CONFUCIANISM, BUSHIDŌ, BUDDHISM
OUTLINE OF TOPICS: Confucianism; “Five Relations”; Bushidō; influences
of Confucianism and Bushidō.—Buddhism; general view; chief sects;
Tendai sect; Shingon sect; Zen sect; Jōdo sect; Shin sect; Nichiren
sect; New Buddhism; influences of Buddhism; corruption of Buddhism;
control of cemeteries; mixed sects.—Relations of Shintō, Confucianism,
and Buddhism.—Religious toleration.—Bibliography.
The philosophical teachings of Confucius were very popular in Japan
among the educated classes, who, caring little for religion, were
content to supplement Shintō with Confucianism. Its moral code
undoubtedly proved beneficial to Japan in many respects; but now it is
practically superseded by the doctrines of Western atheistic, agnostic,
and materialistic philosophy.
The “five relations” (_gorin_), around which clustered the Confucian
ethical code, were those of Father and Son, Ruler and Ruled, Husband
and Wife, Elder and Younger Brothers, and Friends. In China, “filial
piety,” the great virtue of the first relation, was the foundation
of the whole system; but in Japanese Confucianism this was relegated
to the second place, and “loyalty,” the great virtue of the second
relation, was put first. The scope of this relation, moreover, was
quite wide; it included not only the relation between the sovereign
and his subjects, but also that between a lord and his retainers, and
even that between any master and servants. The virtue of the third
relation was known as “distinction,” which practically meant that each
should know and keep his or her own place; that of the fourth relation
was “order,” which insisted upon the primacy of seniority in age;
and between friends the typical virtue was “faith,” or “trust,” or
“confidence.”
The word _Bushidō_ means, literally, “The Warrior’s Way,” which was
the code of ethics that prevailed in Feudal Japan, and whose influence
is still felt, although waning, in Modern Japan. It was the moral
code of Japanese chivalry, of the knight and of the gentleman. It
has not inaptly been styled “Japonicized Confucianism,” for it was
chiefly Confucian in its constitution. But it gathered elements from
Shintō and Buddhism: from the latter it received fatalism (Stoicism);
and from the former it received loyalty and patriotism, which meant
practically the same thing. It ignored personal chastity (except in
women); it encouraged suicide and revenge; but it emphasized justice,
courage, benevolence, politeness, veracity, honor, and self-control.
One of its most powerful principles was _giri_ (right reason), which
is difficult to translate or define, but comes pretty close to what we
call “duty” or “the right.” This still maintains a potent influence in
New Japan, and often accounts for erratic procedures. Indeed, so-called
peculiarities of the Japanese cannot be understood without a knowledge
of Bushidō, which has been analyzed in a flattering manner in Dr.
Nitobe’s book, entitled “Bushidō, the Soul of Japan.”
Inasmuch as the influence of Confucianism in Japan was chiefly
manifested through Bushidō, to be correct, we ought to speak of their
joint influences. But since Bushidō, as we have just seen, was largely
Confucianism, slightly modified to suit the needs of the Japanese
spirit (_Yamato-damashii_), we shall, for convenience, follow other
writers in using the term “Confucianism.” Rein testifies that in Japan
“widely diffused religious indifference and formal atheism are the
consequences” of the pursuit of Confucianism. Chamberlain says that
“during the two hundred years that followed, the whole intellect of the
country was moulded by Confucian ideas.” Griffis bears similarly strong
testimony, and emphasizes the fact that “all Japanese social, official,
intellectual, and literary life was permeated with the new spirit of
Confucian thought.” It is not strange, therefore, that when Japan was
opened to the world, and Occidental learning and literature poured in,
the materialism and the agnosticism of the West met with a sympathetic
reception.
[Illustration: GROUP OF PILGRIMS, AND BUDDHIST PRIESTS]
Buddhism is the accepted faith of the great mass of the Japanese
people. It was introduced into Japan from Korea, in the sixth century
A. D., and spread rapidly. It is now divided in Japan into eight
sects, with various sub-sects, which bring the grand total up to about
thirty-five. These sects vary, some in doctrines and others in rituals,
and are even quite hostile to each other. The Shin sect deserves,
perhaps, a special mention; because it opposes celibacy and asceticism,
does not restrict the diet, worships only one Buddha, and preaches
salvation by faith. It is often called “the Protestantism of Buddhism.”
Buddhist temples are usually magnificent structures, and the ritual
is elaborate; but, in spite of the assistance of Colonel Olcott, Sir
Edwin Arnold, and others, it is fast losing ground. It has degenerated
and become idolatry and superstition. It keeps hold of the ignorant
masses, and even of intelligent persons, chiefly because it has control
of funeral rites and cemeteries. It has been said that a Japanese is
a Shintōist in life and a Buddhist at death; and it is also true that
he may be during life, at one and the same time, a devotee of both.
