LECTURE NOTES
RELIGION IN CHINA
3 great religious traditions have influenced chinese thought and culture or maybe better to
say that chinese thought has influenced the development of
Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism
Both Confucianism and Daoism appeared by the beginning of the 4th century BCE.
Confucianism was the tradition that first took hold among the elite ruling class of China
by about 200 BCE but by 100 CE Daoism was a contending religious tradition especially
among the poor and the common people.
Around 200 CE then Buddhism arrives in China as the 3rd great tradition of China. These
are called the “Three Doctrines” or the Three Teachings.
Basic Elements of Traditional Chinese Beliefs
1. belief in spirits – early chinese belief seems to have been polytheistic and animistic –
i.e. spirits active in every aspect of nature and human world. Good spirits bring
health, wealth, long life, fertility. Bad spirits cause accidents, disease. Droughts and
earthquakes are punishment from the spirits for human mistakes, but harmony can be
restored through rituals and sacrifice.
2. Tian (T’ien) the most ancient chinese dynasty we know was the Shang dynasty 1500
– 1100 BCE – the most important deity for them was Shang-di (supreme ruler) the
ancestor of the ruling family – personal god. The next dynasty that ruled, the Zhou
dynasty did not use Shang-di but explained the ultimate ruler of the universe as Tian,
Heaven a more impersonal force that controlled events on earth and was also the
cosmic moral principle that determines right and wrong.
3. Eventually they were identified but Tian remains more impersonal. When the chinese
speak of the Mandate of Heaven --- Tian-ming – they mean that a ruler rules by virtue
of being in accordance with the morality of heaven not because he has any hereditary
right to be ruler – a bad ruler will be cut short by the same force.
4. Veneration of ancestors – same reverence shown to spirits was shown to ancestors.
Ancestors at death became spirits and needed to be placated in order to ensure their
positive influence on living family members
5. Yang and yin – after about 1000 BCE the prominent idea in Chinese thought was that
the universe expressed itself in opposite but complementary principles
Yang = Light and yin = dark; yang = day and yin = night; yang = hot and yin = cold’
yang = sky and yin = earth; yang = summer and yin = winter – this list is inexhaustible –
yang = male and yin = female.
Not the same as good and evil – yang is not trying to gain dominance over yin or vice
versa – the ideal is a dynamic balance between the forces – so what is good is a balance
of yang and yin, what is bad is an imbalance -- too much yang or too much yin is not
good.
The dot in the diagram represents the idea that everything contains its opposite and will
eventually become its opposite – the forces are dynamic and balanced as they change just
as day and night are in balance as they progress – like breathing in and out.
Divination – methods for knowing the future. Divination very important in early chinese
tradition. The oldest technique involves reading the cracks in on tortoise shells or bones.
You might be familiar with the ‘I-ching’, which is another ancient method of divination
TAOISM
Taoism as a philosophical system is traced back to a legendary figure named Lao-zi
(LaoTzu) whose name means old master or old child.
In the traditional stories of his life, lao-zi was born c. 600 BCE of a virgin. And
according to the story he was born already old. He became a state archivist or librarian
and when he became tired of his job he left his position and riding on an ox travelled to
the far west of china. At the western border, he was recognized as a great scholar and was
not allowed to leave until he had written down his teachings –
the teachings he wrote down were called the Dao De Jing – a short book of about 5000
chinese characters. After he finished he got on his ox and rode off into the sunset never to
be seen or heard from again.
The Dao De Jing
Is the great classic of daoism. The title can be translated as ‘the classical book about the
Way and its power”
The 81 short chapters of the dao de jing scholars believe were written by many people
rather than a single author – the book has some repetition, no clear order, and is quite
obscure in its meaning. Each chapter is more poetry than prose.
Throughout the book are references to the Dao – but what is the dao – literally road or
path – way
The first words of the DDJ are “the dao that can be told or spoken of is not the eternal
tao” – the name that can be spoken or named is not the eternal name”
The eternal dao is “nameless” it is not anything that has a name or can be named – it has
no form – but the way can be experienced and followed by everything that has a name.
