by Masuo Nezu

"The firing I heard last night seemed to be rounds of a very large size"

As chairman of the Commission on International Affairs of the Japan Religions League, Rev. Niwano visited a village near Hue, Vietnam, on December 21, 1970, where he distributed relief goods collected by Rissho Kosei-kai members following a resolution adopted at the first World Conference of Religions for Peace in Kyoto.

Though the WCRP is a movement for "peace," there sometimes have been dangers. At WCRP I in Kyoto in 1970, delegates from Vietnam participated while the war there was still going on. In December of that year, soon after the assembly had ended, Rev. Niwano, heading a small group of the Japanese Committee of the WCRP, flew to Vietnam, bringing with him relief goods for the suffering people. In the battle between North Vietnam and South Vietnam, artillery and rockets flew between both sides. The group heard that a Japanese newspaper reporter, while asleep in his hotel in Saigon, experienced a direct hit on his room and died. The small group headed by Rev. Niwano flew to Hue, only miles from the front, and there distributed food and other relief supplies directly to people in need. The family that provided rooms for the group members were lay Buddhist followers. At night, the sound of artillery rounds being fired was incessant. "The firing I heard last night seemed to be rounds of a very large size," Rev. Niwano said in the morning. "Having served in the navy in my young days, I can just about guess the size of the shells when I hear artillery firing." We later learned that the fighting had been very near.

International relations were under considerable strain in 1980 after Iranian students took as hostages a large group of staff members from the American Embassy in Tehran. At the first Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly Devoted to Disarmament (SSD I) in New York in 1978, Rev. Niwano had appealed to the leaders of the world, especially of the then two superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union: "Instead of taking risks with arms, please take major risks for peace and disarmament."

"Since we are all religious people," Founder Niwano said with regard to the hostage problem in Iran, "we can work together for a peaceful solution, can't we?" At the invitation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Rev. Niwano as an honorary president of the WCRP flew to Iran to take part in the International Conference on U.S. Interventions in Iran held June 2--5, 1980, to learn about the situation from the standpoint of the Iranian people. About 400 religious representatives from 54 countries attended the conference. It began with opening remarks by Abolhassan Banisadr, then president of Iran, and a message from the senior religious leader Ayatollah Khomeini. The venue for the conference, as well as the residence for the participants, was the Independence Hotel, the largest in Tehran. In the windows we could see bullet holes, probably from the time of the revolution in 1979. The hotel was guarded 24 hours a day by soldiers armed with automatic rifles.

Rev. Nikkyo Niwano (center right) in Tehran on his way to attend a meeting with Ayatollah Khomeini in a mosque on June 2, 1980.

On the third day of the conference, Ayatollah Khomeini delivered an address. In a calm voice he expressed appreciation to the participants for attending and said that the people of Iran would not compromise in any way with the American superpower. After the various events of the conference, Rev. Niwano wrote a final appeal and gave it to Foreign Minister, Sadequ Qotbzadeh. "Please release the American hostages as quickly as possible and put the issue up for discussion at the United Nations," his message read. "If you feel any anxiety about releasing the hostages, we will be happy to serve as substitutes for them together with volunteers from among Rissho Kosei-kai youth members." These words came as quite a surprise to the Iranian leaders and created a considerable impression among them. It turned out that about half a year later, all of the hostages were released. In the following month, the Iranian government sent a special envoy, Mr. Abdol Karim Hashemi Nejad, the highest leader of the country's Shi'ia Islam, to Tokyo. He visited Rev. Niwano at the Horin-kaku Guest Hall and expressed sincere gratitude to him, saying, "Even though Japan was in a very delicate position in relation to the U.S., you understood well the standpoint of Iran and bravely gave us assistance. We want to express our sincere gratitude."

