Mizuko Kuyō: after abortion, motherhood and agency

Abstract

This article is a documentary research on a recent phenomenon in Japanese Buddhism, Mizuko Kuyō, or a memorial service for unborn children. The ritual is known to emerge around 1970s, notably around twenty years after the legalization of abortion in Japan. Mizuko Kuyō has received attention from both media and academia, but mostly from negative points of view, particularly as a consequence of women exploitation. This article highlights the voices of female participants in some exceptional ethnographic accounts with reference to the Japanese notion of motherhood and that of docile agent. I argue that, for those who have endured abortion, participating in Mizuko Kuyō is a form of empowerment that help revive the sense of being an ideal “good” mother in Japanese culture.