Streams of Tradition:
Buddhism, East to West 

Chapter Five ... "The Flowering of Buddhism in Japan"

    In the postwar period Japanese Buddhism emerged as a focus of attention for scholars of religion and the general public, because many youth have come to appreciate the culture and its spirituality as a result of their participation in the military or in educational programs. Despite defeat in World War II, western people have been fascinated by Japanese culture and its religious underpinnings which motivated the Japanese to maintain their political and cultural independence throughout their history and to offer a stunning challenge to modern Western colonialism in Asia.

    Buddhism has a long and distinguished history in Japan, because it was an important culture-bearer, introducing the highly developed civilization of China to Japan by way of Korea or directly from China. Early on Buddhist monks from Korea brought religion, architecture, ceramics and metal arts, writing, knowledge of political organization and the socio-political teachings of Confucianism in addition to specific Buddhist teachings and practices. Adopting and assimilating elements of Chinese religion and culture enabled Japan to fashion its own distinctive culture which has attracted the admiration of the world since its opening to the West in the nineteenth century. Japan's aesthetic, industrial and spiritual contributions to modern life worldwide are inestimable. One of the major foundations for these developments is Buddhism.

    Initially simply being a foreign religion introduced to Japan, Buddhism gradually transformed its foreignness to become a pervasive element of the Japanese way of life. Japanese attitudes toward Buddhism differed markedly from the Chinese who already possessed a highly developed cultural system when Buddhism arrived. The advanced culture of China and the established teachings of Confucianism and Taoism made the acceptance of Buddhism in China more difficult. In Japan Buddhism was generally viewed as part of Chinese civilization and its acceptance was seen as the mark of a progressive nation. Buddhism was thereby able to take deep root in Japan and evolve into a major cultural influence, despite some initial opposition by conservative native leaders. It later became highly organized and divided into sects which were frequently involved in competition for political and social power.

    Important for understanding Buddhist history in Japan is the Japanese self-understanding that they are a sacred people in a sacred land, having been created by the kami or "gods." This perception is expressed in the native religion which, under the influence of Buddhism, came to be known as Shinto, the Way of the Gods in contrast to the Way of the Buddha (Butsudo). The more internationalist faction among ancient Japanese leadership overcame native opposition by recommending it as useful for enhancing the nation's spiritual position in the cosmos and resolving internecine struggles for dominance among the many tribes which weakened Japan in the face of encroaching continental Chinese influence. After its establishment, Buddhism became intimately entwined in the political affairs of the country, blending with indigenous folk religious beliefs and magical practices.

    Japanese Buddhism has many facets which are interdependent and interrelated. Buddhism was supported by the government on the clan and national levels. It provided a context for individual spiritual development in the search for enlightenment in the many monasteries that came to dot the country. Monks often in quest of their own enlightenment practiced the rigorous Buddhist discipline and studied doctrine, while often functioning as teachers and leaders in religious rituals for the welfare of the country in national Buddhist institutions. Buddhism virtually became the state religion. Further, through the activities of political leaders and monks Buddhism gradually spread among the people who supported its development with offerings and labor often forced. Popular Buddhism provided consolation to the masses which became a source of support for the Order and the basis for the formation of distinct Buddhist sects in later times. Buddhist rituals and chanting of sacred texts added to the resource for dealing with disasters and tragedies.

    As we have seen in previous chapters, the basic teachings of Buddhism had been established in India and China. There have, however, been distinctive Japanese developments in Buddhist social-cultural relations as well as in spiritual and doctrinal spheres. Buddhist monasteries became repositories for the arts and learning, while the exploitation and political manipulation of the religion by the ruling classes, as well as the collaboration of monks, throughout its history encouraged a passivity and otherworldly outlook among rank and file Buddhists, centering on the ancestor cult.

    According to the account recorded in the Nihon Shoki (Chronicles of Japan), an early historical record, Buddhism officially entered Japan during the reign of Emperor Kimmei in 552 CE, though it may actually have been as early as 538. On this occasion, the King of Kudara (Paekche) in Korea presented the court with Buddhist images and texts, declaring that Buddhism had been accepted by such leading countries such as China and would benefit the Japanese people. Though Buddhism had earlier infiltrated Japan, carried by Chinese and Korean immigrants, its spread was greatly facilitated by the recognition of its political utility for promoting national interests.       

