Learning to See the Gray: Etic/ Emic Analysis

The field of cultural anthropology emerged from the study of linguistics.

Phonetics = etic analysis: an attempt to understand language and culture meaningful to the outside observer; to interpret data according to a system of analysis that is independent of and external to the native system.

Phonemics = emic analysis: an attempt to understand language and culture from the native perspective; understanding patterns of speech and behavior meaningful to members of the society being studied.

Emic/ Etic Analysis

* See the class handout for the schematic portrayal of the etic/emic overlap. Understand the basic concept behind Emic/ Etic Analysis. Be able to describe where Davidson, Feiler, Kriska, and Horbat are in this schematic, and why we are using this approach to understand Japanese culture in JPC 250.

* Understanding cultural and linguistic reality must include both etic and emic perspectives.

Week 1. BOPJCs: Basic Operating Principles of Japanese Culture (These won't be on the Quiz, but should be a part of your working understanding of Japanese culture. You may use these BOPJCs as well as those from Wk 2. to answer short answer questions.

1. Honne
2. Tatemae
3. Gaman
4. Wa
5. Ningenkankei

Week 2. BOPJCs

6. Proper Form Valued Over Function or Economy
7. Sekinin: Responsibility
8 . Shinyo: Trust
9 . Uchi/Soto: Inside/Outside distinctions
10. Enryo: Reserve, lack of confidence, modesty, humility
11. Conformity: Reciprocity appropriate to status
12. The Practice of Indebtedness In Social Relations
- Care taking: The ability to take care of people
- To be taken care of: The ability to be taken care of

The Cultural Matrix of Social Inclusion In Japan

The Practice of Japanese Conventions In Japan With Japanese People Is Important Because.....

a) Doing so makes Japanese feel that you respect their cultural ways, leading to their respect of you.

b) Their respect for your willingness to do things the Japanese way (if executed proficiently) leads to trust.

c) This trust is a necessary aspect of allowing Japanese to allow you into in-group membership, giving you privy to honne, the key to any long lasting relationship of any kind - whether personal or institutional.

Although I said there would be nothing in these notes about Japanese politics or the constitution, I changed my mind (CST - Sorry!). Know the following material. This material compliments what is on the web page assigned for the T/F questions on Quiz 2.

In Case You Wondered….. The Japanese Government at a Glance

* Japan is characterized as a constitutional monarchy – a democratic form of government with a symbolic figurehead. Emperor Akihito his head of state but has no governing power.
* Prime Minister Aso Taro is head of the Government. He and his cabinet form the executive branch. The cabinet consists of ministers that are appointed by the prime minister and are usually members of the diet. The prime minister is elected by the diet.
* Japan has 47 prefectures (each administered by an elected governor. Hokkaido, Tokyo, Osaka, and Kyoto also elect their government but are slightly different in organization and terminology.
* Japanese citizens elect diet members who act as their representatives to vote on representation in the diet.
* There are many political parties, but the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) has held by far the most diet seats during the postwar period although this is changing. Currently, the LDP is being seriously challenged by the Japan Democratic Party (JDP).

------------------------------------------------------------------

WEEK 3. NOTES - Now Updated For 2009 up to the dotted line.

Map 2. Be prepared to locate the following Japanese cities on a map like the one distributed in class:

Sapporo, Morioka, Tokyo, Yokohama, Nagoya, Kyoto,Osaka

Main Domestic Issues Japan is currently struggling with:

1. Japan is celebrating the inauguration of President Barak Obama in the United States. This is because Japan sees itself as a very close ally of the United States, politically, economically, and militarily. This is because since W. W. II, Japan has been dependent on the United States for support in these areas. Japanese have made it a point to know all about the United States, and know much more about Americans than American know about Japanese. Though very different from the United States, Japan as a nation feels very close to America, and understands that its economy and regional security are closely tied to the actions and policies of the United states.
2. SONY Japan has just announced that the company will reduce its Japanese workforce by 5,000 workers by January. It’s the first time in 17 years that SONY Japan has not turned a profit.
3. Prime Minister Aso Taro’s (Liberal Democratic Party) popularity ratings are way down. This is because he has instituted a tax rebate system that he passed legislation for back in November before the Japanese economy experienced major declines (which in hind sight no longer seems like a good idea), and he is now lobbying to raise taxes by 2010. All of this is creating a climate where the Japan Democratic Party is gaining serious momentum for the first time in the postwar period.

