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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... RELIGIOUS Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of Japan IAN READER AND GEORGE J. TANABE , JR . 1 Practically Religious Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of. PRACTICALLY Front Cover.
... Religion A Common Religion 1 Benefits in the Religious System : Settings and Dynamics Comprehensive Responses : Types and Extent 13 14 23 32 37 of Practical Benefits 45 The Social Geography of Benefits : Benefits and Religious Identity ...
... religion , and listening to testimonies from members who told of practical benefits they had received as a result of their religious devotion , Michiko be- came convinced that this was a religion that might be able to help her out of ...
... religious validity can be found through experi- ence . She was convinced of the truth of her newfound religion be ... religious practices , numerous Japanese new religious movements tell stories such as Michiko's and make it clear that ...
... religion Ŏmotokyō as “ a frightful superstition unparalleled in the country . " 5 Scholars too have joined in criticizing the new religions . In their book Shinkō shūkyō , Samoto Akio and Kotake Akira characterize the new religions as ...
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Practically Religious: Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of Japan Ian Reader,George J. Tanabe No preview available - 1998 |