Japanese Religious Culture - Essay Example

Running Headers: CONTEMPORARY JAPAN ASSIGNMENT: RESEARCH ASSIGNMENT Name: Course: Institution: Instructor: Date: Japanese religious culture In my study, I will focus on Japanese religious culture as my key cultural concept Preliminary statement about Japanese religious culture In Japan, there are various Buddhist temples and Shinto Shrines and various artistic treasures that are linked with them. Tourists to these places deduce that Buddhism and Shinto are the determinative elements in the shaping of Japanese religious culture. on the other hand, if these tourist get familiar with a considerable number of individual Japanese, especially business and students and professional persons, they may deduce that religion has little significant among contemporary Japanese, (Motohisa, 2007). But how true is this declaration? Japan religion is mostly linked with Buddhism and Shinto. Majority of Japanese people usually identifies themselves with fundamentals of various religions rather than mere believers of a single religion, (Reischauer, 1988). These religions are known as Shinbustu shugo. In Japan, there is freedom of religion allowing such minor religions as Christianity, Sikhism and Islam to be practiced. Almost 70 percent of the populations acknowledge no religious membership while about 84 percent declare no personal religion, (Johnston 1923: 323). About 64 percent do not believe in God whilst 55 percent do not believe in Buddha (Demerath, 2001: 138). The Japanese usually participates in various customs and rituals, which are derived from several religious traditions. These include funerals and weddings which majority of them are done in a Christian style. Most of these Japanese religious cultures have been influenced by other cultures such as the Chinese who helped in bringing Buddhism to Japan and currently, almost the entire Japan is Buddhist, (Carter, 1992). A set of questions about this concept 1. What is Japanese religious culture? 2. What are some of the religious organizations in Japan? What religions do Japanese people practice? 3. What are some of the religious practices in Japan? 4. Is Japanese religious culture under the influence of Roman Catholic? What are some of the influences of Japanese religious culture? Explanation of why I have asked these questions In order to understand the Japanese religious culture, we need to understand various key concepts. We need to understand the concept of religious culture in Japan, understand the various religious organizations in the country, know the religious practices that are practiced by the people of Japan, understand the influences of the Japanese religious culture by other culture among others as outlined in the questions above, (Metraux, 1996). Answers to the above questions 1. What is Japanese religious culture? Judged by the western customs of religiosity, majority of most Japanese lifestyle cannot be termed as predominantly religious. Commitments to a single chosen religion, study of scriptures and doctrines, regular involvement in religious services, and sharing in religious outreach during social service or evangelism-all these does not characterize the activities and interests of the majority Japanese. This does not mean that most of the Japanese lack religious involvement or that they are not touched by any religious control, furthermore, just a small number of the Japanese lack connection with either Buddhism or Shinto, (Carter, 1992). In fact, religious control is not restricted to Shinto and Buddhism only. The ethical perception and societal and familial relationships of majority of the Japanese continue permeated with Confucianism, but an awareness of this reality may be missing. Japanese Christian community though somewhat small is also efficient. In the rural areas of Japanese society, folk religious practices and beliefs still thrive, and there are various active religious associations that flourish on the commitment of personal devotees, (Metraux, 1996). Japanese religious culture includes various key factors such as religious organizations in the country of Japan, which is Buddhism being the leading religious organization and Shinto. It also includes various religious practices such as different rituals and customs that are derived from various religious traditions-wedding ceremonies, funerals that are led by religious leaders, childhood ceremonies or birth of newborn baby, which is formalized by visiting the shrine, (Motohisa, 2007). Another key factor comprises religious beliefs and religious practitioners. Priest hood is mainly inherited but any male may also train for it. Celibacy is not allowed. Priest’s wives usually help in the running of the temple after going through various formal trainings. Daughters of priest and most likely the virgins usually help in most activities in the Shinto shrines. The Japanese also believe in death and after life. They believe that death usually takes place once the body is separated with the spirit, (Carter, 1992). They believe that, once a person dies, the spirit remains in the world for forty-nine days before it is settled in the kingdom of the dead. Usually the spirit loses its personal identity after fiftieth year and it is joined with the ancestral spirits. Every year, the followers of Buddhist hold a festival on August where they remind people of the connections between the dead and the living and the likelihood of the dead spirits returning on earth. Buddhists also belief that, through the realization of ones potential, a person can be able to attain enlightenment or eternity while still in this earth, (Motohisa, 2007). 