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A NEW HISTORY OF SHINTO PDF, EPUB, EBOOK

But this is in no way to detract from the many strengths of the book. Curiously for a history, it provides a particularly useful survey of the contemporary scene, in which the reader learns about such matters as the financing of shrines, the number of visitors, and the percentage of the population that partake in Shinto rites. The suggestion is of a disconnect between policy makers and ordinary practitioners. Non-mainstream Shinto is also featured, with illuminating sections on Fushimi Inari, the Yasukuni controversy, and Sectarian Shinto. There are important matters discussed here that feature in no other book in English of which I know. The Golden Rock at Hie Shrine, where worship probably originated. Its influence is likely to be long-lasting. At the end one is left pondering what exactly is this puzzling thing called Shinto? Your email address will not be published. Your email:. Skip to primary content. Skip to secondary content. Search for:. The following book review by John Dougill first appeared this summer in Japan Review vol. Books on Shinto used to be scarce. Walk into a bookshop and you were lucky to find one at all. Buddhist priests were stripped of their status, and new Shinto priests were often appointed to shrines with a tacit mission to purify them. Once again, this zeal for the reformation and purifying of Shinto did not last, and within a few years shrines were cautiously re-incorporating elements from Buddhism or tribal tradition. Shinto was enthusiastically promoted by Japan's militaristic rulers, who stressed that the emperor was a divine being, directly descended from the gods who had given birth to the Japanese islands. Shinto became the glue that bound the Japanese people together with a powerful mix of devotion to kami, ancestor-worship, and group loyalty to family and nation. It was during this period that Shinto was declared 'non-religious'. Traditional historians say rather cynically that this was done to avoid any conflict between the imposition of Shinto by the Japanese state and the Japanese constitution's guarantee of religious freedom. In fact it was more subtle than that - Shinto was regarded as inseparable from the 'Imperial Way' and inseparable from the fundamental ethical and social code of Japan. This made Shinto so superior to other religions which, although of enormous value, were created by human beings that it counted as non-religious. In his criticism of popular conceptions of Shinto, historian Kuroda Toshio explains that it has come to be regarded as "the cultural will or energy of the Japanese people, embodied in conventions that precede or transcend religion". Shinto was disestablished in , when the Emperor lost his divine status as part of the Allied reformation of Japan. The Emperor wrote:. The ties between Us and Our people have always stood on mutual trust and affection. They do not depend upon mere legends and myths. They are not predicated on the false conception that the Emperor is divine, and that the Japanese people are superior to other races and fated to rule the world. One academic has written that the American Occupation Forces "undoubtedly wished to crush and destroy Shinto", and certainly the orders issued by the occupying forces were very hostile to Shinto which they seem to have regarded as either a government-run cult, or a religion that had been converted into a military and nationalist ideology. No religious organization shall receive any privileges from the State, nor exercise any political authority. Despite the loss of official status Shinto still remains a very significant player in Japanese spirituality and everyday life. And despite the non-divine status of the Emperor, considerable religious ritual and mysticism still surrounds many Imperial ceremonies. Experts don't agree as to when Shinto became a unified religion rather than just a convenient label to give to the different but similar faiths found in Japan, so any history of Shinto is bound to cover a wide range of beliefs and traditions. The scholar Kuroda Toshio has suggested that the traditional view of Shinto as the indigenous religion of Japan stretching back into pre-history is wrong. He argues that Shinto didn't emerge as a separate religion until comparatively modern times, and that this happened for political reasons. The traditional view, he says, is a modern construction of Shinto that has been projected back into history. The truth, he says, is that for most of Japanese history, Shinto amounted to no more than part of a complicated spiritual view of the world that for most of the time contained as much Buddhism as Shinto. Some writers suggest that Shinto is actually not so much a religion as "the seamless cultural-religious historical backdrop " in front of which the various religious experiences of Japan are played out - "a backdrop which transforms and interprets those religious experiences and imposes on them a continuity that they would otherwise lack". Although