lelectra's Xombytes

What do Courtney Love, Orlando Bloom, baseball legend Orlando Cepeda, Tina Turner and jazz legend and grammy winner Herbie Hancock share? They all practice Buddhism and chant Nam Myoho Renge Kyo, a powerful mystical phrase. First introduced by the Japanese monk, Nichiren in 1228, one of the most renowned figures in Japanese history, the religion was handed down from generation to generation of priests and a handful of followers. It gained worldwide followers after the lay organization, the Soka Gakkai, initiated an unprecedented propagation campaign out of the devastation and ashes of post nuclear World War 2 Japan. It now boasts an international membership of over fifty million in 170 countries. The lay organization's current leader, Daisaku Ikeda, a controversial figure in Japan owing to his outspoken criticism of corruption in their political system has traveled around the world and garnered the respect of many leading world figures, from Gorbachev to Nelson Mandela, for his tireless efforts promoting world peace.