History of Japan men instead joined forces with Emperor Go-Daigo and overthrew the Kamakura shogunate. Japan nevertheless entered a period of prosperity and population growth starting around 1250. In rural areas, the greater use of iron tools and fertilizer, improved irrigation techniques, and double-cropping increased productivity and rural villages grew. Fewer famines and epidemics allowed cities to grow and commerce to boom. Buddhism, which had been largely a religion of the elites, was brought to the masses by prominent monks, such as Hōnen (1133–1212), who established Pure Land Buddhism in Japan, and Nichiren (1222–82), who founded Nichiren Buddhism. Zen Buddhism spread widely among
Childbirth in Japan women drop out of the labor force to raise children. Three times as many women are employed part-time as men. The Japan Council for Quality Health Care administers the Japan Obstetric Compensation System for Cerebral Palsy, a no-fault compensation system for the care of delivery-related cerebral palsy. Religion, as practiced in Japan today, includes Shintoism (83.9%), Buddhism (71.4%), Christianity (2%), and other (7.8%). Total adherence exceeds 100% because many identify with both Shintoism and Buddhism. Shinto shrines, honoring gods and goddesses of ancient Japanese mythology, decorate the landscape of Japan. Shintoism is based on earlier animistic and shamanistic traditions, and