Japan is one of the most urbanised and industrialised countries in the world. Yet the Japanese continue to practise a variety of religious rituals and ceremonies despite the high-tech, highly regimented nature of Japanese society. Ceremony and Ritual in Japan focuses on the traditional and religious aspects of Japanese society from an anthropological perspective, presenting new material and making cross-cultural comparisons.
The chapters in this collection cover topics as diverse as funerals and mourning, sweeping, women's roles in ritual, the division of ceremonial foods into bitter and sweet, the history of a shrine, the playing of games, the exchange of towels and the relationship between ceremony and the workplace. The book provides an overview of the meaning of tradition, and looks at the way in which new ceremonies have sprung up in changing circumstances, while old ones have been preserved, or have developed new meanings.

eBook available with sample pages: 0203429540

"Thirty-Five Oriental Philosophers" provides an introduction to the philosophical traditions known as oriental. Despite the growing interest in eastern thought in the West, this is the only volume to provide a comprehensive overview of the entire spectrum of oriental philosophy in an accessible format.
This major reference work provides a close analysis of the key works of central figures in the traditions of Zoroastrianism, Islam, India, Tibet, China, and Japan, ranging from earliest times to the present day. The book is composed of essays on individual philosophers which outline the central themes of their thought, list their major works, and provide suggestions for further reading.
Each major section is prefaced by a short sub-introduction which places the philosopher into the appropriate tradition and indicates how the various traditions have interacted over time. Areas which have a high profile in the West, such as Islam and Zen, receive extended treatment. Philosophical difficulties associated with each position are discussed, and references to parallel ideas in the Western philosophical tradition are indicated as they occur. A glossary of key philosophical terms is also provided.

In late-eighteenth-century India, the glory of the Mughal emperors was fading, and ambitious newcomers seized power, changing the political map forever. Enter the legendary Maharajah Ranjit Singh, whose Sikh Empire stretched throughout northwestern India into Afghanistan and Tibet. Priya Atwal shines fresh light on this long-lost kingdom, looking beyond its founding father to restore the queens and princes to the story of this empire's spectacular rise and fall. She brings to life a self-made ruling family, inventively fusing Sikh, Mughal and European ideas of power, but eventually succumbing to gendered family politics, as the Sikh Empire fell to its great rival in the new India: the British. Royals and Rebels is a fascinating tale of family, royalty and the fluidity of power, set in a dramatic global era when new stars rose and upstart empires clashed.

Neo-Confucianism, the state sponsored orthodoxy of China's later empires, is now recognized as an important key to understanding China. This study looks at the roots of Neo-Confucianism in an age when Buddhism and Taoism had eclipsed the Confucian tradition in importance. Li Ao (c. 772-836 A.D.), though generally acknowledged as a forerunner of Neo-Confucianism, is still regarded as deeply influenced by Buddhism. The historical reasons for the creation of this image of Li Ao are examined, prior to a close investigation of the actual circumstances which shaped his "Fu-hsing shu" "Book of Returing to One's True Nature" the essay which had the deepest influence on the development of early Neo-Confucianism. Although common assumptions about Buddhist influence on Li Ao are questioned, the true importance of the essay emerges in the typically Chinese patterns of thought which it exhibits and which gave it an impact transcending the immediate circumstances that prompted its writing.

Bhai Gurdas Bhalla (d. 1636 CE) is widely considered the most important non-canonical poet in Sikh history, having shaped the theology and ethics of the tradition for centuries. His beautiful poems, which offer an authoritative illustration of Sikh life in the early seventeenth century, defined Sikh identity during a tumultuous period of upheaval. In Drinking from Love's Cup Rahuldeep Gill brings together for the first time a collection of the revered poet's early work, masterfully translated into English, along with the original Punjabi text. The magic of Gurdas's poetry, says Gill, lies in its fusion of Islamicate narrative traditions with the heroic literature of India to speak about death, martyrdom, and the spirit's absolution in love. Rhythmic, elegant, and lucid, the poems weave Sikh scripture into the lyrical fabric of Sikh spirituality. Challenging traditional scholarship surrounding the dates of Gurdas's writing, Gill suggests that Gurdas wrote his poetry to console the Sikh community, which was in mourning over the execution of the fifth of the Sikh founders, Guru Arjan (d. 1606), by agents of the Mughal Empire. Ranking among the best of the Punjabi language troubadours, Gurdas in his verses immortalized the fifth Guru's role as a martyr. His poems were written to encourage the faithful to stay involved in the community, resist hegemony, and reinforce Sikh beliefs during sectarian upheaval. This book brings a contemporary flair to Gurdas's moving stanzas, and also unearths fresh insights about his life and context.

