Daisaku Ikeda

Not to be confused with Daisuke Ikeda.

Daisaku Ikeda
File:Daisaku Ikeda 1961.jpg
President of Sōka Gakkai International
Incumbent
Assumed office 26 January 1975
Honorary President of Sōka Gakkai
Incumbent
Assumed office 24 April 1979
President of Sōka Gakkai
In office 3 May 1960 – 23 April 1979
Preceded by	Josei Toda
Succeeded by	Hiroshi Hōjō (北条浩)
Personal details
Born	(1928-01-02) 2 January 1928 Ōta, Tokyo, Japan
Spouse	Kaneko Ikeda (池田香峯子)
Children	Hiromasa Ikeda (池田博正) Takahiro Ikeda (池田尊弘) Official Website
Alma mater	Fuji Junior College (present-day Tokyo Fuji University)

Daisaku Ikeda (池田 大作, Ikeda Daisaku, born January 2, 1928, Japan) is the founder and current president of Sōka Gakkai International (SGI), the international offshoot of Sōka Gakkai, a Nichiren Buddhist lay association which has more than 12 million members in 190 countries around the world .Daisaku Ikeda is a Buddhist leader, peacebuilder, a prolific writer, poet, educator and founder of a number of cultural, educational and peace research institutions around the world.As third president of the Soka Gakkai (value-creating society) and founder of the Soka Gakkai International, Daisaku Ikeda has developed and inspired what may be the largest, most diverse international lay Buddhist association in the world today. Based on the 700-year-old tradition of Nichiren Buddhism, the movement is characterized by its emphasis on individual empowerment and social engagement to advance peace, culture and education.

Biography

Daisaku Ikeda was born in Tokyo, Japan, on January 2, 1928, the fifth of eight children in a family of seaweed farmers. Ikeda grew up in an age when Japan's militarist regime was driving the nation inexorably to war. In 1937, the year full-scale hostilities broke out between Japan and China, Ikeda's eldest brother, Kiichi, was drafted, to be followed by three other brothers as the years passed. Kiichi was killed in the war, but his description of his disgust at the Japanese military's treatment of the Chinese people left a lasting impression on Ikeda.

Ikeda was a young teenager in the 1940s when Japan entered World War II. His family home was twice destroyed in air raids and he experienced firsthand the devastation of the March 9-10, 1945, firebombing of Tokyo in which 100,000 people were killed.

In the chaos of postwar Japan, Ikeda encountered Josei Toda (1900-58), head of the lay Buddhist organization Soka Gakkai, who had opposed the policies of the wartime government and had suffered persecutions and a two-year imprisonment as a result. Toda was in the process of rebuilding the Soka Gakkai, which he had founded together with fellow educator Tsunesaburo Makiguchi (1871-1944) in 1930 and which had been all but destroyed by the militarist government during the war. Toda was deeply convinced that the philosophy of Nichiren Buddhism, with its focus on the profound potential of the individual human being, would be the key to bringing about a social transformation within Japan.

Ikeda joined the Soka Gakkai in 1947. He devoted himself to supporting Toda and his vision, completing his education under the tutelage of Toda, who became his mentor in life. He assisted Toda following the collapse of his businesses during the war, and then played a central role in helping achieve a monumental increase in the Soka Gakkai's membership, from just 3,000 households in 1951 to 750,000 by 1957.

Soka Gakkai President

In May 1960, two years after Toda's death, Ikeda, then 32, succeeded him as president of the Soka Gakkai. One of Ikeda's first initiatives after assuming the presidency was to undertake a trip abroad in order to encourage Soka Gakkai members living overseas. In the USA, and in the numerous other countries he visited in the next few years, Ikeda established an organizational structure to encourage and facilitate more frequent interaction between the members. Within his first four years as president, he had traveled to North and South America, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and Oceania, starting to lay the foundations for an overseas organization that today has members in 192 countries and territories.

It was also during these overseas trips that he began planning the foundation of a series of research and other institutions dedicated to academic and cultural exchange and peace research. These include the Institute of Oriental Philosophy (1962), the Min-On Concert Association (1963), the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum (1983), the Ikeda Center for Peace, Learning, and Dialogue (formerly, the Boston Research Center for the 21st Century, 1993) and the Toda Institute for Global Peace and Policy Research (1996).

