Non-institutional aspects of Japanese religions in Brazil before the 1950s: reconsidering the “Maeyama paradigm”

Abstract

In the academic production on Japanese religions and religiosities in Brazil, one of the main research approaches stems from the propositions of Japanese anthropologist Takashi Maeyama, eventually becoming the primary framework for interpreting the phenomenon. What we call the “Maeyama paradigm” posits that Japanese immigrants and their descendants in Brazil did not engage in institutional religious practices until around the 1950s. This article aims to analyze this paradigm, highlighting its assumptions and implications as a guiding model for subsequent studies, including from an epistemological standpoint. From a methodological perspective, bibliographic research was conducted, focusing both on Maeyama’s works and later investigations, using the concept of place of production, as proposed by Michel de Certeau, to think about the insertion of the academic discourse of the Japanese anthropologist. From a theoretical point of view, the concept or paradigm was mobilized, according to Thomas Kuhn. In the discussion, we suggest that although the paradigm is significant, it can be questioned in light of themes such as ancestor worship and its relation to cemeteries, as well as manifestations of Shinto in Brazil.