The dao is the origin of everything and all individual things are manifestations of the dao.
The dao is not God – because it does not have personality – or human qualities like love,
caring etc. The Dao neither cares about humans nor dislikes them – it simply produces
everything including humans and nature and according to the dao nature moves the way it
does – so we can call it the way or rhythm of nature.
The dao cannot be known or perceived as we perceive things but it can be felt and known
through the intuition – the DDj explains the Dao in several images – the most prominent
is water –
Water is gentle, ordinary and lowly, but strong and necessary. It flows around every
obstacle. Chapter 8 praises it ‘the highest good is like water, it assists all things and does
not compete with them.
Other images are of:
Woman – the female is sensitive, receptive yet effective and powerful
Child – the child is full of energy, wonder and naturalness
Valley – the valley is yin, and it is mystery –
Darkness – darkness can be safe, full of silence and possibility
Zhuangzi (chuang tzu)
One of the most famous taoists was Zhuangzi – he lived around 300 BCE. the book of his
writings is named after him the Zhuangzi and unlike the poetry of the DDJ it is full of
whimsical stories. Z continued the themes of the Dao De Jing –
the need for harmony with nature –
the movement of the Dao in all that happens and
the pleasure that we can gain from simplicity –
but Z gives greater emphasis to the inevitability of change and the relativity of human
judgements – the stories are also quite humourous – you don’t get a lot of humour in
sacred scriptures of the world.
One story pokes fun at peoples judgements and what makes them happy or sad – monkey
trainer gives 3 acorns in morning and 4 at night – when monkeys grumble about to little
acorns in the morning he gives them 4 in the morning and 3 at night and all monkeys are
delighted.
The most famous of all the stories in the book is the story of Zhuangzi’s dream of being a
butterfly. In the dream he is flying around enjoying his butterfly life quite oblivious to the
fact that he is Z. when he woke up he was struck by the question: am I Z dreaming that I
am a butterfly or am I a butterfly dreaming that I am Zhuangzi.
Z rejects all barriers between reality and dream, normal and paranormal, ordinary and the
fantastic – so Z elaborates on the qualities that one gains by being free of all barriers,
being one with the Dao. He tells of a person who could tell everything of one’s past or
future, another who could ride on the wind and another who was invulnerable to heat and
pain.
Basic teachings of Daoism
Dao – the name for whatever mysterious reality makes nature be what it is and act the
way it does.
Dao is translated way but it can also be translated existence, pattern, process. The Dao is
the way that nature expresses itself, the natural way. Human beings can be one with this
natural way in the way they live
Wu-wei – the ideal of effortlessness – no action no strain – to have commandments
would go against the nature of tdoism – but it does offer recommendations on how to live
– not from a divine voice but from nature – the model of balance and harmony.
The ideal implies the avoidance of unnecessary action and action that is not spontaneous.
In nature a great deal happens effortlessly and quietly – plants grow, birds and animals
are born, nature repairs itself after a storm – look at the plain strength of an ordinary birds
nest – it is what is necessary, simple and beautiful – no need for circular driveways and
pillars and marble entrance
Simplicity –daoism urges its followers to eliminate whatever is unnecessary and artificial
and to appreciate the simple and the apparently ordinary. In this regard daoism distrusted
formal education because of it complexity and artificiality – the DDJ states ‘give up
learning and put an end to your troubles –
Gentleness – because daoists pursue the gentle way they dislike weapons and war/ the
wise person loves peace and restraint and avoids all unnecessary violence. The wise
person does not delight in weapons
Relativity—people see things from a limited point of view that is based on their own
concerns. They see things in terms of divisions I and you, good and bad, valuable
worthless, beautiful ugly and so on. Taoists believe it is necessary to attain a vision of
things that sees beyond these apparent opposites.