Both Toda and his mentor, Makiguchi, had been educators working to implement Makiguchi's theory of value-creating pedagogy, and one of Ikeda's initiatives was to establish a system of schools that would give physical form to the ideals of his predecessors. Junior and Senior Soka High Schools were founded in Tokyo in 1968, followed by the establishment of Soka University in 1971 and Soka University of America in 2001. The establishment of these schools, which are open to all students and offer no religious instruction, was the first major step in an ongoing endeavor to develop a humanistic educational system, one that Ikeda has described as the culminating undertaking of his life.

In 1964 Ikeda began writing his serialized novel, The Human Revolution, which details the struggles of his mentor, Josei Toda, to reconstruct the Soka Gakkai after his release from prison at the end of World War II. It opens with a concise, scathing condemnation of war and militarism that offers a clear context for the movement's objectives: "Nothing is more barbarous than war. Nothing is more cruel . . . . Nothing is more pitiful than a nation being swept along by fools."

On September 8, 1968, during an address to some 20,000 members of the Soka Gakkai's student division, Ikeda called for the normalization of Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations and outlined steps toward achieving this. At the time, China was still perceived as an enemy nation by many within Japan and was isolated within the international community. Ikeda's proposal drew condemnation, but it also caught the attention of those, both in China and in Japan, who were interested in restoring relations between the two countries, including Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai.

Ikeda also began to engage in dialogue with political figures during the 1970s. This was a time of deep tensions between the superpowers, with the threat of nuclear annihilation hanging over humanity. During 1974 and 1975, he visited China, the USSR and the USA, meeting with Zhou Enlai, Soviet Premier Aleksey Kosygin and US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger in turn, in an effort to break deadlock and open channels of communication in order to help prevent the outbreak of war.

One of the hallmarks of Ikeda's peace philosophy is his commitment to dialogue. He has met and exchanged views with representatives of cultural, political, educational and artistic fields from around the world. Many of these meetings have led to the publication of collaborative dialogues seeking common ground on a diverse range of topics--history, economics, peace studies, astronomy and medicine, to name a few. Among the individuals with whom Ikeda has published dialogues are the British historian Arnold Toynbee, former Soviet president Mikhail Gorbachev, theologian Harvey J. Cox, futurist Hazel Henderson, Brazilian champion of human rights Austregésilo de Athayde, Chinese literary giant Jin Yong and Indonesian Muslim leader Abdurrahman Wahid.

Ikeda's activities during the 1970s demonstrated that his vision of the role of Nichiren Buddhism in society--its imperative for people's happiness--is not bound by a narrow sense of religiosity. For Ikeda, Nichiren's Buddhism is the philosophical basis for an active engagement with the global and societal challenges of the modern world.

SGI President

On January 26, 1975, Soka Gakkai representatives from 51 countries and territories gathered on the island of Guam where the Soka Gakkai International (SGI) was established, with Ikeda as its founding president. The site of some of the bloodiest fighting of World War II, Guam was symbolically chosen as the site of this meeting to launch a new movement for peace.

Since that time, the SGI has developed into a broad global network with affiliated, independent SGI organizations in 93 countries and territories. As well as teaching the practice and philosophy of Nichiren Buddhism, local SGI organizations promote the causes of peace, culture and education in their respective societies, while the organization has also developed large-scale international public exhibitions on such issues as building a culture of peace, nuclear abolition, sustainable development and human rights.

In 1983, Ikeda began writing peace proposals, which he has continued to publish annually on the anniversary of the SGI's founding, January 26. These proposals offer a perspective on issues facing humanity, suggesting solutions and responses grounded in Buddhist philosophy. They include specific agendas for strengthening the United Nations, including boosting the capacity for civil society involvement, which Ikeda regards as essential to the establishment of a peaceful world. The proposals frequently illustrate the crucial importance of dialogue as a means to break through deadlock in world affairs.

In addition to his own wartime experiences, the starting point for Ikeda's championing of peace is the declaration calling for the abolition of nuclear weapons made by Josei Toda in 1957, the year before his death. Toda denounced nuclear weapons as the embodiment of evil, insisting that their use must be condemned, not from the standpoint of ideology, nationality or ethnic identity, but from the universal dimension of humanity and our inalienable right to live. Ikeda has ceaselessly dedicated himself to spreading this message around the globe, raising awareness and building a grassroots movement which works for the abolition of these most inhumane weapons.

