Religious ideas in Japan: Introductory remarks

Abstract

The JJRS proclaims itself dedicated to the advancement o f inter-religious understanding and to the furthering of the study of religion, part icularly Japanese rel igion-with a special interest, as stated on the inside of the f ront cover, in breaking through the language barriers which separate Japanese scholarship in from the international scene. It goes without saying that the present issue wants t o honor this policy and tradition, but possibly w i th a l i t t l e difference. Study of religion is a broad concept. It covers a l l endeavors that lead t o a bet ter understanding of the multifaceted real i ty of from various standpoints and w i th sundry methods. Ideally, we should be able to distinguish-as is rather often done-between positive and speculat ive study o f religion. Positive study, modelling i tself a f ter the natural sciences, would then take as i t s object the or phenomena of religion, observe these facts carefully, report them meticulously and, where possible, subject them t o mathematical analysis. Speculative study o f religion, on the other hand, would rather follow the model o f the classical l iberal arts and take as i t s object. I want to point out, however, that the term religious ideas does not necessarily refer only to expressed in conceptual language in texts, but can cover also ways of thinking underlying, and implicit in, rituals, a r t (w i th inclusion o f l i terary texts), organization, observation of taboos, etc.-in a word, a l l the facts and phenomena of religion. But, the time may wel l have come for us, students of religion, to clearly recognize that the distinction between positive and speculative is nowhere more ar t i f i c ia l and problematic than in the study of religion. Here, it can a t the most indicate two ideal poles.