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A peace pole（世界平和祈願柱） is a monument that displays the message "May Peace Prevail on Earth" in the language of the country where it has been placed, and usually 3 to 13 additional translations. The message often is referred to as a peace prayer.
The idea of peace poles was first thought up by Masahisa Goi（五井昌久）,the founder of the Byakko Shinko Kai（白光真宏会）, a new religious movement in 1955 in Japan. The phrase, “May peace be upon the earth,” comes from a prayer chanted at the Hakko Shinkokai, “May peace prevail on earth / May peace be in our home and nation / May our divine mission be fulfilled / Our Guardian Spirits, Divine Lords, and Master Goi / We are very thankful for your love and guidance”. The religious group he created is considered an offshoot of the Seicho-no-Ie. He believed that thoughts affect reality, and the chanting of prayers was the most effective way to achieve world peace. In 1976, in the last years of Masahisa Goi's life, the Byakko Shinko Kai began erecting peace poles throughout Japan. Posters, leaflets, and peace poles with “Prayer for World Peace” were spread over a wide area in Japan and abroad. As the peace movement by Goi's followers was gaining momentum, He passed away in 1980.
The first peace poles outside Japan were constructed in 1983. Since then, more than 200,000 have been placed around the world in close to 200 countries.
Peace poles are often seen in various places in Japan, but most people do not know who erected them and for what purpose, and some find them suspicious. Some people of other religions consider the erection of the Peace Pole as part of their religious activities. Countless peace poles have been erected on the grounds of the Byakko Shinko Kai's headquarters.
The peace pole project today is promoted by The World Peace Prayer Society as well as other groups and individuals. The World Peace Prayer Society was founded by Masami Saionzi（西園寺昌美）, the second president of the Byakko Shinko Kai. The Goi Peace Foundation（五井平和財団）, chaired by Masami Saionji, is a sister organization of The World Peace Prayer Society and has presented peace poles to international organizations and dignitaries from various countries.
Peace poles are made of many materials; most are made of wood, while others are made of limestone, copper, plastic or stainless steel. The text might be painted, carved, etched, welded, pasted, or riveted on, or it might simply be a plastic plaque attached with screws. In other cases, it is the careful work of an artist or sculptor.
Sometimes the word prayer is avoided so that peace poles are not regarded as religious objects therefore violating zoning restrictions. For example, a Quaker group in New York City ran into this problem year after year, and did not get permission to plant a peace pole in a park.
Peace poles have been placed in such notable locations as the north magnetic pole, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, the site of the Egyptian pyramids in Giza, and the Aiki Shrine in Iwama, Japan. Peace poles are commonly installed at high-profile public gathering places, such as community parks or near the entrances of churches or schools. In one case, a garden, created for a wedding, was designed around the peace pole that was its centerpiece. The Republic of Molossia, a micronation, has a peace pole in eight languages. The University of California, Los Angeles has a limestone peace pole with 14 languages directly in front of Kerckhoff Hall.
The initial inspiration for planting a peace pole often is as a response to a local historic hate crime, incident or issue. The world's second-largest peace pole, at 52 feet (16 m), is located in Janesville, Wisconsin, at the site of a 1992 KKK rally (Saturday, May 30). Another of the largest peace poles in the world, as measured in tons, is the granite peace pole in Beech Acres Park near Cincinnati, Ohio, inspired by hate literature left in the driveways of Jewish residents.
In September 2016, the World Peace Prayer Society and the Little Free Library project announced a collaboration to offer a new peace pole library structure. It features the standard peace pole message of peace – "May Peace Prevail on Earth" – in a six-foot library. Some of these new libraries were installed at locations significant to the civil rights movement, such as the 16th Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama.
A former grain elevator in Minneapolis is painted as a gigantic peace pole