K. M. University, India Christianity in the Land of Santhals: a study of Resistance and Acceptance in Historical Perspective(03U)

Kimura, Takeshi

University of Tsukuba, Japan

Religion, Environment, and Sustainability(10L)

This paper analyzes the role of religious studies in developing sustainability studies. Though there has been a scholarly domain of environmental ethics, the environmental situation has yet to improve, rather, it has become worse. This paper inquires into the potential contribution of religious studies to sustainability studies by analyzing human inability to respond to our current situation, examining the problematic of overarching economic interests over other domains of life, and considering the meaning of loss of biodiversity for future generations. While acknowledging the contribution of environmental ethics, it is also inevitable to notice that environmental ethics has focused upon exploring the environmentally correct cultures of the past, and is temporally oriented toward the past. Yet, the point of sustainability studies is for its temporal orientation toward the future. In this paper, I will examine this temporal issue and other related issues in the religious studies of sustainability.

Organized panel, English
Kimura, Takeshi

University of Tsukuba, Japan

Indigenous Religions and Environment: Voices from the Indigenous Onondaga People(12L)

This round-table session will provide an opportunity for the Onondaga people of North America to discuss with religious scholars from other societies on indigenous religion and nature in terms of attaining a sustainable local community. Onondaga delegates share their unique perspectives on their religious experience of water and land, and discuss water and air pollution, which endangers not only their own health, but also their future generation's health. In dealing with these problems, Onondagans always try to remain faithful to their religious and ethical traditions. By doing so, they hold that they would be able to not only find ways to deal with and solve environmental problems but also to preserve and sustain their culture.

Roundtable session, * Session Abstract
Kimura, Toshiaki

Tohoku University, Japan

Christian Practice in Local Context - Toba Batak's prayer meetings in Medan City, Indonesia(06O)

In this presentation I try to analyze the Christian prayer practiced by Toba Batak immigrants, especially on the occasion of their prayer meetings in Medan, the third biggest city of Indonesia. Adapting to this multiethnic and multi-religious city, they have organized several sorts of Christian prayer groups including those based on the relationship regulated in their customary law; ex. Clan (Marga), sub-clan (Saompu), common neigbourhood (Dongan Sahuta). These meetings offer them opportunity to construct and maintain their ethnic networks which are indispensable for their social life in Medan, especially for their flourishing ritual life. I try to clarify by analyzing some texts of their prayers, that these rather orthodox praying practices based on "universal" Christian ideas are in fact not only embedded in the local contexts, but they actually re-contextualize their daily experiences relatively diversified by the urban settings of Medan.

Organized panel, English
Kimura, Toshihiko

International Buddhist University, Japan

Rudolf Otto on Zen Buddhism(13Q)

Rudolf Otto (1869-1937) was introduced to and showed a degree of understanding of Zen Buddhism in his journey to Japan 1912. He was encouraged by it on behalf of his Numinose theory and reported on Zen Buddhism in his "Über Zazen als Extrem der numinosen Irrationalen " (1923), " Geleitwort " for the " Zen, der lebendige Buddhismus in Japan" by Ohazama (1925) and "West-östliche Mystik " (1929). The source of his knowledge of Zen Buddhism after his visit to Japan was the papers on Zen Buddhism by D.T.Suzuki published in " the Eastern Buddhist "(1921-1922). Moreover, Otto used the passages of the Lankavatarasutra for explaining Zen thought according to the episode of Bodhidharma who had given the sutra to his disciple to assist in helping him learn Zen. I would like to trace his study in Zen Buddhism and to analyze it as well as his sources: Master Mokurai in Kyoto, Suzuki's papers, Ohazama's text, and the Lankavatarasutra.

Organized panel, English
King, Joyce

(12L)

Roundtable session

King, Ursula

University of Bristol, UK

Religious Education and Peace(03D)

*respondent

Organized panel
Kippenberg, Hans G.

