Awards

• Winner of CHOICE Outstanding Academic Title for 2017.

Overview

Full Product Details

Author:   Helen Hardacre (Reischauer Institute Professor of Japanese Religions and Society, Reischauer Institute Professor of Japanese Religions and Society, Harvard University)
Publisher:   Oxford University Press Inc
Imprint:   Oxford University Press Inc
Dimensions:   Width: 16.00cm , Height: 4.10cm , Length: 23.60cm
Weight:   1.157kg
ISBN:  

9780190621711

ISBN 10:   0190621710
Pages:   720
Publication Date:   26 January 2017
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   To order  
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.

Table of Contents

Introduction Chapter One: Shinto in the Ancient Period Chapter Two: The Kami in Myth Chapter Three: The Coalescence of Early Shinto Chapter Four: Shinto During the Middle and Late Heian Period, Tenth Through Twelfth Centuries Chapter Five: The Esotericization of Medieval Shinto Chapter Six: Medieval Shinto and the Arts Chapter Seven: The Late Medieval Period Chapter Eight: Early Edo-Period Shinto Thought and Institutions Chapter Nine: Edo Period Shrine Life and Shrine Pilgrimage Chapter Ten: Shinto and Revelation Chapter Eleven: Shinto and Kokugaku Chapter Twelve: Shinto and the Meiji State Chapter Thirteen: Shinto and Imperial Japan Chapter Fourteen: Shinto From 1945 Through 1989 Chapter Fifteen: Shrine Festivals and their Changing Place in the Public Sphere Chapter Sixteen: Heisei Shinto Notes Bibliography Index

Reviews

""Her portrayal of the history of Shinto is based on decades of her own research, and undoubtedly this work will occupy the rank of a standard work for a long time, both for students and specialists in the field. Shinto research will benefit greatly as a whole. After the turning point marked by the revolutionary approach of Kuroda Toshio, international research on Shinto has since then led to a sometimes ideological dogmatization of what might be said and not. Helen Hardacre's book gives a fresh breath to the debate, which can only deepen our further understanding of the still-puzzling topic of Shinto."" -- Klaus Antoni, University of Tübingen, The Journal of Religion ""Shinto: A History is a well written and interesting book, worth the time of readers with an interest in Shinto or Japanese history in general."" -- Kenneth J. Valencich, Reading Religion ""This brilliant study... is a welcome addition... a source of valuable teaching material, and more in general a must-read"" -- Ugo Dessi, Religious Studies Review ""Her portrayal of the history of Shinto is based on decades of her own research, and undoubtedly this work will occupy the rank of a standard work for a long time, both for students and specialists in the field. Shinto research will benefit greatly as a whole. After the turning point marked by the revolutionary approach of Kuroda Toshio, international research on Shinto has since then led to a sometimes ideological dogmatization of what might be said and not. Helen Hardacre's book gives a fresh breath to the debate, which can only deepen our further understanding of the still-puzzling topic of Shinto."" --Klaus Antoni, Journal of Religion ""Hardacre's achievement in this work will be hard to supersede. This book could be used in all kind of courses, from introductory or advanced undergraduate to graduate seminars, not only on Japanese religions but Japanese culture in general and even on comparative subjects. Students will benefit from the comprehensive and in-depth narration, while the book provides ample clues and opportunities for additional research and revisions. Shinto: A History, which in its comprehensive and encyclopedia nature does not even have a counterpart in Japanese, is a scholarly milestone that will orient for years the study of Shinto and Japanese religions as a whole.""--Fabio Rambelli, Journal of Religion in Japan ""At nearly seven hundred pages, it is difficult to think of any adjective other than 'magisterial' to describe Hardacre's new survey on Shinto As the single most comprehensive book on Shinto, Hardacre's book is a must-read her focus on the problems of indigeneity and the public/private distinction moves the field forward considerably.""--Jolyon B. Thomas, H-Net Reviews ""This work has been long anticipated. The culmination of a lifetime's dedication to the study of Japanese religions by a major scholar in the field, Shinto: A History is both authoritative and comprehensive. Professor Hardacre manages to lead us carefully and judiciously on a long journey through what can often be recalcitrant, complex material. The notoriously difficult question 'What is Shinto?' has finally been answered."" --Richard Bowring, Professor Emeritus, Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge ""Shinto: A History is a milestone work for the study of Shinto. Hardacre provides a comprehensive vision to integrate the usually unrelated research on Shinto in the West and in Japan. Calling into question our conventional wisdom about Shinto, the author masterfully demonstrates that Shinto is a heterogeneous tradition that changed with time, and it encompasses not only shrine Shinto and state Shinto but also popular cultural practices including public festivals seemingly unconstrained by the Japanese emperor system."" --Jun'ichi Isomae, Study of Religions, Research Department, International Research Center for Japanese Studies ""Hardacre's study is particularly useful for understanding the religious resources that the Japanese people drew on to build and maintain their local communities. Her subject is their worship of spirits. She argues that spirit worship emerged in earliest times at the core of nativist (Shinto) beliefs. This leads her to investigate in chronological sequence Shinto debates, rituals, and the practices of its priesthood in which the emperor was the chief priest. The result is a very rich, comprehensive account."" --Herbert P. Bix, Professor of History, Binghamton University ""Hardacre, a professor of Japanese religions and society at Harvard, surveys the history of Shinto from ancient Japan to the present in this even-handed and detailed treatment of the topic. Few single-volume histories are this comprehensive... this will serve as a valuable primer for college classes, or for those simply interested in Shinto, and it will be sure to stand as the definitive factual treatment for years to come.""--Publishers Weekly

