The Competitiveness of Nations in a Global Knowledge-Based Economy
Tetsunori KoisumiTRADITIONAL JAPANESE RELIGION
AND THE NOTION OF ECONOMIC
MAN
Journal of Cultural Economics, 1 (2)
December 1977,
35-46.|
Content I - Introduction II - The Nature and Form of Religious WorshipObserved Among the Japanese III – Traditional Japanese Religion IV - Homo Religious versus Homo Economicus V – Conclusions |
Are the Japanese religious people? This question has puzzled many Westerners
ever since the Meiji Restoration in 1868 opened up the Japanese society to
Western observers and visitors. The
Restoration marked an end, politically, to the two and a half centuries of
isolationist foreign policies under the feudalistic reign of the Tokugawa clan,
establishing the unified nation under the new regime of imperial government,
and, socially, to the long hibernation in unruffled seclusion from foreign
cultures, exposing the Japanese for the first time to the glittering charm of
the Western civilization of the nineteenth century.
The new Meiji government faced, and quickly took to, the
dual task of restoring political unity and renovating social life, exhibiting
great leadership in emancipating the nation from the shackles of feudalistic
institutions and stimulating the flow of ideas and people between Japan and the
West. Responding to the official
sanction of freedom of activities and the government’s invitation to join
efforts, the whole nation engaged in the business of renovation and progress
with the zeal which had been concealed behind the forced loyalty to feudal lords
during the Tokugawa period. The
subsequent process of Japan’s modernization and industrialization has been
literally the process of Westernization: private citizens as well as public
officials have made a concerted effort to catch up with the advanced Western
Countries. The process has involved
the absorption and, in some cases, the blind imitation of the modus operandi
of Western nations, the influence of Western cultures thus permeating all
aspects of the life of the Japanese.
There is, however, one aspect of life which has been
kept relatively intact. This
concerns the attitude of the Japanese towards religious worship. In fact, the relative conservatism of the
Japanese in this regard stands in sharp contrast to the rapidity with which they
have otherwise absorbed Western cultures and adopted Western modes of living.
The contrast has been so pronounced
that there is some evidence pointing to the resurgence of interest in recent
years in this old puzzle about the religious attitude of the Japanese,
especially in the wake of Japan’s remarkable recovery from the wreckage of World
War II and her subsequent maintenance of rapid economic growth despite her
obvious disadvantage in the endowment of natural resources. One evidence is the prevalence, among
many Japanese as well as Western researchers, of a general hypothesis that
religion has played a significant role In Japan’s modernization and
industrialization in the same way the Protestant
35
ethic did in the early stages of capitalistic
development in the West. [1]
It is one thing to assert as a general hypothesis that
religion plays important role in the life of the Japanese, but quite another to
provide a coherent explanation of its precise function. The difficulty is further enlarged if one
is interested in the role of religion not only in the spiritual life of the
Japanese but also in a broad sense covering their economic, political and social
activities. As a result, there
exists a wide spectrum of different interpretations concerning the nature of
religious worship of the Japanese reflecting the differences in researchers’
interest and/or training.
To the casual observer, the Japanese may appear
completely atheistic or, at best, totally indifferent in their choice among
different religious creeds. Even a
Western religion, which normally demands a wholehearted devotion to its creeds,
is not quite immune from what appears to be a somewhat haphazard approach to
religion by the Japanese. Christianity, for example, has failed to
take deep root on Japanese soil despite the fact that the Japanese have bees
exposed to it since it was first introduced by the Portuguese as early as the
sixteenth century. The lack of
devotion on the part of the Japanese to Christian values explains why such a
shrewd observer as Ruth Benedict was led to conclude that the concept of sin has
no place in regulating the social behavior of the Japanese.[2] To the careful observer, however, it soon
becomes evident that the Japanese are indeed a very religious people, albeit in
a different sense of the term from that normally employed to characterize a
Western nation, and that their attitude towards religious worship has a profound
influence on the manner with which they conduct their daily life. In fact, the works of Lafcadio Hearn are
a vivid testimony to the penetrating insight with which a Westerner, who
developed a deep liking for the Japanese society and its people, delves into the
spiritual aspect of the life of the Japanese.[3]
The purpose of this essay is to provide a somewhat novel
interpretation of the traditional Japanese religion which is deeply rooted in
the inner life of the Japanese and to indicate how it influences their economic
activities. Section II provides a
brief review of the nature and form of religious worship that has been preserved
and observed by the Japanese. Section III formulates the Japanese view
of religion implied by the rich variety of religious worship. The Japanese view of religion thus
formulated is then employed in Section IV to shed light on the nature of
interaction between religious and economic activities of the Japanese. Section V contains a summary of the
themes developed in this essay.
