Singapore Soka Association
Encyclopedia
Singapore Soka Association or SSA is the Singapore
affiliate of Soka Gakkai International (SGI)http://www.sgi.org
SGI is a 12 million strong multi-ethnic Buddhist
association in 190 countries and territories globally promoting and practicing the Nichiren
school
of Mahayana
Buddhism.
Buddhist Association (NSS), its membership has grown steadily over the years.
Koh Kian Boon was the first general director and under his leadership the rapidly expanding association grew to be one of Singapore's active grassroots-based bodies contributing to the newly independent nation's community and social fabric, most notably through the participation in the annual National Day Parade
http://www.ssabuddhist.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=37&Itemid=69 and Chingay Paradehttp://www.ssabuddhist.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=70 performances.
of Soka Gakkai in 1991 by the Nichiren Shoshu clergy, the Association renamed itself Singapore Soka Association (SSA). Soka in Japanese
meant to create value. The name change was made to reflect and affirm the Association's commitment to create value in society through its community movements for peace, culture and education.
The youth
arm also involves the Student Division (SD), consisting of students from the tertiary and pre-university institutions, the Future Division (FD), consisting of students from the secondary schools, and the Primary Division (PD), consisting of primary school students.
Collectively, the YMD, YWD, SD, FD, and PD are known as the SSA Youth Division.
The Division's members operate the Soka Youth Centre in Pasir Panjang catering to youth outreach activities, notably its weekly Friday Rendezvous concerts, development programmeshttp://www.ssabuddhist.org/dmdocuments/websitecontent/websitedocument/SSAYouth/ydp.php and projectshttp://www.ssabuddhist.org/dmdocuments/websitecontent/websitedocument/SSAYouth/sp.php.
In July 2005, the Division was conferred its inaugural Singapore Youth Award (Team) 2005 for Community and Youth Services in recognition of its role in fostering the spirit of youths serving the community. http://www.nyc.gov.sg/sya/main/html/sya2005/Citation%20-%20Soka%20(Youth%20Division).pdf
one is a Women's Centre, one a Youth Centre, one a Training School, one a Cultural Centre, one a handicraft/ costume/ prop making centre, one a memorial
cum columbarium
, one a kindergarten and one the overall headquarters.
The association takes pride in the fact that its headquarters was officially opened in January 1993 by the then Prime Minister of Singapore
, Goh Chok Tong
. This was an event unprecedented in SGI.
The centres also provide venues for inter-faith exchanges, educational seminars, arts and performances, and other roles such as being disaster relief collection centres during the Indian Ocean Tsunami which struck in December 2004.
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
affiliate of Soka Gakkai International (SGI)http://www.sgi.org
SGI is a 12 million strong multi-ethnic Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
association in 190 countries and territories globally promoting and practicing the Nichiren
Nichiren
Nichiren was a Buddhist monk who lived during the Kamakura period in Japan. Nichiren taught devotion to the Lotus Sutra, entitled Myōhō-Renge-Kyō in Japanese, as the exclusive means to attain enlightenment and the chanting of Nam-Myōhō-Renge-Kyō as the essential practice of the teaching...
school
Nichiren Buddhism
Nichiren Buddhism is a branch of Mahāyāna Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th century Japanese monk Nichiren...
of Mahayana
Mahayana
Mahāyāna is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice...
Buddhism.
Early years
Founded in 1967 and registered in 1972 as Singapore Nichiren ShoshuNichiren Shoshu
Nichiren Shōshū is a branch of Nichiren Buddhism based on the teachings of the 13th-century Japanese monk Nichiren . Nichiren Shōshū claims Nichiren as its founder through his disciple Nikkō , the founder of the school's Head Temple Taiseki-ji...
Buddhist Association (NSS), its membership has grown steadily over the years.
Koh Kian Boon was the first general director and under his leadership the rapidly expanding association grew to be one of Singapore's active grassroots-based bodies contributing to the newly independent nation's community and social fabric, most notably through the participation in the annual National Day Parade
National Day Parade
The Singapore National Day Parade is a national ceremony in Singapore that, as its name implies, includes a parade on Singapore's National Day on August 9, in commemoration of Singapore's independence that is usually held at the Padang , the National Stadium, various decentalized venues all over...
http://www.ssabuddhist.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=37&Itemid=69 and Chingay Paradehttp://www.ssabuddhist.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=38&Itemid=70 performances.