This work has been long anticipated. The culmination of a lifetime's dedication to the study of Japanese religions by a major scholar in the field, <em>Shinto: A History</em> is both authoritative and comprehensive. Professor Hardacre manages to lead us carefully and judiciously on a long journey through what can often be recalcitrant, complex material. The notoriously difficult question 'What is Shinto?' has finally been answered. --Richard Bowring, Professor Emeritus, Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge <em>Shinto: A History</em> is a milestone work for the study of Shinto. Hardacre provides a comprehensive vision to integrate the usually unrelated research on Shinto in the West and in Japan. Calling into question our conventional wisdom about Shinto, the author masterfully demonstrates that Shinto is a heterogeneous tradition that changed with time, and it encompasses not only shrine Shinto and state Shinto but also popular cultural practices including public festivals seemingly unconstrained by the Japanese emperor system. --Jun'ichi Isomae, Study of Religions, Research Department, International Research Center for Japanese Studies Hardacre's study is particularly useful for understanding the religious resources that the Japanese people drew on to build and maintain their local communities. Her subject is their worship of spirits. She argues that spirit worship emerged in earliest times at the core of nativist (Shinto) beliefs. This leads her to investigate in chronological sequence Shinto debates, rituals, and the practices of its priesthood in which the emperor was the chief priest. The result is a very rich, comprehensive account. --Herbert P. Bix, Professor of History, Binghamton University

This work has been long anticipated. The culmination of a lifetime's dedication to the study of Japanese religions by a major scholar in the field, <em>Shinto: A History</em> is both authoritative and comprehensive. Professor Hardacre manages to lead us carefully and judiciously on a long journey through what can often be recalcitrant, complex material. The notoriously difficult question 'What is Shinto?' has finally been answered. --Richard Bowring, Professor Emeritus, Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge <em>Shinto: A History</em> is a milestone work for the study of Shinto. Hardacre provides a comprehensive vision to integrate the usually unrelated research on Shinto in the West and in Japan. Calling into question our conventional wisdom about Shinto, the author masterfully demonstrates that Shinto is a heterogeneous tradition that changed with time, and it encompasses not only shrine Shinto and state Shinto but also popular cultural practices including public festivals seemingly unconstrained by the Japanese emperor system. --Jun'ichi Isomae, Study of Religions, Research Department, International Research Center for Japanese Studies Hardacre's study is particularly useful for understanding the religious resources that the Japanese people drew on to build and maintain their local communities. Her subject is their worship of spirits. She argues that spirit worship emerged in earliest times at the core of nativist (Shinto) beliefs. This leads her to investigate in chronological sequence Shinto debates, rituals, and the practices of its priesthood in which the emperor was the chief priest. The result is a very rich, comprehensive account. --Herbert P. Bix, Professor of History, Binghamton University Hardacre, a professor of Japanese religions and society at Harvard, surveys the history of Shinto from ancient Japan to the present in this even-handed and detailed treatment of the topic. Few single-volume histories are this comprehensive... this will serve as a valuable primer for college classes, or for those simply interested in Shinto, and it will be sure to stand as the definitive factual treatment for years to come. --<em>Publishers Weekly</em>