ancient and modern Shinto are not linked by a single institution, the shrines, structures, and rituals of modern Shinto are so similar to those of ancient Shinto as to provide a clear chain of identity. There have been several periods in Japanese history when attempts have been made, with varying success, to impose a centralised and imperial Shinto on various local shrine cults. These centralisations usually allowed local variations to flourish within the localities - and this freedom may well have accounted for the survival of Shinto throughout different Japanese communities. Search term:. Read more. This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets CSS enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets CSS if you are able to do so. This page has been archived and is no longer updated. Find out more about page archiving. Shinto history Last updated Introduction Shinto history Shinto has been a major part of Japanese life and culture throughout the country's history, but for the greater part of that history Shinto has shared its spiritual, cultural, and political roles with Buddhism and Confucianism. Periods of Shinto history One of the standard classifications of Shinto history reduces it to four major periods: Before the arrival of Buddhism in Japan Shinto and Buddhism together in Japan The Meiji reinterpretation of Shinto in the 19th century Shinto after World War II Historians encounter some problems when trying to understand Shinto history as a discrete narrative. Before Buddhism Before the arrival of Buddhism Tosho Gu shrine, Nikko During this period there was no formal Shinto religion, but many local cults that are nowadays grouped under the name Shinto. Shinto and Buddhism Shinto and Buddhism together From the 6th century CE the beliefs that are now known as Shinto were greatly altered by the addition of other ingredients. The Seven Lucky Gods, depicted here by Hokusai , are a mixed bunch, sharing influence with Buddhism and Hinduism among other traditions. The hall houses the Daibutsu or Great Buddha, the largest cast bronze sculpture in the world. During this period Shinto acquired a stronger intellectual tradition than it previously had. This change was evolutionary, as had been previous changes in the nature of Japanese religion. Meiji period painting of Jimmu, the first Emperor, by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi c. Shinto's 'non-religious' period It was during this period that Shinto was declared 'non-religious'. The Emperor wrote: The ties between Us and Our people have always stood on mutual trust and affection. Constitution article Problems in studying Shinto history Problems in studying Shinto history Experts don't agree as to when Shinto became a unified religion rather than just a convenient label to give to the different but similar faiths found in Japan, so any history of Shinto is bound to cover a wide range of beliefs and traditions. Shinto is a modern construction The scholar Kuroda Toshio has suggested that the traditional view of Shinto as the indigenous religion of Japan stretching back into pre-history is wrong. Shinto is a cultural backdrop Some writers suggest that Shinto is actually not so much a religion as "the seamless cultural-religious historical backdrop " in front of which the various religious experiences of Japan are played out - "a backdrop which transforms and interprets those religious experiences and imposes on them a continuity that they would otherwise lack". Shinto's chain of continuity Although ancient and modern Shinto are not linked by a single institution, the shrines, structures, and rituals of modern Shinto are so similar to those of ancient Shinto as to provide a clear chain of identity. In this sense it is unarguable that Shinto has been an integral part of Japan's history. A New History of Shinto on Apple Books

Scholars have debated at what point in history it is legitimate to start talking about Shinto as a specific phenomenon. The scholar of religion Ninian Smart for instance suggested that one could "speak of the kami religion of Japan, which lived symbiotically with organized Buddhism, and only later was institutionalized as Shinto. Many scholars refer to Shinto as a religion. Scholars of religion have debated how best to classify Shinto. Inoue argued for categorizing Shinto "as a member of the family of East-Asian religions". Byron Earhart called it a "major religion". Shinto is often referred to as an indigenous religion , [27] although this results in debates over the various different definitions of "indigenous" in the Japanese context. Earhart noted that Shinto's history, which involved incorporating a great deal of Buddhist and Chinese influence, was "too complex to be labelled simply" as an "indigenous religion". Shinto is internally diverse; Nelson noted it was "not a unified, monolithic entity that has a single center and system all its own". The term "Shinto" is often translated into English as "the way of the kami". Among the term's earliest known appearance in Japan is in the