About Gakurin

Gakurin is a global training center for “Engaged Buddhism” and “Interfaith Action” founded in 1964 by Founder of Rissho Kosei-kai, Rev. Nikkyo Niwano. The Gakurin is comprised of six programs: the Honka Program, which trains seminarians to become leaders of engaged Buddhist and interfaith action; the International Program, which trains international seminarians to become lay Buddhist practitioners and leaders in different countries; the Koju University Program, the Post-Graduate Lotus Program and Koju High School Program, which train students to be active leaders in various sectors of society; and the Hoju Program, which trains women practitioners who combine faith and professionalism.

The mission of Gakurin is to educate and train future leaders who can reinterpret and apply Buddhism as a world religion with 2,600 years of tradition to respond to suffering and challenges in the modern world (Tradition-ing), and to cultivate integrated and wholistic human potential by refining kan-sei, chi-sei and hin-sei through a holistic education based on Buddhism and the Lotus Sutra.

The Gakurin curriculum consists of Buddhist practice, lectures, research, and practical training, carried out under the pillars of “engaged Buddhism” and “interfaith action”.

The Gakurin program is a practical Buddhist education that integrates Buddhism, the Lotus Sutra, and the liberal arts, including the following: the study of Buddhism, the Lotus Sutra, and Rissho Kosei-kai Teachings, lectures on various fields such as religious studies, political philosophy, law, peace studies, and communication theory, encounters with religious leaders and experts from around the world, practical training at local dharma centers in Japan and abroad, nature and agricultural experiences including rice farming, specialized research, and interactions with co-seminarians from multinational and multicultural backgrounds.

The ideal leader at Gakurin is a “Pioneer of the Bodhisattva Way” who can live the spirit of “Engaged Buddhism” and “Interfaith Action” in Japan and abroad, combining kan-sei, chi-sei, and hin-sei, based on the founding spirit of Rev. Nikkyo Niwano.

In other words, they are leaders who have the ability to awaken to their true selves (Personal Transformation), to share and accompany people and their suffering, to contribute to society (Societal Transformation), and to create the future of the world (Global Transformation).