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Inauguration of the Daisaku
Ikeda Corner on Culture of Peace at IGNCA library in New Delhi
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Dr. N. Radhakrishnan
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Keeping pace with the welcome trend of Gandhi’s philosophy of non-violence being seen as not only the ethical but also the practical answer to the wave of conflict and terror in society, the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts
(IGNCA), has reserved a section of its library to publications on ‘Building a Culture of Peace’.
This section is named the Daisaku Ikeda Corner on Culture of Peace. For the first time a large collection of books by Dr Ikeda will be available in India for people to use as reference material.
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On this occasion, 49 books authored that by Dr Daisaku Ikeda -- Buddhist philosopher, author, poet laureate and peace proponent, and president of the Soka Gakkai International -- were presented to IGNCA. The books feature dialogues with Academics and World leaders like Historian Dr.Arnold Toynbee, Scientist Dr. M.S. Swaminathan, former Russian President Mr. Mikhail Gorbachev and Islamic scholar Mr. Majid Tehranian.
On October, 28th 2006, Dr N. Radhakrishnan, Chairman of the Indian Council of Gandhian Studies, inaugurated the Daisaku Ikeda Corner as well as the Gandhi King Ikeda: A Legacy of Building Peace exhibition at IGNCA.
In his welcome address, Librarian and Head of IGNCA’s Kalanidhi Division Ramesh C. Gaur said, “The Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts is a premier research institute, set up in 1987 in memory of the former Prime Minister of India Indira Gandhi. The books that Soka Gakkai is presenting to us will be a very valuable addition to our existing collection” He hoped this corner would become a nodal point for academic studies and research on conflict resolution and peace activism.
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Exhibition - Gandhi King Ikeda: A Legacy of Building Peace
The exhibition, features three famous proponents of non-violence: Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King Jr and Dr. Daisaku Ikeda. It focuses on the power of one individual to transform society.
It attracted people of all ages. Among the visitors were 22 deaf students from the Noida Deaf Society; they learnt about Mahatma Gandhi, Dr. King and Dr Ikeda by studying the panels, and watching the video accompanied by sign language.
Several eminent personalities visited the exhibition and attended a seminar entitled ‘Daisaku Ikeda: In Pursuit of Peace’, including veteran journalist and former High Commissioner to UK Mr. Kuldip
Nayar; writer Aruna Vasudev; model Feroze Gujral; eminent Buddhist scholar and former MP Lokesh
Chandra; sitar maestro and recipient of the Padma Vibhushan Pandit Debu
Chaudhuri; former Indian Ambassador to Azerbaijan B.R. Muthu Kumar; Dutch ambassador
H.E. Eric Niehe; Ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina H.E. Kemal
Muftic; Russian Counsellor (Media and Culture) V. Topchyan; Chinese diplomat Wang Yong; Gandhian and former Vice Chancellor of Delhi University
K.D. Gangarade; actor Nandita Das and fashion designer Rina Dhaka.
Speaking about the Peace movement headed by Dr. Ikeda, BSG Director General Naveena Reddi said, “Recently Dr Ikeda was awarded an honorary professorship from Beijing Normal University, bringing to 200 the number of honorary professorships, doctorates and equivalent honors bestowed on him in recognition of his efforts to promote peace through dialogue, citizen diplomacy and cross-cultural exchange. Dr Ikeda has dedicated himself to the pursuit of world peace, and the promotion of culture and education based on Buddhist philosophy.
“He firmly believes that peace is much more than a mere absence of conflict and the protagonists in this endeavor must be “individual human beings and citizens” -- above all, young people. The central guiding principle of the
SGI, which draws inspiration from the life philosophy of the great Buddhist sage Nichiren
Daishonin, is best summed up in the opening lines of The Human Revolution, Dr Ikeda’s well-known, multi-volume history of the Soka
Gakkai: ‘A great inner revolution in just a single individual will help achieve a change in the destiny of a nation and further will cause a change in the destiny of humankind.’
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“The history of Soka Gakkai which was reconstructed in Japan in the aftermath of the Second World War is filled with the experiences of ordinary people who have undergone their own inner reformation through discovering the deep significance of the bodhisattva way of living, in service of others.”
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Message from SGI President Ikeda
A message sent by Dr Ikeda for this occasion was read out by Chairperson of
BSG, Mr. Gopinath Menon. In the message, Dr Ikeda says he is honoured to be associated with
IGNCA, “a proud bastion of learning and knowledge”.
In her address, Director of the National Gandhi Museum Varsha Das said the SGI had worked to create “a global culture of peace”. This year sees the 100th anniversary of the launching of the Satyagraha Movement by
Gandhiji, a movement of “passive” resistance that was hardly “inactive”, declared Dr Das. She also touched on the Gandhi, King, Ikeda exhibition, and the commonalities between Gandhi, King and Dr Ikeda, three great personalities who combat violence with non-violence, and hatred with love.
In his keynote address, Dr Radhakrishnan said he was delighted that IGNCA recognises the significance and greatness of the global Soka movement for human revolution led by Dr Ikeda, whom he regarded as “the living Gandhi”.
He declared that Dr Ikeda -- a “great scholar”, “great visionary” and “great teacher” -- considers India, the land of Shakyamuni Buddha, as his spiritual home and “looks on Gandhi as a reservoir, great fountain, great spring of inspiration”.
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