Aspiring to Enlightenment

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Author :
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824884132
Total Pages : 212 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Aspiring to Enlightenment by : Richard D. McBride II

Download or read book Aspiring to Enlightenment written by Richard D. McBride II and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2020-08-31 with total page 212 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Centered on the practice of seeking rebirth in the Pure Land paradise Sukhāvatī, the Amitābha cult has been the dominant form of Buddhism in Korea since the middle of the Silla period (ca. 300–935). In Aspiring to Enlightenment, Richard McBride combines analyses of scriptural, exegetical, hagiographical, epigraphical, art historical, and literary materials to provide an episodic account of the cult in Silla times and its rise in an East Asian context through the mutually interconnected perspectives of doctrine and practice. McBride demonstrates that the Pure Land tradition emerging in Korea in the seventh and eighth centuries was vibrant and collaborative and that Silla monk-scholars actively participated in a shared, international Buddhist discourse. Monks such as the exegete par excellence Wŏnhyo and the Yogācāra proponent Kyŏnghŭng did not belong to a specific sect or school, but like their colleagues in China, they participated in a broadly inclusive doctrinal tradition. He examines scholarly debates surrounding the cults of Maitreya and Amitābha, the practice of buddhānusmṛti, the recollection of Amitābha, the “ten recollections” within the larger Mahāyāna context of the bodhisattva’s path of practice, the emerging Huayan intellectual tradition, and the influential interpretations of medieval Chinese Pure Land proponents Tanluan and Shandao. Finally, his work illuminates the legacy of the Silla Pure Land tradition, revealing how the writings of Silla monks continued to be of great value to Japanese monks for several centuries. With its fresh and comprehensive approach to the study of Pure Land Buddhism, Aspiring to Enlightenment is important for not only students and scholars of Korean history and religion and East Asian Buddhism, but also those interested in the complex relationship between doctrinal writings and devotional practice “on the ground.”

Chinese Pure Land Buddhism

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Author :
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 082488101X
Total Pages : 224 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Chinese Pure Land Buddhism by : Charles B. Jones

Download or read book Chinese Pure Land Buddhism written by Charles B. Jones and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2019-09-30 with total page 224 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Chinese Pure Land Buddhism: Understanding a Tradition of Practice is the first book in any western language to provide a comprehensive overview of Chinese Pure Land Buddhism. Even though Pure Land Buddhism was born in China and currently constitutes the dominant form of Buddhist practice there, it has previously received very little attention from western scholars. In this book, Charles B. Jones examines the reasons for the lack of scholarly attention and why the few past treatments of the topic missed many of its distinctive features. He argues that the Chinese Pure Land tradition, with its characteristic promise of rebirth in the Pure Land to even non-elite or undeserving practitioners, should not be viewed from the perspective of the Japanese Pure Land tradition, which differs greatly. More accurately contextualizing Chinese Pure Land Buddhism within the landscape of Chinese Buddhism and the broader global Buddhist tradition, this work celebrates Chinese Pure Land, not as a school or sect, but as a unique and inherently valuable “tradition of practice.” This volume is organized thematically, clearly presenting topics such as the nature of the Pure Land, the relationship between “self-power” and “other-power,” the practice of nianfo (buddha-recollection), and the formation of the line of “patriarchs” that keep the tradition grounded. It guides us in understanding the vigorous debates that Chinese Pure Land Buddhism evoked and delves into the rich apologetic literature that it produced in its own defense. Drawing upon a wealth of previously unexamined primary source materials, as well as modern texts by contemporary Chinese Pure Land masters, the author provides lucid translations of resources previously unavailable in English. He also shares his lifetime of experience in this field, enlivening the narrative with personal anecdotes of his visits to sites of Pure Land practice in China and Taiwan. The straightforward and nontechnical prose makes this book a standby resource for anyone interested in pursuing research in this lively, sophisticated, and still-evolving religious tradition. Scholars—including undergraduates—specializing in East Asian Buddhism, as well as those interested in Buddhism or Chinese religion and history in general, will find this book invaluable.