    Prince Shotoku (573-621) was the first major figure to appear in the formation of national Buddhism. He implemented the aims of the internationalists by establishing a strong central authority under Empress Suiko (592-628). Because the Prince was deeply devoted to the teachings of Buddhism and recognized its spiritual role in the development of a unified nation, he is credited in history with the promulgation of a Seventeen-Point Constitution which had harmony as its ideal. This document advocated reverence for the three treasures of Buddhism by all the people as the basis of social concord. In addition, the Prince was thought to have composed commentaries on three major Mahayana Sutras which reflected his critical and independent thought as he transformed Buddhism from an other-worldly religion to one promoting social harmony in this world. His emphasis on Buddhism as a religion of laypeople greatly influenced later generations. The Prince also encouraged Buddhism by inviting visiting priests to lecture, cultivating Buddhist scholarship and commissioning the construction of numerous temples and works of art. He also organized the governmentin a system of ranks.

    After Prince Shotoku, the trend to political centralization, including greater control over Buddhism continued with the Taika reform in 645 which aimed to strengthen the monarchy by centralizing political power, modeling on the T'ang dynasty in China. This was followed by the promulgation of the Taiho code in 701 which instituted a set of administrative and penal statutes based on Chinese Confucianism along with the Chinese civil service examination system. However, reforms were circumvented since the path to political preferment remained through aristocratic and clan connections.

    Private temples were prohibited, and monks had to be licensed. In addition, they could not work among the people. A more positive approach to the Buddhist Order appeared, however, in the provincial temple system set up during the Nara period (710-794) in 741 by Emperor Shomu who devoted himself to the prosperity of Buddhism.

    Symbolic of his efforts was the construction of the great Buddha of Todaiji (consecrated in 752). The Buddha selected for representation was the great Sun Buddha (Skt., Mahavairocana Buddha; J., Dainichi Nyorai). This Buddha symbolized the philosophy of the Garland Sutra (J., Kegon) which taught that the essence of each thing contained the essence of every other thing. All reality was one, interdependent and mutually permeating. Hence, the universe manifested the Buddha mind combined in a grand harmony.

    The symbolism of the image and its many surrounding Buddhas carried a political message of the interdependence and oneness of the Japanese people and the Imperial house. Emperor Shomu believed that the proper recitation of various nation-protecting Sutras would bring prosperity and security to the nation. While knowledge of the principles of Buddhist teaching and symbolism by the leadership contributed to the unity of the nation, the use of Buddhist texts and institutions as a means for ritual and magical pacification promised spiritual security to the society. According to the "nation-protecting" Sutras, the divine heavenly kings protected any country that supported and propagated Buddhism, by sponsoring efforts to teach, copy or recite Buddhist texts. Eventually, a whole system of provincial temples equipped with Sutras, monks and nuns was constructed with Todaiji in the city of Nara as the head temple for the purpose of benefiting the nation through spiritual protection.

    For the ordinary person, Buddhism offered a panoply of beliefs and practices to secure health, wealth, and spiritual security or good future rebirth. Among the most well-known Buddhist divinities are Jizo and Kannon. Jizo (Skt., Kshitigarbha, C., Ti-tsang) assisted people in the afterlife and helped them to avoid going to hell. Merging with beliefs of folk religion, he was also regarded as a savior of those in trouble, particularly women in childbirth and children. Images of him are frequent along roads, as well as in temple compounds.  

    Kannon Bodhisattva (Skt. Avalokitesvara, C., Kuan-yin), commonly known as the Goddess of Mercy, was also widely revered. Tradition held that even Prince Shotoku was an ardent devotee. Emperors sponsored lectures and ceremonies on the Kannon Sutra and promoted the popularity of the cult. According to this text, Kannon symbolized the depth of Buddha’s compassion. She promised to save people from all forms of calamities and to grant them all kinds of blessings in life. Both Bodhisattvas remain popular even to this day.

    Initially Miroku Bodhisattva (Skt., Maitreya), believed to be the future Buddha in Buddhist eschatology, was a very popular object of worship introduced from Korea. Belief in Miroku brought birth into Tusita heaven, a paradise within the Realm of Desire in Buddhist Cosmology. Miroku resides here awaiting his birth into this world as the next Buddha. Gradually this cult was replaced with that of Amida Buddha who resides in his Western Pure Land and comes to welcome believers upon their death. As we shall see, the teaching of Amida became a major influence, spreading among all classes of people in Japan during the later Heian period (794-1185), spurred by the belief in the onset of the last age in the decline and disappearance of the teaching (mappo) in 1052.

