History of Buddhism in Japan. Buddhism and Shinto

2024 Author: Miguel Ramacey | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 06:11

In many ways, Japan can be called a unique country. Along with highly advanced technology, the spirit of the samurai still lives here. The inhabitants of the country are able to surprisingly quickly borrow and assimilate foreign cultures, adopt and develop their achievements, but at the same time not lose their national identity. Maybe that's why Buddhism has taken root so strongly in Japan.

Religious origins

Archaeologists have long established that the first civilizations in Japan appeared much later than in other countries. Somewhere at the turn of our era. Emperor Jimmu was the legendary founder of the Japanese state. According to legend, he was a descendant of the sun goddess Amaterasu and lived around the third century AD, all Japanese emperors trace their history from him.

The foundations of Japanese culture were laid by a complex process of cultural synthesis of local tribes with those that came. This also applied to religion. Shinto, or "the way of the spirits", also known as Shintoism, is a belief about the world of gods and spirits, which the Japanese have always revered.

Shintoism has its origins in ancient times, including the most primitive forms of beliefs, such as totemism, animism, magic, cults of leaders, the dead and others.

The Japanese, like most otherspeoples, spiritualized weather phenomena, animals, plants, ancestors. They respected intermediaries who communicated with the world of spirits. Later, when Buddhism took root in Japan, Shinto shamans adopted many directions from the new religion, turning into priests who performed rituals in honor of spirits and deities.

Pre-Buddhist Shinto

Today, Shinto and Buddhism exist peacefully in Japan, complementing each other qualitatively. But why did this happen? The answer can be obtained by studying the features of early, pre-Buddhist Shinto. Initially, the cult of dead ancestors played an outstanding role in the Shinto religion, which symbolized the unity and cohesion of members of the same clan. Deities of earth, water, forests, mountains, fields and rain were also revered.

Like many ancient peoples, Japanese farmers solemnly celebrated the autumn and spring holidays, the harvest and the awakening of nature, respectively. If someone died, that person was treated as if he had gone to another world.

Ancient Shinto myths still preserve the original Japanese version of ideas about the formation of the world. According to the legends, initially there were only two deities Izanagi and Izanami in the world - a god and a goddess. Izanami died trying to give birth to her first child, and then Izanagi went after her to the world of the dead, but could not bring her back. He returned to earth, and the goddess Amaterasu was born from his left eye, from whom the emperors of Japan led their kind.

Today, the pantheon of Shinto gods is huge. At one time this questionnot controlled or restricted. But as regards the intellectual attitude, this religion was not enough for the developing society. It was this reason that became fertile ground for the development of Buddhism in Japan.

New weapons in the political struggle

The history of Buddhism in Japan dates back to the middle of the 6th century. In those days, the teachings of the Buddha played an important role in the political struggle for power. A few decades later, those who staked on Buddhism won this fight. Buddhism in ancient Japan spread as one of the two leading directions - Mahayana. It was these teachings that became key during the formation and strengthening of culture and statehood.

The new belief brought with it the traditions of Chinese civilization. It was this doctrine that became the impetus for the emergence of an administrative-bureaucratic hierarchy, ethical and legal systems. Against the background of these innovations, it was clear that Buddhism in Japan and China differed markedly. For example, in the Land of the Rising Sun, attention was not focused on the fact that ancient wisdom has unconditional authority, moreover, unlike China, the opinion of an individual before the collective had a price. In the "Law of 17 Articles", which came into force in 604, it was mentioned that every person has the right to his own opinion, belief and idea of what is right. However, it was worth considering the opinion of the public and not imposing your principles on others.

Spread of Buddhism

Despite the fact that Buddhism absorbed many Chinese and Indian currents,only in Japan the norms of this religion were the most durable. Buddhism in Japan played an important role in the formation of culture, and starting from the 8th century, began to influence political life. The Inca Institute contributed to the latter. According to these teachings, the emperor had to give up the throne during his lifetime in favor of the future heir, and then govern the state as a regent.

