Japan Museum SieboldHuis (Siebold House) is a museum located at the Rapenburg (Leiden) [ nl ] in Leiden, Netherlands . It displays items that were collected by Philipp Franz von Siebold (1796-1866) between 1823 and 1829 during his stay at Dejima , the Dutch trade colony nearby Nagasaki in Japan. It also functions as a museum of Japanese culture .
113-614: Mission statement: "The aim of Japan Museum SieboldHuis ’Stichting Japanmuseum SieboldHuis’ is to exhibit (museum) collections relevant to Japanese art, culture, science and nature, in particular the Leiden Siebold Collection, as well as to strengthen the ties between the Netherlands and Japan and to promote Japan Museum SieboldHuis as museum and information centre." Siebold was highly interested in all aspects of Japanese nature and culture, and as such his collection
226-602: A Chief Rabbi for the first time, the head of Tokyo's Chabad House , Rabbi Binyamin Edrei. Hinduism (ヒンドゥー教 Hindūkyō or 印度教 Indokyō ) in Japan is practiced by a small number of people, mostly migrants from China , India , Nepal , and Bali . Nevertheless, Hindu culture have had a significant but indirect role in Japanese culture, through the spread of Buddhism and the fascination of ancient world about Bharatvarsha. Four of
339-492: A brush rather than a pen , and their familiarity with brush techniques has made them particularly sensitive to the values and aesthetics of painting. With the rise of popular culture in the Edo period , ukiyo-e , a style of woodblock prints, became a major form and its techniques were fine-tuned to create mass-produced, colorful pictures; in spite of painting's traditional pride of place, these prints proved to be instrumental in
452-486: A syllabary system for transcribing sounds and ideas (see kana ), and most were incapable of reading texts that employed Chinese ideographs ( kanji ). Thus, the Kegon Engi Emaki combines passages of text, written with a maximum of easily readable syllables, and illustrations that have the dialogue between characters written next to the speakers, a technique comparable to contemporary comic strips. The plot of
565-582: A "western-style" format are also popular but much less so and a small fraction (usually less than one percent) of weddings are Buddhist. Japanese funerals are usually performed by Buddhist priests, and Buddhist rites are also common on death day anniversaries of deceased family members. 91% of Japanese funerals take place according to Buddhist traditions. There are two categories of holidays in Japan: matsuri (temple fairs), which are largely of Shinto origin (some are Buddhist like Hanamatsuri ) and relate to
678-596: A Japanese convert, helped the Jesuits understanding Japanese culture and translating the first Japanese catechism. These missionaries were successful in converting large numbers of people in Kyushu, including peasants, former Buddhist monks, and members of the warrior class. In 1559, a mission to the capital, Kyoto , was started. By the following year there were nine churches, and the Christian community grew steadily in
791-587: A Korean peninsula, Buddhist icons were brought to Japan by Various immigrant groups. Particularly, the semi-seated Maitreya form was adapted into a highly developed Ancient Greek art style which was transmitted to Japan as evidenced by the Kōryū-ji Miroku Bosatsu and the Chūgū-ji Siddhartha statues. Many historians portray Korea as a mere transmitter of Buddhism. The Three Kingdoms, and particularly Baekje, were instrumental as active agents in
904-451: A Shinto shrine and Buddhist temples. The birth of a new baby is celebrated with a formal shrine or temple visit at the age of about one month, as are the third, fifth, and seventh birthdays ( Shichi-Go-San ) and the official beginning of adulthood at age twenty ( Seijin shiki ). The vast majority of Japanese wedding ceremonies have been Christian for at least the last three and half decades. Shinto weddings and secular weddings that follow
1017-409: A form of Vajrayana Buddhism, which he introduced into Japan in 806. At the core of Shingon worship is mandalas , diagrams of the spiritual universe, which then began to influence temple design. Japanese Buddhist architecture also adopted the stupa , originally an Indian architectural form , in its Chinese-style pagoda. The temples erected for this new sect were built in the mountains, far away from
1130-574: A generally positive image in Japan . Islam (イスラム教 Isuramukyō ) in Japan is mostly represented by small immigrant communities from other parts of Asia . In 2008, Keiko Sakurai estimated that 80–90% of the Muslims in Japan were foreign-born migrants primarily from Indonesia, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Iran. It has been estimated that the Muslim immigrant population amounts to 10,000–50,000 people, while
1243-417: A main rectangular structure flanked by two L-shaped wing corridors and a tail corridor, set at the edge of a large artificial pond. Inside, a single golden image of Amida ( c. 1053 ) is installed on a high platform. The Amida sculpture was executed by Jōchō , who used a new canon of proportions and a new technique ( yosegi ), in which multiple pieces of wood are carved out like shells and joined from
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#17327731022591356-419: A major industry at various points. Japanese lacquerware is also one of the world's leading arts and crafts, and works gorgeously decorated with maki-e were exported to Europe and China, remaining important exports until the 19th century. In architecture , Japanese preferences for natural materials and an interaction of interior and exterior space are clearly expressed. The first settlers of Japan were
1469-405: A member of folk "Shinto", "Shinto membership" is often estimated counting those who join organised Shinto sects. Shinto has 100,000 shrines and 78,890 priests in the country. Profound changes occurred in Japanese society in the 20th century (especially after World War II ), including rapid industrialisation and urbanisation. Traditional religions, challenged by the transformation, underwent
1582-461: A minimum of detail. Catching a Catfish with a Gourd (early 15th century, Taizō-in , Myōshin-ji , Kyoto), by the priest-painter Josetsu (active c. 1400 ), marks a turning point in Muromachi painting. Executed originally for a low-standing screen, it has been remounted as a hanging scroll with inscriptions by contemporary figures above, one of which refers to the painting as being in