This work has been long anticipated. The culmination of a lifetime's dedication to the study of Japanese religions by a major scholar in the field, Shinto: A History is both authoritative and comprehensive. Professor Hardacre manages to lead us carefully and judiciously on a long journey through what can often be recalcitrant, complex material. The notoriously difficult question 'What is Shinto?' has finally been answered. --Richard Bowring, Professor Emeritus, Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge Shinto: A History is a milestone work for the study of Shinto. Hardacre provides a comprehensive vision to integrate the usually unrelated research on Shinto in the West and in Japan. Calling into question our conventional wisdom about Shinto, the author masterfully demonstrates that Shinto is a heterogeneous tradition that changed with time, and it encompasses not only shrine Shinto and state Shinto but also popular cultural practices including public festivals seemingly unconstrained by the Japanese emperor system. --Jun'ichi Isomae, Study of Religions, Research Department, International Research Center for Japanese Studies Hardacre's study is particularly useful for understanding the religious resources that the Japanese people drew on to build and maintain their local communities. Her subject is their worship of spirits. She argues that spirit worship emerged in earliest times at the core of nativist (Shinto) beliefs. This leads her to investigate in chronological sequence Shinto debates, rituals, and the practices of its priesthood in which the emperor was the chief priest. The result is a very rich, comprehensive account. --Herbert P. Bix, Professor of History, Binghamton University Hardacre, a professor of Japanese religions and society at Harvard, surveys the history of Shinto from ancient Japan to the present in this even-handed and detailed treatment of the topic. Few single-volume histories are this comprehensive... this will serve as a valuable primer for college classes, or for those simply interested in Shinto, and it will be sure to stand as the definitive factual treatment for years to come. --Publishers Weekly

Shinto: A History is a well written and interesting book, worth the time of readers with an interest in Shinto or Japanese history in general. -- Kenneth J. Valencich, Reading Religion This brilliant study... is a welcome addition... a source of valuable teaching material, and more in general a must-read -- Ugo Dessi, Religious Studies Review Her portrayal of the history of Shinto is based on decades of her own research, and undoubtedly this work will occupy the rank of a standard work for a long time, both for students and specialists in the field. Shinto research will benefit greatly as a whole. After the turning point marked by the revolutionary approach of Kuroda Toshio, international research on Shinto has since then led to a sometimes ideological dogmatization of what might be said and not. Helen Hardacre's book gives a fresh breath to the debate, which can only deepen our further understanding of the still-puzzling topic of Shinto. --Klaus Antoni, Journal of Religion Hardacre's achievement in this work will be hard to supersede. This book could be used in all kind of courses, from introductory or advanced undergraduate to graduate seminars, not only on Japanese religions but Japanese culture in general and even on comparative subjects. Students will benefit from the comprehensive and in-depth narration, while the book provides ample clues and opportunities for additional research and revisions. Shinto: A History, which in its comprehensive and encyclopedia nature does not even have a counterpart in Japanese, is a scholarly milestone that will orient for years the study of Shinto and Japanese religions as a whole. --Fabio Rambelli, Journal of Religion in Japan At nearly seven hundred pages, it is difficult to think of any adjective other than 'magisterial' to describe Hardacre's new survey on Shinto As the single most comprehensive book on Shinto, Hardacre's book is a must-read her focus on the problems of indigeneity and the public/private distinction moves the field forward considerably. --Jolyon B. Thomas, H-Net Reviews This work has been long anticipated. The culmination of a lifetime's dedication to the study of Japanese religions by a major scholar in the field, Shinto: A History is both authoritative and comprehensive. Professor Hardacre manages to lead us carefully and judiciously on a long journey through what can often be recalcitrant, complex material. The notoriously difficult question 'What is Shinto?' has finally been answered. --Richard Bowring, Professor Emeritus, Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge Shinto: A History is a milestone work for the study of Shinto. Hardacre provides a comprehensive vision to integrate the usually unrelated research on Shinto in the West and in Japan. Calling into question our conventional wisdom about Shinto, the author masterfully demonstrates that Shinto is a heterogeneous tradition that changed with time, and it encompasses not only shrine Shinto and state Shinto but also popular cultural practices including public festivals seemingly unconstrained by the Japanese emperor system. --Jun'ichi Isomae, Study of Religions, Research Department, International Research Center for Japanese Studies Hardacre's study is particularly useful for understanding the religious resources that the Japanese people drew on to build and maintain their local communities. Her subject is their worship of spirits. She argues that spirit worship emerged in earliest times at the core of nativist (Shinto) beliefs. This leads her to investigate in chronological sequence Shinto debates, rituals, and the practices of its priesthood in which the emperor was the chief priest. The result is a very rich, comprehensive account. --Herbert P. Bix, Professor of History, Binghamton University Hardacre, a professor of Japanese religions and society at Harvard, surveys the history of Shinto from ancient Japan to the present in this even-handed and detailed treatment of the topic. Few single-volume histories are this comprehensive... this will serve as a valuable primer for college classes, or for those simply interested in Shinto, and it will be sure to stand as the definitive factual treatment for years to come. --Publishers Weekly