Nihon Shoki , an eighth-century text. Here, it may simply be used in reference to popular belief, and not merely that of Japan. In medieval Japan, kami -worship was generally seen as being part of Japanese Buddhism , with the kami themselves often being interpreted as Buddhas. In the seventeenth century, under the influence of Edo period thinkers, the practice of kami worship came to be seen as distinct from Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism. A range of other terms have been used as synonyms for Shinto. Shinto is a polytheistic belief system involving the veneration of many deities, known as kami , [2] or sometimes as jingi. The term kami is "conceptually fluid", [58] and "vague and imprecise". In Japan, kami have been venerated since prehistory, [3] and in the Yayoi period were regarded as being formless and invisible. Kami are often associated with a specific place, often one that is noted as a prominent feature in the landscape such as a waterfall, volcano, large rock, or distinctive tree. Kami are not understood as being metaphysically different from humanity, [58] and in Shinto it is seen as possible for humans to become kami. Although some kami are venerated only in a single location, others have shrines devoted to them across many areas of Japan. Many kami are believed to have messengers, known as kami no tsukai or tsuka washime , and these are generally depicted as taking animal form. The origin of the kami and of Japan itself are recounted in two eighth-century texts, Kojiki and Nihon Shoki. These texts recount that the universe started with ame-tsuchi , the separation of light and pure elements ame , "heaven" from heavy elements tsuchi , "earth". Other kami followed, including a brother and sister, Izanagi and Izanami. To this end, the siblings stirred the briny sea with a jewelled spear, from which Onogoro Island was formed. One of these was a fire kami, whose birth killed her. Embarrassed to be seen in this state, she chased him out of yomi, and he closed its entrance with a boulder. Izanagi bathed in the sea to rid himself from the pollution brought about by witnessing Izanami's putrefaction. Through this act, further kami emerged from his body: Amaterasu the sun kami was born from his left eye, Tsukuyomi the moon kami from his right eye, and Susanoo the storm kami from his nose. The other kami eventually succeeded in coaxing her out. In Shinto, the creative principle permeating all life is known as musubi. Texts such as the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki attest to the presence of multiple realms in Shinto cosmology. A key theme in Shinto thought is the importance of avoiding kegare "pollution" or "impurity" , [] while ensuring harae "purity". This notion of purity is present in many facets of Japanese culture, such as the focus it places on bathing. Full immersion in the sea is often regarded as the most ancient and efficacious form of purification. Salt is often regarded as a purifying substance; [] some Shinto practitioners will for instance sprinkle salt on themselves after a funeral, [] while those running restaurants may put a small pile of salt outside before business commences each day. In Shinto, kannagara "way of the kami" describes the law of the natural order. Throughout Japanese history, the notion of saisei-itchi , or the union of religious authority and political authority, has long been prominent. Shinto priests may face various ethical conundrums. In the s, for instance, the priests at the Suwa Shrine in Nagasaki debated whether to invite the crew of a U. Navy vessel docked at the port city to their festival celebrations given the sensitivities surrounding the U. The shrine is devoted to Japan's war dead, and in it enshrined 14 men, including Hideki Tojo , who had been declared Class-A defendants at the Tokyo War Crimes Trials. This generated both domestic and international condemnation, particularly from China and Korea. In the 21st century, Shinto has increasingly been portrayed as a nature-centred spirituality with environmentalist credentials. Rots suggested that the repositioning of Shinto as a "nature religion" may have grown in popularity as a means of disassociating the religion from controversial issues "related to war memory and imperial patronage. Shinto tends to focus on ritual behavior rather than doctrine. Boyd and Ron G. Williams stated that Shinto is "first and foremost a ritual tradition", [] while Picken observed that "Shinto is interested not in credenda but in agenda , not in things that should be believed but in things that should be done. Offner stated that Shinto's focus was on "maintaining communal, ceremonial traditions for the purpose of human communal well-being". Public spaces in which the kami are worshipped are often known under the generic term jinja "kami- place" ; [] this term applies to the location rather than to a specific building. The architectural styles of Shinto shrines had largely developed by the Heian period. Shrine entrances are marked by a two-post gateway with either one