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No Matter How Healthy, Intelligent Or Affluent We May Be, If Our Minds Are Weak, Then Our Happiness Will Also Be Frail And Brittle. Our Minds Of Faith, Moreover, Enable Us To Bring Out The Full Potential In All Things And Situations, So It Is Crucial That We Strive To Forge Our Minds Of Faith.

-Daisaku Ikeda

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No Matter How Healthy,

Daisaku Ikeda

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No Matter How Healthy, Intelligent Or Affluent We May Be, If Our Minds Are Weak, Then Our Happiness Will Also Be Frail And Brittle. Our Minds Of Faith, Moreover, Enable Us To Bring Out The Full Potential In All Things And Situations, So It Is Crucial That We Strive To Forge Our Minds Of Faith.

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How Aware Are We Of Our Own Inner Life, Our Spirituality-something So Intangible Yet So Priceless? How Much Effort Do We Make To Perceive That Which Is Not Obvious, Which Can Neither Be Seen Nor Heard? I Believe The Exploration And Enrichment Of The Human Spirit Is What Determines Our Very Humanity. Such Enrichment Provides An Inner Compass That Can Lead Civilizations To Greatness.

The Challenge Of Preventing Any Further Proliferation Of Nuclear Weapons Is Just Such A Trial In The Quest For World Peace, One That Cannot Be Achieved If We Are Defeated By A Sense Of Helplessness. The Crucial Element Is To Ensure That Any Struggle Against Evil Is Rooted Firmly In A Consciousness Of The Unity Of The Human Family, Something Only Gained Through The Mastery Of Our Own Inner Contradictions.

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No One Can Live Entirely On Their Own, Nor Can Any Country Or Society Exist In Isolation.

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You Must Not For One Moment Give Up The Effort To Build Up New Lives For Yourself.

I Have For Some Time Urged That A Nuclear Abolition Summit To Mark The Effective End Of The Nuclear Era Be Convened In Hiroshima And Nagasaki On The 70th Anniversary Of The Bombings Of Those Cities, With The Participation Of National Leaders And Representatives Of Global Civil Society.

Hiroshima And Nagasaki

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The Course Of Our Lives Is Determined By How We React--what We Decide And What We Do--at The Darkest Of Times. The Nature Of That Response Determines A Person's True Worth And Greatness.

If You Summon Your Courage To Challenge Something, You’ll Never Be Left With Regret. How Sad It Is To Spend Your Life Wishing, “if Only I’d Had A Little More Courage.” Whatever The Outcome May Be, The Important Thing Is To Step Forward On The Path That You Believe Is Right.

Sometimes We Complain Without Thinking Much Of It, But The Frightening Thing About Complaining Is That Every Time We Do, A Cloud Descends Over Our Heart, And Our Hope, Appreciation And Joy Gradually Wane.

Often The Biggest Obstacle In Meeting Life’s Challenges Is Actually Our Own Fear Of Failure.

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I Cannot Say This Too Strongly: Do Not Compare Yourselves To Others. Be True To Who You Are, And Continue To Learn With All Your Might.

Happiness Does Not Exist As An Isolated Quality, Nor Does It Conform To A Single Fixed Pattern. Happiness Is Something That Breathes And Lives In The Relationships Between One Person And Another.

Envying Another's Beauty Will Diminish Your Own. But When You Praise Beauty In Others Your Own Beauty Deepens.

The Gratification Of Desire Is Not Happiness.

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The Problems Of Aging Present An Opportunity To Rethink Our Social And Personal Lives In Order To Ensure The Dignity And Welfare Of Each Individual.

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Divorced From The Cosmos, From Nature, From Society And From Each Other, We Have Become Fractured And Fragmented.

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Speak Out Tirelessly With Conviction.

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A Great Revolution In Just One Single Individual Will Help Achieve A Change In The Destiny Of A Society And, Further, Will Enable A Change In The Destiny Of Humankind.

Human Rights Will Be A Powerful Force For The Transformation Of Reality When They Are Not Simply Understood As Externally Defined Norms Of Behavior But Are Lived As The Spontaneous Manifestation Of Internalized Values.

I Believe That We Must Maintain Pride In The Knowledge That The Actions We Take, Based On Our Own Decisions And Choices As Individuals, Link Directly To The Magnificent Challenge Of Transforming Human History.

A Truley Heroic Way Of Life Lies In Squarely Confronting And Courageously Overcoming The Pounding Vicissitudes That Life Always Throws In Our Paths

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A Healthy Vision Of The Future Is Not Possible Without An Accurate Knowledge Of The Past.

