從「奉公」到「告白」 ——日本佛教在帝國冒起和覆没時的自處=From Public Dedication (boukou) to Confession (kokuhaku): the Response of Japanese Buddhism during / after the Rise and Fall of the Empire
Japanese Buddhism, in the modern context, on the one hand is famous for her intellectualization, while on the other Buddhism also actively participated in the overseas expansion of the Japanese Empire during the first half the 20th century. The expansion was taken in the form of large-scale penetration, colonialization and war, which in recent decades, have been critically reviewed. Based on the cases of Japanese Buddhism from the first half of the 20th century, this article is a study of the following three problems. Firstly, the article covers the political activities and the role of religion that the Japanese Buddhist deployed in its participation of the Empire’s overseas expansion. This section also studies the relationship between the monks’ political activities and their faith. Secondly, the article analyses the causes and reasons, based on political contexts, social conditions and value concerned, which drove Japanese Buddhism to take an active, or a passive, role to participate in the Empire’s expansion. Thirdly, an analysis is given on the nature and impact of Critical Buddhist knowledge-based “intellectual confession”. The focus of this problem is on how the three waves of ripple effect from Critical Buddhism gradually pushed the Japanese Buddhist communities of 1990-2000s as a whole to overcome the obstructions, and have critical reflections on the role of the Buddhism during the war. The issue is discussed in a contrast context between Buddhism and Christianity of post war Japan.
