Editing Religion in Japan (section)

====Confucianism====
[[File:Ashikaga Gakko Koshibyo.JPG|thumb|150px|''Kōshibyō'' (孔子廟, "Temple of Confucius") of the [[Ashikaga Gakko]], the oldest Confucian school in Japan]]
{{Main|Edo Neo-Confucianism}}
[[Confucianism]] (儒教 ''Jukyō'') was introduced from Korea during the [[Japanese invasions of Korea (1592–1598)]],<ref>{{citation |author=Kim Ha-tai |title=The Transmission of Neo-Confucianism to Japan by Kang Hang, a Prisoner of War |journal=Transactions of the Korea Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society |number=37 |date=April 1961 |pages=83–103}}</ref> and developed into an elite religion, yet having a profound influence on the fabric of Japanese society overall during the [[Edo period]]. The Confucian philosophy can be characterized as humanistic and rationalistic, with the belief that the universe could be understood through human reason, corresponding to the universal reason (''[[li (Neo-Confucianism)|li]]''), and thus it is up to man to create a harmonious relationship between the universe (天 ''[[Tian|Ten]]'') and the individual.<ref name="craig">{{Harvnb|Craig|1998|p=552}}.</ref> The rationalism of Neo-Confucianism was in contrast to the mysticism of Zen Buddhism in Japan. Unlike the Buddhists, the Neo-Confucians believed that reality existed, and could be understood by mankind, even if the interpretations of reality were slightly different depending on the school of Neo-Confucianism.<ref name="craig"/>

The social aspects of the philosophy are hierarchical with a focus on [[filial piety]]. This created a Confucian [[social stratification]] in Edo society that previously had not existed, dividing Japanese society into four main classes: [[samurai]], farmers, [[artisan]]s and merchants.<ref name="craig2">{{Harvnb|Craig|1998|p=553}}.</ref> The samurai were especially avid readers and teachers of Confucian thought in Japan, establishing many Confucian academies.

Neo-Confucianism also introduced elements of [[ethnocentrism]] into Japan. As the Chinese and Korean Neo-Confucians had regarded their own culture as the center of the world, the Japanese Neo-Confucians developed a similar national pride.<ref name="craig"/> This national pride would later evolve into the philosophical school of [[Kokugaku]], which would later challenge Neo-Confucianism, and its perceived foreign Chinese and Korean origins, as the dominant philosophy of Japan.