On the Significance of the India-Japan Joint Symposium

Yoichi KawadaON this one-hundredth anniversary of the birth of Dr. G. Ramachandran (1905–1995), the National Committee of Dr. G. Ramachandran’s Centennial Anniversary and the Institute of Oriental Philosophy
have joined together to hold this collaborative symposium. As one of theco-hosts, I would first like to extend my deepest gratitude to everyone
involved in helping organize this magnificent event.
I have once had the distinct honor of meeting Dr. Ramachandran inperson during a visit to southern India. Not only was I able to meet him
and listen to his speech, but was honored to sit at a meal with him. This
took place on January 7, 1988, when accompanying Soka Gakkai Vice
President Hiromasa Ikeda, who traveled to India in lieu of SGI (Soka
Gakkai International) President Daisaku Ikeda to receive the Dr. G.
Ramachandran Award for International Understanding from the National Centre for Development Education, an organization that promotes
peace education and cultural exchange.
This award was created to honor Dr. Ramachandran’s steadfast commitment to actively promote non-violence over many years as a leading
disciple of the late Mahatma Gandhi. Established in 1985 during theUnited Nation’s International Year of Peace, its aim is to honor cultural
figures and educators who have promoted peace and cross-cultural
understanding. SGI President Ikeda was the first Japanese to receive thisaward.
Present at the award ceremony were a total of five-hundred citizens,academics, and students from twenty-seven universities taking part in
the Non-violence Seminar for Youth, who were celebrating the award
conferral upon SGI President Ikeda. Also in attendance were distinguished guests: Mr. M. M. Jacob, Minister of State for the Parliamentary
Affairs, Dr. Ravindra Kumar, Chancellor of Gandhigram Rural Institute,as well as Dr. Radhakrishnan, who is also in attendance today.
After the conferral of the award, the acceptance speech from SGI
President Ikeda was read, and Dr. Ramachandran gave closing words.
He conveyed his unceasing desire to work for peace education and156

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vowed to stand together with SGI President Ikeda to create peace
together. He was 82 years-old at the time, but his delivery was so powerful that his words still resound vividly in my mind. He said,“What I am trying to do here at this small university, is to circumscribe “negative forces” with the power of nonviolence, so that a newworld of peace and justice can be created. This grand experimental
adventure is our life’s purpose.”Those of you in attendance today—Dr. Radhakrishnan, Sister Mythili,
and other distinguished members of the committee—are the true successors of Dr. Ramachandran’s grand experiment in creating a world ofpeace and justice through nonviolence.
The theme of this collaborative symposium is “Toward a Century ofNonviolence and Peace-Gandhism and SGI’s Philosophy,” and the purpose of this event is to exchange views on how to establish a roadof cooperation to contribute to the peace of humankind. Gathered forthis discussion are our guests from India, whom are practitioners ofGandhi’s spirit of nonviolence, and are from the land of the origin of
Buddhism. From Japan, we have members of SGI who are working
throughout the world under the leadership of SGI President Ikeda tointerpret and apply Nichiren Daishonin’s Buddhism in modern society.
This year marks the sixtieth anniversary of the atomic bombs being
dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki. On August 6, 1992, the memorial
day of the attack in Hiroshima, Dr. Radhakrishnan met with SGI President Ikeda in Japan. At that time, Dr. Radhakrishnan said,“When Gandhi heard of the news of the bomb being dropped in
Hiroshima, he immediately meditated, offering a moment of silence.
Gandhi was opposed to all forms violence, and often asserted that ‘thepower of the spirit’ is greater than any nuclear weapon. To bring forth
this ‘power of the spirit’ from within each individual for the sake ofpeace—that is the cause which President Ikeda is advancing.”
Mahatma Gandhi in his own words in Harijan said,“Mankind has to get out of violence only through non-violence.
Hatred can be overcome only by love. Counter-hatred only increases thesurface as well as the depth of hatred.”1
On September 11, 2001, the year that we entered the twenty-first century, the United States was attacked by terrorists. Following this event,in an essay entitled, The Evil over which We Must Triumph, SGI President Ikeda writes,“For much of our history, humanity has been trapped in vicious cyclesof hatred and reprisal.”2 He concludes that the only fundamental way to