II. The Nature and Form of
Religious Worship Observed Among the Japanese
Religious worship of the Japanese takes on a variety of
forms, ranging from
36
mere observance of traditional customs to highly
orchestrated group worship. The
practice of watching the sunrise on New Year’s Day is still widely observed by
the Japanese. This practice, while
it may have originated in the worship of the Sun-goddess as the ancestor of the
imperial family and as the incarnator of fertility in agricultural Japan, [4] is
not to be interpreted to carry the same religious significance as a similar
practice in Zoroastrianism. It
simply reflects a belief among the Japanese that watching the sunrise on New
Year’s Day ensures blessings in their activities for the entire year by
expressing their gratitude towards the benevolent sun.
The Japanese, as a rule, enjoy visiting Shinto Shrines
and Buddhist temples. However,
their pilgrimage is not the reflection so much of their religious commitment as
of their natural curiosity as tourists to see ancient constructions and valuable
treasures. No doubt these people
experience a hallowed sensation when they enter old temples and see holy
statues. But this is, at best, a
momentary experience as they will soon reveal their inclinations to explore more
secular tourist attractions. “Worship by day, fun by night,” is not
altogether an uncommon motivation of their pilgrimage.
At the other end of the scale, one of course finds very
serious forms of religious worship. It is not uncommon, even to this day, to
see a solitary monk traveling from one temple to another in search of
enlightenment. This form of
asceticism is also shared by ordinary citizens with a more serious bent towards
religious worship. These pilgrims
travel in white uniform with cane in hand and stay at Buddhist temples to share
the training that demands extreme austerity with resident
monks.[5]
One of the most highly organized forms of religious
worship observed among the Japanese today is the one practiced by the adherents
of Sokagakkai, one sect of Zen Buddhism. These people pay their annual pilgrimage
to the head temple in Mt. Minobu with the same kind of fervent dedication as the
Jews and Muslims exhibit as they visit the Holy City of Jerusalem. They hold weekly meetings devoted to
serious study on their canon and are strongly encouraged to spread the canon to
their friends and neighbors.
A widely accepted explanation for the rich variety of
religious worship is the universal acceptance of animism by the Japanese [6].
Historically, the origin of animism
in Japan can be traced back to the time when the founder of the nation, upon
completion of his mission to create the Japanese archipelago, mused and
muttered: [7]
In that land there were numerous
deities (or spirits) which shone with a luster like that of fireflies, and evil
deities which buzzed like flies. There were also trees and herbs which
could speak.
37
Reflecting this pure form of Japanese animism, objects
of worship by the Japanese can be quite varied. For example, a book, being a product of
mental work, is regarded not merely as a material object made of paper, but as
an object imbued with the author’s spirit. Of course, the object of worship need not
be limited to visible and concrete materials. Even a word can have a spirit. Carried to its extremity, this form of
worship gives rise to the belief in the soul of language. A good example is found in the care with
which the Japanese in general treat the number ‘four’ which, pronounced shi
in Japanese, is homonymous with another word shi (death).
[8]
If an object, material or abstract, possesses a soul, so
does any living creature and, most certainly, any human being. Moreover, if, as a popular saying goes,
“Even a one-inch worm has a half-inch soul,” there is surely plenty of room for
soul in any human being. The
recognition of this simple fact, then, becomes the motivation for a variety of
forms of human worship observed among the Japanese.
