The Dual Facets of Religion–State Relations in a Wartime Context: A Case Study of Jinan’s Jingju Temple During the Sino-Japanese War

Focusing on Jingju Temple (淨居寺) in Jinan, Shandong Province, from 1920 to 1948, this paper examines the complex interactions among Chinese Buddhism, Japanese Buddhism, and governmental authorities. As one of the key religious sites in Jinan during the Republican era, Jingju Temple traces its origins back to the Song dynasty. Although it was repeatedly destroyed and rebuilt, the temple was restored in the 1920s by Pan Shoulian 潘守廉 (1845–1939) of Jining, becoming a “public monastery” (shifangcongli 十方叢林). Beginning in the 1930s, the Japanese government and its puppet regimes integrated Japanese rituals into Chinese Buddhism and established the Buddhist Tongyuan Association (Fojiao tongyuanhui 佛教同願會). By examining inscriptions, gazetteers, newspapers, and other historical records—focusing on negotiations between Jingju Temple, the association, and the Japanese Buddhist community—this study sheds light on the distinctive and multifaceted religious–political dynamics that arose as the temple was situated amid conflicting forces: the Japanese government, the puppet regimes, and the Republic of China. These findings provide a new perspective for understanding Buddhist interactions across East Asia and open avenues for further inquiry into this complex historical period.