1695-512: A modification of Yayoi culture, attributable either to internal development or external force. This period is most notable for its tomb culture and other artifacts such as bronze mirrors and clay sculptures called haniwa which were erected outside these tombs. Throughout the Kofun period, the characteristics of these tombs evolved from smaller tombs erected on hilltops and ridges to much larger tombs built on flat land. The largest tomb in Japan,
1808-676: A new, more realistic style of sculpture. The two Niō guardian images (1203) in the Great South Gate of the Tōdai-ji in Nara illustrate .Unkei's dynamic supra-realistic style. The images, about 8 m (about 26 ft) tall, were carved of multiple blocks in a period of about three months, a feat indicative of a developed studio system of artisans working under the direction of a master sculptor. Unkei's polychromed wood sculptures (1208, Kōfuku-ji , Nara) of two Indian sages, Muchaku and Seshin ,
1921-699: A philosophical path or study (from the Chinese word dào ). The oldest recorded usage of the word Shindo dates from the second half of the 6th century. Kami are defined in English as "spirits", "essences" or "gods", referring to the energy generating the phenomena. Since the Japanese language does not distinguish between singular and plural, kami refers to the divinity , or sacred essence, that manifests in multiple forms: rocks, trees, rivers, animals, places, and even people can be said to possess
2034-584: A poll conducted by the Gallup Organization in 2006, Christianity had increased significantly in Japan , particularly among youth, and a high number of teens were becoming Christians. Throughout the latest century, some Western customs originally related to Christianity (including Western style weddings , Valentine's Day and Christmas ) have become popular among many of the Japanese. For example, 60–70% of weddings performed in Japan are Christian-style. Christianity and Christian culture has
2147-441: A profound influence on the fabric of Japanese society overall during the Edo period . The Confucian philosophy can be characterized as humanistic and rationalistic, with the belief that the universe could be understood through human reason, corresponding to the universal reason ( li ), and thus it is up to man to create a harmonious relationship between the universe (天 Ten ) and the individual. The rationalism of Neo-Confucianism
2260-431: A reshaping themselves, and principles of religious freedom articulated by the 1947 constitution provided space for the proliferation of new religious movements. New sects of Shinto, as well as movements claiming a thoroughly independent status, and also new forms of Buddhist lay societies, provided ways of aggregation for people uprooted from traditional families and village institutions. While traditional Shinto has
2373-437: A residential and hereditary basis, and a person participates in the worship activities devoted to the local tutelary deity or ancestor – occasionally asking for specific healing or blessing services or participating in pilgrimages – in the new religions individuals formed groups without regard to kinship or territorial origins, and such groups required a voluntary decision to join. These new religions also provided cohesion through
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#17327731022592486-409: A scroll that deals with an intrigue at court, emphasizes figures in active motion depicted in rapidly executed brush strokes and thin but vibrant colors. E-maki also serve as some of the earliest and greatest examples of the otoko-e ("men's pictures") and onna-e ("women's pictures") styles of painting. There are many fine differences in the two styles, appealing to the aesthetic preferences of
2599-438: A second time into Japan and took root. Painting: Because of secular ventures and trading missions to China organized by Zen temples, many Chinese paintings and objects of art were imported into Japan and profoundly influenced Japanese artists working for Zen temples and the shogunate. Not only did these imports change the subject matter of painting, but they also modified the use of color; the bright colors of Yamato-e yielded to
2712-497: A standard language and practice, adopting a similar style in dress and ritual dating from around the time of the Nara (710–794) and Heian (794–1185) periods. The Japanese adopted the word Shinto ("way of the gods"), originally as Shindo , from the written Chinese Shendao ( Chinese : 神道 ; pinyin : shén dào ), combining two kanji : shin ( 神 ) , meaning "spirit" or kami ; and tō ( 道 ) , meaning
2825-454: A unified doctrine and practice shared by the nationwide community. The officially recognized new religions number in the hundreds, and total membership reportedly numbers in the tens of millions. The largest new religion, Soka Gakkai , a Buddhist sect founded in 1930, gathers around 4 million members. Scholars in Japan have estimated that between 10% and 20% of the population belongs to the new religions, although more realistic estimates put
2938-538: A warning. Tokugawa Ieyasu and his successors enforced the prohibition of Christianity with several further edicts, especially after the Shimabara Rebellion in the 1630s. Many Christians continued to practice in secret . However, more importantly, the discourses on Christianity became the property of the state during the Tokugawa period. The state leveraged its power over to declare Christians enemies of
3051-582: Is a famous example of this style. In 1180, a war broke out between the two most powerful warrior clans: the Taira and the Minamoto ; five years later the Minamoto emerged victorious and established a de facto seat of government at the seaside village of Kamakura , where it remained until 1333. With the shift of power from the nobility to the warrior class, the arts had to satisfy a new audience: men devoted to
3164-628: Is its concern with mabui ( まぶい ) , or life essence. One of its most ancient features is the belief onarigami ( おなり神 ) , the spiritual superiority of women derived from the goddess Amamikyu , which allowed for the development of a class of noro (priestesses) cult and yuta (female media ). This differs from Japanese Shinto, where men are seen as the embodiment of purity. Ryukyuan religion has been influenced by Japanese Shinto and Buddhism, and various Chinese religions. It includes sects and reformed movements such as Ijun or Ijunism ( Ryukyuan : いじゅん Ijun ; Japanese: 違順教 Ijunkyō ), founded in
