Part I is a rev ed of: Japanese religion. 1972

Includes index

Over two decades ago, the Agency for Cultural Affairs compiled a volume entitled Japanese Religion: A Survey. Now in its eleventh printing, its value as a source of information on religion in Japanese society has been amply proved. But in the years since then Japan has rocketed to economic dominance, and urbanization and industrialization have altered the cultural landscape. The picturesque serenity of Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines is a nostalgic vision; the shocking crimes of Aum Shinrikyo a new reality. Religion in Japanese Culture is a response to the relentless change of the last twenty-five years. Retaining but revising the earlier volume's comprehensive survey of Japan's major religions, this book also presents six new essays exploring religion and the state, religion and education, urbanization and depopulation, the rebirth of religion, internalization, and religious organizations and Japanese law. In addition, a new appendix presents an analysis of Qum Shinrikyo's 1995 gas attack on the Tokyo subway system. Is religious commitment on the wane in Japan? What about the wave of small-scale religious groups, and the recent surge of interest in spiritualism and the occult? Religious history in Japan is a complex tapestry of foreign influence and ancient belief, pervasive tradition and modern indifference. It is said that to understand a people's values one must first study their religion. Religion in Japanese Culture is an important contribution to the field of religious studies, and an invaluable tool for anyone interested in a deeper understanding of Japanese culture