The Asia-Pacific Journal | Japan Focus Volume 14 | Issue 2 | Number 2 | Article ID 4848 | Jan 18, 2016

1

The Zen of Hitler Jugend

Brian Victoria

Introduction

Signing of Tripartite Pact

The Tripartite Pact linking Nazi Germany,Fascist Italy and Imperial Japan was signed inBerlin on September 27, 1940. Less than twomonths after the pact was signed, a six-memberdelegation of Hitler Jugend (Hitler Youth)arrived in Japan. This was actually the secondHitler Jugend delegation to visit Japan, a muchlarger delegation having first visited in the fallof 1938. In honor of the first delegation's visit,a song was composed entitled Banzai HitorāJūgento (Long Live Hitler Youth!). A recordingof this song together with photographshighlighting the activities of both the first andsecond delegations in Japan is embeddedbelow.

The video can be downloaded here.

Eihiji temple complex

Zen Master Dōgen

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

2

Members of the second delegation traveled toDaihonzan Eiheiji for an overnight stay onNovember 19, 1940. Eiheiji, located in themountains of Fukui Prefecture, was establishedby Zen Master Dōgen, the founder of the Sōtōsect, in 1244 and is now one of the two headmonasteries of the Sōtō sect, Japan's largestZen sect. The accompanying photograph showsthe Hitler Jugend seated in the front rowsurrounded by Eiheiji's senior monasticofficials, including the head of the monasteryseated in the center. It was taken shortlybefore the delegation departed the monasteryon the morning of November 20, 1940.

Hitler Jugend visiting Daihonzan Eiheiji

The August 1942 issue of the Eiheiji periodicalSansho included an article describing theinstructions Hitler had personally given thedelegation prior to departure:

When you are in Japan, there is no need for youto be concerned about Japanese culture. Thereis no need for you to research Japanese politics.There is no need to investigate Japan'seconomy. The only thing you need do isthoroughly experience the great spirit of theJapanese people that has arisen in theirnational polity.1

To understand why Hitler so strongly

emphasized the need for German youth tounderstand "the great spirit of the Japanesepeople," we should recall that as early as his1925 work Mein Kampf, Hitler wrote: "All forcewhich does not spring from a firm spiritualf o u n d a t i o n w i l l b e h e s i t a t i n g a n duncertain."2 Hesitating and uncertain force wasthe last thing Hitler needed in his futuresoldiers.

As far as Eiheiji's leaders were concerned,there was no better place to learn the greatspirit of the Japanese people than theirmonastery. In the same August 1942 article,Eiheiji's head monk trainer, Zen Master AshiwaUntei, described Eiheiji's importance and itsrelationship to the young Nazis' visit:

Someone has said that Asia as a whole can bedescribed as a training center for the humanspirit. Europe, on the other hand, can bedescribed as a learning center for thecultivation of knowledge. A characteristic ofAsian spiritual culture is the training of thehuman spirit through the practice of zazen[seated meditation] and sitting quietly. It is forthis reason that the latent energy of spiritualpower grew out of Asia acting as a trainingcenter for disciplining the human spirit. . . .

The foundation of a nation's destiny, like thedevelopment of a person, depends on the powerof the human spirit. The training of the humanspirit, the importance of vigorous spiritualpower is something the citizens of Japan arenow selflessly demonstrating to the world. Inthe late autumn of the year before last, HitlerJugend visited Eiheiji and stayed overnight.They were profoundly impressed by theexistence of the training center for the humanspirit they encountered here in the deepmountains.3

An even earlier article in the December 1940issue of Sansho gave a detailed description ofthe delegation's visit. Appropriately, the articlewas entitled Hittorā Jūgento (Hitler Jugend).Inasmuch as it reveals important features of

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

3

the values and religious outlook of both Naziyouth and Japan's wartime Zen leaders, acomplete translation follows. Note, however,that the following article presents a necessarilyshallow understanding of the spiritualorientation of Nazi youth on the Japanese sideinasmuch as it was gained from only onerelatively short encounter, not to mention theneed for interpretation.

This article also leads one to ask how membersof the Hitler Jugend delegation viewed theirvisit to Eiheiji? What did members write or sayabout their visit upon return to Germany?Inasmuch as this question is beyond theauthor's competence, knowledgeable readersare sincerely invited to present this side of thestory.

