Kosen-rufu
Kōsen-rufu, a phrase found in the Japanese translation of the Buddhist scripture Lotus Sutra which is important in Nichiren Buddhism and refers to the future widespread dissemination of the Lotus Sutra. The term can be translated as “to extensively proclaim and cause to flow and be disseminated” or “to extensively declare and propagate far and wide.”
The term derives from Lotus Sutra's 22nd chapter: "Propagate this chapter widely throughout the Jambudvīpa in the last 500-year period after my death." Nichiren, the founder of Nichiren Buddhism, took this statement to indicate that the Lotus Sutra is the Law to be declared and widely spread during the Latter Age.
Kōsen means to "widely declare." "Widely" implies speaking out to the world, to an ever-greater number and ever-broader spectrum of people. "Declare" means to proclaim one's ideals, principles and philosophy. The ru of rufu means "a current like that of a great river," and fu means "to spread out like a bolt of cloth." This requires an active and engaged approach of shakubuku, propagation of the Dharma, rather than peaceful retreat or meditative solitude.
In Soka Gakkai, Kosen rufu is informally defined as "world peace through individual happiness."
Kosen-rufu as peacemaking
Literally, kōsen-rufu means to declare and spread widely the teachings of the Buddha. However, the term "kosen rufu" has come to connote "world peace" based on the Lotus Sutra and Nichiren teachings. The Soka Gakkai, Risshō Kōsei Kai, and Nipponzan-Myōhōji are Nichiren-inspired new religious movements headquartered in Japan that have incorporated peace activities into their religious practice. All three of these groups have some form of NGO status.According to the Soka Gakkai and Nipponzan-Myōhōji, Nichiren stressed the ideal of achieving kōsen-rufu in Buddhist practice because he felt that the quests for personal enlightenment and the peace and well-being of the entire society were inseparable.
Both the Soka Gakkai and Rissho Koseikai hold that peacemaking and social improvement require inner personal transformation. The Soka Gakkai labels this as "human revolution" and Risso Koseikai calls it "reformation of the mind". Both groups reason that since war, strife, and injustice are rooted in the three poisons of greed, anger, and delusion existing in the minds of individuals, the creation of lasting peace requires individual self-purification taken on by many people. From their perspective of "Buddhism is daily life," activities at home, school or the workplace become part of the Buddhist practice, opportunities for growth and are means to demonstrate the validity of the Lotus Sutra.