Ethnohistory of the creation of a new religion in multicultural Japan

Abstract

Japan as a multicultural and polyreligious society is illuminated in this article by reference to the creation of Ijun, which is both a revival of Ryukyuan culture and a new religion of Japan. The similarity between Ijun and Seichō no Ie can be understood by reference to ethnohistoric context, to international activity, and to flows of information, religious ideology and capital. The philosophy, histories of the founders, ritual and Japanese vocabulary are compared in order to show differences and similarities that reflect two cultural contexts, Ryukyuan and Japanese. The personal history of Ijun’s founder adds strength to the conclusion that Ijun is similar to Seichō no Ie, despite differences attributed to Ryukyuan influence on Ijun. Takayasu’s creation of an international organization makes Ijun into a center that replicates and reverses the center-periphery relation between Japan and Okinawa, while also modeling Seichō no Ie’s international organization.

Keywords:

• New religions of Japan
• Okinawa
• Ryukyuan ethnohistory
• Ijun
• Seichō no Ie

Disclosure statement

No potential conflicts of interest were reported by the author(s).

Notes

1 Close analysis of the social interaction of a Tenrikyō adherent in Brazil from 1985 through 1987 shows that he interacted primarily with those from his own church lineage (i.e., he interacted mostly with those from churches founded by those converted by the founder of the same Great Church [daikyōkai 大教会], as his own). During his first years as an immigrant in Sao Paulo, he did not visit more than one dozen local Tenrikyō churches that were not in his lineage. He regularly visited all those that were (Reichl 1988, 323).

2 Both groups have used the concept of kōmyō sekai (光明世界) to refer to the spiritual world.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Christopher Reichl

Christopher Reichl is Professor, Department of Anthropology at University of Hawaii at Hilo. He researches international migration, Japanese immigrants in Brazil and Hawaii, and Japanese new religions. His email address is [email protected].