Religious Violence in Contemporary Japan

Reader, Ian

ISBN 10 : 0700711090 ISBN 13 : 9780700711093

Editeur : Routledge, 2000

Synopsis

Religious Violence in Contemporary Japan An investigation into the workings of the Aum Shinrikyo, an ostensibly Buddhist movement which, under the guidance of its leader Asahara Shoko, increasingly engaged in criminal activities that culminated in the Tokyo subway attack in March 1995. Full description

A propos du livre

Présentation de l'éditeur :

The Tokyo subway attack in March 1995 was just one of a series of criminal activities including murder, kidnapping, extortion, and the illegal manufacture of arms and drugs carried out by the Japanese new religious movement Aum Shinrikyo, under the guidance of its leader Asahara Shoko. Reader looks at Aum's claims about itself and asks, why did a religious movement ostensibly focussed on yoga, meditation, asceticism and the pursuit of enlightenment become involved in violent activities?

Reader discusses Aum's spiritual roots, placing it in the context of contemporary Japanese religious patterns. Asahara's teaching are examined from his earliest public pronouncements through to his sermons at the time of the attack, and statements he has made in court. In analysing how Aum not only manufactured nerve gases but constructed its own internal doctrinal justifications for using them Reader focuses on the formation of what made all this possible: Aum's internal thought-world, and on how this was developed.

Reader argues that despite the horrors of this particular case, Aum should not be seen as unique, nor as solely a political or criminal terror group. Rather it can best be analysed within the context of religious violence, as an extreme example of a religious movement that has created friction with the wider world that escalated into violence.

À propos de cette édition

• Éditeur: Routledge
• Date d'édition: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0700711090
• ISBN 13: 9780700711093
• Reliure: Livre broché
• Nombre de pages: 322