Buddhism may suffice for a people who are crushed under an Oriental
despotism; but Christianity alone is the religion of liberty and
progress. Buddha may be “the light of Asia,” but Jesus Christ is “the
light of the world.”
Nanjō, the historian of Japanese Buddhism, has written a “History
of the Twelve Japanese Buddhist Sects”; but as some of these are now
defunct, it is sufficient to notice here only eight principal sects, as
follows: Tendai, Shingon, Zen, Jōdo, Shin, Nichiren, Ji, Yuzu Nembutsu.
Moreover, as the last two of these are comparatively insignificant, the
mere mention of their names is enough, but a little more should be said
concerning each of the other six.
1. The Tendai sect is the oldest, but now ranks among the lowest.
It belongs to the school which “sought to define truth and to find
salvation in knowledge”: but as the truth was often too abstruse for
the mass, it must be dealt out, by means of pious devices, according
to the ability of the learner; so that the disciples of this sect have
been called the Jesuits of Buddhism.
2. To the same school belongs the Shingon sect, which is only a year
younger than the former sect and now ranks third in the list. It was
founded by the celebrated priest Kōbō Daishi; and its doctrines also
are quite abstruse. This is the sect which is responsible for that
mixing of Shintō and Buddhism that prevailed for so many centuries
by the adoption of Shintō deities into the Buddhist pantheon. These
believers are sometimes called the Gnostics of Buddhism.
3. The Zen sect represents the school which teaches that “abstract
contemplation leads to a knowledge of saving truth.” “Look carefully
within, and there you will find the Buddha.” This sect arose probably
“out of a reaction against the multiplication of idols,” and was
“a return to simpler forms of worship and conduct”; therefore its
disciples have been called “the Quakers of Japanese Buddhism.” Others
call them “the Japanese Quietists” or “the Japanese Mystics.” This is
now the largest Buddhist sect.
4. A third school, teaching that salvation was to be obtained only
through the works of another, has been represented by two sects, the
Jōdo and the Shin. The former, which now ranks fourth, was founded
upon a very simple doctrine, with an easy rule of life, that is, the
frequent repetition of the invocation _Namu Amida Butsu_, “Hail to
Amida the Buddha.” These Buddhists use a double rosary.
5. The Shin sect,[157] which sprung out of the Jōdo sect, is that of
the Japanese Reformers or Protestants. In numerical strength it is
second to the Zen sect, but in real power and influence it is _facile
princeps_. Its priests are allowed to marry, and to eat flesh and
fish. It teaches that morality is as important as faith; or, in quite
familiar words, that “faith without works is dead.” It is monotheistic,
as it worships only one Buddha. It alone of all Buddhist sects provides
a way of salvation for women. It upholds a high standard of education,
carries on vigorous missions in China and Korea, and has priests even
in America.
6. The sect founded by the priest Nichiren and named for him is not
large, but very radical and influential. In their controversial and
uncompromising attitude toward other religions or even other sects of
Buddhism, the disciples of the “fiery Nichiren” have been called “the
Jesuits of Buddhism.” Their invocation is _Namu Myōhō Renge Kyō_ (Hail
to the Doctrine of the Lotus of the Wonderful Law). Their doctrine is
complete pantheism; as Dr. Griffis expresses it, Nichiren “was destined
to bring religion, not only down to men, but even down to the beasts
and the mud.”
Of all these sects, the only one which has been appreciably influenced
by contact with Western civilization and conflict with Christianity is
the Shin sect. One type of New Buddhism tries to ally itself with the
doctrines of scientific evolution. Another type has learned lessons
from Christian activity in Japan, and is putting forth its energies in
the direction of philanthropic and educational institutions; so that
it has its hospitals, magazines, schools, and, to balance the Young
Men’s Christian Association, its Young Men’s Buddhist Association, with
summer schools, etc. The New Buddhism will die hard.
The influence of Buddhism upon the Japanese people must not be
underestimated, especially because it is still manifest, to a high
degree, even in New Japan. Chamberlain says:[158] “All education was
for centuries in Buddhist hands, as was the care of the poor and sick;
Buddhism introduced art, introduced medicine, moulded the folk-lore of
the country, created its dramatic poetry, deeply influenced politics
and every sphere of social and intellectual activity. In a word,
Buddhism was the teacher under whose instruction the Japanese nation
grew up.” Or, as Griffis outlines it,[159] the Buddhist missionaries
were purveyors of civilization, ministers of art, wielded a mighty
influence in military and political affairs, transformed the manners
and customs, inspired a tremendous development in education and
literature; but Buddhism was “kind to the brute and cruel to man,”
neglected charity and philanthropy, degraded woman, and left upon the
Japanese character the blight of a merciless fatalism and an awful
pessimism.[160] It created “habits of gentleness and courtesy” and a
“spirit of hopeless resignation.” To sum up, “in a word, Buddhism is
law, but not gospel.”
