Japanese religions, the media and the internet:

a very special relationship

Michael Pye

This paper was originally conceived for a conference at the University of Jyväskylä,
Finland, on the subject of “Sacred Media. Transforming traditions in the interplay of
religion and media”.1 Since the conference occurred in 2003 it should be appreciated
that what follows here reflects internet usage at that time. One might imagine that in this
age of new technologies, advancing through a globalized culture, the relations between
religions and the media would assume rather similar characteristics wherever you go.
However, this is not always the case. For this reason, after noting various widely
recognized features of “mediatized” religion worldwide, I present some key features of
the Japanese scene in this regard, concentrating on the use of the internet in the
communication of religious systems. At the same time other media are important in
Japan too, as everywhere, so I will begin with some general remarks.

During a recent visit to Brazil I was struck by the constant battle for attention in TV
channels between various kinds of Protestant religion, supposedly “charismatic” (i.e.
moved by the Holy Spirit) but in fact highly manipulated, and Catholic media shows
emanating from nationally popular shrines such as Aparecida or the media village
Canção Nova (New Song). Whether Catholic or Charismatic the originating churches
are believed to be the locus of miracles of healing. However that may be, it seems that
there is some kind of daily shouting or singing match transmitted on endlessly running
channels. Such is the competition for market share in the world of religious provision.
Commercialized religious channels are also found in other parts of the world, not least
in North America and Europe, and in the latter case there is a strong North American
missionary aspect. These are however not characteristic of Japan. In this country the
religions which advertise themselves strongly often do so in the printed media, taking
whole sections in the daily newspapers or advertising their publications and services in
the weekly magazines.

1 It was thereafter published in the proceedings as “Japanilaisen uskonnollisuuden sähkösiä heijastumia”

(Sumiala-Seppänen, Johanna (ed.). Pyhä media. Jyväskylä 2005 (Atena Kustannus), pp.146-166). In 2009
a compact version for a wider audience was published in English in the Buddhist journal Dharma World
36 (2009), pp.24-27. The present edition provides the full text in English. A few editorial revisions have
been made, but there are no substantial changes. Cite this edition as: Pye. Michael. Japanese religions,
the media and the internet: a very special relationship. Philipps-Universität Marburg, 2019.

1
In most European countries religious services and talks are broadcast in publicly
sponsored channels. Here the question of balance, that is, of being fair to the various
religions in the country, becomes important. In Germany for example the religious
service in the main TV slot on Sunday morning alternates between large Catholic and
Protestant (Lutheran and/or Reformed) churches. In Britain the approach is similar, but
a greater range of churches is reflected. There is also a popular devotional program
named “Songs of Praise” which is broadcast from churches of various Christian
denominations all over the country. The underlying concept in these European
arrangements is that religion in general is “a good thing,” and should therefore be given
public time and media space. At the same time the minor religions are squeezed out.
Even if there has been a recent shift to benefit religious traditions of ethnic minorities,
with a view to social harmony, minority new religions are regarded as a potential threat
to the social balance which religion is supposed to help to maintain. The internet shifts
the balance again. For example, in the British radio programme "Prayer for the Day"
there is regular participation by Muslims, Jews, Sikhs and Baha'is, as well as by
representatives of the major Christian denominations, but no participation by members
of the Unification Church, the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints
(Mormons), or the Church of Scientology. In the internet however all religions have
equal access and any interested persons also have equal access.

The situation in South Africa has been particularly interesting in that programs on
religion have quite consciously been regarded as a vehicle for nation-building in the
post-apartheid era. As Rosalind Hackett writes:

“There have been, and still are, great hopes for the modern media to help realize the
African Renaissance, in whatever modality that is imagined–cultural pride, academic
recognition, spiritual rediscovery, moral renewal, informational accuracy, political
freedom, economic growth or social harmony… In that regard, the particular focus in
this essay on religious broadcasting demonstrates the strategic role that the state can,
and should, play in transitional democracies such as South Africa, in promoting
religious tolerance.” (Hackett 2006)

Of course, this underlying approach is not without difficulties in practice, as explored

authoritatively in Hackett’s article.

