Creating a Culture of Peace

Workshop Objectives
To deepen our understanding of the following questions:
  • How can we SGI members, both in our personal practice and our SGI activities contribute toward a powerful grass-roots peace movement?
  • What is peace? What constitutes real security? What is the SGI’s vision for peace building?
  • What is the role of prayer?
  • What does it mean to “build a culture of peace”? 
    • “In short, the Latter Day of the Law is an age of conflict; it is a time when all and sundry are in strife.  The strength to resist this torrent comes from firm conviction in the existence of the Buddha nature of oneself and others. Carrying out the practice of revering others comes down to taking action based on this conviction. Kosen-rufu is nothing other than the expansion of the network of those who share this conviction and who advance accordingly. It was the Daishonin who set in motion the current of kosen-rufu to turn back the torrent of this age of conflict.” [Daisaku Ikeda, Living Buddhism, April 2002, p. 11]

    Excerpts from United Nations Undersecretary General Anwarul K. Chowdhury  in his address at the commencement ceremony of Soka University (Japan) on March 19, 2003:

    "Since wars begin in the minds of men, it is in the minds of men that the defenses of peace must be constructed." The flourishing of culture of peace will generate the mindset that is a prerequisite for the transition from force to reason, from conflict and violence to dialogue and peace. Culture of peace will then provide the bedrock to support a stable, progressing and prospering world — a world that is finally at peace with itself.

    “As Secretary-General of the United Nations and Nobel Peace laureate Kofi Annan has said, ‘Over the years we have come to realize that it is not enough to send peacekeeping forces to separate warring parties. It is not enough to engage in peacebuilding efforts after societies have been ravaged by conflict. It is not enough to conduct preventive diplomacy. All of this is essential work, but we want enduring results. We need, in short, a culture of peace.’"

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    “It is uniquely remarkable that President Ikeda has been presenting with great enthusiasm and determination his peace proposals every year for the last twenty years. He particularly emphasizes the positive, active pursuit of peace as opposed to the absence of war that he calls "passive peace". Recognizing the challenging realities of the present day world, he has been focusing on the need for promoting a culture of peace, peace through dialogue, peace through nonviolence. He has been emphasizing that a culture of peace should be the foundation of the new global society. He very appropriately underscores that peace is not something which is distant but it is something which can be pursued through day-to-day efforts by cultivating care and consideration for others and through understanding, tolerance and respect for diversity. He has highlighted empowerment of people as a major element in building a culture of peace and very eloquently emphasized the emergence of women in leading the way for that. 

    "I believe that the real foundation of all the peace proposals of President Ikeda has been the reawakening of human spirit — spirit that should energize and empower each and every individual belonging to our planet with love and concern for each other for the greater good of humanity. He talks about a human revolution which will bring out the best in everybody and which should be the ultimate objective of every individual and every nation.”