Collective unity has long been an important element of
the Japanese value system. Maintenance of unity demands loyalty to
collectivity and respect for the head of collectivity. At the smallest scale, this gives rise to
loyalty to a family and respect for the head of a family, culminating in the
family religion generally called ancestor worship. [9] A psychological basis for filial piety
and ancestor worship is the feeling of respect and reverence towards the elder
and, supposedly, more sagacious members of the community. If this is the case, the circle of
worship can be easily expanded to include other individuals outside direct
family lineage. It was thus a
natural course of development for the Japanese to expand a family religion to a
clan religion, worshipping Ujigami (clan deity) as the progenitor of the
clan. This form of worship actually
played an important social function of maintaining the solidarity of communal
life in ancient Japan. The
reverence with which the Japanese hi general regard the Emperor can be best
explained in this light, although such reverence is turned into the worship of
the Emperor by some Japanese as the direct descendent of the Sun-goddess in
Shinto mythology. [10]
As the circle of worship is gradually expanded, family
linkage becomes neither necessary nor sufficient for a certain individual to be
elevated into an object of worship.
One important necessary condition for any individual to be elected to
join the divine family is a high degree of achievement in whatever line of
business that individual happens to be engaged in. It is not surprising then that the
Japanese have created gods in literature, in military, and even in baseball!
[11]
We have seen in the previous section how the traditional
form of Japanese animism has contributed to generate and foster a favorable
environment for
38
the rich variety of religious worship observed among the Japanese. We are now in a position to formulate the
Japanese view of the fundamental problem:
What is religion? We can, of course, take a metaphysical
approach to this question. [12] However, what we propose here is an
inductive approach. That is, we
derive hints from the nature and form of Japanese religious worship and use
these hints to formulate the traditional Japanese view of religion. The concept of religion thus formulated
is then employed in the next section to shed light on how the Japanese behave in
the realm of their economic affairs.
The rich variety of religious worship observed among the
Japanese can be best explained by the fact that the question of religious
worship is utterly a private affair for the Japanese. Whether it concerns the choice among
different religious creeds or among different forms of religious services, final
decision is completely left to the individual concerned. His decision, as a rule, is not
influenced or bound by the institution (including the religious institution) of
which he is a member. [13] Thus, we
can assert that religious worship of the Japanese originates in the subjective
desire of an individual for comfort and security in the conduct of his daily
life.
Religion, to the extent that it originates in the
subjective need of each and every individual, can be defined as a collection of
beliefs and actions which relate man to his ultimate value system. Religion, in the sense thus defined,
forms man’s thoughts and regulates his actions in the conduct of his daily life.
The need for religion arises from
the recognition that man is a defective being endowed with only limited
knowledge about his environment. Out of this humble recognition emerges a
longing for perfection of the imperfect self and a yearning for wisdom and power
to supplement his human frailty. As
a byproduct of such longing and yearning emerges the sense of reverence towards
the individual possessed with wisdom and power, culminating in human worship
when led to its extremity. Other
types of religious worship are developed in a number of different ways: through
observance of traditional customs and values which reflect the conventional
wisdom of the society the individual in question belongs to, through exchange of
information and sharing of experience with other members of the society, or
through the individual’s own effort to cultivate and nurture his value
system. Whatever the source of a
particular religious worship might be, once it is developed it becomes an
integral component of the ultimate subjective value system (which we call
religion) of the individual concerned.
The Japanese view of religion thus traces the origin of
religious worship to the mental process by which an individual develops his
subjective value system. It is a
broader view of religion in that it does not require religion to be supplied by
conventional religious institutions such as temples and churches. We can, however, ascribe at least two
important functions to these conventional religious institutions. First, an existing religious sect
provides a
39
ready-made set of religious codes which an individual
can subscribe to and abide by in the conduct of his daily life. Second, an existing religious sect
preserves and perpetuates a particular value system within the confine of a
particular religious institution to the extent that such institution functions
as a viable social entity.
It must be realized, however, that no single religious
sect can continue to provide a ready-made value system for all members of a
society for any extended period of time. As problems man faces in life are varied,
the need for a variety of religious systems arises. To the extent that freedom of beliefs
and creeds is guaranteed, an individual will exercise his consumer sovereignty
among different religious systems as the occasion dictates; he may, of course,
develop his own system in case no existing sect can satisfy his needs.
Our broad concept of religion does
not, therefore, define it as a fixed and stationary system of values. Rather religion will go through its own
metamorphosis as man is confronted with a new set of problems with every passage
of time. Religion, in this sense,
must be interpreted as something quite flexible, being capable of accommodating
itself to an ever-changing environment.