    Together with the beliefs in great Buddhist divinities, there were numerous practices designed to gain desired benefits or ward off evils. Most popular and easiest was the recitation of magical phrases such as Namu Amida-Butsu (Hail Amida Buddha) or Namu-Myoho-Renge-Kyo (Hail Lotus of the Wonderful Law). Shingon teaching became very influential because of potent magical dharani spells and incantations of Indian origin which it offered for every possible contingency. Kukai-Kobo Daishi became the object of devotion in a popular, independent healing cult, referred to as O-Daishi-san, alongside the Shingon Sect. There were also mystic ceremonies such as the goma fire ritual, which is believed to burn away impurity and remove curses of enemies and demons. The ceremony was much used in the Heian period. Omamoris or amulets were, and are, also used widely today for a variety of purposes.

    During the period when the manifold Chinese and practices spread into Japan with Buddhism, religious Taoism also came, though not in an institutional form. Whereas the teachings of Confucianism were first regarded as the required learning for rulers and politicians, religious Taoism offered various methods for advancing one's life in this world and attaining longevity or good fortune. In addition to religious Taoism, yin-yang magic and divination, astrology, geomancy, and calendrical computations were combined with Buddhism. Taoist belief in sage-hermits contributed also to the formation of the Shugendo movement of Buddho-Shinto mountain ascetics. The practitioners of Shugendo functioned among the people as exorcists and shamans.

    Ceremonies for the dead were also a prominent aspect of Japanese Buddhism. Not only was there the fear of dead spirits  which emerged in the Heian period, but there was also reverencing of the dead in filial piety. Masses for the dead helped to assure the good destiny of the departed. A calendar of memorials provided the dead with periodic assistance until they faded from living memory to become part of the general host of ancestors.

    An important annual festival was the Urabon-e or commonly Obon festival (Skt., Avalambana, Ullambana), based on the story of Buddha's disciple Mokuren (Skt., Maudgalyayana) who saw that his mother had become a hungry ghost. Thereupon began the rite of offering food for one's parents and ancestors. Related to the Urabon-e but of different origin was the Segaki ceremony of feeding the hungry ghosts. This ceremony is still regularly performed. Other ceremonies connected with the dead occurred at the spring and autumn equinox and were called Higan-e.

    Ancestors are venerated through Buddhist memorial services and entertainments. Most important are visits to the grave which, despite the decline in religious adherence among modern people, are still commonly carried out even by those of no specific religious commitment.

    Elements of popular religion have penetrated all sects to secure support from the masses. The Shugendo movement of mountain ascetics was very instrumental in carrying these beliefs and ceremonies to the people, particularly in the Tokugawa period when the traditional sects had largely been deprived of their spiritual influence among the people. Considerable criticism has been directed to Buddhism in modern times because of its predominant association with magic and death.

    Buddhism became powerful in Japan because it met the needs of people on all levels of life. It transmitted major symbols of spiritual power in Indian tradition, while also teaching Chinese Confucian morality and aspects of religious Taoism, focusing on its utility in this life. It also stressed its importance for concerns of the afterlife, claiming that it cared for both affairs this world and the other world.

    Though the beliefs and practices that affect everyday life and benefit the otherworld were the most widespread and popular aspects of Buddhism, there was a tradition of Buddhist teaching and philosophy which made Buddhism an enduring spiritual and cultural force, inspiring the arts, literature and significant creative religious thought.

    During the ancient Nara period (710-794) Buddhist quasi-academic schools introduced basic Chinese Buddhist scholarship. They included the Kosha, a school representing the early Buddhism with its analysis of consciousness; the Kegon with its holistic metaphysical perspective; Hosso which was a form of psychological idealism that developed out of the Kosha school; and the Ritsu, school of precepts and ordination. In addition, there were the Sanron or Three Treatise School based on texts representing the philosophy of the teacher Nagarjuna and the Jojitsu school an early form of Mahayana Buddhism and associated with Sanron. These schools, as opposed to strict sectarian distinctions, held little concern for the ordinary person. They were academic subjects  which monks could study for their own development. While some individual monks such as Dosho (629-700) and Gyogi Bosatsu (670-749) engaged in social welfare and religious work among the people, the various official schools were more concerned with promoting their influence through the manipulation of spiritual powers and catering to the demands of the aristocracy who supported them.

