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Religion, hybrid forms, and cultural chauvinism in Japan

Dessi, Ugo ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9458-4275 2012. Religion, hybrid forms, and cultural chauvinism in Japan. Journal of Religion in Japan 1 (2) , pp. 168-187. 10.1163/221183412X649629

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Abstract

This article analyzes a few selected case studies from different religious traditions in contemporary Japan to illustrate, first, the active role played by religion in Japan in the creation of hybrid forms and, secondly, the potentiality in two instances to promote cultural chauvinism. The topics explored here are Japanese Buddhism and the issue of human rights, Shintō’s self-representation as a ‘religion of the forest,’ and Kōfuku no Kagaku’s adoption of Theosophical themes. The discourse of human rights found in traditions such as Jōdo Shinshū, Jōdoshū, and Sōtōshū shows how this western idea is made to resonate with religious concepts from the Buddhist tradition, thus making possible a reshaping of local religious identities. While in this case the catalyst in the process is provided by an external source, the recent reshaping of Shintō as a ‘religion of the forest’ may be characterized as a glocalization leaning to ‘native’ sources, in which the ‘native’ religious tradition is subject to a creative reading following the worldwide growing awareness of ecology. Here a tendency to emphasize the superiority of the ‘native’ culture may also be noticed. However, as the case of Kōfuku no Kagaku’s adoption of various Theosophical themes illustrates, also glocalization leaning to external sources may be accompanied by forms of cultural chauvinism.

Item Type: Article
Date Type: Publication
Status: Published
Schools: History, Archaeology and Religion
Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BL Religion
B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BQ Buddhism
G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GN Anthropology
H Social Sciences > HM Sociology
Publisher: Brill Academic Publishers
ISSN: 2211-8330
Date of Acceptance: 10 November 2011
Last Modified: 24 Oct 2022 08:27
URI: https://orca.cardiff.ac.uk/id/eprint/117813

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