The talk, "Faith In Paper: Printed Talismans & Inscribed Oaths in Premodern Japanese Religion," examines the articulation of religion within the social domain through an analysis of the ritual, legal, visiual, and material culture of oaths inscribed on printed talismans produced at the temples and shrines in premodern Japan.  Such talismans were affixed to buildings to protect them from fire and burglary, worn on persons to protect them from all range of misfortune, and burned and digested while taking an oath.  The veracity of these oaths was often demonstrated in ordeals such as plunging one's hand in boiling water or grasping a rod-hot iron.  Their most common use, however, was in the writing of contracts.  This rich but largely unstudied body of material will be explored for what it might reveal about the relationship between religious, legal, political, and economic practices.