Japanese Buddhism

Ancestor Worship in Japan: Dependence and the Resolution of Grief

by Dennis Klass

Seminario Popolare sul Pensiero dell'Estremo Oriente (4 Ed.). Perché guardare a Oriente?

by Pietro Piro

Programma delle giornate di studi: Perché guardare a Oriente? Termini Imerese 5-6 Maggio 2012.

Nella giornata di studi Perchè guardare a Oriente?  I ricercatori coinvolti,  a partire dalle proprie... more Nella giornata di studi Perchè guardare a Oriente?  I ricercatori coinvolti,  a partire dalle proprie competenze e dai propri interessi, cercheranno di chiarire, in modo semplice e “popolare” perché è necessario conoscere e approfondire un tema legato ad un aspetto del pensiero Orientale (musica, arte, filosofia, religione, cinema..etc). In questo modo, si cercherà di trovare ragioni vitali, e non esclusivamente accademiche o commerciali, per accostarsi all’Oriente. Il tentativo è quello di avvicinare quante più persone possibili ad una cultura che rimane, nonostante l’accelerazione dei ritmi globalizzanti, relegata in secondo piano e ristretta o al cerchio ristretto degli specialisti o esposta alla banalizzazione del pensiero unico. Si cercherà dunque, di offrire delle risposte che possano essere un vero punto d’inizio per chi, spesso carico di pregiudizi, si accosta per la prima volta ad un mondo così complesso e affascinante. La sfida non è semplice. Si cercherà di non esporre una teoria preconfezionata, quanto di cercare di aprirsi al dialogo interrogante e stabilire insieme ragioni superiori e condivise.

The conflation of monastic and imperial lineage: a revisionist view of the Retired Emperors’ period.

by Mikael Bauer

Forthcoming in Monumenta Nipponica, issue 67/2 (2012) or 68/1 (2013)

Through an analysis of specific temples, lineages and rituals, I will approach the retired emperors as an evolution... more Through an analysis of specific temples, lineages and rituals, I will approach the retired emperors as an evolution dating back to Emperor Uda 宇多天皇 (867-931 ) and not as the outcome of a new form of sovereignty (ôken 王権) established by Fujiwara no Michinaga (966-1027). I argue that it makes more sense to explain particular institutional and doctrinal developments under the retired emperors from the point of view of newly established imperial vow temples surrounding Ninnaji and their connections with Nara/Nantô Buddhism from Emperor Uda on.

The Power of Ritual: An Integrated History of Medieval Kôfukuji

by Mikael Bauer

Dissertation

This dissertation examines the history of Kôfukuji temple from the 8th through the 13th centuries through the eyes of... more This dissertation examines the history of Kôfukuji temple from the 8th through the 13th centuries through the eyes of its main ritual, the Yuima-e. I consider this important state ritual as a 'Theatre of the State' in which all socio-political parties are present. Thus, I look at the history of Kôfukuji through an analysis of state ritual(s) to re-examine the exoteric-esoteric context (kenmitsu taisei) of the period under consideration.

In my analysis I stress the importance of looking at the slow development of particular exoteric-esoteric lineages from the tenth century on. By following this gradual development through an examination of Yuima-e participation and commentarial production, I show that the study of this particular ritual can provide a new way of looking at the larger socio-political developments in which the temple operated. This way, I use the Yuima-e as a vehicle to question particular categorizations and reconsider the shift from Fujiwara no Michinaga's height of power to the rise  of the powerful retired emperors. Central in my analysis is a close examination of the relations between inner and outer temple developments to thoroughly reformulate Kuroda Toshio's notion of exoteric-esoteric Buddhism.

Gli studi di religioni e filosofie giapponesi in Italia (The Italian studies on Japanese religions and philosophies)

by Matteo Cestari

Published in Heisig, James W. (ed.), Japanese Philosophy Abroad, Nagoya, Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture, 2004, pp. 122-147. In Italian.