3277-482: Is more hermetic while Shinto is more shamanic. Taoism's influence in Japan has been less profound than that of Japanese Neo-Confucianism. Today, institutional Chinese Taoism is present in the country in the form of some temples; the Seitenkyū was founded in 1995. Confucianism (儒教 Jukyō ) was introduced from Korea during the Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598) , and developed into an elite religion, yet having
3390-492: Is one of Sesshu's most accomplished works, depicting a continuing landscape through the four seasons. In the Azuchi–Momoyama period (1573–1603), a succession of military leaders, such as Oda Nobunaga , Toyotomi Hideyoshi , and Tokugawa Ieyasu , attempted to bring peace and political stability to Japan after an era of almost 100 years of warfare. Oda, a minor chieftain, acquired power sufficient to take de facto control of
3503-466: Is the indigenous religion of Japan and of most of the people of Japan . George Williams classifies Shinto as an action-centered religion ; it focuses on ritual practices to be carried out diligently in order to establish a connection between present-day Japan and its ancient roots. The written historical records of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki first recorded and codified Shinto practices in
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3616-652: Is the indigenous belief system of the people of Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands . While specific legends and traditions may vary slightly from place to place and island to island, the Ryukyuan religion is generally characterized by ancestor worship (more accurately termed "ancestor respect") and the respecting of relationships between the living, the dead, and the gods and spirits of the natural world. Some of its beliefs, such as those concerning genius loci spirits and many other beings classified between gods and humans, are indicative of its ancient animistic roots, as
3729-688: Is very diverse. Japan Museum SieboldHuis has a permanent exhibition of maps, rocks, animals, plants, utensils and art. Temporary exhibitions offer a varied selection of Japanese art . The monumental house is property of the Dutch government ( Government Buildings Agency [ nl ] ) and used to house the cantonal court . This article about a museum in the Netherlands is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Japanese art Art of Central Asia Art of East Asia Art of South Asia Art of Southeast Asia Art of Europe Art of Africa Art of
3842-553: Is very similar to Japanese Shinto. The Chinese folk religion consists in the worship of the ethnic Chinese gods and ancestors, shen (神 " gods ", "spirits", "awarenesses", "consciousnesses", " archetypes "; literally "expressions", the energies that generate things and make them thrive), which can be nature deities , city deities or tutelary deities of other human agglomerations, national deities , cultural heroes and demigods, ancestors and progenitors of kinships. Holy narratives regarding some of these gods are codified into
3955-533: The Komeito , Japan's third largest political party. Common to most lineages of Nichiren Buddhism is the chanting of Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō (or Nam Myoho Renge Kyo) and the Gohonzon inscribed by Nichiren. As of 2018 , there were 355,000+ Buddhist monks, priests and leaders in Japan, an increase of over 40,000 compared to 2000. In 2022, there were 1.9 million Christians in Japan, most of them living in
4068-562: The Church of Perfect Liberty , Seicho-no-Ie , the Church of World Messianity , and others. Buddhism ( 仏教 , Bukkyō ) first arrived in Japan in the 6th century, introduced in the year 538 or 552 from the kingdom of Baekje in Korea . The Baekje king sent the Japanese emperor a picture of the Buddha and some sutras. After overcoming brief yet violent oppositions by conservative forces, it
4181-716: The Fujiwara period , Pure Land Buddhism , which offered easy salvation through belief in Amida (the Buddha of the Western Paradise), became popular. This period is named after the Fujiwara family , then the most powerful in the country, who ruled as regents for the Emperor, becoming, in effect, civil dictators. Concurrently, the Kyoto nobility developed a society devoted to elegant aesthetic pursuits. So secure and beautiful
4294-665: The Fukukenjaku Kannon (不空羂索観音立像, the most popular bodhisattva), crafted of dry lacquer (cloth dipped in lacquer and shaped over a wooden armature); the Kaidanin (戒壇院, Ordination Hall) with its magnificent clay statues of the Four Guardian Kings ; and the storehouse, called the Shōsōin . This last structure is of great importance as an art-historical cache, because in it are stored the utensils that were used in
4407-559: The Jōmon people ( c. 10,500 – c. 300 BCE ), named for the cord markings that decorated the surfaces of their clay vessels, were nomadic hunter-gatherers who later practiced organized farming and built cities with populations of hundreds if not thousands. They built simple houses of wood and thatch set into shallow earthen pits to provide warmth from the soil. They crafted lavishly decorated pottery storage vessels , clay figurines called dogū , and crystal jewels. During
4520-464: The Tokugawa shogunate , organized religion played a much less important role in people's lives, and the arts that survived were primarily secular. The Meiji Period (1868–1912) saw an abrupt influx of Western styles, which have continued to be important. Painting is the preferred artistic expression in Japan, practiced by amateurs and professionals alike. Until modern times, the Japanese wrote with
4633-597: The e-maki , the lives of the two Korean priests who founded the Kegon sect, is swiftly paced and filled with fantastic feats such as a journey to the palace of the Ocean King, and a poignant mom story. A work in a more conservative vein is the illustrated version of Murasaki Shikibu's diary . E-maki versions of her novel continued to be produced, but the nobility, attuned to the new interest in realism yet nostalgic for past days of wealth and power, revived and illustrated
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4746-466: The monochromes of painting in the Chinese manner, where paintings generally only have black and white or different tones of a single color. Typical of early Muromachi painting is the depiction by the priest-painter Kao (active early 15th century) of the legendary monk Kensu (Hsien-tzu in Chinese) at the moment he achieved enlightenment. This type of painting was executed with quick brush strokes and
