Blue Beryl

12. Buddhist Healing in Contemporary Japan (with Rev. Nathan Jishin Michon)

October 05, 2023 Dr. Pierce Salguero & Dr. Lan Li Episode 12
Blue Beryl
12. Buddhist Healing in Contemporary Japan (with Rev. Nathan Jishin Michon)
Show Notes

Today I sit down with Rev. Nathan Jishin Michon, a postdoctoral fellow at Ryukoku University and an ordained priest in the Shingon Buddhist tradition. Our conversation touches on diverse Buddhist healing rituals and the role of light in Shingon practice and cosmology. We discuss the playfulness and innovation in modern Japanese Buddhism, and the rise of chaplaincy after the 3.11 tsunami and nuclear disaster. We also talk about Nathan’s ethnographic work in Japan, as well as their experiences volunteering in a “listening cafe.”

Resources mentioned in the episode: