| Group | Where | Number of Adherents |
% of total pop. |
Number of congreg./ churches/ units |
Number of countries |
Year | Source | Quote/ Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shusei Ha | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1996 | Occhiogrosso, Peter. The Joy of Sects: A Spirited Guide to the World's Religious Traditions. New York: Doubleday (1996), pg. 136. | "Sect Shinto consists of a wide range of sects with very different philosophies and practices. 13 are officially recognized, from the so-called pure sects of Shinto Honkyoku, Shinri Kyo, and Taisha Kyo to the overtly Confucian-influenced sects Shusei Ha and Teisei Kyo. " |
| Sikhism | Japan | - | - | 1 unit |
- | 1993 | O'Brien, J. & M. Palmer. The State of Religion Atlas. Simon & Schuster: New York (1993). Pg 30-31. | Map: Number of Sikh gurdwaras ( "a gurdwara is both a place of worship and community centre ") |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1930 | Barrett, D. Sects, 'Cults', and Alternative Religions. London, UK: Blandford (1997), pg. 156. | "In 1930, two devotees of Nichiren Shoshu, Tsunesaburo Makiguchi (1871-1944) and Josei Toda (1900-58), founded a lay movement, Soka Kyoiku Gakkai, the Value-Creating Education Society. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1947 | *LINK* Hexham, Irving. Concise Dictionary of Religion. Carol Stream, USA: InterVarsity Press (1994). (v. online 6 Oct. 1999) | "SOKA GAKKAI: a Japanese NEW RELIGIOUS MOVEMENT founded in 1930 by Tsunesaburo Makiguchi and Josei Toda as a lay association of BUDDHISTS. Active in politics the leaders were imprisoned during the Second World War for their pacifist stance. After 1947 the movement grew rapidly especially in Cities where its ADOPTION of BUDDHISM to the modern world appealed to many people. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 750,000 | - | - | - | 1958 | Barrett, D. Sects, 'Cults', and Alternative Religions. London, UK: Blandford (1997), pg. 156. | "During the Second World War the Japanese government demanded religious unity and insisted that evry home should have a Shinto shrine for worship of the Emperor. Nichiren Shoshu refused both demands, and Makigushi and Toda [leaders and founders of Soka Gakkai], among other leaders, were imprisoned. Makiguchi died in prison, but Toda, on his release, put all his energies into reviving the lay movement. Seeing its purpose as more universal than education, he dropped 'Kyoiku' from the name. In 1951 he announced his goal of 750,000 new members in the next seven years; he just lived to see this accomplished. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 1,000,000 | - | - | - | 1965 | Rausch, David A. & Carl Hermann Voss. World Religions: Our Quest for Meaning; Trinity Press International: Valley Forge, PA (1993), pg. 111. | "With over a million members by the 1960s, Soka Gakkai taught that it was the only true religion and today inspires frequent mass rallies. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 15,000,000 | - | - | - | 1969 | Hutchinson, John A. Paths of Faith; New York: McGraw-Hill (1969), pg. 293. | "Soka Gakkai currrently claims some 10 million to 15 million adherents, and a rapid and continuing growth. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 10,000,000 | - | - | - | 1969 | Storry, Richard; Japan; New York: David White, Inc. (1969), pg. 106. | "The Buddhist sect known as the Soka Gakkai embraces perhaps 10 million followers, and the number is growing. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 16,539,375 | 14.36% | - | - | 1978 | Reid, D. "Japanese Religions " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st pub. 1984], pg. 373. [Orig. src: Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook), Ministry of Education & Bureau of Statistics.] | "Table: Some surviving new religious orgs. in Japan "; "Membership figures, voluntarily reported..., as found in the 1979 ed. of the Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook). " Classified as Buddhist new religion (year of origin: 1930). |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1979 | Pitts, Forrest R. Japan; Grand Rapids, Michigan: Fideler Company (1979), pg. 75. | "Since World War II, another Buddhist group, called Soka Gakkai, has gained political strength in Japan. Members