Date of Award

Fall 2-1-2026

Degree Name

Bachelor of Arts (BA)

Advisor(s)

Professor Joshua Schapiro

Second Advisor

Caley Johnson, Ph.D.

Abstract

Throughout history, religious traditions have been mobilized to justify nationalist violence and claims to cultural superiority. In modern Japan, Buddhism underwent a dramatic transformation, becoming one of the most sophisticated ideological justifications for Japanese imperialism during World War II. How did Zen Buddhism come to justify Japanese claims of cultural superiority during the Pacific War? Examining Buddhist institutional practices, philosophical texts, and wartime propaganda from 1941-1945, this thesis analyzes three mechanisms through which Buddhism legitimized Japanese superiority: claims to spiritual supremacy through Zen philosophy, militarization of Buddhist practice, and use of Buddhism as cultural imperialism in occupied territories. I argue that these mechanisms functioned through what I term "authentic malleability"—the creative interpretations done by leading Buddhist thinkers that reinterpreted core Buddhist concepts like emptiness, compassion, and enlightenment while maintaining claims to theological coherence and doctrinal authenticity. Unlike mere propaganda or political accommodation, this transformation involved sophisticated theological innovation by prominent Buddhist intellectuals who reconceptualized Buddhist teachings to serve imperial purposes. These intellectuals transformed Buddhism from a marginalized tradition facing existential crisis after the Meiji Restoration into a comprehensive ideological framework that provided philosophical justification, practical training, and colonial legitimacy for Japanese expansion. I argue that understanding how Buddhism's specific theological characteristics enabled this transformation has profound implications for contemporary Buddhist communities worldwide grappling with nationalism and militarism, revealing vulnerabilities in traditions that combine universalist truth claims with doctrinal flexibility.

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