In 1974, Ikeda accepted an invitation to deliver a lecture at the University of California, Los Angeles. The following year he delivered a lecture at Moscow State University entitled "A New Road to East-West Cultural Exchange." On the same occasion he accepted an honorary doctorate from the university. These events signaled the beginning of a growing international recognition for his contributions to cultural exchange and the promotion of education and peace. During the 1980s and 1990s, Ikeda accepted invitations to speak at some 30 universities throughout Asia, America and Europe. His lectures explore the themes of education, cultural exchange and peace, grounded in his Buddhist perspective and considered within the particular cultural, intellectual and historical context of the country concerned. To date, Ikeda has been awarded with over 300 honorary doctorates and professorships from institutions around the world. His writings on peace are currently used in university-level course materials in countries as diverse as Argentina and the United States. Over 20 research institutes have been dedicated to the study of his philosophy.

The central tenet of Ikeda's thought is the fundamental sanctity of life, a value which he sees as the key to lasting peace and human happiness. In his view, global peace relies ultimately on a self-directed transformation within the life of the individual, rather than on societal or structural reforms alone. While this route may be long, he believes it is the only way to build a lasting culture of peace.

This idea is expressed most succinctly in a passage in his best-known work, The Human Revolution, his novelization of the Soka Gakkai's history and ideals: "A great inner revolution in just a single individual will help achieve a change in the destiny of a nation and, further, will enable a change in the destiny of all humankind."

Accomplishments

Ikeda is a prolific writer, peace activist and interpreter of Nichiren Buddhism. His interests include photography, art, philosophy, and music. He has signed the Earth Charter. He has traveled to more than 50 countries to hold discussions with political, cultural, and educational figures, as well as to teach, support, and encourage SGI practitioners.

Topics he has addressed include the transformative value of religion, the universal sanctity of life, social responsibility, and sustainable progress and development.

As head of SGI, Ikeda has founded several institutions, such as the Sōka University, Sōka schools, the International Committee of Artists for Peace, the Min-On Concert Association, the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum (TFAM), the Institute of Oriental Philosophy (IOP), and the Toda Institute for Global Peace and Policy Research.

In addition, he has guided Sōka Gakkai's support of, and involvement in, the New Komeito Party (Kōmeitō), a Japanese political party which, as of 2007, is part of a coalition with the Liberal Democratic Party. Ikeda has also initiated a wide range of grassroots exchange programs, and delivered speeches at a number of institutions of higher learning around the world, including Harvard University, the Institut de France, Beijing University, and Moscow State University. The Gandhi, King, Ikeda exhibition showcases the peace activism of Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr, and Ikeda. Another exhibition is Dialogue with Nature showcasing Ikeda's photographs. He has also sponsored a documentary film about the environment, A Quiet Revolution.

Ikeda's many children's books have been animated into anime.

He is an honorary member of the Club of Rome.

Honorary doctorates and professorships

Ikeda received his 300th degree from the University of Massachusetts Boston on November 21, 2010. He has said that "The academic honors I have accepted have all been on behalf of the members of SGI around the world." His pursuit to promote peace through humanism over the past 60 years has been recognised worldwide, for which he has received over 340 academic honours.

