japanese religion :: essays research papers

JapanReligious and Philosophical TraditionsThe values described in the preceding section are derived from a number of religious and philosophical traditions, some(prenominal) indigenous and foreign. Taken together, these traditions whitethorn be considered the Japanese worldview, although the personal dogmas of an individual Japanese may incorporate some aspects and disregard others. The Japanese worldview is eclectic, contrasting with a Western view in which religion is exclusive and defines ones identity. Contemporary Japanese society is highly secular. Cause and effect relations are frequently found in scientific models, and illness and death are explained by modern medical theories. Yet the scientific view is but one of the options from which an individual may draw in interpreting lifes experiences. The Japanese worldview is characterized also by a pragmatic approach to problem solving, in which the technique may be slight important than the results. Thus a Japanese who is i ll may simultaneously or sequentially seek the assistance of a medical doctor, obtain music from a person trained in the Chinese herbal tradition, and visit a local shrine. Each of these actions is based on a different belief in causation of the illness the physician may say that the illness is caused by a bacterial infection the herbalist regards the body as beingness out of balance and the basis of the shrine visit is the belief that the mind must be cleansed to heal the body. In the West, these explanations might be viewed as in return exclusive, but the Japanese patient may hold all of these views simultaneously without a sense of discord. Similarly, a student studying for university entrance examinations knows that without extraordinary fleshy work, admission is impossible. Yet the student will probably also visit a special shrine to ask for the help of the spiritual world in ensuring success. The roots of the Japanese worldview can be traced to several traditions. Shinto, the only indigenous religion of Japan, provided the base.