This collection comprises fifteen essays and three translations in subject areas that converge and overlap: Japanese literature, language study, philosophy, and Japan’s relations with the West. The confluence of philosophy and religion broadens the discourse on tariki in Shinran’s teachings, its connection with Christianity and the philosophy of Tanabe Hajime. Also discussed are Nishida Kitarō and Watsuji Tetsurō. The confluence of literature and philosophy is explored in two novels by Natsume Sōseki and in a short story by Nakajima Atsushi. Emergence of...