Demythologizing Pure Land Buddhism

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Author :
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824856341
Total Pages : 201 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Demythologizing Pure Land Buddhism by : Paul B. Watt

Download or read book Demythologizing Pure Land Buddhism written by Paul B. Watt and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2016-01-31 with total page 201 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The True Pure Land sect of Japanese Buddhism, or Shin Buddhism, grew out of the teachings of Shinran (1173–1262), a Tendai-trained monk who came to doubt the efficacy of that tradition in what he viewed as a degenerate age. Shinran held that even those unable to fulfill the requirements of the traditional Buddhist path could attain enlightenment through the experience of shinjin, “the entrusting mind”—an expression of the profound realization that the Buddha Amida, who promises birth in his Pure Land to all who trust in him, was nothing other than the true basis of all existence and the sustaining nature of human beings. Over the centuries, the subtleties of Shinran’s teachings were often lost. Elaborate rituals developed to focus one’s mind at the moment of death so one might travel to the Pure Land unimpeded, and a rich artistic tradition celebrated the moment when Amida and his retinue of bodhisattvas welcome the dying believer. What is more, many Western interpreters tended to reinforce this view of Pure Land Buddhism, seeing in it certain parallels to Christianity. This volume introduces the thought and selected writings of Yasuda Rijin (1900–1982), a modern Shin Buddhist thinker affiliated with the Otani, or Higashi Honganji, branch of Shin Buddhism. Yasuda sought to restate the teachings of Shinran within a modern tradition that began with the work of Kiyozawa Manshi (1863–1903) and extended through the writings of Yasuda’s teachers Kaneko Daiei (1881–1976) and Soga Ryōjin (1875–1971). These men lived through the period of Japan’s rapid modernization and viewed the Shin tradition as possessing existential significance for modern men and women. For them, and Yasuda in particular, Amida did not exist in some other-worldly paradise but rather Amida and his Pure Land were to be experienced as lived realities in the present. In the writings and lectures presented here, Yasuda draws on not only classical Shin and Mahayana Buddhist sources, but also the thought of Nishida Kitarō (1870–1945), the founder of the Kyoto School of philosophy, and modern Western philosophers such as Heidegger, Nietzsche, and Buber.

The Three Pure Land Sutras

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Author :
Publisher : BDK America
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 216 pages
Book Rating : 4.F/5 ( download)

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Book Synopsis The Three Pure Land Sutras by :

Download or read book The Three Pure Land Sutras written by and published by BDK America. This book was released on 2003 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The larger sutra on Amitāyus (Taishō volume 12, number 360) -- The sutra on contemplation of Amitāyus (Taishō volume 12, number 365) -- The smaller sutra on Amitāyus (Taishō volume 12, number 366).

Pure Land

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Publisher : Shambhala Publications
ISBN 13 : 0834843447
Total Pages : 265 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (348 download)

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Book Synopsis Pure Land by : Charles B. Jones

Download or read book Pure Land written by Charles B. Jones and published by Shambhala Publications. This book was released on 2021-05-18 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An introductory guide to the beliefs and key concepts of Pure Land Buddhism, the most widely practiced form of Buddhism in East Asia. Pure Land is a brief introduction to the history and practices of Pure Land Buddhism, a popular and growing global tradition. Pure Land practices center on Amitābha Buddha, rebirth in his pure buddha-land, and the guaranteed attainment of buddhahood. It constitutes the dominant tradition of most Buddhists in East Asia and is the most common form of practice within immigrant Buddhist communities in America, yet it remains elusive to many general readers of Buddhism. This brief introduction summarizes the core teachings of this tradition and charts its growth throughout the world. Part of the Buddhist Foundations series, Pure Land covers the spiritual tenets behind the tradition before describing how prayer and devotion to Amitābha allow for rebirth in a realm free from suffering and ideal for progress on the path to enlightenment. It then outlines specific Pure Land practices, all the while providing historical context to account for its widespread popularity throughout East Asia. The author also covers contemporary Pure Land traditions, providing a useful touch point for modern readers. Pure Land practitioners and readers interested in Asian-American Buddhist communities now have a concise guide to the ideas, practices, and origins of this widely popular spiritual tradition.

