REL 332: Religions of Japan
University of Southern California
Fall 2009, 60067R,
W 2:00-4:50, SOS B52
Professor Lori Meeks
Content and Approach
In contemporary Japan it is often said that individuals are “born Shintō, marry Christian, and die Buddhist.” This saying reflects the pluralistic nature of religious identity in Japan, where most individuals claim association with multiple religious traditions. The study of religion in Japan thus invites careful reflection on issues of religious identity. What does it mean to identify oneself as a Buddhist, as a Christian, or as an adherent of Shintō? Do such designations make sense in Japan, and why or why not? What do our answers to these questions tell us about the religious worlds of East Asia more broadly, and what do they tell us about our own assumptions and biases?
Reading assignments in this course will focus on the development of religious thought and practice in the Japanese islands. Although Buddhism and Shintō, the two most prominent institutional forms of religion in Japan, will take central stage, we will also explore Confucianism, Daoism, Christianity, and “popular” religious movements such as the “New Religions” that began to emerge in the early nineteenth century. Assignments focus on primary sources in translation but do include short secondary works meant to provide historical context.
Requirements and Grades
At the beginning of each class meeting students will be asked to submit a two-page written reflection on the week’s reading assignment. We will have two exams: one midterm and one final examination. Exams will cover major themes, ideas, events, people, and texts we have discussed in class. They will consist primarily of identifications, short-answer questions, and essays. Students will also be required to submit two essays, the first 5-7 pp. in length, and the second 7-9 pp. Papers are to be submitted online, through the Blackboard system, and are to entail close readings of primary source materials in translation.
Grades will be determined as follows:
Class preparation and performance 5%
Weekly Reflection Papers15%
Midterm Examination (Oct. 7)15%
First Paper (5-7pp., due Oct. 16)20%
Second Paper(7-9 pp., due Nov. 13)20%
Final Examination25%
Textbooks
The following seven books are available for purchase at the University Bookstore and have also been placed on Course Reserves at Leavey Library:
(1)Ian Reader, Japanese Religions: Past and Present (Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1993);
(2)George J. Tanabe, Jr., Religions of Japan in Practice (Princeton: Princeton UP, 1999);
(3)Kamo no Chomei, Hojoki: Visions of a Torn World (Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, 1996);
(4)Alfred Bloom, The Essential Shinran: A Buddhist Path of True Entrusting (Bloomington, IN: World Wisdom, 2007);
(5)John Daido Loori and Kazuaki Tanahashi, trans., The True Dharma Eye: Zen Master Dogen's Three Hundred Koans (Boston: Shambhala, 2009);
(6)Duncan Ryuken Williams, The Other Side of Zen: A Social History of Soto Zen Buddhism in Tokugawa Japan (Princeton: Princeton UP, 2009);
(7)William Theodore DeBary, Sources of Japanese Tradition, Volume 2, Second Edition (Abridged: Part 1: 1600 to 1868, Introduction to Asian Civilizations) (New York: Columbia UP, 2006);
(8)Stephen Covell, Japanese Temple Buddhism: Worldliness in a Religion of Renunciation(Honolulu: Hawaii UP, 2006).
Some supplementary readings will be made available on ARES, USC’s online reserves system.
Reference Works
These volumes have been placed on reserve at Leavey Library:
(1)Robert Buswell, ed., Encyclopedia of Buddhism (Farmington Hills, MI: Macmillan Reference, USA, 2004), available online through Homer (from a USC network computer, or for USC users logged on through VPN):
(2) Richard Bowring, The Religious Traditions of Japan, 500-1600 (Cambridge, England: Cambridge UP, 2005);
(3)The Cambridge History of Japan, 5 vols. (New York: Cambridge UP, 1989).
Policy Statements
(1)All laptops and cell phones must be switched off completely during class.
(2)Class sessions may not be recorded in any way without explicit permission from the instructor.
(3)Deadline extensions will not be allowed unless you provide documented evidence of a medical or family emergency. Penalty for papers submitted after the due date: 1/3 letter grade (e.g., from B to B-) for each day that the paper is late.
(4)Students are responsible for familiarizing themselves with USC’s standards of scholarly integrity. Take a few minutes to review the “Academic Integrity,” which can be found at It is critical that you understand and adhere to University policies on academic integrity, as those caught plagiarizing or cheating will be reported to the Office of Student Judicial Affairs and expelled from the course. There will be no second chances.
(5)Students who would like to request academic accommodations based on disability must register with Disability Services and Programs (DSP) at the beginning of each semester. DSP will provide a letter of verification when proper documentation is filed. If you require such accommodations, please deliver this verification letter to me during the first two weeks of the semester. The DSP office, which is located in Student Union 301, is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 am until 5:00 pm. Their phone number is (213) 740-0776.
Faculty Contact Information
Lori MeeksAssistant Professor of Religion and East Asian Languages and
Cultures
Office:School of Religion, ACB 233
ACB, aka the “Cheese Grater Building,” is located at 825 Bloom Walk, just across the way from Mudd Hall of Philosophy.
