Ichinen sanzen daisaku ikeda biography

[© Seikyo Shimbun]

Third president of the Soka Gakkai, Daisaku Ikeda (1928–2023), was a Buddhist philosopher, peacebuilder, educator, author and poet. He was the founding president of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI).

Ikeda was born in Tokyo, Japan, on January 2, 1928, the fifth of eight children, to a family of seaweed farmers.

The devastation and senseless horror he witnessed as a teenager during World War II gave birth to a lifelong passion to work for peace.

In 1947, at the age of 19, he met Josei Toda (1900–58), educator and leader of the Soka Gakkai.

Daisaku ikeda

Ikeda found in Toda an open and unaffected person, a man of unshakable conviction with a gift for explaining profound Buddhist concepts in logical, accessible terms. He was inspired to embrace the practice of Nichiren Buddhism and took Toda as his mentor in life.

Ikeda later found employment at a company run by Toda and completed his education under Toda’s