see to it that this tradition never again gives rise to an inhuman ultra-nationalism.

Absolute Devotion to
a Specific Individual Symbolic of the Human Nexus The tendency to confine values to a limited human
nexus reveals itself in Japan in absolute devotion to a specific individual as a concrete symbol of
Japanese social values. The Japanese, unlike the Indians and Chinese, prefer not to conceive of a human
nexus in an abstract way. They are apt rather to follow an individual as a living representative of that
nexus. As I have previously indicated, the "family" in ancient Japan was not an abstract concept, but was
embodied in the person of the living family head. There is also a tendency to identify the shogun * with
the bakufu (shogunate government), the Emperor with the State. In the feudalism of the West, relations
between lord and vassal were extremely complex, and the notion of contract played an important part
in such relations. In feudal Japan, however, this relationship was a simple one; the vassal devoted his
entire existence to his lord. This gave rise to the motto "a loyal vassal does not know two masters." This
way of thinking, characteristic of Japanese society in general, manifests itself among Japanese thinkers
in an attitude of absolute devotion and obedience to a specific individual. Most Japanese thinkers of the
past were either Buddhists or Confucianists. Now, of course, religion is apt to base itself upon some
authority. However, Indian and Chinese thinkers do not rely on a specific individual, but tend rather to
establish and follow universal laws. Japanese thinkers, on the contrary, were likely to disregard universal
laws in favor of the authority of a specific individual. For some 700 years after the adoption of
Buddhism, it was customary for Buddhists to explain the doctrine and expound their theories in the
Chinese language. Japanese Buddhism, therefore, was in a sense an extension of Chinese Buddhism. This
does not mean, however, that the Japanese merely took over the universal teachings of Buddhism as it
was practiced in China at the time of adoption. Japanese scholar-monks received their doctrines from
one specific Chinese teacher, and that is precisely what they wanted to do. Saint Dengyo* (767–822), for
example, wished to travel to China so that he might discover the true significance of the Lotus Sutra*
(Hokke-kyo*). In his letter requesting admittance to China, he writes as follows: "I have long regretted
the absence of a commentary which would explain the profound import of the Lotus Sutra. By good
fortune I have procured a copy of the excellent discourse of the T'ien t'ai sect. I have studied it a number
of years, but errors and omissions in the text make it impossible to grasp the fine points. If I do not
receive instruction from a master, then, even if I were to get (the meaning), I should be unable to
believe in it."103 Thus, he went to China, studied under Tao-sui (c. 800), and returned to Japan. The
attitude of absolute devotion to a specific individual became still more pronounced in Kamakura
Buddhism, which is especially representative o