of Soka Gakkai feel stronly that theirs is the only true religion... " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 17,000,000 | - | - | - | 1988 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site (orig. source: 5/12/88 issue of GLOBAL PRAYER DIGEST); (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | "PRAY FOR THE 17,000,000 SOKKA GAKKAI OF JAPAN " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 6,000,000 | - | - | - | 1988 | Reischauer, Edwin O. The Japanese Today: Change and Continuity; Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press (1988), pg. 214. | "Soka Gakkai... claims 16 million, though 6 million would probably be a better estimate of its actual membership at any one time. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 16,000,000 | - | - | - | 1988 | Reischauer, Edwin O. The Japanese Today: Change and Continuity; Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press (1988), pg. 214. | "Soka Gakkai... claims 16 million, though 6 million would probably be a better estimate of its actual membership at any one time. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 10,000,000 | - | - | - | 1989 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site (orig. source: 9/26/89 issue of GLOBAL PRAYER DIGEST); (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | 10,000,000 Japanese and 300,000 Americans. Soka Gakkai has become the largest religious organization in Japan. |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* Wilson, Andrew (ed). "The World Religions and their Scriptures " in World Scripture. International Religious Foundation, 1991. (viewed 9 July 1999) | "Several Buddhist lay movements are offshoots of the branch of Japanese Buddhism founded by Nichiren (1222-1282) and rely upon the Lotus Sutra as their scripture. These include... S-oka Gakkai, founded by J-ozaburo Makiguchi, whose political wing, the Komeito party, is a strong force in the Japanese Diet. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 16,060,000 | - | - | - | 1992 | Wilson, B. & Dobbelaere, K. A Time to Chang: The Soka Gakkai Buddhists in Britain. Oxford: Clarendon (1998), pg. 13. | "In 1992 Soka Gakkai International claimed 1,260,000 members in 115 nations in addition to 8,030,000 families in Japan: Nikkei Weekly, 30/1,530 (15 Aug. 1992). " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 17,000,000 | - | - | - | 1995 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site (orig. source: 2/9/95 issue of GLOBAL PRAYER DIGEST); (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | There are 17,000,000 adherents of the Soka Gakkai faith in Japan today. |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | 10,000,000 | - | - | - | 1996 | Occhiogrosso, Peter. The Joy of Sects: A Spirited Guide to the World's Religious Traditions. New York: Doubleday (1996), pg. 126. | "Soka Gakkai grew exponentially and became involved in Japanese politics, in the process reviving what had been marginal interest in Nichiren. Today it claims 8 to 10 million adherents in Japan and another 2 million worldwide " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | - | 10.00% | - | - | 1997 | Barrett, D. Sects, 'Cults', and Alternative Religions. London, UK: Blandford (1997), pg. 159. | "Daisaku Ikeda founded the Soka University in Japan in 1971. The movement's money has made it a highly successful and influential establishment... In its efforts for world peace and cultural reformation, Soka Gakkai also seeks political power. Just as the religious right (the 'moral majority) exerts an increasingly strong influence on the Republican Party in the USA, Soka Gakkai, although legally separate, had strong links with the third main political party in Japan, Komeito (Clean Government Party), which merged with another party in 1994 to become the Shinshinto Party. Critics claim that Soka Gakkai, through its power over its members, controls 6 million votes -- 10 per cent of the Japanese electorate. In the 1994 elections, Shinshinto gained 40 seats in the Japanese upper house of parliament. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1998 | Fernandez-Armesto, Felipe. "Religion " in The Future Now: Predicting the 21st Century. London: Weidenfeld & Nicolson (1998), pg. 53. | "In Japan Soko Gakkai [did]... acquire millions of members, found a political party and spread to other consumerist societies in America and Europe. " |