Japanese translation: “Itaria ni okeru Nihon no shūkyō-tetsugaku kenkyū” 「イタリアにおける日本の宗教・哲学研究」, in J. W. Heisig hen, Nihon tetsugaku no kokusaisei. Kaigai ni okeru juyō to tenbō 『日本哲学の国際性・海外における受容と展望』, Kyoto, Sekai shisōsha 世界思想社, 2006, pp. 149-181. Japanese version not uploaded for editorial copyright reasons.

Japanese (Nicherin) Buddhism

by Dion Peoples

Between Emptiness and Absolute Nothingness: Reflections on Negation in Nishida and Buddhism

by Matteo Cestari

Published in: James W. Heisig & Rein Raud (eds.), Frontiers of Japanese Philosophy 7. Classical Japanese Philosophy, Nagoya, Nanzan Institute for Religion and Culture, 2010, pp. 320-346.

This essay examines the relationship between Nishida's foundational notion of absolute nothingness and the classical... more This essay examines the relationship between Nishida's foundational notion of absolute nothingness and the classical Buddhist idea of emptiness. I reflect on the possibilities and risks of using Buddhism as hermeneutic paradigm in approaching the complexities of a modern Japanese philosophy with its alleged, but philologically ambiguous, references to a premodern Buddhist context.

Vita quotidiana in un monastero buddhista Soto Zen. La via di un giorno solo

by Pietro Piro

Testo originale: Quaderni dell’Istituto Italiano Zen Soto, Fidenza 2005, p. 35. Leggermente modificato nel Febbraio 2012.

Report of daily life in a Soto Zen Buddhist monastery. Wording of rites, prayers, work, meditation.

La vita... more Report of daily life in a Soto Zen Buddhist monastery. Wording of rites, prayers, work, meditation.

La vita in un monastero Zen, vista da fuori, può apparire ripetitiva, priva di svago e insensata. Dentro il monastero, non si pensa che a cogliere la bellezza della vita in ogni minimo dettaglio. Per un attimo, durante la ripetizione di un rituale, l’ho visto ripetersi per migliaia di anni prima e dopo di noi da uomini che non sono più, e da uomini che ancora non sono. Ho provato un brivido di leggerezza. Mi sono sentito un puro attimo. È stato come respirare il profumo della libertà.

"La dottrina del Buddha non ha alcuna utilità. Non è nient’altro che le faccende di tutti i giorni: vestirsi e mangiare, fare i propri bisogni e, sé si è stanchi, coricarsi e dormire".

Rinzai Gigen

法華経方便品

by Pierre Bonneels

平等思想

by Pierre Bonneels

両界曼荼羅

by Pierre Bonneels

Bref synthèse des questions qui ont entourées le mémoire que j'ai présenté au Japon en 2009 .

by Pierre Bonneels

蓮華化生

by Pierre Bonneels

The Question of the Separate Identities of Buddhism and Shinto in Japan

by Nolan Bensen

This is pretty straightforward. It rehashes an argument out of Buddhology in the 80's and early 90's, over whether... more This is pretty straightforward. It rehashes an argument out of Buddhology in the 80's and early 90's, over whether it's right to faithfully accept the word of the Meiji state of over a century ago by parsing Buddism and Shinto as they did, and considering the latter to be a genuinely "Japanese" belief system. It also addresses the question of to what extent European concepts of distinct and implicitly competitive religions can be exported to premodern Japan.

