Engaged Buddhism: Soka Gakkai International to Sponsor Nobel Peace Prize Forum and Youth Dialogue with Atomic Bomb Survivors in Oslo

As the 2024 Nobel Peace Prize will be awarded on December 10 to the Japanese Confederation of A- and H-Bomb Victims' Organizations (Nihon Hidankyo),* the socially engaged Japanese Nichiren Buddhist organization, Soka Gakkai International (SGI), has announced that it will co-sponsor the Nobel Peace Prize Forum, to be held in Oslo on December 11.

"Title 'Nukes: How to Counter the Threat,' the public forum will feature 13 expert speakers, including two hibakusha (atomic bomb survivors)—Dr. Masao Tomonaga, director emeritus of the Nagasaki Atomic Bomb Hospital of the Japanese Red Cross, and Keiko Ogura, founder of the Hiroshima Interpreters for Peace, as well as three Nobel Peace Prize laureates,” the SGI said in a statement dated December 5 and shared with BDG.

The convocation, which will be held at the University of Oslo, is organized by the Norwegian Nobel Institute and co-sponsored by the University of Oslo, the City of Oslo, SGI and the International Forum for Understanding.

The SGI will also organize a youth dialogue with hibakusha at the University of Oslo, involving Dr. Tomonaga and Ogura, students from local high schools and universities, and young members of the SGI.

“The awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Nihon Hidankyo inspires us all to work harder for the abolition of nuclear weapons,” said Soka Gakkai President Minoru Harada. “We hope that this forum will see a profound dialogue that will appeal to the hearts and consciences of citizens around the world, especially young people.”

Seventy-nine years have passed since the United States detonated atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in August 1945. The 2024 Nobel Peace Prize to be awarded to Nihon Hidankyo highlights the indelible impact of those attacks and the opportunities and obstacles on the path to a global transition to peace.

“Nuclear: How to Counter the Threat” will bring together 500 in-person audiences, including leading academics and peace activists, alongside International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Rafael Mariano Grossi; Melissa Parke, Executive Director of the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN); and Karen Astrid Hallberg, Secretary-General-Elect of the Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs. SGI will co-host the livestream of the event.

“The afternoon will feature a high-level panel entitled ‘Avoiding Nuclear War: The Case for No First Use,’ co-hosted by the University of Oslo, Peacebook and the SGI, in association with the Norwegian Nobel Institute,” the SGI noted. “Aimed at reducing risk and building confidence, the workshop will bring together some of the same speakers with additional experts for an in-depth discussion under the Chatham House Rule.”

Founded in 1930, Soka Gakkai (the Society for Creating Values) is a Japanese Buddhist movement based on the teachings of the 1222th-century Buddhist priest Nichiren (1282–XNUMX). Nichiren taught devotion to the Lotus Sutrasupposedly containing the teachings of the historical Buddha Shakyamuni, towards the end of his life, as the exclusive means to attain enlightenment. The Soka Gakkai focuses its teachings on Lotus Sutrawith recitation of the mantraNam-myoho-renge-kyo» (“Glory to the Dharma of the Lotus Sutra”) as his main devotional practice.

Soka Gakkai International, founded by Daisaku Ikeda (1928–2023) in 1975, is an NGO in consultative status with the United Nations Economic and Social Council. As a global Buddhist community organization that promotes peace, culture, and education based on respect for the dignity of life, Soka Gakkai is involved in peace activism, education, and politics, with members in 192 countries and territories worldwide.

Prominent Soka Gakkai members include actor Orlando Bloom, jazz musician Herbie Hancock, and singer Tina Turner.

It is vital that humanity develop a common awareness that nuclear weapons are an absolute evil whose existence can never be justified, for any reason or under any circumstances. We must make it clear that it is impossible to build one's own happiness and security on the fear and suffering of others; and this understanding must be coupled with the compassion, empathy and courage to resist all attempts to do so. —Daisaku Ikeda

* View of the Buddhist gate: Nihon Hidankyo wins 2024 Nobel Peace Prize, highlighting ongoing struggle for nuclear disarmament (BDG)

See more

Soka Gakkai International
Press Release | Soka Gakkai International to Support Nobel Peace Prize Forum and Youth Dialogue with Hibakusha in Oslo (Soka Gakkai International)
Nobel Peace Prize Forum 2024: NUKES – How to counter the threat. (YouTube)
Increased risk of nuclear weapons use (University of Oslo)

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