S H I N T O

A N C I E N T R E L I G I O N

OF JA P A N

By

WG AST O C M G D I . . N L T . . . . .

L O N D O N

’ C O N ST A B L E {s C O M P A N Y L T D

1 0 A N D 1 2 OR AN G E ST RE E T E I CE ST E R S UAR E W. C L Q . 2

C O N T E N T S

CHAP .

I I N T RO CT ORY . DU ,

11 . GE N ER AL CHAR CT E R OF HI N T O A S ,

I I . M H I YT ,

I v TH E O S . G D ,

THE PRI E STHOO v. D,

WR H v1 O S I . P,

VI I M O RAL I TY AN D P RI TY . U ,

VI N ATI O N AN D I N SP I RATI O N vu I . D I ,

x LAT E R I ST ORY 1 . H ,

T WORKS E A RI N G O N SHI T O E E C E N S L D B ,

SHI N TO : THE AN C I E N T RE LI GI O N O F JAP AN

C H A P T E R I

I NTROD UCT ORY

— Origins The Japanese are in the main 9. con in e n a l a n d t t rac e . Their language physical characteristics Show conclusively that they come N hi from orthern Asia, and geograp cal considera tions indicate that Korea must have be e n their point of embarkation . Indeed a desultory emigration from Korea to Japan continue d into N historical times . When we say orthern Ksia f we exclude China. The racial a finity of the

O f SO Japanese to the Chinese, which we hear

O ‘ ften , really amounts to very little . It is not closer than that which unites the most distantly related members of the I n dO - European family

n of nations . The Japanese themselves have o i i trad tions of their origin , and it is now mpossible to say what form of religion was professed by the A I ’ SHI N To

N n e arliest immigrants . o i ference can be drawn from the circumstance that Sun - worship is

m N - co mon to them with many orth Asiatic races .

The Sun is , or has been , worshipped almost every o f K where . There is distinct evidence a orean but element in Shinto, , with the little that we

n v know of the old ati e religion of that country, anything like a complete comparison is impos sible . Some have recognised a resemblance between Shinto and the old state religion of

la r e l ~ or China, and it is true that both consist g y ff N ature worship . But the two cults di er widely . v o c " A ’ q fi a-u

N a the chief ture deit of the Chinese , nor have y 0 “ , ” Q o fl ; they anything to correspond t their Shangti s more ersonal ruler the univer e. The Sun a: p “ of n is masculine in China , feminine i Jap n . The “ ” a

Sun - goddess takes precedence of the Earth - god “ in Japan , while in China Heaven and Earth M rank above the Sun and oon . Some Chinese traits are to be found in the old Shinto docu ments, but they are of later origin , and are

a l re diy distinguishable from the native element . A few similarities exist between Shinto and the of z a religion of the Ainus Ye o, a sav ge race hi o w ch nce occupied the main island of Japan . But it is reasonable to suppose that in this case 2 IN TRODUCTORY the less civilised nation has borrowed from its more civilised neighbour and conqueror rather c Ai than vice ver sa . It is signifi ant that the nu

fo r God f words , prayer , and of ering, are taken

a from the Ja panese . If the Malay or Polynesi n e wh lement, ich some have recognised in the e Japanese race , has any exist nce , it has left no r trace in eligion . Such coincidences as may be

s s noted between Shinto and oceanic religion , myth and practices are attributable to the like a ction of c ommon causes rather than to inter - communi

n o e cation . The old Shi t ow s little to any out

I t is the i d side source. , on whole, an n ependent

m n o a h h ( elop e t Jap nese t oug . Ey l ' f . t — Sources of Information The Japanese had no writing until the introduction of Chinese learning from Korea early in the fifth century of our era, and the first books which have come down to us date from the beginning of the

‘ One Ko ikz 1 . 7 2 eighth of these , called the j ( ) is said to have been taken down from the lips of a man whose memory was well stored with the — an d old myths traditions of his country . He was

‘ ’ perhaps one of the guild of reciters , whose business it was to recite ‘ ancient words ’ at the

o . ceremony which corresp nds to our coronation. The Kojikfi is a repe rtory of the old myths and 3 SHIN TO

. an d of legends, , in the latter part, the ancient

N ilum i history of Japan . The g , a work of i similar scope, though based more on an ex sting was written literature, produced a few years later It quotes numerous variants of the

religious myths current at this time . There are voluminous and most learn ed commentaries on these two works written by Motoori and Hirata

in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries . For the ritual of Shinto our chief source of informa

Yen i hiki a tion is the g s j , a compilation m de early

in the tenth century . It contains , along with f m minute directions regarding of erings , cere onies, etc a series of the n o'rito (litanies) used in Shinto

worship which are of the highest interest, and of great, though unequal , antiquity .

