Sex and Gender in Japanese Buddhism

This is a course about the intersection between sex/gender and religion in Japan. By “sex” in this context we mean the fact of biological differentiation between men and women. By “gender,” we indicate the social meanings, roles, and expectations assigned to people according to their male or female embodiment. The title of the course also refers to sexuality, reproduction and kinship as understood through the lens of Buddhism in Japan. While this is not a course on Japanese Buddhism per se, the texts we will encounter all represent a worldview permeated by Buddhist ideas at every level. Much of the learning about Buddhism will be incidental and ad hoc, inspired by the readings at hand. That is, the systematic presentation of Buddhist thought and practice or a foundation in history of Japanese religion are beyond the purview of the course. These are not prerequisites, however. Our task will be to stay present with what we see in the texts before us – both primary texts and secondary. We will use what we learn to create rubrics for further explanation