The purpose of JPC 250 is to introduce the Japanese worldview that reveals the dynamics of Japan’s emic culture in a way that transcends ethnocentrism . One way this is accomplished is by contrasting etic and emic perspectives on Japanese culture. Another way is to introduce variation within Japan’s supposedly homogeneous language, culture and society.

Week 3. BOPJCs

13. Isshin Denshin/ Sasshi: Japanese “telepathy.” Communication without words.
14. The Outside Reflects the Inside: Change occurs from the outside in. The surface state reflects the inner state.
15. Individualized Conformity: The nail that sticks up and gets pounded down comes in many sizes and colors.
16. The Importance of Apology: Signifies the willingness to take responsibility for something. Responsibility is related to care taking – taking care and being taken care of.

In the context of Ningen Kankei……….

17. Sempai/Kohai Relations: “Senior” – “Junior” relations at school, in the company, in the neighborhood, in life (not in the family).
18. On: Kindness or special favor expressed by Senior toward a Junior. Repaid by junior to senior through reciprocal loyalty.
19. Giri: Duty/Obligation – to uphold expectation for reciprocity in interpersonal relationships.
20. Amae: Indulgence by a junior or a senior in sempai/kohai relations or any other hierarchically defined relationship

The Japanese Writing System: Three Kinds of Writing.

1. Hiragana: A phonetic syllabary used to "spell" words of Japanese origin and certain parts of speech (grammar).

2. Katakana: A phonetic syllabary used to "spell" words of a non-Japanese origin including names.

3. Kanji: A symbolic writing system that represents a meaning and a certain pronunciation.

* There are two BOPJCs that reflect the way in which the Japanese writing system is a microcosm of Japanese society. The are:

1) Form over Function: Each letter has a stroke order, and 2) Inside Outside: The language distinguishes between Japanese and non-Japanese words.

The Japanese Education System
To put Feiler’s experience into perspective:

* Japan began experiencing large scale educational reform in the 1980s that continues to this day.
- Defusing of educational credentialing.
- Emphasis on lifelong learning.
- Better integration of experiential learning opportunities in schools.

* Middle school is the last bastion of Japan’s postwar education system that was a part of some of the stereotypes of Japanese schools.
- Examination Hell
- Emphasis on memorization over proficiency.
- An emphasis on technical accuracy over functionality.

What Caused the educational reforms that continue in the present?

* The realization that all of the sacrifice wasn’t paying off.
* The advancing age of the general population.
* The bursting of the economic bubble in the mid 1990s.
* Changing place of Japan in the global village.

The Social Dynamics of Apology
* Apologizing is the outward form of taking responsibility (Sekinin)
* In a society that places a very high value on proper form in all things, the proper practice of Indebtedness (care-taking and care-giving) requires a willingness to take responsibility.
* The taking of responsibility in any relationship whether care-taking or care-giving requires the willingness to apologize, even if one is not at fault.
* There are HEAVY apologies and LIGHT apologies.
* All LIGHT apologies should be reciprocated with a LIGHT apology. This action-response sequence demonstrates sincerity on the part of both parties and facilitates wa (harmony) that is counted on as the foundation of normal social interaction in Japanese society.

Kato Hidetoshi
- Japanese sociologist.
- Written extensively on cultural differences between the Japan and the U. S.
- Expert on American regionalism and the study of race and culture.

