Soka Gakkai

Soka Gakkai is a Japanese Buddhist lay organization founded in 1930 as Sōka Kyōiku Gakkai. It promotes Nichiren Buddhism through faith, practice, study, and social engagement.

Nichiren Buddhism: A Japanese Buddhist tradition based on the teachings of the thirteenth-century monk Nichiren. Soka Gakkai derives its doctrine and central practice from this Buddhist tradition.
Tsunesaburo Makiguchi: A Japanese educator and Buddhist thinker who founded Sōka Kyōiku Gakkai in 1930. Makiguchi established the organization as a movement for value-creating education.
Daisaku Ikeda: A Japanese Buddhist leader who served as Soka Gakkai’s third president and founded Soka Gakkai International. Ikeda led the organization’s international expansion and became its most prominent public figure.
Shakubuku: A form of Buddhist propagation that seeks to persuade others to adopt the teaching. Soka Gakkai has used shakubuku to recruit members and spread Nichiren Buddhism.
Religious conversion in Japan: The adoption of new religious affiliations and practices within Japan’s changing religious landscape. Soka Gakkai became a major example of postwar religious conversion and membership growth.
Nichiren: A Japanese Buddhist monk who taught exclusive devotion to the Lotus Sutra in the thirteenth century. His teachings provide Soka Gakkai’s religious foundation.
Josei Toda: A Japanese educator and Buddhist leader who rebuilt Soka Gakkai after World War II. Toda expanded the group from an educators’ association into a mass religious movement.
Soka Gakkai presidents: The successive leaders who have held the presidency of Soka Gakkai in Japan. The presidency has shaped the organization’s growth, priorities, and public leadership.
Gongyo: The recitation of portions of the Lotus Sutra practiced in Nichiren Buddhist traditions. Members commonly perform gongyo alongside chanting Nam-myoho-renge-kyo.
New religions in Japan: Religious movements that emerged or expanded in Japan, especially from the nineteenth century onward. Soka Gakkai is among the country’s largest modern religious movements.

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