or two crossbeams atop it, known as torii. Shrines are often set within gardens, even in cities. These funds are used to pay the wages of the priests, to finance the upkeep of the buildings, to cover the shrine's membership fees of various regional and national Shinto groups, and to contribute to disaster relief funds. In Shinto, it is seen as important that the places in which kami are venerated be kept clean and not neglected. These sometimes also record miracles associated with the shrine. Shrines may be cared for by priests, by local communities, or by families on whose property the shrine is found. Priestly dress includes a tall, rounded hat known as an eboshi , [] and black lacquered wooden clogs known as asagutsu. The priests are assisted by jinja miko , sometimes referred to as "shrine-maidens" in English. They also assist Kannushi in ceremonial rites. Individual worship conducted at a shrine is known as hairei. For instance, people may ask that the priest approaches the kami so as to purify their car in the hope that this will prevent it from being involved in an accident. This purifies the site and asks the kami to bless it. People often ask the kami to help offset inauspicious events that may affect them. For instance, in Japanese culture, the age 33 is seen as being unlucky for women and the age 42 for men, and thus people can ask the kami to offset any ill-fortune associated with being this age. Pilgrimage has long been an important facet of Japanese religion, [] and Shinto features pilgrimages to shrines, which are known as junrei. Shinto rituals begin with a process of purification, or harae. The acts of purification accomplished, petitions known as norito are spoken to the kami. Following the purification procedure, offerings are presented to the kami by being placed on a table. After the offerings have been given, people often sip rice wine known as o-miki. The Kami are believed to enjoy music. Many Shinto practitioners also have a kamidana or family shrine in their home. Kamidana often enshrine the kami of a nearby public shrine as well as a tutelary kami associated with the house's occupants or their profession. In addition to the temple shrines and the household shrines, Shinto also features small wayside shrines known as hokora. A common feature of Shinto shrines is the provision of ema , small wooden plaques onto which practitioners will write a wish or desire that they would like to see fulfilled. The practitioner's message is written on one side of the plaque, while on the other is usually a printed picture or pattern related to the shrine itself. A form of divination that is popular at Shinto shrines are the omikuji. This act is seen as rejecting the prediction, a process called sute- mikuji , and thus avoiding the misfortune it predicted. The use of amulets are widely sanctioned and popular in Japan. The ofuda is then wrapped inside white paper and tied up with a colored thread. At new year, many shrines sell hamaya an "evil-destroying arrows" , which people can purchase and keep in their home over the coming year to bring good luck. The recipient makes a wish and paints one eye; when the goal is accomplished, the recipient paints the other eye. While this is a Buddhist practice, darumas can be found at shrines, as well. These dolls are very common. These bells are usually in the shapes of the zodiacal animals. Kagura describes the music and dance performed for the kami. According to the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki , Ame-no-Uzume performed a dance to entice Amaterasu out of the cave in which she had hidden herself. There are two broad types of kagura. This style was developed in the imperial court and is still performed on imperial grounds every December. It is performed by singers and musicians using shakubyoshi wooden clappers, a hichiriki , a kagura-bue flute, and a six-stringed zither. Depending on the style, it is performed by miko or by actors wearing masks to portray various mythological figures. Music plays a very important role in the kagura performance. Everything from the setup of the instruments to the most subtle sounds and the arrangement of the music is crucial to encouraging the kami to come down and dance. The songs are used as magical devices to summon the kami and as prayers for blessings. Rhythm patterns of five and seven are common, possibly relating to the Shinto belief of the twelve generations of heavenly and earthly deities. There is also vocal accompaniment called kami uta in which the drummer sings sacred songs to the kami. Often the vocal accompaniment is overshadowed by the drumming and instruments, reinforcing that the vocal aspect of the music is more for incantation rather than aesthetics. In both ancient Japanese collections, the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki , Ame-no-uzeme's dance is described as asobi , which in the old Japanese language means a ceremony that is designed to appease the spirits of the departed, and which was conducted at funeral ceremonies. Therefore, kagura is a