TagFounding Spirit

Marking the 30th anniversary of Ikeda Sensei’s September 1993 Harvard lecture, “Mahayana Buddhism and Twenty-First-Century Civilization.”

November 1941—Founding Soka Gakkai President Tsunesaburo Makiguchi is met by several officers of Japan’s special higher police at the Soka Kyoiku Gakkai’s Kyushu General Meeting. One blocks his path, shouting: “Isn’t it strange how the nation is praying to the Sun Goddess and you won’t even accept the talisman? You’re no patriot!” Composed, Mr. Makiguchi

Tsunesaburo Makiguchi greeted his students at the school gates every morning, come rain or shine. He considered all aspects of their well-being. Were they cold? Had they eaten a proper meal? He prepared lunch for students who would otherwise go without, discreetly placing the meals in the janitor’s room so the students wouldn’t feel ashamed.

Lecture on “The Quintessence of Thought and Philosophy”‘ On August 31, 1962, just over two years since becoming Soka Gakkai president, Ikeda Sensei began a five-year series of lectures to student division members on The Record of the Orally Transmitted Teachings, a text he referred to as “the quintessence of thought and philosophy” (The New

“Winter always turns to spring.” “The wise will rejoice while the foolish will retreat.” “Prayers offered by a practitioner of the Lotus Sutra will be answered just as an echo answers a sound.” “Although I and my disciples may encounter various difficulties, if we do not harbor doubts in our hearts, we will as a

This year marks the 64th anniversary of March 16, 1958, when second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda passed the baton of achieving kosen-rufu to the youth. At his inauguration as Soka Gakkai president on May 3, 1951, Mr. Toda vowed to take the organization’s membership from 3,000 to 750,000 households. Many assumed that he meant

In early 1952, the Soka Gakkai was still a fledgling people’s movement when second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda dispatched his young disciple Daisaku Ikeda, to Kamata Chapter to create a model for widely sharing the humanistic ideals of Nichiren Buddhism in a society still reeling from war. That February, the young Daisaku led the

After second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda’s passing on April 2, 1958, Ikeda Sensei (then Soka Gakkai chief of staff) not only grappled with the loss of his beloved mentor but also deeply considered how to carry on his mentor’s work of advancing kosen-rufu. He recalled Mr. Toda saying: “The Gakkai should advance a major

Nov. 14, 2021, marks 40 years since the completion of the “Song of Crimson.” After the first priesthood issue, the young men’s division members of Shikoku created the song together with Ikeda Sensei as an expression of their determination to secure the future of kosen-rufu together with their mentor. Let’s revisit the spirit behind “Song

Commemorating 150 Years Since Founding Soka Gakkai President Tsunesaburo Makiguchi's Birth

November 18, 1930

In the following excerpts taken from The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, part 3, Ikeda Sensei describes encountering his mentor, Josei Toda, for the first time on Aug. 14, 1947. A small group of people were making their way quickly through the darkening streets to a certain house in Kojiya, in the Kamata area of Tokyo’s

Napoleon declared that it was not Voltaire or Rousseau who brought an end to the old regime; newspapers did it. Victor Hugo said that without newspapers, the French Revolution would never have occurred. In any age where people come to the fore, you will find newspapers providing the impetus.—Ikeda Sensei On Saturday, Aug. 15, 1964, the World Tribune printed

This month, we celebrate the 20th anniversary of “Soar—Into the Vast Skies of Freedom! Into the New Century!” the last poem that Ikeda Sensei dedicated to the SGI-USA. Living Buddhism spoke with the SGI-USA leadership team from that time regarding the poem’s significance and how to study it for the future. This roundtable discussion includes:

Celebrating 55 Years of the World Tribune

There have always been songs that rouse hope in people’s hearts for the flourishing of culture and the emergence of the people. Shin’ichi wanted to compose a song of life that would inspire all members to build a new age of humanistic culture and humanism. SGI President Ikeda introduced the “Song of Human Revolution” at

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