fumi-e

Japanese policy

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Last updated

June 29, 2026

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Fumi-e was a Japanese policy implemented during the 16th and 17th centuries as part of a broader national seclusion, or sakoku, policy. This practice involved forcing individuals, particularly Christians, to step on an image of Christ or the Virgin Mary. It served as a public gesture to demonstrate renunciation of their faith and was a method used to identify and suppress Christianity in Japan.12

The sakoku policy, enacted in the 1630s, aimed to isolate Japan from foreign influence. While trade was initially encouraged, the Tokugawa regime grew fearful of Christian influence and its potential to disrupt political stability. This led to decrees prohibiting Christianity and, eventually, forbidding Japanese citizens from traveling abroad or returning from overseas voyages. The fumi-e was a severe measure employed to root out Christians, with unregistered individuals facing persecution.2

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Japan
The enforcement of national seclusion
…out by such means as fumi-e, in which one was made to trample on an image of Christ or the Virgin Mary. The system of registration at Buddhist temples was instituted: all Japanese were required to register as parishioners to a parent Buddhist temple, called a danna-dera (“family temple”), which…
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…out by such means as fumi-e, in which one was made to trample on an image of Christ or the Virgin Mary. The system of registration at Buddhist temples was instituted: all Japanese were required to register as parishioners to a parent Buddhist temple, called a danna-dera (“family temple”), which…
Read More