Kato Hidetoshi's Advice Concerning American Communication From A Japanese Viewpoint:

* Be prepared to reproduce 3 of these in writing on the quiz:

1. Magic words in the USA are – Yes and No. Use these words skillfully accompanied with please and thank you.
2. Be courteous to members of the opposite sex.
3. Make direct eye contact and smile when talking.
4. Consider people as individuals first – as a part of their work, social, or family group second.
5. Shake hand firmly, not holding on too long.
6. In conversation, get right to the point.
7. In the U. S., too much formality may be bad, especially in the Midwest. Try to move from formal to informal in interpersonal relations as soon as you can.
8. American society is one in which individualism and independence is highly regarded at the personal, institutional, and societal level.
9. American society is very heterogeneous as compared to Japan. Be careful not to generalize too much about the people, culture, and practices of Americans.
10. On the other hand, mainstream culture is what unifies the people. Look for these unifying characteristics and pay attention to them. (Mom, baseball, Apple Pie, Thanksgiving, etc.)

WEEK 4. NOTES - Now Updated For 2009 up to the dotted line.

Map 3. Be prepared to locate the following Japanese cities on a map like the one distributed in class:

* Utsunomiya, Kobe, Hiroshima, Fukuoka, Nagasaki, and Naha

An Intangible Cultural Artifact

Kagura: Shinto Shamanic Dance
- Reinacts the ritual of “Evil out, Fortune, In.
- A human possessed by divine powers takes on evil and wins.

Week 4. BOPJCs

Embodied by the Japanese language, in Japanese culture, and in Japanese thought and behavior:

21. Cultural Borrowing: The ability to take structures outside itself and incorporate it within, creating an indigenous system different from any single borrowed quality.
22. Cultural Synchronicity: Several cultural and religious influences operating simultaneously, each of which becomes something different from the original.
23. Cultural Adaptation: The ability to adopt a variety of influences that in their places of origin might not go together at all, and making them work together to form a cohesive whole.

How Written Japanese represent Wk 4 BOPJCs.

Kanji characters were borrowed from Chinese and adopted to fit the sounds and grammar of spoken Japanese. Hiragana (invented by Murasaki Shikibu - a woman) and Katakana (invented by Japanese Buddhist priests) to represent spoken Japanese phonetically. Though Japanese uses Chinese characters, these characters were indigenized. Therefore, kanji character, hiragana and katakana (all based originally on Chinese writing) which equal something different from the original, operate synchronously to enable Japanese to represent their language in writing.

* Be able to write your name in Japanese for the for Quiz 4, either in katakana, or if you are from an Asian country that uses kanji, in kanji.

Celebratory Clapping - What is it and what BOPJCs are manifested therein? Be able to name at least two and why.

The Importance of BOPJCs
BOPJCs > Played out in situations = Jpn Culture
BOPJCs are “played out” in = “Scripts” or “Stories.”
* The more Japanese cultural scripts and stories you become familiar with, the better prepared you are to understand Japanese culture.
* When trying to understand (and communicate in) a high context language (and culture) like Japanese, the knowledge of BOPJCs and Cultural Scripts and Stories is MUCH MORE ESSENTIAL than in low context languages and cultures.
* This is why Japanese culture can be understood w/o speaking the language.
But… this is also why…
* Authentic (native sounding) Japanese cannot be spoken accurately without knowledge of Japanese culture (BOPJCs, scripts, and stories).
The Science of BOPJCs
- BOPJCs occur within Scripts and Stories individually and in various configurations.
- Some BOPJCs occur more frequently than others.
- Some BOPJCs can occur by themselves, others occur in pairs or even larger configurations.
- Figuring out which scripts and stories require which BOPJCs is the science of BOPJCs.
- It is possible to predict the use of BOPJCs and to predict which ones are most likely to appear.
- Interpreting the use of BOPJCs is usually never right nor wrong but should be thought of as more or less elegant.