2. What are some of the religious organizations in Japan? In prehistoric times, the Japanese held that all natural occurrences, plants and animals all possessed a divine power “kami”. This belief came to be acknowledged as Shinto and it was thereafter established as an official religion. Afterwards, Confucianism and Buddhism were introduced from Asia to Japan. In Japan, there exist more than 200,000 religious organizations. Most of them are Buddhist or Shinto in orientation. None of the religions is limited and as a result, there has existed a state of religious pluralism for more than ten centuries. Currently, most of the Japanese claim to be Buddhist or Shintoist while one percent is Christians. Shinto is the native religion of Japan. It is also referred to as “way of kami”. It is a local community and a household religion. It has unwritten doctrine, has uncommon religious statuary and the Shinto’s shrines are usually uncomplicated and graceful wooden structures which are usually located in consecrated groove of trees and their entries is accessed through tori (archway). During the Second World War, the Shinto was declared a state religion, (Motohisa, 2007). The head was the emperor and it was closely linked with nationalism. Under the postwar constitution, the state Shinto was abolished but being a community religion, Shinto plays a very significant responsibility in most elements of Japanese symbolic and ceremonial life and more specific in weddings and childhood ceremonies, (Breen and Teeuwen, 2000). Some of the religious ideas contained in the records of Shinto include: 1. All has a spirit god and that people should be in agreement with them and this information should be passed on. The society and family has the responsibilities of preserving the traditions and more specifically marriage and birth. 2. There is a relationship between nature and spirit- natural objects contain spirit therefore they believe that, being close to nature is being in the vicinity of the spirit. 3. People should worship at public shrines and celebrate the spirit in community festivals. 4. Nature maintains itself clean and through baths we are able to mimic this purification or cleansing. 5. believe there is an afterlife 6. People should show respects to the things that are sacrificed to make their life, possessions and food. There should be purpose in killing a living being. They should be giving something in return of their life. 7. You can make wishes of the kami at shrines using prayer tablets (ema), and once the wishes have been granted, you can hang another in appreciation. Currently only some Japanese classify themselves as Shintoists, but far less are unscathed by a lingering Shinto control. If there is a "religious" knowledge universal to Japanese, possibly it is the unique understanding of living as Japanese in the "magnificence isle" of Japan. It is this that Shinto seeks to achieve through its rituals and symbols. It actually does represent, historically and timelessly, the general faith of Japan, (Metraux, 1996). Buddhism started in Japan in the 6th century. The religion was adopted as the state religion in the 8th century but despite this, practitioners still turned to China as the basis of power. The religion spread throughout Japanese population in the ninth century. In the start of the seventeenth century, the religion had the benefit of political support under Tokugawa Shogute. Buddhism was to be disestablished in the second half of nineteenth century after the establishment of the national supported Shinto and restoration of emperor. Mostly Buddhist priests were contacted for memorial services and funerals, (Carter, 1992). Currently, in Japan Buddhism is represented by a number of denominations. The religion is still visible through its many temples, social agencies and schools but it is of less significant in terms of spiritual and intellectual motivator. Its main role in the contemporary Japan is that it acts as the chief mortuary in the society. It also plays a role of aesthetic influence, (Motohisa, 2007). New religions are the popular religious movements which exist in the contemporary Japan. These new religions which draw on notions from Buddhism, Shinto and folk superstitions have developed greatly in meeting social requirements, (Metraux, 1996). The formerly recognized new religions are so many and have membership of tens of millions. In Japan, the largest new religion is Soka Gakki which is a Buddhist sect and founded in 1930. Currently, it has about ten million associates in Japan. Most of these new religions came into being as a result of Shinto and they retain aspects of Shinto in their teachings. Some are considered sect Shinto. More new religions comprise of sukyo mahikari, Tenrikyo, shinreikyo among others, (Breen and Teeuwen, 2000). Minor religions in contemporary Japan include Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and Judaism. Christianity includes less than one percent of the entire population. Some of its proponents claim that it has a high influence because of the many women schools it has established and maintained but only a significant number of students in these schools are really Christians, (Jean, 1967). Christianity is not and is predicted that it will never become a vital aspect in Japanese culture. Christian development seems very limited. Christianity is supposed as a calling for the denial of traditional allegiance. Despite this, Japanese have adopted various practices linked to Christianity. For instance, Christmas is significantly featured and the increasing recognition of western style Christian weddings, (Winston, 1992). 