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The Ikeda Wisdom Academy, SGI-USA’s study program for district through national youth leaders, is celebrating its 10-year anniversary with the start of its sixth class in March. On January 26, 2013, the study program, named by Ikeda Sensei, was launched at a historic study conference. In his message to that conference, Sensei encouraged the youth

February 2023

Ikeda Sensei’s Lecture Series [85]

Illustration by Leo Matsuda.

What is the sangha? The Sanskrit word sangha refers to the Buddhist Order, or the community of Buddhist believers who uphold, practice and spread the Buddha’s teachings. This community of believers is the third of the three treasures in Buddhism: the treasure of the Buddha, the treasure of the Law (the Buddha’s teachings) and the

The following text is excerpted from Ikeda Sensei’s lecture on “The Strategy of the Lotus Sutra,” which can be found in Learning from the Writings: The Hope-filled Teachings of Nichiren Daishonin, pp. 143–44. In its original sense, the term strategy refers to battle tactics, the science of warfare or martial arts. Considered more broadly, it

Background Nichiren wrote “The Strategy of the Lotus Sutra” to Shijo Kingo, who had, some years prior, incurred the wrath of his feudal lord, Ema, after trying to convert him to Nichiren Buddhism. He eventually regained his lord’s trust by continuing to serve him sincerely and by following Nichiren’s advice in the matter. But some

The following excerpts are from The World of Nichiren’s Writings, a discussion between Ikeda Sensei and Soka Gakkai study department leaders on the life of Nichiren and context of his writings. They can be found in vol. 1, pp. 2–3. Katsuji Saito: To begin with, I would like to ask about Nichiren’s writings in general

The following is SGI President Ikeda’s monthly encouragement published in the October edition of The Daibyakurenge, the Soka Gakkai’s study journal. In this existence,joyfully walkthe unsurpassed way that isfragrant with beautiful flowers of humanity,together with smiling friends. We develop our characters and grow as individuals through our interactions with others. The Italian thinker Giuseppe Mazzini

Background The two brothers to whom this letter was written were sons of Ikegami Yasumitsu, who held an important post in the government’s Office of Construction and Repairs. Yasumitsu was an earnest supporter of Ryokan, an eminent priest in Kamakura who plotted against Nichiren. For more than twenty years, Yasumitsu strongly opposed his sons’ practice

The following text is Ikeda Sensei’s Foreword to The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, the first volume of the Soka Gakkai’s official English translation of Nichiren’s collected works. The publication in a single volume of the translations of 172 writings of Nichiren Daishonin, including his five major works, is indeed wonderful news, not only

The following excerpt is from Ikeda Sensei’s essay “Be Champions of Wisdom, Diligently Training in Practice and Study!” published in the Oct. 21, 2022, World Tribune, pp. 2–3. Studying Nichiren’s writings rouses the Daishonin’s indomitable fighting spirit in our hearts and causes our beings to resound with his great compassion to alleviate the sufferings of

Background Nichiren Daishonin wrote this treatise, one of his major works, upon learning of the death of Dozen-bo, the priest at Seicho-ji temple who had been his teacher when he first went to school there as a boy of 12. He wrote it to express his gratitude to Dozen-bo and sent it to two senior

The following excerpt is from Ikeda Sensei’s lecture on “On Repaying Debts of Gratitude” in his lecture series Learning from the Writings: The Hope-filled Teachings of Nichiren Daishonin, pp. 222–27. To repay one’s debts of gratitude is the highest virtue. Neglecting gratitude is a reflection of a life controlled by innate negativity. As we each

The following was published in the December 2021 Living Buddhism, pp. 26–27. The Three Great Secret Laws represent core principles of Nichiren Daishonin’s teaching. They are: 1) the object of devotion of the essential teaching, 2) the daimoku of the essential teaching and 3) the sanctuary of the essential teaching. Here, “essential teaching” refers to

Soka Gakkai Nichiren Buddhism places primary importance on “the heart” based on Nichiren Daishonin’s teaching that “it is the heart that is important” (“The Strategy of the Lotus Sutra,” The Writings of Nichiren Daishonin, vol. 1, p. 1000), while some other forms of Buddhism place primary importance on rules regarding ceremonies and formalities. With respect

This series answers popular questions asked by SGI members on the fundamentals of Buddhist practice. Q: Is it ok to do gongyo in the car? I have a hard time waking up early enough to chant before work. A: It’s truly praiseworthy to want to maintain a consistent practice. That being said, where and how

Key highlights from this writing

Buddhism’s ultimate goal has always been to enable people to attain Buddhahood, or enlightenment. Early Buddhists believed, however, that achieving this highest state of life required carrying out incredible efforts over countless lifetimes. The Lotus Sutra expounds a radically different perspective, teaching that rather than a destination to be reached sometime in the future, Buddhahood

The following installment is from “Nichiren: His Life and Legacy,” adapted from Ikeda Sensei’s series The World of Nichiren Daishonin’s Writings. It was originally published in November 2011 Living Buddhism, pp. 41–45. From the Editors Following the execution attempt at Tatsunokuchi Beach, Nichiren Daishonin. was detained under house arrest for about a month in what