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The seas do not separate us; rather, they bring us closer together.' Daisaku Ikeda's opening words to this consistently wide-ranging dialogue set the scene for what follows. For the overarching theme of the book is that of the insights and meeting of minds that follow interaction between peoples who might be geographically distant but who nevertheless share much in common. Reflecting on his memories of standing on the shores of the Bosphorus, gazing at the almost adjacent coastlines of Europe and Asia, Ikeda explores the symbol of diversity represented by the cosmopolitan city of Istanbul. The city in which his interlocutor, distinguished social anthropologist Nur Yalman, grew up, remains an icon of ethnic plurality. The boundary between Eastern and Western cultures, it is also the point at which many different civilizations have encountered one another and melded. This reflection leads the authors towards a lively exploration of the customs and cultural mores shared by Japan and Turkey: two countries which historically stand at opposite ends of the great trading route that was the Silk Road, but which have longstanding traditions of reciprocity and friendship. At the heart of this book lies these two men's mutual commitment to what they characterise as 'soft peace', or the attempt to resolve conflict through empathic engagement with those who hold alternative views. Touching on such vital themes as inter-religious dialogue, the battle against terrorism and extremism, the

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