4859-437: The "Western Paradise" or " Pure Land ", where Buddhahood is more easily attained. Pure Land attracted members from all of the different classes, from farmers and merchants to noblemen and samurai clans, such as the Tokugawa clan . There are two primary branches of Pure Land Buddhism today: Jōdo-shū , which focuses on repeating the phrase many times as taught by Honen , and Jōdo Shinshū , which claims that only saying
4972-484: The "estimated number of Japanese Muslims ranges from thousands to tens of thousands". The Bahá'í Faith (バハーイー教 Bahāiikyō ) in Japan began after a few mentions of the country by 'Abdu'l-Bahá first in 1875. The first Japanese convert was Kanichi Yamamoto ( 山本寛一 ) , who lived in Honolulu , and accepted the faith in 1902; the second convert was Saichiro Fujita ( 藤田左弌郎 ) . The first Bahá'í convert on Japanese soil
5085-412: The "new style". In the foreground a man is depicted on the bank of a stream holding a small gourd and looking at a large slithery catfish. Mist fills the middle ground, and the background mountains appear to be far in the distance. It is generally assumed that the "new style" of the painting, executed about 1413, refers to a more Chinese sense of deep space within the picture plane. The foremost artists of
5198-436: The 10th millennium BCE, to the present day. Japan has alternated between periods of exposure to new ideas, and long periods of minimal contact with the outside world. Over time the country absorbed, imitated, and finally assimilated elements of foreign culture that complemented already-existing aesthetic preferences. The earliest complex art in Japan was produced in the 7th and 8th centuries in connection with Buddhism . In
5311-512: The 1560s. By 1569 there were 30,000 Christians and 40 churches. Following the conversion of some lords in Kyushu, mass baptisms of the local populations occurred, and in the 1570s the number of Christians rose rapidly to 100,000. Near the end of the 16th century, Franciscan missionaries arrived in Kyoto, despite a ban issued by Toyotomi Hideyoshi . In 1597, Hideyoshi proclaimed a more serious edict and executed 26 Franciscans in Nagasaki as
5424-724: The 1970s. The Ainu religion Ainu no shūkyō ( アイヌの宗教 ) is the indigenous belief system of the Ainu people of Hokkaido and parts of Far Eastern Russia . It is an animistic religion centered around the belief that Kamuy (spirits or gods) live in everything. Most Chinese people in Japan practice the Chinese folk religion ( Chinese : 中国民间宗教 or 中国民间信仰 ; pinyin : Zhōngguó mínjiān zōngjiào or Zhōngguó mínjiān xìnyǎng ; Japanese : 中国の民俗宗教 ; rōmaji : Chūgoku no minzoku shūkyō ), also known as Shenism ( Chinese : 神教 ; pinyin : Shénjiào ; Japanese pronunciation : Shinkyō ), that
5537-463: The 7th and 8th centuries, however, the major focus in contacts between Japan and the Asian continent was the development of Buddhism. Not all scholars agree on the significant dates and the appropriate names to apply to various time periods between 552, the official date of the introduction of Buddhism into Japan, and 784, when the Japanese capital was transferred from Nara. The most common designations are
5650-476: The 8th century. Still, these earliest Japanese writings do not refer to a unified "Shinto religion", but rather to a collection of native beliefs and of mythology . Shinto in the 21st century is the religion of public shrines devoted to the worship of a multitude of gods ( kami ), suited to various purposes such as war memorials and harvest festivals , and applies as well to various sectarian organizations. Practitioners express their diverse beliefs through
5763-458: The 9th century, as the Japanese began to turn away from China and develop indigenous forms of expression, the secular arts became increasingly important; until the late 15th century, both religious and secular arts flourished. After the Ōnin War (1467–1477), Japan entered a period of political, social, and economic turmoil that lasted for over a century. In the state that emerged under the leadership of
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#17327731022595876-475: The Americas Art of Oceania Japanese art consists of a wide range of art styles and media that includes ancient pottery , sculpture , ink painting and calligraphy on silk and paper, ukiyo-e paintings and woodblock prints , ceramics , origami , bonsai , and more recently manga and anime . It has a long history, ranging from the beginnings of human habitation in Japan, sometime in
5989-583: The Association of Religion Data Archives, there were 25,597 Hindus in Japan in 2020. Sikhism (シク教 Sikukyō ) is presently a minority religion in Japan mainly followed by families migrated from India. Sikh communities formed in the 1920s, primarily in Kobe and later in Tokyo. The Sikh population, though small, established gurdwaras. Notable figures include Maharaja Jagatjit Singh of Kapurthala who visited
6102-600: The Chinese and Korean Neo-Confucians had regarded their own culture as the center of the world, the Japanese Neo-Confucians developed a similar national pride. This national pride would later evolve into the philosophical school of Kokugaku , which would later challenge Neo-Confucianism, and its perceived foreign Chinese and Korean origins, as the dominant philosophy of Japan. Most Japanese participate in rituals and customs derived from several religious traditions. Life cycle events are often marked by visits to
6215-484: The Court and the laity in the capital. The irregular topography of these sites forced Japanese architects to rethink the problems of temple construction, and in so doing to choose more indigenous elements of design. Cypress-bark roofs replaced those of ceramic tile, wood planks were used instead of earthen floors, and a separate worship area for the laity was added in front of the main sanctuary. The temple that best reflects
6328-735: The Early Jōmon Period in many ways. These people were less nomadic and began to settle in villages. They created useful tools that to process the food they gathered and hunted, which made life easier. Through the numerous aesthetically pleasing ceramics found during this period, it is evident that they had a stable economy and more leisure time. In addition, the people of the Middle Jōmon period differed from their ancestors in their development of vessels for specific functions, for example, pots for storage. The decorations on these vessels were more realistic than those on early Jōmon ceramics. During