Visions Of The Future

The Effects Of Human Rights Education Can Be Dramatic In Awakening People To The Value And Power Of Their Own Lives, As Shown In The Following Stories.

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Hope Transforms Pessimism Into Optimism. Hope Is Invincible.

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Creativity Means To Push Open The Heavy, Groaning Doorway To Life.

Culture Is An Elevated Expression Of The Inner Voice Which The Different Peoples Of The Earth Have Heard In The Depths Of Their Being, A Voice Which Conveys The Vibrant Compassion And Wisdom Of The Cosmic Life. For Different Cultures To Engage In Interaction Is To Catalyze Each Other's Souls And Foster Mutual Understanding.

Whatever The Outcome May Be, The Important Thing Is To Step Forward On The Path That You Believe Is Right.

Our Voice Resonates With Life. Because This Is So, It Can Touch The Lives Of Others. The Caring And Compassion Imbued In Your Voice Finds Passage To The Listener's Soul, Striking His Or Her Heart And Causing It To Sing Out; The Human Voice Summons Something Profound From Deep Within, And Can Even Compel A Person Into Action.

But I Think We Need To Remember That Democracy Everywhere Is By Its Nature Incomplete, A Work In Progress.

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Difficult Situations

What Matters Is The Value We’ve Created In Our Lives, The People We’ve Made Happy And How Much We’ve Grown As People.

Ultimately, All Human Activities Have As Their Goal The Realization Of Happiness. Why, Then, Have We Ended Up Producing The Opposite Result? Could The Underlying Cause Be Our Failure To Correctly Understand The True Nature Of Happiness?

In Life When We Feel We Have Reached A Limit, That Is When The True Battle Begins. Just When You Despair And Think It Is Impossible To Go Any Further, Will You Become Apathetic, Or Will You Say It's Not Over And Stand Up With An Unyielding Spirit? The Battle Is Decided By This Single Determination.

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Being Sincere, Dedicated And Honest Is The Key. People Of Integrity Triumph In The End.

A Genuinely Happy Person Is One Who Has Rendered Others Happy.

Genuine Happiness

Having Lived Through The Transition From Totalitarianism, I Am Acutely Mindful Of The Need To Never Take For Granted The Basic Freedoms Of Thought, Expression And Belief That Democracy Brings.

No Matter How Healthy, Intelligent Or Affluent We May Be, If Our Minds Are Weak, Then Our Happiness Will Also Be Frail And Brittle. Our Minds Of Faith, Moreover, Enable Us To Bring Out The Full Potential In All Things And Situations, So It Is Crucial That We Strive To Forge Our Minds Of Faith.

Buddhism Holds That Everything Is In Constant Flux. Thus The Question Is Whether We Are To Accept Change Passively And Be Swept Away By It Or Whether We Are To Take The Lead And Create Positive Changes On Our Own Initiative. While Conservatism And Self-protection Might Be Likened To Winter, Night, And Death, The Spirit Of Pioneering And Attempting To Realize Ideals Evokes Images Of Spring, Morning, And Birth.

Increase Your Joy By Doing The Good You Wish To Have Done To You.

Prayer Is The Way To Destroy All Fear. It Is The Way To Banish Sorrow, The Way To Light A Torch Of Hope. It Is The Revolution That Rewrites The Scenario Of Our Destiny.

Only When We Connect To Nature, Engaged With Nature, Are We Truly Alive And Vigorous. To Really Be Alive, One Must Be Under The Sun, The Moon, The Shining Stars And Surrounded By The Beautiful Greenery And Pure Waters Of The Natural World.

When We Change, The World Changes. The Key To All Change Is In Our Inner Transformation- A Change Of Our Hearts And Minds. This Is Human Revolution. We All Have The Power To Change. When We Realize This Truth, We Can Bring Forth That Power Anywhere, Anytime, And In Any Situation.

The Profound Unity Of Subjective Existence And Objective Environment Leads Naturally To The Idea That The Life-force Of One Human Being Can Affect Other Living Beings And Even The Fundamental Being Of Humankind As A Whole. Furthermore, The Minds Of Humankind Fuse Into One And Exert A Continuous Influence, Both Physical And Spiritual, On Other Living Beings And On The Whole Of Nature.

A Person Fully Awakened To The Jewel-like Dignity Of Their Own Life Is Capable Of Truly Respecting That Same Treasure In Others.

The Role Of Humankind Is To Use The Cultural And Social Environment It Has Created To Devise New Global Values.... Human Relations With Nature Are Intimately Bound Up In Interpersonal Relations And With The Relation Of The Self And Its Inner Life.