The traditional form of Japanese animism embodies such
flexibility in that it recognizes the presence of deity in all objects in man’s
environment. Since man himself is
endowed with deity, man acquires flexibility in dealing with his environment
through the common link of deity. That is, man is encouraged to develop his
own deity, i.e., seek self-perfection in order to gain a better understanding of
and maintain harmony with his everychanging environment.
We now turn to the main issue of this essay: How does the traditional Japanese
religion as formulated in the previous section help us to shed light on the
economic behavior of the Japanese? One implication of Japanese religion
which is crucial to answering this question is the inseparable interfusion of
earthly activities and religious obligations for the Japanese. An economic motive, far from being in
conflict with one s religious obligations, is very naturally converted into a
religious commitment as long as it originates in, and is therefore justified in
terms of, one’s ultimate subjective value system which we call religion. How this conversion actually takes place
can be Illustrated with reference to the profit motive which underlies all
business activities.
A fierce scramble to secure markets for the Japanese
products in the post-World War II era has invited animosity against the Japanese
in certain parts of the world as is typically reflected in the use of a rather
sarcastic epithet ‘economic animals’ to describe the conduct of the
Japanese
40
businessmen. In the traditional treatment of
economics, the behavior of these businessmen can be explained in terms of an
economic motive of seeking profits. It is not difficult, however, to justify
such profit motive within the context of the Japanese value
system.
The reasoning goes as follows. Receiving profits is made possible by
doing business which is designed to benefit other members of the society. As long as one’s business benefits
others, one acquires the right to secure benefits (profits) for himself. Business activity in this sense, is an
act of receiving and returning blessings - the very foundation of the Japanese
value system that emphasizes harmony with one’s environment. [14] The origin of such an emphasis can be
traced back to Shintoism. In fact,
Shinto has been a dominant force, throughout the vicissitudes of the nation’s
history, in preserving the uniquely Japanese form of animism in that it
emphasizes the communion of human beings with the surrounding environment - the
environment here to be interpreted in the broadest possible sense to include not
only material objects such as animals, trees, rocks and streams but also
abstract objects such as words and spirits of ancestors. As the only indigenous religion, Shinto
has played an important role in building the character of the Japanese and,
through its emphasis on the communion with the environment, it has constantly
contributed to maintain the unity and integrity of the nation. In any event, this example serves to
illustrate that it is not at all far-fetched to interpret the devotion of
Japanese businessmen to their work as stemming from their religious
convictions.
If profit motive is highly commendable, a successful
businessman has every right to be respected. That such respect can be easily turned
into human worship is again a natural consequence of the Japanese view of
religion formulated in the previous section. In fact, the economic miracle of the
Sixties revived human worship of successful businessmen as miracle workers, some
being referred to as gods in business and management. [15] Once such divine status is achieved, the
leadership of these businessmen goes well beyond their original area of
expertise and their opinion begins to carry weight in forming public opinion in
other social problems. What a
contrast this is with the image of a successful businessman in the West! Thus, Schumpeter writes:
[16]
Of the industrialist and merchant the
opposite is true. There is surely
no trace of any mystic glamour about him which is what it counts in the ruling
of men. The stock exchange is a
poor substitute for the Holy Grail. We have seen that the industrialist and
merchant, as far as they are entrepreneurs, also fill a function of leadership.
But economic leadership of this
type does not readily expand, like the medieval lord’s military leadership, into
the
41
leadership of the nation. On the
contrary, the ledger and the cost calculation absorb and
confine.
What is true with the profit motive is also true with
other motives for economic activities. As long as the motive for an economic
activity originates in a subjective urge to seek self-perfection, a successful
fulfillment of that activity sooner or later turns into a religious commitment.
This implies that, even in pursuing
such a secular activity as business, there comes a point for the Japanese where
the distinction between economic motive and religious conviction ceases to exist
and where a secular objective is converted into a religious commitment. Once this point is reached, it becomes
meaningless to try to separate out economic motives from religious convictions.
Once the Japanese reach this
critical realization that their activities embody their aspirations for
self-perfection, it becomes futile, in a very real sense of the word, to try to
distinguish homo religiosus and homo economicus in the
Japanese.
The same argument applies, mutatis mutandis, to
the relation between religion and the Japanese polity and between religion and
the Japanese society in general. The ultimate value system of the Japanese
can very easily accommodate political and social values. Once this accommodation takes place, it
becomes meaningless, for the same reason as above, to try to explain the
behavior of the Japanese in different aspects of life independently from their
religious convictions. This kind of
all-inclusive value system, which reflects the traditional form of Japanese
animism, is what triggers the Japanese to engage in all realms of their
activities with their characteristic vigor and devotion. In the narrow of their economic
activities, this would be the Japanese counterpart to the Protestant ethic.
However, there is no better way of
characterizing this type of all-embracing value system than to call it the
traditional Japanese religion.
We have embarked on our inquiry by asking whether or not the Japanese are
religious people. The answer would
have to be in the affirmative if religion can be given a broad interpretation as
we have attempted in this essay. The uniquely Japanese view of religion
developed and expanded in the preceding pages actually dovetails well in a new
category of religion whose emergence has
been noted by sociologists in recent years - a category which is marked by the
independence from traditional religious institutions as far as its supply is
concerned. [17]
This type of religion basically originates in the
subjective need of an individual for comfort and security in the conduct of his
daily life. The subjective form of
religion has a definite implication on the character of a
42
national economy. If a sufficient number of common elements
are culled from the individual value systems of a nation, these common elements
would then constitute the national religion and the working of the economy of
this nation is strongly influenced by the character of this national religion.
We can make an even stronger
argument for a nation whose individual value systems have sprung from an
indigenous form of religion and have long been observed by its citizens. Indeed,
the subjective nature of the traditional Japanese religion can be traced to the
traditional form of Japanese animism. It is, in fact, a variation of the basic
theme contained in animism. Animism
in its purest form, stems from a basic human desire to establish dialogue and
harmony with his environment. It
evolves into a religion when he experiences a sensation that he achieved
communion with his environment - a sensation that every human being is capable
of experiencing as is most aptly put by a poet: [18]
... And I have felt
A presence that disturbs me with the
joy
Of elevated thought; a sense
sublime
Of something far more deeply
interfused,
Whose dwelling is the light of setting
suns,
And the round Ocean and the living
air,
And the blue sky, and in the mind of
man:
A motion and a spirit, that impels
All thinking things, all objects of all
thought,
And rolls through all things...
Animism is generally regarded as a most primitive form of religion. In
fact, this point is most eloquently argued by Freud. [19] However, our interpretation of animism
differs sharply from Freud’s in that we have traced the source of adaptability
and flexibility of the Japanese to the traditional form of Japanese animism.
This is well exemplified by Japan’s
success in industrialization and in achieving her post-World War LI economic
miracles. The Japanese animism derives its modern flavor in that
it is devoid of strategic aspects such as sorcery and magic, although some forms
of strategies still remain as superstitions. The Japanese animism, above all, is a
Weltanschaunung that admits the presence of deity in all objects in man’s
environment and emphasizes the importance of achieving communion with the
environment.
As was pointed out at the outset, the process of Japan’s
modernization has been the process of Westernization in all aspects of the life
of the Japanese. It would not be
far-fetched to claim that their cultural heritage, especially as regards their
attitude towards religious worship, has actually aided in their endeavor to
catch up with the advanced Western countries. Religion, in
this
43
sense, has played an essential role in Japan’s
industrialization. Since the
subjective aspect of the traditional Japanese religion points to self-perfection
as a means of understanding and maintaining harmony with the environment, the
economic activity of the Japanese sooner or later becomes interfused with their
religious commitment. In this
sense, the inseparable union of hoino economicus and homo religiosus
holds a key to understanding the notion of economic man in the
Japanese.
Interfusion of religion with the economy and, for
that matter, with the polity and the society clearly distinguishes Japan from
other countries. This kind of all-embracing value system, which is uniquely
Japanese and triggers the Japanese to engage in their activities with their
characteristic devotion, can only be described as the traditional Japanese
religion.
The Ohio State
University
*Useful comments on an earlier draft by
Richard Dyck, Tatsuo Hatta, Edward J. Kane, Hugh Patrick and anonymous referees
of this Journal are deeply appreciated.
1. See, for example, Doi, Lockwood,
Minami, Nakane, and Patrick and Rosovsky. However, no work has yet addressed
directly the question of how religion influences the economic activities of the
Japanese as Tawney and Weber attempted with reference to the Western
nations.
