Why Buddhism is dying in Japan
by Hugo
(Japan)
Buddhism in Japan loses ground every year. As discussed last month, many temples have closed and young people do not practice as much as their parents did. What are the reasons for this? Some argue on online forums that Japanese Buddhism is more popular outside the country than on the archipelago itself. I do not agree but, I would say that it is most certainly more respected abroad than in Japan today.
I believe Buddhism here in Japan all started as a state controlled religion. In many countries, governments have used religion to justify their control on the people but, it has been especially true in Japan since the Meiji restoration (1868). The government used the justification that the emperor was a direct descendant from the sun goddess Amaterasu to claim power to the throne. Many good things came with the restoration;. The civilian sector benefited on many levels like health, education and economy as Japan worked double-time to get out of a feudal middle-age society. In doing so, it entered a more powerful position to equal that of the biggest in the world; France, England, The U.S. and Russia.
On the religious side though, not much changed. The emperor was a god and his cult was ever expanding. This policy was continued for his son, Taisho and his grand-son Showa or Hirohito as we know him in the West. During the reign of Showa, the government increased its military might causing Japan to become a fascist nation. Thus, control over religion was increased and anyone that practiced non state sanctioned religions was persecuted. Many religious leaders were put in prison during the war and many died there.
After the war, the Americans wanted to eliminate the old regime and all the reasons why it got so strong in the first place. Thus they decided to separate government and religion altogether. They forced Showa to publicly declare that he was not a god and forbad the teaching of religion in schools. It had the desired effect and generation after generation; the people have forgotten the indoctrination that occurred during wartime.
Now, though, people do not learn anything about Buddhism unless they go to special classes or are part of a cult, where indoctrination is an intrinsic part of the way things are done. Unfortunately, all Buddhist ceremonies are in a Japanese form of Sanskrit, thus non-understandable by the common people, just like Latin was the language for mass in Catholic churches up until the second Vatican council in 1969 by Pope Paul VI.
The only exposure to Buddhism people now have, is through funeral ceremonies.. It is not surprising therefore, that people, especially young people, have come to associate Buddhism with Death. Nowadays when they hear sutras being chanted, the say that they are scared of them, as it’s a reminder of Death and decay. Sutras are actually about how to end suffering and they are carriers of hope and teachings, not death and decay.
Buddhism in Japan is a big busine$$ now. It’s a death centered business. People go to very expensive funerals and have to pay priests several times in the years following the death of a relative to get the ceremonies that allow their deceased to attain Nirvana. These amount to thousands of dollars over a period of 33 years. Just to get a posthumous Buddhist name, will cost anything between $1000 and $5000 depending on the “quality” of the name.
Generally these ceremonies are free but a “donation” is expected. Often, the expectation goes with the economic status of the deceased. I heard of a famous monk expecting a $50,000 donation for a funeral ceremony and in the middle of the ceremony, since the expected (read demanded) donation wasn’t met, he stopped the ceremony and left. The problem then, is that no other priest will continue what another has started as it is bad karma to do so.
So, what can be done to restore Buddhism to its original purpose of salvation and cessation of suffering? It is not easy in such a place where money controls everything and where priesthood is a job like many others. What has to be done is for someone to step up, start preaching about what Buddhism is really about. Some people have written great books but in order to be read, these books have to appeal to the people.
Two things control the modern Japanese society: money and the media. OK, one thing controls society: money. What I mean is that someone has to be popular in the media and start to teach people what real Buddhism is. If you have ever watched some crazy Japanese TV shows on youtube, you’ll see that this might prove difficult.
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