Popular Daoism:
During the han dynasty – 202bce-220ce many people become devoted to practices of
magic – shamanism -- immortals – long-life – alchemy – centred in rituals asking gods
for practical things of good life – ultimate dao that could be accessed through powerful
magical rituals – charismatic leaders formed sects focused on healing – group –
individual – congregations, priests – organized Daoism – funeral rituals – long-life
rituals.
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Confucianism --- the practice of virtue
6th century BCE – time of great spiritual and intellectual flowering – life of the Buddha –
Lao-Tsu, the Persian empire – the golden age of Athens – the great hebrew prophets –
and in china, the life of another great – Kong-zi – k’ung-fu-tsu – master kung.
These teachings did not begin with Confucious – they were based on ancient chinese
beliefs of Lord on high – shang-di – mandate of heaven, ancestor veneration, spirits and
the efficacy of rituals.
Confucious developed a school of thought that emphasizes the cultivation of moral
virtues and the interaction between human rules and heaven with political involvement as
a way to transform the world
Confucian philosophy has dominated chinese thought forever after and even today after
all the political changes in china – it exists not only as a school of thought but as a
practice of religious ethics, a political ideology and the link between the state and the
mandate of heaven.
For 2000 years, Daoism, buddhism and confucianism have co-existed in china,
contributing to the culture – but whereas both Daoism and Buddhism emphasize the everchanging nature of things in the cosmos, Confucianism focuses on ways of developing a
just and orderly society.
Confucious was born in approx 551 bce during the Zhou dynasty into a family whose
ancestors had been prominent in the previous dynasty – the shang – lost their status
through political struggles – C father who was a soldier died when he was three.
Confucious was bright and wanted to be a scholar but the family was poor and so he had
to take humble work overseeing granaries and livestock. – married at 19 and had at least
2 children.
Mother died when he was 23 – sending him into 3 years of mourning – during this time hi
lived ascetically and studied the ancient ceremonial rites called Li and also studied about
imperial institutions. So when he returns to society he gains some prestige as a teacher of
Li and the arts of governing.
Confucious’ time was a period of political chaos – the central power of the zhou dynasty
had become weak and feudal lords held more power than kings of the central court,
ministers assassinated their rulers, sons killed their fathers – C felt that a return to the
ancient rites and standards of virtue was the only way out of this chaos – but the rulers
really weren’t interested in adopting his ideas.
He becomes a teacher of young men – training them to be wise and altruistic public
servants. He felt the best way was for rulers to perform classical rites and music properly
so they would remain of visibly high moral character and thus inspire the common people
below them to be virtuous. The teachings attributed to Confucius were collected as the
Analects. – during his life, his work and teaching relatively insignificant –
after his death in 479 bce interstate warfare increased, ancient family loyalties were
replaced by large impersonal armies, personal virtues were replaced by laws and state
control – after the brutal reunification of china under the han dynasty – 202 bce – 220 ce
rulership needed a more cultivated class of bureaucrats to look civilized and inspire faith
among the people – in 2nd century bce the confucian classics become the basis for the
civil service exams for the officials who were to serve in government
– the ideal of the gentleman scholar devoted to proper government becomes the highest
ideal – eventually temples were devoted to the worship of confucius as the model for
unselfish public service, human kindness and scholarship.
Confucius thought
The most important term in Confucian thought is the term Li – means a number of things
in english – ritual, custom, propriety, manners. It was the way through which life
should be ordered and harmony established – a state run by Li is peaceful and
harmonious – a person of Li is virtuous and good.
The oldest meaning of Li is the ancient ceremonial rites of hospitality and sacrifice
dedicated to the gods and ancestors – it was religion – core idea is activity pertaining to
the ultimate and brought it to bear on all activity.
It kind of brought religion and day to day life together – a refocusing of religion towards
human life. To act according to Li was to do what was right in the proper way at the
proper time.
Order – order – order – – a place for everything and everything in its place – the grains of
wheat that evenly fill the ear of wheat.
Confucianism was concerned with human relations not so much concerned with relations
between man and god.
