Esotericism in East Asia

Abstract

What is esotericism? Although this term is widely used in academic scholarship, its definition and scope remain unclear. Not least in Asian studies, the phrase “Esoteric Buddhism” is commonly used. However, it is surprising how rarely this term has been critically examined in the historical and cultural contexts of East Asia. This volume aims to provide fundamental insights into the historical and contemporary uses of “esotericism,” long been understood within a Western-centered framework, by focusing on East Asia. Understandings of “esotericism” were not simply “exported” from the West. Instead, they underwent constant reshaping through interactions with Asian thought and practice, transcending mere passive reception. This volume shows how, through cross-cultural translation and exchange, a globally connected landscape of religious thought was formed in Asia. The first part of this volume examines how the categories of “esoteric” and “occult” have been introduced and subsequently redefined within the academic, intellectual, and translation cultures of Japan, China, and Korea. The second part focuses on how so-called esoteric practices and movements have been shaped and developed in political and transnational contexts in Asian societies since the modern period. The chapters demonstrate that terms like “esoteric” and “occult” were shaped within local contexts, translations, and institutions. In other words, intellectual and religious actors in Asia were not merely positioned within a Western framework, but they were actively renegotiating conceptions of “esotericism.” By scrutinizing these processes, this volume aims to build a dialogical and multipolar approach that connects local forms of knowledge with global intellectual developments.