Universität Erfurt, Germany

Max Weber on Human and Divine Agency(01K)

This paper addresses the notion of social action and its relation to religion as Max Weber established it in Economy and Society. Weber argued in his opus magnum that religion cannot be defined essentially, but should be studied as meaning that actors attribute to their social actions. Meaning is a medium of structuring practical attitudes to the world. But it is not a neutral one, since it embodies the expectations of a well-being of the actor transcending the given world. Human agency and divine agency are interrelated. In the form of communities the great religions preserve and cultivate these subjective expectations in a world that is irrational and unpredictable. For Weber the differentiation of social orders in law - politics - economy remains dependent on a certain type of religious meaning.

Organized panel, English
Kippenberg, Hans G.

Universität Erfurt, Germany

(02L)

Roundtable session

Kippenberg, Hans G.

Universität Erfurt, Germany

Islam Secularism and Modernization(05O)

*chairperson

Organized panel
Kirika, Gerishon

Religion and Capital Punishment(13R)

This paper reflects on the religious considerations in determining the approach for a religious community on the question of capital punishment. There are strong arguments on both sides of this issue, i.e., there are those who strongly advocate capital punishment and those who equally and with convincing arguments oppose it. Religious reasons are advanced from either side of the spectrum, especially in a Christian community. The paper tries to articulate and examine most religious arguments advanced in favour of capital punishment as well as those in opposition to it. Christianity is used as the main example in this paper. [This is done with full cognizance that other religions have their points of view as well]. Biblical references from both the Old and New Testaments are cited in order to set forth the basis on which most Christians take their position on this issue. The paper makes several observations and provokes critical study questions, which, it is hoped, will influence the guidelines or paradigms that can help determine Christian views on capital punishment. In this regard the paper raises pertinent questions and addresses critical viewpoints raised both by proponents opponents of capital punishment.

Organized panel, English
Kisala, Robert J.

Nanzan University, Japan

Religion in Times of War(01R)

Although peace has become a central theme of religious groups in Japan in the postwar period, it is a well-known fact that many of these groups were actively engaged in promoting the Japanese war effort in the first half of the twentieth century. Indeed, religious justifications for war continue to play a major role in contemporary politics and international relations. Using the case of Japanese religions during World War II, this paper will explore the religious rhetoric of war, in an attempt to indicate both themes common with other religions as well as what might have been unique to this particular case.

Organized panel, English
Kisala, Robert J.

Nanzan University, Japan

Values in Contemporary Japan(06U)

The European Values Study and World Values Study have become standards in the field of values research. In 2001, a survey patterned after these studies was conducted in Japan, using many of the same questions as these studies--adapted to the situation in Japan--in order to allow for comparability, while also incorporating questions to test for what are often assumed to be specific Asian values. The survey offers a comprehensive study of values in Japan today, including over four hundred items in the areas of religion, work, family, and politics, in addition to items exploring general attitudes. This panel will attempt to present a picture of the state of values in contemporary Japan, through an exploration of how traditional values are viewed today, how religious attitudes have developed in contemporary Japan, how work values are expressed today, and what values are now associated with family life.

Organized panel, * Session Abstract, English
Kisala, Robert J.

Nanzan University, Japan

Japanese Buddhist Responses to Terror(11E)

Although peace has been a central theme of religion and culture in general in Japan in the postwar period, there has been a movement post-9/11 to reevaluate the country's military and security arrangements, and specifically to revise the so-called Peace Constitution. How have religious groups, especially Buddhist groups, in Japan responded to this situation? Building on research that I have previously conducted on religious attitudes in Japan regarding peace, this paper will explore what kind of an influence the present concern with terrorist attacks have had on the activities and concept of peace promoted by Buddhist groups in Japan.

Organized panel, English
Kishimoto, Masaharu

Toho Gakuin, Japan

Questioning the Concept of "Practice" Found in the Forth and Fifth Chapter of the Sutta Nipata(09G)

The arguments put forth in the fourth and fifth chapters of the Sutta Nipata differ greatly from those found in the later Theravada Buddhist and Mahayana Buddhist traditions. One key difference lies in the Buddha's statement, found in the Sutta Nipata, that Purity – meaning Nirvana – can not be achieved through doctrine or the precepts. The aim of my paper is to approach the problem of what this practice not founded on doctrine or precepts may actually signify? First of all, I will talk about the meaning of Dhamma. Although this term has been interpreted in various ways by researchers, I argue that it can be discerned from the original texts that Dhamma refers to the process leading to the attainment of nirvana, that is, it signifies practice. Subsequently, I will discuss the concepts of observing (passati) and knowing (janati) that form the core of practice and show how they are related to nirvana.

