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The International Buddhist Congregation (IBC)
Many people in the world today have a great interest in the teachings and practices of Buddhism. However, even in a historically Buddhist country like Japan, it is often difficult for ordinary people to learn more about Buddhism or find a place to practice Buddhism in a way that fits into their busy lives. For foreign residents in Japan, the challenges of Japanese language and customs can also create barriers to participating in Buddhist practice and learning about Buddhism.
The International Buddhist Congregation was established in 2009 to provide a place for both Japanese and foreign residents living in Japan to practice and study Buddhism together. The International Buddhist Congregation, sponsored by the Buddhist lay organization Rissho Kosei-kai, is heir to the East Asian tradition Buddhist tradition of the Lotus Sutra.
The Lotus Sutra
The Lotus Sutra was translated into Chinese by Kumarajiva (334-414) in 406 and quickly became the most important Buddhist sacred text in China. The Lotus Sutra teaches the unity of various Buddhist teachings and practices as means toward the same, singular goal of Buddhahood, and that although Shakyamuni, the Buddha that appeared in our world, entered nirvana, the Buddha as the eternal truth is ever abiding and accessible to all people through faith and practice. The Lotus Sutra also teaches that all people have the potential to become Buddhas, or Buddha nature, and emphasizes a comprehensive path of practice for Buddhists, including reverence to the Buddha, sutra and dharani recitation both as forms of devotion and meditation, the study of Buddhist principles to achieve guiding wisdom, and the practice of Bodhisattva principles in everyday life through respecting all people and the environment as Buddha nature itself. The Lotus Sutra exhorts all people to compassionate practice for benefit self and others, and to transform our homes, communities and entire world into the peaceful, harmonious and secure pure land that it holds the potential to be.
Lotus Sutra Buddhism was developed in China by Daosheng (360-434), Huisi (515-577) and Zhiyi (538-597), the founder of Tiantai Buddhism on Mt. Tiantai. Lotus Buddhism was transmitted to Japan by Saicho (767-822) and established at Mt. Hiei’s Enryaku Temple, overlooking the old imperial capital of Kyoto. Later, the Buddhist saint Nichiren (1222-1282) introduced the Lotus Sutra to ordinary villagers and townspeople, transforming the Buddhism of the political and cultural elite into the faith of millions of people.
In the early 20th century, lay Buddhists Niwano Nikkyo and Naganuma Myoko reinvigorated the practice of the Lotus Sutra by founding Rissho Kosei-kai, an organization dedicated to spreading the Lotus Sutra faith and providing ordinary people a way to practice Buddhism in a form appropriate to modern life and its challenges. Rissho Kosei-kai, which has hundreds of dharma centers in Japan as well as throughout the world, sponsors the International Buddhist Congregation.
