Bharat Soka Gakkai Kanpur
Soka Gakkai is a lay association of Nichiren Buddhists founded on the principle that
life is inherently respectworthy. In India, Soka Gakkai is known as Bharat Soka Gakkai
or BSG. It is a dynamic organization with a presence in many Indian cities. Please
attend a local chapter meeting with a BSG member to learn more about Buddhist practice.
World is Yours to Change - Is the world yours to change? Dr Daisaku Ikeda, President of
Soka Gakkai International , seems to believe so. A Buddhist thinker and philosopher,
Ikeda believes that when ordinary people -- you and I -- alter modes of thinking and
behaviour, a larger social transformation will automatically follow.
Prof K R Narayanan, the former President of India, released the Hindi-English edition
of the path-breaking book, The World is Yours to Change. Published in India by Samskriti,
the original edition is a Japanese-English version brought out by the reputed Asahi Press
of Japan.
Calendar of Kanpur Chapter Meetings :
Discussion meetings, chapter study are held every Sunday.
Highlights
- Men's Division :
July 2006 Meetings schedule
"Buddhist study provides us with a great philosophy that serves as a compass
to traverse the stormy and perilous seas of life. The more solid one's foundation
in Buddhist study, the stronger one's faith will grow. If, on the other hand, one lacks
a strong backbone of Buddhist study, one will be weak in a time of crisis".
- From an essay of Daisaku Ikeda on President Makiguchi -
- Women's Division :
July 2006 Meetings schedule
"Neither the pure land nor hell exists outside oneself, both lie only within one's own heart.
Awakened to this, one is called a Buddha; deluded about it, one is called an ordinary
person. The Lotus sutra reveals this truth, and one who embraces the Lotus Sutra will
realize that hell is itself the Land of Tranquil Light".
- Hell is the Land of Tranquil Light - Letters of Nichiren, 1279
To make the most of women's ability, to learn from women's wisdom and ingenuity - herein lies
an important key to fresh development. In the Soka Gakkai too, if the women come to shine even
more brightly, we will achieve much more growth than we enjoy now. It is my belief that men should
treat women with the greatest respect, with the courtesy and good manners befitting true
gentlemen. - Daisaku Ikeda
- Youth Division :
August 2006 Meetings schedule
"Neither teacher nor disciples need undergo countless kalpas of austere practice in
order to attain Buddhahood. Through the power of the Lotus Sutra of the Wonderful Law
they can do so in their present form."... (WND, 1052)
- The Doctrine of Attaining Buddhahood in One's Present Form - Letters of Nichiren, 1280
Benefits derived as a result of our Buddhist practice extend infinitely. Even if some of
your family members are not practising the Daishonin's Buddhism, there is not the slightest
need to be impatient or worried. Irrespective of whether or not, your parents practise
the Daishonin's Buddhism, they are your precious parents; nothing changes that fact
- Daisaku Ikeda
- Future Division and Naitoku :
"Peace is not the absence of war. The surest way to peace is by fostering people of
character. It lies in sowing and nurturing the seed of peace – the desire within each
individual to respect and embrace other human beings. It’s about fostering
self-motivated, empowered individuals who will confront the forces that lead nations
to war." - Daisaku Ikeda
"My mentor President Toda insisted that young people keep a sharp watch over government.
Youth are the driving force of the times. I would like to take this opportunity to once
again call on young people to be diligent in guarding against the devilish nature of
political power." - Daisaku Ikeda
- Young Eagles and Mimosa :
Upcoming Events
- Family Get Together
BSG Members - Family Get Together.
- Family Get Together
Family Get Together.
- Seminar on President Ikeda’s 2005 Peace Proposal
BSG and Times Foundation organised a symposium on ‘Towards a New Era of Dialogue:
Humanism Explored’ – the 2005 Peace Proposal submitted by Soka Gakkai International
President Daisaku Ikeda to the United Nations.
The event was organised in August 2005.
Dr RK Pachauri, Director-General of TERI, delivered the keynote address. The other
speakers were Dr LM Singhvi, Member of Parliament and former High Commissioner to the
United Kingdom and Mr Lalit Mansingh, Former Ambassador to US.
- Delhi Exhibition
Building a Culture of Peace for the Children of the World April 15-23, New Delhi
Venue:
Indira Gandhi National Center for Arts (IGNCA),
5 Dr. Rajendra Prasad Road,
New Delhi (entry from Man Singh Road)
Inauguration: 14th April 2006
Dates: 15th - 23rd April, 2006
Time: 10 am - 8 pm
- Rough Translation
Buddhism has had a very interesting journey from the times of Gautam Siddhartha to its
present form practised by SGI. In terms of original body of texts, the teachings have been transmitted
from one generation to another in the form of heard preachings, Pali and Sanskrit, Tibetan, Bengali,
Sinhala, Chinese, Japanese and English. SGI is a lay organization of Buddhists all over the world
who practice the teachings of Nichiren Daishonin and has given supreme importance to propagation
of original teachings in absolute uncompromising fashion. Buddhism essentially died out
in India, the land of its birth, but is now in a state of vigourous rebirth, this time
originating from China and Japan where, for centuries, Buddhism was practised with profound
dedication in various forms.