| Soka Gakkai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1998 | Rutherford, Scott (ed.) East Asia. London: Apa Publications (1998), pg. 285. | "Today, many of Nichiren's followers in Japan belong to the Soka Gakkai, a... organization whose political arm, the Komei-to, or Clean-Government Party, has considerable strength in the National Diet. " |
| Soto | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1300 C.E. | Rutherford, Scott (ed.) East Asia. London: Apa Publications (1998), pg. 285. | "Zen... Two Buddhist priests in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries -- Eisai, founder of the Rinzai Zen sect, and his disciple Dogen, who established the Soto Zen sect -- are given the lion's share of credit for bringing the principle of 'emptiness' into Japanese Buddhism. " |
| Soto | Japan | 6,848,000 | - | 14,257 units |
- | 1945 | Ferm, Vergilius (ed.). An Encyclopedia of Religion; Westport, CT: Greenwood Press (1976), pg. 104. [1st pub. in 1945 by Philosophical Library. 1976 reprint is unrevised.] | "The Japanese Obaku Sect, founded by Ingen in 1654, has 587 temples and 120,000 adherents, while Soto has 14,257 and 6,848,000 and Rinzai has 5,979 and 2,530,000 respectively. " |
| Soto | Japan | 6,750,000 | - | - | - | 1956 | Hutchinson, John A. Paths of Faith; New York: McGraw-Hill (1969), pg. 275. [Orig. source: Morgan, Kenneth W. (ed.), "The Path of the Buddha "; New York: The Ronald Press Co. (1956), pg. 339.] | "Zen was imported into Japan... by Eisai... founder of Rinzai sect; in 1244 by Dogen, who founded Soto; and in 1654 by Ingen, founder of the obaku school of Zen. Today the Rinzai sect claims 2,350,000 adherents, Soto 6,750,000, and Obaku about 100,000. " |
| Soto | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1986 | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986), pg. 291. | "The Soto school, the other school [other than Rinzai] of Zen stil active today in Japan, more heavily stresses mokusho Zen and thus also the practice of shikantaza. " |
| Soto | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1986 | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986), pg. 337. | "Soto school (Chin., Ts'ao-tung-tsung; Jap., Soto-shu); with the Rinzai school, one of the two most important schools of Zen in Japan. It belongs to the goke-shichishu and was founded by the great Chinese Ch'an (Zen) master... In the first half of the 13th century, the tradition of the Soto school was brought to Japan from China by the Japanese master Dogen Zenji; there, Soto Zen, along with Rinzai, is one of the two principal transmission lineages of Zen still active today. " |
| Suiga Shinto | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1682 | Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Surrey, England: Curzon (1996), pg. 189. | "Suiga shinto: Or suika shinto. 'Conferment of benefits Shinto' or 'Descent of divine blessing Shinto'. A Neo-Confucian, anti-Buddhist school of thought and Shinto lineage founded by Yamazaki, Ansai (1616-1682)... " |
| Sukyo Mahikari | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* Wilson, Andrew (ed). "The World Religions and their Scriptures " in World Scripture. International Religious Foundation, 1991. (viewed 9 July 1999) | "The founder of Mahikari, Yoshikazu Okada (1901-1974), was a member of Sekai Kyusei Kyo before receiving his own revelations in 1959... The two sects Mahikari [i.e. Sekai Mahikari Bunmei Kyodan] and Sukyo Mahikari both practice a nearly identical form of healing called okiyome... " |
| Taejonggyo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1988 | *LINK* Takafumi,Iida. "Folk Religion Among the Koreans in Japan The Shamanism of the 'Korean Temples' " in Japanese Journal of Religious Studies June-September 1988 15/2-3. (Viewed on JJRS web site, 30 Jan. 1999) | "Other Korean sects include the Taego sect, which has a number of temples [in Japan]. " |
| Teisei Kyo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1996 | Occhiogrosso, Peter. The Joy of Sects: A Spirited Guide to the World's Religious Traditions. New York: Doubleday (1996), pg. 136. | "Sect Shinto consists of a wide range of sects with very different philosophies and practices. 13 are officially recognized, from the so-called pure sects of Shinto Honkyoku, Shinri Kyo, and Taisha Kyo to the overtly Confucian-influenced sects Shusei Ha and Teisei Kyo. " |
