Biography of Daisaku Ikeda
Daisaku
Ikeda was born in Tokyo on January 2, 1928. As a teenager during World War II, Mr. Ikeda
experienced the horrors of war through the death and devastation around him, including the
death of his eldest brother on the Burmese front. He developed a deep-rooted abhorrence to
war and a respect for those who had undergone persecution by the state for their anti-war
beliefs but had not compromised their convictions. The young Daisaku's life reached a
dramatic turning point when,in August 1947, at age 19, he met Josei Toda at a
Soka Gakkai discussion meeting. who would become his mentor and play a decisive role
in shaping the course of his life. The young Ikeda was so moved by thier encounter, he
recited a poem of his own composition |
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Ten days after their meeting, Mr. Ikeda joined Soka Gakkai and began
working as editor for a boy's magazine that Mr. Toda published. In the unstable economic
climate of the time, Mr Toda suffered a succession of business failures. Daisaku quit his
classes so that he could support his mentor, working night and day to help resolve the
problems stemming from the business failures despite his extremely poor health.
From his youth Mr Ikeda was an avid reader and began composing poetry in
his teens. His insatiable thirst for learning led him to continue his education under the
tutelage of Mr. Toda, a former school teacher. Under his instruction, he studied politics,
economics, philosophy and other subjects, as well as Buddhism. He became Mr. Toda's most
trusted aide in both his business and the organization. In 1960, two years after Mr.
Toda's death, Mr. Ikeda became the third Soka Gakkai president.
On May 3, 1952, he married Kaneko Shirakhi, who would
become his lifelong partner in their quest for peace. The next few years Mr. Ikeda became
increasingly active in the Soka Gakkai and in 1954 became head of the youth division with
central responsibility for planning and operations. Mr. Toda died in 1958, having
accompanied all of his goals for kosen-rufu. Daisaku Ikeda assumed overall
responsibilities for the Soka Gakkai as general administrator of the organization. After
initially resisting the presidency out of respect for his late mentor, he finally relented
to the strong desire of the Soka Gakkai board of directors. Mr. Ikeda became the third
Saka Gakkai President on May 3, 1960.
Shortly after his appointment , Mr. ikeda, then 32, took the first step in
his travels for peace and visiting the United States, Canada and Brazil. In 1971, Mr. Ikeda began a series of discussions with the British
historian Arnold Toynbee which were later published under the title Choose Life.
Ikeda regards the late Arnold Toynbee as one of his most important intellectual
influences. From 1971 to 1974, the two conducted a broad-ranging dialogue, later published
as Choose Life and translated into twenty languages. Toynbee and Ikeda's dialogue was the
expression of a shared faith in discourse between people of widely different backgrounds
as an effective means of finding solutions to challenges facing humankind. Ikeda recalls
that it was Toynbee who urged him to continue this process of dialogue across
philosophical and ideological boundaries. Mr. Ikeda has since criss-crossed the globe in
pursuit of peace and has met with leading scholars, activists, ordinary citizens and world
leaders, among them former Brazilian Academy of Letters president Austregesilo de Athayde,
Norwegian peace scholar Johan Galtung and former Soviet Union president Mikhail Gorbachev.
During Mr. Ikeda's presidency, the organization expanded in Japan and internationally.
Throughout this time he was instrumental in establishing various institutions related to
peace, culture and education which reflect Buddhist principles. Among these are Soka University and other Soka schools, from kindergarten through
high school; the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum; the Min-On Concert Association; Toda Institute for Global Peace and Policy Research; and Boston Research Center for the 21st
Century.
Mr. Ikeda was an early proponent of citizen's diplomacy, meeting with leaders in China and
the former Soviet Union from the early 1970s. He has received 39 honorary degrees (as of
mid-July 1996) and has given addresses at the Institute de France, Harvard University,
Moscow State University and Beijing University, among others. Mr. Ikeda also authors an
annual peace proposal that is presented to the United Nations.
In 1975, Mr. Ikeda became first president of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI), a position he still holds. In 1979, he
resigned as third Soka Gakkai president.
A prolific writer and poet, Mr. Ikeda has published works in Japanese and 25 other
languages on a variety of subjects, from Buddhist philosophy to children's stories. His
photographs taken during travels in Japan and abroad have been compiled into an
exhibition, "Dialogue with Nature," shown around the world.
Ikeda is the recepient of numerous honorary doctorates
and awards, including the United Nations Peace Award, the International Tolerance Award of
the Simon Wiesenthal Center and the Rosa Parks Humanitarian Award.Even at the age of 72,
Mr ikeda continues his tireless quest for kosen-rufu.
He has two sons, Hiromasa and Takahiro, and
resides with his wife Kaneka, in Tokyo.
Daisaku Ikeda's Activities
A Global Ambassador of Peace
Leadership in Education
Leadership in Cultural
Exchange
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