This book discusses the surprising story of how Asian immigrants, convert Buddhists, pro-life and pro-choice activists, and ordinary women have imported Japanese rituals in order to deal with one of the most divisive public issues in American society: abortion. Wilson analyzes the implications of these varied appropriations for the Americanization of Buddhism. A fascinating portrait of contemporary American Zen viewed through an unlikely lens: the Americanization of the mizuko kuyo ritual, which is a funeral of sorts for aborted and miscarried fetuses.