6441-503: The Early Jōmon period (5000–2500 BCE), villages started to be discovered and ordinary everyday objects were found such as ceramic pots for boiling water. The pots found during this time had flat bottoms and elaborate designs made out of materials such as bamboo. It is believed that some early Jōmon figurines may have been used as fertility objects based on their breasts and broad hips. The Middle Jōmon period (2500–1500 BCE), differed from
6554-471: The Japanese " Seven Gods of Fortune " originated as Hindu deities, including Benzaiten (Sarasvati), Bishamon (Vaiśravaṇa or Kubera), Daikoku (Mahakala/Shiva), and Kisshoutennyo (Laxmi). Various Hindu deities, including the aforementioned, are worshipped in Shingon Buddhism . This denomination and all other forms of Tantric Buddhism have multiple sources in common with Tantric Hinduism. According to
6667-599: The Japanese consul to Lithuania , to issue Japanese transit visa. In doing so, both Zwartendijk and Sugihara disregarded orders and helped more than 6,000 Jews escape the Nazis. After World War II, a large portion of Japan's Jewish population emigrated, many going to what would become Israel . Some of those who remained married locals and were assimilated into Japanese society. There are community centres serving Jews in Tokyo and Kobe. The Chabad-Lubavitch organization has two centers in Tokyo. In September 2015, Japan nominated
6780-674: The Late and Final Jōmon period (1500–300 BCE), the weather grew colder, prompting settlers to move away from the mountains. The main food source was fish, which led them to develop fishing tools and techniques. In addition, the increase in the number of vessels suggests that each household had its own stock. Some vessels found during the Late and Final Jōmon Period were damaged which might indicate that they were used for rituals. In addition, figurines were found with distinctive fleshy bodies and goggle-like eyes. Dogū figurines Dogū ("earthen figure") are small humanoid and animal figurines dated to
6893-478: The Muromachi period are the priest-painters Shūbun and Sesshū . Shūbun, a monk at the Kyoto temple of Shōkoku-ji , created in the painting Reading in a Bamboo Grove (1446) a realistic landscape with deep recession into space. Sesshū, unlike most artists of the period, was able to journey to China and study Chinese painting at its source. Landscape of the Four Seasons ( Sansui Chokan ; c. 1486 )
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#17327731022597006-673: The Suiko period, 552–645; the Hakuhō period , 645–710, and the Tenpyō period, 710–784. The earliest Japanese sculptures of the Buddha are dated to the 6th and 7th century. They ultimately derive from the 1st- to 3rd-century AD Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhara , characterized by flowing dress patterns and realistic rendering, on which Chinese artistic traits were superimposed. After the Chinese Northern Wei buddhist art had infiltrated
7119-567: The Tōdaiji represented the center for Imperially sponsored Buddhism and its dissemination throughout Japan. Only a few fragments of the original statue survive, and the present hall and central Buddha are reconstructions from the Edo period . Clustered around the Daibutsuden on a gently sloping hillside are a number of secondary halls: the Hokke-dō (Lotus Sutra Hall), with its principal image,
7232-508: The Western world's 19th-century dialogue with Japanese art . The Japanese, in this period, found sculpture a much less sympathetic medium for artistic expression: most large Japanese sculpture is associated with religion , and the medium's use declined with the lessening importance of traditional Buddhism. Japanese pottery is among the finest in the world and includes the earliest known Japanese artifacts; Japanese export porcelain has been
7345-456: The ban was rescinded, freedom of religion was promulgated, and Protestant missionaries (プロテスタント Purotesutanto or 新教 Shinkyō , "renewed teaching") began to proselytise in Japan, intensifying their activities after World War II , yet they were never as successful as in Korea . Nagasaki Prefecture had the highest percentage of Christians in 1996 (about 5.1%). As of 2007 there were 32,036 Christian priests and pastors in Japan. According to
7458-487: The body of Chinese mythology . Taoism (道教 Dōkyō ) was introduced from China between the 7th and 8th centuries, and influenced in varying degrees the Japanese indigenous spirituality. Taoist practices were absorbed into Shinto, and Taoism was the source of the esoteric and mystical religions of Onmyōdō , Shugendō and Kōshin . Taoism, being an indigenous religion in China, shares some roots with Shinto, although Taoism
7571-444: The capital moved to Heian, more forms of Buddhism arrived from China, including the still-popular Shingon Buddhism , an esoteric form of Buddhism similar to Tibet's Vajrayana Buddhism, and Tendai , a monastic conservative form known better by its Chinese name, Tiantai . When the shogunate took power in the 12th century and the administrative capital moved to Kamakura , more forms of Buddhism arrived. The most culturally influential
7684-509: The coming year, dressing in a kimono , hanging special decorations, eating noodles on New Year's Eve, and playing a poetry card game are among these practices. During Obon, bon (spirit altars) are set up in front of Buddhist family altars, which, along with ancestral graves, are cleaned in anticipation of the return of the spirits. People living away from their family homes return for visits with relatives. Celebrations include folk dancing and prayers at Buddhist temples as well as family rituals in
7797-455: The corner posts and their branches extending to left and right, unifying the adjoining panels. Eitoku's screen, Chinese Lions , also in Kyoto, reveals the bold, brightly colored style of painting preferred by the samurai. Hasegawa Tōhaku , a contemporary of Eitoku, developed a somewhat different and more decorative style for large-scale screen paintings. In his Maple Screen (楓図), now in the temple of Chishaku-in ( ja:智積院 ), Kyoto, he placed
7910-440: The country during 1903–1904. Jainism (ジャイナ教 Jainakyō ) is a minority religion in Japan . As of 2009 , there were three Jain temples in the country. Minakata Kumagusu published the first simplified Japanese translation of Jainist concepts for common people. Happy Science was founded in 1986 by Ryuho Okawa. This Japanese religion has been very active in its political ventures to re-militarize Japan. The Ryukyuan religion
8023-502: The creation of monumental landscapes on the sliding doors enclosing a room. The decoration of the main room facing the garden of the Jukō-in , a subtemple of Daitoku-ji (a Zen temple in Kyoto), is perhaps the best extant example of Eitoku's work. A massive ume tree and twin pines are depicted on pairs of sliding screens in diagonally opposite corners, their trunks repeating the verticals of
