She has a PhD in Japanese Studies and Religious Studies from the University of Tokyo (Japan). She is the author of several books and articles, in English as well as in Japanese, on Japanese society, Japanese Buddhism, Buddhist social activism, cultural diplomacy, Buddhist art etc.
Her doctoral thesis, written in Japanese and published as Nihon no Shakai-sanka Bukkyo (Engaged Buddhism in Japan, Toshindo Publication, Tokyo, 2005.) is the recipient of two prestigious academic awards in Japan — Japanese Association for Religious Studies Award (2007) and the Japanese Association for Buddhist Social Welfare Studies Award (2007).
Some of her recent publications include “From Pilgrimage to Diplomacy: Buddhism in India- Japan Relations” (ICWA, 2023); “In Search of the Buddha in India: Travelogues of Fuji Nichidatsu, a Buddhist Monk from Japan” (Bloomsbury, 2022); “The Sino- Japanese War, Pan-Asianism and the Interactions between Indian and Japanese Leaders during the World Wars: Implications for Colonial and Post-Colonial Relations in East Asia” (Academia Sinica, 2017); “Transnational Networks of Dharma and Development: International Aid by Japanese Buddhists and the Revival of Buddhism in Post- Khmer Rouge Cambodia” (Palgrave Macmillan, 2013).
Her areas of specialisation are Japanese society, Japanese religions, Buddhism, East Asian society and culture.
