2 - Living Politics

Summary

An examination of historical traditions of informal life politics in Japan, and their links to similar traditions internationally. Though political life in East Asia is often viewed as highly state-centric, I argue that there is a long tradition of East Asian thought – evident in some forms of Daoism, Buddhism and even Confucianism – which emphasises the importance of non-state everyday action in creating the good society. One practical manifestation of these ideas in pre-Meiji Japan was the emergence of mutual aid groups. The chapter also examines how modern Japanese informal life politics drew on various European traditions, many of which had links to non-conformist Christianity or to the late nineteenth century upsurge of interest in Asian religions. The final sections of the chapter discusses the impact on Japan’s informal life politics of the early twentieth century Heiminsha movement, the Ashio pollution incident and the High Treason Incident of 1911.