8136-627: The cultivation of rice and the spiritual well-being of the local community; and nenjyū gyōji (annual feasts), which are largely of Chinese or Buddhist origin. During the Heian period , the matsuri were organized into a formal calendar, and other festivals were added. Very few matsuri or annual feasts are national holidays, but they are included in the national calendar of annual events. Most matsuri are local events and follow local traditions. They may be sponsored by schools, towns, or other groups but are most often associated with Shinto shrines. Some of
8249-585: The diary in order to recapture the splendor of the author's times. One of the most beautiful passages illustrates the episode in which Murasaki Shikibu is playfully held prisoner in her room by two young courtiers, while, just outside, moonlight gleams on the mossy banks of a rivulet in the imperial garden. During the Muromachi period (1338–1573), also called the Ashikaga period, a profound change took place in Japanese culture. The Ashikaga clan took control of
8362-457: The end of the Jōmon period . They were produced all over Japan, except Okinawa . According to some scholars, the dogū were effigies of people and might have been used in sympathetic magic . Dogū are small clay figures, typically 10 to 30 centimetres (4 to 12 inches) high. Most are female, with large eyes, small waists and wide hips. Many have large bellies, suggesting that they were mother goddesses . The next wave of immigrants
8475-662: The first recorded Jewish settlers arriving at Yokohama in 1861. The Jewish population continued to grow into the 1950s, fueled by immigration from Europe and the Middle East, with Tokyo and Kobe forming the largest communities. During World War II , some European Jews fleeing the Holocaust found refuge in Japan. These mainly Polish Jews received a so-called Curaçao visa from the Dutch consul in Kaunas, Jan Zwartendijk . This allowed one Japanese diplomat, Chiune Sugihara ,
8588-669: The founding of the Kegon sect, is an excellent example of the popularizing trend in Kamakura painting. The Kegon sect, one of the most important in the Nara period, fell on hard times during the ascendancy of the Pure Land sects. After the Genpei War (1180–1185), Priest Myōe of Kōzan-ji sought to revive the sect and also to provide a refuge for women widowed by the war. The wives of samurai had been discouraged from learning more than
8701-604: The genders. But perhaps most easily noticeable are the differences in subject matter. Onna-e , epitomized by the Tale of Genji handscroll, typically deals with court life, particularly the court ladies, and with romantic themes. Otoko-e often recorded historical events, particularly battles. The Siege of the Sanjō Palace (1160), depicted in the "Night Attack on the Sanjō Palace" section of the Heiji Monogatari handscroll
8814-538: The government in 1568 and, five years later, to oust the last Ashikaga shōgun. Hideyoshi took command after Oda's death, but his plans to establish hereditary rule were foiled by Ieyasu, who established the Tokugawa shogunate in 1603. Painting: The most important school of painting in the Momoyama period was that of the Kanō school , and the greatest innovation of the period was the formula, developed by Kanō Eitoku , for
8927-410: The holidays are secular in nature, but the two most significant for the majority of Japanese— New Year's Day and Obon —involve visits to Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples and only Buddhist temples for later. The New Year's holiday (January 1–3) is marked by the practice of numerous customs and the consumption of special foods. Visiting Shinto shrines or Buddhist temples to pray for family blessings in
9040-418: The home. In early Japanese history , the ruling class was responsible for performing propitiatory rituals, which later came to be identified as Shinto, and for the introduction and support of Buddhism. Later, religious organization was used by regimes for political purposes; for instance, the Tokugawa government required each family to be registered as a member of a Buddhist temple. In the early 19th century,
9153-487: The initial impetus for contacts between China and Japan. The Japanese recognized the facets of Chinese culture that could profitably be incorporated into their own: a system for converting ideas and sounds into writing; historiography ; complex theories of government, such as an effective bureaucracy ; and, most important for the arts, new technologies, new building techniques, more advanced methods of casting in bronze , and new techniques and media for painting. Throughout
9266-702: The inside. Applied to the walls of the hall are small relief carvings of celestials, the host believed to have accompanied Amida when he descended from the Western Paradise to gather the souls of believers at the moment of death and transport them in lotus blossoms to Paradise. Raigō paintings on the wooden doors of the Hō-ō-dō, depicting the Descent of the Amida Buddha, are an early example of Yamato-e , Japanese-style painting, and contain representations of
9379-615: The introduction and formation of a Buddhist tradition in Japan in 538 or 552. They illustrate the terminal point of the Silk Road transmission of art during the first few centuries of our era. Other examples can be found in the development of the iconography of the Japanese Fūjin Wind God, the Niō guardians, and the near- Classical floral patterns in temple decorations. The earliest Buddhist structures still extant in Japan, and
9492-566: The legendary founders of the Hossō sect , are among the most accomplished realistic works of the period; as rendered by Unkei, they are remarkably individualized and believable images. One of the most famous works of this period is an Amitabha Triad (completed in 1195), in Jōdo-ji in Ono , created by Kaikei , Unkei's successor. Calligraphy and painting: The Kegon Engi Emaki , the illustrated history of
9605-534: The nature of kami . Kami and people are not separate; they exist within the same world and share its interrelated complexity. Shinto is the largest religion in Japan, practiced by nearly 80% of the population, yet only a small percentage of these identify themselves as "Shintoists" in surveys. This is due to the fact that "Shinto" has different meanings in Japan: most of the Japanese attend Shinto shrines and beseech kami without belonging to Shinto organisations, and since there are no formal rituals to become