To an Hindu / Indian, many of the terms used to explain Daishonin's teachings may often sound
vaguely familiar. However, in Buddhist terms, Indians of present generations will feel perennial
gratitude to all the great Buddhist teachers north and east of India, who kept Buddhism alive in
many forms when the karma of India was such that it itself forgot the great teachings of Shakyamuni
in great self denial. Shakyamuni, a prince of the Shakya tribe, born in Lumbini, set out to find
the answers to the four great sufferings. Nichiren Daishonin was a poor Japanese who identified
the Lotus Sutra as the greatest fountain of wisdom and declared that humans, men and women,
whatever be their past, could attain Buddhahood in their present existence. The compassion of
Nichiren was equal to the compassion of Shakyamuni, as was the strength of his desire to
propagate the correct teaching as widely as possible. For today's generation, SGI propagates
the message of education, complete equality of human beings, open discussion, culture and
active but uncompromising absolute pacifism based on an understanding of the sanctity of life.
Faith, practice and study of Nichiren Daishonin's Buddhism are its three pillars.
Lotus Sutra - Sadharma Pundarika Sutra
Sensei - Mentor / Guru
Mentor disciple tradition - Guru - Shishya parampara
Kalpa - Aeons of time
Individual action - Purusharth
Dharma - Dharma
Wheel of Law - Dharma Chakra
Shakyamuni - Original Buddha who verbally delivered the Lotus Sutra in the last 8 years of his life.
Karma - Karma
Lotus - Kamal ( a flower that blooms and seeds at the same time, and grows beautiful even in
mud )
Nichiren Daishonin :
- The Daishonin writes: "If you care anythig about your personal security, you should first
of all pray for order and tranquility throughout the four quarters of the land, should you not ?
(WND, 24) - Japanese Buddhism, however, had come to be shut up inside temples, where the accepted
practice was simply to recite sutras and pray for peace and a comfortable afterlife. This clearly
demonstrates how secluding oneself from the world and embarking on a life behind temple walls had come to
constitute Buddhist practice. But religions that have forgotten about contributing to society are merely
escapist and impotent.
- "You must not only persevere for yourself; you must also teach others...Teach others
to the best of your ability, even if it is only a single sentence or phrase." (WND 386)
Tsunesaburo Makiguchi :
In an age when Japan was moving headlong into the bleak morass of militarism, Makiguchi, out
of his wish to enable all people to attain indestructible happiness, had initiated the struggle
for kosen rufu.
Josei Toda :
Daisaku Ikeda often jokingly remarks, that he is the product of the Toda University. And that he was the
only student of this university. It is Mr Toda, who with his guidance, deeply inspired the young Mr Ikeda, in his youth, thereby
laying the foundation of the spread of Buddhism in Japan and in almost every corner of the earth.
Peru General Director Kishimoto :
"If you open me up, all you will find beside flesh and bone, is the desire to bring happiness
to the Peruvian people. - Please, I beg of you, take good care of our Peruvian members" -
Director Kishimoto passed away at the age of 68.
- "Thinking of such people, surely we should be ashamed of our
weakness when, practicing Buddhism as we do in such a protected and comfortable environment, we
complain about some minor problem or setback. Instead of worrying about what others are doing or
whether we are fully appreciated, lets become bigger, deeper, stronger people, as lofty and immovable
as the towering Andes." - - from a quote by Daisaku Ikeda.
Daisaku Ikeda :
The Mystic Law is not visible to the human eye. Therefore, the Buddha uses a concrete
metaphor in order to help people understand the Law's wondrous and mystic nature. This is
renge, meaning "lotus flower."
- On August 9, 1945, the second atomic bomb hit Nagasaki, Japan. Again, more than one
hundred thousand people were killed or wounded in a single moment.
** "Nothing is more barbarous than war. Nothing is more cruel. And yet, the war dragged
on. Nothing is more pitiful than a nation being swept along by fools." (The Human
Revolution, Volume 1, "Dawn" chapter)
- In order to carry out its mission of kosen rufu and establish the correct teaching for the peace
of the land, the Soka Gakkai must continue to fight against, and vanquish oppression and persecution
by unjust authorities
Dedicating his 200th academic honour, to the efforts of Soka Gakkai members, Mr Ikeda often
remarks that forcibly nobody can change anyone. It is only your happy smiles, and the transparent
sincerity of your heart, that will make an impression on others
Stressing the importance of leaders as well as members, attending Soka Gakkai meetings,
he jokingly asks how many people have come after swimming across the various waters from the
various Japanese islands ? Implying thereby, that were the Daishonin alive today, would you
not have borne all kinds of hardships to come and be with him.
CME, Medical Portals, 2d - 3d - Animations
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