JAPANESE BUDDHISM: Indian Influence with Chinese Collaboration

By the time Buddhism reached Japanese shores it had already been transformed within India as well as in the passage across the Asian continent. On the one hand, Buddhism made a tremendous contribution to the religious scene in Japan. On the other hand, Buddhism was transformed by weight of the Japanese tradition. The twofold result is that while Japan became a Buddhist nation, Buddhism became a Japanese religion. In the initial or formative period it was the Buddhist impact upon Japanese culture and religion that was conspicuous. In the second or developmental period the Japanese transformations of Buddhism became more conspicuous.

Within Buddhist history there have come to be two major divisions along the lines of geography, doctrine, and practice. To the south of India, in countries such as Ceylon and Burma, there continued the tradition of monastic Buddhism which emphasized strict adherence to monastic rules or discipline, preservation of the scriptures of the Buddha, and doctrines which made salvation a long and difficult road for laymen. This division is often called southern Buddhism or Theravada (School of the Elders, or Monks). To the north of India and spreading across China to Japan, there continued the form of Buddhism which placed less importance on monastic discipline and greater importance on later scriptures (such as the Lotus Sutra), aspiration to the status of a Buddha, and rebirth in a heavenly paradise. Especially because this northern Buddhism insisted on the easy path to salvation for all people, it called itself Mahayana (the Large of Great Way). Although there are many similarities between these two divisions of Buddhism, and although the traditions of Southern Buddhism were brought to China and Japan, it was the Mahayana form of Buddhism which made the decisive impact in the Far East.

Buddhism entered Japan by way of Korea in the mid-sixth century. (Most authorities prefer the formal date of 552 A.D. or 538 A.D., even though Buddhist influence may have been present earlier.) The Nihongi records the first Japanese reference to Buddhism, when one of the Korean kings sent tribute to the Japanese emperor, including an image of Buddha and Chinese translations of Buddhist scriptures. The Korean king praised Buddhism as the religion of distant India whose doctrine surpasses even the understanding of the Chinese, and whose value is without limit. The introduction of Buddhism into Japan automatically provoked a conflict with the pre-existing religious tradition. The  conflict was what stimulated the adoption of the name “Shinto” and the formal organization of the pre-existing tradition. However, the argument between budding Shinto and Buddhism was not carried on in terms of doctrine. Instead, the crucial question was whether or not to worship the statue of Buddha. (Buddhist art has exerted an amazing influence on Japanese religion and culture- the most conspicuous feature of the Buddhist temple is the presence of numerous statues of Buddhist divinities.) Naturally, the Korean descendants favored the adoption of Buddha- worship, whereas the Japanese families, priests  of budding Shinto, maintained a firm opposition. The cult of Buddha underwent some sudden reversals, as in the case when a pestilence was attributed to the wrath of the national gods because the people were worshiping foreign deities. Eventually Buddhism became accepted as one of the religions of the realm, being elevated from a private cult celebrated in private homes to a state religion partly responsible for the welfare of the country.