LibGuides: Religion 233: Japanese Religious Traditions: Getting Started

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Subject Encyclopedias

It's a good idea to browse through entries on your topic in more than one encyclopedia. Some encyclopedias have in-depth articles, while others have just short entries. Be sure to check the bibliographies at the end of essays; they'll lead you to especially key sources.

The Nanzan Guide to Japanese Religions, listed below, is an especially good place to start, especially if you aren't sure what you want to research.

Nanzan Guide to Japanese Religions by Paul L. Swanson (Editor)
Call Number: BL2210.5 .N36 2006 Reference (Main floor of library)
Publication Date: 2005
The Nanzan Guide to Japanese Religions combines state-of-the-field theoretical and critical discussions.
[Table of Contents]
Editors’ Introduction
Traditions
Japanese Religions/Robert Kisala
Shinto/Norman Havens
Buddhism/Jacqueline I. Stone
Folk Religion/Ian Reader
New Religions/Trevor Astley
Japanese Christianity/Mark R. Mullins
History
Ancient Japan and Religion/Matsumura Kazuo
Religion in the Classical Period/Yoshida Kazuhiko
The Medieval Period: Eleventh to Sixteenth Centuries/William M. Bodiford
Religion in Early Modern Japan/Duncan Ryuken Williams
Religion in the Modern Period/Hayashi Makoto
Contemporary Japanese Religions/Shimazono Susumu
Themes
The Ritual Culture of Japan: Symbolism, Ritual, and the Arts/Richard K. Payne
Literature and Scripture/Robert E. Morrell
State and Religion in Japan/Helen Hardacre
Geography, Environment, Pilgrimage/Barbara Ambros
History of Thought in Japan/Thomas P.Kasulis
Gender Issues in Japanese Religions/Kawahashi Noriko
Research
Japanese Reference Works, Sources, and Libraries/Makino Yasuko
Using Archives in the Study of Japanese Religions/Brian O. Ruppert
Conducting Fieldwork on Japanese Religions/Scott Schnell

Chronology
A Chronology of Religion in Japan/William M. Bodiford
Contributors
Index

Additional Recommended Subject Encyclopedias:

Encyclopedia of Religion, 2nd ed. by Lindsay Jones (Editor)
Call Number: Click the title above for online access.
Publication Date: 2005
This is the essential subject encyclopedia for the discipline.
Handbook of Japanese Mythology by Michael Ashkenazi
Call Number: Reference BL2203 .A86 2003
ISBN: 9781576074671
Publication Date: 2003
An introductory guide to the mythology of Japan, with an extensive bibliography.
Encyclopedia of Buddhism by Robert E. Buswell (Editor)
Call Number: Click the title above for online access.
Publication Date: 2005
This encyclopedia describes the Buddhist world view, basic teachings and practices of Buddhism, as well as its different schools and sects.
Historical Dictionary of Shinto by Stuart D. B. Picken
Call Number: Click on title above for online access.
Publication Date: 2010
Includes a introductory narrative followed by dictionary entries and a substantial bibliography.