Spirits and Animism in Contempo - Fabio Rambelli | PDF | Shinto | Japan
Spirits and Animism in Contemporary Japan - Fabio Rambelli
Spirits and Animism in Contemporary Japan: The Invisible Empire by [Fabio Rambelli]
Spirits and Animism in Contemporary Japan: The Invisible Empire Kindle Edition
by Fabio Rambelli (Editor) Format: Kindle Edition
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Description
This book draws attention to a striking aspect of contemporary Japanese culture: the prevalence of discussions and representations of “spirits” (tama or tamashii). Ancestor cults have played a central role in Japanese culture and religion for many centuries; in recent decades, however, other phenomena have expanded and diversified the realm of Japanese animism. For example, many manga, anime, TV shows, literature, and art works deal with spirits, ghosts, or with an invisible dimension of reality. International contributors ask to what extent these are cultural forms created by the media for consumption, rather than manifestations of “traditional” ancestral spirituality in their adaptations to contemporary society.
Spirits and Animism in Contemporary Japan considers the modes of representations and the possible cultural meanings of spirits, as well as the metaphysical implications of contemporary Japanese ideas about spirits. The chapters offer analyses of specific cases of “animistic attitudes” in which the presence of spirits and spiritual forces is alleged, and attempt to trace cultural genealogies of those attitudes. In particular, they present various modes of representation of spirits (in contemporary art, architecture, visual culture, cinema, literature, diffuse spirituality) while at the same time addressing their underlying intellectual and religious assumptions.
Table of Contents
List of Figures
List of Contributors
Introduction: The Invisible Empire: Spirits and Animism in Contemporary Japan, Fabio Rambelli (University of California, Santa Barbara, USA)
1. The Dead Who Remain: Spirits and Changing Views of the Afterlife,Sato Hiroo (Tohoku University in Sendai, Japan) translation by Emily B. Simpson (University of California, Santa Barbara, USA)
2. The Mystical “Occident” or the Vibrations of “Modernity” in the Mirror of Japanese Thought, Jason A. Josephson-Storm (Williams College, USA)
3. A Metaphysics of the Invisible Realm: Minakata Kumagusu on Spirits, Molds, and the Cosmic Mandala, Fabio Rambelli (University of California, Santa Barbara, USA)
4. New Religious Movements, the Media, and “Japanese Animism”, Ioannis Gaitanidis (Chiba University, Japan)
5. Animated City: Life Force, Guardians, and Contemporary Architecture in Kyoto, Ellen Van Goethem (Kyushu University, Japan)
6. Essays in Vagueness: Aspects of Diffused Religiosity in Japan, Carina Roth (University of Geneva, Switzerland)
7. Came Back Hounded: A Spectrum of Experiences with Spirits and Inugami Possession in Contemporary Japan, Andrea De Antoni (Ritsumeikan University, Japan)
8. The Spirit(s) of Modern Japanese Fiction, Rebecca Suter (University of Sydney, Australia)
9. Techno-Animism: Japanese Media Artists and their Buddhist and Shinto Legacy, Mauro Arrighi (Independent Scholar, Japan)
10. Spirit/Medium Critically Examining the Relationship between Animism and Animation, Jolyon Baraka Thomas (University of Pennsylvania, USA)
11. From Your Name to Shin-Gojira: Spiritual Crisscrossing, Spatial Soteriology, and Catastrophic Identity in Contemporary Japanese Visual Culture,Andrea Castiglioni (University of California, Berkeley, USA)
Notes
Bibliography
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This book draws attention to a striking aspect of contemporary Japanese culture: the prevalence of discussions and representations of “spirits” (tama or tamashii). Ancestor cults have played a central role in Japanese culture and religion for many centuries; in recent decades, however, other phenomena have expanded and diversified the realm of Japanese animism. For example, many manga, anime, TV shows, literature, and art works deal with spirits, ghosts, or with an invisible dimension of reality. International contributors ask to what extent these are cultural forms created by the media for consumption, rather than manifestations of “traditional” ancestral spirituality in their adaptations to contemporary society.
Spirits and Animism in Contemporary Japan considers the modes of representations and the possible cultural meanings of spirits, as well as the metaphysical implications of contemporary Japanese ideas about spirits. The chapters offer analyses of specific cases of “animistic attitudes” in which the presence of spirits and spiritual forces is alleged, and attempt to trace cultural genealogies of those attitudes. In particular, they present various modes of representation of spirits (in contemporary art, architecture, visual culture, cinema, literature, diffuse spirituality) while at the same time addressing their underlying intellectual and religious assumptions.
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Print length
241 pages
Language
English
Publisher
Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date
23 May 2019
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Review
[The] diversity of approaches and subjects in Spirits and Animism render "visible" the complexities of an invisible realm
in ways that will excite scholars and students of Japanese religions and entice those working in comparative fields.
― Nova Religio
Brings together research from many promising young researchers who take a fresh look at the role of religion (in this case focusing on "spirits") in modern and contemporary Japanese society. ― Japanese Journal of Religious Studies (joint-reviewed with The Sea and the Sacred in Japan)
Overall, this book is interesting and well worth reading. ― Anthropos
In recent years, debates about the use of the term 'animism' have resurfaced as the ontological turn has reinvigorated the concept. This timely and diverse collection of essays contributes to these conversations by interrogating how the concepts of animism and spirits have been deployed in modern and contemporary Japan. ― Barbara R. Ambros, Professor of East Asian Religions, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, USA
This thoughtful collection of essays explores ideas and representations about 'spirits' and discourses about animism in modern and contemporary Japan by offering original and thought-provoking contributions. Highly recommended. ― Erica Baffelli, Senior Lecturer in Japanese Studies, University of Manchester, UK
This is an important, timely, and very rich volume. The authors critically examine modern uses of the term "animism" in Japan, analyse various types of spirit belief in their historical contexts, and offer compelling new interpretations of popular culture, from anime to forest therapy. A much-needed respite from the numerous essentialist celebrations of Japanese "Shinto animism" in recent academic and media discourse. ― Aike P. Rots, Associate Professor of Asian Studies, University of Oslo, Norway, author of Shinto, Nature and Ideology in Contemporary Japan: Making Sacred Forests (Bloomsbury 2017).
This is a fascinating collection of perspectives on the place of 'spirit' in modern and contemporary Japan, produced by some of the top scholars in the field. It offers a balance of breadth and nuance that guarantees something of interest for specialists and non-specialists alike. We come away with a vivid, unforgettable sense of how spirit pervades Japanese life - bringing meaning and energy to such diverse areas of life as family, relationships, war, commerce, art, memory, the environment, and people's sense of hope or dread about the future. A real treat. ― Chris Harding, Senior Lecturer in Asian History, University of Edinburgh, UK, author of Japan Story: In Search of a Nation, 1850 to the Present (2018) --This text refers to the hardcover edition.
Book Description
Explores the nature of spirits and other intangible entities in modern and contemporary Japanese culture. --This text refers to the hardcover edition.
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Product details
ASIN : B07SHB435B
Publisher : Bloomsbury Academic; 1st edition (23 May 2019)
Language : English
File size : 9745 KB
Text-to-Speech : Enabled
Screen Reader : Supported
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
X-Ray : Not Enabled
Word Wise : Not Enabled
Print length : 241 pages
Page numbers source ISBN : 1350097098
Best Sellers Rank: 1,306,058 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
578 in Religious Studies - Sociology
1,032 in History & Surveys of Philosophy (Kindle Store)
1,348 in Religion & Sociology
Customer Reviews: 4.0 out of 5 stars 2 ratings
