President Ikeda to receive UK honorary degree - SGI-UK E-Bulletin ...

2 2 3 3 4 4
Beacons of
hope in
Wales
Pork soup
to remember
Youth Day
Spring
training
course
Baby boom
in the East
Midlands
Absolute
Freedom
Group
The spirit
of Lilac in
London
Trust through friendship. Peace through trust.
e-bulletin
SGI-UK online news bulletin Special Issue 04.04.2009
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President Ikeda to receive UK honorary degree
President Daisaku Ikeda will receive the
honorary degree in Japan next month
SGI President Daisaku Ikeda
will have an honorary degree
conferred on him by Queens
University Belfast next month at
Soka University.
A group of senior academics
from QUB will attend, led by the Vice
Chancellor Professor Peter Gregson.
And a group of 16 SGI-UK members
will be travelling to Japan to attend the
conferral, with one representative from
each Area in the UK, a total of 11, and
three from Northern Ireland, together
with a WD leader and YD leader.
This honorary degree is given on the
More Youth Day pictures
and reports on page 2
occasion of the 100th anniversary of the
university.
Others who also had degrees
bestowed in the summer and winter
of 2008 included former South African
president Nelson Mandela, Tony Blair
and Bertie Ahern, former prime ministers
of the UK and the Republic of Ireland.
The day after the conferral two
small symposia will be held between
professors and researchers from QUB
and Soka University. The subjects of
the symposia are aspects of: Peace
and Reconciliation and Language and
Communication.
A student from Soka University is
studying as an exchange student on a
programme at QUB.
A group of senior academics from Queens
University Belfast will attend the conferral
A feast of faith, friendship and fun for Youth Day 2009
Young people from all around the
country held joyful celebrations to
commemorate March 16 1958, when
second Soka Gakkai President Josei
Toda transferred responsibility for
achieving kosen-rufu to the Youth
Division.
South of England Area Youth Day
Celebration on March 14 at Taplow Court
was a feast of faith, friendship and fun!
More than 250 young people with their
families and guests battled negativity and
the M25 to win together in response to
the mentor’s vision for kosen-rufu.
The wonderful Women’s Division
sustained us continually with cake – a
variation on the pork soup of the first
Youth Day!
SGI-UK General Director
Robert Samuels encouraged us to
take a determined attitude to faith,
thanking all of us for our hard work.
Life-transforming experiences from
Leah Trent, Duncan Harrison and Maxi
continues p2
South of England Youth Day celebrations

SGI-UK online news bulletin Special Issue 04.04.2009
Youth Day celebrations 2009
Beacons of hope
Nam-myoho-renge-kyo reverberated
throughout the Brecon Beacons
on March 16, to demonstrate the
determination of young people to
realise Kosen-rufu in Wales and in
celebration of Youth Day 2009.
Fifty-two Youth Division members,
Future Group members, and their guests
gathered for inspiring experiences and a
presentation on the theme of mentor and
disciple before splitting up for hugely
beneficial one-to-one discussions. Hope
Dowsett inspired us with her strong
determination for succeeding in her
exams and future subject choices and
Tirion Dowsett recited a beautiful and
thoughtful poem on the theme of peace.
The day was accompanied by beautiful
Welsh sunshine, the Women’s Division’s
sumptuous supply of food and tea and
biscuits – a gift from President Ikeda –
before finishing with a group song.
Milly Withers
Celebrations in the Brecon Beacons
Members of East Midlands HQ relived the history of the original Youth Day in 1958
Pork soup in the East Midlands
Vigorous activities were organised
by the Youth Division members of
East Midlands Headquarters to
commemorate March 16 in the three
cities of Nottingham, Leicester and
Derby.
26 Young Women, Young Men, Future
Group and Mimosas from four districts
in Nottingham joyously commemorated
this day on Sunday March 15, sharing
experiences and determinations.
We even relived the history of March
16 1958 through a vivid presentation of
extracts from the Human Revolution,
and also ate pork soup cooked by the
Young Men!
The Women’s and Men’s Divisions
provided incredible support and care
with the venue and food.
In Leicester, 21 Youth Division
members from the Leicester and
Loughborough District gathered together
for the first joint Youth Division activity.
For many of those attending, this
was their first experience of hearing the
mission of youth to achieve kosen-rufu.
On the following day, March 16, the
nine Youth Division members of two
districts in Derby led a joint discussion
meeting sharing experiences of the
master-disciple relationship.
In other districts as well, the Youth
Division took the lead in the monthly
discussion meetings.
The celebrations in East Midlands
HQ marked a significant point in our
understanding of Sensei’s trust in the
mission of each individual to win in the
‘era of the disciple’.
Namrata Sharma
from Page 1
A feast of faith, friendship and fun
Jazz proved the power of valuing our
uniqueness.
The event inspired a guest from
Devon to say: “I just can’t wait to go
home and say Nam-myoho-renge-kyo
every day for the rest of my life!”
We watched ‘Our Shared Humanity’,
had an exuberant work-out and enjoyed
a picnic outside in the sun. There were
workshops and football going on with
the Young Eagles, Mimosa and Future
Group and many new connections
were made as people shared their
determinations, victories and benefits
of practise.
The icing on the cake was wondrous
multi-cultural entertainments ranging
from Gosho dramas to rap ‘my mentor is
a dude, he keeps in check my attitude!’
drumming, dance (the Mimosas’ magical
macarena) and fantastic songs: ‘All
it takes is one voice chanting in the
darkness leading us to faith’.
Thank-you to everyone who made it a
day of encouragement and joy!
Sonia Kemp
South of England youth celebrate

