Today, there are an estimated 56 divisions, and 170
subdivisions, in Japanese Buddhism. The basic beliefs of the religion's founder,
Sakyamuni, born a prince in eastern India around 500 BCE, advocated the “Middle
Way” between self-indulgence and asceticism. The Buddha, as he came to
be known, blamed all pain in the world on desire, and claimed that through right
living, desire could be ended and the "self" totally done away with
through entry into the blissful state of Nirvana (Buddahood).
Buddha's followers came to believe that one who really knows the truth lives
the life of truth, and becomes truth itself. By overcoming the conflicts of
the ego, one can attain a vision of universal, cosmic harmony. Mahayana, meaning
"Greater Vehicle," was the form of Buddhism that became established
through most of East Asia. It holds that every being shared a basic spiritual
communion, and that all are destined for Buddahood. Every person's present situation
is determined by past deeds, Buddhists believe; this is the principle of karma.
By the time Buddhism reached Japan's shores via China, Buddhism had already
changed tremendously. It was to undergo even more radical change when it encountered
the beliefs already held in the "Land of the Gods." For example, although
the goal of Nirvana is to break the cycle of reincarnation, most Japanese Buddhists
seem to believe that the souls of the dead are eventually reborn. It is believed
that the dead go to paradise which is in direct contradiction to the more "orthodox"
Buddhist belief in death as a "permanent state". Japanese spirits
return to earth from the mountains for the mid-summer "Feast of the Dead".
This may derive from the special place mountains have always held in Japanese
religious lore. The Japanese concept of after-life, appears to be quite similar
to that held before Buddhism arrived. Most believe that the life force passed
on from one generation to the next continues eternally.
Traditional
Arts in Japan
Shinto
Defined
The "Middle
Way" of Buddhism
Experiencing
a Buddhist Temple
Japanese
Cheat Sheet
