Re: Shinto & Buddhism- Birth & Death
Originally posted by Prince Loeffler
Hi All,
I came accross a book by Donald Ritchie entitled "Introducing Japan". A page section quote " When a Japanese is born, the local shinto shrine is notified; when a japanese dies, a priest from a buddist temple officiates.
Althought the book did not give a fundamental explanation on the subject, I thought I'd ask here.
Is this typical for a japanese to practice two religion ? As I have read the basics about Shinto, How are they different in their views of life and death ?
Thanks
Perhaps you need to look for some books in English about Japanese religion. As Russ (aka Mekugi) stated, everything was mixed together from a very early stage and differences between Shinto and Buddhism (= supposedly indigenous Japanese religion, vs. foreign, i.e., Chinese influences) really became apparent much later and only because people like the nativists (in the Tokugawa period) wanted to clarify these differences for their own purposes.
There are very few good books on Japanese religion, but you might start by looking at some of the chapters in Vol. 1 of the "Cambridge History of Japan". Joseph Kitagawa is an important name here, but you should also read anything in English by Toshio Kuroda and Anna Seidel (unless you can read Japanese or German, of course).
My own students here in Hiroshima really have no clue what religion they have. Their grandparents tend to be Buddhist (usually Nichiren, rarely Shingon), but they themselves participate in all the rituals and festivals.
Example: one of my students married recently. The ceremony was a 'chapel wedding' and non-family members were encouraged to attend (this is rare in Japan). The Christian 'priest' was actually a Muslim, as he told me afterwards, and had been hired by the hotel where the ceremony was conducted, because he looked like a Westerner (full beard) and understood Japanese. This part-time job was actually very lucrative, because he worked at various hotels.
He conducted the service very well, with a suitably unctuous voice, and lots of good Christian hymns were listed on the program, but no one had a clue about the words. The couple felt that they had had a 'good' wedding, but this was really a social occasion. If I had asked them 'Why a Christian wedding?', they would probably have answered, 'Because chapel weddings are fashionble and the bride can wear a beautiful white dress'.
PS Colin H's post is very informative and absolutely on target, but, as I stated, perhaps you need to read something if you do not live here and see the contradictions (or blending) every day.
Best regards,
Last edited by P Goldsbury; 5th July 2003 at 12:38.
Peter Goldsbury,
Forum Administrator,
Hiroshima, Japan