It is worth noting that the spread of Buddhism in Japan was very fast. In particular, Buddhist temples grew like mushrooms after rain. Already in 623 there were 46 of them in the country, and at the end of the 7th century a decree was issued on the establishment of Buddhist altars and images in official institutions.

Approximately in the middle of the VIII century, the government of the country decided to build a large Buddhist temple in Nara Prefecture. The central place in this building was occupied by a 16-meter Buddha statue. To cover it with gold, the precious material was collected throughout the country.

Over time, the number of Buddhist temples began to number in the thousands, and sect schools, such as Zen Buddhism, began to actively develop in the country. In Japan, Buddhism found favorable conditions for its mass dissemination, but it not only did not suppress the primitive local beliefs, but integrated with them.

Two religions

In the 8th century, the Kegon sect existed in the country, which had already taken shape and entered into force. It was she who turned the capital's temple into a center that was supposed to unite all religious directions. But inFirst of all, it was necessary to bring together Shintoism and Buddhism. In Japan, they began to believe that the deities of the Shinto pantheon are Buddhas in their various reincarnations. The Kegon sect managed to establish a "double path of spirits", where two religions that once supplanted each other were to merge together.

The fusion of Buddhism and Shinto in early medieval Japan was a success. The rulers of the country turned to Shinto temples and gods with a request to help in the construction of the Buddha statue. Japanese emperors have explicitly stated that they will support both Buddhism and Shinto, with no preference for any one religion.

Some of the most revered kami (deities) of the Shinto pantheon have been awarded the status of Bodhisattva, that is, the heavenly Buddhist deity. Buddhist monks have repeatedly taken an active part in Shinto events, and Shinto priests have visited temples from time to time.

Shingon

The Shingon sect made a significant contribution to the connection of Buddhism and Shintoism. In China, almost nothing is known about her, and her teachings came to India much later. The founder of the sect was the monk Kukai, he concentrated all his attention on the cult of the Buddha Vairochana, who was perceived as a symbol of the cosmic universe. Due to their involvement in the universe, the images of the Buddha were different. This is what helped bring Buddhism and Shintoism closer - the Shingon sect declared the main gods of the Shinto pantheon to be the avatars (faces) of the Buddha. Amaterasu became the avatar of the Buddha Vairochana. The deities of the mountains began to be considered as incarnations of the Buddha, which was taken into account in the construction of monasteries. ToIn addition, the mystical rituals of Shingon made it possible to qualitatively compare Shinto deities, personifying nature with the cosmic forces of Buddhism.

Buddhism in Japan in the Middle Ages was already an established full-fledged religion. He ceased to compete with Shintoism and, one might even say, equally divided the ritual duties. Many Shinto temples were staffed by Buddhist monks. And only two Shinto temples - in Ise and Izumo - retained their independence. After some time, this idea was supported by the rulers of the country, who nevertheless saw Shinto as the basis of their influence. Although this is more likely due to the weakening of the role of the emperor and the beginning of the period of the reign of the shoguns.

Buddhism during the Shogunate

In the 9th century, the political power of the emperors is a pure formality, in fact, the entire board begins to be concentrated in the hands of the shoguns - military governors in the field. Under their rule, the religion of Buddhism in Japan gains even greater influence. Buddhism becomes the state religion.

The fact is that Buddhist monasteries became the centers of administrative boards, the clergy held enormous power in their hands. Therefore, there was a fierce struggle for positions at the monastery. This led to the active growth of the positions of Buddhist monasteries in the political and economic arena.

For many centuries, while the period of the shogunate lasted, Buddhism remained the main center of power. During this time, the power has changed significantly, and Buddhism has been transformed along with it. The old sects have been replaced by new ones that haveinfluence on Japanese culture today.

