In the imagined community that launched the modern nation-state from print capitalism, the “visually impaired” became an existence positioned on the periphery of the ink-lettered readers. Research on blind monks such as biwa hōshi, who had existed before that time, and research on itako, blind female spirit mediums who had existed in the periphery of Japanese religions, have contributed as research to relativize the imaged representations in modern society.

This paper analyzes the research and practice of Dr. Hirose Kōjirō, a researcher of this “invisible world” who is also a participant in it. His work, from his early Religious Folklore of the Disabled to his recent Walking in the Invisible World, has consistently been concerned with the experience of visual impairment.

This analysis of his writings will force us to reconsider the theories and debates of religious studies to date from various aspects, such as “sense of participation,” “Braille deconstruction,” and “invitation to participation.” Hirose's own response to this analysis will promote understanding of how these aspects are interconnected.

Jesus in the Gospels frequently touches the sick, including lepers, who were regarded as impure in those days. In this paper, I examine his attitude towards “impurity” and “holiness” by investigating his contact with them.

In the Hebrew Bible, the “holiness” belongs to God, and so the Israelites were required to be “the holy people” by living in “pure” conditions and by avoiding the “impure.” As a result, the lepers were considered as a symbol of impurity, and their disease was believed to be God's punishment.

Jesus, however, touched those suffering from leprosy, took care of them and shared meals with them disregarding their status as “impure.” In Jesus's view, the Laws were “made for humankind” (Mk 2:27). When adhering to the Laws meant “to kill life” (Mk 3:4), he disregarded the matter of impurity.

In his last days, Jesus acted violently in the Jerusalem Temple. According to the Gospels, this is characterized as “cleansing the Temple,” but actually his behaviour must have been an expression of resistance to the Temple symbolizing the “holiness” which brought about the idea of “impurity.” Jesus ignored the matter of “holiness” and “impurity,” since he found God in God's work to “feed the ravens” and to “clothe the grass of the field” (Luke 12:22-28), i.e., the work to let life live.

Connecting the body and soul and promising rehabilitative benefits, “touch” has played an important role in religion and spiritual care. However, interfaith chaplains and spiritual care specialists who provide spiritual care in Japan are restricting physical contact out of concern for medical, psychological, and ethical risks. This has caused a qualitative change from a religious care based in belief to a care that emphasizes rapport in the support of the care recipient.

Because spiritual care providers come without a set of standardized techniques, they are free to tailor and personalize their care. Taking advantage of this special aspect of spiritual care, limitations are now being established that encompass restrictions on physical contact to ensure the safety of both care recipients and care providers. Nevertheless, some caregivers are resistant to inhibiting the use of “touch,” which has long proved beneficial in the tradition of religious care. No longer easily relying on physical contact though, how can we negotiate between providing care and avoiding risk?

Not only a problem for care providers and those that receive care, this is also a problem for Japanese society as it moves to find a consensus as to what sort of spiritual care is necessary and what will be permitted.

Judaism is filled with the concept of contact, which is redefined only by “uncleanness.” The purpose of this paper is to understand the Jewish viewpoint of the world, by comprehending the rabbinic concept of uncleanness, mainly in the Mishnah Sedarim Tohoroth. Past literature on this issue clarifies the lack of focus on Levitical uncleanness, even in Jewish studies. This is due to the prevailing medieval assumption that the destruction of the second Temple rendered Levitical laws as outdated and that such laws would wipe out legalistic images of Judaism.

We can draw the following preliminary conclusions:

1. The law of cleanliness and dirt covers aspects of food, shelter, and clothing in ordinary life. Mishnaic Law deals with humans and materials, equally.

2. Unlike the narratives, we find no reference to moralistic sin in the Mishnaic description of uncleanness for the ailing.

3. Uncleanness is defined in terms of objects with clear surfaces. Contour not only refers to physical shape, but also to its usages and purpose. Liquid and skin diseases invading contour can be considered dirty.

These remarks indicate Rabbinic Judaism's sensitivity towards the surface or contour of objects. Objects with their own clean contour should make contact without invasion.

