from history
Buddhism originally emerged around 500 BC. In India and was from 350 BC. Widespread on the Indian subcontinent. Only a few centuries later did it spread to China and Korea in the form of the Mahayana Buddhism. One of the characteristics of this Buddhism is that Bodhisattvas, enlightened beings who refrain from entering nirvana to help other unsaved people.
He came to Japan in the so-called Nara time. The first monks came from China from around 470 AD, and around 550 AD there were contacts with Korean Buddhists. In doing so he met the Shintoist Kami- Belief, mostly shaped by local gods. Resistance from the individual clans was often opposed to spreading. In the Heian period it was around 800 AD the esoteric buddhism or Vajrayanawho found his way to Japan.
This is crucial for Buddhism in Japan today Kamakura time From around 1200-1350 AD, two main currents found their way into this area:
Amida Buddhism
In amidism he plays Bodhisattva Amitabha a crucial role. The bodhisattvas have pledged to keep walking for so long Samsara to continue between birth and rebirth until all people have the awakening achieved. This Bodhisattva Amitabha lives in one Pure land, Japanese Jōdo. People cannot find enlightenment on their own in today's real world, but they can ask Amitabha for help and worship him. Then they too will be reborn in a pure land where nirvana is easier to attain. In conclusion it is simple: it is enough to worship Amitabha, to call on his name, he will help to be reborn in a reincarnation in a more peaceful world from which one can attain nirvana by one's own strength. Seen in this way, this Amida Buddhism is the Jōdo-shū-School and the Jōdo-Shinshu-School a practicable religion for the simpler population: it is enough Namu Amida butsu to speak out knowing that he will help.
Zen Buddhism
This movement, which emerged from Mahayana Buddhism, originated around 500 AD and goes back to the Indian Bodhidharmawho taught in China. As Chan it was spread by monks in China, later came to Korea and Vietnam and reached Japan around 1200 AD, where the name Zen For Sinking stands in itself. There are several practices: that Zazen or sitting meditation, meditative walking and reading. The daily practice of meditative immersion is important. Actually it is Zen a nothing: it does not offer any special traditional teaching, it is only a matter of looking into one's own inner being and thus finding awakening. In practice this means that a Zen student meditates for hours while sitting, perhaps just looking at a white wall so as not to be distracted by anything, until suddenly he does Understand has achieved and will be recognizes one's own being. Different schools have developed, the three largest are currently
Sōtō-Shū
This direction has the most followers within Zen Buddhism; this is the main form of meditation Zazen, sitting and meditating in the Lotus seat.
Rinzai-Shu
The Rinzai school is smaller than the Sōtō-Shū, this form was more likely to be found in the samurai environment. In addition to zazen, a number of forms of meditation developed in Rinzai, which today go along with the traditional japan can be associated: the ways of zen. These include the meditative forms of
- Budo or Bushido, the way of the warrior, he means both the martial arts and the inner discipline
- Kadō, the path of flowers, also known as ikebana
- Kyudo, the art of archery, as well
- Sadō or the path of silence, the tea ceremony, and last but not least
- Shodo, the way of writing, calligraphy.
The garden art, as it can be found in every garden in the vicinity of a Zen temple, must not be forgotten. They are a special form Dry gardensin which water lines are drawn with sand and gravel.
Ōbaku-Shū
This sect within Zen is closer to Amida Buddhism than the aforementioned.
Buddhism and other religions
Most of the Japanese population is committed to both Shintoism as well as Buddhism. The reason for this is the so-called. Shinbutsu-Shugo, the parallel development of two creeds. Around 500 AD, the Chinese characters were called Kanji introduced in Japan. At about the same time, Buddhism appeared in Japan, it was referred to as butsudo, Way of the Buddha, in contrast to the previous religion, which was called Shinto, Way of the gods. Since several Bodhisattvas exist in Mahayana Buddhism, it was not a problem to find a part of the Shinto gods who Kamito adopt as Japanese reincarnations, on the other hand, the Buddhist figures were simply viewed as foreign kami. So Shintoism and Buddhism could mix in a peculiar syncretism, but without merging.
One major difference remained. In Buddhism, nirvana after death is the real goal of man. In Shinto, on the other hand, harmony and purity are important, illness or even death cause impurities. Shintoism was always used when it came to a new beginning, be it the birth of a child, a marriage or the establishment of a company. Death and burial mostly remained a matter for Buddhism, whose monks perform the cremation and urn burial ceremonies. Or to put it briefly: Shintoism for the living Buddhism for the dead. Also the introduction of Shintoism as the state religion in the Meiji period by the Shinbutsu bunri did not change anything: around 80% Japanese remained Buddhists and Shintoists at the same time.
Buddhist temples in Japan
The temple names endings are -tera or dera like with Kiyomizu dera, there is also the ending -ji like with Tō-ji and -in like with Byōdō-in, more rarely too -san. A temple in Japan is not just a single building, but usually a walled area on which the religious buildings stand. This always includes a main hall, hondō, in which the main sanctuary, the honzon stands. This is usually the statue of a Buddha or Bodhisattva to whom the temple is dedicated. In addition, there are usually other halls for other deities as well as a reading hall or Kodo. The temple complex is entered through a gate or Mon, in which two gatekeepers stand, called Niō or Kongōshu. One always stands with his mouth open, it's him A-gyō, the other with his mouth closed is the one Un-gyō. They symbolize the beginning and the end. Many temples also have a pagoda, called Tō. An open bell tower with a large bronze bell is also usually included. Unlike in Europe, the bells here are only struck with a horizontally suspended wooden mallet. Since monks play a major role in Buddhism, the monks' residential buildings are part of it, and the temples often have the character of monasteries. And the opportunity to generate additional income by selling lucky charms and oracles such as Mikuji or Omamori is one of them.
Since Buddhism and Shintoism developed in parallel, there are often buildings in temples that are actually assigned to Shinto shrines, which are a good example Torii. Often you can also see the ones used for cleaning Chōzuya. And it is not that uncommon for temples and shrines to stand side by side in peace. Usually the Buddhist temples are on Japanese city maps, with one swastika (卍, manji) marked Shinto shrines with a torii symbol.
Everyday life and religious practice
There is no government support for the religions in Japan. So there is no religious tax and all temples live on donations. So it is normal to pay for religious services, which is always called a donation. These expected donations can depend on the income, and sometimes turn out to be quite steep.
Buddhist temples are usually only visited by the believers for prayer, services such as those in Christianity are unknown. There are also no baptisms, and wedding ceremonies are often performed in the Shinto shrine. Funeral rites usually take place in the house of the deceased, where the person plays Buddhist house altar a role. The urn is then usually placed in a family grave on the grounds of a Buddhist temple. The ancestors are worshiped according to a fixed rhythm. That plays an important role O-bon festival, which is celebrated nationwide in mid-August. If possible, all relatives meet at the family headquarters at the place where the temple with the cemetery is. When traveling in Japan, disabilities must be expected during this period.
In Japan there is no religious education, so knowledge about one's own religion is rather modest and is often limited in the traditions of the family. That is mostly knowledge about the Shinto godsIn Buddhism, of course, this is first and foremost the figure of Buddha. The bodhisattva is also important Kannon, referred to as the multifaceted goddess of mercy, sometimes depicted with a thousand hands or with eleven heads. Another important bodhisattva is Jizo, depicted as a Buddhist monk, often surrounded by the figures of unborn or prematurely deceased children.
Otherwise it is similar to Europe: the classical religions are taking a back seat, new endeavors find supporters, but the majority of people are not particularly interested in religious issues, at least externally.
