Buddhism in Japan
was first established in Japan in the 6th century CE. Most of the Japanese Buddhists belong to new schools of Buddhism which were established in the Kamakura period. During the Edo period, Buddhism was controlled by the feudal Shogunate. The Meiji period saw a strong response against Buddhism, with persecution and a forced separation between Buddhism and Shinto.
The largest sects of Japanese Buddhism are Pure Land Buddhism with 22 million believers, followed by Nichiren Buddhism with 10 million believers, Shingon Buddhism with 5.4 million, Zen Buddhism with 5.3 million, Tendai Buddhism with 2.8 million, and only about 700,000 for the six old schools established in the Nara period.
History
Early Buddhism (5th-13th century)
Arrival and initial spread of Buddhism
Originating in India, Buddhism arrived in Japan by first making its way to China and Korea through the Silk Road and then traveling by sea to the Japanese archipelago. Though often overlooked in Western academia, Buddhism was transmitted through trade routes across South East Asia in addition to the Sinosphere. As such, early Japanese Buddhism is strongly influenced by Chinese Buddhism and Korean Buddhism, which were influenced by Indian Mahayana Buddhism. Though most scholars date the introduction of Buddhism to the middle of the sixth century, Deal and Ruppert note that immigrants from the Korean Peninsula, as well as merchants and sailors who frequented the mainland, likely brought Buddhism with them independent of the transmission as recorded in court chronicles. Some Japanese sources mention this explicitly. For example, the Heian Period Fusō Ryakuki, mentions a foreigner known in Japanese as Shiba no Tatsuto, who may have been Chinese-born, Baekje-born, or a descendant of an immigrant group in Japan. He is said to have built a thatched hut in Yamato and enshrined an object of worship there. Immigrants like this may have been a source for the Soga clan's later sponsorship of Buddhism.The Nihon Shoki provides a date of 552 for when King Seong of Baekje sent a mission to Emperor Kinmei that included an image of the Buddha Shakyamuni, ritual banners, and sutras. This event is usually considered the official introduction of Buddhism to Japan. Other sources, however, give the date of 538 and both dates are thought to be unreliable. However, it can still be said that in the middle of the sixth century, Buddhism was introduced through official diplomatic channels.
According to the Nihon Shoki, after receiving the Buddhist gifts, the Japanese emperor asked his officials if the Buddha should be worshipped in Japan. They were divided on the issue, with Soga no Iname supporting the idea while Mononobe no Okoshi and Nakatomi no Kamako worried that the kami of Japan would become angry at this worship of a foreign deity. The Nihon Shoki then states that the emperor allowed only the Soga clan to worship the Buddha, to test it out.
Thus, the powerful Soga clan played a key role in the early spread of Buddhism in the country. Their support, along with that of immigrant groups like the Hata clan, gave Buddhism its initial impulse in Japan along with its first temple. The Nakatomi and Mononobe, however, continued to oppose the Soga, blaming their worship for disease and disorder. These opponents of Buddhism are even said to have thrown the image of the Buddha into the Naniwa canal. Eventually outright war erupted. The Soga side, led by Soga no Umako and a young Prince Shōtoku, emerged victorious and promoted Buddhism on the archipelago with support of the broader court.
Based on traditional sources, Shōtoku has been seen as an ardent Buddhist who taught, wrote on, and promoted Buddhism widely, especially during the reign of Empress Suiko. He is also believed to have sent envoys to China and is even seen as a spiritually accomplished bodhisattva who is the true founder of Japanese Buddhism. Modern historians have questioned much of this, seeing most of it as a constructed hagiography. A popular quote attributed to Shōtoku that became foundational for Buddhist belief in Japan is translated as "The world is vain and illusory, and the Buddha's realm alone is true." Regardless of his actual historical role, however, it is beyond doubt that Shōtoku became an important figure in Japanese Buddhist lore beginning soon after his death if not earlier.
Taoist traditions of immortality and becoming a xian made it to Japan in the times of early Buddhism, but Buddhism absorbed them. "nder Buddhist influence," these stories were "associated with certain ascetic monks who were devoted to the Lotus Sutra."
Asuka Buddhism (552–645)
Buddhism refers to Buddhist practice and thought that mainly developed after 552 in the Nara Basin. Buddhism grew here through the support and efforts of two main groups: immigrant kinship groups like the Hata clan, who were experts in Chinese technology as well as intellectual and material culture, and through aristocratic clans like the Soga clan.Immigrant groups, like the Korean monks who supposedly instructed Prince Shōtoku, introduced Buddhist learning, administration, ritual practice, and the skills to build Buddhist art and architecture. They included individuals like Hyegwan, a Goguryeo priest of the Madhyamaka school, who, according to the Nihon Shoki, was appointed to the highest rank of primary monastic prelate.
