Ancestor Worship in Japan

Unlike the research I did for Chinese ancestor worship, finding sources regarding Japanese ancestor worship was slightly more difficult. Japanese ancestor worship largely evolved from Chinese influences of Confucianism, mixing with the Buddhism and Shintoism which were the main modes of worship in the country. (1) Like the Chinese, Japanese homes may have an ancestor altar which they call a butsudan. A butsudan is held as a special symbol in Japanese Buddhist culture, typically containing a statue or painting of Buddha, religious texts, and depending on what sect of Buddhism the family is, tablets with the names of ancestors. (2)

Butsudan at Shindo Buddhist Temple
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Butsudan_at_ShinDo_Buddhist_Temple.jpg

The family may offer food or drink at the altar, like the Chinese do in their own practices. However, this is not done frequently--instead, many worship their ancestors during the Bon Festival. The Bon Festival typically takes place near New Years and involves a variety of rituals to worship their ancestors, something I will cover in more detail in my next blog post.

Those who do not have a butsudan will typically visit the graves of their ancestors instead.

Cemetery in Tokyo, Japan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:JapaneseGraveyardTokyo.jpg

It is fairly easy to see how different Japanese cemeteries are in comparison to American ones, and in certain crowded areas graves and headstones may be placed on top of each other. Some areas have even begun to put cemeteries on the roofs of buildings due to overcrowding. Most Japanese people have their bodies cremated and their ashes interred in the headstone itself. Below is a video of a family visiting and cleaning a grave--the description of the video gives more information on the importance of these markers.

(1) Masako Ishii-Kuntz. "Ancestor Worship - Ancestor Worship in Japan." Accessed October 11, 2013.
(2) "Butsudan," Wikipedia, last modified August 18, 2013, accessed October 10, 2013.