rite of tama shizume , of pacifying the spirits of the departed. In the heian period , this was one of the important rites at the Imperial Court and had found its fixed place in the tama shizume festival in the eleventh month. At this festival people sing as accompaniment to the dance: "Depart! Be cleansed and go! Be purified and leave! It was used for securing and strengthening the soul of a dying person. It was closely related to the ritual of tama furi shaking the spirit , to call back the departed soul of the dead or to energize a weakened spirit. Spirit pacification and rejuvenation were usually achieved by songs and dances, also called asobi. The ritual of chinkon continued to be performed on the emperors of Japan, thought to be descendants of Amaterasu. It is possible that this ritual is connected with the ritual to revive the sun kami during the low point of the winter solstice. Public festivals are known as matsuri. Spring festivals are called haru-matsuri and often incorporate prayers for a good harvest. Many festivals are specific to particular shrines or regions. Presented as a general overview of Shinto, this work seamlessly juxtaposes information on the Shinto pantheon, priesthood, worship, ceremonial, and so forth garnered from Kojiki, Nihon shoki , and works such as Engishiki an early tenth-century compendium with references to the situation in these areas in late Meiji. Intervening developments receive only brief mention, in a chapter titled "Decay of Shinto. Yet for all his formidable linguistic skills and level of knowledge—not easily equaled by his latter-day successors—one is left with the impression that nineteenth-century theories of the development of religion had the ironic effect of leading him to present Shinto as something static and unchanging. Thanks in no little measure to a number of articles published in this journal in the late s and early s, readers of German could obtain information about some of the medieval and early modern developments that Aston subsumed under the heading "Decay of Shinto. Holtom produced between the s and the end of the Pacific War a valuable series of studies of modern Shinto, particularly those forms that have come to be described as State Shinto. Project MUSE promotes the creation and dissemination of essential humanities and social science resources through collaboration with libraries, publishers, and scholars worldwide. Forged from a partnership between a university press and a library, Project MUSE is a trusted part of the academic and scholarly community it serves. Built on the Johns Hopkins University Campus. This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. Without cookies your experience may not be seamless. The prayer for good harvest in spring and the harvest ceremony in autumn were two major festivals honouring the ujigami. Divination , water purification , and lustration ceremonial purification , which are all mentioned in the Japanese classics, became popular, and people started to build shrines for their kami. People found kami in nature, which ruled seas or mountains, as well as in outstanding men. They also believed in kami of ideas such as growth, creation, and judgment. Though each clan made the tutelary kami the core of its unity, such kami were not necessarily the ancestral deities of the clan. Sometimes kami of nature and kami of ideas were regarded as their tutelary kami. The other view was a two-dimensional one in which this world and the Perpetual Country Tokoyo, a utopian place far beyond the sea existed in horizontal order. Though the three-dimensional view of the world which is also characteristic of North Siberian and Mongolian shamanistic culture became the representative view observed in Japanese myths , the two-dimensional view of the world which is also present in Southeast Asian culture was dominant among the populace. Confucianism , which originated in China, is believed to have reached Japan in the 5th century ce , and by the 7th century it had spread among the people, together with Daoism and yinyang harmony of two basic forces of nature philosophy. Myths of various clans were combined and reorganized into a pan-Japanese mythology with the Imperial Household as its centre. The kami of the Imperial Household and the tutelary kami of powerful clans became the kami of the whole nation and people, and offerings were made by the state every year. Such practices were systematized supposedly around the start of the Taika-era reforms in By the beginning of the 10th century, about 3, shrines throughout Japan were receiving state offerings. A New History of Shinto by John Breen