Hittorā Jūgento

(Blue Eyes Spend One Night as ZenGuests)

by Fueoka Togetsu

Bearing the brilliant future of our youthful allyGermany, a six-member delegation of HitlerJugend, arrived at our monastery on the 19th oflast month [November 1940]. Headed by[Heinrich] Jürgens, the delegation was part of aJapanese-German youth exchange program.Following their arrival in Japan, the delegationfirst met with people from every field in theImperial capital [Tokyo]. Having completed thismission, they next headed southwest fromTokyo to the Hokuriku rail line, getting off thetrain at Kanazawa station on November 19th.Their goal was the Zen training center ofEiheiji where they spent a quiet night, the onlytemple at which the delegation stayedovernight during their visit to Japan. It is forthis reason that the night they spent at ourmonastery meant so much to them.

On the day of their arrival, this writer had thegood fortune to accompany the delegation onthe last segment of their train ride to Eiheiji

station. Young and old stood along the tracks towelcome the delegation, enthusiasticallywaving German flags to welcome the visitorsfrom afar. In response, the members of thedelegation stuck their long bodies out of thetrain windows, rapidly raising their right armsin a return salute.

The delegation arrived at Eiheiji station at 4:20pm. Among others, pupils from the ShihidaniElementary School were waiting on the stationplatform to greet the delegation, wavingGerman flags embossed with swastikas on ared background. In response, the six-memberdelegation lined up in a row perfectly abreastof one another and raised their right arms in areturn salute. The precision of the members'movements made a deep impression oneveryone present.

Marching with large Japanese and Germanflags intertwined, the delegation then made itsway from Eiheiji's main entrance gate to theentrance of the guest quarters. At that pointnewspaper reporters and cameramen besiegedthem. Thereafter the delegation walked down along hallway at the foot of Eiheiji's toweringmonastic complex until they arrived at thereception area. Here they met, for the firsttime, Zen Masters Katō and Takada, themonastery's head administrative officer and hisassistant, together with other senior monasticofficials.

The six members of the delegation were:

Heinrich Jürgens, delegation head, 37 years old

Wilhelm Daniel, delegation member, 27 yearsold

Heinz Rothermund, 21 years old

Daoruku Teiru (phonetic spelling), 21 years old

Rudolf Minsch, 19 years old

Heinz Schumi, 17 years old

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

4

In addition, the delegation was accompanied byMiyamoto Kinshichi, an official of the SocialEducation Bureau of the Ministry of Education;Hiraiwa Tatsuo from Mitsubishi Trading Co.,the delegation's interpreter; and a number ofrepresentatives from the Fukui Prefecturalgovernment, including Mr. Ueda, head of thePrefectural Social Education Section.

While Eiheiji has welcomed a few foreigners inthe past for an overnight stay, this is the firsttime our monastery formally welcomed blue-eyes [Westerners] on a mission like theirs.Thus, the monastery made careful preparationsfor their visit. First, all of the senior monasticofficials came to the reception area at 6 pm togreet the guests of honor who had come fromfaraway. This was followed by a welcomebanquet in order to become better acquaintedwith our guests.

After the monastic officials arrived at theirassigned places in the banquet room, thevisiting delegation bowed to them and then satdown as a group. The youngest member of thedelegation, a handsome lad by the name ofSchumi, made himself look attractive bywearing a formal kimono purchased in Tokyocomplete with family crest and obi (narrowsash) tied in a simple knot. It was somewhatsurprising to find nearly all members of thedelegation sitting on bended knees for anextended period.

When everyone had been seated, Zen MasterKatō, head administrative officer, welcomed thedelegation on Eiheiji's behalf with Mr. Hiraiwaacting as interpreter. Delegation head Jürgensthen expressed the delegation's gratitude forthe invitation, noting that up until then theyhad only been able to read about Zen in books.Now, however, they had a wonderfulopportunity to directly experience the spirit ofZen by staying overnight at this training center.

Example of a temple vegetarian meal

All of the food on the banquet tray was, ofcourse, vegetarian. Delegation members werequite skilled in their use of chopsticks, makingshort work of dish after dish. It appeared theywere truly enjoying all of the food. We recentlyhad a delegation of more than ten Chinesemonks stay overnight with us and had a similarbanquet for them. However, in this writer'sopinion the way these blue eyes ate Japanesefood was far more skillful than the Chinesemonks.