"Just by meeting, cooperation has already begun"

Dr. Helmut Jarosch, a German university professor teaching in Japan, visited Rev. Niwano at the Great Sacred Hall in 1985. He was teaching German as well as trying to heighten students' consciousness of "peace" and "nonviolence" through his seminar. An ardent Christian and extremely fond of Japan, he had lived in the country for several decades. His command of the Japanese language was excellent. For some time prior to the meeting he had observed Rev. Niwano's activities for peace and interreligious cooperation, and admired him. "My favorite Japanese word," he said, "is kyo-ryoku (cooperation). In kanji characters, kyo is made up of ju, the numeral 'ten,' which looks like the plus sign, and chikara (power), repeated three times. Thus with the ryoku (another Japanese pronunciation of chikara), there are four chikaras. Four 'powers' and a 'plus' mean cooperation is 'full of power.' Cooperation among great powers, I think, is most important and necessary. There is also the word kyoson (coexistence). However, just being together can be done by everyone. What is difficult is to cooperate to do something together. Without a rich mind, interreligious cooperation cannot be promoted." This may have been the very first time that Rev. Niwano heard an interpretation of kanji characters from a German scholar. He responded, "Just by meeting in this way today, cooperation has already begun." Though it was their first meeting, the two enjoyed their conversation very much and it lasted for a long time.

"Only by chanting the formula of 'Namu Myoho Renge-kyo,' we cannot fully express the spirit of the truth that the one heaven and the four seas are all attributed to the Wonderful Dharma"

On both sides of the altar in the main hall of the Horin-kaku Guest Hall hang special permanent examples of Founder Niwano's calligraphy. The one on the right side reads itten-shikai kaiki-myoho (the one heaven and the four seas are all attributed to the Wonderful Dharma). The one on the other side reads tenjo-mukyu itaidoshin (infinite in heaven and earth, many in body but one in spirit).

When Rev. Niwano wrote with brush in black ink the saying that appears on the right plaque, he said, "Only by chanting the formula of 'Namu Myoho Renge-kyo' (I take refuge in the Sutra of the Wonderful Dharma of the Lotus Flower), we cannot fully express the spirit of the truth that the one heaven and the four seas are all attributed to the Wonderful Dharma. Everything in this world is sustained by the truth of the Wonderful Dharma, and what is needed is for everyone to waken to the truth and base their everyday behavior on it. It is the meaning of the truth that all people will practice the spirit of the Wonderful Dharma."

"All religions stem fundamentally from the same root. Making the truth their base, all religions also have the same ultimate goal." So believing, Rev. Niwano promoted interreligious cooperation.

The Horin-kaku Guest Hall was completed in 1978, the 40th year since the founding of Rissho Kosei-kai. In his first sermon of the year, indicating the sayings mentioned above that he had inscribed in traditional Japanese calligraphy on the two special hangings, he offered guidance to the members gathered in the Great Sacred Hall by saying, "I have put these words here as the theme for the organization this year, as well as having resolved myself to promote interreligious cooperation based on these thoughts. Please make them the goal of your efforts." He used the same words in his customary New Year's calligraphy that year.

On the one hand, he strove ceaselessly to disseminate the Lotus Sutra, but at the same time he put much energy into promoting interreligious cooperation. The goal of the two was same, namely the realization of "the land of serene light, a truly peaceful world" in our present age. In his mind, his dedication to world peace and his warm concern and high regard for individual members were two facets of the same thing, reflecting a longing for the happiness of all humankind. For more than 30 years after beginning international peace activities based on interreligious cooperation, he always exemplified what he taught.

How should the next generation assume this sacred task? One day Rev. Niwano spoke of his own expectations to young members of Rissho Kosei-kai. "Inheriting the spirit of the founder is most important in any organization. So far, we have been opening a path of religious cooperation where there was no such path. This has continued for 30 years. With that understanding in mind, I expect the younger generation to make a great effort to carry forward what I have been trying to achieve. Those who strive to succeed in this in the twenty-first century are bodhisattvas who spring up from the earth as described in the Lotus Sutra."

In both the WCRP and the IARF, Rissho Kosei-kai member who are now helping to achieve those goals of Rev. Niwano is growing gradually, as is the number of those who attend the world assemblies of the WCRP as well as those who contribute in their local communities.