In a culture that prizes academic achievement, prayers for our kids can sound like shallow negotiations with God. On the third Thursday of November, life in South Korea comes to a standstill. This ...

Nine-hour prayer sessions, live-streamed speaking in tongues, bowing before a Buddhist altar 108 times: South Korean parents are turning to God as students sit a crucial exam Thursday. The "Suneung" ...

TOKYO >> Students and parents are flocking to Yushima Tenmangu shrine in Bunkyo ward, Tokyo, to pray for success as entrance exam season gets underway. Yushima Tenmangu enshrines Sugawara no Michizane ...

SAGA -- Every sliver of space at a shrine here, from the walls to the floor to the ceiling, is packed with written pleas for success in exams. Otsumonjugu shrine, which honors Manjushri, a bodhisattva ...