| Tendai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 805 C.E. | *LINK* Hexham, Irving. Concise Dictionary of Religion. Carol Stream, USA: InterVarsity Press (1994). (v. online 6 Oct. 1999) | "TENDAI BUDDHISM: the leading Japanese school of BUDDHISM founded by Dengyo Daishi in 805, on the basis of the LOTUS SUTRA and centered on the Monastery at Mount Hiei near Kyoto, teaching that the historical BUDDHA is a manifestation of the eternal BUDDHA-NATURE which is the fundamental ESSENCE of the UNIVERSE. As a result the Buddha becomes an object of FAITH enabling individuals to realize their own ultimate Buddha-nature thus attaining ENLIGHTENMENT. " |
| Tendai | Japan | 101 | - | - | - | 807 C.E. | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally published as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 750. | "Tendai (Jap.); T'ien-T'ai (Chin.). An academic school of Buddhism organized in sixth century China by Chih-I on T'ien-t'ai Shan ('Heavenly Terrace Mountain') and carried to Mount Hiei in Japan by the Japanese monk Saicho in the early ninth century. "; Pg. 752: Saicho studied Tendai in China during the year 804 and, upon returning to Japan, introduced it at his temple, Enryakuji, on Mount Hiei. With the emperor's support, he ordained a hundred disciples in 807. Maintaining a strict discipline on Hiei, his monks lived in seclusion for twelve years of study and meditation. " |
| Tendai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 822 C.E. | Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Surrey, England: Curzon (1996), pg. 200. | "Tendai sect: The sect of Buddhism founded by Dengyo Daishi (Saicho). Based at Enryakuji on Mt. Hiei, it based its doctrine and eclectic practices including esoteric rituals on the Lotus sutra (hokkekyo). " |
| Tendai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 975 C.E. | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally published as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 752. | "In the tenth century, succession disputes between Tendai monks of the line of Ennin and Enchin (814-891) led to opposing Tendai centers at Mount Hiei, the sammon ('Mountain Order') and at Miidera, the jimon ('Church Order'). Warrior monks (sohei) were employed in such disputes, and Tendai leaders began to hire mercenary armies who threatened rivals and even marched on the capital to enforce monastic demands. Centuries later, in 1571, Shogun Nobunaga ended this Buddhist militancy by burning the temples on Mount Hiei and destroying the monastic communities. " |
| Tendai | Japan | 2,141,000 | - | 4,438 units |
- | 1945 | Ferm, Vergilius (ed.). An Encyclopedia of Religion; Westport, CT: Greenwood Press (1976), pg. 109. [1st pub. in 1945 by Philosophical Library. 1976 reprint is unrevised.] | "In Japan, where it was founded in 804 by Dengyo Daishi (Saicho, 767-822), the School (Tendai) has three branches (Sammon, Jimon, and Shinsei) with 4,438 temples and 2,141,000 followers. " |
| Tendai | Japan | 750,000 | - | 4,000 units |
- | 1969 | Hutchinson, John A. Paths of Faith; New York: McGraw-Hill (1969), pg. 272. | "The Tendai Buddhism which Saicho founded continues as a living form in Japan today. Statistics for the period since World War II show some four thousand temples and 750,000 adherents. " |
| Tendai | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally published as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 752. | "Tendai... The Contemporary scene... In modern Japan, the 'new religions,' Jodo, Jodo Shin-shu, Nichiren sects, and Zen sects far outnumber Tendai in adherents, though mergers of Tendai groups have occurred with the hope for future revivals. In both China and Japan the chief contribution of Tendai has ben its impressive synthesis of Buddhist doctrines and its ability to provide the impetus for new and vital sects and movements. " |
