Invocation of the Sage: The Ritual to Glorify the Emperor
Invocation of the Sage: The Ritual to Glorify the Emperor
Chapter 7 describes the history and contemporary standing of a political ritual practiced in most Japanese Zen monasteries and temples today. This hour long ritual—Shukushin (Invoking the Sage)—is performed at least twenty‐six times each year throughout Japan. The concept of the sage can be traced back from classical Daoism and the practice of rituals on behalf of the well‐being and long life of the emperor through early Chinese Buddhist sources up through the Sung dynasty Ch'an school. Describing the ritual as it is performed today in Japan, the essay shows how continuity of ritual tradition is maintained in Zen even into the postwar era in which the emperor's role in maintaining the prosperity and well‐being of the nation is minimal.
Keywords: political ritual, Shukushin, Invoking the Sage, Japanese Emperor Worship, Ch'an Buddhism
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