Number	Country	Institution	Title conferred	Place and date
1	U.S.S.R.	Moscow State University	honorary doctorate	May 1975
2	Peru	National University of San Marcos	hon. professorship	April 1981
3	Bulgaria	Sofia University	honorary doctorate	May 1981
4	China	Peking University	honorary professorship	June 1984
5	China	Fudan University	honorary professorship	June 1984
6	Dominican Republic	Autonomous University of Santo Domingo	honorary professorship	February 1987
7	Argentina	University of Buenos Aires	honorary doctorate	March 1990
8	Mexico	University of Guanajuato	honorary doctorate (Maestro Emérito)	March 1990
9	China	Wuhan University	honorary professorship	November 1990
10	Macau	University of Macau	honorary professorship	January 1991
11	Philippines	University of the Philippines	honorary doctorate of law	April 1991
12	Argentina	University of Palermo	honorary doctorate	May 1991
13	Hong Kong	Chinese University of Hong Kong	distinguished visiting professor	January 1992
14	Turkey	Ankara University	honorary doctorate of social science	June 1992
15	China	Chinese Academy of Social Sciences	honorary research professor	October 1992
16	Kenya	University of Nairobi	honorary doctorate of letters	December 1992
17	Brazil	Federal University of Rio de Janeiro	honorary doctorate	February 1993
18	Argentina	National University of Lomas de Zamora	honorary doctorate	February 1993
19	Argentina	National University of Lomas de Zamora	honorary professorship, faculty of law	February 1993
20	Argentina	National University of Córdoba	honorary professorship	February 1993
21	Paraguay	National University of Asunción	honorary doctorate of philosophy	February 1993
22	Brazil	University of São Paulo	honorary visiting professor	February 1993
23	Brazil	Federal University of Paraná	honorary doctorate	March 1993
24	Bolivia	Del Valle University	honorary doctorate	March 1993
25	China	Shenzhen University	honorary professorship	November 1993
26	China	Xinjian Uygur Autonomous Region Museum	honorary professorship	January 1994
27	Russia	International University in Moscow	honorary doctorate	May 1994
28	Italy	University of Bologna	honorary doctorate	June 1994
29	United Kingdom	University of Glasgow	honorary doctorate	June 1994
30	China	Xinjiang University	honorary professorship	August 1994
31	China	Xiamen University	honorary professorship	November 1994
32	South Africa	University of the North	honorary doctorate of education	September 1995
33	Nepal	Tribhuvan University	honorary doctorate of letters	November 1995
34	Macau	University of Macau	honorary doctorate of social sciences	November 1995
35	Hong Kong	University of Hong Kong	honorary doctorate of letters	March 1996
36	China	Xinjiang University	honorary president	April 1996
37	United States	University of Denver	honorary doctorate of education	June 1996
38	Cuba	University of Havana	honorary doctorate of letters	June 1996
39	Ghana	University of Ghana	honorary doctorate of law	August 1996
40	Russia	Far Eastern State University	honorary doctorate of international education	November 1996
41	China	Zhongshan (Sun Yat-Sen) University	honorary professorship	November 1996
42	China	Jilin University	honorary professorship	February 1997
43	Philippines	De La Salle University	honorary doctorate of humane letters (international education)	March 1997
44	Sri Lanka	University of Kelaniya	honorary doctorate of letters	May 1997
45	China	Shanghai University	honorary professorship	May 1997
46	China	Inner Mongolia University	honorary professorship	October 1997
47	Mongolia	National University of Mongolia	honorary doctorate of humanities	November 1997
48	Philippines	University of the City of Manila	honorary doctorate of humanities	February 1998
49	Argentina	Universidad de Morón	honorary doctorate	March 1998
50	Russia	Institute for High Energy Physics	honorary doctorate	April 1998
51	Brazil	Rio de Janeiro State University	honorary doctorate	April 1998
52	Republic of Korea	Kyung Hee University	honorary doctorate of philosophy	May 1998
53	Republic of Korea	Chung Cheong College	honorary professorship	July 1998
54	Peru	Ricardo Palma University	honorary doctorate	July 1998
55	Peru	Association of Doctors of Education	honorary doctorate	July 1998
56	China	Yanbian University	honorary professorship	November 1998
57	China	Nankai University	honorary professorship	November 1998
58	Brazil	Northern Paraná University	honorary doctorate	November 1998
59	India	University of Delhi	honorary doctorate of letters	December 1998
60	Argentina	University of Flores	honorary doctorate	January 1999
61	China	Sichuan University	honorary professorship	April 1999
62	Peru	Federico Villarreal National University	honorary doctorate	April 1999
63	Republic of Korea	Cheju National University	honorary doctorate of Korean language and literature	May 1999
64	Bolivia	University of Santa Cruz de la Sierra	honorary doctorate	June 1999
65	China	Northeastern University	honorary professorship	July 1999
66	Kyrgyzstan	Institute of Oriental Languages and Cultures, Kyrgyz State Pedagogical University	honorary professorship	August 1999
67	Peru	National University of Central Peru	honorary doctorate	September 1999
68	China	Hunan Normal University	honorary professorship	September 1999
