The Lotus Sutra Exhibition Reaches One Million Visitors Worldwide

 

The exhibition "Lotus Sutra―A Message of Peace and Harmonious Coexistence," currently being held at the SGI Asia Culture and Education Center (ACEC) in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, reached a milestone on November 3, 2024, when the cumulative number of visitors across 17 countries and territories hit one million.

The exhibition series, which originated from the friendship between SGI President Daisaku Ikeda and Dr. Yuri Petrosyan, then Director of the Institute of Oriental Studies (now the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts) of the Russian Academy of Sciences, began in Hong Kong in 2006. Rather than treating the spirit of the Lotus Sutra as a relic of the past, the exhibition aims to revive it as a living scripture for the modern age. It has traveled to India and Nepal, the birthplace of Buddhism; East Asian countries including Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Korea; Southeast Asian Islamic countries such as Malaysia and Indonesia; as well as venues in Europe and South America. No other exhibition focusing on a single Buddhist sutra has achieved such widespread international circulation and attendance.

At the million-visitor celebration event on November 3, after presenting a commemorative gift to the millionth visitor and a celebratory dance performance, Mr. Koh Sia Feai, General Director of Soka Gakkai Malaysia (SGM), and Mr. Ryohei Tanaka, Director of the Institute of Oriental Philosophy, delivered congratulatory addresses via video message. Video messages celebrating the milestone were also received from Dr. Zhao Shengliang, Party Secretary (Former Director) of the Dunhuang Academy; Dr. Irina Popova, Director of the Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of Sciences; Prof. Dr. Abdelaziz Berghout, Rector of the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization (ISTAC); and Prof. Tan Sri Dzulkifli Abdul Razak, Honorary Professor and Former Rector of International Islamic University Malaysia.

The exhibition continues until December 29, 2024 (Free admission, closed on Mondays).