Soka Gakkai International's theme is one that has captivated the attention of many people over time. Whether due to its relevance in history, its impact on current society, or its importance in the academic field, Soka Gakkai International has been the object of study, debate and reflection. In this article, we will explore different aspects related to Soka Gakkai International, from its origin and evolution, to its influence in various areas. Through a deep and detailed analysis, we will seek to better understand the importance and role that Soka Gakkai International plays in today's world. Without a doubt, Soka Gakkai International is a topic that continues to generate interest and curiosity in many people, and we hope to be able to offer a complete and enriching overview of this fascinating topic.
創価学会インターナショナル | |
Abbreviation | SGI |
---|---|
Formation | January 26, 1975 |
Headquarters | Tokyo, Japan |
Location |
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President | Daisaku Ikeda (26 January 1975–15 November 2023) |
Affiliations | Soka Gakkai |
Revenue | donations and investments |
Website | www |
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Soka Gakkai International (SGI) is an international Nichiren Buddhist organisation run by two vice-presidents including Hiromasa Ikeda. It was founded in 1975 by his father, Daisaku Ikeda, as an umbrella organization of Soka Gakkai.
As of 2021, and for the past 30 years, the SGI claims approximately 12 million adherents in 192 countries and territories, more than 1.5 million of whom resided outside of Japan as of 2012. But those numbers are controversial and impossible to verify. Recent scholarship estimate Soka Gakkai believers around 2.5 million people in Japan.
SGI is one of the 6000 organizations awarded a consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council, since 1983.
The Soka Gakkai International (SGI) was formed at a conference on January 26, 1975, on the island of Guam. Representatives from 51 countries attended the meeting and chose Daisaku Ikeda, who served as third president of the Japanese Buddhist organization Soka Gakkai, to become the SGI's founding president. The SGI was created in part as a new international peace movement, and its founding meeting was held in Guam in a symbolic gesture referencing Guam's history as the site of some of World War II's bloodiest battles, and proximity to Tinian Island, launching place of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan.
The Soka Gakkai's initial global expansion began after World War II, when some Soka Gakkai members married mostly American servicemen and moved away from Japan. Expansion efforts gained a further boost in 1960 when Ikeda succeeded Jōsei Toda as president of the Soka Gakkai. In the first year of his presidency, Ikeda visited the United States, Canada, and Brazil, and the Soka Gakkai's first American headquarters officially opened in Los Angeles in 1963.
In 2000, Uruguay honored the 25th anniversary of the SGI's founding with a commemorative postage stamp. The stamp was issued on October 2, the anniversary of SGI President Ikeda's first overseas journey in 1960.
In May 2015, the SGI-USA was one of the organizing groups for the first-ever Buddhist conference at the White House.
In June 2015, the SGI-Italy was recognized by the Italian government with a special accord under Italian Constitution Article 8, acknowledging it as an a religion with an official agreement with the government of Italy and eligible to receive direct taxpayer funding for its religious and social activities. It also recognizes the Soka Gakkai as a "Concordat" (It: "Intesa") that grants the religions status in "a special 'club' of denominations consulted by the government in certain occasions, allowed to appoint chaplains in the army – a concordat is not needed for appointing chaplains in hospitals and jails – and, perhaps more importantly, to be partially financed by taxpayers' money." Twelve other religious denominations share this status.
The SGI is independent of the Soka Gakkai (the domestic Japanese organization), although both are headquartered in Tokyo.
National SGI organizations operate autonomously and all affairs are conducted in the local language. Many national organizations are coordinated by groups such as a women's group, a men's group, and young women's and young men's groups. National organizations generally raise their own operational funds, although the SGI headquarters in Tokyo has awarded funding grants to smaller national organizations for projects such as land acquisition and the construction of new buildings. SGI-affiliated organizations outside Japan are forbidden to engage directly in politics.
While the national organizations are run autonomously, the Tokyo headquarters of SGI disseminates doctrinal and teaching materials to all national organizations around the world. The Tokyo headquarters also serves as a meeting place for national leaders to come together and exchange information and ideas.
The election or nomination of leaders is typically not decided by the SGI's general membership but by a board of directors. Leadership below national staff, however, has been liberalized; in the United States for instance, the nomination and approval of leaders includes both members and organizational leaders in the process. Author Karel Dobbelaere notes the election of the presidents, as well as a process of "nomination, review and approval that involves both peers and leaders" in choosing other leaders.
SGI members adhere to the philosophy of Nichiren Buddhism as interpreted and applied by the Soka Gakkai's first three presidents Tsunesaburo Makiguchi, Josei Toda and Daisaku Ikeda, incorporating social interaction and engagement into their Buddhist practice. Monthly neighborhood discussion meetings are generally held at the homes of SGI members.
