일본 중세 설화 속 출가자(出家者)의 자살과 왕생

Abstract

This paper examines the characteristics of religious suicide, which is a representative example of altruistic suicide, focusing on the tales of suicide and rebirth in Japanese medieval folk tales. The Middle Ages in Japan was a time when Buddhism was popularized and everyone dreamed of rebirth. The strong desire for rebirth gave rise to a unique culture of suicide rebirth, and religious suicide became a sensationally popular topic not only among monks but also among the general public. The suicides of monks included in the collection of tales were sublimated into religious rituals and were carried out according to established procedures in the presence of monks and bystanders. Due to the nature of suicide as a public suicide performed at a scheduled time and according to rituals and procedures, a contradiction arose where one had to commit suicide as scheduled even if the desire to survive arose. It can be said that the story of suicide and rebirth clearly reveals Japan's unique view of life and death that readily approves suicide, as well as the human limitations of not easily throwing away one's life despite the justification that it is a religious suicide.