parents and rulers. Having supreme power, they may use it to the
degradation of those whom they control. Confucius, it is true, taught
parents and rulers that they too owed duties to the state, and that use
of their Heaven-given powers for selfish ends was treason against the
supreme law; but, beyond doubt, the duty of submission, of loyalty and
unquestioning obedience, was so exaggerated that evils many and great
resulted. At the same time {119} a sympathetic view leads one to
wonder the rather that the ethical results are so wholesome.
Turning from this general view, one finds in particulars much the same
conditions as in other lands. For example, immense quantities of
alcoholic stimulants are consumed annually. There is a native liquor
called "sake," made from rice, that is very popular and, in some of its
forms, very intoxicating. Its manufacture and sale is one of the most
lucrative businesses in the empire. Foreign whiskies, wines, and beers
are sold in large quantities, but they are so costly as to be beyond
the reach of all but the wealthy. Outside of the small circle of
Christians, there are few people who do not drink. The total abstainer
is a rarity. But, while nearly every one drinks, in general the
Japanese do not drink to such excess as other nations. One seldom sees
such beastly drunkenness as is often seen in the West. Drinking is
taken as a matter of course, and society does not condemn it. The
usual way in which Japanese men pass a dull day is in feasting and
drinking. The use of alcoholic stimulants is much more common here
than at home.
In business and commercial morality there is much to be desired. The
merchants do not sell according to the worth of an article, but
according to what they can make the purchaser pay. They are great
bargainers. Recently I wanted to buy {120} two large wall-pictures.
The dealer asked me $21 for them, but finally sold them for $5. It is
a very common thing to buy articles for less than half the price first
asked. In matters of veracity and in the fulfilment of contracts
Japanese merchants are not generally to be trusted. The average man is
famous for lying, and the merchants and tradesmen seem to have acquired
an extra share of this general characteristic. A Japanese trader will
do all in his power to avoid the fulfilment of a contract if it entails
a loss. This lack of commercial honor is recognized by the foreign
firms doing business here, and it has hindered not a little the growth
and development of trade.
The moral sense of the people in regard to taking one's own life is
very different from that of Christendom. From ancient times, suicide
has been thought to be a praiseworthy act, and has been extensively
practised. Formerly it was encouraged, and sometimes required, by the
government; but now it has no official sanction whatever. Still, the
custom exists, and some authorities place the annual number of suicides
as high as 10,000. The people laugh at our Western idea that it is
wrong to take one's own life. On the contrary, they hold that when
misfortunes and calamities make this life unattractive it is the part
of wisdom to end it. Even the feelings of young Japanese, {121} who
have been educated somewhat into our own way of thinking, do not seem
to have changed on this point; they still adhere to the old Roman view
that self-destruction is permissible and often meritorious. The
Western fiction that all suicides are the result of some form of
insanity is not countenanced here. The various causes leading to
self-destruction are coolly and carefully tabulated, and very few are
attributed to insanity. Contrariwise, long and careful study of the
subject has shown that self-destruction is gone about with as much
coolness, precision, and judgment as any act of daily life.
The above are in brief the leading moral ideas and principles that
govern the Japanese people. For their loyalty and obedience we have
only admiration. But both of these principles are given an undue
importance and are carried to extremes. The chief defect of Japanese
morality is the minor place it gives to the individual. The moral need
of the nation is a Christian morality--not just the morality of the
West, but a morality founded on the ethical principles inculcated in
the Bible. This would exalt truth and chastity, would soften and
temper the great duties of loyalty and obedience, and would make of
Japan an honest, temperate nation.
{122}
VII
RELIGIONS OF JAPAN
The Japanese are by nature a religious people. In the earliest times a
conglomerate mass of superstitions and mythological ideas was made to
do service as a religion. Fetishism, phallicism, animism, and tree-
and serpent-worship were very common. The line of distinction between
the Creator and the creature was not clearly marked; gods and men
mingled and intermingled, and were hardly known apart. But it is not
our purpose here to trace the ancient religious ideas of Japan, but
rather to give a short account of contemporary religions. Therefore we
cannot dwell on these unwritten mythological-religious systems.