Pure Land, Real World

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Author :
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 082485778X
Total Pages : 257 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Pure Land, Real World by : Melissa Anne-Marie Curley

Download or read book Pure Land, Real World written by Melissa Anne-Marie Curley and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2017-02-28 with total page 257 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: For close to a thousand years Amida’s Pure Land, a paradise of perfect ease and equality, was the most powerful image of shared happiness circulating in the Japanese imagination. In the late nineteenth century, some Buddhist thinkers sought to reinterpret the Pure Land in ways that would allow it speak to modern Japan. Their efforts succeeded in ways they could not have predicted. During the war years, economist Kawakami Hajime, philosopher Miki Kiyoshi, and historian Ienaga Saburō—left-leaning thinkers with no special training in doctrinal studies and no strong connection to any Buddhist institution—seized upon modernized images of Shinran in exile and a transcendent Western Paradise to resist the demands of a state that was bearing down on its citizens with increasing force. Pure Land, Real World treats the religious thought of these three major figures in English for the first time. Kawakami turned to religion after being imprisoned for his involvement with the Japanese Communist Party, borrowing the Shinshū image of the two truths to assert that Buddhist law and Marxist social science should reinforce each other, like the two wings of a bird. Miki, a member of the Kyoto School who went from prison to the crown prince’s think tank and back again, identified Shinran’s religion as belonging to the proletariat: For him, following Shinran and working toward building a buddha land on earth were akin to realizing social revolution. And Ienaga’s understanding of the Pure Land—as the crystallization of a logic of negation that undermined every real power structure—fueled his battle against the state censorship system, just as he believed it had enabled Shinran to confront the world’s suffering head on. Such readings of the Pure Land tradition are idiosyncratic—perhaps even heretical—but they hum with the same vibrancy that characterized medieval Pure Land belief. Innovative and refreshingly accessible, Pure Land, Real World shows that the Pure Land tradition informed twentieth-century Japanese thought in profound and surprising ways and suggests that it might do the same for twenty-first-century thinkers. The critical power of Pure Land utopianism has yet to be exhausted.

The Origins and Development of Pure Land Buddhism

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Author :
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0198028989
Total Pages : 502 pages
Book Rating : 4.1/5 (98 download)

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Book Synopsis The Origins and Development of Pure Land Buddhism by : Mark L. Blum

Download or read book The Origins and Development of Pure Land Buddhism written by Mark L. Blum and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2002-03-21 with total page 502 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this book, Mark Blum offers a critical look at the thought and impact of the late 13th-century Buddhist historian Gyonen (1240-1321) and the emergent Pure Land school of Buddhism founded by Honen (1133-1212). Blum also provides a clear and fully annotated translation of Gyonen's Jodo homon genrusho, the first history of Pure Land Buddhism.

The Pure Land Tradition

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Author :
Publisher : Jain Publishing Company
ISBN 13 : 0895810921
Total Pages : 559 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (958 download)

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Book Synopsis The Pure Land Tradition by : James Harlan Foard

Download or read book The Pure Land Tradition written by James Harlan Foard and published by Jain Publishing Company. This book was released on 1996 with total page 559 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This collection includes the scholarship on one of the most important strains of Buddhism, the Pure Land Tradition. The essays trace its historical evolution from its origins in India through its development in China to medieval Japan.

Toward a Contemporary Understanding of Pure Land Buddhism

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Author :
Publisher : SUNY Press
ISBN 13 : 9780791445297
Total Pages : 276 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (452 download)

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Book Synopsis Toward a Contemporary Understanding of Pure Land Buddhism by : Dennis Hirota

Download or read book Toward a Contemporary Understanding of Pure Land Buddhism written by Dennis Hirota and published by SUNY Press. This book was released on 2000-03-31 with total page 276 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Explores the potential significance of Japanese Pure Land Buddhist Thought in the contemporary world, and provides a new model of interreligious dialogue as Buddhist thinkers engage with Christian theologians concerned with the present-day significance of their own tradition.

Pure Lands in Asian Texts and Contexts

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Author :
Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 0824877144
Total Pages : 808 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (248 download)

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Book Synopsis Pure Lands in Asian Texts and Contexts by : Georgios T. Halkias

