Sacred High City, Sacred Low City

Steven Heine, Professor and Director of Asian Studies at Florida International University, is an authority on Japanese religion and society, especially the history of Zen Buddhism and its relation to society in China and Japan. He has published over twenty books and dozens of articles, and has lectured extensively on these and related topics.

• Introduction. Japanese Religious Context in Traditional and Contemporary Perspectives ; Part One: Sacred and Secular ; Chapter I. Sacred Space is Alive and Well, and Living in Japan ; Chapter II. Tokyo, City of...Temples? ; Part Two: Living and Dying ; Chapter III. Akasaka in the High City: Born Shinto...Live Inari...Die Buddhist ; Chapter IV. Inaricho in the Low City: Im-Practical Worldly Benefits ; Notes ; Japanese Glossary ; Bibliography ; Index

These nuanced refinements to broadly accepted scholarship are without doubt a courageous and important contribution to the field of Japanese religions....This book is undoubtedly an important contribution to scholarship on Japanese religiosity, and will provide food for thought for both researchers and students of Japanese studies, but it will also appeal to the general public.