Folk Religion in Japan Continuity and Change Pdf

October 22, 2022 Post a Comment

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· 27 ratings · 7 reviews

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Dec 25, 2021 Bill rated it liked it

The original publication date here is incorrect. This was originally published in 1968.

I find myself full of caveats and warnings after finishing this. I admit to skimming parts that I knew already and that were not organized in ways that would easily inform something who didn't know that material already. The meat of the book was worth it to me, but I worry that less informed readers won't get as much out of this.

The prose here was not easy to wade through. It reads like a graduate thesis by a

The original publication date here is incorrect. This was originally published in 1968.

The prose here was not easy to wade through. It reads like a graduate thesis by a non-native English speaker. I don't mean to be overly critical of Hori here; his English is well above my Japanese. I just want to inform the reader of the difficulty.

Hori has studied Western religious theory and cites and uses that theory, theory which is not particularly well suited to non-Western religions. I think that could have been left out without impacting the core studies of the book, but I wonder if the University of Chicago would have published it without them. The terminology also badly shows its age, using many derogatory terms to refer to local Japanese religious beliefs and practices.

Only recommended for those who already have a considerable knowledge of Japanese religion and are willing to overlook the book's weaknesses to find its strengths.

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An interesting book but far too erudite for me. Its depth and specialization are better suited for university majors in Japanese Religion. I do have a greater understanding of the film "Ringu" (the pervasive belief in goryo) and its remake for American audiences is likewise understandably more terrifying. An interesting book but far too erudite for me. Its depth and specialization are better suited for university majors in Japanese Religion. I do have a greater understanding of the film "Ringu" (the pervasive belief in goryo) and its remake for American audiences is likewise understandably more terrifying. ...more

A fairly elaborate book detailing various practices and ideas behind the less formalized aspects of Japanese religion. It uses a lot of traditional Japanese terms to detail abstract practices which can get a little confusing, so keep a notebook on hand. Having been living in Japan for a while I found this book to be quite enlightening in terms of understanding the deep reverence for mountains and the elaborate Buddhist systems that are in place across the country. I thought that the book's empha A fairly elaborate book detailing various practices and ideas behind the less formalized aspects of Japanese religion. It uses a lot of traditional Japanese terms to detail abstract practices which can get a little confusing, so keep a notebook on hand. Having been living in Japan for a while I found this book to be quite enlightening in terms of understanding the deep reverence for mountains and the elaborate Buddhist systems that are in place across the country. I thought that the book's emphasis on the popularization of shamanism in times of strife was an interesting one to ruminate on. Especially since the sudden surge in fans of the amabie in the modern age of Covid-19 seemed to follow the same lines discussed in the book. The highlight of the book was definitely it's discussion on the rise of the popular Nembutsu sects and the mountain practices that one can still see performed to this day. The age of the book did show in its lack of graphics and limited bibliographical sources. But this didn't really make much of an issue for me. ...more

"year of the elder horse" "year of the elder horse" ...more

Jul 13, 2013 Fabio rated it it was amazing

Excellent book. Although a bit dated, it contains a lot of interesting informations about japanese folk religion. I'm not a native english speaker, but i enjoyed a lot and read it in couple of weeks. Each chapter has its fascinating implications and i wish i couple read more from Ichico Hori. Excellent book. Although a bit dated, it contains a lot of interesting informations about japanese folk religion. I'm not a native english speaker, but i enjoyed a lot and read it in couple of weeks. Each chapter has its fascinating implications and i wish i couple read more from Ichico Hori. ...more

Feb 10, 2021 Jason Marciak rated it really liked it

A good book for those looking for more depth in the discussion and description of the various paths that Japanese religion has taken from its very early days. Anyone with an interest in Japanese history and religion should be happy to add this to this library.