2. See Benedict. Her contributions to Japanese sociology
lies with her emphasis on the concept of shame in explaining the motivation of
the Japanese in their social life - a concept which is still admitted by many as
regulating the social behavior of the Japanese to some
extent.
3. All of Hearn’s works, including his
ghost stones, reflect his keen observation of the Japanese society and touch on
various aspects of life of the Japanese. However, Kokoro stands out for its
penetrating insight into the spiritual life of the
Japanese.
4.
The Sun-goddess, called Ama-terasu-Ohmi-Kami, appears as a major character in Shinto mythology. See Anesaki for a detailed account. Kurozumi-kyo, one sect of Shintoism, still maintains the sun worship as an important element of its canon.6. See, for example, Umesao.
7.
From Nihon-gi (Chronicles of Japan) as quoted by Anesaki, p.19.8. Other examples illustrating the
belief in the soul of language are found in Minami, Chapter
5.
9. For references on this subject, see Anesaki, Bellah and Kitagawa.
44
10. Doi, a psychiatrist by training, introduced the
concept of ‘dependence’ as the underlying motivation behind the social behavior
of the Japanese. The sense of
reverence the Japanese feel towards the Emperor, according to Doi, is an
expression of ‘dependence’ towards the head of the Japanese as a
nation.
11. Michizane Sugawara is regarded as the god in
literature and Isoroku Yamamoto the god in military. Mr. Tetsuji Kawakami, the former manager
of the Tokyo Giants, used to be called the god in baseball in his hey-day at the
helm of his perennial championship team.
12. See, for example, Tillich.
13. There are, of course, instances where an implicit
form of influence is exerted in the name of collective
unity.
14. Early history of direct participation of Buddhist
monks in business activities is discussed in Bellah.
15.
Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of Matsushita Electric, is regarded by many as the god in management. His autobiography is widely read and his opinion highly regarded by the Japanese in other areas as well.16. Schumpeter, pp. 137-8.
17. See, for example, Luckman, and Schneider and
Dornbusch.
18. William Wordsworth, 7intem
Abbey.
19. See his essay, “Animism, Magic and the Omnipotence
of Thoughts,” in Totem and Taboo.
Anesaki, Masaharu; History of Japanese Religion,
Tokyo: Charles E. Tuttle, 1963.
Bellah, Robert N.; Tokugawa Religion, Boston:
Beacon Press, 1957.
Benedict, Ruth; The Chrysanthemum and the Sword,
Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1946.
Doi, Takeo; ‘Amae’ no Kozo (The Structure of
‘Dependence’), Tokyo: Kobundo, 1971.
Freud, Sigmund; Totem and Taboo: Some Points of
Agreement Between the Mental Lives of Savages and Neurotics, London:
Hogarth, 1913.
Hearn, Lafcadio; Kokoro: Hints and Echoes of Japanese
Inner Life, Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1896.
Kitagawa, Joseph M.; Religion in Japanese History,
New York: Columbia University Press, 1966.
Lockwood, W. W.; The Economic Development of Japan: Growth and Structural Change, 1868-1938, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1954.
Luckmann, Thomas; The In visible Religion, New
York: Macmillan, 1967.
Minami, Hiroshi; Psychology of the Japanese People,
Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1971.
45
Nakane, Chic; Japanese Society, Berkeley:
University of California Press, 1970.
Patrick, Hugh and Hemy Rosovsky; Asia’s New Giant:
How the Japanese Economy Works, Washington: Brookings,
1976.
Schumpeter, J. A.; Capitalism, Socialism and
Democracy, London: Allen and Unwin, 1942.
Schneider, L. and S. M. Dornbusch; Popular
Religion—Inspirational Books in America, Chicago: University of Chicago
Press, 1958.
Tawney, R. H.; Religion and the Rise of Capitalism: A
Historical Study, Glouscester: Smith, 1929.
Tilhich, Paul; What is Religion?, New York:
Harper and Row, 1969.
Umesao, Tadao; “Hito no Kokoro to Mono no Sekai (‘The
World of Soul and j Material Things),” Chuo-Koron, December,
1973.
Weber, Max; The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, translated by Talcott Parsons, London: Allen and Unwin, 1930.
46