But it seems more of a conscious exclusion to focus on Shinto as an institutional conservative force associated with right-wing ideologies today, when presumably there's still a lot of quirky local stuff going on that could be talked about. Anyway, that question aside, Breen's writing is remarkably brisk and clear. It's just about a lot of esoteric stuff, full of new Japanese terms that overload the working memory and make the eyes glaze over if you're not invested in that level of detail. The intro and conclusion are quite nice reads though. Just not really what I was looking for which is not surprising--this is more a history than a mythology book, obviously but it fills in some useful context. The other bit I found interesting is that Breen casually dismisses Shinto's reputation as an "ecological" religion as a "fantasy," something that has been attributed to it recently in international perception but not something Shinto priests have historically been cognizant of. He does point out that there is a modern movement among priests managing shrine forests to live up to this new narrative, which is neat. This feels like a question worth a lot more investigation than this off-hand dismissal--surely Shinto is bound up with Japan's complex history of environmental damage and management abroad and on the islands themselves, but I guess that's for another book. Mar 19, Olia rated it it was amazing Shelves: shinbutsu-bunri. In this study John Breen suggest an alternative reading of the Shinto history though actually soome other scientist before also put the term "Shinto" aside Breen takes 1 myth, one sight Mount Hie and one ritual - and study its history: appearance and development, analyzing the changes and the reasons for these changes. Thus much of the book is "exploring the dynamic processes by which kami, sh In this study John Breen suggest an alternative reading of the Shinto history though actually soome other scientist before also put the term "Shinto" aside Thus much of the book is "exploring the dynamic processes by which kami, shrines, rites, and myths became Shinto. Jun 10, Alessia rated it liked it Shelves: , read-in , philosophy. A very interesting look on Shinto, its development and relationship to the society and political world in Japan. Estremely interesting the part in chapter 6 about NAS. Jul 06, S. Shinto is heralded as the indigenous religion of Japan - worshiping of the Sun Goddess and her descendants e. Of course it is much more complicated that that, and Breen goes about unpicking the details and the history of what has become Shinto. After a review of the known history, Breen then concentrates on three specific manifestations of Shinto through specific examples: the history of the Hie shrine, The 'Cave' myth of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu, and the ritua Shinto is heralded as the indigenous religion of Japan - worshiping of the Sun Goddess and her descendants e. After a review of the known history, Breen then concentrates on three specific manifestations of Shinto through specific examples: the history of the Hie shrine, The 'Cave' myth of the Sun Goddess Amaterasu, and the ritual of Daijosai - the rite of imperial accession. Breen also helpfully summaries the book in the conclusion, on the last page There is nothing either natural or inevitable about the spates of invention that have resulted in Shinto as we know it today. We stress, rather, the agency of individual actors at every turn. Indeed what can't help wonder how Christianity has been affected by the similar pressures which made Shinto a 'state religion' - the political, competition with other belief systems, how Christianity may have been molded by its environment. Mar 20, Arianne rated it really liked it Shelves: books-i-own. This is not an introductory book on Shinto, but it is also very different from a simple explanatory essay. It is very critical of its subject, and approaches Shinto in a, as the title suggests, "new way". I liked how it made me reflect on my own perception of other religions and how I was able to learn about Japan history throught the "Shinto lense". Great read, recommended to whoever has an interest in world cultures and religions. If you have read about or already know some of the basis about Shinto, this is good history with an interesting structure - looking at the development of Shinto with a detailed examination of space of the shrine, the tale of Amaterasu in the cave, and the rite of imperial accession. Dec 01, Jessica Zu rated it it was amazing Shelves: ge. TREATING Shinto as a derivative of Shrines, myths, and rituals--the concrete social realities, this is a totally ingenious way to understanding the history of Japanese relations, shintonization as the process of superscribing meaning onto social practices Sriram rated it it was ok May 30, Liam Clancy rated it it was amazing Dec 28, Geoffrey Cohen rated it really liked it Mar 30, Moy2esok rated it liked it Oct 10, Yuri rated it really liked it Mar 10, Moto rated it it was amazing May 17, Sara Sarti rated it liked it Jan 09, Julie DePaulo rated it really liked it Feb 05, Sarah rated it really liked it Jun 15, It was a liturgy of rules and codifications, primarily focused on regulation of religion, government structure, land codes, criminal and civil law. All priests, monks, and nuns were required to be registered, as were temples. The Shinto rites of the imperial line were codified, especially seasonal cycles, lunar calendar