    The Buddhist institutions of Nara began to degenerate through increasing involvement in political affairs. In an effort to free the imperial court from intrigues and domination by the clergy, Emperor Kammu (737-806) planned to relocate the capitol. He eventually transferred the capitol to what is now Kyoto and opened the Heian period of "peace and tranquility" in 794.

    The monks, Saicho (767-822), founder of the Tendai (c. T'ien-t'ai) sect in Japan, and Kukai (774-835), founder of the Shingon sect (Skt., mantra, C., chen-yen), assisted in this process by going to China to study Buddhism and bring back the most up to date teaching and resources available there. Kukai went to the capital Chang-an where he studied with the famous Chen-yen monk Hui-kuo (746-805), becoming his successor. Saicho proceeded to Mount T'ien-t'ai where the teaching of Chih-I was undergoing a revival and while awaiting to return to Japan, he met a Chen yen teacher who instructed him and initiated him into that teaching.

    The establishment of the Tendai and Shingon sects was in some measure an attempt to reform and reestablish the true principles of Buddhism in Japan. The reforming aspect was particularly strong in Saicho (later given the imperial title Dengyo Daishi or Great-teacher who transmitted Dharma) who asked the court for permission to set up his own Tendai ordination platform on Mount Hiei away from Nara. He maintained that Tendai Buddhism would provide monks who would be true national treasures and would protect the nation spiritually. The court granted approval soon after his death in 822.

    However, with the transfer of the capital from Nara to Kyoto, Mount Hiei, where Saicho had established his monastery, became the center of spiritual learning, combining all forms of current religious studies, Tendai, focused on the Lotus Sutra; meditation practice (Tendai style Zen [meditation]); Pure Land teaching and practice; Shingon esoterism. Saicho's religious view was more assimilative and syncretic. The importance and evolution of the monastery led to its continual involvement with national politics, especially through the institution of retired Emperors who became monks and exerted power from the monastery. As its own economic and political power grew, warrior monks fought in the interests of their Order.

    Kukai, (later given the imperial title Kobo Daishi or Great Teacher who Disseminates Dharma) did not strongly oppose the temples of Nara, as did Saicho, and soon attained high rank in the official organization, becoming the Abbot of the Toji temple in Kyoto. Here he performed the rite of kanjo (a form of ordination), as well as ceremonies for the pacification of the nation. Supported by the court, Kukai and his Order attained wide influence. Even Emperors received instruction in Buddhism under the tutelage of Shingon monks. Shingon rites were widely used by the court as a means of averting or overcoming disasters. Its elegant pageantry and elaborate ritualism appealed to the religious and aesthetic sensibilities of the court nobles.

    Though Heian Buddhism began auspiciously with a freshness and the ideal of creating national treasures to serve the country's spiritual welfare, eventually it, too, competed for privilege and power. The fortunes of the nobility in the capital of Kyoto also declined along with political and economic changes in the distant provinces. The warrior clans whose task was to defend the interests of the absentee nobility in the provinces began their own quest for power. The turbulence of the ensuing Kamakura period (1185-1332) stimulated a flowering of Buddhist movements, critical of the established system of Buddhism and appealing to all levels of Japanese society.

    Against the background of the emerging political struggles and religious turmoil which engulfed the traditional spiritual institutions of Mount Hiei and Mount Koya, as well as the earlier Nara temples, a number of sects emerged during the Kamakura age which differed in their views of the relation of Buddhism and society and its function in providing spiritual protection for the state. They also directed their teaching more to the individual who sought spiritual emancipation in the midst of the social turmoil of the time.

    A major thread of Buddhist teaching in the Kamakura age was the Pure Land teaching which had permeated all classes of ancient and medieval society. Prior to the appearance of the independent Pure Land sect, there were a number of compassionate teachers who laid the foundation for the popular spread of this teaching. Among these were such people as Kuya (903-972), known as the "Saint of the Marketplace." He traveled the countryside, proclaiming the recitation of Amida Buddha’s name and engaging in social uplift projects. Ryogen (912-985) advocated Pure Land devotion on Mount Hiei and inspired his famous disciple Genshin (942-1017). Genshin taught Pure Land meditation and authored the famous Treatise on the Essentials of Rebirth (in the Pure Land) [Ojoyoshu]. This manual gained wide influence throughout Japanese Buddhism, through its depiction of the terrors of hell and the bliss of the Pure Land. Ryonin (1072-1132) initiated the Nembutsu of Mutuality (Yuzu Nembutsushu) which taught that each person’s Nembutsu contributes to the salvation of all other people in reciprocal mutuality. It was based in Tendai philosophy.

