The Development of the Kenmitsu System as Japan's Medieval Orthodoxy
Medieval Japan was dominated by a religious system, the so-called kenmitsu system, which provided a cohesive ideological structure for its social and political order. It arose against the backdrop of the medieval estate system and the emerging peasant class. The core of the kenmitsu system was esote...
| Published in: | Japanese journal of religious studies |
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| Main Author: | |
| Contributors: | |
| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
Nanzan Institute
[1996]
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| In: |
Japanese journal of religious studies
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| Further subjects: | B
Emperors
B Aristocracy B Religious Practices B Vajrayana B Esotericism B Religious Studies B Pure Land Buddhism |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | Medieval Japan was dominated by a religious system, the so-called kenmitsu system, which provided a cohesive ideological structure for its social and political order. It arose against the backdrop of the medieval estate system and the emerging peasant class. The core of the kenmitsu system was esoteric beliefs and practices, around which the different exoteric doctrines of Tendai and other schools coalesced. Esoteric practices were thought to embody the truths of Mahāyāna Buddhism, but also to provide thaumaturgic means to control the ominous spirit world recognized by society. The teachings and practices of Pure Land Buddhism were born out of this system, and the Tendai doctrine of original enlightenment (hongaku) was an archetypal expression of it. The kenmitsu worldview provided the ideological basis for the medieval Japanese state, and was integrated into its system of rule. |
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| Contains: | Enthalten in: Japanese journal of religious studies
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