Bodily crisis and religious conviction: Implications of Kiyozawa Manshi's illness

Abstract

Kiyozawa Manshi (1863-1903) is well-known as a Japanese reformer of modern Jōdo Shinshū Buddhism. Kiyozawa's articles and diaries express an evolving religious conviction that emerged both within the context of Meiji Japan and as a result of life-threatening illness. Before he became bedridden with tuberculosis, Kiyozawa's religious orientation exemplified reliance on self-power, jiriki, and the preeminence of reason. Severe physical illness with its attendant limitations led Kiyozawa to repudiate his belief in both the viability and efficacy of jiriki, resulting in a reorientation of his religious conviction to a pronounced emphasis on faith as expressed by absolute trust in other-power, tariki. This case study of crisis and conversion in the life of Kiyozawa Manshi suggests interdependent and transformational connections between bodily illness and religious conviction.