    Honen (1133-1212) is considered the founder of the independent Pure Land sect (Jodoshu), and a pioneer of the movements characterizing the Kamakura era. For Honen, the simple recitation of the name of the Buddha with sincere faith provided the merit for birth in the Pure Land. Honen had six or seven major disciples who all promoted Pure Land teaching. It was the only certain practice for the last age in the decline of the Dharma (mappo) for monks, nuns and the laity alike. Honen expounded his view in his famous Treatise on the Nembutsu of the Select Primal Vow (abbrev. Senchakushu).

    The most famous of Honen's disciples was Shinran (1173-1262) who is credited as the founder of The True Sect (Teaching) of the Pure Land (Jodo Shinshu). Shinran became famous for his teaching of "faith alone" in Amida as the basis for birth in the Pure Land. His teaching is spelled out in the Kyogyoshinsho (Anthology on Teaching, Practice, Faith and Realization). For him, the moment of trust in Amida or faith and the act of reciting the name were both given by Amida Buddha as a result of his Vow to save all beings. Religion becomes the way of gratitude rather than seeking benefits or salvation merely for oneself. Shinran is also noted for providing a religious basis for the marriage of monks and setting aside the monastic precepts and discipline. Since Amida saves one as he or she is, there is no need in faith to negate ordinary life in society.

    Finally, there was Ippen (1239-1289), the wandering monk, a second generation disciple of Honen who is the founder of the Time sect (Ji-shu-shu; shu here is not sect, but group). This sect at one time was a very popular movement in medieval Japan, characterized by its joyous nembutsu dance. Ippen advocated reciting the nembutsu at six specific times during the day and emphasized that one should regard each moment of life as his last while reciting the sacred name. He is famous for his itinerant life style, requiring poverty, celibacy and chastity. Relying on the absolute Other Power of Amida, he did not require faith as the basis for birth in the Pure Land. He had everyone sign a register and receive a plaque, whether a conscious believer or not. It is Amida who assures the person's entry into paradise.

    Each of these Pure Land sects, though differing in points of doctrine and later organization, were generally other-worldly in character and offered the bliss of the Pure Land to individuals through sincere faith and recitation of the name Namu Amida Butsu (also known as nembutsu, which means to think on or call the name of the Buddha). By this means the ordinary person could escape from the suffering of this world and the endless cycles of births and deaths to enjoy bliss in the Pure Land.

    On the other hand, the Zen tradition, which had developed from the teaching of Bodhidharma in China, was brought to Japan through Eisai (1146-1215). Eisai introduced the Rinzai (Lin-chi) Zen (Ch'an) ko-an tradition from China. This method of Zen aimed at achieving enlightenment by employing paradoxical, riddle-like stories to break through the human addiction and attachment to logical thought and words. He maintained in his treatise Kozengokokuron (Treatise on Spiritually Protecting the Nation through Prospering Zen) that the nation could be spiritually protected only through promoting the true practice of Zen.

    Dogen (1200-1253), Eisai's disciple, after a period of study in China, introduced the Chinese Soto (Tsao-tung) Zen sect into Japan. Dogen did not use the ko-an method because all life was a ko-an. He was the most philosophical among the Kamakura teachers as can be seen in his Shobogenzo (Treasury Eye of the True Dharma). In his view simply sitting is itself the enlightenment of the Buddha when done with faith. His motto was shikan-taza or "Zazen Only." He asserted also that Buddhism was superior to the state. According to his view, human laws were merely based on precedents and ancient laws whose origins were uncertain. However, Buddhism had a clear transmission from the beginning. Thus the state was not absolute. Claiming extraterritoriality for the monk who did his duty by performing his discipline, Dogen refused to associate with the government and established his temple in a distant province.

    Perhaps the most important expression of the relation between the nation and Buddhism in the Kamakura era was the teaching of the Buddhist prophet Nichiren (1222-1282). According to his basic work Risshoankokuron (Treatise on the Attainment of Peace in the Country through the Establishment of the True (Buddhist) Teaching), the security of the nation depended on strict adherence to the Lotus Sutra as interpreted by Nichiren.