Ren
Foremost among the virtues Confucius thought could save society was Ren – translations
include – innate goodness, love, benevolence, perfect virtue, humaneness, humanheartedness.
The person of ren is not motivated by profit but by what is moral, not concerned with
public recognition but with self improvement, always mindful of parents, speaks
cautiously but acts quickly and regards human nature as basically good.
The best example of ren should be the ruler – a ruler should rule not by force but by the
example of personal virtue
Asked to define the essentials of strong government Confucious outlined adequate troops,
adequate food and the people’s trust but of these the only true necessity was that people
should have trust in the ruler because without trust there is nothing.
To earn this trust the ruling class should cultivate themselves – leading lives of virtue and
decorum – the chinese character for ren is the combination of the number 2 and a person
– gives the idea of relationship – 2 people – the 5 basic relationships emphasized by
Confucius are interactions between father and son, older and younger siblings,
husband and wife, older and younger friend, ruler and subject – in each of these the
first is superior to the second – but each is based on mutual responsibilities and
obligations
Confucius saw himself not as founder or innovator but as returning to the values of the
past. – he made Li the ancient rituals into a style of life – and glorified the sages of the
past as perfect beings of knowledge, virtue and power.
The quality that made a sage a sage was DE – virtue – also sacred personal force –
charisma – power – the virtue of the sages and ancient rulers was so great they could rule
just by their goodness – effortlessly without strain – to come to be like the sage one had
to study the ancient books and learn their way – so study and imitation of the sages
became great part of the C way.
The superior man
Zhunzi the true gentleman – Confucius reinterpreted the meaning from one born to
wealth and privilege to one honoured for individual merit – character not background was
important – like C himself
the following are qualities of a superior man
1. above egoism – meaning self-concern – if he searches within himself and finds that
he is being honest and doing right, then it doesn’t matter what others say – he was
concerned with the good of the people, which is the motivation for seeking public
office – not personal gain – he didn’t argue or contend as an administrator – just said
what was the truth regardless of consequence to himself.
2. he was not narrow – meaning that the superior man was not one who trained himself
in a craft or art or skill -- shoemaker, blacksmith, farmer – he was a renaissance man
– his task was to study the classics and transform himself in order to benefit the
greatest number of people through his example of humanity, virtue and propriety.
3. He was a man of ren – a person of altruism – thinking always of the benefit of others
– empathy for all and concern for their well being – this altruism though was not the
idea of benefiting everyone in the same way – this was not about equality of
opportunity etc. the C system was very definitely about order and order means place
– a harmonious hierarchy of persons and things – the kernels of wheat.
Li was concerned with justice – people were to be treated with justice – not equally but as
befits their station in life. The father kind, the son devoted, the elder brother gentle the
younger respectful, the husband virtuous, the wife obedient, benevolence in rulers,
loyalty in subjects.
SHINTO
ORIGINS
Shinto has no known founder – its beginnings date back to the ancient Japanese people
and their stories of how the world came into being.
Like ancient people the world over the people of the Japanese islands lived close to
nature and Shinto is the worship of the spirits who are believed to inhabit the natural
world.
Shinto arose from human awareness of the power of nature and the need to be in harmony
with it. Shinto retains elements of shamanism, contact with nature spirits and mysterious
healing.
However, while in most of the modern world, the ancient nature religions have died out,
replaced by religions of the book such as Judaism, Islam and Christianity or sophisticated
philosophical systems like Hinduism and Buddhism, in Japan Shinto is alive and well –
shinto shrines can be found tucked away between concrete skyscrapers –
But shinto is more than simply a nature religion because it has ethnic and family
dimensions – among the spirits – called kami – above, superior that are worshipped are
the spirits of one’s recently departed family members, distant clan ancestors and great
leaders – such as the Emperor Meiji who died in 1912 – he was the ruler responsible for
opening Japan to the west and when he died, a shinto shrine was established in Tokyo for
the worship of his spirit.
