Jewel in the Ashes: Buddha Relics and Power in Early Medieval Japan [Hardcover]

Brian D. Ruppert (Author)

Book Description

Series: Harvard East Asian Monographs | Publication Date: July 1, 2000

This study addresses the relationship between the veneration of Buddha relics and the appropriation of power in early medieval Japan. Focusing on the ninth to the fourteenth centuries, it analyzes the ways in which relics functioned as material media for the interactions of Buddhist clerics, the imperial family, lay aristocrats, and warrior society and explores the multivocality of relics by dealing with specific historical examples. Brian Ruppert argues that relics offered means for reinforcing or subverting hierarchical relations. The author's critical literary and anthropological analyses attest to the prominence of relic veneration in government, in lay practice associated with the maintenance of the imperial line and warrior houses, and in the promotion of specific Buddhist sects in Japan.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Ruppert's Jewel in the Ashes is an important contribution to the study of the material culture of Buddhism. Specialists in Buddhist studies, Japanese Buddhism, and Japanese religions will not be the only ones who will find this work of value. Historians of Japan, especially of the relations between social, political, and military powers and religion, will also find it rewarding, as will those interested in gender issues in medieval religion.
--Richard K. Payne (Journal of Japanese Studies )

About the Author

Brian D. Ruppert is Assistant Professor of Japanese Religions at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 420 pages
• Publisher: Harvard University Asia Center (July 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0674002458
• ISBN-13: 978-0674002456
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.1 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,003,149 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great work, November 18, 2003

By 

Mikas Remeika (La Jolla, CA, USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Jewel in the Ashes: Buddha Relics and Power in Early Medieval Japan (Hardcover)

I am not a historian, hence my review may be rather subjective. While this book would in general only be of interest to people involved in research of Japanese history, I read it for a class assignement and found it very enjoyable.
Understanding of this book requires some basic knowlege of Japanese history. Given that, the book is very easy to read. Ruppert does a great job covering a multitude of aspects of Japanese society in which relic veneration had a role, while not "dragging out" discussion of any particular topic.I would definitelly recommend this book to anyone who in has an interest in the role of buddhism in medieval Japan.