At nearly seven hundred pages, it is difficult to think of any adjective other than 'magisterial' to describe Hardacre's new survey on Shinto As the single most comprehensive book on Shinto, Hardacre's book is a must-read her focus on the problems of indigeneity and the public/private distinction moves the field forward considerably. --Jolyon B. Thomas, H-Net Reviews This work has been long anticipated. The culmination of a lifetime's dedication to the study of Japanese religions by a major scholar in the field, Shinto: A History is both authoritative and comprehensive. Professor Hardacre manages to lead us carefully and judiciously on a long journey through what can often be recalcitrant, complex material. The notoriously difficult question 'What is Shinto?' has finally been answered. --Richard Bowring, Professor Emeritus, Japanese Studies, University of Cambridge Shinto: A History is a milestone work for the study of Shinto. Hardacre provides a comprehensive vision to integrate the usually unrelated research on Shinto in the West and in Japan. Calling into question our conventional wisdom about Shinto, the author masterfully demonstrates that Shinto is a heterogeneous tradition that changed with time, and it encompasses not only shrine Shinto and state Shinto but also popular cultural practices including public festivals seemingly unconstrained by the Japanese emperor system. --Jun'ichi Isomae, Study of Religions, Research Department, International Research Center for Japanese Studies Hardacre's study is particularly useful for understanding the religious resources that the Japanese people drew on to build and maintain their local communities. Her subject is their worship of spirits. She argues that spirit worship emerged in earliest times at the core of nativist (Shinto) beliefs. This leads her to investigate in chronological sequence Shinto debates, rituals, and the practices of its priesthood in which the emperor was the chief priest. The result is a very rich, comprehensive account. --Herbert P. Bix, Professor of History, Binghamton University Hardacre, a professor of Japanese religions and society at Harvard, surveys the history of Shinto from ancient Japan to the present in this even-handed and detailed treatment of the topic. Few single-volume histories are this comprehensive... this will serve as a valuable primer for college classes, or for those simply interested in Shinto, and it will be sure to stand as the definitive factual treatment for years to come. --Publishers Weekly

Author Information

Helen Hardacre is Reischauer Institute Professor of Japanese Religions and Society at Harvard University. Concentrating on Japanese religious history of the modern period, she has done extended field study of contemporary Shinto and Buddhist religious organizations, the religious life of Japan's Korean minority, and contemporary ritualization of abortion. She has also researched State Shinto and directs a research project on constitutional revision in Japan.

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