was one of the founders and the first president of the Buddhist organization

Risshō Kōsei Kai ; until June 1960, is a Japanese Buddhist religious movement founded in 1938 by Nikkyō Niwano and Myōkō Naganuma. Risshō Kōsei Kai is organized as a lay Buddhist movement, which branched off from the older Reiyūkai, and is primarily fo ...

Early life

Born on November 15, 1906, to farmers, Nikkyō had a humble life in a small town. Later in his youth, he moved to Tokyo to work, where he began to study several different religions. During his studies, he attended a sermon on the

Lotus Sutra The ''Lotus Sūtra'' (Sanskrit: ''Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtram'', ''Sūtra on the White Lotus of the True Dharma'', zh, p=Fǎhuá jīng, l=Dharma Flower Sutra) is one of the most influential and venerated Buddhist Mahāyāna sūtras. ...

and became a

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

Risshō Kōsei Kai

Niwano had been actively involved with the Buddhist group Reiyūkai, and it was then that he encountered Myoko Naganuma and led her to convert to Reiyūkai. In 1938 they both attended a leaders meeting where the leadership of Reiyūkai made several comments stating that the

was outdated. After discussing this matter with each other, they decided that they could not belong to an organization which held this type of view. On March 5, 1938, they founded Risshō Kōsei Kai, holding the first meeting in Niwano's house. Niwano was to be the President and Naganuma to be the vice-president. As the organization grew he gave up his job as a milkman and devoted himself full-time to the ministry. He became involved in interfaith activities and helped to found the

World Conference of Religions for Peace The world is the totality of entities, the whole of reality, or everything that exists. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the world as unique, while others talk of a "plu ...

in 1970. During this time he became involved in numerous religious and cultural conferences and gatherings, some of which include the Asian Conference on Religion and Peace and the 6th WCRP in Italy, where he presided over the WCRP alongside Pope

John Paul II Pope John Paul II (born Karol Józef Wojtyła; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 16 October 1978 until Death and funeral of Pope John Paul II, his death in 2005. In his you ...

. He also spoke on several occasions as the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

calling for world peace and the abolition of nuclear arms. In 1991 he stepped down as president and was succeeded by his eldest son, Nichiko Niwano. Although retired, he continued to participate in interfaith and peace activities.

Awards

In 1979 Niwano was awarded the Templeton Foundation Prize for Progress in Religion. In 1992 he was made a Knight Commander with the Silver Star of the Order of St. Gregory the Great by the Vatican. In 1993 Niwano was awarded the Interfaith Medallion from the International Council of Christians and Jews. Author Daniel Montgomery writes that "no Buddhist leader in the World has become more widely known or showered with honours than him."Montgomery, Daniel (1991). ''Fire in the Lotus, The Dynamic Religion of Nichiren''. London : Mandala, , page 232.

Death and legacy

Nikkyo Niwano died on October 4, 1999. He was cremated and some of his ashes were placed in the Precious Stupa of the One Vehicle, a small stupa located on the grounds of the group's headquarters.

Works

* Nikkyō Niwano (1980)
Buddhism for Today
A Modern Interpretation of the Threefold Lotus Sutra, Kosei Publishing Co/Weatherhill Inc; * Nikkyō Niwano (1989)
A Guide to the Threefold Lotus Sutra
Kosei Publishing Co. * Nikkyō Niwano (1978)
Lifetime Beginner: An Autobiography
Kosei Publishing Co. * Nikkyō Niwano (1995)
Invisible Eyelashes
Seeing What is Closest to Us, Kosei Publishing Co.

References

External links

Official Profile

Rissho Kosei Kai website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Niwano, Nikkyo 1906 births 1999 deaths Japanese Buddhists Templeton Prize laureates Nichiren Buddhists Risshō Kōsei Kai people