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Lotus
Sutra Exhibition Held in London, UK
 From
November 22-27, 2011, the exhibition “The Lotus Sutra—A Message of
Peace and Harmonious Coexistence” was held at the SGI-UK’s London Ikeda
Peace Centre. The exhibition was the result of cooperation between the
Institute of Oriental Philosophy (IOP) and SGI-UK and support by the
Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of
the Russian Academy of Sciences, the British Library’s International
Dunhuang Project and the Royal
Academy Asiatic Society.
Against
the historical backdrop of the transmission of Buddhism from
India to Asia, the exhibition focuses on the continuing appeal of the
Lotus Sutra’s essential
message of peace and coexistence, and how it
has been widely embraced by diverse ethnic groups.
Following the greetings from SGI-UK
General Director Robert Samuels,
IOP Director Yoichi Kawada delivered his speech. He introduced the
activities of the IOP, whose purpose is to transmit wisdom of the
orient
to the world. He expressed his wish that the light of wisdom, which is
necessary for humankind, will be illuminated by the exhibition.
There were numbers of
eminent delegates present, including Dr. Lucia Dolce and
Dr. Ulrich Pagel from the University of London and Professor Eileen
Barker from the London School of Economics.
On November 23, a symposium was
held to commemorate the opening of the exhibition.
The following presentations were
delivered at the commemorative symposium:
1) Yoichi Kawada (IOP Director)
“Contemporary Civilization and
the Lotus Sutra” 
2) Hiroshi Kanno (IOP Senior Research
Fellow)
“Saddharma and the One Buddha
Vehicle in the Lotus Sutra”
3) Halle Elizabeth O’Neal (Kansas
University)
“Continental Origins and
Culture of Copying: An Examination
of the Prototypes and Textualized Community of the Japanese Jeweled-Stupa Mandalas”
4) Max Deeg (Cardiff University, Head
of School of History, Archeology and
Religion)
“From Scholarly Object to
Religious Text--the Story of the
Lotus-sutra in the West”
Organizer:
The Institute of Oriental Philosophy (IOP)
Sponsors:
SGI-UK,
The Institute of Oriental Manuscripts of the Russian Academy of
Sciences,
The British Library’s International Dunhuang Project and
The Royal Academy Asiatic Society
Venue:
SGI-UK London Ikeda Peace Centre
Date:
November 22-27, 2011
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