Cults & Sects in Japan

[thomas]

Time Asia reported about Japan's "New Religions" (found that article through iKjeld.com (http://www.japanreference.com/cgi-bin/jump.cgi?ID=3400)'s newsletter, thanks, Kjeld!). Recommended reading:

Cult Shock
Yearning for spiritual leadership, Japan has spawned a rash of apocalyptic religions and ominously popular sects

=> http://www.time.com/time/asia/magazine/article/0,13673,501020708-268236,00.html

A few related links:

a. Info about Japan's New religions including Sôka Gakkai, Aum Shinrikyô, Shinnyoen et.al.; with links to cults and sects (in German and English)

=> http://www.uni-tuebingen.de/cyberreligion/nr/budlinks.htm

b. New Religions (Contemporary Papers on Japanese Religion)

=> http://www.kokugakuin.ac.jp/ijcc/wp/cpjr/newreligions/

c. General info & stats

=> http://www.jinjapan.org/access/religion/today.html

d. New Religions in Japan (article by James Lewis, World University of America), very pro-cultist on the pretext of religious freedom

=> http://www.religiousfreedom.com/Conference/japan/lewis.htm

e. Japan's other religions (excellent summary by Japan Zone (http://www.japanreference.com/cgi-bin/jump.cgi?ID=3195)

=> http://www.japan-zone.com/omnibus/other_religion.shtml

[moyashi]

I wonder if it's just really spiritual comfort people are looking for.

It seems with the [chonaikai] neighborhood community committees loosing support and with folks living in large apartment/condominiums miss the personal feel of country-side living. Therefore, they join sects to fill that missing gap in their lives.

On the other side of the coin, religious sects are basically free from taxation. The government has tightened down and has imposed stricter accounting of the groups but still the money is pretty dang good. Of course, some of the groups are there for the people but many are not and just enjoy the money given to them by brain washed people.

The Sokka Gakkai is the probably the most notorious and richest of them all. They even still have their fingers in politics under the Komeito party. The Komeito party official split from the Sokka Gakkai but this is Japan and the split probably was due to the politicians and priests not enjoying the same political agenda and in the back ground both of these groups are buddy buddy.