Ceremony Honoring Daisaku Ikeda’s Contributions to Peace Held in Navoiy City, Uzbekistan
Participants included teachers from elementary, junior and senior high schools, as well as youth inspired by Mr. Ikeda’s spirit of humanism.
A ceremony honoring SGI President Daisaku Ikeda’s contributions to peace was held on September 22, 2025, at the Shirin Palace of Culture in Navoiy City, Republic of Uzbekistan. Approximately 300 people attended, including distinguished guests from various sectors, university and education officials, and a Soka Gakkai delegation from Japan.
In 2007, Navoiy City conferred the title of Honorary Citizen on Mr. Ikeda in recognition of his efforts to promote the spirit of the national poet Alisher Navoiy (1441–1501) and to foster friendship between Japan and Uzbekistan. A memorial service for Mr. Ikeda was also held in Navoiy City in February 2024.
The recent gathering served as a second memorial
for Mr. Ikeda and marked the 50th anniversary of his first honorary academic degree,
conferred by Moscow State University in 1975.
Dr. Kuziev Tursunali Karimovich, former Minister
of Culture and Sports and first deputy director of the Cultural Heritage Agency
of the Republic of Uzbekistan, spoke about Mr. Ikeda’s achievements. Yoshiyuki
Nagaoka, executive director of the Soka Gakkai Office of International Affairs,
expressed his gratitude for the event honoring Mr. Ikeda’s memory and for the
longstanding friendship between Soka Gakkai and Uzbekistan. He then read a
message from President Ikeda’s son, Hiromasa Ikeda, Soka Gakkai senior vice president.
Shuhrat Jon, head of the Center for Spirituality and Enlightenment at the Navoiy Chamber of Commerce and Industry, commented on the Uzbek edition of Daisaku Ikeda’s essay collection The World Is Yours to Change. He stated: “in the face of the challenges confronting modern society, the philosophy of Daisaku Ikeda offers the path to their resolution.”
Kamor Yuldashev, a member of the Turon Academy of Sciences, emphasized that Mr. Ikeda, who introduced the philosophy of Alisher Navoiy to young people, was a true humanist. Karen Aghamyan, former President of the Artists’ Union of Armenia, sent a video message recalling her meeting with Mr. Ikeda in 2010, stating that his philosophy will continue to inspire people, serving as a bridge of friendship linking different ethnicities, religions and worldviews.
Mayor Dilmurod Ergashev (left) and Yoshiyuki Nagaoka at the unveiling of the commemorative plaque honoring Mr. Ikeda (Navoiy City Hall, September 21, 2025)
Coinciding with the commemorative gathering, the exhibition “Dialogue with Nature—Photographs by Daisaku Ikeda” was also shown at the Center for Spirituality and Enlightenment and viewed by many scholars, students and city officials.
On September 21, the day before the ceremony, the Soka Gakkai delegation paid a courtesy visit to Navoiy City Hall, where they were warmly welcomed by Mayor Dilmurod Ergashev Bekmuadovich and city officials. A commemorative plaque was unveiled to pay respect to Mr. Ikeda as an Honorary Citizen.
[Adapted from an article in the October 1, 2025, issue of the Seikyo Shimbun, Soka Gakkai, Japan]