The religions of contemporary Japan are four--Shinto, Buddhism,
Confucianism, and Tenrikyo. Shinto and Tenrikyo are indigenous;
Buddhism and Confucianism have been imported from China and Korea.
Tenrikyo is of recent origin and has {123} not yet the influence and
standing of the others. Shinto, Buddhism, and Confucianism have
existed here side by side for centuries. There is no great antagonism
between them, as there is between Christianity and the ethnic
religions. Many of the people are disciples of all three at the same
time, taking their theology from Shinto, their soteriology and
eschatology from Buddhism, and their moral and economic ideas from
Confucianism. No inconsistency is felt in thus believing all three
religions and worshiping at their shrines. Indeed, these three faiths
have so commingled, the ideas and practices of one have so filtered
into the others, that it is hard now to distinguish the pure teachings
of each. In the minds of the masses they are not distinguished in
detail. And yet as regards origin, history, and teachings they are
separate and distinct faiths.
_Shinto_
Shinto may be called the national cult of Japan. The word "Shinto"
means "the way of the gods." This system hardly deserves the name
religion. It has no moral code, no dogmas, no sacred books.
Originally it consisted chiefly of ancestor- and nature-worship, and of
certain mythological ideas. A chief feature of it still is the worship
of ancestors, who are exalted to a high pedestal in thought {124} and
worshiped as gods. The divine origin of the imperial family, and the
obligation to worship and obey it, was a prominent teaching of Shinto.
The ancestors of the imperial family were to be held in supreme
reverence and were the objects of especial worship.
According to the Shinto of this period, there was neither heaven nor
hell, but only an intermediate Hades. There was a sort of priesthood,
but its duty was to watch over particular local gods, not to preach to
the people. Pure Shinto taught that a man's whole duty lay in absolute
obedience to the mikado and in following the natural promptings of his
own heart.
Shinto was very much affected by the introduction of Buddhism, about
the middle of the sixth century, and its further growth was checked.
Buddhism adopted and largely absorbed it. Shinto gods were given a
place in the Buddhist pantheon, and many of the Shinto ceremonies were
adopted. But Shinto was completely overshadowed by Buddhism, and lay
in a dormant state from the year 550 to 1700, a night of more than a
thousand years.
[Illustration: A Shinto Temple.]
Since the beginning of the eighteenth century a revival of Shinto has
sprung up. Native scholars tried to call up the past, to find out what
pure Shinto was before its corruption by Buddhism, and to teach it as
the national faith. In this effort {125} they were partially
successful. The old Buddhistic accretions were largely thrown off, and
many of the temples, stripped of their Buddhist ornaments, were handed
over to the Shinto priests. Buddhism was disestablished, and Shinto
again became the religion of the state. A Shinto "Council for
Spiritual Affairs" was appointed, which had equal rank with the Council
of State. This, however, was reduced gradually to the rank of a
department, then to a bureau, later to a sub-bureau. At present Shinto
is the state religion, in so far as there can be said to be any state
religion; but in reality there is no established religion. The
connection of the government with Shinto extends no further than the
maintenance of certain temples and the attendance of certain officials
on some ceremonies. Shinto enjoys a large amount of popularity because
it is indigenous, while Buddhism and Confucianism labor under the
disadvantage of being of foreign origin. The majority of the upper
classes in Japan who to-day have any religion at all are Shintoists.
_Buddhism_
The religion founded by Buddha in India is six centuries older than
Christianity. Its nominal adherents comprise almost one third of the
human race. Its philosophical precepts are deep {126} and profound,
while its ethical teachings are, for the most part, lofty and
ennobling. This religion is worthy the careful study of any man who
has the time and inclination.
We cannot attempt to give a full exposition of it, but will have to
content ourselves with a bare mention of its more prominent teachings.
