Congratulations on the start of the Year of Hope and Victory!
I am delighted to see everyone setting forth with a fresh, indomitable spirit and the sun of time without beginning shining in their hearts, uniting with fellow Bodhisattvas of the Earth around the globe toward the Soka Gakkai’s centennial in 2030.
While enduring great persecution, Nichiren Daishonin declared: “What a joy it is for us to have been born in the Latter Day of the Law and to have shared in the propagation of the Lotus Sutra!” (“Letter to Niike,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 1026).
Inheriting Nichiren’s spirit, you, our noble members, have made steady progress in actualizing the worldwide propagation of the Mystic Law, an unparalleled achievement in the annals of Buddhism. You have bravely risen to the challenge of the ongoing coronavirus pandemic, imparting the light of hope and courage to people’s lives.
In times of hardship, our spirit has always been to summon forth the “heart of a lion king,” demonstrate our inner power to the fullest and triumph with solid unity in purpose. This is the essence of Nichiren Buddhism and the pride of Soka mentors and disciples.
The Daishonin stated clearly: “The Buddha nature that all [living] beings possess is called by the name Myoho-renge-kyo” (“A Sage and an Unenlightened Man,” WND-1, 131). Kosen-rufu is a movement to awaken the Buddha nature within our own lives and those of others. It is a far-reaching and never-ending endeavor to elevate the life state of all humankind to Buddhahood.
The next 10 years are especially crucial in terms of firmly establishing and perpetuating the mighty flow of kosen-rufu into the eternal future of the Latter Day of the Law. In this important year that marks the start of that decade, let us work and forge ahead together in an even greater harmony and joy, winning in each challenge that confronts us.
I hope you will also warmly and openheartedly support and foster our young successors of the youth division and future division. Together let’s accumulate treasures of the heart with a vibrant, youthful spirit, our lives overflowing with good fortune, and make wonderful strides in our human revolution that will serve as an inspiration for others.
May you continue to brightly illuminate your families, communities, workplaces and societies with the boundless light of the Mystic Law. And may you infinitely expand our Soka movement of hope and victory dedicated to realizing the Daishonin’s ideal of establishing the correct teaching for the peace of the land and the entire world!
My wife, Kaneko, and I are praying wholeheartedly for the health, happiness, security and longevity of you and your loved ones.
My very best wishes to you all.
Daisaku Ikeda
New Year’s Day, 2021
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