Strength Is Happiness. Strength Is Itself Victory. In Weakness And Cowardice There Is No Happiness. When You Wage A Struggle, You Might Win Or You Might Lose. But Regardless Of The Short-term Outcome, The Very Fact Of Your Continuing To Struggle Is Proof Of Your Victory As A Human Being.

If We Look At The World With A Love Of Life, The World Will Reveal Its Beauty To Us.

Why Doesn't Constant Trampling Defeat The Dandelion? The Key To Its Strength Is Its Long And Sturdy Root, Which Extends Deep Into The Earth. The Same Priciple Applies To People. The True Victors In Life Are Those Who, Enduring Repeated Challenges And Setbacks, Have Sent The Roots Of Their Being To Such A Depth That Nothing Can Shake Them.

Genuine Happiness Can Only Be Achieved When We Transform Our Way Of Life From The Unthinking Pursuit Of Pleasure To One Committed To Enriching Our Inner Lives, When We Focus On 'being More' Rather Than Simply Having More.

Peace Will Be Realized Only By Forging Bonds Of Trust Between People At The Deepest Level, In The Depths Of Their Very Lives.

Those Who Always Have A Sense Of Appreciation And Gratitude Never Reach An Impasse In Life.

Gratitude And Appreciation

No Matter What Our Personal Circumstances May Be, If We Ourselves Become A Source Of Light, Then There Will Be No Darkness In The World.

Salute To The Smiling Faces Of The 21st Century.

There’s No Need For Us To Be Held Back By The Past Or How Things Have Been So Far. The Important Thing Is What Seeds We Are Sowing Now For The Future.

Faced With Stress, Too Many People Feel They Have Nowhere To Turn To, That They Don't Have Access To The Kind Of Friendships Or Communities Where They Can Easily And Openly Share Their Problems And Worries.

Rather Than Turning Away From The Staggering Scale And Depth Of Misery Caused By War, We Must Strive To Develop Our Capacity To Empathize And Feel The Sufferings Of Others.

Suffering Of Others

Hope Is The Sun. It Is Light. It Is Passion. It Is The Fundamental Force For Life's Blossoming.

The Idea Of Interdependence Is Central To Buddhism, Which Holds That All Things Come Into Being Through The Mutual Interactions Of Various Causes And Conditions.

Effort And Hard Work Construct The Bridge That Connects Your Dreams To Reality.

Why Is It That Sometimes Our Prayers Seem Not To Be Answered? This Is A Manifestation Of The Buddha's Wisdom, So That We Can Deepen Our Prayers, Become Stronger People, Live More Profound Lives And Secure Deeper, More Lasting Good Fortune. If Our Slightest Prayer Was Answered Immediately, We Would Become Lazy And Degenerate. And We Could Not Hope To Build A Life Of Great Dignity And Substance.

Life Is Filled With Potential That Is Truly Unfathomable. At Last We Are Coming To See The Enormous Power It Possesses. That Is Why We Must Never Write Anyone Off. In Particular, We Mustn’t Put Boundaries On Our Own Potential. In Most Cases, Our So-called Limitations Are Nothing More Than Our Own Decision To Limit Ourselves.

A Person, Who No Matter How Desperate The Situation, Gives Others Hope, Is A True Leader.

Many Things Happen In Life. There Are Joyous Days And Times Of Suffering. Sometimes Unpleasant Things Occur. But That's What Makes Life So Interesting. The Dramas We Encounter Are Part And Parcel Of Being Human. If We Experienced No Change Or Drama In Our Lives, If Nothing Unexpected Ever Happened, We Would Merely Be Like Automatons, Our Lives Unbearably Monotonous And Dull. Therefore, Please Develop A Strong Self So That You Can Enact The Drama Of Your Life With Confidence And Poise In The Face Of Whatever Vicissitudes You May Encounter.

To Communicate The Truths Of History Is An Act Of Hope For The Future.

Hope For The Future

I Believe That A Culture Of Peace Must Be The Essential Foundation Of Our Efforts For Peace.

Self-centered Anger Generates Evil, But Wrath At Social Injustice Becomes The Driving Force For Reform. Strong Language That Censures And Combats A Great Evil Often Awakens Adverse Reactions From Society, But This Must Not Intimidate Those Who Believe They Are Right. A Lion Is A Lion Because He Roars.

The Place Where You Are Now Is Vital. The Path Toward Victory Opens From Where You Stand.

It Is Natural For Us, As Human Beings, To Look Forward. Our Eyes Naturally Look Ahead. In This Sense, We Are Made For Moving Toward A Goal.