Organized panel, Japanese
Kishino, Hisashi

Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan

Papal Nuncio Francis Xavier's Tasks under the Portuguese Padroado(12T)

The life of Francis Xavier has been studied mainly by the Jesuits for four hundred years, but his title Nuncio has never been valued. In 2004 I wrote an article in which I pointed out the importance of the title, explaining the process and background of his appointment. In this paper I will deal with his tasks as Nuncio. According to M.Teixeria, King John III of Portugal gave him the Papal Brief before his departure to India and gave him four tasks: (1) the conversion of pagans, (2) education to the newly converted, (3) the re-education of Portuguese, and (4) visitation in the Asian colonies. Precisely examining his letters to the king, I found new aspects of his activities. In conclusion, Papal Nuncio Xavier works not only for the pagans as a missionary, but also for the Portuguese, as the reformer of their moral and Royal Visitor.

Organized panel, Japanese
Kishino, Hisashi

Tokyo University of Foreign Studies, Japan

Inter-Religious Response to Historical, Social, and Psychological Challenges(12T)

*chairperson

Organized panel
Kitagawa, Hitoshi

University of Tsukuba, Japan

Cultural Contact and Hermeneutics:; Motoori Norinaga's Criticism on the "Chinese Heart"(01F)

Since the adoption of Chinese letters in the early period of Japanese history, Chinese letters always remained to be a cause of spiritual crisis as well as a device for creative solution for them. It is clearly seen in the case of a 18th century's nativist scholar, Norinaga's criticism for "Chinese heart." As is often misunderstood by contemporary scholars, he was not an ethnocentric nativist who disdains anything foreign. It is true that he was against the conventional application of Confucian interpretative frameworks for Japanese classical literatures, but what he really meant to criticize was a kind of intellectualism, an attitude that holds an act of interpretation as a mere acquisition of conceptual meanings of object. In my paper I try to present his criticism against "Chinese heart," and the hermeneutics elaborated through it, as a dynamic process of emancipation from historically restricted concern toward the general hermeneutic plane.

Organized panel, English
Kitagawa, Kiyohito

Toho Gakuin, Japan

Sri Aurobindo's Integral Yoga(09G)

Sri Aurobindo advocates a new form of yoga, called Integral Yoga. The aim of this yoga practice is the full experience of both aspects of the Divine: its static-transcendent aspect and the dynamic-creative aspect of Brahman. The aim of this is to bring the Supermind to the material world and ultimately transform our whole existence and the world itself into something divine. There is no fixed method in this form of yoga. Aspiration and surrender to the Divine, and concentration on inner divinity in everyday life are the key strategies to success in Integral Yoga. There do exist some similarities to Karma Yoga. Although there are also some problematic issues, such as worship of the founder Sri Aurobindo, Integral Yoga occupies a unique position in the yogic tradition in its fundamental idea.

Organized panel
Kitamura, Soji

Hymn Society in Japan, Japan

Peace Reflected in the Japanese Hymnody(11S)

It is no exaggeration to say that all hymnals in Japan edited by interdenominational committees since the 1903 edition are under heavy influence of American hymnals. The hymns on the theme of peace in those collections before "The Hymnal 21" of the United Church of Christ in Japan reflect the tendency to escape from the real world and to long for heaven instead of finding sure hope in our daily life. Because of several wars that people had to go through and the reign of the Emperor, concept of the peace reflected on those collections is quite personal and obscure. The use of Yamatokotoba, the literary form of the Japanese language, also prompted its tendency. However; by publication of The Hymnal 21, the condition has been changed. We find more hymns that sing peace in the Biblical context and peace built on accepting each other and living together in the real world.