| Tendai | Japan | 31,427,310 | 25.20% | - | - | 1993 | O'Brien, J. & M. Palmer. The State of Religion Atlas. Simon & Schuster: New York (1993). Pg 26-27. | "Shares of Buddhist sect membership in Japan, 1981: Tendai: 30%; Nichiren: 30%; Pure Land: 18%; Shingon: 10%; Zen: 8%; Nara: 4%. " Percentages and numbers made using est. of 84% of Japan being Buddhist, total pop. of country: 124,711,551 (1993). |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1921 | Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Surrey, England: Curzon (1996), pg. 112-113. | "Kyoha Shinto: 'Sect Shinto'... In 1921... the official association of Shinto sects had 13 groups... included revelatory 'new' religious movements... such as Tenrikyo, Kurozumi-kyo and Konko-kyo... " |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | 2,350,000 | - | 15,000 units |
- | 1963 | *LINK* web site: "New Religious Movements " (University of Virginia); web page: "Tenrikyo " (viewed 31 Jan. 1999); "Created by Jacqueline Fowler For Sociology 497, Fall 1998 " | "Size of Group: According to Harry Thomsen's The New Religions of Japan (copyright 1963), Tenrikyo membership exploded it's early years and leveled off in the mid 1900's. According to the Ministry of Education (at the time of publication), there were 2,350,000 members and 15,000 churches. Also, in 1986, the Tenrikyo Overseas Mission Department published the following figures: from the years 1975-1985, 676 people in the United States (mainland), 308 people in Hawaii, and 3678 people in The Republic of China recieved Sazuke. " |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1969 | Chan, Wing-tsit, et al. (compilers). The Great Asian Religions: An Anthology. London: Macmillian Co. (1969), pg. 301. | "Tenri-kyo (Religion of Divine Reason) was founded by a peasant woman, Nakayama Miki (1798-1887), in Nara Prefecture. Brough up as a devotee of the Buddha Amida, she married and lived as an ordinary housewife. When she was 41, she was possessed by the Divine Reason Kami. Miki's utopian teachings, based on oracles, shamanistic practices, and ecstatic dances attracted many followers. At first recognized as a branch of Shinto, this group changed its affiliation to Buddhism in 1880; finally, in 1908, Tenri-kyo was recognized as one of the 13 'Sect Shinto' denominations, and appropriated Shinto elements into its rites and doctrines. " |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | 2,525,759 | 2.19% | - | - | 1978 | Reid, D. "Japanese Religions " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st pub. 1984], pg. 373. [Orig. src: Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook), Ministry of Education & Bureau of Statistics.] | "Table: Some surviving new religious orgs. in Japan "; "Membership figures, voluntarily reported..., as found in the 1979 ed. of the Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook). " (year of origin: 1838) Classified as "other " instead of Shinto at their request. |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | 2,000,000 | - | - | - | 1988 | Reischauer, Edwin O. The Japanese Today: Change and Continuity; Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press (1988), pg. 214-215. | "Tenrikyo ('Teachings of the Heavenly Truth'), which today claims a membership of almost 2 million, was founded by a peasant woman in 1838. " |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | 2,000,000 | - | - | - | 1989 | *LINK* Nance Profiles web site (orig. source: 9/22/89 issue of GLOBAL PRAYER DIGEST); (viewed Aug. 1998; now restricted.) | "PRAY FOR A CHURCH AMONG THE 2,000,000 FOLLOWERS OF TENRIKYO IN JAPAN " |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1991 | *LINK* Wilson, Andrew (ed). "The World Religions and their Scriptures " in World Scripture. International Religious Foundation, 1991. (viewed 9 July 1999) | "The new religions with Shinto roots have unique scriptures of their own. First among the new religions of Japan was Tenrikyo. Founded by Miki Nakayama (1798-1887), its central scriptures are three collections of her revelations: Mikagura-uta, Ofudesaki, and K-oki. " |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1996 | Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Surrey, England: Curzon (1996), pg. 203. | "Tenrikyo... the largest of the pre-Meiji 'new' religions. It predates the Meiji revival of Shinto and since 1970 ahs distanced itself from the label of 'sect Shinto' acquired in 1908, in order to clarify its universal mission... Tenrikyo has had considerable success in overseas missions particularly among emigrant Japanese communities. " |