rituals, harvest festivals, and purification rites. The creation of the imperial Jingi-kan or Shinto Shrine office was completed. This period hosted many changes to the country, government, and religion. This practice was necessary due to the Shinto belief in the impurity of death and the need to avoid this pollution. New shrines are built and assimilated each time the city is moved. They identified the statue of Viarocana with Amaterasu the sun kami as the manifestation of the supreme expression of universality. The priest Gyogi is known for his belief in assimilation of Shinto Kami and Buddhas. Shinto kami are commonly being seen by Buddhist clergy as guardians of manifestation, guardians, or pupils of Buddhas and bodhisattvas. With the introduction of Buddhism and its rapid adoption by the court in the 6th century, it was necessary to explain the apparent differences between native Japanese beliefs and Buddhist teachings. One Buddhist explanation saw the kami as supernatural beings still caught in the cycle of birth and rebirth reincarnation. The kami are born, live, die, and are reborn like all other beings in the karmic cycle. However, the kami played a special role in protecting Buddhism and allowing its teachings of compassion to flourish. For example, he linked Amaterasu the sun kami and ancestor of the Imperial family with Dainichi Nyorai , a central manifestation of the Buddhists, whose name means literally "Great Sun Buddha". In his view, the kami were just Buddhas by another name. From the eighth century onward up until the Meiji era , the kami were incorporated into a Buddhist cosmology in various ways. In this, they could be either hongaku , the pure spirits of the Buddhas, or honji suijaku , transformations of the Buddhas in their attempt to help all sentient beings. There was no theological study that could be called "Shinto" during medieval and early modern Japanese history, and a mixture of Buddhist and popular beliefs proliferated. At that time, there was a renewed interest in "Japanese studies" kokugaku , perhaps as a result of the closed country policy. The attempt was largely unsuccessful; however, the attempt did set the stage for the arrival of State Shinto , following the Meiji Restoration c. Fridell argues that scholars call the period — the "State Shinto period" because, "during these decades, Shinto elements came under a great deal of overt state influence and control as the Japanese government systematically utilized shrine worship as a major force for mobilizing imperial loyalties on behalf of modern nation-building. The Meiji Restoration reasserted the importance of the Emperor and the ancient chronicles to establish the Empire of Japan , and in the government attempted to recreate the ancient imperial Shinto by separating shrines from the temples that housed them. During this period, numerous scholars of kokugaku believed that this national Shinto could be the unifying agent of the country around the Emperor while the process of modernization was undertaken with all possible speed. The psychological shock of the American " Black Ships " from the Perry Expedition and the subsequent collapse of the shogunate convinced many that the nation needed to unify in order to avoid being colonized by outside forces. In , a Ministry of Rites jingi-kan was formed and Shinto shrines were divided into twelve levels with the Ise Shrine dedicated to Amaterasu, and thus symbolic of the legitimacy of the Imperial family at the peak and small sanctuaries of humble towns at the base. The following year, the ministry was replaced with a new Ministry of Religion, charged with leading instruction in " shushin " moral courses. As part of the Great Promulgation Campaign , priests were officially nominated and organized by the state, and they instructed the youth in a form of Shinto theology based on the official dogma of the divinity of Japan's national origins and its Emperor. However, this propaganda did not succeed, and the unpopular Ministry of Rites was dissolved in the mids. In , the Meiji government designated 13 religious movements that were neither Buddhist nor Christian to be forms of " Sect Shinto ". Although the government sponsorship of shrines declined, Japanese nationalism remained closely linked to the legends of foundation and emperors, as developed by the kokugaku scholars. In , the Imperial Rescript on Education was issued, and students were required to ritually recite its oath to "offer yourselves courageously to the State" as well as to protect the Imperial family. During the U. This both enshrined freedom of religion in Japan and initiated the separation of church and state , a measure designed to eradicate "state Shinto" kokka shinto. In the post-war decades, many Japanese blamed Shinto for encouraging the militaristic policy which had resulted in defeat and occupation. Critics brought the case to court, claiming it contravened the constitutional separation of church and state; in the high court ruled that the city administration's act had been unconstitutional. Shinto