SGI-USA New York Culture Center

The phrase that Daisaku Ikeda often uses to characterize his philosophical stance is “Buddhist humanism.” It is a philosophical perspective that reflects the core spirit of the Lotus Sutra, one founded on faith in the inherent dignity of human beings and profound confidence in people’s capacity for positive transformation. From the perspective of Buddhist humanism, it is human beings themselves, rather than a higher power, who possess the ultimate wisdom about their condition. This view regards the individual as the pivotal force of change within the interdependent network of phenomena that comprises life. A fundamental change in the life of an individual, in other words, will affect the entire web of life. One of the distinguishing features of Buddhist humanism is this consciousness of and respect for the interdependence and interrelatedness of all life. While Buddhist humanism focuses on the human being, it does not polarize human beings and the environment or other forms of life. Rather it seeks to create human happiness through a harmonization of these interdependent relationships. “The essence of Buddhist humanism,” says Ikeda, “is mutual respect.”[2] Buddhism is grounded in a fundamental belief in the inherent dignity of all life.