Limitations for measuring religion in a different cultural context - the case of Japan

The article points out the limitations in surveys measuring religiosity and spirituality using the measures developed in Christian or Western contexts. Japanese people think of religion (shūkyō) as revealed religion such as Christianity that has specific doctrinal belief and faith. Through their history of religious regulation, Japanese people came to consider themselves "non-religious" as a way of survival, not to be punished by political authorities and not to be stigmatized in their community. Thus they tend to answer that they consider themselves "non-religious" in surveys, while performing ritual performances for their ancestors in Buddhist temples and Buddhist altars not only to thank ancestors but also to ease the psychological fear people have toward muenbotoke, restless ancestors who have no legitimate offspring to take care of them. To extend the study of spirituality or religiousness in the Japanese context, qualitative studies are necessary not to misinterpret religiousness and spirituality in Japanese context.