| Tenrikyo | Japan | - | - | 37,719 units |
- | 1998 | *LINK* official Tenrikyo web site; page: "A Statistical Review of Tenrikyo: 1 of 2 " (viewed 10 Dec. 1999) | Table: "A Statistical Review of Tenrikyo 1998 ". Church-supplied data. 16,831 churches; 20,888 mission stations |
| Tenrikyo - graduated from Shuyoka | Japan | 5,205 | - | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* official Tenrikyo web site; page: "A Statistical Review of Tenrikyo: 2 of 2 " (viewed 10 Dec. 1999) | Table: "Statistics on followers who... graduated from Shuyoka... between Jan. and Dec. 1998. "; "Data by Research Section and Overseas Mission Department " |
| Tenrikyo - new Besseki Pledge | Japan | 23,247 | - | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* official Tenrikyo web site; page: "A Statistical Review of Tenrikyo: 2 of 2 " (viewed 10 Dec. 1999) | Table: "Statistics on followers who took the Besseki Pledge... between Jan. and Dec. 1998. "; "Data by Research Section and Overseas Mission Department " |
| Tenrikyo - received the Sazuke | Japan | 9,894 | - | - | - | 1998 | *LINK* official Tenrikyo web site; page: "A Statistical Review of Tenrikyo: 2 of 2 " (viewed 10 Dec. 1999) | Table: "Statistics on followers who... received the Sazuke... between Jan. and Dec. 1998. "; "Data by Research Section and Overseas Mission Department " |
| Tensho Kotai Jingukyo | Japan | 401,572 | 0.35% | - | - | 1978 | Reid, D. "Japanese Religions " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st pub. 1984], pg. 373. [Orig. src: Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook), Ministry of Education & Bureau of Statistics.] | "Table: Some surviving new religious orgs. in Japan "; "Membership figures, voluntarily reported..., as found in the 1979 ed. of the Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook). " Classified as "other " new religion (neither Shinto nor Buddhist); origin year: 1945. |
| Tensho Kotai Jingukyo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1996 | Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Surrey, England: Curzon (1996), pg. 203. | "Tensho kotai jingu-kyo: Literally 'The religion of the grand shrine of Amaterasu' (Amaterasu can also be read tensho). A new religious movement founded by Kitamura, Sayo (1900-1967) in 1945... 'The dancing religion' as it is known is a good example of the way in which a new religious movement in the postwar period could successfully combine 'Shinto' and 'Buddhist' imagery and practice. " |
| Tokyo Chiku Menonaito Kyokai Rengo | Japan | 80 | - | 5 units |
- | 1998 | *LINK* Mennonite World Conference web site. Directory 1998. Web page: "Asia/Pacific: Mennonite & Brethren in Christ Churches " | JAPAN... Tokyo Chiku Menonaito Kyokai Rengo... Members: 80; Congregations: 5 |
| United Church of Christ in Japan | Japan | - | 0.40% | - | - | 1988 | Reischauer, Edwin O. The Japanese Today: Change and Continuity; Cambridge, Massachusetts: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press (1988), pg. 212-213. | "today its adherents number less than 2% of the pop.--divided fairly evenly between Catholics and Protestants... today some 40% of the Protestant movement remains in the United Church of Christ in Japan (Nihon Kirisuto Kyodan). " |
| Universal Church of the Kingdom of God | Japan | - | - | 1 unit |
- | 1995 | *LINK* Nascimento, Elma Lia. "Praise the Lord and pass the catch-up ", "news from Brazil, November 1995; dateline: Brazzil ". (viewed 30 July 1999, web site: RickRoss.com) | "The [Igreja Universal] church seems unstoppable. There are plans to start a mission in Russia and to conquer the whole of Asia since Japan has already a temple, and the Philippines seven. " |
| unknown | Japan | - | 4.00% | - | - | 1992 | Goring, Rosemary (ed). Larousse Dictionary of Beliefs & Religions (Larousse: 1994) pg. 581-584. | Table: "Population Distribution of Major Beliefs "; "Figures have been compiled from the most accurate recent available information and are in most cases correct to the nearest 1% "; Listed as "Unspecified " |
| Vipassana Meditation Centers | Japan | - | - | 1 unit |
- | 1999 | *LINK* web site: "Vipassana Meditation " home page (viewed 13 Feb. 1999) | "There are numerous Centers in India and Southern Asia; 5 Centers in North America; 4 Centers in Europe; 5 Centers in Australia/New Zealand; and 1 Center in Japan. Each Center maintains its own schedule of regular ten day Vipassana courses. " |
