Upon reading the real-world influences article, I was surprised to not find something that I had thought almost immediately upon entering Enhasa, and that is that Zeal has been influenced by Japan's beliefs of Shintobuddhism.
Upon entering Enhasa, one is greeted by Doreen, whose name in Japanese is similar to the way they would pronounce 'dream', and she speaks about dreams saying that in Zeal, "dreams can come true. But at what price?" If you follow her around, she will say, "Never assume that what you see and feel is real," an obvious parallel to the Buddhist belief that life is an illusion.
The man at the entrance to Enhasa says that they "find truth in the bliss of sleep." The sleeping man in the upper-left-hand corner says that "truth exists in dreams." The sleeping man in the upper-left-hand corner says that they "sleep [their] days away." Also, the residents of Zeal refer to themselves as the 'Enlightened Ones'. This is a reference to the Buddhist practice of meditation in order to achieve enlightenment.
After he talks about truth existing in dreams, the sleeping man in the upper-left-hand corner begins to talk about herbal tea and crystals, both commonly used in ceremonial Shinto practices. Also, and this is a bit of a stretch, the spring of recovery may be a reference to the Shinto belief in taking regular baths (hot springs).
The 'enlightened ones' speak of Queen Zeal as if she were a god. "Queen Zeal rules our magical kingdom. She is without peer in beauty and greatness." "The Queen has given us everything." "The Palace is the source of light which sustains all living things. Queen Zeal, the great!" This is a reference to the (now obsolete) Shinto belief that the Emperors/Emperesses were gods (okay that one is gonna get me flamed).
It is very clear that the Zealites, um, Zealians, um, people from Zeal consider themselves to be a superior race. "This is the Queen's palace, the center of Zeal Kingdom. Which makes THIS, the center of the universe." "[Your magic] must be very primitive to ours. you poor things." "The Earthbound Ones are being allowed to work on the construction of the Palace. So they do have a purpose after all." This is a reference to the mindset of the Japanese army that they were superior to the other nations in WWII and long before. This was based around the belief that the Japanese people were descended from the Sun God. What was the source of magic before Lavos? the Sun Stone.
That's all I've got, I would now like to continue with the game, seeing as I have been traveling between the three cities continuously for the past 2 hours.