This paper discusses features observed in the recent development of Sufism in America by focusing on “Traditional Islam,” which is an emergent Sufi trend that has recently gained popularity among the younger generation of Muslim Americans. After providing an overview of this phenomenon and its theology, the paper analyzes its institutional dimension, paying special attention to community organizations that function as hubs for its adherents. The paper draws attention to the “third place” between home (the private sphere) and mosques (the public sphere) as a key concept for understanding the nature of these Sufi-oriented community organizations. Based on an analysis of the activities and spaces of the Ta'leef Collective—one such emergent organization—the paper identifies the significance of the third place as a space that is supplementary to the existing mainstream community and concludes that this aspect of being a supplement has enabled these organizations to reach out to Muslim Americans, bridging the gap between Sufi and non-Sufi communities. The paper also describes the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, indicating that the Ta'leef Collective is now shifting to a community with a stronger Sufi identity through its emphasis on rituals such as Mawlid and Friday prayer. It is also anticipated that such a shift will impact the mode of the inclusive community in the future.

Although touching something is an everyday act, it can take on special meaning when performed in a religious context. For Tibetan Buddhists, the act of contact produces both bad causes and favorable results. They believe that by touching the possessions of ascetics, the relics of sages, and objects that have been blessed through contemplation, various desires can be fulfilled. Furthermore, they believe that various religious values can be accomplished through contact with objects manifested in the consciousness through contemplative practice. Conversely, however, some Tibetan Buddhist doctrines argue that the experience of contact is a delusion and it triggers the creation of disturbing emotions. This article examines the significance of contact in Tibetan Buddhism and its peculiarities by consulting diverse Tibetan Buddhist literature, discussing the doctrinal status of contact and the sense of touch, and introducing various contact acts performed in religious practice.

When considering contact and touch in the context of religion and religious studies, we tend to think of practice, not research or theory. I have been experimenting with the visualization and tangiblization of ancient Western religious thought, particularly that of Proclus, and have applied these methods to the design of teaching materials for religious studies. This paper outlines the method and shows that while it has its limitations as a research method, it is appealing for the creation of teaching materials and can promote students' understanding. I also examined the significance of touch in the religious thought of Plato and Neoplatonism, which was the starting point of this project. Consequently, it became clear that touch is not merely a physical tactile sense but can also be described as a direct approach to or the grasping of a religious object. In the wake of COVID-19, the discipline of religious studies attempts a nature quest through the lens of touch. This paper contributes to the understanding of tangible religious studies and its goal to understand the significance of direct contact with religious objects in a manner appropriate to the new era.

This paper sheds light on the transformation of the legend of Empress Kōmyō's bathing of the lepers with a focus on the relief activities of the Eizon cult, led by Eizon and Ninshō, which involved physical contact with the lepers. Also, it is argued that the relief activities of the Eizon cult were based on the faith in bodhisattva Manjusri.

According to legend, Empress Kōmyō (701-760), the wife of Emperor Shōmu, bathed and scrubbed the bodies of lepers who lived in poor and unhygienic conditions. The one thousandths leper washed by Kōmyō requested her to remove pus by sucking it with her mouth. When Kōmyō did so, the leper turned into a buddha.

It is argued that changes of this legend were influenced by the Eizon cult. The place of action shifted from Ashukuji temple to Hokkeji. Moreover, the Buddha who tested the empress's compassion changed from Akshobhya Buddha to Manjusri Bodhisattva. The Eizon order adapted the legend in this way because it was responsible for the relief activities of the lepers during that period, turning Hokkeji into a branch temple and spreading the legend of Empress Kōmyō's scrubbing of the lepers.

In ancient and medieval Japan, the concept of purity and impurity had an important social meaning. Lepers were considered to be impure. Therefore, physical contact with lepers was considered to be an impure act. Ninshō and others, however, believed that they were strict in their observance of the precepts, protected from impurity by the precepts, and lepers were manifestations of Buddha to test their mercy. The Eizon cult asserted its own position by promoting the legend of Kōmyō in this way.

The present paper reviews the research history of sensed presence of the dead, and then considers ways of treating the problem of the dead today.

A sense of presence of the dead has been studied in different disciplines like psychology, psychiatry, anthropology, religious studies, social research, psychical research, or parapsychology. In recent decades, research on sense-of-presence experiences, especially in non-western cultural settings, has fostered the development of the “continuing bonds model” in the study of grief, and vice versa.

The increasing interest in the problem of the dead today involves criticism of secularism as a materialistic worldview. However, at the same time, it is to evaluate the dead in terms of psychological function. Furthermore, it participates and promotes liberal secularism which treats any religious traditions equally with no regard for their substantial contents, from a detached position. Thus, the positive evaluation given to the presence of the dead does not seem to signify the coming of the post-secular age.