January 2019 Living Buddhism

by Victoria SmithNew Orleans Living Buddhism: Thank you, Victoria, for sharing your experience with us! As a mother, physician and women’s leader of South Central Zone, you have tremendous responsibilities. How do you manage everything? Victoria Smith: There is no such thing as balance; it’s about chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo to the Gohonzon and manifesting the wisdom to

Ikeda Sensei’s Lecture Series [36]
Humanism—Action Based on Gratitude Is the Essence of Nichiren Buddhism

Seventy years later, lessons gleaned from Daisaku Ikeda’s time working for Josei Toda’s company. August 14, 1947. Daisaku Ikeda was 19 years old when he attended his first Soka Gakkai discussion meeting amid the devastation of a war-torn, defeated Japan. His eldest brother, Kiichi, had been killed during World War II and his family home

Nichiren Daishonin taught his disciples to proceed in the spirit of “many in body, one in mind.” This was his clear guidance. Acting in accord with his teachings is the mark of a true practitioner. In modern terms, “many in body, one in mind” means an organization. “Many in body” means that each person is

Vigilantly Safeguarding Buddhism

A: Usually when one scores a “victory,” we can clearly measure it. In sports, for instance, the team that scores the most points wins, and on an exam, a score of 90 or above earns one an A. In the realm of faith, Nichiren Daishonin teaches, “Buddhism primarily concerns itself with victory or defeat” (“The

The Mentor-Disciple Relationship and the Journey of Kosen-rufu

The final installment of SGI President Ikeda’s serialized novel The New Human Revolution was published on September 8, 2018, in the Seikyo Shimbun. On October 3, the newspaper carried the following article by SGI Vice President Hiromasa Ikeda, in which he shares his views on how to approach studying the series. SGI President Ikeda was

by SGI Vice President Hiromasa Ikeda

Chapter Summary Only five months after becoming the third Soka Gakkai President, Shin’ichi Yamamoto set out on his first overseas trip on October 2, 1960, carrying in his heart his mentor second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda’s injunction that the world was his stage. The first step was taken in Hawaii. However, due to a miscommunication,

Chapter Summary The second city the delegation visited on this travel for peace was San Francisco, where the United States–Japan Security Treaty of 1952 was signed together with the Treaty of Peace with Japan [also known as The San Francisco Peace Treaty]. Shin’ichi reflected on Japan’s unrest over the new security treaty, with those in support

Chapter Summary The scene moves from Seattle to Chicago, then to Toronto, Canada, dressed in autumn foliage. A woman, carrying a large tape recorder and out of breath, arrived at the hotel in Seattle. She did so out of her sincere desire to record Shin’ichi’s guidance for her fellow members. Though feeling ill, Shin’ichi continued to

Chapter Summary New York City at the time of Shin’ichi’s first visit to the metropolis, starting on October 13, 1960. Their next stop was the United States’ largest city, New York. The delegation visited the United Nations Headquarters, where Shin’ichi witnessed the representatives of newly independent nations of Africa. Seeing their vibrant expressions, Shin’ichi said: “The twenty-first

Chapter Summary On their way from New York to São Paulo, Brazil, Shin’ichi outlined his plans to establish a chapter in Brazil. Jujo was taken aback by Shin’ichi’s tenacity and sense of mission for worldwide kosen-rufu, for in spite of violent turbulence on board and with his dire health, Shin’ichi was thinking of how to advance

This installment, published in the October 24, 2018, issue of the Seikyo Shimbun, focuses on passages from Nichiren Daishonin’s writings that Ikeda Sensei discusses in volume 1 of The New Human Revolution. PASSAGE 1 “The great pure Law of the Lotus Sutra will be spread far and wide throughout Japan and all the other countries of Jambudvipa.”

This monthly encouragement by SGI President Daisaku Ikeda was originally publishedin the December 2018 issue of the Daibyakurenge, the Soka Gakkai’s monthly study journal. Though unseen, the Buddhas and bodhisattvas throughout the universe are solemnly watching all the efforts we are making in our Buddhist practice. That is why absolutely nothing that we do in