Living Here On Earth, We Breathe The Rhythms Of A Universe That Extends Infinitely Above Us. When Resonant Harmonies Arise Between This Vast Outer Cosmos And The Inner Human Cosmos, Poetry Is Born.

What We Need Most Is To Restore And Revive Our Humanity. We Must Create A Society Where People Can Live With Dignity, A Society Where People Can Live In Peace And Happiness. People Are Tired Of Games Played For Power And Profit. People Are Tired Of Hatred And Conflict. They Want To Live With More Wisdom And Confidence, And In Peace. It May Seem Like A Long And Distant Path, But I Am Convinced That The 21st Century Must See A Movement To Sow The Seeds Of Peace, Happiness And Trust In Every Person's Heart. The Seeds Of A Truly Humane Way Of Life. I Am Convinced This Is The Only Path.

The Power Of Art Can Break The Shackles That Bind And Divide Human Beings.

When We Have A Genuine Sense That, No Matter How Difficult Our Present Circumstances, We Are Not Alone-that We Are Vitally Connected With Others And With The World-we Will, Without Fail, Rise Up To The Challenge Of Living Again.

Music Speaks Directly To The Heart. This Response, This Echo Within The Heart, Is Proof That Human Hearts Can Transcend The Barriers Of Time And Space And Nationality. Exchanges In The Field Of Culture Can Play An Important Role In Enabling People To Overcome Mistrust And Prejudice And Build Peace.

History Is Filled With Tragic Examples Of Wars That Result From Diplomatic Impasse. Whether In Our Local Communities Or In International Relations, The Skillful Use Of Our Communicative Capacities To Negotiate And Resolve Differences Is The First Evidence Of Human Wisdom.

If You Become Deadlocked,return To The Prime Point.

People Need To Be Made Conscious Of A Very Simple Reality: We Have No Choice But To Share This Planet, This Small Blue Sphere Floating In The Vast Reaches Of Space, With All Of Our Fellow 'passengers.'

Hope Is Life's Greatest Treasure. If You Have No Hope, Create Some!

Greatest Treasure

Just As A Diamond Can Only Be Polished By Another Diamond, It Is Only Through Genuine, All-out Engagement With Others That People Can Polish Their Character, And Help Each Other To Reach Greater Heights.

Like The Ocean That Remains Calm In Its Depths Even When Waves Rage Over Its Surface, And Like The Sun That Continues Shining On High Even During Storms, We Can At Each Moment Create Value And Develop Our State Of Life, Enjoying Our Existence To The Fullest In Times Of Both Suffering And Joy.

I Firmly Believe That The Mission Of Religion In The 21st Century Must Be To Contribute Concretely To The Peaceful Coexistence Of Humankind.

‎"those Who Give Up Dreams, Do Injury To Their Own Hearts And Cannot Possibly Enjoy A Profound Sense Of Fulfillment In The End.

No Matter How Hopeless Or Bleak Things Appear, The Moment Always Comes When Suddenly Our Spirit Revives, And Hope Is Reborn. That Is Why We Must Never Give Up.

Humanity Has Experienced Many Revolutionary Changes Over The Course Of History: Revolutions In Agriculture, In Science, Industrial Production, As Well As Numerous Political Revolutions. But These Have All Been Limited To The External Aspects Of Our Individual And Collective Lives.

Political Revolution

Life Isn't Always Smooth. If It Were, We Would Never Grow & Develop As Human Beings. If We Succeed, We Are Envied; If We Fail, We Are Ridiculed & Attacked. Sadly, This Is How People Are. Unexpected Grief & Suffering May Lie Ahead Of You. But It Is Precisely When You Encounter Such Trying Times That You Must Not Be Defeated. Never Give Up! Never Retreat!

A Moment’s Encounter Can Decide The Direction Of One’s Entire Life

The Eyes Of A Poet Discover In Each Person A Unique And Irreplaceable Humanity. While Arrogant Intellect Seeks To Control And Manipulate The World, The Poetic Spirit Bows With Reverence Before Its Mysteries.

So Long As Nuclear Weapons Continue To Exist, So Will The Temptation To Threaten Others With Overwhelming Military Force.

Ultimately, The Only Way To Make Good Friends Is To Become A Good Friend Yourself. Good People Gather Around Other Good People.

You Must Not For One Instant Give Up The Effort To Build New Lives For Yourselves. Creativity Means To Push Open The Heavy, Groaning Doorway To Life.