9718-525: The number at well below the 10% mark. As of 2007 there are 223,831 priests and leaders of the new religions in Japan, three times the number of traditional Shinto priests. Many of these new religions derive from Shinto, retain the fundamental characters of Shinto, and often identify themselves as forms of Shinto. These include Tenrikyo , Konkokyo , Omotokyo , Shinrikyo, Shinreikyo , Sekai Shindokyo , Zenrinkyo and others. Others are independent new religions, including Aum Shinrikyo , Mahikari movements,
9831-530: The oldest wooden buildings in the Far East are found at the Hōryū-ji to the southwest of Nara. First built in the early 7th century as the private temple of Crown Prince Shōtoku , it consists of 41 independent buildings. The most important ones, the main worship hall, or Kondō (Golden Hall), and Gojū-no-tō (Five-story Pagoda ), stand in the center of an open area surrounded by a roofed cloister. The Kondō , in
9944-703: The phrase once with a pure heart is necessary, as taught by Shinran . Two smaller schools of Pure Land Buddhism exist as well, those of Ji-shu and Yuzu Nembutsu , although these are significantly smaller than their larger counterparts. Another prevalent form of Buddhism is Nichiren Buddhism , which was established by the 13th century monk Nichiren who underlined the importance of the Lotus Sutra . The main representatives of Nichiren Buddhism include sects such as Nichiren Shū and Nichiren Shōshū , and lay organisations like Risshō Kōsei Kai and Soka Gakkai —a denomination whose political wing forms
10057-601: The recently deceased Prince Shōtoku. At the four corners of the platform are the Guardian Kings of the Four Directions , carved in wood around 650. Also housed at Hōryū-ji is the Tamamushi Shrine, a wooden replica of a Kondō , which is set on a high wooden base that is decorated with figural paintings executed in a medium of mineral pigments mixed with lacquer. Temple building in the 8th century
10170-493: The rise of State Shinto in the 19th century. The Japanese concept of religion differs significantly from that of Western culture. Spirituality and worship are highly eclectic; rites and practices, often associated with well-being and worldly benefits, are of primary concern, while doctrines and beliefs garner minor attention. Religious affiliation is an alien notion. Although the vast majority of Japanese citizens follow Shinto, only some 3% identify as Shinto in surveys, because
10283-533: The scenery around Kyoto. E-maki : In the last century of the Heian period, the horizontal, illustrated narrative handscroll, known as e-maki (絵巻, lit. "picture scroll"), came to the fore. Dating from about 1130, the Genji Monogatari Emaki , a famous illustrated Tale of Genji represents the earliest surviving yamato-e handscroll, and one of the high points of Japanese painting. Written about
10396-448: The shogunate and moved its headquarters back to Kyoto, to the Muromachi district of the city. With the return of government to the capital, the popularizing trends of the Kamakura period came to an end, and cultural expression took on a more aristocratic, elitist character. Zen Buddhism, the Ch'an sect traditionally thought to have been founded in China in the 6th century, was introduced for
10509-553: The skills of warfare, priests committed to making Buddhism available to illiterate commoners, and conservatives, the nobility and some members of the priesthood who regretted the declining power of the court. Thus, realism, a popularizing trend, and a classical revival characterize the art of the Kamakura period . In the Kamakura period, Kyoto and Nara remained the centres of artistic production and high culture. Sculpture: The Kei school of sculptors, particularly Unkei , created
10622-548: The spirit of early Heian Shingon temples is the Murō-ji (early 9th century), set deep in a stand of cypress trees on a mountain southeast of Nara. The wooden image (also early 9th century) of Shakyamuni , the "historic" Buddha, enshrined in a secondary building at the Murō-ji , is typical of the early Heian sculpture, with its ponderous body, covered by thick drapery folds carved in the honpa-shiki (rolling-wave) style, and its austere, withdrawn facial expression. Fujiwara art: In
10735-486: The state in order to create and maintain a legally enforceable identity for Japanese subjects. As such, Christian identities or icons became the exclusive property of the Japanese state. Although often discussed as a "foreign" or "minority" religion, Christianity has played a key sociopolitical role in the lives of Japanese subjects and citizens for hundreds of years. In 1873, following the Meiji Restoration ,
10848-516: The state's power and mold its position in the broader culture of East Asia. Japanese aristocrats set about building Buddhist temples in the capital at Nara . However, the government's vast investment in spreading Buddhism during the Nara period (646-794) led to corruption, and led to reformation period and a shift in focus from Nara to the new capital of Heian (now Kyoto ). The six Buddhist sects initially established in Nara are today together known as " Nara Buddhism " and are relatively small. When
10961-519: The style of Chinese worship halls, is a two-story structure of post-and-beam construction, capped by an irimoya , or hipped-gabled roof of ceramic tiles. Inside the Kondō , on a large rectangular platform, are some of the most important sculptures of the period. The central image is a Shaka Trinity (623), the historical Buddha flanked by two bodhisattvas , sculpture cast in bronze by the sculptor Tori Busshi (flourished early 7th century) in homage to
11074-562: The temple's dedication ceremony in 752, the eye-opening ritual for the Rushana image, as well as government documents and many secular objects owned by the Imperial family. Choukin (or chōkin ), the art of metal engraving or sculpting, is thought to have started in the Nara period. In 794 the capital of Japan was officially transferred to Heian-kyō (present-day Kyoto ), where it remained until 1868. The term Heian period refers to
11187-447: The term is understood to imply membership of organized Shinto sects. Some identify as "without religion" ( 無宗教 , mushūkyō ) , yet this does not signify rejection or apathy towards faith . The mushūkyō is a specified identity, which is used mostly to affirm regular, "normal" religiosity while rejecting affiliation with distinct movements perceived as foreign or extreme. Shinto ( 神道 , Shintō ) , also kami-no-michi ,
