Cover

Contents

Acknowledgments

Introduction: Why Study Women in Japanese Religions?

1. The Prehistorical Japanese Archipelago: Fertility Cults and Shaman Queens

2. Ancient Japanese Mythology: Female Divinities and Immortals

3. The Introduction of Buddhism: Nuns, Lay Patrons, and Popular Devotion

4. The Heian Period: Women in Buddhism and Court Ritual

5. The Medieval Period: Buddhist Reform Movements and the Demonization of Femininity

6. The Edo Period: Confucianism, Nativism, and Popular Religion

7. Imperial Japan: Good Wives and Wise Mothers

8. The Postwar Period: Nostalgia, Religion, and the Reinvention of Femininity

9. The Lost Decades: Gender and Religion in Flux

Conclusion

Questions for Discussion

Notes

Works Cited

For Further Reading

Index

A

B

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D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

O

P

Q

R

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T

U

V

W

Y

Z

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