Download or read book Pure Lands in Asian Texts and Contexts written by Georgios T. Halkias and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2019-03-31 with total page 808 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This diverse anthology of original Buddhist texts in translation provides a historical and conceptual framework that will transform contemporary scholarship on Pure Land Buddhism and instigate its recognition as an essential field of Buddhist studies. Traditional and contemporary primary sources carefully selected from Buddhist cultures across historical, geopolitical, and literary boundaries are organized by genre rather than chronologically, geographically, or by religious lineage—a novel juxtaposition that reveals their wider importance in fresh contexts. Together these fundamental texts from different Asian traditions, expertly translated by eminent and up-and-coming scholars, illustrate that the Buddhism of pure lands is not just an East Asian cult or a marginal type of Buddhism, but a pan-Asian and deeply entrenched religious phenomenon. The volume is organized into six parts: Ritual Practices, Contemplative Visualizations, Doctrinal Expositions, Life Writing and Poetry, Ethical and Aesthetic Explications, and Worlds beyond Sukhāvatī. Each part is introduced and summarized, and each translated piece is prefaced by its translator to supply historical and sectarian context as well as insight into the significance of the work. Common and less-common issues of practice, doctrine, and intra-religious transfer are explored, and deeper understandings of the meaning of “pure lands” are gained through the study of the celestial, cosmological, internal, and earthly pure lands associated with various buddhas, bodhisattvas, and devotional figures. The introduction by the volume editors ties the diverse themes of the book together and provides a historical background to Pure Land Buddhist studies. Scholars of Buddhism and Asian religion, including graduate and post-graduate students, as well as Buddhist practitioners, will appreciate the range of translated materials and accompanied discussions made accessible in one essential collection, the first of its kind to center on the formerly-neglected topic of Buddhist pure lands.

Western Pure Land Buddhism

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Author :
Publisher : Lulu.com
ISBN 13 : 0557050480
Total Pages : 68 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (57 download)

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Book Synopsis Western Pure Land Buddhism by : Jimmy Davis

Download or read book Western Pure Land Buddhism written by Jimmy Davis and published by Lulu.com. This book was released on 2009-03-13 with total page 68 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Western Pure Land Buddhism (WPLB) is the name I have given to one of the latest teachings of the Mahayana Pure Land tradition. It shares with all other Buddhist groups the ideal of attaining Nirvana, not just for oneself, but also for all beings. Thus the goal of one's life is to realize Buddhahood in order to help others see this world of birth-and-death (samsara) as Nirvana. Where WPLB differs from most other Buddhists is in teaching that Buddhahood is a gift to us from Amida, the Buddha of Infinite Light and Life, and that we acknowledge that gift by the saying of Nembutsu (Namah Amida Buddha).The life of Nembutsu consists of chanting the Nembutsu and teaching others the way. It is to live a life without fear. And to join with others to better achieve these goals.

The Pure Land Handbook

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Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9780983527947
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (279 download)

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Book Synopsis The Pure Land Handbook by : Shakya YongHua

Download or read book The Pure Land Handbook written by Shakya YongHua and published by . This book was released on 2014-10-30 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Pure Land Dharma Door is the most popular form of Buddhism in Asia, though it is largely unknown in the West. In this book, we introduce the Pure Land teachings to those who may not yet be familiar with this profound practice, hoping that more people will benefit from these methods. Furthermore, we will shed new light on the fundamentals of Pure Land, so even those who have grown up with and practiced Pure Land for years, can learn important points that are not commonlyknown. We present for you here a genuine, American, form of Pure Land Buddhism.

Establishing a Pureland on Earth

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Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 428 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 ( download)

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Book Synopsis Establishing a Pureland on Earth by : Christopher Stuart Chandler

Download or read book Establishing a Pureland on Earth written by Christopher Stuart Chandler and published by . This book was released on 2000 with total page 428 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Critical Readings on Pure Land Buddhism in Japan

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Author :
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9004401504
Total Pages : 356 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (44 download)

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Book Synopsis Critical Readings on Pure Land Buddhism in Japan by : Galen Amstutz

Download or read book Critical Readings on Pure Land Buddhism in Japan written by Galen Amstutz and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2020-06-08 with total page 356 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Pure Land was one of the main fields of mythopoesis and discourse among the Asian Buddhist traditions, and in Japan of central cultural importance from the Heian period right up to the present. The pieces reproduced in this set have been chosen as linchpin works accentuating the diversity and evolution of Pure Land Buddhism. These selections of previously published articles will serve as an essential starting-point for anyone interested in this perhaps underestimated area of Buddhist studies.

