"Poetry is the force that makes us decent people, people who are filled with empathy for those in need or in pain." With these words of South African poet Oswald Mtshali, Dr. Sarah Wider communicated the spirit of her new dialogue book co-authored with Daisaku Ikeda, The Art of True Relations: Conversations on the Poetic Heart of Human Possibility (Dialogue Path Press, 2014).

During a two-hour book launch event, held at the Ikeda Center on Saturday, February 22, attendees listened to Dr. Wider's thoughts on the topic of "The Poetic Heart of Human Possibility," engaged in small group discussion with one another, and shared insights with the whole group.

In the introduction to his 2014 Peace Proposal to the UN, called "Value Creation for Global Change: Building Resilient and Sustainable Societies," Daisaku Ikeda said:  

 

"In light of the increasing incidence of natural disasters and extreme weather events in recent years, as well as severe humanitarian crises caused by international and domestic conflicts, there has been growing stress on the importance of enhancing the resilience of human societies. In the broadest sense, resilience can be thought of in terms of realizing a hopeful future, rooted in people's natural desire to work together toward common goals."   

 

In the body of the proposal Mr. Ikeda makes specific recommendations in three areas: 1) education for global citizenship, 2) strengthening resilience, and 3) abolition of nuclear weapons.