Certain resemblances to Catholicism in ritual, ceremony, and
ornamentation strike one very forcibly in observing Buddhist rites.
The candles, the incense, the images and processions, all resemble
Rome. But this resemblance extends no further than ritual and
ceremony. In point of doctrine Buddhism is widely separated from every
form of Christianity. In Buddhism the condition on which grace is
received is not faith, but knowledge and enlightenment. Salvation is
accomplished, not by the vicarious sufferings of a Redeemer, but by
self-perfection through self-denial and discipline.
Dr. Griffis, a man who has written much and well on Japan, has
pronounced the principal features of Buddhism to be atheism,
metempsychosis, or the transmigration of souls, and absence of caste.
[Illustration: A Buddhist Priest.]
Buddhism knows nothing of the existence of a supreme God who created
the world. It inherited ideas of certain gods from Brahmanism, but
these are made secondary to the _hotoke_, or buddhas, {127} who are
simply men who have finally reached the calm of perfect holiness after
toiling through endless ages and countless existences. It teaches that
existence itself is the chief of all evils. Instead of longing for
eternal life, the Buddhist longs for annihilation. Happy, well-fed
Western people, to whom existence is a delight, can hardly understand
how any one can really desire its cessation. But the life of the lower
classes in many countries of the East is one daily struggle for bread,
so full of sorrow and misery that it is not unnatural they should
desire to end it.
This religion teaches that the evil of existence springs from the
double root of ignorance and human passions, and is to be overcome by
knowledge and self-discipline. The heaven it offers is absorption in
the Nirvana--the loss of personal identity and practical annihilation.
Buddhism numbers more devotees and exerts a greater influence than any
of the other religions of Japan. It was received from Korea about the
middle of the sixth century. After it had been transplanted and had
grown into popular favor, many Japanese were sent to Korea and China to
study its doctrines more fully; and they brought back with them not
only Buddhism, but also Chinese literature and civilization. At first
Buddhism encountered fierce opposition, but it was fortunate in
securing court patronage, and {128} very soon the opposition entirely
ceased, so that in two or three centuries it spread itself throughout
the whole empire. If ever a nation was ripe for the introduction of a
foreign religion, that nation was Japan at that time. The national
cult was silent, or almost so, in regard to the destiny of man and many
other questions which religion is expected to answer. The religious
nature of the people was asserting itself, and they were longing for
more light on the great questions of life--its _whence_, _why_, and
_whither_. Buddhism gave this light, and therefore was warmly
welcomed. It had the whole field to itself, and took complete
possession of it.
[Illustration: A Buddhist Cemetery.]
From the time of its introduction into Japan down to the present,
Buddhism has enjoyed a wide popularity and exerted a powerful
influence. It is not too much to say that Buddhism has largely formed
Japanese civilization and national life. In the words of Professor
Chamberlain, "All education was for centuries in Buddhist hands.
Buddhism introduced art and medicine, molded 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."
Buddhism has by no means lost its hold in Japan. It still has great
life and power. Some {129} writers have said that they have never seen
a new temple in Japan--only old ones falling into decay. Their
experience must have been limited. I see plenty of new temples, some
of which are very costly.
Buddhist temples are numerous, and many are of imposing architecture.
Being generally surrounded by tall trees, they have a lonely, mournful
appearance. Hideous beasts, dragons, and serpents are carved upon
them, and large, fierce-looking stone lions guard them, the effect
being to awe and terrify the beholder. Some are furnished with
gorgeous altars covered with beautiful flowers, images, and statues.
Besides the temples there are everywhere little shrines. The religious
spirit of the people prompts them to dedicate the most beautiful spots
and nooks to the gods, and there to erect shrines and idols.
Buddhist priests dress in robes not very unlike the official robes of
the Episcopal clergy. Their heads are always close-shaven, a mark by
which they are easily distinguished. Forbidden to marry, they are
expected to lead lives of purity and chastity. They have greatly
degenerated, a large per cent. being illiterate and immoral. Their
lives will not bear comparison with those of the Christian evangelists.