    Insisting on the supremacy of the Lotus Sutra over all other teachings of Buddhism in accord with Tendai teaching, Nichiren demanded that the government establish it as the national religion to the exclusion of all other forms of Buddhism. His apparent intolerance was the result of his conviction that the many natural disasters and political upheavals which Japan had experienced at that time  had been prophesied by the Buddha as punishment for not adhering to the truth. Very soon, he taught, the final punishment would come with the invasion of the Mongols. He pointed to the prosperity of Pure Land teaching, Zen Buddhism, the use of Shingon practices, and the fame of Ritsu (Vinaya discipline) priests as evidence that the people had ignored and were blind to the truth in the Lotus Sutra originally declared by Chih-I in China and Saicho in Japan. According to Nichiren, even later traditional Tendai teachers had strayed from the truth by adopting Pure Land and Shingon practices into their own system.

    Although Nichiren employed traditional concepts of the relation of state and Buddhism, he held strongly to the primacy of Buddhism over the state in contrast to the traditional political subservience of Buddhism. He claimed that he was the pillar of Japan, the ship of Japan. His outspokenness and uncompromising attitude brought him persecution and banishment.

    A facet of Kamakura Buddhism was also the effort by some monks to purify Buddhism and reestablish the system of monastic discipline. Representative of this trend is Koben (Myoe Shonin 1173-1232) in Nara. Myoe aspired to the ideal of Sakyamuni Buddha and planned to make a pilgrimage to India which he was never able to fulfill. His object of devotion was Miroku, the future Buddha, while in his studies he combined esoteric Buddhism, the Kegon philosophy and strict maintenance of discipline. Becoming a highly respected scholar, Myoe was also very devout and noted for his many spiritual dreams. Concerned for the spiritual welfare of the ordinary person, perhaps influenced by Honen, Myoe advocated a form of devotion for ordinary people, focusing on a mandala (sacred diagram) of the three treasures, Buddha, Dharma and Sangha. The invocation of the three treasures aimed at arousing the aspiration to become Buddha (bodhi-mind). Later, he developed the Komyo Shingon, a mantra of light to be recited, together with spiritual purification, for the sake of the afterlife as well as benefits in this world.

    Myoe was acquainted with Honen and at first respected him highly. When he read Honen's treatise Senchakushu, he was enraged and wrote a text Treatise on Destroying Error (Zaijarin) to refute Honen’s teaching. A major criticism was that Honen denied the essential Buddhist teaching of the necessity of the aspiration to become Buddha as the basis of enlightenment.

    It is to be noted that the founders and movements were generally little known in their own time. Under the leadership of gifted successors they developed into mass movements, becoming the major denominations we see today.

    The period of civil wars and strife following the fall of the Kamakura Shogunate in 1334 until the establishment of the Tokugawa regime in 1615 frequently involved Buddhist Orders as they carried on sectarian rivalries or attempted to protect their own interests. As Sansom points out: "Although most of the numerous sects of Buddhism in Japan were tolerant to the point of indifference in matters of doctrine, they were very jealous of their rights, and would fight hard on a point of privilege." (Sansom, George: "A History of Japan: 1334-1615." Stanford, California: Stanford University Press, 1961.)

    The various dictators engaged in armed struggles to reduce the political and military threats of the powerful Buddhist institutions. While Ashikaga Takauji (Shogun, 1338-1358) had to retrench before the militant reaction of the forces of Mount Hiei, Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) was eventually able to subdue them and the hosts of the Ikko (Single-minded sect of Pure Land devotees). He even encouraged the propagation of Christianity to counter the influence of the Buddhists. Hideyoshi (1536-1598) pursued the monks of Kumano and Mount Koya. As the monks turned from warlike activities to works of piety, Hideyoshi began to restrain the Christians, ordering missionaries to leave the country in 1587. Oppression of Christians mounted under Hideyoshi and reached its peak with the martyrdom of twenty-six persons at Nagasaki in 1597. The persecutions and martyrdoms of Christians increased under the Tokugawas, and reached a climax in the Shimabara revolt which precipitated the policy of total isolation from foreign relations for the next 250 years.

    The importance of the Christian persecutions lies in their relationship to the political control of the Buddhist Orders during the Tokugawa era. As a measure in the abolition of Christianity, Buddhist clergy began to function as police. In 1640, an investigating agency was formed in Edo and extended throughout the country. In order to seek out Christians, citizens were made to trample the cross, and local Buddhist temples were required to register all persons in their district on such matters as their personal history and activities. The Buddhist religion declined in spirit because of the earlier attacks on its institutions and its reduction to a mere political tool in the Tokugawa effort to achieve total social stability and harmony.