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end the vicious cycles of hatred is to develop the goodness and power ofthe spirit—nonviolence, compassion, love, and creativity—inherent in
human beings. In order for this to happen, he suggests creating multiple
opportunities for cross-cultural dialogue on various levels.
Believing in humanity’s capacity for nonviolence and compassion,
Ikeda’s thinking and Gandhism converge on the answer that open dialogue is the best way to foster development.
Using the question, “how can the power of the spirit be more fully
developed?” as a starting point, I would like to point out four commonalities that I observed between Ikeda’s thinking and Gandhism.
First of all, both Ikeda and Gandhi speak often about nonviolence andcompassion, which are characteristic of humanity’s goodness. These
concepts are deeply rooted in the core of the life of the universe. As it iswell-known, Gandhi’s moral and ethical basis for his actions centeredaround his approach to grasp (graha) the ultimate truth of the universe(satya) through nonviolence (ahimsa). In Buddhism, the first five precepts form the ethical basis for action, and the first one is not to kill,which is identical to ahimsa. And Shakyamuni regarded the ultimate
truth of the universe to be the Law (Dharma). Buddhists have attempted
to realize the universal life of the Dharma through the compassionate
practices of ahimsa, the five precepts, the eightfold path, or in the caseof Mahayana Buddhists, the six påramitås.
Gandhi, in the Yeravda Mandir (Ashram Observances) states, “And
where there is Truth, there also is knowledge which is true... And where
there is true knowledge, there is always bliss (Ananda)... And even as
Truth is eternal, so is the bliss derived from it.”3
Buddhism explains, from the universal base of the Law comes thetruth of wisdom, and the appearance of this wisdom brings eternal joy.
In this way, Gandhism and Ikeda’s thinking, which is based in Buddhist traditions, share a very similar view of nonviolence and compassion, which derives from humanity’s goodness, which is in turn deeply
rooted in the universal truth. Therefore, no matter what obstacles appear
to hinder the traveler on the quest for truth, he overcomes them and continues to the source which is eternally flowing with boundless wisdom,
joy and love.
Secondly, the two have in common a very wide viewpoint of nonviolence which is not limited to direct violence such as terrorist attacks,
armed conflicts, or wars, but one that encompasses underlying causessuch as structural and cultural violence. Examples of this kind of violence include oppression of human rights, especially in cases of genderON THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THE INDIA-JAPAN JOINT SYMPOSIUM

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equality, the widening of the gap between the rich and the poor, and discrimination or violence carried out in the name of certain cultures, civilizations, or religions. In all of these situations, the guarantee of basic
security is compromised. In addition, violence toward nature destroys tothe earth and threatens humanity on a massive scale. The fight for nonviolence includes taking comprehensive action based on love and compassion in a myriad of fields and must be sustained at all levels of society.
The third point of similarity in the application of nonviolence andcompassion to establish justice is the approach that is based in change
which begins on the individual level. As more and more individuals
change positively in their personal lives, a lasting collective change insociety and the rest of the world begins to take effect. Nichiren Daishonin calls this process, “securing the peace of the land through establishing
the correct teaching.”
There are two vectors that arise when life transforms on the individual
and societal levels. One vector starts out from society to the individual,
allowing individual transformations to take place within a society with
conducive conditions. The other vector approaches from the opposite
direction from the individual toward society. Both Gandhism and
Ikeda’s thinking take the latter approach, starting with changes in theindividual. From the perspective of nonviolence and peace, the development of the individual’s mind of peace becomes the spring from which
the power to challenge violent forces in society wells forth, leading ultimately to peace in society.
A philosophical orientation to create peace in society naturally aligns
itself with an orientation for environmental peace. Therefore, bothphilosophies support a deep and wide connection between human society and the natural environment.
Both Gandhi and Ikeda value peace education, but also within that,they both pay particular attention to human rights and environmental
issues. For example, at Gandhigram Rural University founded by
Dr. Ramachandran, freshman students are organized into a Shanti Senaand they carry out activities in society to learn peace education by experiencing it first-hand. At both Soka University in Japan and Soka
University of America, founded by SGI President Ikeda for the purposeof fostering global citizens, the students actively engage themselvesin the community.
Through cultural and peace-promoting activities, the SGI likewise
participates actively in society. For example the Youth and Women’s
Peace Committee members who are here today carry out activities
revolving around peace education, publishing materials on human

