This paper will explore research results done through the internet and through published books on the background of the cult group Aum Shinrikyo, now known as the group Aleph, and several other Sarin gas attacks, to include the terrorist attack on the Tokyo subway on 20 March 1995. There is a lot of speculation and questions surrounding this cult group, which will be discussed later, who started out as a peaceful yoga group by the founder and his wife, turn into a radical doomsday cult religion capable of not one but several chemical terrorists acts towards their own countrymen. According
In 1984, Chizuo Matsumoto founded Oumu Shinsen No Kai in Tokyo, Japan. Following Matsumoto’s trip to the Himalayas in 1986, the group evolved into Aum Shinrikyo. Matsumoto also changed his name to Shoko Asahara. Asahara claimed he was the leader of a combination of Christianity, Buddhism, and Hinduism. On 20 March 1995, Aum Shinrikyo conducted their most publicized attack in Tokyo, Japan. Five members of the cult released sarin gas on various subways that converged in central Tokyo. The attack killed 13 commuters, injured 54 other, and affected as many as 6,000. Japanese Police raided many of Aum Shinrikyo’s compounds following the attack. Following the second sarin gas attack, Japanese police forces arrested and tried nearly
Terrorism has been an important part of social behavior for over 2,000 years. Between the years of 1980 and 1995, terroristic groups motivated by religious beliefs had increased by 43% (Hoffman). Religious beliefs and culture are a main reason groups and individuals resort to terrorism. Groups resort to terrorism as a consequence of seeing their culture demolished, as well as religious motives. Terrorist groups have many intentions when it comes to acts of terrorism. They main ones are they want to create fear globally, weaken the government, and obtain universal recognition for what they have done. Religiously motivated terrorist groups usually have high authority targets. These targets include government offices, banks, and national airlines. From the group’s perspective, terrorism is the only practical option. Groups are formed centered on certain factors like culture and religion. Many terrorists will receive support from their followers
3. Wisdom, peace and happiness, not salvation – Unlike other religions that highlight the concept of final judgment, Buddhists do not instill fear in people. Members of some religious organizations are fearful of not being saved when the fated day comes, so they follow the teachings of their religion, in hopes of securing a spot on the ‘to be saved’ list. In Buddhism, the goal is to achieve wisdom, peace and happiness. Whatever happens will happen, but if one has the wisdom, peace and happiness, there will never be any
This essay will focus on the Asuka Period in Japan, which was from 552 CE to 645 CE. Asuka was the name of the city where the capital, Tokyo which was located during this era. Buddhism has had a long and lasting history in Japan. It was introduced to the country around 552 CE from Korea and China. It is recorded that gifts were brought to the imperial family from the Korean Kingdom. Some of these gifts included Buddhist images, banners, canopies and scripture. Included in with the gifts were also a message from the Korean King which includes this message: “This teaching (dharma) is the most excellent of all teachings; it brings endless and innumerable blessings to all believers, even unto attainment of Enlightenment (Bodhi) without comparison.
These Buddhists believe that they must follow Buddha's teachings in order to achieve a personal enlightenment that will remove them from this world of pain and suffering. The divine power is within them.
First there were a doomsday cult that quickly turned into a terrorist organization followed by a Aum Shinrikyo is still on the United States Foreign Terrorist list even though it suffered a split in two thousand and now calls themselves Aleph. The group has also repented for the attacks of Aum Shinrikyo and has been able to organize compensation for those that were effected. Whether or not the group was successful at its goal is arguable because the end of the world has not happened yet, however they were successful in weaponing a biochemical agent. Scholars argue that “terrorist attack suing a specific weapon will be most likely when the industry corresponding to that weapon within the country of attack is relatively large” which brings into question the origins of the beliefs of Aum Shinrikyo. Their belief in war coupled with the availability of Sarin gas may be “evidence” to those that beielve that the end is nigh. Overall, the group has devolved out a terrorist organization but still acts a a threat to national
The first factor is that of victimization. Victimization is when an individual feels as though he or she has fallen victim to something, such as a physical, psychological, or financial harm. Individuals who are victimized feel as though they are missing something and are eager to be a part of something bigger than themselves, and terrorist organizations can fill those needs. An example of how victimization can attribute to the radicalization of an individual is if an individual lost family or friends in a drone strike conducted by the United States of America. The family and friends killed in the drone strike leaves the individual feeling scared, angry, and sad with a hunger for revenge. A terrorist organization such as Al Qaeda could be very intriguing to that individual because of their mission to wage war against and destroy the United States of America. Victimization is a dangerous factor because it can easily feed into other factors and victims can easily be manipulated into believing certain things, one of those things being religion.