At present, Buddhism in Japan is exceedingly corrupt, is losing its
hold upon the educated, but retains a tremendous influence over the
great mass of the people. The majority of the priests are ignorant,
illiterate, and immoral, “blind leaders of the blind.” The newspapers
of the day are unsparing in their denunciation of the immoralities of
the priesthood. The following is only one of many such testimonies
by ex-priests: “Something that did trouble me was the growing
conviction that Buddhism was dead, that it had reached the extremity of
corruption. Strife and scandal were rife everywhere. The chief priests
... were grasping after worldly place and prosperity. Of the immorality
of the priests it makes me blush to speak. It is not a rare thing to
see men with shaven heads and attired in black garments wandering
about in prostitute quarters, or to find women living in temples, or
to discover fish-bones thrown among the graves.... The religion has no
rallying power left, no inner life.... It has contributed much to our
civilization in the past, but it is now exhausted.”
One element of the strong hold which Buddhism had and has upon the
people, even upon the educated classes, is the fact that so many
cemeteries have been and are connected with Buddhist temples. It used
to be a frequent saying that a Japanese was a Shintōist in life and a
Buddhist in death; because, though he may never have espoused Buddhism,
he might be laid away in his grave according to Buddhist ceremonies
in a Buddhist temple and a Buddhist graveyard. But this control of
the cemeteries seems to be passing out of Buddhist hands into the
care of the local civil authorities. And this secularization, if it
may be so called, of the graveyards not only abolishes the Buddhist
monopoly, but also takes away from the priests the golden opportunity
of extorting immense fees. The Buddhist control of cemeteries has
often been a source of great embarrassment to Christians, who were
frequently compelled to bury their dead under Buddhist auspices. But
there have lately been cases where no objection was made to the burial
of Christians with Christian rites in a Buddhist graveyard.
This is, perhaps, the most suitable place to devote just a few words
to those sects which are comparatively modern in their origin, and
are so composite in their doctrine that they cannot be classed under
either Shintō or Buddhism. Indeed, they even show traces, though
perhaps slight, of Christian teaching; and they all agree in the
one doctrine of faith healing. These are _Remmon-kyō_ (Doctrine of
the Lotus-Gate),[161] _Kurozumi-kyō_ (Doctrine of Kurozumi, name of
founder),[162] and _Tenrikyō_ (Doctrine of Heavenly Reason).[163]
The first and the last were founded by ignorant peasant women, and
win adherents mostly among the lowest classes. The first seems more
Buddhist than Shintō; the second seems more Shintō than Buddhist; while
the third is the one which shows most plainly traces of Christian
influence. In _Kurozumi-kyō_, the Sun-goddess is the chief object of
devotion, because the founder was healed by worshipping the rising sun.
_Tenrikyō_ is growing rapidly, and is exclusive and intolerant.
The eclecticism of the Japanese in intellectual matters may be
explained by calling attention to one phase of their attitude toward
the three cults of Old Japan. There was in general a feeling of “with
malice toward none, with charity for all”; for the three, to a greater
or less degree, overlapped or supplemented each other.[164] Shintō, as
we have seen, was only a national cult; Confucianism was a philosophy
of the relations between man and man; while Buddhism was a true
religion, with ideas about sin and salvation. As another has summed up
the scope of these three “ways,” “Shintōism furnishes the object of
worship, Confucianism offers the rules of life, and Buddhism supplies
the way of future salvation.” It was, therefore, possible for a person
to be a disciple of two, or even all, of these “doctrines” at one and
the same time. He “had constantly before his eyes the emblems of each
of these religions. In nearly every Samurai’s house were the moral
books of Confucius, the black lacquered wooden tablets, inscribed in
gold with the Buddhist names of his ancestors, while on the god-shelf
stood the idols and symbols of Shintō.”
Therefore there are to-day probably thousands of Japanese who would
readily accept Christianity by simply adding the image of Jesus to
their present collection, and giving it equal honor with those of
Buddha and their ancestors. They might easily incorporate Jehovah
in their pantheon; but they find difficulty in appreciating the
intolerance of Christians in having “no other gods besides” Jehovah.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.
The references for this chapter are in general the same as those for
the preceding chapter, except that, in place of the special papers
on Shintō, should be substituted special papers on Confucianism by
Knox and Haga in Transactions Asiatic Society of Japan, vol. xx.
pp. 1-192; on Buddhism, by Lloyd in Transactions Asiatic Society of
Japan, vol. xxii. pp. 337-506, and in “Every Day Japan”; and Nitobe’s
“Bushidō, the Soul of Japan.”
“Japan To-day” (Scherer) contains an interesting chapter (vi.) of
Buddhist sermons: see also Mitford’s “Tales of Old Japan.”
Dr. Knox, who is an authority on Confucianism, has given in his
“Japanese Life in Town and Country” a few chapters (vi.-xi.) of
interest in this connection; and he has also issued (1907) a valuable
book, entitled “The Development of Religion in Japan.” Lloyd’s “Creed
of Half Japan” is very suggestive.