The above - mentioned authorities give a toler

‘ ably complete account of the old state religion of ’ Japan , sometimes called Pure Shinto, in order to disting uish it fromthe B uddhicised cul t of later

times . Its palmy days may be taken to extend from the seventh to the twelfth century . Shinto, ‘ G ’ literally The Way of the ods, is a Chinese

Ka m fi word , for which the Japanese equivalent is

mick /13 n o . C H A P T E R I I

GE NE R AL C HAR AC TE R O F SHI NT O w o God Ka mi is the rdinary Japanese ord for . I t means primarily above, superior, and is applied

e to many other things b sides deities, such as

’ s e t he ‘ noble , the authoriti s, missus , the hair of the head, the upper waters of a river, the part

'

K o . of Japan near i to , etc Height is in every wi country associated th excellence and divinity , no doubt because the first de itie s were the Sun J and other Heavenly objects . We ourselves speak

‘ ’ of the Most High and use phrases like ‘ G ood ’ Heavens which testify to a personification of the sky by our forefathers . But though Ka mi - cor

’ ‘ God responds in a general way to , it has some

ta l K impor nt imitations . The ami are high , swift,

o n go d , rich , living , but not i finite , omnipotent, or

M a omniscient . ost of them had father and mother, and of some the death is recorded .

e e or-i t e e in Mt h th olog ian, writing S SHIN TO

the latter part of the eighteenth century, says

‘ The term Ka mi is applied in the first pla ce to the va rious de itie s of Hea ven a nd E a rth who a re men tioned in the ancient records a s we ll as to the ir spirits which re side in the shrines where they a re rshi d M r e r not o l uma i s but wo ppe o eov , n y h n be ng , ir s a s s a s a nd e e s s as nd mou a i s b d , be t , pl nt tr , e a nt n , a nd a ll other things wha tsoeve r which de serve to be drea ded a nd reve r e d for the e x tra ordina ry a nd p re mi r e s hic th ss ss a re ca e a mi. e nent pow w h ey po e , ll d K he d mi t for sur a ssi e ss T y nee not be e nen p ng noblen , s s r i Ma li a t a nd e s c ss a o . goodn , or e v eablene l ne gn n

‘ unca nny beings a re a lso ca lled Ka mi if only the y a re the o c s of ra r Am amiwho are huma bje t gene l d ead . ong K n beings I need ha rdly mention fi rst of all the successive s — r e it s o he Mikado with rev e enc be p ken. . T n there have be en nume rous e x a mples of divine huma n e i s ot l n a ie t a nd m d r time s who a thou b ng b h nc n o e n , , l gh not a c b the a i ra a re tr a t d a s c epted y n t on gene lly, e e s a c of his s ra i i in a si rov mce god , e h eve l d gn ty, ngle p ,

r fa mi Amo s a/ i who a re ! not i a o . m v ll ge, ly ng t K hum i s I d ha rdl me ti hu de r in an be ng , nee y n on T n ! mi th n G od he Ja pan ese N a m Ka or e Soundi g !. T re a re a s the ra the ch ca e in Ja a e se l o D gon, E o ! ll d p n Ko- dama or the Tree Spirit! a n d the nd f a rf l a ture s Kami by reason of the ir uncanny a e u n . ’ ‘ The term Ka mi is a pplied in the N iko ngz a nd Ma nyoshiu f I a a i a v to the fruit the ti r a nd the . to ge wol z n g g e , of the ach a nd to the e s u his n c a me s pe , jew l ro nd e k n i he r a re which implied tha t they were Ka m . T e ca e d a mi ma ny ca se s of se a s a nd mounta ins being ll K . 6 GEN ERAL CHARACTER OF SHIN TO

I t is not t ir s iri s ic a r me a The r he p t wh h e nt. wo d was a ie dir c to the s a s or mou i s h uil ppl d e tly , e nta n t e ’ s s a s e i r a fu hi s elve b ng ve y w l t ng .

