Korea Journal of Buddhist Studies ISSN:1598-0642(Print) 불교학연구

This research looked into the backgrounds of the traditional funeral culture which has formed in Japan, its contents and transformation. This thesis treated the historical development, procedure and contents of funeral and ancestral rituals which have been performed in Japan. The traditional funeral culture of Japan was formed with an ancestor worship peculiar to Japan and the popular Buddhism of the Middle Ages, and took root through the danka(檀家) system. In this process funeral Buddhism made its appearance in Japan. The traditional funeral culture of Japan was divided into funeral ceremonies and ancestral rituals, and these are examined in this paper. Funeral ceremonies and ancestral rituals of Buddhism are ceremonies sublimating ghosts into ancestor spirits. Funeral ceremonies are rituals performed from dying to the storage of bones store, and ancestral rituals mean the Buddhist service from the 7th day to the 33th anniversary of ancestors’ death praying for souls and annual events such as Obong(お盆), Higang(彼岸). Though the traditional funeral culture is still maintained in Japan, many internal changes have happened accompanied social ones. First of all, changes include that the Buddhist influence over ceremonies is being weakened, and simplified. Accordingly as cremation is generalized, a type of tomb is being conformed to the charnel house for family. Recently, many types of funerals, which are not related to Buddhist funerals, are appearing; for example a direct cremation, an irreligious funeral, natural burials, and so on therefore it is clear that many aspects have dramatically changed.