Pure Land Buddhism in Modern Japanese Culture

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Author :
Publisher : BRILL
ISBN 13 : 9047443055
Total Pages : 275 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (474 download)

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Book Synopsis Pure Land Buddhism in Modern Japanese Culture by : Elisabetta Porcu

Download or read book Pure Land Buddhism in Modern Japanese Culture written by Elisabetta Porcu and published by BRILL. This book was released on 2008-08-31 with total page 275 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Despite being one of the most influential forms of Japanese Buddhism, the Pure Land tradition, and notably its impact on the development of Japanese cultural history, has often been overlooked outside Japan. Taking into account recent scholarship on orientalism and occidentalism, this book, written from the perspective of the Study of Religions, provides an analysis of the impact that the Pure Land tradition, in particular Shin Buddhism, has exerted on mainstream forms of artistic expression (especially creative arts, literature and the tea ceremony) in modern and contemporary Japan.

Letters of the Nun Eshinni

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Publisher : University of Hawaii Press
ISBN 13 : 9780824828707
Total Pages : 286 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (287 download)

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Book Synopsis Letters of the Nun Eshinni by : James C. Dobbins

Download or read book Letters of the Nun Eshinni written by James C. Dobbins and published by University of Hawaii Press. This book was released on 2004-09-30 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Eshinni (1182–1268?), a Buddhist nun and the wife of Shinran (1173–1262), the celebrated founder of the True Pure Land, or Shin, school of Buddhism, was largely unknown until the discovery of a collection of her letters in 1921. In this study, James C. Dobbins, a leading scholar of Pure Land Buddhism, has made creative use of these letters to shed new light on life and religion in medieval Japan. He provides a complete translation of the letters and an explication of them that reveals the character and flavor of early Shin Buddhism. Readers will come away with a new perspective on Pure Land scholarship and a vivid image of Eshinni and the world in which she lived. After situating the ideas and practices of Pure Land Buddhism in the context of the actual living conditions of thirteenth-century Japan, Dobbins examines the portrayal of women in Pure Land Buddhism, the great range of lifestyles found among medieval women and nuns, and how they constructed a meaningful religious life amid negative stereotypes. He goes on to analyze aspects of medieval religion that have been omitted in our modern-day account of Pure Land and tries to reconstruct the religious assumptions of Eshinni and Shinran in their own day. A prevailing theme that runs throughout the book is the need to look beyond idealized images of Buddhism found in doctrine to discover the religion as it was lived and practiced. Scholars and students of Buddhism, Japanese history, women’s studies, and religious studies will find much in this engaging work that is thought-provoking and insightful.

Immigrants to the Pure Land

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Author :
Publisher : Pure Land Buddhist Studies
ISBN 13 : 9780824896775
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.8/5 (967 download)

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Book Synopsis Immigrants to the Pure Land by : Michihiro Ama

Download or read book Immigrants to the Pure Land written by Michihiro Ama and published by Pure Land Buddhist Studies. This book was released on 2023-03 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Religious acculturation is typically seen as a one-way process: The dominant religious culture imposes certain behavioral patterns, ethical standards, social values, and organizational and legal requirements onto the immigrant religious tradition. In this view, American society is the active partner in the relationship, while the newly introduced tradition is the passive recipient being changed. Michihiro Ama's investigation of the early period of Jodo Shinshu in Hawai'i and the United States sets a new standard for investigating the processes of religious acculturation and a radically new way of thinking about these processes. Most studies of American religious history are conceptually grounded in a European perspectival position, regarding the U.S. as a continuation of trends and historical events that begin in Europe. Only recently have scholars begun to shift their perspectival locus to Asia. Ama's use of materials spans the Pacific as he draws on never-before-studied archival works in Japan as well as the U.S. More important, Ama locates immigrant Jodo Shinshu at the interface of two expansionist nations. At the end of the nineteenth and beginning of the twentieth centuries, both Japan and the U.S. were extending their realms of influence into the Pacific, where they came into contact--and eventually conflict--with one another. Jodo Shinshu in Hawai'i and California was altered in relation to a changing Japan just as it was responding to changes in the U.S. Because Jodo Shinshu's institutional history in the U.S. and the Pacific occurs at a contested interface, Ama defines its acculturation as a dual process of both "Japanization" and "Americanization." Immigrants to the Pure Land explores in detail the activities of individual Shin Buddhist ministers responsible for making specific decisions regarding the practice of Jodo Shinshu in local sanghas. By focusing so closely, Ama reveals the contestation of immigrant communities faced with discrimination and exploitation in their new homes and with changing messages from Japan. The strategies employed, whether accommodation to the dominant religious culture or assertion of identity, uncover the history of an American church in the making.