Final Thoughts For Week 4:

To understand contemporary Japan, one should start with traditional Japan. This is because many of the BOPJCs that were prevalent then are still prevalent now,
they are just more hidden under the facade of modernization and Westernization. Most Japanese and non-Japanese social scientists would agree that Japanese culture hasn't really changed that much in the last 200 years.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Current Events:

1. Sumo wrestler Wakakirin (legal name Suzukawa Shinichi), rank, Tsunatori, is banned from sumo for life by the Japan Sumo Association when marijuana was found in his Sumo Stable room and he tested positive on a subsequent drug test. Suzukawa surprised the sumo world by publically announcing that he would forgo the over $50,000 severance package he is legally allowed to have in order to demostrate his sincere understanding of the seriousness of the crime.
2. The first week of February marks the peak of the Jr. High entrance examination period. In Japan’s bad economy, test takers at private institutions are 4 times higher than normal due to the cost of public institutions (that have more presteige). February is also the period when the suicide rate increases nationally for both students and the general population due in part to the stresses of examination hell and because of it being the end of Japan’s fiscal year.
3. In an economic climate in which Sony, Panasonic and most of Japan’s electronics firms, as well as Japan’s top auto manufacturers such as Toyota, Honda, Nissan, Mazda, and Mitsubishi are experiencing severe economic setbacks, there is one company that is actually turning a profit. This company is McDonlad’s Japan, the popular hamburger chain, originally from North America. McDonald’s is enjoying its 5th straight year of double digit profits, improving sales by 25% over last year. McDonald’s Japan’s success is attributed to its 100 Yen menu that appeals to students and housewives. Suntory, a beer brewer is also increasing profits in the bad economy. The winning concept seems to be “value.”

Japanese Stock Market Facts

1. The Japanese Stock Market was founded in 1878. The Tokyo Stock Exchange (TSE) was founded at this time.
2. The TSE is the second largest stock exchange market in the world by market value, second only to the New York Stock Exchange.
3. There are eight stock exchanges in Japan. They are located in the following cities.

Fukuoka
Hiroshima
Kyoto
Nagoya*
Niigata
Osaka*
Sapporo
Tokyo*

4. The Tokyo, Osaka, and Nagoya exchanges are the largest.
5. The two main market indices in Japan are the Nikkei and TOPIX.
6. Trading stocks in Japan is done traditionally and electronically.
7. In 2008, 2,000 international companies were listed on the TSE.

The Anatomy of Human Relations In Daily Life
The Anatomy of out-group relations:
Ningen Kankei: Social relations; the practice of cultural customs and conventions (BOPJCs) at the tatemae level.

The Anatomy of in-group relations:
Tsukiai: social relations; the practice of cultural customs and conventions at the personal (honne) level. One must exercise and reciprocate all BOPJCs appropriately in a way that reflects sempai/kohai, on/giri, amae, and gender relationships.
Sewa: care taking – people must be able to care-take and be cared-for in a way that exercises and reciprocates all BOPJCs appropriately in a way that reflects sempai/kohai, on/giri, amae, and gender relationships.

The Anatomy of family-member relations:
Ningen Kankei, Tsukiai, and Sewa are magnified to a personal level in the context of BOPJCs to a magnitude equaled in no other relationships in Japanese life.

The Japanese Family In Daily Life
* Japanese tend to think of their nuclear family from the perspective of its youngest member.
Mother’s role:
1) Manages the household.
2) In charge of the family’s Ningen Kankei, tsukiai, sewa –giving, and BOPJC facilitation in the Uchi domain.
* Responsible for the children’s education (kyoiku mama, relationship with
school and teachers, etc).
* Responsible for neighborhood and community relations.
* Responsible for kin relations.
Family Relations:
1) Relationship between husband and wife is close.
2) Outward expression of affection between family members by Western standards is minimal unless…
* Often emotion between family members is shown through exaggerated
tatemae.
Fathers:
1) Biggest role is to model responsibility in all areas of life to uphold personal integrity as well as the family name.
2) In charge of the family’s ningen Kankei, tsukiai, sewa –giving, and
BOP JC facilitation in the Soto domain.
* This responsibility causes fathers to be away from home more than they
like.
Teachers:
1) Is the main moral and educational authority in a child and his/her family’s life.
2) Has a personal relationship with each family especially during jr. high but also later (onshi: one’s mentor in studies and in life.)
3) Lifelong association with teachers.
Grandparents:
1) Three generation households used to be the norm but not anymore.
2) Because of increasing life expectancy, grandparents are experiencing a new role as active teachers of tradition in their family members’ lives.

