is a

roman à clef A ''roman à clef'' ( ; ; ) is a novel about real-life events that is overlaid with a façade of fiction. The fictitious names in the novel represent real people and the "key" is the relationship between the non-fiction and the fiction. This m ...

written by

Daisaku Ikeda was a Japanese Buddhist leader, author, educator and nuclear disarmament advocate. He served as the third president and then honorary president of the Soka Gakkai, which is considered among the largest of Japan's new religious movements but ...

when he was the leader of the Soka Gakkai Buddhist organization. It was published between 1964 and 1995 in a newspaper belonging to the Buddhist organization, the

Seikyo Shimbun (English: "the newspaper of sacred teachings") is a Japanese newspaper. It is owned by the Japanese new religions, Japanese Buddhist religious movement Soka Gakkai. In 1997, it claimed a 5,5 million circulation, but the number is controversial ...

. The book chronicles the life of

Jōsei Toda was a teacher, peace activist and second president of Soka Gakkai from 1951 to 1958. Imprisoned for two years during World War II under violating the Peace Preservation Law and the charge of lèse-majesté from against the war, he emerged from ...

, the second president of the Soka Gakkai, after 1945. It is considered one of Ikeda's most important works by the Soka Gakkai, and is regarded as a fictionalized retelling by some scholars.

Background

In ''The Human Revolution'', a narrator named Shin'ichi Yamamoto tells the story of the Soka Gakkai between 1945 and the beginning of the 1960s. The book is inspired by epic novels, like ''Romance of the Three Kingdoms'', and the style of French

Romantics Romanticism (also known as the Romantic movement or Romantic era) was an artistic and intellectual movement that originated in Europe towards the end of the 18th century. The purpose of the movement was to advocate for the importance of subjec ...

, like Victor Hugo or Romain Rolland.Levi McLaughlin, ''Soka Gakkai's Human Revolution: The Rise of a Mimetic Nation in Modern Japan'', Hawaii, University of Hawai‘i Press, 31 December 2018 The novel was self-published by the Soka Gakkai and printed in 30 volumes. It has sold millions of copies to Soka Gakkai's members, and has been translated into several other languages. Although Soka Gakkai teaches its members that the work is its "correct history", it is a semi-fictionalized treatment of it. It is also used as a rite of passage: recruits have to read it entirely and "produce evidence of results (''seiseki''), either by converting one household to Soka Gakkai or securing one new subscription to '' Seikyō shinbun''... The Gakkai thus regards mastery of the organization's history, represented as Ikeda's literary biography, as the true test of faithful adherence."

Related works

''The Human Revolution'' inspired two movies directed by Toshio Masuda. Ikeda followed ''The Human Revolution'' with another series of books titled ''The New Human Revolution''. These volumes began with Ikeda's trip to organize the Soka Gakkai in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

and

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

in 1960, several months after he succeeded Toda as president. ''The New Human Revolution'', completed on August 6, 2018 by Ikeda at the age of 90, also consists of 30 volumes.

Selected works

* ''The Human Revolution'' (''The Human Revolution'', #1–12), abridged two-book set, Santa Monica, California: World Tribune Press, 2008; * ''The Human Revolution'' (''The Human Revolution'', #1–6 with foreword by Arnold Toynbee), Weatherhill, Inc. edition, publishing years 1972–1999. * ''The New Human Revolution'' (30 volumes), Santa Monica, California: World Tribune Press, 1995–.

Film adaptations

* ''Ningen Kakumei'' (''The Human Revolution''), a 1973 Tōhō production, starring

Tetsurō Tamba was a Japanese actor with a career spanning five decades. He appeared in nearly 300 film and television productions, both in leading and supporting roles, and was the winner of two Japan Academy Film Prizes. At the height of his career, he wa ...

and directed by Toshio Masuda. It grossed at the Japanese box office. * ''Zoku Ningen Kakumei'' (''The Human Revolution Continues''), a 1976 Tōhō production, starring Tetsurō Tamba and directed by Toshio Masuda. It grossed at the Japanese box office.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Human Revolution, The Roman à clef novels Soka Gakkai