69	Argentina	National University of Lomas de Zamora	honorary professorship, faculty of social sciences	October 1999
70	Argentina	National University of Comahue	honorary doctorate	October 1999
71	China	Nanjing University	honorary professorship	December 1999
72	Russia	St. Petersburg State University	honorary doctorate	January 2000
73	United States	University of Delaware	honorary doctorate of humane letters	Tokyo, 16 January 2000
74	United States	Queens College, City University of New York	honorary doctorate of humane letters	January 2000
75	Guam (United States)	University of Guam	honorary doctorate of humane letters	January 2000
76	Philippines	Angeles University Foundation	honorary doctorate of humanities	February 2000
77	China	Central University for Nationalities	honorary professorship	February 2000
78	China	Guangdong University of Foreign Studies	honorary professorship	February 2000
79	Argentina	National University of Nordeste	honorary doctorate	February 2000
80	China	Northeast Normal University	honorary doctorate	March 2000
81	Sakha Republic (Russia)	Yakutsk State University	honorary professorship	March 2000
82	El Salvador	Latin American Technical University	honorary doctorate	April 2000
83	China	Inner Mongolia Art Academy	preeminent honorary professor	April 2000
84	India	Sri Sitaramdas Omkarnath Institute of Sanskrit Learning	honorary doctorate (Mahamahopadhyaya)	April 2000
85	Mongolia	Mongolian Institute of Literature and Social Work	honorary rector	May 2000
86	China	Beijing Administrative College	honorary professorship	May 2000
87	China	Yunnan University	honorary professorship	June 2000
88	China	South China Normal University	honorary professorship	August 2000
89	India	Bundelkhand University	honorary doctorate of letters	August 2000
90	Venezuela	University of Zulia	honorary doctorate	September 2000
91	Panama	University of Panama	honorary doctorate	September 2000
92	India	Bundelkhand University	honorary lifetime professor in the Ambedhar School of Social Sciences	October 2000
93	Thailand	Siam University	honorary doctorate of public administration	November 2000
94	Tonga	Tonga Institute of Education and Tong Tonga Institute of Schinece and Technology	honorary professorship of education	November 2000
95	Australia	University of Sydney	honorary doctorate of letters	24 November 2000
96	Malaysia	Putra University, Malaysia	honorary doctorate of letters	November 2000
97	Hong Kong	Chinese University of Hong Kong	honorary doctorate of social science	7 December 2000
98	Mongolia	Mongolian University of Arts and Culture	honorary doctorate	December 2000
99	India	Purvanchal University	honorary doctorate of letters	January 2001
100	China	Guangdong Province Academy of Social Sciences	honorary professorship	February 2001
101	China	Northwest University	honorary professorship	April 2001
102	China	Anhui University	honorary professorship	April 2001
103	Puerto Rico	Carlos Albizu University	honorary doctorate of humane letters in behavioral sciences	May 2001
104	Mongolia	Kharakhorum University	honorary doctorate	May 2001
105	China	Fujian Normal University	honorary professorship	June 2001
106	China	Huaqiao University	honorary professorship	June 2001
107	China	Jinan University	honorary professorship	July 2001
108	Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (United States)	Northern Marianas College	honorary professorship	July 2001
109	China	Soochow University	honorary professorship	October 2001
110	China	Liaoning Normal University	honorary professorship	October 2001
111	Philippines	University of Southern Philippines Foundation	honorary doctorate of humanities	October 2001
112	China	Guangzhou University	honorary professorship	November 2001
113	Republic of Korea	Kyongju University	honorary professorship	December 2001
114	Republic of Korea	Changwon National University	honorary doctorate of education	December 2001
115	Kazakhstan	International Kazakh-Turkish University	honorary professorship	December 2001
116	Dominican Republic	Santiago Technical University	honorary doctorate	February 2002
117	Uzbekistan	National Institute of Arts and Design (Uzbekistan)	honorary professorship	February 2002
118	China	Liaoning Academy of Social Sciences	senior research professor	March 2002
119	Philippines	Gregorio Araneta University Foundation	honorary doctorate of humanities	March 2002
120	Cambodia	Royal University of Phnom Penh	honorary professorship	March 2002
121	China	Liaoning University	honorary professorship	April 2002
122	United States	Morehouse College	honorary doctorate of humane letters	April 2002
123	China	Qingdao University	honorary professorship	April 2002
124	India	Chhatrapati Shahu Ji Maharaj University	honorary doctorate of letters	April 2002
125	Kenya	Kenyatta University	honorary doctorate of humane letters	May 2002
126	China	Heilongjiang Academy of Social Sciences	honorary professorship	May 2002
127	Russia	Moscow State University	honorary professorship	June 2002
128	China	Nanjing Normal University	honorary professorship	June 2002
129	Republic of Korea	Sorabol College	honorary professorship	June 2002
130	India	Himachal Pradesh University	honorary doctorate of literature	August 2002
131	China	Renmin University of China	honorary professorship	September 2002
132	China	University of Science and Technology of China	honorary professorship	October 2002