3 types of kami
1. deified abstract powers – of nature or other forces – so power of the sun and moon and
stars, but also forces of growth, ‘straightening kami who straighten out messed up things
–bending kami who make things crooked and misfortune, wisdom conferring kami
2. clan ancestors – the first ancestor of the family – such as amaterasu – ancestor of
emperors
3. spirits or souls of the dead heroes –
The name shinto emerged when Buddhism came from China to Japan – before that there
was no need for a name for the native religion – it was just what everybody did. The
japanese called Buddhism – Butsu-do – the way of the Buddha and in the same vein the
indigenous religion was called shen-dao – the way of the gods in Chinese and shin-to in
Japanese – in japanese language the way of the gods is also called kami-no-michi
Like the origin of the gods, the origin of the Japanese people themselves is quite
mysterious – scholars believe that they descended from at least two immigrant groups,
one from the north possibly siberia and one from the south possibly the malay peninsula
whose traditions blended to create a great pantheon of deities and a single creation myth.
According to the ancient Japanese creation story – in the beginning was primeval chaos
out of which arose the first deities or kami, two of these Izanami – female who invites
and Izanagi – male who invites became the cosmic primordial parents and are
commanded by the all the Heavenly deities to create the islands of Japan –
according to the ancient chronicle Izanami and Izanagi descended the floating rainbow
bridge and with a jeweled spear stirred up the ocean and the brine dripping from the end
of the spear piled up and became an island.
Izanami and Izanagi gave birth to many other kami – among them the fire god – his birth
resulted in the horrible burning and death of Izanami, Who went to the underworld.
Izanagi is griefstricken and tries to follow her – they quarrel and she rebuffs him because
she doesn’t want him to see her so ugly – but he looks at her anyway and is horrified at
what he sees and returns alone to the upper world – he is followed by the polluting forces
associated with death, disease and decay which become the thunder demons bringing
disease and death to humans.
To purify himself he washes in the ocean and as he washed from his tear-filled eyes
emerged the spirit of the sun – Amaterasu – shining in heaven –
According to the myth, Amaterasu sends her grandson to bring order to Japan and from
him the myth says came the first human emperor of Japan – Jimmu – as a result the
imperial house traces its origins back to the sun goddess.
This myth brings out a number of important points in japanese religion – the tensions
between dynamic forces such as creation and destruction, life and death, chaos and order
are not to be resolved in favour of one or the other – it is balance which is sought and
they are both necessary in order to have balance – the nature of reality is this dynamic
tension of yin and yang.
It declares the emperors of Japan to be divine in origin, and it portrays the sum as female
– in most traditions, the sun being more important than the moon is portrayed male – this
may indicate an early matriarchal society.
Important – the story indicates a concern with purity – a major concern of shinto rites –
pollution comes especially with contact with death, but purity can be restored through
ritual washing.
Another point – the story tells that Japan is the creation and home of divine spirits –
Japan is kind of a this-worldly heaven which humans share with divine beings – shinto
belief is that spirits live in an upper world but their realm is not different from this world
so they can exist and appear in this world – in the Japanese view the task of human
beings is to live up to the heavenlike world into which they have been born.
Essentials of shinto belief
1. heart of shinto is sensitivity to the mysterious powers of nature. Kami are not thought
so much as beings living in another realm but as powers in or near this world whose
presence can be felt, for example when you are standing in a grove of trees or beside
a waterfall or in the shadow of a mountain. .
the kami can also cause fear and dread, like you would feel in a hurricane or earthquake.
The kami are the energies that animate nature – they cause the rice to grow and the wind
to blow.
2. kami are treated as persons and are given names so human beings can approach them
and feel closely related to them – we already know the name of the kami of the sun –
amaterasu and the primordial parents izanami and izanagi – there are many lesser
kami – god of fire, goddess of grain, ocean spirits, mountain spirits—spirits of great
trees, rivers and waterfalls – also animal spirits, especially powerful are spirits of
animals with great cunning badger, fox, snake
3. Ancestors – who have become kami live close by – so shinto is a way of maintaining
connection with the family and clan members. Respect for the dead comes both from
love of the deceased and fear of the unknown. In shinto ancestors are believed to be
able to influence a family’s earthly life.