That nearly all the cemeteries of Japan are in their hands gives them
great influence.
{130}
Japanese Buddhism is divided into numerous sects, chief of which are
the Tendai, Shingon, Jodo, and Zen, of Chinese origin, and the Shin and
Nichiren, of native origin. The latter two are most prosperous.
Buddhism has profited by its contact with Christianity. As the
reaction of Protestantism upon Catholicism was beneficial to the
latter, so the reaction of Christianity upon Buddhism has been
healthful It has forced a revival and purification of the Buddhist
faith, and to-day it is better and more active than before it
encountered Christianity. Still, Christianity is gradually encroaching
upon its domain and is crippling its influence. That Buddhism is bound
to perish in its encounter with Western civilization and Christianity
seems a foregone conclusion.
_Confucianism_
Confucianism is even less deserving the name of a religion than Shinto.
It consists chiefly in a set of moral teachings, of narrow application
and mostly of a political nature. Confucius, avoiding all metaphysical
abstractions and devotional rhapsodies, confined himself to the much
more practical field of morals and politics. But his disciples and
commentators, especially during the middle ages, expanded his doctrines
and added ideas {131} more or less religious. Thus developed, it
became a sort of religious system, the only one believed by the old
samurai or warrior classes.
Confucius, its founder, was born in the year 551 B.C., in the state of
Lu, province of Shantung, China. He was an earnest student of the
older Chinese classics, and one of the most learned men of his time.
He gathered round him a circle of young men, whom he instructed, like
Socrates, by questions and answers. He died in 478 B.C. No other
human teacher has had more disciples or exerted a wider and stronger
influence.
From its birthplace in China Confucianism spread to Korea, where it
soon became, and still continues to be, the predominant faith. From
Korea it advanced to the Japanese archipelago, where for many hundred
years it has had much to do with shaping and molding the character of
the people. Confucianism has undergone many modifications. At first a
comparatively simple system of ethics and politics, it has expanded
until to-day it is a complicated philosophico-religious system.
The basal principles of Confucian ethics are the "five relations."
These are: sovereign and minister; father and son; husband and wife;
elder brother and younger brother; friend and friend. I have named
them in the order of their importance. The duty of loyalty is above
that of filial {132} obedience, while the relation of husband and wife
is inferior to both of these. We will briefly consider each of these
relations separately.
The duty of a minister, or servant, to his prince, or sovereign, is the
first duty of man, and is emphasized to an extreme degree. In order to
discharge this obligation to the feudal lord or emperor, one must, if
necessary, give up everything: house, lands, kinsmen, name, fame, wife,
children, society--all. And Japanese history is filled with instances
of retainers who have counted their lives, their families, their all,
as less than nothing when compared with their duty to their lord.
Loyalty is the one idea which dominates all others in the Confucianism
of Japan. Thus it has exerted an influence hardly second to Shinto in
inculcating loyalty to the emperor and to Japan, and making the people
fanatically patriotic.
The second relation is that of father and son, or parent and child. My
readers perhaps would consider the relation of husband and wife the
first of all human relations, but not so the Oriental. With him the
family is of far more importance than the individual, and the chief aim
of marriage is the maintenance of the family line. If the wife becomes
a mother she is honored because she assists in perpetuating the family
line; if she is childless she is probably neglected. Where there are
no children adoption is the universal practice. {133} The one adopted
takes the family name and perpetuates it. No greater misfortune can be
conceived than for the house to become extinct.
The relation of parent and child is very different from that to which
we are accustomed. Mutual love hardly exists. The parent feels
compassion and love for his child; the child reverences the parent. To
speak of a child's love for his father, or a man's love for God, is
repugnant to the Confucianist. It is thought to be taking an undue
familiarity, and the proper relation is considered one of dependence
and reverence. In old Japan the father was absolute lord and master,
and had power over the life and death of his child. In recent times
his power is more limited, and the idea is beginning to dawn upon
thinking natives that children have rights as well as duties. A
Japanese child feels more reverence for its parents, or at least for
its father, than does the average child reared in the Christian homes
of the West.