133	China	Zhejiang University	honorary professorship	November 2002
134	Mongolia	Shihihutung Law School	honorary doctorate	November 2002
135	Ukraine	Kiev National University of Trade and Economics	honorary doctorate	November 2002
136	Republic of Korea	Dong-A University	honorary doctorate of philosophy	December 2002
137	China	Shanghai International Studies University	honorary professorship	December 2002
138	China	Shanghai Academy of Social Sciences	honorary professorship	December 2002
139	India	Bharathidasan University	honorary doctorate of literature	January 2003
140	Peru	National University of Piura	honorary doctorate	February 2003
141	Taiwan	Chinese Culture University	honorary doctorate of philosophy	March 2003
142	China	Dalian University of Foreign Languages	honorary professorship	April 2003
143	Paraguay	Columbia University of Paraguay	honorary doctorate of sociology	April 2003
144	Peru	Jorge Basadre Grohmann National University	honorary doctorate	September 2003
145	China	Northwest Normal University	honorary professorship	October 2003
146	Republic of Korea	Gwangju Women's University	honorary professorship	October 2003
147	China	Shanghai Jiao Tong University	honorary professorship	October 2003
148	United States	Chapman University	honorary doctorate of humane letters	December 2003
149	China	Zhaoqing University	honorary professorship	December 2003
150	Sakha Republic (Russia)	Arctic State Institute of Culture and Arts	honorary professorship	January 2004
151	India	Rabindra Bharati University	honorary doctorate of literature	February 2004
152	United States	Mineral Area College	honorary professorship of humanities	February 2004
153	China	National Prosecuters College	honorary professorship	March 2004
154	Taiwan	National Pingtung University	honorary doctorate of agricultural sciences	March 2004
155	Republic of Buryatia (Russia)	Buryat State University	honorary professorship	April 2004
156	Brazil	Londrina State University	honorary doctorate	April 2004
157	Bolivia	University of San Francisco Xavier of Chuquisaca	honorary doctorate	May 2004
158	China	China University of Petroleum	honorary professorship	May 2004
159	Philippines	Capitol University	honorary doctorate of humanities	June 2004
160	China	Sanda University	honorary professorship	June 2004
161	Jordan	University of Jordan	honorary doctorate of humane letters	July 2004
162	Mexico	University of Guadalajara	honorary doctorate	September 2004
163	China	Fujian Academy of Social Sciences	honorary professorship	September 2004
164	China	Changchun University	honorary professorship	October 2004
165	China	Qufu Normal University	honorary professorship	October 2004
166	Kyrgyzstan	Osh State University	honorary professorship	November 2004
167	Republic of Korea	Paekche Institute of the Arts	honorary professorship	November 2004
168	Mongolia	Otgontenger University	honorary doctorate	December 2004
169	Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (United States)	Northern Marianas College	honorary president	January 2005
170	Peru	Enrique Guzman y Valle National University of Education	honorary doctorate	January 2005
171	Belarus	Minsk State Linguistic University	honorary professorship	February 2005
172	Philippines	Batangas State University	honorary doctorate of pedagogy	March 2005
173	China	Shanghai University of Finance and Economics	honorary professorship	April 2005
174	Paraguay	National University of Itapua	honorary doctorate	April 2005
175	China	Beijing Language and Culture University	honorary professorship	May 2005
176	Brazil	Cornélio Procópio College of Philosophy, Science, and Letters	honorary doctorate	May 2005
177	China	Huazhong Normal University	honorary professorship	June 2005
178	China	Guangxi Normal University	honorary professorship	July 2005
179	Mongolia	Mongolian Academy of Sciences Institute of Philosophy, Sociology and Law	honorary professorship, philosophy	September 2005
180	Vietnam	Vietnam National University, Hanoi	honorary doctorate	September 2005
181	China	East China University of Science and Technology	honorary professorship	October 2005
182	Serbia and Montenegro	Braca Karic University	honorary doctorate	October 2005
183	Russia	Academy of Security, Defense, and Law Enforcement	honorary professorship	December 2005
184	India	Symbiosis International Educational Centre (Deemed University)	honorary doctorate of literature	December 2005
185	Russia	Ural State University	honorary doctorate	January 2006
186	Laos	National University of Laos	honorary professorship of humanities	February 2006
187	Philippines	Pampanga Agricultural College	honorary doctorate of humanities	March 2006
188	China	Hunan University	honorary professorship	April 2006
189	Ukraine	National Technical University of Ukraine "KPI"	honorary doctorate	April 2006
190	China	East China Normal University	honorary professorship	May 2006
191	China	Nanjing Arts Institute	honorary professorship	May 2006
192	India	Visva-Bharati	honorary doctorate of literature	May 2006
193	China	China Southwest University of Political Science and Law	honorary professorship	June 2006
194	United States	Southern Illinois University Carbondale	honorary doctorate of humane letters	June 2006