As Long As We Are Human, We Are Destined To Make Mistakes. We All Fall Prey To Flawed Beliefs And Views. What Separates A Forward-looking Person From An Intransigent One, A Virtuous Person From A Malevolent One, However, Is Whether One Can Candidly Admit To Ones Mistakes And Take Bold Steps To Redress Them.

But I Believe We Must Not Allow Feelings Of Defeat To Take Root In Our Hearts.

It Is Much More Valuable To Look For The Strength In Others. You Can Gain Nothing By Criticizing Their Imperfections.

What Is Defeat In Life? It Is Not Merely Making A Mistake; Defeat Means Giving Up On Yourself In The Midst Of Difficulty. What Is True Success In Life? True Success Means Winning In Your Battle With Yourself. Those Who Persist In The Pursuit Of Their Dreams, No Matter What The Hurdles, Are Winners In Life, For They Have Won Over Their Weaknesses.

There Are Some Among The So-called Elite Who Are Overbearing And Arrogant. I Want To Foster Leaders, Not Elitists.

The Darker The Night, The Nearer The Dawn. Victory In Life Is Decided By That Last Concentrated Burst Of Energy Filled With The Resolve To Win.

Have The Depth Of Faith To Regard Everything As A Source For Creating Happiness And Value.

Japan Learned From The Bombings Of Hiroshima And Nagasaki That The Tragedy Wrought By Nuclear Weapons Must Never Be Repeated And That Humanity And Nuclear Weapons Cannot Coexist.

Hiroshima And Nagasaki

The Power Of Growth, Of Improvement, The Power To Overcome All Stagnation And Break Through Every Obstacle And Transform A Barren Wasteland Into A Verdant Field - That Unstoppable Power Of Hope Resides Right Within Your Own Heart. It Wells Up From The Rich Earth Of Your Innermost Being When You Face The Future Without Doubt Or Fear: "i Can Do More. I Can Grow. I Can Become A Bigger And Better Human Being."

Since Ancient Times, People From Throughout Asia Have Brought To Japan Their Talents, Knowledge And Energy, Helping To Lay The Basis For Japan's Existence As A Country.

I Can Do More. I Can Grow. I Can Become A Bigger And Better Human Being.

Bigger And Better

The Economy Is After All Driven By People. No Matter How Dire The Situation May Be, As Long As People Are Firm, A Turnaround, Revival And Progress Can Be Possible.

Genuine Sincerity Opens People's Hearts, While Manipulation Causes Them To Close.

Nothing Is More Precious Than Peace. Peace Is The Most Basic Starting Point For The Advancement Of Humankind.

One Thing Is Certain: That Is That The Power Of Belief, The Power Of Thought, Will Move Reality In The Direction Of What We Believe And Conceive Of It. If You Really Believe You Can Do Something, You Can. That Is A Fact.

Keep Moving Forward, Even One Or Two Steps, In Your Own Way. Those Who Live Out Their Lives To The Fullest, Unperturbed By The Noisy Clamor Around Them, Are The True Winners.

Embrace Your Dreams And Advance As Far As They Can Take You.

No Matter How Complex Global Problems May Seem, It Is We Ourselves Who Have Given Rise To Them. They Cannot Be Beyond Our Power To Resolve

Poems And Songs Penned As An Unstoppable Outpouring Of The Heart Take On A Life Of Their Own. They Transcend The Limits Of Nationality And Time As They Pass From Person To Person, From One Heart To Another.

We Should All Develop The Mind To Rejoice In, Praise And Share In The Gift Of Those Who Have Artistic Talents And A Richness Of Heart, Whether They Achieve Wide Recognition Or Not. Cultivating Such A Beautiful Mind Is A Very Worthy Effort. Culture And Art Are Not Just Decorations. They Are Not Just Accessories. What Matters Is Whether Culture Enriches The Essential Substance Of Our Lives.

What Our World Most Requires Now Is The Kind Of Education That Foster Love For Humankind, That Develops Character-that Provides An Intellectual Basis For Realization Of Peace And Empowers Learners To Contribute To And Improve Society.

We Have Both A Weak Self And A Strong Self; The Two Are Completely Different. If We Allow Our Weak Side To Dominate, We Will Be Defeated. The Thought ,"i Am Still Young And Have A Lot Of Time, So I Can Relax And Take Life Easy" Is A Function Of Our Own Weakness.

True Happiness Means Forging A Strong Spirit That Is Undefeated, No Matter How Trying Our Circumstances.

In Most Cases, Our So-called Limitations Are Nothing More Than Our Own Decision To Limit Ourselves.

The Determination To Win Is The Better Part Of Winning.

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