Name change
Following the excommunicationExcommunication
Excommunication is a religious censure used to deprive, suspend or limit membership in a religious community. The word means putting [someone] out of communion. In some religions, excommunication includes spiritual condemnation of the member or group...
of Soka Gakkai in 1991 by the Nichiren Shoshu clergy, the Association renamed itself Singapore Soka Association (SSA). Soka in Japanese
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
meant to create value. The name change was made to reflect and affirm the Association's commitment to create value in society through its community movements for peace, culture and education.
Soka Renaissance
Together with SGI, SSA embarked on a program titled Soka Renaissance, a period of reformation which aimed at developing a more humanistic and embracing organisation. Its stated goals included emphasizing enlarging spheres of mutual trust, friendship and positive engagement first within the association and as well engaging in numerous dialogues and exchanges with various youth, religious, educational, arts and community groups.Membership
SSA is currently led by Ong Bon Chai, organised into the adult arms of the Men's (MD) and Women's Divisions (WD), and the youth arms of Young Men's (YMD) and Young Women's Divisions (YWD).The youth
Youth
Youth is the time of life between childhood and adulthood . Definitions of the specific age range that constitutes youth vary. An individual's actual maturity may not correspond to their chronological age, as immature individuals could exist at all ages.-Usage:Around the world, the terms "youth",...
arm also involves the Student Division (SD), consisting of students from the tertiary and pre-university institutions, the Future Division (FD), consisting of students from the secondary schools, and the Primary Division (PD), consisting of primary school students.
Collectively, the YMD, YWD, SD, FD, and PD are known as the SSA Youth Division.
SSA Youth Division
The 7000 strong SSA Youth Division http://www.ssabuddhist.org/dmdocuments/websitecontent/websitedocument/SSAYouth/index.php seeks to provide Singapore youths with platforms to engage in activities and services that foster leadership, responsibility and service to community, guided by its core values of respect for the dignity of life and value-creative living.The Division's members operate the Soka Youth Centre in Pasir Panjang catering to youth outreach activities, notably its weekly Friday Rendezvous concerts, development programmeshttp://www.ssabuddhist.org/dmdocuments/websitecontent/websitedocument/SSAYouth/ydp.php and projectshttp://www.ssabuddhist.org/dmdocuments/websitecontent/websitedocument/SSAYouth/sp.php.
In July 2005, the Division was conferred its inaugural Singapore Youth Award (Team) 2005 for Community and Youth Services in recognition of its role in fostering the spirit of youths serving the community. http://www.nyc.gov.sg/sya/main/html/sya2005/Citation%20-%20Soka%20(Youth%20Division).pdf
Centres
Reflecting the grassroots appeal of the global SGI, SSA members and friends gather in community buildings known as Soka Centres. It has eight Soka Centreshttp://www.ssabuddhist.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=68&Itemid=110, distributed throughout the island state. Each provides a place of worship, and its own specific function:one is a Women's Centre, one a Youth Centre, one a Training School, one a Cultural Centre, one a handicraft/ costume/ prop making centre, one a memorial
Memorial
A memorial is an object which serves as a focus for memory of something, usually a person or an event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or art objects such as sculptures, statues or fountains, and even entire parks....
cum columbarium
Columbarium
A columbarium is a place for the respectful and usually public storage of cinerary urns . The term comes from the Latin columba and originally referred to compartmentalized housing for doves and pigeons .The Columbarium of Pomponius Hylas is a particularly fine ancient Roman example, rich in...
, one a kindergarten and one the overall headquarters.
The association takes pride in the fact that its headquarters was officially opened in January 1993 by the then Prime Minister of Singapore
Prime Minister of Singapore
The Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore is the head of the government of the Republic of Singapore. The President of Singapore appoints as Prime Minister a Member of Parliament who, in his opinion, is most likely to command the confidence of a majority of MPs.The office of Prime Minister...
, Goh Chok Tong
Goh Chok Tong
Goh Chok Tong is the Senior Minister of Singapore and the chairman of the central bank of Singapore, the Monetary Authority of Singapore. He also served as the second Prime Minister of the Republic of Singapore from 28 November 1990 to 12 August 2004, succeeding Lee Kuan Yew, the former Prime...
. This was an event unprecedented in SGI.
The centres also provide venues for inter-faith exchanges, educational seminars, arts and performances, and other roles such as being disaster relief collection centres during the Indian Ocean Tsunami which struck in December 2004.