Shintoism is the native religion of Japan, however, unlike most other religions; it claims no sacred text or founder. Because of this, Shintoism is more commonly referred to as a reflection of Japanese culture and history, often blending with other religions, such as Buddhism (O'Neal et al., 2007). Being an immanent religion, Shinto values the importance of experiencing harmony with the spirits of the world, known as the kami. These kami inhabit all things, from animals and mountains, to the spirits of the deceased (Toropov and Buckles, 2011). Although not considered all-powerful, the chief kami of this animistic spirituality is the sun goddess, Amaterasu. As the daughter of Izanagi and Izanami, the creators of Japan, her role is to rule over the heavens, and provide the Japanese
There are many aspects of this world such as culture, technology, or art that have been influenced by other things. The way that things influence each other has allowed for new possibilities and ideals to be formed. Religion is no exception; there have been many instances where religions have influenced each other and blossomed due to new ideas being presented. A good example of this the relationship between the two religions: Buddhism and Shinto. Buddhism was brought into Japan during the early 6th century from Korea, and was later institutionalized as the state religion in the late 6th century by Prince Shōtoku. The Prince was a great patron of Buddhism and by having made it the state religion, it would help Buddhism spread. However, Japan was not without its own religion—Shinto—which had been there for many years prior to the arrival of Buddhism. With Buddhism gaining traction in Japan with the help of Prince Shōtoku, what then does it mean for the Shinto religion? However, Shinto was not long forgotten, which leads to the question: how did the two religions, Buddhism and Shinto, interact with each other when Buddhism arrived in Japan? In this essay, I will discuss how both Buddhism and Shinto were closely tied to each other in Japan, and how they would influence each other in different ways that allowed them to grow into new directions.
Samurai followed Buddhist religious teachings as well as other practices of Japan’s native religion, Shinto. The main tenets of Japanese religion of Buddhism, expounded in that the Four Noble Truths preached by the Buddha, were to teach the origins of human suffering in desire, and to also offer hope of escape from this suffering and the endless cycle of rebirth through the pursuit of the Noble Eightfold Path. The latter of the religions guidelines is set for the living life based on the principles of ethical conduct, the cultivation of wisdom, and mental discipline of the mind.
Shinto is the indigenous religion of Japan. It can best be described as a structured system of animism. The word Shinto comes from Chinese characters (shen and tao), meaning “divine being” and “the way” respectively. Therefore the total meaning of Shinto is “The Way of the Divine Beings/Spirits.” (British Broadcasting Corporation, 2011) It is unclear when the Shinto belief came about, but it most likely has its earliest roots in animism. These animistic beliefs were expressed in the form of spirits called kami. The kami are beings that are present in all aspects of nature and consist of major deities, ancestor spirits, and minor spirits who have significance in a specific community. (Wilkinson, 2012, p. 263) Several of these kami have had extreme importance in Japanese creation mythology and Shinto belief.
Religious terrorism is a sort of political viciousness inspired by a flat out conviction that an extraordinary force has endorsed and charged terrorist violence
Terrorism is used around the world to create fear and influence the public on political views (Siegel, 489). There are four views of terrorism including the psychological view, socialization view, ideological view, and the alienation view. A religious terrorist would most likely fit under the ideological view. In this view the terrorist feels the need to change a wrong opinion and believes that, because they are sacrificing themselves for something they believe so strongly in, it justifies the damage and harm done to innocent people (Siegel, 490). They use terror to create fear in anyone who opposes them and attract followers to their religion. In short, terrorism is widely used for political
The Daoism literature on human life and the end of it, suggest that Daoists are interested in, and have been on a continuous quest for immortality. Daoism, like other ancient Asian traditions, such as Hinduism and Buddhism, offer a way out of cyclical human existence in a practice known as asceticism. However, the motivations and the methodology behind asceticism vary greatly in each of these Asian traditions in the East. The main focus of this paper