About Ittetsu Okada

‘Ittetsu always sought guidance and executed everything precisely as he was told. By doing so, he built up his character as a leader of the Soka Gakkai. In the 1956 election, he was one of the persons responsible for the campaign in the Chugoku region. He seized every opportunity to go to Osaka and seek guidance from Shinich Yamamoto. He strictly – almost nervously in the eyes of those around him – maintained his determination to grow and help his members grow.’

Ittetsu Okada was born in 1921 to an influential merchant family. The family maintained faith in the Minobu Nichiren sect. His father, who became a qualified priest, founded his own group, the Kicho Sha, and began to propagate his version of the faith. Ittetsu’s mother was also an ardent believer.
Assigned to an artillery regiment in 1942, epileptic seizures, which he had begun to experience at an early age, led to his discharge from military service.
The Okada business experienced hard times. After the war’s end, Ittetsu married a woman from Osaka in a hastily arranged marriage.
In August of 1954, a shakubuku team came to Okayama. Ittetsu’s brother, who had joined in January, took him to the inn where the team was staying and introduced him to the team leader. After five days of intense debate, Ittetsu joined. He immediately began successful shakubuku activity.
With President Toda’s guidance to devote himself to correct faith, Ittetsu plunged himself into activities and became a district chief.
Ittetsu spearheaded a very successful Okayama rally attended by some 10,000 people, members and non-members alike.

Points to ponder

Read and contemplate President Toda’s guidance to Ittetsu about running his business.
Look for Ittetsu’s mother’s experiment.
This section describes Ittetsu’s background. Check it out!