JAPANESE PEACE PAGODA

This Peace Pagoda was built under the aegis of the Japanese monk Nichidatsu Fuhi Thero (1885-1985), founder of the Nipponzan-Myōhōji-Daisanga Buddhist order. The monk met Mahatma Gandhi in 1931. He later decided to promote non-violence, including the organization of large marches and the construction of Peace Pagodas around the world. The first pagodas were built in 1947 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. To date, there are an estimated 80 pagodas worldwide, including 5 in Sri Lanka.