division, who embody the principle of “from the indigo, an even deeper blue.”

Now more than ever, with a firm conviction that everything has unfolded the way it has so that we “would meet with this affair” (“Reply to Yasaburo,” WND-1, 829), please take brilliant leadership with a “gentle and forbearing” spirit (see LSOC, 205).

Translated from the August 20, 2020 Seikyo Shimbun, the Soka Gakkai’s daily newspaper.

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