4. The spirits of great leaders – especially past emperors, artists, teachers, scholars, are
particularly venerated and confucianism strengthened the shinto respect for ancestors
and great people of the past.
5. shinto has no clearly defined code of ethics but its moral philosophy can be summed
up in two principles
 engage in respectful behaviour towards spirits, human beings and nature
 practice appropriate rituals of purification and reverence
there is no sense of internal guilt in shinto – no moralistic god who gives commandments,
no judging, no concept of original sin or any idea of any basic sinful tendency – human
beings are good, the body is good, sex is good, this earthly life is good. These are the
characteristics of shamanic religion or culture.
Unlike many religions where to focus is on how to deal with death and what happens
after – the shinto focus is away from death – shinto worships the life force – and
therefore works to counteract whatever brings sickness or death. Just as dirt is removable
so too all pollutants of body and spirit.
According to shinto we must keep bodies, houses, clothes clean and bright – in Japan
washing, sweeping, cleaning – that you see everywhere daily has religious implications –
one’s mind and character must also be washed, purified, stainless. Humans restore and
maintain purity by fulfilling their obligations and respecting each other, the kami, nature
– this spilled over into zen – purification of mind.
Shinto practice
People visit shrines to pray for well-being, health of loved ones, success in school or
business – to enter the shrine you pass under the torii, gateway – wash hands and mouth
at a water basin just inside the entrance – go through the courtyard to the shrine building
– go up the stairs to the space in front of the room where the kami is enshrined –
The participant bows, donates a coin, then ring a bell and clap several times to gain the
kami’s attention – they bow again, pray silently or by chanting – bow again and leave.
Sometimes they tie small pieces of paper with their requests written on it to a sacred tree
nearby
Each shrine has festival days called matsuri – which are celebrated with grand
processions and dances presided over by the priests. The ritual is completely fixed
proceeding along very specific lines – this is not your spontaneous outpouring of song
and dance.
The matsuri is a hospitality rite the kami are invited, honoured, entertained, fed and
supplicated – they are usually done at specific times in the calendar year – new year,
planting, harvest.
People visit shrines for blessings at important times in their lives – birth blessing and
more times when they are young because children are weak, vulnerable and in need of
kami protection – girls are brought when they are 3 and 7, boys at 5
Shinto priests perform weddings, bless building sites, houses, cars, do exorcisms at places
associated with misfortune.
Another type of ritual are identified as shamanic rituals
This involves communicating with the kami by falling into a trance and becoming the
mouth-piece of the kami.
Although men are capable of becoming possessed by kami, almost all japanese
shamans or mediums called miko are women. The communication is from the kami to
human – an interpreter is usually present because in cases of possession, the person is not
present – so questions are put thorough a 3rd person.
This ritual is used during crisis situations when the people need more direct contact with
the kami in order to determine the best course of action – or to understand the reason for
misfortune that has befallen the person – decisions relating to war, or asking the cause of
sickness.
Respect for nature is at the heart of shinto, hence the japanese fondness for gardens –
even in the most crowded city or home a miniature garden in a dish can bring the mind
into harmony with nature.
Water is considered the ultimate purifying substance – devotees always rinse hands and
mouth at the shrine entrance and
A purification ritual especially used by those training to be shamans consists in standing
under a waterfall – before entering the water, certain exercises are done, then the body is
rubbed with salt – then backing into the water the person stands for some time – with the
water falling full force on the shoulders –
the hundreds of new religions which proliferated in japan since the 2nd WW are primarily
based on shamanic revelation –
other characteristics include – an emphasis on healing body and mind -- dependence on
new mythology – stories and poems/songs rather than philosophy – in general they are
non-intellectual and appeal to a very broad base in the community and focus on
congregational worship and group activities –
2 examples of new Japanese religions are -- the Tenrikyo sect founded by a woman who
was said to be possessed by 10 kami and the very popular Soka Gakkai, which is
affiliated with the a medieval sect of Japanese Buddhism founded by Nichiren. Their
sacred text is the Buddhist Lotus Sutra – and chanting the name of the lotus sutra is
thought to bring whatever one may desire in this life. Like the ancient Shinto matrix, the
goal of soka gakkai is to promote well-being and happiness in this life.
