Description
Daisaku Ikeda is a Buddhist philosopher, an educator and a prolific writer and poet. As president of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) lay Buddhist movement, he has devoted himself to wide- ranging efforts for peace and individual empowerment, and has founded cultural, educational and peace research institutions around the world.
Born in Tokyo in 1928, Ikeda experienced firsthand the tragic reality of war and militarism. In the chaos of post-war Japan, he came to embrace Buddhism through an encounter with the educator and pacifist Josei Toda, head of the Buddhist lay organisation Soka Gakkai, who had been imprisoned for his beliefs during World War II.
These experiences shaped Ikeda's commitment to peace. Over the years, Ikeda has engaged in dialogue with many of the world's pre-eminent thinkers and leaders in search of viable responses to global problems, inspired the SGI's support of United Nations activities, and written extensively on a range of issues related to peace and the human condition.
