Soka University Founder Daisaku Ikeda presented a message of felicitations to the 37th Graduating Class of Soka University and 25th Graduating Class of Soka Women’s College. In his message, the founder offered heartfelt sympathies and support to all the victims of the giant earthquake and tsunami that devastated northeastern Japan on March 11.

Both schools had cancelled their graduation ceremonies out of concern for the safety of students in light of the still-unresolved situation with the damaged nuclear power plant in Fukushima prefecture.

Faced with a national crisis, Mr. Ikeda called on the graduating men and women to embrace three guiding principles as they set forth into the world: The first is a commitment to learning regardless of the circumstances, no matter how dire they may be. Those who remain learners over their lifetime, he wrote, “can transform all things into a springboard for personal development, creative dynamism and victory.”

The second principle is to develop the leadership skills that can foster and expand the spirit of cooperation. Mr. Ikeda cited American futurist Dr. Hazel Henderson, who believes that military and economic might are competitive in nature, but that the real power which human beings wield is their capacity for collaboration—a capacity that Soka students, she noted, amply demonstrate.

The third principle is tenacity, or the power to persevere. He stated that tenacity, when sustained indefinitely, enables people to prevail over every test and challenge and ultimately ensures triumph—a fact that history, when describing great figures or great civilizations, clearly documents.

“As the men and women who must embark into the midst of this unprecedented disaster we now confront,” he concluded, “your lives assume a purpose that is of incalculable importance.”