Historical comments
The entry of buddhism to Japan in the 6th century ce forced shinto to define itself – a
process that was both made easy and complicated by the mahayana buddhist tendency to
not only tolerate native religious elements but to absorb them –
so the buddhists simply regarded the shinto kami as celestial buddhas and bodhisattvas
already being worshipped in japan under shinto names – but shinto did not disappear –
and the religions took on different roles – shinto for agriculture, fertility and birth while
Buddhism was called on to help with philosophy, serious sickness, death and the afterlife.
Shinto shrines frequently contained a Buddhist place of worship and Buddhist temples
would have a shinto shrine on their grounds. Shinto adopted buddhist religious forms
such as preaching sermons, venerating statues and using incense – the mixture was often
so thorough that a place could not be identified as shinto or buddhist.
Confucianism and Taoism was also introduced to Japan along with chinese culture and
buddhism. It blended nicely with Japanese practices such as veneration of ancestors, who
were thought of as kami, and loyalty to family and clan.
In Japan just as it had been in China, Confucianism was adopted as an ethical system that
supported education, family and government – the whole nation saw itself as a family
with the emperor as father and the government ministers as elder brothers – confucian
virtues of respect for the father-emperor, reverence for ancestors and elders, care for
juniors, loyalty, discipline and love of learning – all this became part of the Japanese way
and was reinforced by shinto.
This blending of course has had periods of greater and lesser success. When buddhism
threatened to swallow up shinto, then priests at the Ise temple in the 14th century
demanded an independent shinto – they said that the “original” gods of japan were shinto
not buddhist deities. From the 17th to the 19th centuries the movement for independent
shinto grew stronger – a movement to restore a purified shinto separate from the rituals
and beliefs of buddhism or the ethics of confucius.
In the 19th century shinto and buddhism were forced by the state to completely separate –
places of worship had to decide to declare themselves shinto or buddhist – there was a
short period of persecution as japan’s leaders emphasized the divine origins of the
emperor and began to tie shinto to a growing feeling of national pride and patriotism.
In 1882 a national religion called state shinto was set up with thousands of shinto shrines
receiving government funding and under government control. The government
increasingly used state shinto as a way of generating patriotism and loyalty to the
emperor.
During wwII the Japanese pilots who made suicide attacks on the allied forces were
known as kamikaze (spirit wind). They were practitioners of what was called bushi-do –
way of the warrior/knight – a cult promoted by state Shinto and which had its roots in the
ancient Japanese ideal of the noble samurai – bushido came to be known as the spiritual
path for soldiers. As a warrior code bushido demands courtesy, utter loyalty to one’s
lord, honour, and willingness to die for a cause.
Bushido is actually a combination of elements coming from various religions from zen
buddhism it got the emphasis on the impermanence of all life and the meditative
techniques to develop an steady mind, from confucianism, stress on loyalty to one’s
superior and from shinto an identification with the japanese state.
BUDDHISM IN CHINA AND JAPAN
From the very beginning of Buddhism in India there had been two approaches – the
monastic approach of virtue, mental discipline and meditation and the lay approach of
worship, making offerings, devotion -- they of course overlap.
Along this line Mahayana texts are divided into what are called wisdom texts and
devotional texts and these 2 kinds of literature resulted in different sects and practices.
In Chain and japan the emphasis was on the devotional literature focussing on devotion to
a particular Buddha – especially Amitabha or Amida – this became known as Pure land
Buddhism where the emphasis is on devotion to Amida Buddha and the goal is rebirth in
the paradise or pure land of Amida.