| Yasaka Jinja | Japan | - | - | 3,000 units |
- | 1996 | Bocking, Brian. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Surrey, England: Curzon (1996), pg. 221. | "Yasaka jinja: Usually referred to as the Gion shrine, Kyoto. Established as a protection against pestilence, it has retained more than some other shrines the combinatory ji-sha (temple-shrine) character of the pre-Meiji period in its architecture and in its festival, the Gion matsuri, which is probably the best-known and most spectacular in Japan. It has about 3000 branch shrines (bunsha) throughout the country. " |
| Yomei | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1994 | *LINK* Hexham, Irving. Concise Dictionary of Religion. Carol Stream, USA: InterVarsity Press (1994). (v. online 6 Oct. 1999) | "YOMEI SCHOOL: a Japanese school of CONFUCIANISM based on the teachings of WANG YANG-MING pioneered in Japan by Nakae-Tju which promoted devotion to the COSMIC SOUL of which man is a microcosm through SPIRITUAL training. " |
| Yuzenembutsu | Japan | 153,000 | - | 357 units |
- | 1945 | Ferm, Vergilius (ed.). An Encyclopedia of Religion; Westport, CT: Greenwood Press (1976), pg. 105. [1st pub. in 1945 by Philosophical Library. 1976 reprint is unrevised.] | "Pure Land School [of Buddhism]:... Minor differences exist in the four Japanese sects of Jodo (8,245 temples & 3,646,000 adherents), Shin (19,815 & 13,327,000), Yuzenembutsu (357 & 153,000), and Ji (494 & 350,000). " |
| Zen | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1282 C.E. | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally pub. as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 538. | "Nichiren Buddhism has been criticized as... intolerant... Nichiren condemned other sects in the stinging phrase: Nembutsu mugen, Zen tenma, Shingon bokoku, Ritsu kokuzoku (the Nembutsu--Amida Buddhism--is hell; Zen is a devil; Shingon is the nation's ruin; and Ritsu is treason).' " |
| Zen | Japan | 9,000,000 | - | - | - | 1957 | Welles, Sam. The World's Great Religions, New York: Time Incorporated (1957), pg. 58. | "Today [Zen] is still practiced to by Japan's second largest (nine million monks and laymen) and most rigorous Buddhist sect. " |
| Zen | Japan | 9,000,000 | - | - | - | 1958 | Welles, Sam. The World's Great Religions, New York: Western Publishing Co. (1972). [11th printing; original edition: 1958]. Pg. 53. | "Second largest [after Shin shu], with nine million monks and laymen, is Zen, a sect of stern discipline. " |
| Zen | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1966 | Welty, Paul Thomas. The Asians: Their Heritage and Their Destiny (Revised Edition). Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co. (1966), pg. 245. | "The second largest Buddhist sect in Japan is Zen, which differs radically from Shin-shu because it teaches that salvation is the result of one's own efforts rather than the outcome of faith in some supernatural deity. Zen traces its origin to Ch'an Buddhism which started in China around 400 A.D. " |
| Zen | Japan | 9,000,000 | 10.00% | - | - | 1969 | Storry, Richard; Japan; New York: David White, Inc. (1969), pg. 105. | "Figures here are difficult to assess with acuracy, but there are probably rather more than 9 million adherents of Zen Buddhism in Japan. This represents nearly 10% of the total population. " |
| Zen | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1981 | Crim, Keith (ed.). The Perennial Dictionary of World Religions. San Francisco: Harper Collins (1989). Reprint; originally published as Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions, 1981; pg. 825. | "Japanese Zen suffered some destruction during World War II, went through a period of depression following the war, and more recently has experienced a noticeable revival. The work of D. T. Suzuki and new appeal for Japanese youth impressed by the positive reception of Zen in the West have marked recent years. " |
| Zen | Japan | 5,000,000 | - | - | - | 1983 | Berger, Gilda. Religion: A Reference First Book. New York: Franklin Watts (1983), pg. 96. | "A new burst of interest in Zen developed in Japan after World War II. It is still very strong there, with an estimated 5 million Zen Buddhists in Japan today. " |