3. What are some of the religious practices in Japan? A number of Japanese take part in customs and rituals that are derived from various religious traditions. Some of the religious practices in Japan include wedding ceremonies, funeral ceremonies and childhood or childbirth ceremonies. Currently, most Japanese have adopted the western lifestyles in their weddings. Brides wear Christian style dresses with a number of religious ceremonies being held in a Christian style and in a Christian church. There is exchange of rings, cutting of cakes and honeymoons. About 64 percent of Japanese weddings are carried out in a Christian manner. They are not usually done in a definite church but there are certain elements such as the bride wearing a headdress signified. Buddhist priest mostly performs funeral ceremonies, and the religions rites are common. Ninety one percent of Japanese funerals mostly take place as per the Buddhist traditions while some do not perform the ancestral ceremonies, (Breen and Teeuwen, 2000). Festivals and annual events also exist in the Japanese religious culture. Festivals are of Shinto origin and they relate to spiritual wellbeing and cultivation of rice. Annual events are of Buddhism origin. These events are included in the yearly calendar for annual events, (Motohisa, 2007). New Year’s Day and Obon are significant holidays for the Japanese. The involve tours to Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples correspondingly. Some of the practices carried out include people going to shrines to pray for their folks blessings in the following year, use of special decorations, eating special foods, and eating noodles. Buddhist practices comprise of prayers and folk dancing in the Buddhist temples, (Winston, 1992). After a child is born, celebrations are carried out by a formal shrine visit when the child is about one month. This is followed by a third, fifth and seventh birthdays and at age twenty, which is the official start of adulthood, (Breen and Teeuwen, 2000). A social coming-of-age ritual, now celebrated on January 15, formally distinguishes the maturity of those who will attain the age of twenty in the calendar year. This occasion also is distinguished by some with a tour to a shrine, (Metraux, 1996). 5. Is Japanese religious culture under the influence of Roman Catholic? What are some of the influences of Japanese religious culture? Roman Catholic Christianity was brought in to Japan in 1549 by a Jesuit missionary to Asia, Francis Xavier (1506-52). The outcomes were very successful in the short-range but the effort was ultimately fruitless. Missionaries were expelled in the seventeenth century and what was termed as visible Christian community destroyed through persecution, (Carter, 1992). The only vestige of Christianity in Japan was embodied in an underground fellowship which is currently described as the hidden Christians. The religion was thereafter readmitted in the country in the 19th century, (Winston, 1992). This was the time Japan was opened to diplomatic relations and trade in the year 1854 and the start of the agenda of modernization in 1868 with Meiji Restoration. Currently, representatives of Christendom- Eastern Orthodoxy, Roman Catholicism, and Protestantism are present in Japan. Christianity has brought with it modernization, western orientation and urbanized Japanese. Confucianism and Buddhism were brought in from the Asian continent to Japan. Buddhism came to Japan in the sixth century from the mainland of Asia and is among the largest religion in the globe. It came from Gautama Buddha. The rulers of that time embraced its teachings and were then spread to the rest of the population during the Heian (794-1192 and kamakura (1192-1338) period. Conclusion The importance of this paper was to understand the religious culture of the contemporary Japan. I have looked at the concept religious culture, analyzed some of the religious organizations/ religious beliefs in the country which include Shinto being the indigenous and the major religion in Japan, Buddhism, and other minor religions such as Christianity which is practiced by about one percent of the entire population, (Winston, 1992). I have also analyzed some of the religious practices performed by the Japanese such as wedding ceremonies, funeral ceremonies, and childhood and child birth ceremonies. In addition I have looked at the influences of Japanese religious culture and noted that the Roman Catholic played an important role in bringing Christianity to the country though it is practiced by minority of the population, (Metraux, 1996). Perhaps, despite of the much apparently opposing evidence, it can be stated that religion is also more significant in contemporary Japan than in the majority of other contemporary nations. Nevertheless in Japan, as elsewhere, the demonstration of religion is culture-specific. In Japan's harmonized society, individuality is usually outmoded by common devotion, and religious links are sensed instinctively hence, indistinctly and articulated normally rather than confessionally. Today, in an extremely urbanized and cultured country, Confucianism, Shinto, Buddhism, folk religions and Christianity, co-exist in harmony, (Metraux, 1996). Religion in contemporary Japan is nonetheless an insidious and ultimate aspect of Japanese life. Even though it is not easy to say what religion is for the Japanese natives, it would be even more complex to explain the Japanese people without it, either in history or at the present, (Breen and Teeuwen, 2000). References Edwin O. Reischauer. The Japanese Today: Change and Continuity. Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press (1988), pg. 215. Carter, Steven L. Culture of Unbelief. New York: Basic Books. 1992. 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Bowker, John W. The Cambridge Illustrated History of Religions. New York City: Cambridge University Press. 2002. ISBN: 052181037X. Yamakage, Motohisa. The Essence of Shinto, Japan's Spiritual Heart. London: Kodansha International. 2007. ISBN: 4770030444.  Ueda, Kenji. The Concept of Kami. in John Ross Carter (ed.). The Religious Heritage of Japan: Foundations for Cross-Cultural Understanding in a Religiously Plural World. Portland: Book East. 1999. ISBN: 0964704048. Read More