Jedo

The first to appear was the Jodo sect, where the Western Paradise cult was preached. This movement was founded by Honen, who believed that Buddhist teachings should be simplified, making them more accessible to ordinary Japanese. To achieve what he wanted, he simply borrowed from Chinese Amidism (another Buddhist sect) the practice of repeating words that were supposed to bring salvation to believers.

As a result, the simple phrase "Oh, Buddha Amitaba!" turned into a magic spell that could protect the believer from any misfortune, if repeated constantly. The practice spread like an epidemic throughout the country. It costs nothing for people to believe in the easiest way of salvation, such as rewriting sutras, donating to temples, and repeating a magic spell.

Over time, the turmoil around this cult subsided, and the Buddhist direction itself acquired a calmer form of manifestation. But the number of followers from this did not decrease. Even now, there are 20 million Amidists in Japan.

Nichiren

The Nichiren sect was no less popular in Japan. It was named after its founder, who, like Honen, tried to simplify and purify Buddhist beliefs. The center of worship of the sect was the Great Buddha himself. There was no need to strive for the unknown Western paradise, because the Buddha was around, in everything that surrounded a person and in himself. Therefore, sooner or later, the Buddha will definitely manifest himself even in the mostoffended and oppressed person.

This current was intolerant of other sects of Buddhism, but its teachings were supported by many disadvantaged people. Of course, this circumstance did not endow the sect with a revolutionary character. Unlike neighboring China, in Japan, Buddhism rarely became the banner of peasant uprisings. In addition, Nichiren proclaimed that religion should serve the state, and this idea was actively supported by the nationalists.

Zen Buddhism

The most famous sect is Zen Buddhism, where the Japanese spirit was fully manifested in Buddhism. Zen teaching appeared in Japan much later than Buddhism. The southern school received the greatest development. It was preached by Dogen and introduced some of his principles into this movement. For example, he respected the authority of the Buddha, and this innovation played a key role in the creation of the sect. The influence and possibilities of Zen Buddhism in Japan turned out to be very large. There were several reasons for this:

1. The teaching recognized the authority of the teacher, and this contributed to the strengthening of some native Japanese traditions. For example, the Inca institution, according to which the author renounced his powers in favor of the future heir. This meant that the student had already reached the level of the teacher.
2. Schools attached to Zen monasteries were popular. Here they were brought up harshly and cruelly. A person was taught to persevere in achieving his goals and to be ready to sacrifice his life for this. Such an upbringing was extremely appealing to the samurai, who were ready to die for the sake of their master and honored the cult of the sword above life.

Actually, that is why the development of Zen Buddhism was so actively patronized by the shoguns. This sect, with its principles and norms, basically determined the code of the samurai. The path of a warrior was hard and cruel. The honor of a warrior was above all - courage, loy alty, dignity. If any of these components were defiled, then it had to be washed off with blood. A cult of suicide in the name of duty and honor developed. By the way, not only boys in schools, but also girls from samurai families were specially trained to do hara-kiri (only girls stabbed themselves with a dagger). They all believed that the name of the fallen warrior would go down in history forever, and therefore they were fanatically devoted to their patron. It was these components that had a considerable influence on the national character of the Japanese.

Death and modernity

Fanatical, always ready to sacrifice their own lives, the samurai were in many ways different from the warriors of Islam, who went to their deaths for their faith and expected to be rewarded in the afterlife. Neither in Shinto nor in Buddhism was there such a thing as another world. Death was perceived as a natural phenomenon and the main thing was to end this life with dignity. The samurai wanted to remain in the bright memory of the living, going to certain death. This attitude was stimulated precisely by Buddhism, where death is common, but there is the prospect of rebirth.

Buddhism in modern Japan is a full-fledged religion. Residents of the Land of the Rising Sun visit both Buddhist and Shinto shrines to protect themselves and their families from evilspirits. In addition, not everyone sees the difference in these religions, the Japanese are used to the fact that Buddhism and Shinto have existed in Japan for many centuries and are considered national religions.