Aside from the Buddhist immigrant groups, Asuka Buddhism was mainly the purview of aristocratic clans like the Soga and related clans, who patronized clan temples to express their power and influence. These temples mainly focused on the performance of rituals which were believed to provide magical effects, such as protection. During this period, Buddhist art in Japan was dominated by the style of Tori Busshi, who came from a Korean immigrant family.
Hakuhō Buddhism (645–710)
Buddhism during the reign of Emperor Tenmu saw the Imperial House assume official patronage of Buddhism, replacing the Soga as its main patron. Japanese Buddhism at this time was also influenced by Tang dynasty Buddhism. It was also during this time that Buddhism began to spread from the Yamato Province to the other regions and islands of Japan. An important part of the centralizing Taika Reform of this era was the use of Buddhist institutions and rituals, often performed at the palace or capital, in service of the state.The imperial government also actively built and managed temples and the monastic community. The Nihon Shoki states that in 624, there were 46 Buddhist temples. Some of these temples include Kawara-dera and Yakushi-ji. Archeological research has also revealed numerous local and regional temples outside of the capital. At the state temples, Buddhist rituals were performed in order to create merit for the royal family and the well-being of the nation. Particular attention was paid to rituals centered around Buddhist texts such as the Golden Light Sutra.
The sangha was overseen by the complex and hierarchical imperial Monastic Office, which managed everything from the monastic code to the colour of the robes.
Nara Buddhism (710–794)
In 710, Empress Genme moved the state capital to Heijōkyō, thus inaugurating the Nara period. This period saw the establishment of the kokubunji system, which was a way to manage provincial temples through a network of national temples in each province. The head temple of the entire system was Tōdai-ji.Nara state sponsorship saw the development of the six great Nara schools, called Nanto Rokushū, all were continuations of Chinese Buddhist schools. The temples of these schools became important places for the study of Buddhist doctrine. The six Nara schools were: Ritsu, Jōjitsu '', Kusha-shū, Sanronshū, Hossō and Kegon.
These schools were centered around the capital where great temples such as the Asuka-dera and Tōdai-ji were erected. The most influential of the temples are known as the "seven great temples of the southern capital". The temples were not exclusive and sectarian organizations. Instead, temples were apt to have scholars versed in several of schools of thought. It has been suggested that they can best be thought of as "study groups".
State temples continued the practice of conducting numerous rituals for the good of the nation and the imperial family. Rituals centered on scriptures like the Golden Light and the Lotus Sūtra. Another key function of the state temples was the transcription of Buddhist scriptures, which was seen as generating much merit. Buddhist monastics were firmly controlled by the state's monastic office through an extensive monastic code of law, and monastic ranks were matched to the ranks of government officials. It was also during this era that the Nihon Shoki'' was written, a text which shows significant Buddhist influence. The monk Dōji may have been involved in its compilation.
The elite state sponsored Nara Buddhism was not the only type of Buddhism at this time. There were also groups of unofficial monastics or priests who were either not formally ordained and trained through the state channels, or who chose to preach and practice outside of the system. These "unofficial" monks were often subject to state punishment. Their practice could have also included Daoist and indigenous kami worship elements. Some of these figures became immensely popular and were a source of criticism for the sophisticated, academic and bureaucratic Buddhism of the capital.
Early Heian Period Buddhism (794–950)
During the Heian period, the capital was shifted to Kyoto by emperor Kanmu, mainly for economic and strategic reasons. As before, Buddhist institutions continued to play a key role in the state, with Kanmu being a strong supporter of the new Tendai school of Saichō in particular. Saichō, who had studied the Tiantai school in China, established the influential temple complex of Enryakuji at Mount Hiei, and developed a new system of monastic regulations based on the bodhisattva precepts. This new system allowed Tendai to free itself from direct state control.Also during this period, the Shingon school was established in the country under the leadership of Kūkai. This school also received state sponsorship and introduced esoteric Vajrayana elements.
The new Buddhist lineages of Shingon and Tendai also developed somewhat independently from state control, partly because the old system was becoming less important to Heian aristocrats. This period also saw an increase in the official separation between the different schools, due to a new system that specified the particular school which an imperial priest belonged to.