Symposium, Japanese
Kitayama, Osamu

Kyushu University, Japan

"Prohibition against Looking" - A Psychoanalytic Understanding(17B)

From a psychoanalytic perspective, I have examined some Japanese myths and folklore, focusing on the concept of the "prohibition against looking" in tragic stories such as "The Izanagi-Izanami Myth" and "The Crane Wife," which describe marriage between humans and non-humans. The heroines in these tales have both a rich productive function and a secret which necessitates prohibition. It may be interpreted that the heroines' hidden wounds and death may be the result of the devotion of the mother figure to meet the greedy demands of "childish" male protagonists. This is indeed a repetition of the developmental process in which the mother-child symbiotic relationship collapses and a child's fantasy toward his or her mother leads to disillusionment. I have indicated that our clinical understanding based on these Japanese tales would contribute greatly to the understanding of people who are referred to as "masochistic caretakers" - a phenomenon often observed in Japan. Finally, from the standpoint of practicing psychotherapy, I want to explore how difficult it is for people, including therapists, to "see" patients with this problem.

Symposium, Japanese
Kitazawa, Yutaka

the University of Tokyo, Japan

Death and Religion in Contemporary Society(09K)

*chairperson

Organized panel
Kitazawa, Yutaka

University of Tokyo, Japan

An Examination of Contemporary Attitudes toward Death from the Study of Visions of the Otherworld(09K)

In this paper, I will take up visions, narratives of the world in the afterlife, in Medieval Europe. From an analysis of these visions, I will also examine the contemporary attitude toward death, and point out the problem with the idea of "the self-determination of death." J. Huizinga defined the "memento mori" as the essence of the notion of death in Medieval Europe. Ph. Aries argued that death in the Medieval Age was "domesticated death," and criticized the modern alienation of death. Elisabeth Kubler-Ross created a death-reception process chart from her clinical observations. All of these influential understandings of death assume the possibility and necessity of the acceptance of death based on the patients' self-determination. When we see religious narratives concerning death, however, we find, rather, the unacceptability, fear, and sadness of death. Overemphasizing the idea of the self-determination of death can neglect these feelings. Through examining these religious narratives, I will reconsider the modern notion of death.

Organized panel, English
Kleine, Christoph

Munich University, Germany

Pluralism limited: the boundaries of tolerance in Japanese Buddhism(03S)

Organized panel, English

Kleine, Christoph

Leipzig University, Germany

Concepts of Tolerance and Condemnation: Buddhist Attitudes towards Competing Religions and Dissident Sects(03S)

In the predominant Western imagination, Buddhism is a religion of peace and tolerance. It is widely believed to be a religion that has no fixed dogmas and is thus not prone to intolerance towards other religions or to deviant cults or sects within Buddhism. This view, however, does not stand up to thorough historical and textual investigation. Buddhist attitudes towards competing religions or dissident sects range from tolerance via neglect and condemnation to outright violence and suppression. In our panel we will present examples of these manifold attitudes in various regions of Asia (India, Sri Lanka, China, Japan) and offer answers to the question why, in a specific historical context, one or the other attitude dominated Buddhist discourse and practice.

Organized panel, * Session Abstract, English
Knott, Kim

University of Leeds, UK

The Role of Religion in Identity Formation (1)(05S)

*chairperson

Organized panel
Knott, Kim

University of Leeds, UK

Left and Right Hands as Spaces of Difference and Contestation for Religion(13F)

Asymmetry and difference are evident within the human body. The sides of the body and the regions associated with them provide the basis for conceptions of difference, and for the expression of values. In many languages and cultures left and right hands have become a means by which exponents of differing ideological, including religious, standpoints can express their differences. Using a spatial methodology and contemporary western examples I shall explore how and why these taken-for-granted body parts operate in the struggle for moral supremacy between the religious and the secular.

