Soka Gakkai

21/08/2026

🆕 News: On Aug. 8, a meeting was held in Yaoundé, the capital of Cameroon. Representatives from Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Gabon and Congo-Brazzaville attended, and the gathering opened warmly with new members welcomed into the community. Two members shared personal experiences of overcoming challenges through Buddhist practice and study: one passed the bar exam while balancing demanding work and graduate studies, while another overcame financial and family hardship, achieved recognition at work, and built a home that now serves as a gathering place for members.

20/08/2026

🆕News: On July 26, SGI Argentina (SGIAR) held a youth peace and culture festival in San Isidro, Buenos Aires Province. Some 2,300 members and friends from across the country attended, with tango and other performances celebrating Argentine culture. As part of Acción Solidaria Soka, SGIAR's ongoing youth-led relief initiative, donations of nonperishable food were collected for those in need. Notable guests included Argentine Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Adolfo Pérez Esquivel and Rector Luis Negretti of the National University of Villa María in Córdoba Province, Argentina.

19/08/2026

🆕News: From June 18 to 26, the "Seeds of Hope & Action" exhibition, a joint initiative of the Earth Charter International and the SGI, was held at 5 junior high schools in Jakarta, Indonesia. As Indonesia is highly vulnerable to rising sea levels, interest in climate change is growing in the country. Students from each school worked alongside Soka Gakkai Indonesia members to help prepare the exhibition, which was viewed by some 1,300 people. Through their participation, students deepened their understanding of the importance of fostering peace and gained confidence by taking initiative.

Soka Gakkai Indonesia

18/08/2026

What if your hardest struggle held the key to your growth? An age-old Buddhist idea worth revisiting today. 🌱

Explore this key Buddhist concept:
https://www.sokaglobal.org/resources/study-materials/buddhist-concepts/changing-poison-into-medicine.html

How can we transform adversity into opportunity?

17/08/2026

✨ August 14, 1947. At a small gathering of Soka Gakkai members, Daisaku Ikeda first met Josei Toda. As a youth navigating Japan’s post-war chaos, Ikeda was deeply moved by Toda's fearless stand against militarism and his steadfast commitment to peace.
Read more: https://daisakuikeda.org/main/profile/bio/bio-03.html
From that moment Ikeda chose Toda as his mentor—a decision that would ignite his lifelong mission.
This fateful encounter gave rise to a global movement rooted in respect for human dignity and courageous action.

On August 14, 1947, a meeting took place that would quietly mark the beginning of a profound transformation for Daisaku Ikeda. Unaware of what the evening would bring, he was about to meet the mentor he had been searching for—a day he would later describe as "the fateful day that changed the course of my life forever."

14/08/2026

🆕 News: In 1996, Daisaku Ikeda traveled to the USA, Cuba and Costa Rica. To commemorate the 30th anniversary of that visit, SGI-USA held commemorative gatherings at the SGI-USA Denver Culture Center in Colorado on June 6 & 7, at Columbia University in New York on June 20 and at the SGI-USA El Paso Center in Texas on June 28.
Commemorative meetings featuring performances by youth were also held in San José, Costa Rica, on June 27 and Havana, Cuba, on June 26. In 1996, Daisaku Ikeda held dialogues with prominent US figures including former secretary of state Henry Kissinger, and in Cuba, he met with former leader Fidel Castro at the invitation of the Cuban government in recognition of Ikeda’s efforts to develop cultural and educational exchange between Japan and Cuba.

13/08/2026

🆕News: On Aug. 6 and 9, respectively, Soka Gakkai members in Hiroshima and Nagasaki commemorated the 81st anniversary of the atomic bombings of the two cities. Participants offered prayers for the deceased victims of nuclear weapons and war throughout the world, reaffirming their vow to advance peace and the abolition of nuclear weapons.
On Aug. 6, at an online event hosted by the Soka Gakkai Hiroshima Women's Peace Committee, Yuriko Hayashi, a hibakusha, shared her personal experience of surviving the bombing of Hiroshima at age 9.
On Aug. 8, a peace lecture and event were held at the Soka Gakkai Nagasaki Peace Center. The lecture was given by H.E. Sussi Jiménez Núñez, Ambassador of the Republic of Costa Rica to Japan, while the event featured video footage of historic sites and remnants of Nagasaki following the atomic bombing.

12/08/2026

We spend so much time waiting for things to go right before we let ourselves be happy.

"I'll be happy when..."
✨ I get the job.
✨ I find the right person.
✨ I have more money.
✨ Life feels easier.

But what if happiness wasn't something you had to wait for?

Real happiness starts within—and that's something no one can take away.

10/08/2026

🆕News: On July 20, an event was held at Rome’s Protomoteca Hall to mark the 10th anniv. of the July 2016 entry into force of the Intesa agreement between the Italian govt. and the Italian Buddhist Institute Soka Gakkai that grants full recognition as a religious organization. Former Prime Minister Giuliano Amato and Mayor of Rome Roberto Gualtieri were among 200 people attending, and over 2,000 watched online. Italian President Sergio Mattarella sent a congratulatory message, and the event included a panel discussion and reflections from youth from three faith organizations.

Istituto Buddista Italiano Soka Gakkai

07/08/2026

🕊️ Eighty-one years after the atomic bombing of Hiroshima on Aug 6, 1945, Kazumi Kuwahara is carrying forward her grandmother’s legacy as a hibakusha by sharing her family’s story and inspiring a new generation to build a culture of peace.

Read Kazumi’s story.
https://www.sokaglobal.org/practicing-buddhism/personal-experiences/inheriting-an-indomitable-spirit-of-peace.html

Surviving the A-bomb: An intergenerational quest for peace.