has also spread abroad to a limited extent, and a few non-Japanese Shinto priests have been ordained. A relatively small number of people practice Shinto in America. There are several Shinto shrines in America. Shrines were also established in Taiwan and Korea during the period of Japanese imperial rule , but following the war, they were either destroyed or converted into some other use. The film director Hayao Miyazaki of Studio Ghibli for instance acknowledged Shinto influences on his creation of films such as Spirited Away. Shinto is primarily found in Japan, although the period of the empire it was introduced to various Japanese colonies and in the present is also practiced by members of the Japanese diaspora. Most Japanese people participate in several religious traditions. Most of the Japanese attend Shinto shrines and beseech kami without belonging to an institutional Shinto religion. Thus, "Shinto membership" is often estimated counting only those who do join organised Shinto sects. Japanese migrants established several shrines in Brazil. In the early twentieth century, and to a lesser extent in the second half, Shinto was depicted as monolithic and intensely indigenous by the Japanese State institution and there were various state induced taboos influencing academic research into Shinto in Japan. The result of this practice was to depict the actual history of a dynamic and diverse set of beliefs interacting with knowledge and religion from mainland China as static and unchanging formed by the imperial family centuries ago. Part of his analysis is that this obfuscation was a cloak for Japanese ethnic nationalism used by state institutions especially in the Meiji and post war era to underpin the Japanese national identity. From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. Redirected from History of Shintoism. Polytheistic religion from Japan. For other uses, see Shinto disambiguation. Main article: Kami. Main articles: Amenominakanushi and Japanese creation myth. Main article: Shinto shrine. Main article: Harae. Main article: State Shinto. Brian Bocking. A Popular Dictionary of Shinto. Routledge, A Concept Takes Shape. Japanese Religion 1st ed. Study Group of Shinto Culture. Tokyo: International Cultural Workshop Inc. Journal: Contemporary Religions in Japan. Durham N. New York Times. Archived from the original on 11 April Retrieved 1 February The Shapers Of Japanese Buddhism 1st ed. Tokyo, Japan: Kosei Publishing Co. The Invention of Religion in Japan. University of Chicago Press. Statistical Yearbook of Japan. Retrieved August 25, Bocking, Brian A Popular Dictionary of Shinto revised ed. Richmond: Curzon. Philosophy East and West. Journal of Religion and Film. Honolulu: University of Hawai'i Press. Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. Byron Japanese Religion: Unity and Diversity fourth ed. Belmont, CA: Wadsworth. Shinto: A History. Oxford: Oxford University Press. On Understanding Japanese Religion. Translated by James C. Dobbins and Suzanne Gay. Journal of Japanese Studies. In Nobutaka Inoue ed. Shinto: A Short History. Translated by Mark Teeuwan and John Breen. London and New York: Routledge. A Year in the Life of a Shinto Shrine. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press. In Norman Anderson ed. The World's Religions fourth ed. Leicester: Inter-Varsity Press. Westport and London: Greenwood. Historical Dictionary of Shinto second ed. Lanham: Scarecrow Press. The World's Religions second ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. A Concept Takes Shape". Averbuch, Irit Asian Folklore Studies. Blacker, Dr. Carmen Archived from the original on Confucianism , which originated in China, is believed to have reached Japan in the 5th century ce , and by the 7th century it had spread among the people, together with Daoism and yinyang harmony of two basic forces of nature philosophy. Myths of various clans were combined and reorganized into a pan- Japanese mythology with the Imperial Household as its centre. The kami of the Imperial Household and the tutelary kami of powerful clans became the kami of the whole nation and people, and offerings were made by the state every year. Such practices were systematized supposedly around the start of the Taika-era reforms in By the beginning of the 10th century, about 3, shrines throughout Japan were receiving state offerings. As the power of the central government declined, however, the system ceased to be effective, and after the 13th century only a limited number of important shrines continued to receive the Imperial offerings. Later, after the Meiji Restoration in , the old system was revived. Buddhism was officially introduced into Japan in ce and developed gradually. Help was therefore offered to kami in the form of Buddhist discipline. By the late 8th century, kami were thought to be avatars incarnations of buddhas enlightened individuals who had attained liberation [ moksha ] from samsara and bodhisattvas buddhas-to-be. Article Contents. 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