| Zen | Japan | 8,380,616 | 6.72% | - | - | 1993 | O'Brien, J. & M. Palmer. The State of Religion Atlas. Simon & Schuster: New York (1993). Pg 26-27. | "Shares of Buddhist sect membership in Japan, 1981: Tendai: 30%; Nichiren: 30%; Pure Land: 18%; Shingon: 10%; Zen: 8%; Nara: 4%. " Percentages and numbers made using est. of 84% of Japan being Buddhist, total pop. of country: 124,711,551 (1993). |
| Zen | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1998 | Rutherford, Scott (ed.) East Asia. London: Apa Publications (1998), pg. 285. | "The impact of that particularly eclectic form of Buddhism called Zen on Japanese culture is considerable, reaching far beyond the temple and entering into cultural and social areas of all kinds, including gardening, ink painting, calligraphy, the tea ceremony, and even military strategies. " |
| Zen - O-To-Kan School | Japan | - | - | - | - | 900 C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986), pg. 256. | "O-To-Kan School - Jap.; lineage of Japanese Rinzai Zen stemming from the three great Zen masters Nampo Shomyo, Myocho Shuho, and Kanzan Egan. The name of this lineage derives from the last characters of Daio and Daito and from the first of Kanzan. The important Zen master and great reformer of Rinzai Zen Hakuin Zenji was a heritor of this lineage. " [I'm not certain about when this existed. 900 is an approximation.] |
| Zen - Oryo | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1190 C.E. | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986), pg. 290-291. | "Rinzai school... At the beginning of the 11th century the Rinzai school split into two lineages, the Rinzai Yogi lineage and the Rinzai Oryo lineage. The Rinzai school is one of the two schools of Zen still active in Japan. At the end of the 12th century Eisai Zenji brought Rinzai Oryo Zen to Japan. It was the first school of Zen to reach Japan; however, it soon died out. " |
| Zen - Yogi | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1986 | Fischer-Schreiber, Ingrid, et al. The Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy & Religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen. Shambhala: Boston (English: pub. 1994; orig. German: 1986), pg. 290-291. | "Rinzai school... At the beginning of the 11th century the Rinzai school split into two lineages, the Rinzai Yogi lineage and the Rinzai Oryo lineage. The Rinzai school is one of the two schools of Zen still active in Japan. At the end of the 12th century Eisai Zenji brought Rinzai Oryo Zen to Japan. It was the first school of Zen to reach Japan; however, it soon died out. The Rinzai Zen that was to flourish anew in Japan was that deriving from the Chinese and Japanese masters of the strict Rinzai Yogi lineage. " |
| Zenrinkai | Japan | 602,153 | 0.52% | - | - | 1978 | Reid, D. "Japanese Religions " in Hinnells, John R. (ed). A Handbook of Living Religions, Penguin Books: New York (1991) [reprint; 1st pub. 1984], pg. 373. [Orig. src: Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook), Ministry of Education & Bureau of Statistics.] | "Table: Some surviving new religious orgs. in Japan "; "Membership figures, voluntarily reported..., as found in the 1979 ed. of the Shukyo Nenkan (Religions Yearbook). " Classified as "other " new religion (neither Shinto nor Buddhist); origin year: 1947. |
| miscellaneous regional info | Japan | - | - | - | - | 1997 | Leibo, Steven A. East, Southeast Asia, and the Western Pacific 1997 (The World Today Series). Harpers Ferry, West Virginia: Stryker-Post Publications (1997), pg. 47. | "Principal Religions: Shinto, the earliest religious tradition, and Buddhism. The latter is especially widespread and split into many old and new sects; Christianity. " |
| Christianity | Japan - Koreans | - | 1.00% | - | - | 1988 | *LINK* Takafumi,Iida. "Folk Religion Among the Koreans in Japan The Shamanism of the 'Korean Temples' " in Japanese Journal of Religious Studies June-September 1988 15/2-3. (Viewed on JJRS web site, 30 Jan. 1999) | "The total number of Christians among Korean residents comes to less than 1%, even when taking into consideration the members of Catholic and other Protestant churches. This percentage is about the same as for Christians in Japan as a whole. " |