by Mona Sadhwani  

I'd like to tell you about a meeting that I went to on Sunday with my International Group. There were two members, one from Israel and the other from Palestine, who talked about their experiences and how both of them were determined to see peace in their own respective countries.  

These two women had crossed the border several times to attend meetings on the other side. They ended up hugging each other and saying that they were going to write a letter to Sensei, as they were sure that he was the only one who could bring peace over there. Just watching these two women brought tears to my eyes.  

I was the moderator of the meeting and I thought that it was the perfect chance for me to give my experience to round off the meeting. I told everyone how one of my uncles was sick in India and he had been told by the doctors that he should come to Japan for treatment. He was worried because his doctor was in Tokyo and he had no idea how to cope with the language, etc.  

I told his wife that I would help as much as I could. (I live in Kobe, which is not near Tokyo.) In the meantime, they discussed the situation with one of their friends, a political leader in India. He said not to worry because he had a good friend in Tokyo and that he would write to him.  

They then called me to say that I didn't have to take time off from work to go to Tokyo because their friend had set them up with his friend in Tokyo and everything was taken care of. I wanted to thank this person personally, so I asked for his name. Boy, was I blown away when they said he is some sort of Buddhist leader named Daisaku Ikeda!  

These people are not members and neither is their friend. I thought they were joking at first, but it turned out to be true. Sensei had sent them the telephone number of a person to contact. I naturally contacted him immediately and introduced myself. He turned out to be a leader who I had met before. He was surprised that I was related to my Uncle.  

I have been in touch with them everyday, and the SGI not only helped my uncle register at the hospital, his family settle in the hotel, etc., but Sensei also sent them a huge basket of fruit and some beautiful flowers. I was so touched by Sensei's compassion. I mean he is busy enough taking care of members, but here he was doing all this, not because my uncle was related to me, but because his friend in India had asked him to. So who is his friend in India? A person that Sensei met on one of his many trips.  

At this point in the meeting I was crying and telling the two women, yes I believed that Sensei could really help them.  

I am now off to Tokyo for a few days to take care of my Uncle and I hope to get a chance to visit the Soka Gakkai headquarters and thank everyone personally. 
 
 
To read this experience in Spanish, go here.