Embracing Compassion: A Revolution in Leadership

by Daisaku Ikeda

Buddhism, it can be said, is about becoming a better human being. In Embracing Compassion - the collection of SGI President Daisaku Ikeda's speeches at a conference of top leaders held annually for the last several years - he focuses on that process through the lens of leadership. Embracing A Revolution of Leadership, Vol 1, comprises President Ikeda's speeches at those gatherings from 2001 through 2003. The SGI leader discusses significant lessons that can be applied in any leadership situation Why the mentor-Disciple relationship is at the heart of Buddhism; The top points of fostering youth; How to keep an organization from stagnating; The keys to unity and victory in any situation; Learning to recognize and stand up to devilish functions.

Genres: Buddhism

168 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Daisaku Ikeda was a Buddhist philosopher, peacebuilder, educator, author and poet. He was the third president of the Soka Gakkai lay Buddhist organization and the founding president of the Soka Gakkai International (SGI), which is today one of the world's largest and most diverse lay Buddhist organizations, promoting a philosophy of character development and social engagement for peace.

Ikeda was the founder of the Soka (value-creation) schools, a nondenominational school system based on an ideal of fostering each student's unique creative potential and cultivating an ethic of peace, social contribution and global consciousness. The school system runs from kindergarten through graduate study and includes a university in Tokyo, Japan, and another in California, U.S.A.

Ikeda was a staunch proponent of dialogue as the foundation of peace. Since the 1970s he has pursued dialogue with a wide range of individuals around the world in political, cultural, educational and academic fields. Over 50 of these have been published in book form, with people such as Mikhail Gorbachev, Elise Boulding, Joseph Rotblat and André Malraux. In furtherance of his vision of fostering dialogue and solidarity for peace, Ikeda has founded a number of independent, nonprofit research institutes that develop cross-cultural, interdisciplinary collaboration on diverse issues: the Boston Research Center for the 21st Century, the Toda Institute for Global Peace and Policy Research and the Institute of Oriental Philosophy. The Min-On Concert Association and the Tokyo Fuji Art Museum promote mutual understanding and friendship between different national cultures through the arts.

Ikeda was a prolific writer who has published more than 100 works, ranging from Buddhist philosophy to biographical essays, poetry, children's stories and photographic collections.