Synopses & Reviews
The authors intention in compiling this anthology is to help the reader see Japanese religion more concretely, as it is found within the history of the tradition and experience of the people. The overall purpose of the selections, which represent various historical periods and schools of thought, is to show what religion means in the Japanese experience.
About the Author
Earhart first went to Japan on a Fulbright in the early 1960s to complete a doctoral dissertation on Shugendo, a distinctively Japanese "mountain religion." He has taught and written about Japanese religion in the United States, returning to Japan for research. His writing has concentrated on Shugendo, folk religion, and new religions. His approach to Japanese religion has been to see it as a unified worldview rather than as separate religious organizations, and to place separate traditions and the overall worldview within historical perspective. He has translated from Japanese a study of religion in modern Japan, and a number of his works have been translated into Japanese.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction: The Nature of Japanese Religion. PART ONE: RELIGIOUS TRADITIONS. 2. Shinto. 3. Buddhism. 4. Buddhist Founders. 5. Confuciansim. 6. Religious Taoism. 8. Christianity. 9. Syncretism in Japanese Religious Life. PART II. THEMES IN JAPANESE RELIGION. 10. Closeness of Humans, Gods, and Nature. 11. Religious Significance of the Family, Living and Dead. 12. Importance of Purification, Rituals, and Charms. 13. Prominence of Local Festivals and Individual Cults. 14. Penetration of Religion into Everyday Life. 15. Natural Bond Between Religion and State. PART III. RELIGION IN RECENT AND MODERN JAPAN. 16. The Dilemma of Organized Religion in Modern Japan.17. The New Religions. 18. The History and Future of Japanese Religion.