By chance the conversation turned to food.Delegation head Jürgens stuck his chopsticksinto a dish full of radishes and explained that atthe time of the [First] World War the people ofGermany had nothing to eat but radishes. Thus,he confessed that anytime he eats radishes herecalls that war. His words provided us with aglimpse of just what one would expect of adelegation head.

Jürgens went on to say that there were manyvegetarians in Germany though not forreligious reasons. While the vegetarianism ofthe Führer Adolf Hitler was well known,Jürgens explained that he personally leaned inthat direction inasmuch as he normally ate onlyfruit for breakfast. Hearing this, Zen MasterKatō asked, "Does that mean that Führer Hitleris a Zen priest?" With that, everyone burst outlaughing.

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

5

The conversation continued for a while afterthe banquet finished. Jürgens spoke about thereligious orientation of the Hitler Jugend. Whathe said can be summarized as follows:

The people of present-day Germany are nolonger satisfied with the religion they have hadup to now. However, a new religion that canfully satisfy the German people has yet to beborn. Therefore, until a new national religionappears, they have, albeit reluctantly, todepend on the religion they've had up to now.The Hitler Jugend take the same position.

It doesn't make any difference what religionthe members of the Hitler Jugend believe in.However, only belief in Judaism is strictlyforbidden. For example, even though somemembers are Protestants and others are RomanCatholic, there is absolutely no conflictbetween them. Nevertheless, among today'smembers there are an extremely large numberwho have freed themselves from their formerreligion. This is because, as I have said, thereligion we have had up to now doesn't meetour present needs.

However, even though members have left theirformer religions doesn't mean they havebecome atheists or turned their backs on God.In fact, they continue to have a very strongreligious spirit, identifying themselves as"people who believe in God." They dislikedescribing themselves any further than this. Atpresent we are all eagerly awaiting theemergence of a mighty religion with greatreligious leaders.

When this writer heard these words fromdelegation head Jürgens, he could not helpthinking that Jürgens was also speaking aboutthe outcome for the Buddhist world, not justthe religious world in Germany. This was trulya case of thinking that Jürgens had put hisfinger on a sore spot.

The scene underneath the banquet room'sgorgeously painted ceiling and brilliantly

illuminated electric lights was something thathadn't been seen since the founding of themonastery. On the one s ide were themonastery's senior officials with their shavedheads and wearing Buddhist robes. Sittingopposite them was Jürgens and his delegationof blue eyes with their red armbands.

Following the banquet the delegation took ashort rest in their quarters. Thereafter theyreassembled to hear a lecture given byassistant administrative head Takada, assistedby Hiraiwa as his interpreter. The lecturebegan with a basic introduction to Buddhismand then went on to include both Zen andJapanese culture, ending with a detailedexplanation of the teaching of Zen MasterDōgen. The delegation profited from thisimmensely.

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

6

Monks meditating in zazen

Morning service at Eiheiji

The next morning the delegation got up early at3:30 a.m., first going to the Monks Hall (Sōdō)to observe the practice of zazen (meditation)before going to the Founders Hall to see theoffering of tea [before the image of Zen MasterDōgen] and a sutra recitation service.Thereafter they went to the Dharma Hall wherethey took part in a solemn morning service. Inthis way they were able to experience the life ofa training center.

The delegation's breakfast was exactly thesame as the monks, consisting of pure ricegruel. It was surprising to see how themembers eagerly consumed the gruel andrepeatedly ask for more. Just what might beexpected from the youth of Nazi Germany whohave exerted themselves to the utmost formany years.

Eiheiji, Imperial Messenger Gate

At 9:30 am the delegation gathered at the footof the stairs leading to the Imperial MessengerGate (Chokushi-mon) to take a commemorativephotograph together with Eiheiji's monasticofficials. After that the delegation headed forthe monastery entrance gate where theyexpressed their gratitude to the assembledmonks who were gathered there to give them awarm send-off. On their way to the entrancegate the rays of the late autumn sun shonedown on them through the ancient Japanesecedar trees lining the pathway. On leaving themonastery, they headed for Eiheiji train station.

Conclusion

Readers familiar with the earlier series of threearticles concerning D.T. Suzuki's relationshipto the Nazi movement both in Japan andGermany will recognize similar themes in all ofthe articles. Readers unfamiliar with thesearticles will find them here.