195	United States	Los Angeles Southwest College	honorary professorship	June 2006
196	China	Shaoguan University	honorary professorship	June 2006
197	Republic of Korea	Dong Shin University	honorary doctorate of public administration	June 2006
198	Thailand	Maejo University	honorary doctorate of administration	July 2006
199	Brazil	Catholic College of Economic Science of Bahia	honorary doctorate	September 2006
200	China	Beijing Normal University	honorary professorship	October 2006
201	Philippines	University of Rizal System	honorary doctorate of humanities	Nov 24, 2006
202	China	Dalian University of Technology	honorary professorship	Dec 8, 2006
203	Republic of Korea	Dongju College	honorary professorship	Feb 6, 2007
204	China	Guizhou University	honorary professorship	Feb 26, 2007
205	Russia	Baikal National University of Economics and Law	honorary professorship	Mar 13, 2007
206	Venezuela	Rafael Belloso Chacin University	honorary doctorate	Mar 20, 2007
207	Venezuela	Santa María University	honorary doctorate of law	Mar 20, 2007
208	Italy	University of Palermo	honorary doctorate of communication sciences	Mar 23, 2007
209	Brazil	Brazilian Academy of Philosophy	honorary doctorate	Apr 2, 2007
210	United States	University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee	honorary doctorate of humane letters	Apr 17, 2007
211	China	Harbin Engineering University	honorary professorship	Apr 18, 2007
212	Brazil	Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul	honorary doctorate	Apr 29, 2007
213	China	Tianjin Academy of Social Sciences	honorary professorship	May 5, 2007
214	Taiwan	Southern Taiwan University of Technology	honorary doctorate of engineering	May 28, 2007
215	Russia	Russian State University for the Humanities	honorary doctorate	May 31, 2007
216	Peru	National University of El Santa	honorary doctorate	Jun 23, 2007
217	Sakha Republic (Russia)	The Yakut State Agricultural Academy	honorary professorship	Jul 4, 2007
218	Russia	Far Eastern State Technical University	honorary professorship	Jul 9, 2007
219	Philippines	University of Southeastern Philippines	honorary doctorate of education	Sep 13, 2007
220	China	Shaanxi Normal University	honorary professorship	Oct 6, 2007
221	Mexico	University of Humanistic Integration	honorary doctorate of human sciences	Oct 8, 2007
222	Brazil	Ingá University (UNINGÁ)	honorary professorship	Oct 10, 2007
223	China	China Youth University for Political Sciences	honorary professorship	Oct 21, 2007
224	Mongolia	Mongolian State University of Education	honorary doctorate	Oct 24, 2007
225	China	Wenzhou Medical College	honorary professorship	Nov 30, 2007
226	China	Shanghai Normal University	honorary professorship	Dec 17, 2007
227	Dominican Republic	Autonomous University of Santo Domingo	honorary doctorate	Jan 19, 2008
228	Taiwan	National Yunlin University of Science and Technology	honorary doctorate of philosophy in management	Jan 21, 2008
229	Philippines	Laguna State Polytechnic University	honorary doctorate of philosophy in humanities	Jan 26, 2008
230	China	Hunan University of Science and Technology	honorary professorship	Mar 1, 2008
231	Kyrgyz Republic	I. Arabaev Kyrgyz State University	honorary doctorate	Mar 21, 2008
232	China	Jiaying University	honorary professorship	Mar 31, 2008
233	Russia	Tula Lev Tolstoy State Pedagogical University	honorary professorship	Apr 2, 2008
234	China	Hebei University	honorary professorship	Apr 13, 2008
235	China	Yan'a University	honorary professorship	May 4, 2008
236	China	Eastern Liaoning University	lifetime honorary professorship	May 30, 2008
237	China	Changchun University of Technology	honorary professorship	Jun 2, 2008
238	Brazil	Centro Universitário de Goiás	honorary doctorate	Jun 17, 2008
239	Brazil	Centro Universitário Ítalo Brasileiro	honorary doctorate	Jun 20, 2008
240	Philippines	Benguet State University	honorary doctorate of humanities	Jul 10, 2008
241	Taiwan	Chungyu Institute of Technology	honorary professorship	Jul 22, 2008
242	Taiwan	Tainan University of Technology	honorary professorship	Jul 24, 2008
243	Malaysia	Open University Malaysia	honorary doctorate of Arts	Feb 24, 2009
250	Denmark	University of Southern Denmark	honorary doctorate	March 21, 2009
251	Republic of Korea	Korea Maritime University	University Professor	Apr 2, 2009
252	Armenia	Yerevan State Academy of Fine Arts and Artists	honorary doctorate	Japan, April 2, 2010
253	Canada	Université Laval	honorary doctorate of education	May 4, 2010
254	Malaysia	University of Malaya	honorary doctorate of humanities	August 2, 2010
	Malaysia	Open University Malaysia	honorary doctor of arts (humanities)	Soka International Friendship Hall, 2010
255	Chile	Universidad Pedro de Valdivia	honorary doctorate	Soka University, August 30, 2010
263	Indonesia	Universitas Indonesia	Honorary Doctorate in Philosophy and Peace	Soka University, October 10, 2009
300	United States	University of Massachusetts Boston	honorary degree	Shinjuku, Tokyo, November 18, 2010
301	Philippines	University of Southern Mindanao	honorary doctorate of humanities	October 9, 2010
317	U.K.	University of Buckingham	Honorary Doctorate of Literature	Oct 25, 2011
318	China	Jimei University	Honorary Professor	Nov 9, 2011
319	Ethiopia	Microlink Information Technology College	Honorary Professor emeritus	Aug 4, 2012