SGI-UK online news bulletin Special Issue 04.04.2009
Baby boom
Pioneer member Les Gibson from Wales, who attended the course, sent us these pictures
Inspiring spring training
course with delegates
from 60 countries
Around 230 delegates from almost
60 different countries and territories
gathered for the spring training
course in Japan from March 1 to 10.
Six members attended from the UK
and Ireland. Messages and gifts were
delivered for President Ikeda.
Guidance was given by senior leaders
and Study Chief Mr Saito lectured on
the Gosho ‘The Object of Devotion for
Observing the Mind’.
The course included a visit to
Soka University, where students gave
a rousing welcome. There was also a
two-day visit to Osaka to experience the
famous Kansai spirit. From there
the delegates divided up to attend
exchange meetings in many
different culture centres in the Kansai
region.
European delegates went to Kyoto
where they were given another energetic
Kansai welcome. Schoolchildren sang
and the group were treated to a display
of traditional dancing.
Delegates were showered with so
many gifts from the Japanese members
that most suitcases were overweight on
the return trip!
Claire O’Brien
There has been a baby boom in East
Midlands HQ. In the last year seven
young women gave birth to fortune
babies!
On March 24 five of these new
mums and six babies and toddlers met
in Nottingham for the first East Midlands
HQ meeting of the Mother and Baby
group.
We did gongyo and read the Mother
and Child essay from President Ikeda’s
book A Piece of Mirror, talked about the
difficulty of practising with a young child
(or two) to look after and of course had
tea and cake.
It was a very joyful occasion, with
plenty of snoozing, screaming, nappy
changing and eating – and that was just
the mothers!
We will be meeting on a monthly
basis, and aim to have a picnic with dads
welcome too, sometime in May.
Hannah Boylan

SGI-UK online news bulletin Special Issue 04.04.2009
The spirit of Lilac
In brief…
Photo: Masaru Kishimoto
Twenty-one Young Women’s Division
members, Lilac dedicated and Seven
Seas members and graduates, met at
West London Centre on March 14.
We studied together the meaning
of the vow and the spirit of Lilac,
and introduced Lilac activities as “ life
training”, creating opportunities for
every young woman to contribute to SGI,
respond to President Ikeda’s hopes for
us, expand our lives and gain benefit.
We received a message and
refreshments from Sensei for this
meeting.
Everyone joyfully renewed our
commitment to continue our “life
training” and to pass on the Lilac spirit to
all Young Women in West London. It was
a great day!
Caroline Dann
On March 21, at a graduation
ceremony at Soka University in
Hachioji, Tokyo, University College
South of Denmark conferred an
honorary doctorate upon Daisaku
Ikeda, founder of Soka University
and president of Soka Gakkai
International, bringing to 250 the
number of academic honours he
has received.
On March 4, Soka Gakkai’s monthly
leaders meeting took place at Tokyo
Makiguchi Memorial Hall in Hachioji in
conjunction with the 33rd SGI General
Meeting and national youth and men’s
leaders meetings. SGI President
Daisaku Ikeda attended with SGI
representatives from 60 countries
and territories who were visiting
Japan as part of the SGI’s 2009 Spring
Training Course.
The “Great Romance of the Three
Kingdoms” exhibition, organised by
the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum (TFAM),
closed on March 15 at Green Dome
Maebashi in Gunma Prefecture.
Since the exhibition opened on
May 2, 2008, at TFAM in Hachioji,
Tokyo, over one million people
visited the show at seven venues
throughout Japan.
SGI-Hungary was recently
registered as an official nonprofit
organisation for culture and
education.
Absolute Freedom event
The Absolute Freedom Group set
up an information stall at Brighton
& Hove student pride, part of the
winter pride celebrations on March 8.
Members from Bournemouth,
Brighton and Hove and London put
into practise the teaching of “many in
body, one in mind”, working as part of a
wonderfully cohesive team, promoting
the Buddhism of Nichiren Daishonin.
There was a huge amount of
inspiring dialogue held with gay students
from all over the UK and abroad; lots
of personal experiences of the practice
were shared.
Many of those with whom the team
spoke with were keen to take away
literature and some left their details for
further contact.
One thing having the stall did show,
was indeed the importance of study, with
many of the wonderful students keeping
the team on their toes with inspiring and
thought-provoking questions about our
faith and its history.
Anthony Stevens
Victory for
Bravehearts
Sixty-six bonnie members from
Scotland met at Taplow Court
from March 27 to 29.
The theme for their training course
was ‘Victory in my District’.
The Scottish members enjoyed
inspiring lectures and meetings and a
question and answer session with
SGI-UK Chief Adviser Ricky Baynes
and General Director Robert Samuels.
The course participants returned
to Scotland refreshed and determined
to make new and greater efforts for
kosen-rufu.