    The dominant ideologies of the Tokugawa age were Neo-Confucianism and a renascent Shintoism, both of which were critical and negative to Buddhism. Buddhist institutions continued to function, and members of the government associated with it through their families as a matter of custom. However, it exerted little control or influence over the intellectual outlook or personal conduct of the national leaders.

    Buddhist scholars regard the change brought about in Buddhism, resulting from the activities of Nobunaga, Hideyoshi, and the later Tokugawas, as a turning point in Buddhist history. During this period Buddhism completely capitulated to secular authority. The establishment of the parish system (danka seido), irrespective of doctrinal convictions, as well as the imposed clerical control, effectively cut Buddhism off spiritually from the people.

    Despite the fact that Buddhism had permeated daily life or that scholarship had developed within the monastic communities, the real vitality of Buddhism was lost when compared with its impact in the Heian and Kamakura periods. The position of Buddhism in the feudal period resembled only externally its role in the earlier period when the state was institutionalized. The important difference was that rulers in the earlier ages believed in Buddhist spiritual experience, and, revering the three treasures (Buddha, Dharma, Sangha), prayed for the welfare of the nation. In the later period the Edo warriors, dominated by Neo-Confucianism, regarded Buddhism simply as a useful instrument of social control.

    When the Tokugawa regime ended with the restoration of Imperial rule under Emperor Meiji (reigning 1868-1912), Buddhism was rudely awakened by the shout of "Expel Buddha, cut down Sakyamuni." The renascent Shinto sentiment held by some leaders of government quickly overthrew the trappings of state support of Buddhism, and some proponents of the new nationalism claimed it was merely a foreign religion. The attack failed because of the deep faith of the ordinary people in Buddhism which had given them hope for their meager existences. However, many temples and work of art of Japan's Buddhist heritage were lost as a result of the plundering of temples.

    Buddhist leaders initially joined with Shintoists in assisting the government to promote the new nationalism. They linked themselves to the political absolutism of the Meiji regime as a way to demonstrate the importance of Buddhism in the new Japan. Government officials welcomed the assistance of Buddhist clergy, since they had traditionally the closest relation to the people. Later, the Buddhists withdrew from actively promoting nationalism and advocated religious freedom in order to gain its own autonomy. Nevertheless, Buddhism supported modern nationalism, stressing its Japanese character and utility to the nation as it became a world power.

    Confronting the many challenges to Buddhism that came with the opening of Japan to the West, there were a number of reform and social movements such as the New Buddhist Movement (Shin Bukkyo Undo) which sought the revitalization of Buddhism through social reform. Such teachers as Kiyozawa Manshi (1863-1903) reinterpreted doctrines in a modern way. In addition, Western methods in the study of religion were introduced, giving rise to critical scholarship and higher standards of education for clergy.

    However, Buddhism was faced with threats of a spreading Christianity and relentless modernization. These issues culminated and intensified with the defeat of Japan's war effort in World War II which Buddhists supported as loyal Japanese.

    In the post-World War II period with complete religious freedom the Buddhist sects have had to deal with a host of so-called New Religions, such as the neo-Buddhist Soka Gakkai and Risshokoseikai, which challenged the dominance of the older traditional sects in addition to renewed Christian propagation. Also, in recent years there arose a second wave of New New religions which includes the notorious Buddhist Aum Shinri Kyo, famous for its destructive violence and murders. The name means "The Supreme Truth of Creation and Destruction," and raises the specter that religion may be used as a cover for nihilism and violence. These developments have raised the question of the meaning of religious faith and the relevance of the traditional sects in a rapidly changing, religiously competitive and more highly sophisticated, complex, industrial society.

    In the modern era, a gap has frequently existed between more educated and critical intellectual priests and ordinary persons in relation to the magical and pragmatic features of Buddhism. Despite calls for reformation and modernization within Buddhism, the great source of support and strength in the Orders still derives from the magical and pragmatic faith which, for lack of a better alternative, supports individuals in dealing with the problems and anxieties of modern life. The traditional sects have, however, been able to hold their own because of their deep roots in the life of the people through the family and highly developed scholarly traditions, modern educational institutions and efforts in propagation and publication. There is hope for the future as Buddhist teachers and leaders become active in interfaith and intercultural movements which strengthen the internationalization and universalism of Buddhism.