Soka Gakkai Malaysia since 2005 has held a non-competitive biennial "Run for Peace" to raise awareness of nuclear disarmament and in support of culture of peace in the community—reportedly "the largest peace run in the country held in 28 locations nationwide and involving some 115,000 runners."
Organizational practices in the United States have been characterized as socially inclusive Buddhism. In 2008, the SGI-USA, which is headquartered in California, publicly opposed that state's Proposition 8 (which sought to prevent same-sex marriage), and coordinated with other progressive religious groups to support same-sex couples' right to legally marry.
In 2012, then-President of the Republic of China Ma Ying-jeou remarked that the Taiwan Soka Association had been recognized for its involvement the past 16 years in the general welfare of society, education and religious teaching, highlighting its disaster rescue and relief efforts in the wake of Typhoon Morakot in 2009.
According to Yoichi Kawada, director of the Tokyo-based Institute of Oriental Philosophy, the SGI defines itself as a "movement for contributing to peace, culture and education" based on its "interpretation and practical application of the ideas in the Lotus Sutra." SGI engagement as a religious organization affiliated with the United Nations in policy discussions on issues including human rights, sustainable development and peace building is similarly described, in the phrasing of its Charter, as contributing to peace, culture and education.: 15, 16, 30
Since 2007, the SGI has collaborated closely with the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) to develop educational programs and raise awareness on nuclear disarmament, particularly among young people. The SGI also partnered with ICAN to promote the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons, which was adopted at the United Nations in July 2017, and for which ICAN was awarded the 2017 Nobel Peace Prize. Beatrice Fihn, executive director of ICAN, stated in a July 2017 interview that the "SGI has been one of our greatest partners in the fight to abolish nuclear weapons."
To further increase public awareness of the anti-nuclear movement, the SGI also created "The People's Decade" campaign, which since 2007 has developed a global grassroots network of people dedicated to abolishing nuclear weapons. In 2014, an SGI youth delegation met with the United Nations Office for Disarmament Affairs (UNODA) regarding coordination of the SGI's efforts and the UN efforts to increase grassroots movements for nuclear abolition.
In 2008, then-High Representative for Disarmament Affairs Sergio Duarte characterized SGI's work toward nuclear disarmament as linking human security with the fundamental goal of eliminating nuclear weapons.
According to Pax Christi International, on March 28, 2017, a joint statement of Faith Communities Concerned about Nuclear Weapons, initiated by the SGI, was delivered by Pax Christi Philippines during the first UN negotiating conference for the treaty to prohibit nuclear weapons. More than 20 religious leaders affirmed through the joint statement their shared "aspirations for peace and for a world where people live without fear," praising world leaders in attendance for "the courage to begin these negotiations" and calling on States not in attendance to join the June–July session of the conference.
The SGI also promotes environmental initiatives through educational activities such as exhibitions, lectures and conferences, and more direct activities such as tree planting projects and the SGI's Amazon Ecological Conservation Center, which is administered by SGI-Brazil. The center is engaged in reforestation, the creation of a regional seed bank, and experiments in sustainable agroforestry.
The SGI conducts humanitarian aid projects in disaster-stricken regions. After the 2011 earthquake and tsunami in Japan, local Soka Gakkai facilities became refugee shelters and distribution centers for relief supplies. Efforts also included worldwide fundraising for the victims, youth groups, and spiritual support.
In 2014, SGI-Chile members collected supplies to deliver to emergency services and refugee centers after that country's devastating Iquique earthquake.
In 2015, SGI-USA was part of the organizing committee that convened a day-long conference in Washington, DC of 125 Buddhist leaders to discuss Buddhism and civic activism in the United States. The conference identified climate change and the environment, education and peace and disarmament as popular priorities.
Today, the group has a self-declared membership of 8.27 million households in Japan and more than 1.5 million adherents in 192 countries abroad under its overseas umbrella organization Soka Gakkai International, or SGI. Recent scholarship challenges theses figures and points to a figure in the neighborhood of two percent of the Japanese population.
Today, the group has a self-declared membership of 8.27 million households in Japan and more than 1.5 million adherents in 192 countries abroad under its overseas umbrella organization Soka Gakkai International, or SGI. Recent scholarship challenges theses figures and points to a figure in the neighborhood of two percent of the Japanese population.
"H. Hojo. . . was elected president. Ikeda became honorary president. . . At the death of Hojo in 1981, E. Akiya was elected president. . ." . .
Official SGI websites