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rights, the environment, and opposing war. Furthermore, to overcome
discrimination against people of a particular culture, background, or
religion, members actively engage in dialogues with various social andreligious groups and organizations to promote understanding in thesame spirit of Gandhism. The SGI is a group of people carrying out thepractice of the bodhisattva way in Mahayana Buddhism. Their activities
in society and in the world are a modern expression of nonviolence andcompassion.
The final commonality shared by Gandhi and Ikeda is an idea that
pulsates as an undercurrent through the previous three points. It is theconcept of mentor and disciple. In both philosophies, the mentor passeson their spirit to the disciples through the struggles that they share
together. The ideals and mission of the mentor are inherited by the disciple. The spirit and principles of Gandhi have been passed down in exactly this way. Since his first meeting with Gandhi in the famous morninginterview, Dr. Ramachandran has carried his mentor’s spirit to fightagainst the British Empire through their struggles together, and instilled
this spirit into Gandhigram Rural University. Likewise, that same fighting spirit has been passed down to you, the committee members present
today, and is very much a part of your being. It is this bond of mentor
and disciple that allows Gandhi’s spirit and actions to not only stay relevant, but to evolve with the times as well.
As for the SGI, the tradition of mentor and disciple is exemplified by
the bond between the first and second presidents of the Soka Gakkai,
Tsunesaburo Makiguchi and Josei Toda, respectively. Makiguchi, who isa contemporary of Gandhi, was sent to prison for opposing the militaristic government of Japan during World War II. Toda followed him to
prison in the spiritual battle against the authorities, and succeeded his
mentor’s spirit. This spirit was then passed down to the third presidentof the Soka Gakkai, Daisaku Ikeda during his struggles together withToda to strengthen the organization. The bond between mentor and disciple is literally the spirit, the most important link, in carrying out nonviolence and compassion to arrive at the truth and the Law.
Lastly, I would like to share with you a few more words by Dr.
Ramachandran that have stayed very close to my heart. He exclaimed,“Why do people have to kill one another? The amount of blood thathas been shed during World War II flows more vastly than the Ganges
River. We must never allow this sad history to be repeated ever again.
We are not beasts. We are humans.”

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Today, I pray that we, the participants of this symposium, can succeed
Dr. Ramachandran’s sublime spirit so we can take this modern world,
ruled by the beastly nature of violence, and make it shine with the lightof humanity through nonviolence and compassion. Following the path of
sharing the mentor’s struggles, let’s forge new territory and create a century of peace and nonviolence together.

References
1
Gandhi, M. “Atom Bomb and Ahimsa” July 7, 1946 issue of Harijan, The Collected
Works of Mahatma Gandh, (New Delhi: The Publications Division, 1981),
vol. LXXXIV, p. 394.
2
Ikeda, D. The Evil over which We Must Triumph in From the Ashes (Rodale Press,
2001), collected by editors of Beliefnet, p. 106.
3
Gandhi, M. “Truth” First Chapter of the Yeravda Mandir, http://www.mahatma.org.
in/books/showbook.jsp?id=9&link=bg&book=bg0010&lang=en&cat=books
translated from the Original Gujarati by Valji Govindji Desai (accessed 7 September2006), The Official Mahatma Gandhi eArchive & Reference Library, Mahatma Gandhi
Foundation, Jan., 2001.