Hope Is a Decision Selected Essays

How do we remain optimistic when the world seems to be falling apart around us? In these intimate essays, the author leads the reader on an inspirational journey to find answers and hope in troubled times. The book includes incisive commentaries on terrorism, good and evil, and aging and death that provide a new perspective on approaching the world with hope. The lyrical reflections on poetry and friendship highlight how such spiritual pursuits are the wellsprings of hope in dark times. Each essay suggests ways in which anyone can connect their personal search for strength, wisdom, and hope to the collective desire to bring about a just, humane, and caring society.

Daisaku Ikeda is the founder and president of the Soka Gakkai International. He has written and lectured widely on Buddhism, humanism, and ethics, and he has published dialogues with global figures such as Arnold Toynbee, Linus Pauling, and Mikhail Gorbachev. He is the author of Buddhism Day By Day, Unlocking the Mysteries of Death, The Way of Youth and the coauthor of America Will Be!, Art of True Relations, Choose Hope, Knowing Our Worth, and Our Word to Make. He lives in Tokyo, Japan.