Author: Alex

Daisaku Ikeda, Honorary President of the Soka Gakkai and President of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI), passed away from natural causes at his residence in Shinjuku, Tokyo, on the evening of November 15. He was ninety-five. A funeral has been held with members of his immediate family; the time and date of commemorative services will be announced shortly. Ikeda was born in Tokyo on January 2, 1928. He was inaugurated as third President of the Soka Gakkai in 1960 and for almost two decades led the lay Buddhist movement in dynamic growth that also saw important international development. He became Soka Gakkai International (SGI) President in 1975 and Soka Gakkai Honorary President in 1979. He is survived by his wife Kaneko and his sons Hiromasa and Takahiro.

The Soka Gakkai Council on Peace Issues has issued a statement on the conflict involving Israel and the Gaza Strip. "As Buddhists whose core value is the dignity of life, we sincerely pray for an immediate ceasefire, and hope that efforts will be focused on ensuring people’s safety and restoring peace. "We add our voices to appeals by the international community for the safe release of all hostages, the protection of civilians based on international humanitarian law, and a humanitarian ceasefire to enable provision of vitally needed assistance." —Soka Gakkai Council on Peace Issues, October 26, 2023 https://www.instagram.com/sgi.info/