Abstract
Japan has a long history of religious and spiritual diversity. Besides its own indigenous and folk religions Japan has assimilated religions and spiritual views such as Buddhism, Daoism, Confucianism and Christianity and shown a significant propensity to germinate ‘new’ religious groups. Historically Japan is a nation where religions are constantly absorbed, syncretised, modified and born. The Japanese are also partial to simultaneously adhering to more than one religion or holding memberships of multiple religious groups (ACA 2007; Ken 1996; USDS 2007). Many Japanese may practice across religions unconsciously since according to Ken, ‘most people’ in Japan ‘could hardly distinguish a Shinto kami (local deity) from a Buddhist bodhisattva’ (Ken 1996, 97).
A recurring theme of Japanese history is the state’s use of religion as a tool of hegemony and nationalism (Hardacre 2004; Pye 2003; Sumimoto 2000). This theme is meaningful and sensitive in Japan today. Leading up to its defeat in World War II Japan’s government controlled most aspects of Shinto integrating its institutions and rituals with ultranationalism to motivate the nation to support Japanese aggression. Memories of the terrible outcomes still cause anxieties within Japan and within countries invaded by the Japanese about government actions that fuse politics and religion particularly Shinto.
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Bouma, G.D., Ling, R., Pratt, D. (2010). Japan. In: Religious Diversity in Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-90-481-3389-5_2
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