Yes, It's Big

JAPAN'S militant Nichiren Shoshu sect of Buddhism, better known as Soka Gakkai (the Value Creation Society), is a phenomenally successful blend of 13th century Buddhist theology and 20th century power-of-positive-thinking. Scarcely 3,000 strong in 1945, the sect numbers 8,000,000 members today, including at least 100,000 in the U.S. It was the founding force and remains the sustaining power behind Japan's third largest political party, the Komeito (Clean Government) Party. Its formula for success, both personal and collective, is simple: the relentless chanting of a brief ritual prayer before replicas of the sect's treasured Dai-Gohonzon, a camphorwood tablet inscribed with mystic symbols by a 13th century monk named Nichiren.

When it came to building a suitable new shrine for Nichiren's sacred tablet, the Soka Gakkai devotees decided to proceed in typical grandiose style. In a four-day fund-raising blitz in 1965, they collected more than $100 million for the project. This week, at the sect's headquarters on the lower slopes of Mount Fuji, followers are concluding seven days of ceremonies to celebrate the opening of the new High Sanctuary, a mammoth ten-acre complex including a plaza that can accommodate 60,000 worshipers. The steel, aluminum and concrete structure, embellished with rare marble inside, drew fire from some disconcerted critics, who think it spoils the austere prospect of Fuji. But the critics can scarcely wish it away. The shrine is built to withstand the strongest earthquakes, and Architect Kimio Yokoyama placidly expects it to be good for at least 2,000 years.

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