Buddhism in Japan is customary to clean the graves and to hold family reunions. Buddhism in Japan Buddhism in Japan has been practiced since its official introduction in 552 CE according to the "Nihon Shoki" from Baekje, Korea, by Buddhist monks. Buddhism has had a major influence on the development of Japanese society and remains an influential aspect of the culture to this day. In modern times, Japan's most popular schools of Buddhism are Pure Land Buddhism, Nichiren Buddhism, Shingon Buddhism and Zen. As of 2008, approximately 34% of the Japanese identify as Buddhists and the number has been growing since the 1980s,
Buddhism in Japan 67 CE. Historians generally agree that by the middle of the 1st century, the religion had penetrated to areas north of the Huai River in China. According to the "Book of Liang", which was written in 635, five Buddhist monks from Gandhara traveled to Japan in 467. At the time, they referred to Japan as Fusang (), the name of a mythological country to the extreme east beyond the sea: Although there are records of Buddhist monks from China coming to Japan before the Asuka Period, the "official" introduction of Buddhism to Japan is dated to 552 in "Nihon Shoki"