Introduction

The introduction sets out the aims of the book: to examine contemporary transformations of Jōdo Shinshū ritual practice in a globalised context focusing primarily on Honganji-ha, the largest Jōdo Shinshū organisation in the Americas and Europe, and one of the largest Buddhist denominations in Japan. It begins with a description of a recent ritual innovation in a Jōdo Shinshū temple in Japan, before going on to give some basic background on Jōdo Shinshū, and the reasons for focusing on this particular Buddhist tradition. It then presents an overview of the theoretical framing of the book, drawing on perspectives from anthropology and sociology relating to globalisation, ritual, and embodiment. The methodology used in the research for this book, and the positioning of the authors, is also discussed. Finally, a brief overview of the content and structure of the subsequent chapters is provided.