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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... Kōbō Daishi 166 Wizards The Diverse Gathering 170 176 5 The Dynamics of Practice 178 The Open Display of Desire 181 Purchase , Practice , and the Price of Benefits 182 The Importance of Plurality 188 Rituals , Intimacy , and the Role of ...
... Kōbō Daishi , the Buddhist holy figure and founder of the Shin- gon Buddhist sect who is in certain ways the paragon of benefactors . In Chapter 5 we turn our attention to practice and the ways in which people petition for benefits ...
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Practically Religious: Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of Japan Ian Reader,George J. Tanabe No preview available - 1998 |