In Japan the situation is rather different from some of these western or developing
countries with large western-derived churches. There are no full transmissions of
religious services on public channels, although there is a slot for edifying talks by

2
leading religious personalities during low viewing times. What we do find is that regular
news programs commonly end with a short clip about a current religious event or
festival, taken either from Buddhism or from Shinto. These events are not presented as
“religion.” for the public media are not supposed to infringe the separation of religion
and the public realm. Rather, they are presented as part of the general cultural pattern in
which the inhabitants of Japan share. However, the new religions are never included in
these news items, even though in several cases their followers run into millions. They
are just not regarded as part of the religiously or culturally dominant establishment.
Thus, there is an unspoken control of the message by the public media which reinforces
traditional religions.

The commercial channels lose no time in reporting at length, and in the manner of rather
scurrilous magazines, any problems or scandals which arise in the leadership of
religious bodies. Here the new religions come in for especially heavy treatment. This
attitude is the same as that found in weekly magazines. In other words, where sex and
corruption are concerned the media will report on minor religions, but not otherwise.

One theme which is taken up from time to time is the financial cost of religious services.
In late 2008 there was a TV report on an independent religious group named Hōon no
Hikari 報恩の光 (Light of Recompense) which combines three main themes in its
teaching or services. The first step is to analyse one's fate (unmei 運命) for the high fee
of 30,000 Yen. Apparently, since the results of this analysis are usually unfavourable,
comprehensive counselling is then called for. Typically, it then emerges that one’s an-
cestors have been neglected, so that care for them is needed to avoid further misfortunes.
This service is also provided, naturally for a fee. The impression is left that this “new
religion” is little more than a new religious business, making large profits by dwelling
on people’s anxieties. Such critical journalism may be justified to some extent, but the
problem remains that it is always small religions which tend to be attacked in the media.
After all, it is well known that there is widespread dissatisfaction with the high cost of
quite normal Buddhist funeral services, but this is not “news.” The immense media
attention to the Aum Shinrikyo case in the 1990s, although the courts have shown that it
was justified, also had the effect of giving all new religions “a bad press,” with very
negative effects on their activities.

To be fair, the more traditional religions do not completely escape attention. Another re-
cent news item told of a sudden interest in a small Shinto sanctuary known as Kabu-
shima Jinja 蕪島神社, located just on the coastline of Aomori Prefecture in northern
Japan. The word kabu not only means “turnip” as in the name of the shrine, but, as a

3
pun, also “stocks” or “shares” in the financial sense (written with a different character).
At the time of the financial crash in late 2008 there began a soaring postal trade in
amulets (o-mamori お守り) from this shrine, which were ordered by securities com-
panies for their customers. Of course, once reported on television, it could also easily be
found on the internet. Similar considerations apply to a shrine on a small island off the
coast of Kyūshū, whose amulets appeared to bring about lottery wins.

A field of religion which has no official existence as a registered corporation is the wide
area of informal religious activity known as “spirituality”, “New Age culture”, or even
“mysticism” (in a popular usage). These designations are not always quite appropriate,
and indeed it is quite difficult to sum up such a wide field, except as “non-institutional
religion” or as “informal spiritualities.”2 The main features are the attempt to identify
one’s existential situation through astrology, divination or other means, the search for
healing and a new or refreshed identity, and various ways to restructure one’s life, both
body and spirit, in harmony with holistic and idealistic visions of the universe. The wide
interest in these themes is evidenced by innumerable publications found in bookstores,
and it is also a growth area in the internet.

