History of Nichiren Buddhism
The origins of the SGI-USA worldview can be traced to the teachings of the Buddha Shakyamuni, who lived some 2,500years ago in what is modern-day Nepal. Born Gautama Siddhartha, he abandoned his sheltered, princely life and sought instead to understand the inescapable sufferings of every human being – birth, aging, sickness and death – and the means by which these sufferings could be overcome.
Following his enlightenment at age 30, he traveled throughout India for some 50 years, sharing the wisdom he had discovered. The term Buddha, or ‘enlightened one’, is applied to any human being who realizes the eternity of life and the operation of cause and effect throughout the three existences of past, present and future.
After Shakyamuni’s passing, his teachings became splintered and increasingly misunderstood as they spread throughout Asia and beyond. In the 13th Century, a Japanese Buddhist reformer, Nichiren Daishonin, declared the Lotus Sutra, taught during the final eight years of Shakyamuni’s life, to be the highest and ultimate teaching of Buddhism. The Lotus Sutra is unique among the teachings of Buddhism because it affirms that the attainment of enlightenment is possible for all people without the distinction of race, gender, social standing or education. The Lotus Sutra most clearly shows Buddhism as a powerful, life-affirming, egalitarian and humanistic teaching.
Born as the son of a fisherman in a time of social unrest and natural catastrophe, Nichiren became a religious acolyte and after a period of intensive study came to realize that the Lotus Sutra constitutes the heart of Buddhist teachings. His great gift to humanity was in giving concrete expression to this life-affirming philosophy by creating a simple yet profound daily practice accessible to all people. Nichiren first chanted the title of the Lotus Sutra, Nam-myo-ho-renge-kyo on April 28th, 1253, and later inscribed the mandala of the gohonzon. It is the philosophy taught by Nichiren that forms the foundation of the SGI.
THE THREE PRESIDENTS
Tsunesaburo Makiguchi
Founding President Tsunesaburo Makiguchi first used the term Soka Kyoiku Gakkai (Value Creation Educational Society) in 1930 when he published his insightful book The Theory of Value Creating Pedagogy. He asserted that the purpose of education should not be the mere training of workers for Japan’s growing industrial machine, but the development of the human ability to create “value” (i.e. improvement, beauty and social good) in their daily lives. His humanistic, student centered views and defense of religious freedom often brought him into conflict with authority. Arrested with other top Soka Gakkai leaders in 1943 as a ‘thought criminal’ for his unyielding opposition to the militaristic regime and its forced opposition of state sponsored religion, Makiguchi died in prison at the age of 73 in November 1944.
Josei Toda
Makiguchi’s close disciple, Josei Toda, survived the ordeal and was released from a Tokyo Prison just weeks before the world’s first use of the atomic bomb in July 1945. Determined to rebuild the Soka Gakkai, Toda set about to develop its membership from less than 3,000 families when he assumed the presidency in 1951 to more than 750,000 before his death in 1958, thereby spreading the movement across Japan and throughout society. The Soka Gakkai’s remarkable growth stemmed from its commitment to help people overcome their suffering in the postwar chaos.
Daisaku Ikeda
On May3, 1960, Daisaku Ikeda became the third president. Within six months, he established chapters in the United States and South American countries followed a year later by organizations in nine European countries. He continues to provide leadership for the global SGI organization, which now includes members in more than 190 countries and territories. Ikeda has founded a number of educational and cultural institutions that seek to foster the values of peace, culture and education.