WEEK 5. BOPJCs

24. The Ability to Negotiate: Not in a business oriented way, but using BOPJCs as a framework.
25. Junansei: Flexibility. The skill of adjusting yourself to the situation in relation to social expectation.
26. Gambaru: An extension of gaman. To gaman is to gambaru. Gaman is the endurance part, gambaru is the perseverance part.
27. Tsukiai: The glue that holds social relationships together – the obligatory participation in in-group social activity. The need to support consociates no matter what.

Japanese Spousal Relations:

1) Relationship between husband and wife is typically close, but this closeness is expressed in a way difficult to gage by Western standards.

2) Outward expression of affection between family members in a Japanese family is minimal by Western standards, but this doesn’t mean that individuals don’t care deeply about one another. The degree to which each cares about the others is apparent in certain situations.

3) It is difficult to gage the true nature of a Japanese couple’s feelings for one another by Western standards. Often emotions between husbandsand wives are shown through exaggerated tatemae.

4) It is not considered appropriate for husbands to dote on wives and vice-versa, so in public each typically talks the other down. But this is just an act.

5) In comparison to Westerners, Japanese like to hold their personal feelings inside themselves, letting emotions out only sparingly. While this may not be so true during the honeymoon period of a marriage, it becomes more so as time goes on.6) Japanese husbands and Japanese wives take their roles seriously, letting their hair down most during weekends and family gatherings

17. Sempai/Kohai Relations: “Senior” – “Junior” relations at school, in the company, in the neighborhood, in life (not in the family).
18. On: Kindness or special favor expressed by Senior toward a Junior. Repaid by junior to senior through reciprocal loyalty.
19. Giri: Duty/Obligation – to uphold expectation for reciprocity in interpersonal relationships.
20. Amae: Indulgence by a junior or a senior in sempai/kohai relations or any other hierarchically defined relationship

WEEK 6. NOTES - Now Updated For 2009 up to the dotted line.

Week 6 BOPJCS

28. Attention to Detail: Copying aspects of other culture so meticulously that the detail and quality of the Japanese version is equal or even superior to the original.
29. Contradiction: Various levels of apparent contradiction that permeates Japanese society. These contradictions typically bother non-Japanese, especially Westerners, but not Japanese. The sum total of these contradictions compose what it is to be Japanese and what Japan is.

Squelching the Stereotype of Japanese Women

Contrary to what Westerners think…..

a. Japanese women are not subservient to men.
b. Japanese women are not second-class citizens in Japanese society.
c. Japanese men and women are situated in their society in a way different from what Westerners are familiar with.

Characteristics of Japanese Family Women

I. The role of women in Japan is often misunderstood by Westerners.

a. Lack of information about women in Japan.
b. No women’s movement or overt feminism.
c. Yet, the lifestyle of Japanese women is changing in Japan.
d. Women in Japan are more free and more independent than ever.
e. The women of the Post WWII. generation have set the stage for the future.

