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It’s human to want things. We look and work for what we think will bring us joy or make life easier and better. We also find satisfaction in achieving, learning or mastering something that holds value for us. The desire to improve our circumstances is what motivated many of us to take up the practice

This essay by Ikeda Sensei was originally published in the Feb. 25, 2021, issue of the Soka Gakkai’s daily newspaper, the Seikyo Shimbun. Allow me once again to express my sincere sympathy to those affected by the Feb. 13, 2021, earthquake, which caused considerable damage in Tohoku’s Fukushima and Miyagi prefectures and neighboring areas. The

A year ago, as the COVID-19 pandemic forced us to shelter in place, a slow and steady undercurrent began to take shape in our SGI community. Guests who were introduced to the practice began meeting regularly, sometimes even weekly, with local members to learn more about Buddhism and how to apply it to their lives.

The May Commemorative Contribution activity (April 24–June 6) is an opportunity for us to renew our bodhisattva vow to advance our movement for peace in the same month that Ikeda Sensei was inaugurated the third Soka Gakkai president on May 3, 1960. As we continue our important work to support the practice and development of

Perhaps because of our move to hold virtual meetings since the start of the coronavirus pandemic, there has been growing interest in finding online Buddhist groups, forums and websites that discuss Nichiren Buddhism and its practice. Many such groups start with good intentions, with some drifting off track over time. And still others are started

World Tribune: Congratulations, Isamarie, on your recent appointment as a group women’s leader! We understand that there is an inspiring story behind this? Isamarie Ortiz (group women’s leader, Tampa, Fla.): Yes, this was more than a 10-year journey. From 2009 to 2019, I had taken a break from my Buddhist practice, and during that time,

Many of us may have experienced listening to someone share how they achieved something wonderful, only to be left thinking, How great for them, but I could never do something that amazing. Regarding the tendency to think less of ourselves, American philosopher Walt Whitman writes: Why what have you thought of yourself ? Is it

March 4—The Back from the Brink national grassroots campaign and the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN), the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize recipient, convened a virtual policy briefing with interactive workshops, themed “Ending Nuclear Weapons Before They End Us: Opportunities Under the Biden Administration to Take Action.” The SGI-USA is a member of the

by Morgan HensonWest Branch, Iowa The morning, in October 2017, when Navy police barged into my barracks room to arrest me for selling LSD and ecstasy marked a low point in a very bad year. Since childhood, my low self-esteem caused intense anxiety. I wanted everyone to be my best friend. If that didn’t happen,

Words of Encouragement From Ikeda Sensei

Ikeda Wisdom Academy—Advanced Study for SGI-USA Youth Division

“Even when Jakusho and other priests set out from Japan to take some sutras to China, no one was found there who could embrace these sutras and teach them to others. It was as though there were only wooden or stone statues garbed in priests’ robes and carrying begging bowls.” (“On the Buddha’s Prophecy,” The

Conversations on the Path of Nonviolence

J.R. Ewing. C. Montgomery Burns. Lucious Lyon. Pick your favorite ultrawealthy avatar. Society’s modern fascination with money has spawned TV shows, movies and lyrics that are embedded in our collective consciousness. (Is it really all about the Benjamins?) Perhaps we’ve even daydreamed a time or two about what we’d do if we received an unexpected

The following is Ikeda Sensei’s preface to the new edition of The Wisdom for Creating Happiness and Peace, a three-volume collection of selected excerpts from his works, the first volume of which was published in book form in Japanese on November 18, 2020. Based on the collection of selected excerpts that was first serialized in

To Our Future Division Members, the Torchbearers of Justice—Our Hope for the Future—Part 2 [63]

This monthly encouragement by Ikeda Sensei was originally published in the March 2021 Daibyakurenge, the Soka Gakkai’s monthly study journal. As we enter the month of March, I’m reminded of the triumphant lion’s roar of my mentor, second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda [on March 16, 1958]: “The Soka Gakkai is the king of the

District Study for April

Learning From The New Human Revolution

On April 2, 1958, second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda died at the age of 58. The following essay by Ikeda Sensei was originally published in the April 8, 2009, Seikyo Shimbun, the Soka Gakkai’s daily newspaper. My mentor, second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda, once said to me: “Buddhism teaches that ‘all phenomena are