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Despite having other places to go for religious needs, most Japanese still turn to the temple for funeral and mortuary rituals. As we have seen, however, even the shelter of the funeral is being taken away from Temple Buddhism. What are the temples and the sects of Temple Buddhism doing to respond to new religious trends, new funeral options, and the effects of urbanization and changing family structures? The sects of Temple Buddhism have been very slowly reengineering their organizations and their practices to meet contemporary needs. Let us examine the Tendai sect’s attempt to create new roles for the danka and thereby to invigorate Buddhist practice from the local temple level upward. At the local level, many individual temples are aggressively engaged in seeking new sources of income as well as new ways to make themselves meaningful to their danka members and others. Most local efforts center on creating new versions of old ritual themes. Mizuko kuyò (memorial services for aborted fetuses), are one such example.1 Other services include memorial services for pets (petto kuyò), blessings for cars, and the development of new trendy talismans , such as one with the “Hello Kitty” figure on it. (Hello Kitty is a hugely popular kitten character and is part of a major memorabilia industry).2 Some temples have opened home pages that offer online graveyards, while others have begun online counseling. These and other developments figure more fully in the discussions in chapters 7 and 8. The move to cater to the this-worldly benefits so aggressively sought out by Japanese may serve to keep a small percentage of temples financially solvent, but it is doubtful that it will stanch the steady flow of potential danka members away from the sects of Temple Buddhism.3 Without a large danka member base to support them, the sects that sit atop the Temple Buddhism pyramid will crumble over time. The leaders of the sects of Temple Buddhism are keenly aware of this and have initiated innovative ways of recreating their role in society and thus of appealing to danka members for continued support. The centerpiece of the Tendai sect’s efforts has been an attempt to create a place within the renunciate organization for the laity to play an active role. The Tendai sect’s efforts to reestablish and redefine danka-temple and danka-sect bonds take place through the sect’s Light Up Your Corner Movement (Ichigû Wo Terasu Undò). The movement seeks to address two issues critical to revitalizing relations with danka members (and to attracting new members). Trying to Have It Both Ways The Laity in a World-Renouncer Organization 3 First, it posits a values crisis as the reason for the decline in traditional family structure (which sect leaders blame for declining numbers of danka members). It then seeks to teach a Tendai way of life that is based on the family in order to reestablish and strengthen family values. Second, through teaching a Tendai way of life, it seeks to recreate the danka member’s connection to the temple. The temple is no longer to be seen as simply a center for funerals and memorial services, but as the center for the family’s engagement in society and the revitalization of Japan. The Tendai sect is not alone in starting up a popularly focused movement. Between 1962 and 1971, most sects began similar movements aimed at refiguring themselves as people’s organizations (minshû kyòdan). These developments coincided with a boom in holding major memorial anniversaries for sect founders. The largest and most influential of these was the 1961 joint 750th anniversary for Hònen (1132–1212, founder of the Jòdo sect) and 700th for Shinran (1173–1262, founder of the Jòdo Shin sect). As many as two million people are said to have participated in the various ceremonies held on this occasion. The Tendai sect was comparatively late in organizing its own social engagement movement. For example, the Sòtò sect began its movement, the Danka Member and Faithful’s Sect Support Association (Danshinto Shûmon Gojikai) in 1963, the Shingon sect Chizan branch began its Danka Member and Faithful’s Cooperative Association (Danshinto Kyògikai) in 1965, the Nichiren sect began the Defend the Dharma Movement (Gohò Undò) in 1966, and the Jòdo sect began its Hand in Hand Movement (Otetsugi Undò) in 1967. The appearance of such movements in this period can be linked to the threat sects felt from the...

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