II. A Key Concept - Equality

a. Japanese women don’t seek equality on principle.
b. Part time working women and full-time housewives consider themselves equal to their professionally or vocationally employed husbands at least as far as their status in the household.
c. Husbands willingly admit their dependence on women.
d. Women control the household purse strings. This fosters high esteem because the ability to manage the family has historically been considered essential to prosperity in society. In this regard, women have the central responsibility.
e. Women typically believe that it is they who draw the domestic and professional boundaries within which their husbands move.
f. A – E are often characterized by the saying:
dansei joi, josei yui
(men superior, women dominant)

III. Yesterday and today

a. 15 years ago, a typical 35 year old woman was most likely a professional housewife who devoted her life to serving the needs of her husband and children. Her role was clearly and narrowly defined.
b. Today, women’s roles are not so clearly defined.
i. Women are likely to be single, married, living with a partner, or divorced; to have children or be childless, to be working part or full time.
ii. She is also likely to be a person who seeks fulfillment and devotes herself to personal as well as family goals which include a variety of options.
iii. The aging of Japanese Society and the nation’s population
decline has put women in an unprecedented position.

IV. How did iii occur without a major women’s movement?

a. What ultimately provided women with increased options was their position outside mainstream society.
b. Women have not occupied positions of significance in policy making and business.
c. Women’s existence and their voice has pretty much been ignored in formal domains of life.
d. But this state of “inequality” has exempted women from having to fit into the frameworks set down by the public and private organizations that dominate the society, providing them with the freedom to explore their individuality in ways not permitted to men.

V. Mrs. Deguchi (In her 50s.)
a. Wife of a career businessman.
b. Owner of a juku.
c. Free to do what ever she wants.

WEEK 7.

THOMPSON IN JAPAN - NO CLASS!

WEEKS 8 - 10. NOTES - Now Updated For 2009 up to the dotted line.

WEEKS 8.

THOMPSON IN JAPAN - NO CLASS!

WEEKS 9 & 10.

BOPJCs

30. Hokori: Honor, pride, respect.

31. Haji: Shame, humiliation, disgrace.

32. Wabi & Sabi: represents a comprehensive Japanese world view or aesthetic. It is difficult to explain wabi-sabi in Western terms, but the aesthetic is sometimes described as one of beauty that is "imperfect, impermanent, and incomplete."

33. Hang-up with what others (other countires) think about Japan: Society is primary (Gluck No. 7), but Japanese society now includes the global community.

Social Prejudice and Discrimination In Japan
* Japanese homogeneity is a myth.
* P and D based on both “visible” and “invisible” differences between sub groups.

Burakumin – An invisible cast of native-born Japanese residents that are descriminated against by mainstream society. Buraku descrimination is based on the historical occupation of these people who at one time were butchers, leather tanners, and even morticians. Killing was regarded as a sin at one point in Japanese Imperial history (pre-Edo period [before 1604]), and since Burakumin handled these jobs in society, they were marked as socially unclean, leading to their label as social outcasts. Burakumin are not racially any different, yet Japanese society has cast citizens with ancestors related to to the occupations mentioned above into this socially descriminated against category.
Ainu – Japanese native peoples who now reside mostly in Hokkaido.
Resident Koreans and Chinese – who have often resided in Japan for generations but still aren’t allowed citizenship.
Gaijin – Foreigners.
Ijime – Bullying, still prevalent in Japan.

The Japanese Tea Ceremony - Three Terms

Cha-no-yu: A term for tea ceremony that emphasizes the social enjoyment of tea drinking.

Sadô: A term for tea ceremony that emphasizes the art of the process based on the philosophy that materery of form leads to freedom.

Ocha: A term for tea ceremony that reflects the practical aspects of tea service and reception in official and business settings.

The Western view of life is lineal: One is born, lives, and dies. One only gets one chance to live.

The Japanese view of life is cyclical. One is born to try to achieve Mu (freedom) through the perfection of form. If this isn't possible in this life, attempts to master the form of life can be continued in the next.