The term Yao refers to a non-sinitic speaking, southern "Chinese" people who originated in central China, south of the Yangzi River. Despite categorization by Chinese and Western scholars of Yao as an ethnic minority with a primitive culture, it is now recognized that not only are certain strains of religious Daoism prominent in Yao ritual traditions, but the Yao culture also shares many elements with pre-modern official and mainstream Chinese culture. This book is the first to furnish a history-part cultural, part political, and part religious-of contacts between the Chinese state and autochthonous peoples (identified since the 11th century as Yao people) in what is now South China. It vividly details the influence of Daoism on the rich history and culture of the Yao people. The book also includes an examination of the specific terminology, narratives, and symbols (Daoist/ imperial) that represent and mediate these contacts. "This is an important piece of work on a little studied, but very interesting subject, namely, Taoism among the non-Sinitic peoples of South China and adjoining areas." - Professor Victor Mair, University of Pennsylvania "This brilliant study by Eli Alberts has now cleared away much of the cloud that has been caused by previous, mostly impressionistic scholarship on the "Dao of the Yao." - Professor Barend J.ter Haar, Leiden University

The Genius of Japanese Carpentry tells the story of the 1200-year-old Yakushiji monastery in Nara, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, and the dedicated modern-day craftsmen who are working to restore what has been lost to the depredations of time, fire and warfare. Although the monastery's reconstruction will not be fully completed until 2030, one of the primary temples, the Picture Hall, has been wholly restored employing the same materials, tools and techniques originally used in its creation over a millennium ago. Featuring intricate, puzzle-like joinery and the integration of timber pieces to orient them in the same direction as when it was a growing tree, this book skillfully documents the stunning craftsmanship of the ancient Japanese, which is still alive today. First published more than thirty years ago, this book has become a classic. Author Azby Brown, one of the world's leading experts on Japanese architecture, chronicles the painstaking restoration of the Yakushiji monastery through: Extensive interviews with carpenters and woodworkers Original drawings based on the plans of master carpenter Tsunekazu Nishioka Detailed photographs and diagrams showing the woodworking techniques, tools and materials used This revised edition of the book contains a new foreword by Mira Locher, one of the world's leading experts on vernacular and modern Japanese architecture. An inspiring testament to the dedication of these craftsmen and their philosophy of carpentry work as a form of personal fulfillment, The Genius of Japanese Carpentry offers detailed documentation of the restoration of this historic building and a moving reminder of the unique cultural continuity found in Japan.

Offers an in-depth and focused exploration of the relationship between psychoanalysis and Chinese and Japanese culture based on their ancient traditions rather than a cross-cultural approach that refers to Asian cultures in terms of contemporary generalities and cultural stereotypes. Provides a close reading of how Lacan mobilizes concepts from Zen Buddhist philosophy, culture and practice in his later teachings.

It’s time to revisit the Kokoro Clinic for the Soul.

Though it is mysteriously located at an uncertain address, the Kokoro clinic can always be found by those who need it. And it has proven time after time that a prescribed cat has the power to heal the emotional wounds of all its patients.

This irresistible sequel introduces a new loveable cast of healing cats, from Kotetsu, a four-month-old Bengal who unleashes his energy by demolishing bed linen, to curious Shasha, who won't let her tiny size stop her, and lazy Ms. Michiko, who is as soft and comforting as mochi.

As characters from one chapter re-appear as side characters in the next, we follow a young woman who cannot help pushing away the man who loves her; a recently widowed grandfather whose grandson refuses to leave his room; and an anxious man working at a cat shelter who seeks to show how difficult cats can be the most rewarding.

This book examines the paradoxical structure of Yijing known as the Book of Changes-a structure that promotes in a non-hierarchical way the harmony and transformation of opposites. Because the non-hierarchical model is not limited to the East Asian tradition, it will be considered in relation to ideas developed in the West, including Carl Jung's archetypal psychology, Georg Cantor's Diagonal Theorem, Rene Girard's mimetic desire, and Alfred North Whitehead's process thought. By critically reviewing the numerical and symbolic structures of Yijing, the author introduces Kim Ilbu's Jeongyeok (The Book of Right Changes) and demonstrates that he intensifies the correlation between opposites to overcome any hierarchical system implied by the Yijing. Both the Yijing and the Jeongyeok are textual sources for kindling a discussion about the Divine conceived in Eastern and Western philosophical-theological traditions quite differently. While the non-theistic aspects of the Ultimate feature prominently in Yijing, Jeongyeok extends them to a theistic issue by bringing the notion of Sangjae, the Supreme Lord, which can lead to a fruitful dialogue for understanding the dipolar characteristics of the divine reality-personal and impersonal. The author considers their contrast that has divided Eastern and Western religious belief systems, to be transformational and open to a wider perspective of the divine conception in the process of change.

