CategoryDaily Life

The German poet Johann Peter Eckermann once confessed to his longtime friend Johann Wolfgang von Goethe that, although he sought to harmonize with those like him, he had nothing to do with others beyond his circle. Goethe wrote in response: It is in conflict with natures opposed to his own that a man must collect his

The following are excerpts from Ikeda Sensei’s book My Dear Friends in America, third edition, pp. 258–61. The Positive Life View Found Within a Single Moment of Life You are the playwright of your own victory. You are also the play’s hero. Shakespeare wrote: “All the world’s a stage, / And all the men and

When we do gongyo and chant [Nam-myoho-renge-kyo] before the Gohonzon, the good and evil capacities of our lives begin to function as the exalted form of fundamental existence. Lives that are full of the pain of hell, lives that are in the state of hunger, lives warped by the state of anger—such lives, too, begin

Society today is rife with racial conflict, political divisiveness and uncertainty about the future, among a growing multitude of complex issues. Ikeda Sensei addressed, the ever-changing challenges of the world in his September 1993 Harvard University address, titled “Mahayana Buddhism and 21st Century Civilization.” In this lecture, he discusses the root cause of division and conflict

Part 3: Kosen-rufu and World Peace—The Purpose of Buddhist Study

The fundamental Buddhist concept of dependent origination teaches that, at the most profound level, all life is interconnected, that nothing exists in isolation. Simply put, it means that the real nature of individuals or events can only be correctly understood in the context of their connections with all others. In his 1993 Harvard University lecture,

The World Tribune held a roundtable discussion with the SGI-USA youth leaders to address the recent incidents of racial violence and civil unrest that followed. Olivia Saito, Ryo Kuroki and Maya Gunaseharan respond to some of the questions that have been top of mind for many SGI-USA members. World Tribune: Thank you for speaking with

The first thing is to pray. From the moment we begin to pray, things start moving. The darker the night, the closer the dawn. From the moment we chant [Nam-myoho-renge-kyo] with a deep and powerful resolve, the sun begins to rise in our hearts. Hope—prayer is the sun of hope. To chant each time we face

The following are excerpts from Ikeda Sensei’s lecture on “Letter to Misawa” in Learning From the Writings: The Hope-filled Teachings of Nichiren Daishonin. When an ordinary person of the latter age is ready to attain Buddhahood, having realized the essence of all the sacred teachings of the Buddha’s lifetime and understood the heart of the

Part 3: Kosen-rufu and World Peace—The Purpose of Buddhist Study

“All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act toward one another in a spirit of brotherhood.” —The Universal Declaration of Human Rights On June 13, 1996, Ikeda Sensei spoke at Columbia University’s Teachers College in New York on the ideal of

In light of the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the following are Ikeda Sensei’s excerpted quotes emphasizing the importance of never giving up and upholding a fighting spirit. Part one appears in the May 15 World Tribune. Continue chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo, no matter what happens. Nichiren [Daishonin] writes to [Shijo Kingo]: Suffer what there is to

The following essay from Ikeda Sensei is adapted from David Krieger’s book Hope in a Dark Time–Reflections on Humanity’s Future, which was published in 2003. Mr. Krieger, with whom Sensei has held dialogues, is the founder and president of the Nuclear Age Peace Foundation. The text can be found at daisakuikeda.org >> “Resources” >> “Written

In light of the challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic, the following are Ikeda Sensei’s excerpted quotes emphasizing the importance of never giving up and upholding a fighting spirit. If you win in the end, you will have won in everything! Second Soka Gakkai President Josei Toda would often say to me: “An impasse

Buddhism emerged from Shakyamuni Buddha’s commitment to solving the problems that stem from the four sufferings of birth, aging, sickness and death. While these sufferings are inevitable, he taught people how to approach them with wisdom, tenacity and dignity, thereby developing lives of meaning and fulfillment. Connected to the suffering of “sickness,” epidemics have ravaged

This month, we celebrate the founding of the high school division in 1964. Ikeda Sensei, who is deeply committed to the development of youth, often shares his hopes and dreams with the future division, which is composed of the elementary school, junior high and high school divisions. Living Buddhism interviewed six junior high and high school

Part 3: Kosen-rufu and World Peace—The Purpose of Buddhist Study

Part 3: Kosen-rufu and World Peace—The Purpose of Buddhist Study

This essay by SGI President Ikeda was originally published in the April 12, 2007, issue of The Japan Times, a leading English-language daily published in Japan. The text can also be accessed in Hope Is a Decision, pp. 139–42 and daisakuikeda.org » “resources” » “written works” » “essays” » “opinion editorials.” This year, the Doomsday

A Buddhist perspective on financial hardships during the COVID-19 pandemic.