As one might expect, Japanese religious organizations and activists have hurried to
establish their presence somehow on the internet. However, some important distinctions
must be made. Some Japanese religious internet sites are straightforward, informative
presentations of well established religions. These sites may be searched, and viewed.
Others, by contrast, invite the internet surfer personally to participate in rituals online.
That is, the user is invited to engage in religious behaviour operatively by means of the
site. Those who make use of religious internet sites are therefore either viewers of
presentational sites or actors in operational sites. In the latter case the ritual can take
place at one's own desk, in so far as keyboard keys are struck, and in one's own mind at
a shrine which may exist somewhere else, or not. A second important distinction lies
therefore in whether internet sites relate to identifiable institutions, which really exist in
a place, or whether the religious institution or agency is itself virtual, that is, only virtual,
having no counterpart in the religious geography of the country. Such ambiguity is
typical of the Japanese cultural imagination. The widely used term "interactive" is too
general for this analysis. It does not do justice to the religious action which is
operationalised by the user. After all, even a presentational site is interactive in the
simple sense that the viewer can move around within the site. The terms

2
For an extended discussion see Helve and Pye 2003.
4
"presentational" and "operational" are therefore preferred in contrast to some others
because they emphasise the diverse weighting of the relevant agency.3

A typical presentational site is that of the Association of Shinto Shrines (Jinja Honchō).
This is an umbrella organisation for the Shinto religion which, as it says on the site,
reveres Ise Shrine as its central focus, while linking together 80,000 shrines all over
Japan. The homepage seeks to give an easily understood introduction to Shinto as a
“faith” (shinkō 信仰 ) unique to Japan. It also emphasises reverence for the imperial
family, which is identified with the centrally important Ise Shrine. The few interactive
options are limited to the exploration of the site and its links. These refer to shrines
which can also be located geographically. It is therefore possible to travel around Japan,
as if in real time and space, visiting The Association of Shinto Shrines, Ise Shrine, or
indeed any other of the "80,000" shrines of the country.

Of course, 80,000 is a traditional symbolic number and does not correspond to a real set
of buildings.4 It is an archaic hint of potential “virtuality.” What, after all, is a shrine? At
its simplest, a shrine is a spot where the sacred is localised, as marked by the
appropriate symbols, which may be massive –or very tiny. The “main” hall of a shrine,
where the divinities known as kami 神 themselves reside, is smaller than the hall for
human visitors, something which suggests that the kami have no ascertainable size. It
may be argued therefore that Shintō has always had an intimate relation with virtuality.
The presence of the kami is virtual.

There are also operational sites in the general area of Shinto.5 The practice of drawing a
fortune slip (o-mikuji おみくじ ) is of course common at Shinto shrines. Today the
website of Shirasagi Shrine (Shirasagi Jinja 白鷺神社) in Tochigi Prefecture invites its
visitors to draw a virtual fortune slip. The request is then sent off by e-mail. In another
example, Sakura Jinja 桜神社, a real shrine in Tokyo, invites surfers to perform a virtual
shrine visit. That is, without ever entering Tokyo's complex underground system one
can carry out a religious "visit" (o-mairi お参り) which corresponds in meaning to a
“real” one. These are both operational sites which correspond in name, and as regards
the practices performed, with real shrines that can be located in geographical space.

A site called web-jingū takes us further into operational virtuality. This picks up the
high-sounding word jingū 神宮 for shrine, but this jingū is not at Ise or anywhere else in

3
Other proposals may be found in Helland 2002 and Karaflogka 2002.
4
The number is analogous to the idea of 8,000.000 divinities, i.e. yaorozu no kami 八百万の神.
5
I am grateful to Ms. Petra Kienle (University of Marburg), for pointing out some of these to me.
5
 the islands of Japan. It is a virtual shrine which can be accessed only via the internet.
Further clicking gives the options of drawing a fortune-telling slip or even "visiting for
worship" (sanpai 参拝). A similar site is entitled "electric brain qualifications shrine"
(dennō gōkaku jinja 電脳合格神社). Here we find the idea, popular among students, that
a shrine is a good place to pray for the attainment of educational qualifications. Here too
there is no corresponding shrine outside the electronic network. The click-on options are
both serious and playful: “visiting the shrine” (o-mairi suru お参りする), “qualif-
ications,” “electric brain fortune telling slip,” “play time” and “cherry blossom notice
board.” Other sites invite the user to pay veneration to a deceased person or animal.
With any of these sites the main point is to invite users to engage in ritual behaviour in
the form of electronic interaction.

