A modern Japan-based international lay religious movement which based itself in the Shōshū sect of Nichiren Buddhism. Originally founded in the early 1930s, it was disbanded following suppression by Japan's wartime government before reorganizing in 1946. In 1991, they were excommunicated from Nichiren Shōshū over doctrinal disputes.
It is often labeled a cult by critics both in Japan and from abroad due to the significant emphasis on praising its current president Ikeda Daisaku, as well the involvement of its members and leadership in notable incidents involving aggressive proselytization, violent encounters with Buddhist clergy, political posturing through the Komeito Party, and for fostering other dubious associations, such as with the late ex-Panamanian dictator Manuel Noriega.