Office Hours: Tues. 1:30-2:30 pm, Wed. 11:00-12:00 pm, or by appointment
Phone:(213) 821-5477
Email:
I recommend that all studentsvisit me during office hours at least twice during the semester. If you are not available during my scheduled office hours, please see me after class so we can arrange an alternate time to meet.
Serious or extensive questions should be brought to me during office hours; please use email for simple matters only.
Schedule
Aug. 27WFirst Day of Class
Introduction to the Course:Sources and Methodology
Film Screening: Fragment, by Makoto Sasaki (90 min.)
Sept. 2WThe Big Picture: Introducing Japanese Religions
Background Reading: “Meeting Japanese Culture,” and “Japanese Religions: An Introduction,” in Japanese Religions Past and Present (Japanese Religions), pp. 11-43. On BB (Blackboard): (a) Robert Kisala, “Japanese Religions,” pp. 1-13; (b) Richard Payne, “The Ritual Culture of Japan: Symbolism, Ritual, and the Arts,” pp. 235-256, both in Paul Swanson and Clark Chilson, Nanzan Guide to Japanese Religions.
Recent newspaper stories on Japanese Religions:
On BB (Blackboard): (a) Norimitsu Onishi, “God’s Home Gets Rehab, and Japan Sneaks Peek,” New York Times, August 26, 2008; (b) Norimitsu Onishi, “In Japan, Buddhism May Be Dying Out,” New York Times, July 14, 2008; (c) “Faking it as a priest in Japan,” BBC News, Nov. 2, 2006 (
Sept. 9W“Shinto” and “Folk Religion”
Background Reading: Japanese Religions, pp. 44-92.
Primary Source Material: In Tanabe: (a) “Records and Customs in the Land of Izumo,” pp. 113-116;(b) “Tama Belief and Practice in Ancient Japan,” pp. 141-152; (c) “The Purification Formula of the Nakatomi,” pp. 210-219; (d) “The Shintō Wedding Ceremony: A Modern Norito,” pp. 135-138.
Sept. 16WBuddhism
Background Reading: Japanese Religions, pp. 93-120.
Primary Source Material: In Tanabe: (a) “Hagiography and History: The Image of Prince Shōtoku,” pp. 316-333; (b) “En the Ascetic,” pp. 343-353; (c) “Miraculous Tales of the Hasedera Kannon,” pp. 117-123; (d) “The Founding of the Monastery Gangōji and a List of Its Treasures,” pp. 299-315.
Sept. 23WThe Aesthetic Discourse of Impermanence
Primary Source Material: Kamo no Chomei, Hojoki: Visions of a Torn World (Berkeley: Stone Bridge Press, 1996).
See also: “Women and Japanese Buddhism: Tales of Birth in the Pure Land,” in Tanabe, pp. 176-184.
Sept. 30WThe “New” Buddhism of the Kamakura Period
Alfred Bloom, The Essential Shinran: A Buddhist Path of True Entrusting (Bloomington, IN: World Wisdom, 2007).
Oct. 7WMidterm Examination (In-class, 60 min.) and Field Trip
Trip to LACMA
Oct. 14WUnderstanding Zen
John Daido Loori and Kazuaki Tanahashi, trans., The True Dharma Eye: Zen Master Dogen's Three Hundred Koans (Boston: Shambhala, 2009).
Oct. 16FFirst Paper Due (Submit Online)
Oct. 21WConfucianism in Tokugawa Japan
In DeBary (Sources of Japanese Tradition): (a) “Confucianism in the Early Tokugawa Period,” pp. 28-68; (b) “The Spread of Neo-Confucianism in Japan,” pp. 75-126.
Oct. 28WZen and Tokugawa-Period Social Practice
Duncan Ryuken Williams, The Other Side of Zen: A Social History of Soto Zen Buddhism in Tokugawa Japan (Princeton: Princeton UP, 2009), pp. 1-124.
Nov. 4WThe New Religions
Background Reading: Japanese Religions, pp. 121-152.
Primary Source Material: In DeBary: “Varieties of Neo-Confucian Education,” pp. 217-234. On Blackboard: “The New Religions,” in DeBary, vol. 2, part 2, pp. 417-445.
Nov. 11WReligion and the State
Background Reading: Japanese Religions, pp. 153-178.
Primary Source Reading: In Tanabe: (a) “Nationalistic Shinto: A Child’s Guide to the Yasukuni Shrine,” pp. 334-343; (b) “Motoori Norinaga on the Two Shrines at Ise,” pp. 435-450. On Blackboard: “State Shinto,” in DeBary, vol. 2, part 2, pp. 117-126.
Nov. 13FSecond Paper Due (Submit Online)
Nov. 18WBuddhism in Postwar Japan
Stephen Covell, Japanese Temple Buddhism: Worldliness in a Religion of Renunciation(Honolulu: Hawaii UP, 2006), pp. 1-108.
Nov. 25WBuddhism in Postwar Japan
Continue reading Covell, Japanese Temple Buddhism, pp. 109-197.
[This is the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. We may reschedule class if a majority votes to do so.]
Dec. 2WLast Day of Class
Reflections on the Course
Review for Final Exam
Dec. 11FFinal Exam
2:00-4:00 pm, in our normal classroom (SOS B52).
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