1) D.T. Suzuki, Zen and the Nazis

2) http://japanfocus.org/-Karl-Baier/4041;

3) A Zen Nazi in Wartime Japan: CountDürckheim and his Sources-D.T. Suzuki,Yasutani Haku'un and Eugen Herrigel

One of the articles' striking features is thedegree to which the German side admits to an

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

7

ongoing struggle to create a new andauthentically Germanic faith, i.e., a faith, in thefirst instance, cleansed of its Judaic roots.

There were, nevertheless, differences ofopinion among Nazi ranks concerning the newreligion being created. Many Nazi partyleaders, both military and civilian, sought tocreate a dramatically altered Christianity thatemphasized, almost to the point of exclusivity,its Germanic origins in the form of GermanChristian leaders like 13th century MeisterEckhart on the Roman Catholic side, or MartinLuther on the Protestant side. Atheism wasunacceptable since that would signify a Naziembrace of the same stance as the hated anddespised Bolsheviks.

On the other hand, at least some Nazi leaderswanted to break completely free fromChristianity. In particular, SS leader HeinrichHimmler sought to recreate a faith rooted inGermany's pre-Christian, Aryan past. However,he was unsuccessful in searching for acoherent, indigenous pre-Christian faith withinGermany itself. This led him and other SSleaders to look further afield to the Aryanreligions of India, both Buddhism andHinduism. In particular, the historical founderof Buddhism, Shakyamuni Buddha, wasconsidered a worthy role model for SSmembers in that not only was he a great Aryanreligious leader but also a member of thewarrior caste (Skt. kshatriya). This in turnfacilitated Hitler's transformation into a worthydescendant of the historical Buddha.4

By comparison, the Japanese side clearedbelieved they already possessed an unshakableand powerful spiritual foundation, oneeminently suited to mobilizing the Japanesepeople in the war effort. Although not directlydiscussed in this article, this widespread beliefin the strength of its spiritual foundation,including a divine emperor rooted in Shinto,allowed Japan to entertain the idea the countrycould prevail over the West, despite the

recognized material superiority of the latter. AsZen Master Ashiwa asserted, unlike Japan,European culture was built solely on "thecultivation of knowledge."

The belief in Japan's spiritual strength wasgiven further expression in a second relatedarticle in the December 1940 issue of Sansho.In an article entitled, "The Power to Lead theNation's Citizens," a senior Eiheiji official,Sekiryū Buntō, once again discussed theadmission by the head of the Hitler Jugenddelegation that "Christianity had already lostits power to guide their spirit," etc. Sekiryūcontinued:

We were truly surprised when we heard thesethings said directly to us. That said, we wereoverjoyed by the fact that, to the contrary, weourselves have experienced the true pathshown to us by Zen Master Dōgen. This makesit possible for us to guide the nation's citizens,thoroughly constructing the spiritualfoundation of today's citizens of Japan . . .5

As demonstrated above, wartime Zen leaderslike Ashiwa and Sekiryū envisioned themselvesplaying a leading role in enhancing the people'scommitment to the war effort, effectively actingas the 'spiritual custodians' and 'trainers' ofwhat was then popularly known as "the spirit ofJapan" (Yamato-damashii). This was not, it mustbe emphasized, a new role for Zen mastersinasmuch as their predecessors in Japan'smedieval period had provided the "mindless"and "selfless" metaphysical foundation for theabsolute and unquestioning loyalty required ofa samurai warrior combined with fearlessnessin the face of death. Now, however, the sameselfless loyalty was redirected toward theImperial state and its divine emperor.

The connection between the role of Zen inJapan's medieval era and during the Asia-Pacific War (1937-45) was well understood byscholar-priests like Nakane Kandō, wartimepresident of Sōtō Zen-affiliated KomazawaUniversity. In March 1940 Nakane wrote:

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

8

The spirit of the soldier is that of Bushidō. . . .Thus, if we were to sum up Zen in a word, itwould be that it is training for death. When youbecome one with death and are selfless, youare in the realm of enlightenment. If you areenlightened then it makes no differencewhether you are in a hot hell or a cold hell, youcan, with the greatest sincerity, fearlesslyrepay the debt of gratitude you owe yourcountry by serving it with the utmost loyalty,for the sake of justice, for the sake of themonarchy.6

Sentiments like these were repeated over andover again by wartime Zen masters. Thus, they,like their medieval predecessors, bearsignificant responsibility for the ensuingcarnage, first within the country during themedieval era, and then abroad in the modernera. Should there be any remaining doubtabout the goals of Japan's wartime Zenmasters, we need look no further than thewords of Sōtō Zen Master Sawaki Kōdō. In hisbook Kannon-kyo Teisho (Lectures on theKannon Sutra), published in November 1944,Sawaki stated:

