In Eastern thought, reincarnation is a given. Perhaps you’ve heard of the concept of Samurai receiving good karma by committing seppuku (suicide by sword) if they had done something shameful. Death was not the end, it was just one more step in the continuing cycle of rebirth.

Jizō was originally the one that watched over souls before they were born, and he was the deity to whom babies were entrusted if the parents were not able to handle another child at that time. When a child was born at a difficult time for the parents, the old woman attendant would put her hand over the baby’s nose and mouth, preventing its first breath and returning its soul to Jizō for safekeeping until a more auspicious time for it to enter the world.

To this day, abortion is not considered a “sin” as it is in much of Judeo-Christian society. As well, suicide is not considered as morally repugnant as it is in the West.

Quoting my fave singer/songwriter: Bruce Cockburn:
“you see the extremes
of what humans can be
into that distance some tension’s born”
Rumours Of Glory 1885

>>Jizō watches over all children who have died, including miscarried and aborted babies. These children did not have time in their brief lives to build up good karma, as well, they suffer judgement for the heartbreak that their deaths brought to their mothers.<<

Heaven forbid.

This makes me appreciate Catholic Christianity (the root of much decency in the world, in spite of itself) even more. They would fight tooth and nail against this horror.

I'm not even close to suggesting Japan is less enlightened than any other country.

Are there any current and comparably terrible beliefs extant? :yikes