Anne Murphy offers a groundbreaking exploration of the material aspects of Sikh identity, showing how material objects, as well as holy sites, and texts, embody and represent the Sikh community as an evolving historical and social construction. Widening traditional scholarly emphasis on holy sites and texts alone to include consideration of iconic objects, such as garments and weaponry, Murphy moves further and examines the parallel relationships among sites, texts, and objects. She reveals that objects have played dramatically different roles across regimes-signifers of authority in one, mere possessions in another-and like Sikh texts, which have long been a resource for the construction of Sikh identity, material objects have served as a means of imagining and representing the past. Murphy's deft and nuanced study of the complex role objects have played and continue to play in Sikh history and memory will be a valuable resource to students and scholars of Sikh history and culture.

While academic and popular studies of Buddhism have often neglected race as a factor of analysis, the issues concerning race and racialization have remained not far below the surface of the wider discussion among ethnic Buddhists, converts, and sympathizers regarding representations of American Buddhism and adaptations of Buddhist practices to the American context. In Race and Religion in American Buddhism, Joseph Cheah provides a much-needed contribution to the field of religious studies by addressing the under-theorization of race in the study of American Buddhism. Through the lens of racial formation, Cheah demonstrates how adaptations of Buddhist practices by immigrants, converts and sympathizers have taken place within an environment already permeated with the logic and ideology of whiteness and white supremacy. In other words, race and religion (Buddhism) are so intimately bounded together in the United States that the ideology of white supremacy informs the differing ways in which convert Buddhists and sympathizers and Burmese ethnic Buddhists have adapted Buddhist religious practices to an American context.
Cheah offers a complex view of how the Burmese American community must negotiate not only the religious and racial terrains of the United States but also the transnational reach of the Burmese junta. Race and Religion in American Buddhism marks an important contribution to the study of American Buddhism as well as to the larger fields of U.S. religions and Asian American studies.

The Samkhyayoga institution of Kapil Math is a religious organisation with a small tradition of followers which emerged in the last decade of the nineteenth century and the first decades of the twentieth century in Bengal in India around the renunciant and yogin Hariharananda Aranya. This tradition developed during the same period in which modern yoga was born and forms a chapter in the expansion of yoga traditions in modern Hinduism. The book analyses the yoga teaching of Hariharananda Aranya (1869-1947) and the Kapil Math tradition, its origin, history and contemporary manifestations, and this tradition's connection to the expansion of yoga and the Yogasutra in modern Hinduism. The Samkhyayoga of the Kapil Math tradition is based on the Patanjalayogasastra, on a number of texts in Sanskrit and Bengali written by their gurus, and on the lifestyle of the renunciant yogin living isolated in a cave. The book investigates Hariharananda Aranya's connection to pre-modern yoga traditions and the impact of modern production and transmission of knowledge on his interpretations of yoga. The book connects the Kapil Math tradition to the nineteenth century transformations of Bengali religious culture of the educated upper class that led to the production of a new type of yogin. The book analyses Samkhyayoga as a living tradition, its current teachings and practices, and looks at what Samkhyayogins do and what Samkhyayoga is as a yoga practice. A valuable contribution to recent and ongoing debates, this book will be of interest to academics in the fields of Religious Studies, Anthropology, Asian Studies, Indology, Indian philosophy, Hindu Studies and Yoga Studies.

This book brings together an impressive group of scholars to critically engage with a wide-ranging and broad perspective on the historical and contemporary phenomenon of Zen. The structure of the work is organized to reflect the root and branches of Zen, with the root referring to important episodes in Chan/Zen history within the Asian context, and the branches referring to more recent development in the West. In collating what has transpired in the last several decades of Chan/Zen scholarship, the collection recognizes and honors the scholarly accomplishments and influences of Steven Heine, arguably the most important Zen scholar in the past three decades. As it looks back at the intellectual horizons that this towering figure in Zen/Chan studies has pioneered and developed, it seeks to build on the grounds that were broken and subsequently established by Heine, thereby engendering new works within this enormously important religio-cultural scholarly tradition. This curated Festschrift is a tribute, both retrospective and prospective, acknowledging the foundational work that Heine has forged, and generates research that is both complementary and highly original. This academic ritual of assembling a liber amicorum is based on the presumption that sterling scholarship should be honored by conscientious scholarship. In the festive spirit of a Festschrift, this anthology consists of the resounding voices of Heine and his colleagues. It is an indispensable collection for students and scholars interested in Japanese religion and Chinese culture, and for those researching Zen Buddhist history and philosophy.

