Indigo Talks

Named after the Buddhist expression “from the indigo, an even deeper blue,” Indigo Talks is a lecture series launched July 2021 featuring renowned intellectuals in dialogue with enduring works by Center founder Daisaku Ikeda. Just as items repeatedly dyed with indigo turn bluer than the indigo itself, the Chinese allegory of the indigo plant exemplifies the impact learning has on deepening one’s wisdom, courage, and compassion.

To date there have been five Indigo Talks, all presented online, with hundreds of people worldwide tuning in. In 2021, Francyne Huckaby of Texas Christian University spoke on “Two Bundles of Reeds: (In)evitable Pain, (Im)possible Promise.” In 2022, Johnny Lupinacci of Washington State University explored “Envisioning A Better World Together Through Value Creation, Interdependence, and Creative Coexistence.” There were two Indigo Talks in 2023. Zeena Zakharia of the University of Maryland at College Park discussed “Ordinary Solidarities and the Restoration of Humanity” and Cynthia Dillard of Seattle University delivered a talk called “Towards Hope and Joy in Life and Death: New Visions” (Nov. 2023). In 2024, Andrea Bartoli of the Sant’Egidio Foundation for Peace and Dialogue spoke on the topic,  “Opening Pathways to Peace: The Role of Dialogue in Times of Conflict.”

Read articles on all the Indigo Talks here