Other awards

• Order of Friendship from Russia.
• Tagore Peace Award (1997, India)
• Jamnalal Bajaj Award (2005) for "Outstanding Contribution in Promotion of Gandhian Values Outside India by Individuals other than Indian Citizens."

Personal life

Ikeda lives in Tokyo with his wife, Kaneko (born 1932), whom he married on May 3, 1952. He has three sons, Hiromasa (born 1953; Vice-president of Sōka Gakkai), Shirohisa (1955–1984), and Takahiro (born 1958).

Books

• Compassionate Light in Asia with Jin Yong
• The Human Revolution (12 volumes):Human Revolution in SGI
• The New Human Revolution (30+ Volumes, this is an ongoing series)
• Choose Life: A Dialogue with Arnold J. Toynbee
• Dawn After Dark with René Huyghe
• Before It Is Too Late with Aurelio Peccei
• Human Values in a changing world with Bryan Wilson
• A Lifelong Quest for Peace with Linus Pauling
• Dialogue of World Citizens with Norman Cousins
• Choose Peace with Johan Galtung
• Planetary Citizenship with Hazel Henderson
• Moral Lesson of the Twentieth Century with Mikhail Gorbachev
• A Quest for Global Peace: Rotblat and Ikeda on War, Ethics, and the Nuclear Threat with Joseph Rotblat
• Global Civilization: A Buddhist-Islamic Dialogue With Majid Tehranian
• Toward Creating an Age of Humanism with John Kenneth Galbraith
• Dialogical Civilization with Tu Weiming
• My Recollections
• One By One
• For the Sake of Peace
• A Youthful Diary
• The Living Buddha
• Buddhism, the First Millennium
• The Flower of Chinese Buddhism
• The Wisdom of the Lotus Sutra (6 volumes)
• On Peace, Life and Philosophy with Henry Kissinger
• Human Rights on the 21st Century with Austregesilo de Athayde
• Revolutions: to green the environment, to grow the human heart with M.S. Swaminathan
• Unlocking the Mysteries of Birth and Death: A Buddhist View of Life
• Life: An Enigma, a Precious Jewel
• Humanity at the Crossroads with Karan Singh
• The Snow Country Prince (children's book)
• The Cherry Tree (children's book)
• The Princess and the Moon (children's book)
• Over the Deep Blue Sea (children's book)
• Kanta and the Deer (children's book)
• The Way of Youth: Buddhist Common Sense for Handling Life's Questions (with a foreword by Duncan Sheik)
• Planetary Citizenship with Hazel Henderson
• Songs of Peace: Rendezvous with Nature (Photographs) (Tokyo: Sōka Gakkai, 2005)
• "A Dialogue Between East and West: Looking to a Human Revolution" with Ricardo Diez-Hochleitner
• Ode to the Grand Spirit — A dialogue — with Chingiz Aitmatov
• 'La fuerza de la Esperanza; Reflexiones sobre la paz y los derechos humanos en el tercer milenio' (dialogue between Argentine Nobel Peace laureate Dr. Adolfo Pérez Esquivel and Daisaku Ikeda) (Buenos Aires, Emecé, 2011)

Further reading

• Seager, Richard: Encountering the Dharma: Daisaku Ikeda, Sōka Gakkai, and the Globalization of Buddhism. University of California Press, 2006.

External links

• Daisaku Ikeda's website
• SGI President page for Daisaku Ikeda
• Tricycle Magazine Interview, by Clark Strand, Winter 2008
• Lectures around the World