Reiyūkai

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Reiyūkai (Jap., ‘friends of the spirit association’). A movement within Nichiren Buddhism, founded in Tōkyō in 1925 by Kubo Kakutarō (1890–1944) and his sister-in-law Kotani Kimi (1901–71). It came into being c.1925 as an informal association. It stresses the importance of the Lotus Sūtra and of reverence for ancestors. It was the most successful of the ‘new religions’ (shinshū kyō) after the Second World War, when, unlike most other new religious movements, it was freed from governmental supervision. But because Reiyūkai was always prone to schism, it has been weakened by frequent defections, the most important of which is Risshō Kōsei Kai, the ‘Society for the Establishment of Righteousness and Friendly Relations’. Under the presidency of the founder's son, Kubo Tsuginari, Reiyūkai has been modernized and has experienced a regeneration by an influx of young people.