Yijiang Zhong analyses the formation of Shinto as a complex and diverse religious tradition in early modern and Meiji Japan, 1600-1868. Highlighting the role of the god Okuninushi and the mythology centered on the Izumo Shrine in western Japan as part of this process, he shows how and why this god came to be ignored in State Shinto in the modern period. In doing so, Zhong moves away from the traditional understanding of Shinto history as something completely internal to the nation of Japan, and instead situates the formation of Shinto within a larger geopolitical context involving intellectual and political developments in the East Asian region and the role of western colonial expansion. The Origin of Modern Shinto in Japan draws extensively on primary source materials in Japan, many of which were only made available to the public less than a decade ago and have not yet been studied. Source materials analysed include shrine records and object materials, contemporary written texts, official materials from the national and provincial levels, and a broad range of visual sources based on contemporary prints, drawings, photographs and material culture.

Since its discovery and the initial efforts toward its critical edition, the Paippaladasamhita of the Atharvaveda (PS) has attracted the attention of Vedic scholars and Indologists for several reasons. It constitutes a precious source for the study of the development of the earliest language. The text contains important information about various rites and magical practices, and hints about the oldest Indo-Iranian and Indo-European myths. All of this makes the PS a text of inestimable value for the study of Indian language and culture.

This review is from: Sudden Awakening: Into Direct Realization (Paperback) Amazon: For anyone who sincerely wants to have the truth laid out clearly, and concisely, leaving no traps of the mind unexposed, and who wants to receive a transmission of silence that your heart will recognize from every page - this book will be deeply satisfying. Eli Jaxon-Bear is able to transmit the truth in person and by the written word. Reading this book is being with your own self, not in any kind of New Age dream of enlightenment that just pleases the ego with a spiritual story, but in a real, tangible way that can give you the taste of what is actually possible for humanity, here and now. It is a very timely book, because when we look around and see that so many people are fed up with the results of business as usual, this book offers a real alternative, a radical shift of consciousness, that is so needed. I am very grateful that this book was written, and that it's so freely available.

This is an introductory guide to the Dao de Jing, exploring key themes and passages in this key work of Daoist thought. The Dao De Jing represents one of the most important works of Chinese philosophy, in which the author, Lao Zi (c. 580-500 BC), lays the foundations of Taoism. Composed of 81 short sections, the text itself is written in a poetic style that is ambiguous and challenging for the modern reader. Yet while its meaning may be obscure, the text displays the originality of Lao Zi's wisdom and remains a hugely influential work to this day. In "Reading the Dao: A Thematic Inquiry", Wang Keping offers a clear and accessible guide to this hugely important text. Wang's thematic approach opens up key elements of the Dao De Jing in a way that highlights and clarifies the central arguments for the modern reader. Presenting comprehensive textual analysis of key passages and a useful survey of recent Taoist scholarship, the book provides the reader with an insight into the origins of Taoist philosophy. This is the ideal companion to the study of this classic Taoist text.

This book offers a critical-constructive study of Korean women's self-esteem from a feminist practical theological perspective. Jaeyeon Lucy Chung recognizes two different and yet related problems: the absence of scholarly work on women's self-esteem from non-white, non-Western groups in the field of practical theology, and the lack of attention to the low self-esteem prevalent in Korean women's sociocultural and religious context. Chung employs in-depth interview studies while drawing on theoretical resources of psychology, theology, and cultural studies to develop a relational-communal theory of self-esteem, and a systematic, communal understanding of pastoral care practice. The project offers insights into the life experience of Korean women, especially self-esteem, and it reveals some of the ways self-esteem can be fostered.

Experience Serenity and Hope Daily "The Woman's Book of Joy is like a comforting friend supporting us in our struggles." -Mandy Keast-Southall, therapist and yoga teacher When you learn to tap into the deep wellspring of joy that is within you, nothing is impossible. A book of joy. Women have a great many challenges to deal with in their lives. Among the most ubiquitous of those challenges is self-care. Too often, we are focused on caring for others and not ourselves. Low self-esteem, anxiety, and depression are all too common when our lives are less fulfilling than they could be. Yet deep within, women have a tremendous spiritual resource a capacity for real joy that is not dependent on anything external. It is always available, regardless of circumstances. Find your inner spirituality. Many self-help books can lead people into further self-judgement. Instead, The Woman's Book of Joy encourages and inspires women to care more deeply for themselves and to face life's challenges with courage and joy. It's a practical motivational book for accessing inner wisdom, enhancing self-esteem, overcoming sorrow, and deepening relationships. Thinking deeply. The meditations and affirmations in this book will provide you with the opportunity to contemplate a wide range of topics, including: Developing awareness Letting go Believing in your dreams Living in the now Finding your true purpose Practicing kindness Being optimistic Trusting the universe Appreciating life's blessings If you found joy in meditation books and inspirational books for women like I've Been Thinking..., Journey to the Heart, and Each Day a New Beginning, you'll be encouraged and uplifted by The Woman's Book of Joy.