by Rev. Masamichi Kamiya
General Secretary
The Rissho Kosei-kai Donate-a-Meal Fund for Peace

Founder Nikkyo Niwano taught us that the Donate-a-Meal Movement is designed so that anyone can participate in it wherever they may be for as long as they wish to continue as a peace practice. He added that in order to live successfully together with the peoples of the world, a capacity for sympathy is indispensable to share their hardships as well as their joys. Such sympathy makes us aware that we are all alike, that all of us are linked to each other. The spirit behind the concept of donating a meal is indeed a distillation of those words. Inspired by the spirit of the Donate-a-Meal Movement comprising compassion, prayer, and almsgiving, we give up a meal a few times each month and donate the cost to the peace fund. By doing so, we are able to give thought to the people in the world who are suffering from poverty and hunger, and then can pray that all people might live happily in peace as soon as possible. The great value of this movement is that it causes us to pray for the happiness of all the people of the world in the midst of our everyday lives. It helps us to embody the good intentions we all have, influences our daily activities, and contributes to the welfare of people who need help. Through this movement, we can come to understand that everyone who lives upon this planet is a member of the Sangha, and then help bring to fruition the prayers for peace.

Bearing in mind the humanitarian viewpoint of doing things for the benefit of others that is deeply instilled from birth in our hearts, President Nichiko Niwano has taught us that "the Donate-a-Meal Movement is a movement linked with the original wish of the Buddha." Certainly, it is one of our bodhisattva practices leading to the establishment of peace on earth. In a broad sense, it can be said that it is one of our religious dissemination activities.

The Donate-a-Meal Movement is now in its twenty-eighth year. According to the Donate-a-Meal Fund for Peace, everyone's donations have been contributed to both individuals and groups who strive for the happiness of people all over the world, as we do, and who participated in numerous worthwhile activities in every corner of the globe. Through partnership with various groups and organizations, including the United Nations, our donations are made the best use of in the development of various projects on a worldwide scale. Last year, the funds donated by members made it possible to undertake some ninety projects. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank all of you for your generosity.

This is clear proof that the good intentions of every individual can swell into a large wave promote world peace. I would sincerely like to ask you all to continue to take part in the Donate-a-Meal Movement, so that we who live on this earth might coexist truly as "brothers and sisters."