政治制度の劇場: 中世興福寺維摩会と国家の相互関係再考

by Mikael Bauer

本研究は十二世紀の興福寺で行われた「維摩会」について、そこに関わる僧と公卿の役割を分析することを通じ、アメリカの人類学者クリフォード・ギアツ(Clifford... more 本研究は十二世紀の興福寺で行われた「維摩会」について、そこに関わる僧と公卿の役割を分析することを通じ、アメリカの人類学者クリフォード・ギアツ(Clifford Geertz)が用いた「劇場国家」という観点から考察するものである。「劇場国家」という概念が「儀式」を歴史と社会の鏡として見るものである。例えば、白川院の熊野聖地巡りの研究で、アメリカのマクス・ムーロマン(Max Moerman)は、この「劇場国家」概念を基ついて院政期の聖地巡り・儀式の歴史的な状況を研究して、熊野聖地巡りの目的を宗教・政治的な観点から明らかにした。
本稿は、「三会定一記」及び東大寺宗性の史料研究を手がかりに、南都の三会（御齊会、最勝会と維摩会）が単なる仏教の儀礼としてだけではなく、社会と政治を密接に関係するものとして位置づける。.............

Invoking the Mother of Awakening: An Investigation of Jōkei's and Eison's Monju kōshiki

by David Quinter

Japanese Journal of Religious Studies 38, no. 2 (2011): 263-302

Reconfiguring Buddhism as a Religion Nakanishi Ushirō and His Shin Bukkyō

by Seiji Hoshino

Japanese Religions Vol. 34 No. 2 (July 2009)
http://japanese-religions.jp/publications/index.html

Reconfiguring Buddhism as a Religion Nakanishi Ushird and His Shin Bukkyo

In this paper, I focus on... more Reconfiguring Buddhism as a Religion Nakanishi Ushird and His Shin Bukkyo

In this paper, I focus on Nakanishi Ushiro (1859-1930), arguing that he tried to reconfigure Buddhism as a religion in mid-Meiji Period. Nakanishi conceptualized his Shin Bukkyo (New Buddhism) as a reformed Buddhism that was opposed to Kyu Bukkyo (Old Buddhism). He could be counted as one of the Buddhist reformers in mid-Meiji Period, but his arguments were somehow unique. For example, Inoue Enryo in this period insisted that Buddhism was a philosophical religion, which became popular and was considered to be an appealing Buddhist apologetics. However, Nakanishi criticized such an idea. He claimed that Buddhism was not a philosophy but a religion, emphasizing faith as the basis of Shin Bukkyo. While stressing the aspect of faith, Nakanishi also argued that religion must not disregard human reason. In this sense, indeed he differed from Kiyozawa Manshi or Uchimura Kanzo who developed the existential understanding of religion by solely relying on faith in the late Meiji Period. However, with his attempt to grasp religion -- Buddhism -- in relation with faith, or with the internal sphere of the individual, Nakanishi could be understood in a unique and transitional position in the history of religion and/or Buddhism in modern Japan.

Keywords: Nakanishi Ushiro - Shin Bukkyo - Buddhist apologetics - Inoue Enryo - Kiyozawa Manshi - The Concept of shukyo.

Monastic lineages and ritual participation: A proposed revision of Kuroda Toshio’s Kenmitsu Taisei

by Mikael Bauer

Forthcoming in Pacific World (2012)

This article aims to revise Kuroda Toshio’s notion of exoteric-esoteric Buddhism (kenmitsu taisei, 顕密体制) through an... more This article aims to revise Kuroda Toshio’s notion of exoteric-esoteric Buddhism (kenmitsu taisei, 顕密体制) through an analysis of primary documents mainly related to ritual participation from the 9th to the 14th centuries.

Der Buddhismus und die Moderne am Beispiel der Philosophie Nishida Kitarôs

by Christian Uhl

Published in: Denkt Asien Anders? Reflexionen über Konfuzianismus und Buddhismus in Indien, Tibet, China und Japan (Does Asia Think Differently? Considerations Concerning Confucianism and Buddhism in India, Tibet, China and Japan), edited by Birgit Kellner and Susanne Weigelin-Schwiedrzik (Vienna: Vienna University Press, 2009), pp. 121 - 158.

"Genze Riyaku" als Wesenskern japanischer Religiosität.

by Jörn Heise

2002