It is frequently observed that social change and resulting social crises often give rise to new religious movements. It is less commonly noted that social crises can be precipitated by religious movements themselves. Yet we have much evidence of this.
One example is the response to Aum Shinrikyo's release of sarin nerve gas into the Tokyo subway system in 1995, which left 12 dead and 5,000 injured. Many have been the reactions to and the interpretations of this act, some of them leading to severe national repercussions.
These various reactions and responses, hold the editors of this collection of essays on the attack and its aftermath, allow one to understand more about the nature of contemporary Japanese society than does a narrower focusing on Aum itself.