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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... suggests that elites are focused on doctrine and adherence to the philosophical niceties of scripture , immune to what is often termed " superstition , " while the ordinary people are ignorant of doctrines , unaware of what is said in ...
... suggests a similar prob- lem to that criticized by Duffy : the problem of overlooking the role of liturgies and so - called elite religious influences . To avoid the problems ... suggest . Duffy , however , is also aware that Introduction 27.
... suggest . Duffy , however , is also aware that underlying this process of change and the replacement of old with new ... suggests a cultural , ideological , and even ethnic orientation that is perhaps inappropriate here . In Japa- nese ...
... suggest that , rather than not knowing the content of the text they are chanting , most Japanese who know it as a ritual formula are aware of some of its inner content and meaning and know that its efficacy as a spell is related to its ...
... suggests that as ethical con- siderations increase within a religious culture its magical orientations diminish is inaccurate . Rather , magical and ethical means work to- gether to form one whole , which illustrates the morality ...
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Practically Religious: Worldly Benefits and the Common Religion of Japan Ian Reader,George J. Tanabe No preview available - 1998 |