Why Are the Japanese Non-Religious?: Japanese Spirituality: Being Non-Religious in a Religious Culture, translated here for the first time in English, was first published in Japan in 1996. It has also been translated into Korean and German. Author Toshimaro Ama examines the concept of mushukyo, or lack of specific religious beliefs. According to Ama, the Japanese generally lack an understanding of or desire to commit to a particular organized religion, oftentimes fusing Shinto, Christianity, and Buddhism into a hybrid form of spirituality. The book classifies Japanese religion into "revealed," or organized (i.e. Buddhism or Confucianism), and "natural," or folklore based. It explains how folklore and culture have been integrated into the Japanese religious mind, examines governmental influence over the development of Japanese religion, and introduces several attempts to restore authentic spirituality. The book, which has sold more than 100,000 copies, is widely popular among students of Japanese culture and ethnicity as well as lay readers desiring to learn more about Japanese religious identity.
目次
Chapter 1 Foreword Chapter 2 Preface Chapter 3 Translator's Notes Chapter 4 Maps Chapter 5 What Does It Mean to "Lack Religious Beliefs" (mushukyo)?: Revealed Religions versus Natural Religion; The Religious Feeling of the Non-Religious; Is Christmas a Religious Festival?; Is the Ground-Breaking Ceremony Religious?; Is Being Religio Chapter 6 The History of Being Non-Religious: Kami and Buddha Live Together; The Arrival of Confucianism; From the "World of Suffering" (ukiyo) to the "Floating World" (ukiyo); Religious Feeling in the Floating World; Funeral Buddhism; The Widespr Chapter 7 Poor Religious Understanding: Modernization Based on Myths; The Meaning of the Newly-Created "Religion" (shukyo); Revealed Religion Should Be Kept to Oneself; The Creation of the Emperor Worship System; The Failure of Propagate Shinto; Disting Chapter 8 Religion and the Value of Just being Ordinary: Washing Off One's Innate Nature; Yanagita's Inclination Toward Ordinary Thinking (jinjo shiko); How Should Bad Events Be Perceived?; Maintaining Balance; The Value of Just Being Ordinary; Buddhist Chapter 9 A Village Without Individual Graves: Faith in Uyagamu; Entrusting Oneself in the Teaching in a Traditional Paper-Making Village; The Turning of the Mind: Conversion Chapter 10 Epilogue Chapter 11 Bibliography Chapter 12 Index
