 Buddhism
in Japan - This can be roughly divided into three
periods, namely the Nara period (up to 784), the Heian
period (794–1185) and the post-Heian period (1185 onwards).
Each period saw the introduction of new doctrines and
upheavals in existing schools. See Sōhei (warrior monks).
In modern times, there are three main paths of Buddhism, to
which all schools of Japanese Buddhism belong. They are
Amidst (Pure Land) schools, Nichiren Buddhism, and Zen
Buddhism.
The arrival of Buddhism in Japan is ultimately a consequence
the first contacts between China and Central Asia which
occurred with the opening of the Silk Road in the 2nd BCE,
following the travels of Zhang Qian between 138 and 126 BCE,
which culminated with the official introduction of Buddhism
in China in 67 CE. Historians generally agree that by the
middle of the 1st century, the religion had penetrated to
areas north of the Huai River. Buddhism then made its way to
Korea from China, and finally to Japan around the 5th
century CE.
In 467 CE, according to the Chinese historic treatise Liang
Shu, five monks from Gandhara traveled to the country of
Fusang (Chinese: 扶桑, Jp: Fusō: "The country of the extreme
East" beyond the sea, probably eastern Japan), where they
introduced Buddhism:[citation needed]
The initial period saw the introduction onto Japanese soil
of the six great Chinese schools, including the Hua-Yen and
Lu, that became respectively the Kegon and Ritsu in
Japanese. In terms of geography, the six sects were centered
around the capital city of Nara, where great temples such as
the Todaiji and Hokkeji were erected. However, the Buddhism
of this early period – later known as the Nara period – was
not a practical religion, being more the domain of learned
priests whose official function was to pray for the peace
and prosperity of the state and imperial house. This kind of
Buddhism had little to offer the illiterate and uneducated
masses, and led to the growth of “people’s priests” who were
not ordained and had no formal Buddhist training. Their
practice was a combination of Buddhist and Taoist elements,
and the incorporation of shamanistic features of the
indigenous religion. These figures became immensely popular,
and were a source of criticism towards the sophisticated
academic and bureaucratic Buddhism of the capital.
The introduction of Buddhism to Japan is securely dated to
552 in Nihon Shoki, when Seong of Baekje sent monks from
Korea to Nara to introduce the eight doctrinal schools.
Initial uptake of the new faith was slow, and Buddhism only
started to spread some years later when Empress Suiko openly
encouraged the acceptance of Buddhism among all Japanese
people. In 607, in order to obtain copies of Sutras, an
imperial envoy was dispatched to Sui dynasty China. As time
progressed and the number of Buddhist clergy increased, the
offices of Sojo (archbishop) and Sozu (bishop) were created.
By 627 there were 46 Buddhist temples, 816 Buddhist priests,
and 569 Buddhist nuns in Japan.
There were traditionally six schools of Buddhism in Nara
Japan: Ritsu (Vinaya), Jojitsu (Satyasiddhi), Kusha (Abhidharma)
Sanron (Madhyamika), Hosso (Yogacara), and Kegon (Hua-yen).[1]However
they were not exclusive schools, and temples were apt to
have scholars versed in several of the schools. It has been
suggested that they can best be thought of as "study
groups".
The Late Nara period saw the introduction of Esoteric
Buddhism (密教, Jp. mikkyo) to Japan from China, by Kūkai and
Saichō, who founded the Shingon and Tendai schools. The
later Heian period saw the formation of the first truly
Japanese school of Buddhism, that of Nichiren.
The Kamakura period saw the introduction of the two schools
that had perhaps the greatest impact on the country: the
Amidist Pure Land schools, promulgated by evangelists such
as Genshin and articulated by monks such as Hōnen, which
emphasize salvation through faith in Amitabha and remain the
largest Buddhist sect in Japan (and throughout Asia); and
the more philosophical Zen schools, which were equally
rapidly adopted by the upper classes and had a profound
impact on Japanese culture.
Information source: “Buddhism in Japan.” wikipedia.org.
Article date: 29 Jan. 2008. Retrieved: Wikipedia. 4 Feb.
2008 <Buddhism
in Japan>. |
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