Practically Religious: Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of JapanPraying for practical benefits (genze riyaku) is a common religious activity in Japan. Despite its widespread nature and the vast numbers of people who pray and purchase amulets and talismans for everything from traffic safety and education success to business prosperity and protection from disease, the practice has been virtually ignored in academic studies or relegated to the margins as a uh_product of superstition or an aberration from the true dynamics of religion. Basing their work on a fusion of textual, ethnographic, historical, and contemporary studies, the authors of this volume demonstrate the fallacy of such views, showing that, far from being marginal, the concepts and practices surrounding genze riyaku lie at the very heart of the Japanese religious world. They thrive not only as popular religious expression but are supported by the doctrinal structures of most Buddhist sects, are ordained in religious scriptures, and are promoted by monastic training centers, shrines, and temples. |
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... Chapter 5. George Tanabe gratefully acknowledges the support of the University of Hawai'i Japan Studies Endowment , which is funded by a grant from the Japa- nese government . From the beginning this book has been the product of our ...
... chapters that follow and the definitional focus to the wider subject we are discussing . The first is that , in affirming the centrality of genze riyaku , we are arguing that Japanese religion in general is governed by a world ...
... Chapter 1 , people do not make oblique requests : they pray for direct , often tangible , but always prac- tical things , normally for themselves or their social group . It is normal to make blunt requests and demands of the gods ...
... Chapter 7 these changes do not appear to affect the central place played by practical benefits in their histories ... chapters to the question of faith . Here we want to emphasize that the concept of seeking practical benefits is closely ...
... chapter , show . Her reprieve from losing her job , which was so important to her life and continued happiness , represents a form of salvation in this world — a salvation brought about , she and her religious mentors would argue ...
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Practically Religious: Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of Japan Ian Reader,George J. Tanabe No preview available - 1998 |