led by groups of priests and laymen, calling for free
inquiry into traditional beliefs and practices, rejecting
superstition, and striving to articulate a modern
Buddhist ethic. One such association, Bukkyo Seito
Doshikai, published a widely circulated journal called
Buddhism(Bukkyo), sought inspiration from Unitari-
anism, embraced skepticism, and even questioned
whether Mahayana is true Buddhism. Other reform-
ers admired socialism, affirmed equality, and called for
reform of authoritarian sectarian organizations. Still
others aligned Buddhism with nationalism, such as
Nation’s Pillar Society (Kokuchukai), founded in 1914
by a Nichiren priest who later disrobed and wrote in
defense of marriage, Tanaka Chigaku (1861–1939).
Buddhist new religious movements in Japan
The formalism inherent in the historical origins of
Japanese temple affiliations has made the country a fer-
tile area for the founding of new religious movements
expanding the scope of lay Buddhism. In the early
twentieth century Buddhist new religions emerged,
based on the belief that the laity possess all necessary
qualifications to perform funerals and ancestral rites
without clerical mediation. Reiyukai Kyodan, founded
in 1930, and its offshoot RisshoKoseikai, founded in
1938, are two such examples. Both derive from
Nichiren Buddhism and emphasize ancestor worship
through the Lotus Sutra.
After World War II, many more Buddhist new re-
ligions emerged. The largest is SOKAGAKKAI, which
was founded in 1930 but which did not become a mass
movement until after 1945. Its main religious practices
are chanting the title of the Lotus Sutraand studying
its doctrines. It founded a political party in 1964. Soka
Gakkai was originally affiliated with a branch of the
NICHIREN SCHOOL, Nichiren Shoshu, but this connec-
tion was abolished in 1991. Soka Gakkai maintains an
extensive program of peace work and branches
throughout the world. With membership estimated at
seventeen million, it is one of the largest—if not the
largest—Buddhist lay associations in history.
In recent years Buddhist new religions deriving
from Shingon Buddhism, such as Agon-shu, Shinn-
yoen, and Gedatsukai, have been founded. In 1995 the
Buddhist new religion Aum Shinrikyo, founded in
1986, carried out an attack on the Tokyo subway sys-
tem that killed twelve people and required some five
thousand to be hospitalized. The founder, Asahara
Shoko, hoped to cause Armageddon to fulfill his
prophecy of the millennium. This group had no affil-
iation with any branch of Japanese Buddhism; it drew
its main doctrines from Tibetan Buddhism mixed with
the founder’s eclectic readings in Christianity and
Western millenarianism.See also:Merit and Merit-making; MonasticismBibliography
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