The third relation is that of husband and wife. On this point the
teaching of Confucius is very different from that of Christ. Instead
of having two parties bound together by mutual love, with equal rights
and duties, we have the relation of superior and inferior, of master
and servant. The husband precedes the wife in all things. She must
serve him and his family zealously and {134} uncomplainingly. She must
be especially on her guard against the foolish sin of jealousy, and is
not to complain if her husband introduces a concubine into the same
house in which she resides. She is to yield absolute obedience to him
in all things. She can be divorced for very slight reasons, and
divorces are matters of every-day occurrence. Statistics show that the
annual number of divorces is about one third the number of marriages.
Sentiment is gradually changing in this regard, and marriage and
divorce laws are becoming more strict.
Confucius condemned adultery as a heinous crime, but this teaching is
made to apply only to the wife. She must remain true to her husband,
but he is not considered under the same obligation to her.
The fourth relation is that of elder brother and younger brother. This
is evident from the language used to express the relation of children
of the same household to one another. The word for brother or sister
is seldom used; in fact, there is no word to express just that idea.
In its stead we hear "elder brother," "elder sister," and "younger
brother," "younger sister." The children of a household are not
considered equals; the elder ones are given the preference in all
things. Especially does the eldest son hold a position of prominence
far above that of the other children. {135} He is looked upon as the
perpetuator of the family line and is given especial honor. His
younger brothers and his sisters, and even his mother, must serve and
obey him.
The younger sons are subjects for adoption into other families,
especially into those where there are daughters to be married and
family names to be perpetuated. This is in accordance with the Eastern
idea that the house is of more importance than the individual.
Confucian ethics largely overlooks the idea of personality.
The fifth relation is that between friends. Some writers have spoken
of this as that of man to man, and have thus read Christian ideas into
Confucianism; but this relation as taught by Confucius is only between
friends. As regards man and man, Confucius taught the duties of
courtesy and propriety, but no others. He taught the duty of kindness
to strangers, but most students of his writings are of the opinion that
he did not include foreigners among strangers. The nearest approach to
Christianity in Confucianism is the negative of the golden rule, "Do
not do unto others as you would not have others do unto you." This
approaches the teaching of Christ very nearly, but only in a negative
form. Some have thought that Confucius taught the duty of returning
good for evil, but this is a mistake. One of his contemporaries,
Lao-tse, did teach {136} this duty; but when Confucius was asked about
it he replied, "What, then, will you return for good? Recompense
_injury with justice_, and return good for good."
Certain it is that this relation, as understood in Japan, does not
apply to foreigners. How the Japanese treated foreigners in former
times is well known. Foreign sailors shipwrecked on her coasts were
tortured and executed. Ships from abroad, bringing shipwrecked
Japanese back to their own country, were met with powder and ball and
repulsed. Commodore Perry, in attempting to establish a treaty with
Japan, justly complained to the native authorities that the dictates of
humanity had not been followed, that shipwrecked men were treated with
useless cruelty, and that Japan's attitude toward her neighbors and all
the world was that of an enemy and not of a friend. The fifth relation
did not teach a common brotherhood of men and obligations of kindness
to foreigners. It applied only to the charmed circle of friendship.
On these five relations rests the whole Japanese social and moral
structure. Family and national life has been shaped and molded by
them. They are the ten commandments of the East. How very different
from the principles which have determined our own family and social
life!
Confucianism in Japan has been developed into {137} a highly
complicated religious system, and in this form is believed by large
numbers of high-class, educated Japanese. It is wholly pantheistic in
its teaching, having points of resemblance with German pantheism. It
knows no such thing as God as a separate existence. Rather, all is
God. Dr. Martin, of China, has well styled it "a pantheistic medley."