Organized panel, English
Knott, Kim

University of Leeds, UK

Religion, the Sacred, and Spaces of Contestation, Segregation and Difference(13F)

The focus of this panel will be the nature and meaning for religion of spaces of contestation, segregation and difference, though such spaces may be interpreted as physical, social, cultural, ideological, cognitive or linguistic. How do religion and the sacred inform such spaces? How are they expressed by them? How are space and religion related to one another, whether by means of body, mind, concept, ritual or text? Theoretical and critically informed empirical papers will be presented covering different religions, regions and historical periods. Panel 1 will be more theoretical in orientation, with a particular focus on space, body and the sacred; in Panel 2 several contemporary cases of urban religious/secular conflict will be presented in which bodies and spaces becomes sites of negotiation for identity and survival.

Organized panel, * Session Abstract, English
Ko, Gunho

Korea Institute of Religious Studies, Korea

Religious Knowledge of New Religion in Modern Korea(16L)

Lee Donwha, a representative Chondogyo theologian in 1920s, argued that Chondogyo was based on the doctrine of Innaechon (the human is god). His points of argument include discourses on new religion, unification of religion, philosophical religion, and pantheism. This paper investigates religious knowledge as unfolded by Lee Donwha. It will elucidate the characteristics of religious knowledge and the orientation toward civilization unfolded by Chondogyo, a new religion of modern Korea.

Symposium, English
Ko, Nam Sik

Daejin University, Korea

Jeong-San's Taoistic Tendency and the Taoist Element of Mugeugto(05D)

Jeong-San (鼎山, 1895-1958) achieves spiritual enlightenment from Jeung-San (甑山, 1871-1909) in 1917. So Jeong-San's thoughts originated from Jeung-San's Cheonjigongsa. His thoughts also have elements of Taoism, in that they reveal taoistic human ripening, daily taoistic life. Jeung-San maintains his taoistic thoughts through Shinto. His Shinto is concerned with Bokhee's Yuk (伏羲 易) thoughts. Moreover, Jeung-San synthesizes a period from Cheonhwang (天皇), which has a character of Meuweeihwa (無爲而化). This fact is a special property of Jeung-San's thoughts. That is, Jeung-San's taoistic thoughts are related to ancient Sinto. His Shinto thoughts are concerned with his taoistic thoughts. Hiss Shinto and Meuweeihwa thought is together related to Jeung-San's Cheonjigongsa. Jeung-San's Shinto has progressed through newly religious sacred work named Cheonjigongsa (天地公事). His Shinto (神道) emphasizes divine judgment over the universe and human. The Mugeugto (无極道) was founded through Jeung-San's Cheonjigongsa by Jeong-San in 1925. The Mugeugto established Jeung-San as a religious subject named KucheonEungwonNoiseongBowhoaCheonzonSangje (九天應元noi聲普化天尊姜聖上帝). This paper argues that the Mugeugto taoism is revealed by its turning up time, a religious subject and purpose. The Mugeugto appearance is concerned with Sinwon. Jeung-San's Shinto thoughts is composed of a divine judgment that is built up Jeung-San as a KucheonSangje (九天上帝). According to it, Jeung-San's taoistic thoughts is taoism in the Mugeugto. The purpose of the Mugeugto is a JisangSinseon (地上神仙) and a JisangCheonkug (地上天國). A JisangSinseon thoughts and A JisangCheonkug is realized by Jeung-San's Shinto.

Organized panel, English
Kobai, Eiken

Japan

Shinran's View of Evil and of Fellowship(15Q)

In Japan, it was Shinran who most emphasized "Other-power". This come from his deep self-reflection, which led Shinran to believe he was absolutely unable to attain enlightenment through his own efforts. [Even a good person is born in the Pure Land, how much more so is an evil person]. What is called "The Evil Person is the True Object" relies on his deep self-reflection. As can be seen from this, Shinran recognized him-self as a most evil person. However, this awareness became the ground of his generous attitude to all persons, however evil. This resulted in his concept of "Spirit of Friends", [I, Shinran, do not have any disciples], and also in his belief that all sentient beings are Friends [All sentient beings in some birth or life have been my parents or my brothers]. I believe this awareness of Shinran's has much to teach us in our present confusion.

Organized panel, English