11300-551: The tomb of Emperor Nintoku , houses 46 burial mounds and is shaped like a keyhole, a distinct characteristic found within later Kofun tombs. During the Asuka and Nara periods , so named because the seat of Japanese government was located in the Asuka Valley from 542 to 645 and in the city of Nara until 784, the first significant influx of continental Asian culture took place in Japan. The transmission of Buddhism provided
11413-590: The trunk of the tree in the center and extended the limbs nearly to the edge of the composition, creating a flatter, less architectonic work than Eitoku, but a visually gorgeous painting. His sixfold screen, Pine Wood (松林図), is a masterly rendering in monochrome ink of a grove of trees enveloped in mist. Religion in Japan Religion in Japan is manifested primarily in Shinto and in Buddhism ,
11526-439: The two main faiths , which Japanese people often practice simultaneously. According to estimates, as many as 70% of the populace follow Shinto rituals to some degree, worshiping ancestors and spirits at domestic altars and public shrines . An almost equally high number is reported as Buddhist. Syncretic combinations of both, known generally as shinbutsu-shūgō , are common; they represented Japan's dominant religion before
11639-700: The western part of the country, where missionaries' activities were greatest during the 16th century. Christianity (キリスト教 Kirisutokyō ), in the form of Catholicism (カトリック教 Katorikkukyō ), was introduced into Japan by Jesuit missions starting in 1549. In that year, the three Jesuits Francis Xavier , Cosme de Torres and Juan Fernández , landed in Kagoshima , in Kyushu , on 15 August. Portuguese traders were active in Kagoshima since 1543, welcomed by local daimyōs because they imported gunpowder. Anjirō ,
11752-549: The year 1000 by Murasaki Shikibu , a lady-in-waiting to the Empress Shōshi , the novel deals with the life and loves of Genji and the world of the Heian court after his death. The 12th-century artists of the e-maki version devised a system of pictorial conventions that convey visually the emotional content of each scene. In the second half of the century, a different, livelier style of continuous narrative illustration became popular. The Ban Dainagon Ekotoba (late 12th century),
11865-568: The years between 794 and 1185, when the Kamakura shogunate was established at the end of the Genpei War . The period is further divided into the early Heian and the late Heian, or Fujiwara era , the pivotal date being 894, the year imperial embassies to China were officially discontinued. Early Heian art: In reaction to the growing wealth and power of organized Buddhism in Nara, the priest Kūkai (best known by his posthumous title Kōbō Daishi, 774–835) journeyed to China to study Shingon ,
11978-403: Was Zen , which focused on meditation and attaining enlightenment in this life. Two schools of Zen were established, Rinzai and Sōtō ; a third, Ōbaku , formed in 1661. With the Meiji Restoration in 1868 and its accompanying centralisation of imperial power and modernisation of the state, Shinto was made the state religion. An order of elimination of mutual influence of Shinto and Buddhism
12091-507: Was Kikutaro Fukuta ( 福田菊太郎 ) in 1915. Almost a century later, the Association of Religion Data Archives (relying on World Christian Encyclopedia ) estimated some 15,700 Bahá'ís in 2005. Judaism (ユダヤ教 Yudayakyō ) in Japan is practiced by about 2,000 Jews living in the country. With the opening of Japan to the external world in 1853 and the end of Japan's sakoku foreign policy , some Jews immigrated to Japan from abroad, with
12204-456: Was accepted by the Japanese court in 587. The Yamato state ruled over clans ( uji ) centered around the worship of ancestral nature deities. It was also a period of intense immigration from Korea, horse riders from northeast Asia, as well as cultural influence from China, which had been unified under the Sui dynasty becoming the crucial power on the mainland. Buddhism functioned to affirm
12317-464: Was also enacted, followed by a movement to thoroughly eradicate Buddhism from Japan. Today, the most popular school in Japan is Pure Land Buddhism , which arrived in the form of independent schools in the Kamakura period , although elements of it were practiced in Japan for centuries beforehand. It emphasizes the role of Amitabha Buddha and promises that reciting the phrase " Namu Amida Butsu " will result in being taken by Amitabha upon death to
12430-433: Was focused around the Tōdai-ji in Nara. Constructed as the headquarters for a network of temples in each of the provinces, the Tōdaiji is the most ambitious religious complex erected in the early centuries of Buddhist worship in Japan. Appropriately, the 16.2-m (53-ft) Buddha (completed 752) enshrined in the main Buddha hall, or Daibutsuden , is a Rushana Buddha, the figure that represents the essence of Buddhahood, just as
12543-929: Was in contrast to the mysticism of Zen Buddhism in Japan. Unlike the Buddhists, the Neo-Confucians believed that reality existed, and could be understood by mankind, even if the interpretations of reality were slightly different depending on the school of Neo-Confucianism. The social aspects of the philosophy are hierarchical with a focus on filial piety . This created a Confucian social stratification in Edo society that previously had not existed, dividing Japanese society into four main classes: samurai , farmers, artisans and merchants. The samurai were especially avid readers and teachers of Confucian thought in Japan, establishing many Confucian academies. Neo-Confucianism also introduced elements of ethnocentrism into Japan. As
12656-568: Was the Yayoi people, named for the district in Tokyo where remnants of their settlements first were found. These people, arriving in Japan about 300 BCE, brought their knowledge of wetland rice cultivation, the manufacture of copper weapons and bronze bells ( dōtaku ), and wheel-thrown, kiln-fired ceramics . The third stage in Japanese prehistory, the Kofun period (c. 300 – 710 AD), represents
12769-596: Was their world that they could not conceive of Paradise as being much different. They created a new form of Buddha hall, the Amida hall, which blends the secular with the religious, and houses one or more Buddha images within a structure resembling the mansions of the nobility. The Hō-ō-dō (Phoenix Hall, completed 1053) of the Byōdō-in , a temple in Uji to the southeast of Kyoto, is the exemplar of Fujiwara Amida halls. It consists of
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