What form of Buddhism is associated with SGI?
SGI members practice the Nichiren school of Mahayana Buddhism, which is based on Shakyamuni’s most profound teaching, the Lotus Sutra. The Lotus Sutra was one of Shakyamuni’s last teachings and describes the existence of an innate and universal truth, known as the Buddha nature, inherent in all life. It teaches profound respect for the dignity of life. The Lotus Sutra is unique among the teachings of Shakyamuni in that it affirms that the attainment of enlightenment is a possibility open to all people without distinction of race, gender, social standing, or education. Nichiren, living in thirteenth century Japan, studied the Buddhist sutras in depth and emphasized the supremacy of the Lotus Sutra (myoho-renge-kyo, in Japanese), defining the essence of its teaching as Nam-myoho-renge-kyo. The Lotus Sutra, like many other Mahayana sutras, teaches the Bodhisattva ideal as a model of human behavior. The Bodhisattva practice means to strive for one’s own enlightenment while working to relie