This is truly a war to spread the Imperial Waythroughout the world. The Imperial Way is theBuddha Way and must be spread. Inaccordance with the Imperial Way, we mustdestroy democracy, liberalism, and [Sun Yat-sen's] Three Principles of the People. This iswhat it means to be citizens of Japan.7

Although he died in 1965, Sawaki remainsrevered to this day as one of Japan's greatestZen masters of the twentieth century, not only

in Japan but also in the West thanks to hisdisciples and their hagiographical writings. Asdocumented in Zen at War, Sawaki's wartimew o r d s a r e t y p i c a l o f t h o s e o f h i scontemporaries in both the Sōtō and Rinzai Zensects. Thus, like the German Christiansycophants of the Nazis, of whom there weremany, the Zen school in Japan has anundeniable 'heritage' of war complicity that,despite a few attempts to address it in thepostwar period, has yet to be seriouslyreflected on. In asserting this, however, it isequally true that Zen is far from the onlyreligious tradition, Buddhist or otherwise, tosuffer from the same malady.

Recommended citation: Brian Victoria, "TheZen of Hitler Jugend", The Asia-Pacific Journal,Vol. 14, Issue 2, No. 2, January 18, 2016.

Brian Daizen Victoria holds an M.A. inBuddhist Studies from Sōtō Zen sect-affiliatedKomazawa University in Tokyo, and a Ph.D.from the Department of Religious Studies atTemple University. In addition to a 2nd,enlarged edition of Zen At War (Rowman &Littlefield), major writings include Zen WarStories (RoutledgeCurzon); an autobiographicalwork in Japanese entitled Gaijin de ari, Zenbozu de ari (As a Foreigner, As a Zen Priest);Zen Master Dōgen, coauthored with Prof. YokoiYūhō of Aichi-gakuin University (Weatherhill);and a translation of The Zen Life by Sato Koji(Weatherhill). He is currently a VisitingResearch Fellow at the International ResearchCenter for Japanese Studies (Nichibunken) inKyoto.

Brian Victoria, Visiting Research Fellow, International Research Center for JapaneseStudies, Kyoto. Brian Daizen Victoria holds an M.A. in Buddhist Studies from Sōtō Zen sect-affiliated Komazawa University in Tokyo, and a Ph.D. from the Department of ReligiousStudies at Temple University. In addition to a 2nd, enlarged edition of Zen At War (Rowman &Littlefield), major writings include Zen War Stories (RoutledgeCurzon); an autobiographicalwork in Japanese entitled Gaijin de ari, Zen bozu de ari (As a Foreigner, As a Zen Priest); Zen

APJ | JF 14 | 2 | 2

9

Master Dōgen, coauthored with Prof. Yokoi Yūhō of Aichi-gakuin University (Weatherhill); anda translation of The Zen Life by Sato Koji (Weatherhill). He is currently a Visiting ResearchFellow at the International Research Center for Japanese Studies (aka Nichibunken) in Kyoto.

Notes1 Quoted in Daihonzan Eiheiji: Sansho, August 5, 1941, p. 279.2 Adolf Hitler, Chapter Five, Mein Kampf. English translation (accessed 28 November 2015).3 Ibid.4 For further information on the alleged relationship between Hitler and the historicalBuddha, see Victoria, "Japanese Buddhism in the Third Reich," Journal of the Oxford Centrefor Buddhist Studies, Vol. 7. Available on the Web (by subscription only).5 Sekiryū Buntō. 国民指導力 (The Power to Lead the Nation's Citizens). Daihonzan Eiheiji:Sansho, December 9, 1940, p. 862.6 Quoted in Niino Kazunobu, Kodo Bukkyo to Tairiku Fukyo. Tokyo: Shakai Hyoron-sha, 2014,pp. 110-111.7 The Three Principles of the People consist of: 1) nationalism, 2) democracy, and 3) socialism.Sawaki's words are contained in: Sawaki Kodo. Kannon-kyo Teisho (Lectures on the KannonSutra). Tokyo, Toko-sha, November 1944, pp. 153-54. Original Japanese text reads: 誠にこの度の戦争は皇道を世界中に拡げる事である。皇道すなわち仏道を、弘めねばならない。皇道によって、三民主義・民主主義・自由主義を破らねばならぬ。これが我々日本国民なのである。