Yengishiki

Questions for Further Study

• 1.: Compare the impact of Chinese Buddhism on Japanese society with its impact on Tibetan society as reflected in the entries gZi-brjid and Tibetan Book of the Dead. What does this comparison tell you about the influence of Buddhism in Asia during the Middle Ages?
• 2.: To what extent did the clan structure of Japanese society and the accompanying instability of the central government contribute to the creation of the Yengeshiki?
• 3.: A central feature of many religions has been the offering of sacrifices to the gods. What were the purposes for which medieval Japanese offered such sacrifices? How did the nature of these sacrifices reflect something unique about Japanese culture and history?
• 4.: The entry notes that Shinto has become a kind of folk religion and the number of people who identify themselves as Shinto has declined. Why do you think Japanese people continue to practice Shinto rituals? Do you think that non-Japanese people living in the United States practice rituals that are in any way analogous to Shinto rituals?
• 5.: Compare and contrast the role of the sun goddess, Amaterasu, in Shinto with the sun god Re in ancient Egypt, as explicated in “Great Hymn to the Aten.”