Today’s Practictioner: Ms. Nakano Kurara
The Japanese tea ceremony (cha-no-yu) is a traditional ritual influenced by Zen Buddhism in which powdered green tea, or matcha, is ceremonially prepared by a skilled practitioner and served to a small group of guests in a tranquil setting.
Main Schools: Omotesenke, Urasenke, and Mushanokojisenke
Type of Tea: Macha – powered green tea; its very different from the green (Sencha) familiar to most Westerners.
The tea ceremony is like any of the Japanese arts, is intended to be practiced over and over during one’s entire lifetime. It’s important to perfect both the art of being a server and a receiver. The ritual of the tea ceremony enacts many of the common BOPJCs that form the core of Japaneseness.
Unlike other Japanese arts, however, the tea ceremony encapsulates the art of Japanese human interaction.

Final Thoughts From JPC 250 Readings

Kriska
• The AOL is a revealing example of how an American can learn how to survive and even thrive in a Japanese work environment.
• Kriska’s experience demonstrates how cultural knowledge just as important or even more important than language ability.
• The eventual outcome of Kriska’s work with the Honda uniform policy for women shows that change is possible in Japan, but often requires external stimuli.
• Kriska’s example demonstrates for OU students what is possible for graduates of Ohio colleges and universities interested in working with Japan related companies.

Feiler
• In Japanese society, Form is Foundational.
• Form has rules that are often quite different from Western assumptions of what are universal values as demonstrated in the envelope example, Hara’s wedding, and Valentine’s Day.
• Japanese culture operates from the outside, in.

Horvat
• Words in a language are associated to the invisible structures of its associated culture.
• The invisible structures are associated with a language are material, behavioral, historical, and experiential.
• Especially in a high context culture like Japan is to the U. S., to thoroughly understand language, one must thoroughly understand its associated culture.

A Review Of the Basics Regarding Japanese Religion:

Shintoism: The indigenous religion that stresses a belief in kami. Kami are spiritual beings that inhabit all material objects as well as represent deceased human beings. A need to respect all kami result in an emphasis on proper behavior, courtesy, and good manners within Japanese culture. Shintoism tends to answer questions associated with LIFE.

Buddhism: Originally from India via China, this religion imposes form on the Shinto tendency for proper comportment in life. Buddhism tends to teach that change in life occur from the outside in. Buddhism, however, tends to provide the theological details of Japanese beliefs regarding LIFE, DEATH and the AFTER WORLD.

In everyday Japanese life, Shintoism and Buddhism compliment eachother culturally. Until the Meiji period (from 1868 on), Shintoism and Buddhism were regarded as part of the same worldview. It wasn't until the Meiji period that Japanese culture began separating the two due to external pressure from the West to explain itself, although there have always been people particularly devoted to one tradition over the other. In general though, Japanese don't make a distinction between Shintoism, Buddhism, and Japnese culture. To most Japanese, Shintoism and Buddhism IS JAPANESE CULTURE.

Zen Buddhism
- The purpose of Zen is to acquire a new viewpoint for looking into the essence of things.
- This is accomplished by achieving the state of satori, or enlightenment: a state of inward awakening which is said to be attained in a flash by direct intuition, not by intellect or words.
- Zen was first embraced by warriors who sought the composure of the mind in preparation for death , as well as to train themselves in military skills requiring self discipline and concentration.
- Satori is a state of achieving nothingness in the mind which alleviates all suffering and connects one to the universe.

Zen Meditation (Zazen)
- The purpose of Zen is to acquire a new viewpoint for looking into the essence of things; to feel the ultimate strength of the creative universal force.
- This is accomplished by achieving the state of satori, or enlightenment: a state of inward awakening which is said to be attained in a flash by direct intuition, not by intellect or words.
- Satori is a state of achieving nothingness in the mind which alleviates all suffering and connects one to the universe.
- Zen mediation is practiced today by devout members of its many sect as a religious practice as well as by those who value the religious as well as the non-religious virtues of its practice.
Secular Virtues of Zen are virtues such as:
* rediscovery of an inner self
* heightened awareness of your surroundings
* better ability to concentrate and sense the feelings of others
* relaxation of the mind, one’s emotions and intuitions

----------------------------------