The following is an excerpt from a poem Ikeda Sensei composed in 2010 to commemorate Soka Gakkai Day, May 3, which also marked the 50th anniversary of his inauguration as third Soka Gakkai President. The original text appeared in the May 3, 2010, Seikyo Shimbun, the Soka Gakkai’s daily newspaper.
Ah, our May 3!
Unforgettable May 3!
It is the day
my mentor, Josei Toda,
became president.
It is also the day that,
sharing my mentor’s commitment,
I succeeded him as president.
After weathering the cold winds
of February and March,
and viewing the cherry blossoms
of the spring month of April,
finally came that morning
radiant with the first leaves of early summer!
The month of May
is the most glorious time of year.
Our May 3,
bathed in noble light!
Light is a symbol of good;
darkness, a symbol of evil.
Light is not afraid of darkness.
Champions of light fear nothing.
Light is victory that shines eternal.
Negative are the hearts
of those who dwell in darkness.
Soka
is the light of courage
that makes people’s hearts
strong and true.
Darkness seeks to obstruct light,
but light is unstoppable.
Soka
is the light of progress
that illuminates a future
of infinite hope.
Ah, our May 3,
resplendent with victory!
May 3,
shining forever
with the brilliant spirit
of mentor and disciple!
The joy of celebrating
May 3 each year—
a history filled with
the smiles and determinations
of our members!
There are countless days of celebration
in the pages of world history.
But many such anniversaries,
even historians will admit,
are little more than empty rituals
divorced from the people.
For those of us
dedicated to kosen-rufu,
our May 3 is a day of great rejoicing.
How bright and joyful it is!
How invigorating and refreshing!
Like the sun rising on a new day!
On the clear, sunny day
of May 3, 1960,
as a youthful leader
of 32 years of age,
together with our members
brimming with pride and joy,
I embarked on a new journey—
the journey of worldwide kosen-rufu.
Five decades of steadily climbing
an unscaled summit,
one step at a time;
now a magnificent vista
unfolds before us—
a mighty network
of peace and happiness
encircling the globe.
In “On Repaying Debts of Gratitude,”
Nichiren Daishonin states:
“If persecutions … keep occurring
again and again to someone
who is not guilty of the slightest fault,
then one should realize that that person
is a true votary of the Lotus Sutra
in the age after the Buddha’s passing.”
Devoting our lives
to the correct teaching of Buddhism,
we have faced untold tempests,
but we have triumphed through them all.
Many steep mountains and valleys lay in our path,
but we have intrepidly made our way across them all.
Writes the Daishonin:
“Those who believe in the Lotus Sutra
are as if in winter,
but winter always turns to spring.”
Cherishing these golden words,
our members in each region
have joyfully enacted wondrous dramas
of changing poison into medicine.
Ah,
first President Tsunesaburo Makiguchi
is surely delighted!
So, too, second President Josei Toda!
And all our deceased fellow members
who in life strove for kosen-rufu
are most certainly smiling on us
with happiness and contentment
from the pure land of Eagle Peak,
enveloped in the noble virtues
of eternity, happiness, true self and purity.
Nichiren Daishonin
and boundless multitudes
of Buddhas and bodhisattvas
are surely praising us,
the mentors and disciples of Soka.
This is true without a doubt
in light of the Daishonin’s writings.
How wonderful!
How inspiring!
We have won!
Soka has won!
Ah, our May 3!
Let us all join together
in giving three cheers for
our personal victory,
all our fellow members’ victory,
and the shared victory of mentor and disciple!
“He conquers twice
who conquers himself
in victory”[1]—
these are the wise words
of a thinker of ancient Rome.
Complacence is the greatest foe.
Remain vigilant in victory.
The spirit of May 3
is to always keep forging ahead
bravely and vigorously.
I will strive as a disciple!
I will strive as a youth!
In this lifetime,
I will carry out the great struggle for the Law
transcending life and death,
applying myself with courage and
selfless dedication
to advance kosen-rufu
even one more step!
“We have a mission
to accomplish kosen-rufu without fail. …
I leave the future to you.
I’m counting on you to realize kosen-rufu!”
These words of my mentor
resonate unceasingly
in the depths of my life.
My mentor, Mr. Toda,
is in my heart
shining brightly
like the eternal sun.
Committed to answering his call,
I will exert myself again today
in a spirit of oneness with my mentor!
The promises I made him
I will fulfill!
When we walk with the sun,
we can forever win radiant victories.
Because this is life’s supreme path.
For all of us,
there are times
when we must stand up.
There are crucial moments
when we must fight.
We must take timely and appropriate action,
not letting those opportunities slip by.
And we must win without fail.
This is the path of mentor and disciple
and the eternal essence
of Nichiren Buddhism.
There is no greater source of pride.
May 3, 2025 World Tribune, p. 8
References
- Jen R. Stone, Latin for the Illiterati (New York: Routledge, 1996), p. 109. (Words by Publius Syrus, a Latin writer of maxims) ↩︎
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