We find that electronic representations of religion in Japan build on six well established
characteristics of Japanese cultural style in religious matters. These are:

(a) readiness to use technologized aids in religious contexts

(b) readiness to provide abbreviations of symbols and rituals
(c) acceptance of remote access to sacred foci
(d) readiness to provide popularised representations
(e) individual control over much (though not all) religious action
(f) undefined relations between reality and unreality

Just a few examples of these will be given here. A nice example of (a) is the remote-
controlled Buddhist house altar, which saves walking up and down in the room in order
to open and close its doors. For (b) we may recall the miniature Mount Fuji mounds,
only a few metres high, for those who find it difficult to go on a tiresome climb for
pilgrimage purposes. Turning to (c) we note the concept common in Shinto, but not
restricted to it, of “worship from afar” (yōhai 遥拝). This implies that one can stand
before a miniature shrine arrangement anywhere in Japan and pay reverence to kami
whose residence is far distant. Since there are so many potential ritual actors we also
find (d) a wealth of popularised representations of sacred beings to be venerated, a
common example being the bodhisattva Jizō, who may be found standing in a fine hall,
swelling the ranks of the images in a hillside cemetery, or simply standing by the
roadside. This variety of religious representations is related to the wishes of the people
who (e) have significant individual control over their religious actions. Finally (f) just as
we have seen that supposed “reality” or “unreality” is not an issue in Shinto, the
Mahayana Buddhist refusal to discriminate between “existence” and “non-existence” is

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also relevant. This final ambiguity underlies the teachings or practices of practically all
Japanese religions.

The painless shift into the use of manga and anime is just an obvious example of how
one standard feature of Japanese religious culture (d: popularized representations) finds
its home in the new medium. It is however significant that all the features named above
are particularly suitable for transference to the digital world. This leads to a very easy-
going relationship between religion and the internet.

The internet undoubtedly helps to maintain and develop awareness of the ideas and
values associated with traditional religious institutions. The increased global presence of
well-organized Japanese religions cannot be satisfactorily charted here, but it is
substantial. On the other hand, the institutionally unrelated area is being enlarged at the
cost of specific religious institutions. What differential is to be expected between Japan
and Europe? In Europe it may be anticipated that the strengthening of “informal
spiritualities” will continue, and that more internet use will continue to relativize in-
stitutionalized religion.6 In Japan on the other hand, religious institutions may be able to
reinforce their position by internet sales of real products such as amulets, ancestor
mementos or devotional aids, for real money. It remains to be seen just how profitable
the offers for virtual benefits will become. It does seem doubtful that virtual transactions
will seriously reduce the need for real-space temple and shrine visits and reduce
transport congestion! On account of the numerous connections between religious desti-
nations and leisure travel, many internet sites help to maintain interest in the real-space,
institutionalised sector as well. Nevertheless, it does appear that the typical character-
istics of Japanese religious culture named above encourage a very special relationship
between religion and the internet in this country.

…………………………………………………………………………………………….

References

Hackett, Rosalind I.J. 2006.

"Mediated Religion in South Africa: Balancing Air-time and Rights Claims." In: Media,
Religion, and the Public Sphere, Birgit Meyer and Annelies Moors eds., Bloomington
IN (Indiana University Press): 166-187.

6
As argued in Helve and Pye 2003.
7
Helland, Christopher 2002.
"Surfing for salvation." Religion 32(4): 293-302.

Helve, Helena and Pye, Michael. 2003.

“Theoretical Correlations between World-view, Civil Religion, Institutional Religion
and Informal Spiritualities.” In: Temenos 37-38 (2001-2002), 87-106.

Karaflogka, Anastasia 2002.

"Religious discourse and cyberspace." Religion 32(4): 279-291.

Pye, Michael 2005.

Japanilaisen uskonnollisuuden sähkösiä heijastumia. In: Pyhä media. Sumiala-Seppänen,
Johanna (ed.). Jyväskylä (Atena Kustannus): 146-166.