— — The Kami Be nefice nt . The saying of the old Roman poet that ‘ Fear first made the Gods ’ does not hold good of Shinto . It is rather , as

ca w i G Schiller lled the orsh p of the gods of reece,

‘ Won m dien st i a , a religion insp red by love and gratitude more than by fear . The three greatest

viz d d gods , . the Sun goddess , the Foo go dess , and hona m oc i the ni a Q h (a god of Earth, u vers l pro vider be n e fice n t t m a Y, are all beings, though hey y send a curse when offended hy the neglect of . their worship or an insult to their shrines . Their

hi e wors pp rs come before them with gladness ,

s n addre sing them as fathers , parents , or dear divi e ancestors, and their festivals are occasions of rejoicing. But there are some malevolent or mischievous deities who have to be propitiated

ff r - od a by o e ings . The Fire g , as is natur l in a country where the houses are built of wood an d

con fia rations great g are frequent, is one of these,

- od and, in a lesser degree, the Thunder g and the

- The deity of the Rain storm . latter has , however, good points . He provides trees for the use of humanity, and rescues a m aiden from being devoured by a great serpent. 7 SHIN TO Lafcadio Hearn’s view that Shinto was at one time a religion of ‘ perpetual fear is unsupported J by evidence . — Cla sse s of Ka mi Although the Kami are deficient in several of the attributes of the

God Christian , they possess two essential qualities Without which it would be recog

iz v . nise them as deities at all , , sentiency and

u erhuman . s p “ power The union of these ideas be a ttri may accomplished in two ways, first by buting sense and will to the great elemental

se c n l b objects and phenomena, and o dy y apply in to human and other living bein s ide as of g g i transcendent power derive d from the contempla tion of the mighty forces on whose operation we are daily and hourly dependent for our existence .

We N have therefore two classes of deities, ature

s - q and Man gods, the first being the result of d ifica tion e . personification , the second of It has be en the generally received opinion that the Shinto gods belong to the latter rather than to N the former of these two categories . ine out of ten educated Japanese will declare with perfect sincerity that Shinto is ang e stor- wqrshi Thus D a i oro Goh Mr . g , a former secretary of the Japan ‘

- b Society, says Shinto or ancestor worship eing h ’ the creed of t e ancient inhabitants . The same 8 GEN ERAL CHARACTER OF SHIN TO

a n view is held by some Europe scholars, notably L a nd the late afcadio Hearn , whose interesting

I n te eta tion , — , is greatly valuable work {9p a rm M " PiS marred PXJ’ misconception; It is quite true that there is a large element of ancestor worship in modern Japanese religious practices , but a very little examination shows that a ll th r at n ti ew g e e s ‘ d i e o N r of the older Shint are not Man , but atu e gpd: ‘s Prominent among them we find the deities of

M a n the Sun , the oon , the Earth , the Sea, the R i

n so storm , Fire , Thu der, etc . And when the called ancestors of the Japanese race are not

N - s U e a te l actually ature god , they are sually s thw

N - lites or children of ature gods . In imitation of the Mikados who selecte d the Sun - goddess as their ancestral deity, the hereditary corporations or clans by whom in ancient tim es the Govern was ment of Japan , central and local, carried on , chose for themselves , or perhaps invented . nature

ni deities, or their children or mi sters , as their

- patron gods, to whom special worship was paid . From this to a belief in their descent from him as an ancestor, the transition was easy . The s ame process has been observed in other countries . It was assisted by the habit of addressing the as f n a deity ather or pare t, which , at first e metaphorical expression, came ultimat ly to be 9 SHIN TO

n u derstood in a more literal sense . These pseudo

r U i a mi ancest al deities were called j g , that is to ’ - t say surname deities. In la er times the Ujl gami ceased to be the patron - gods of particular families and became S1mply the local deities of the district one where was born . Children are prese nted to

U i a mi r the j g sho tly after birth, and other impor tant events, such as a change of residence , are : of announced to him . A deity any class may

U i a mi become an j g , and there have been cases

a of Buddha attaining to this position. The , ’ of l in n cult one s rea forefathers, beg ni g with a C deceased parents , s in hina, was hardly known in ancient Japan Indeed there is but little trace of any religious worship of individual men in

Ko ikc N ihon i L the Shinto of the j and g . iving

‘ K S Mikados were styled ami , and poken of as the — Heavenly Grandchild of the Sun goddess . But

shi wa s i l their zq p more t tular than rea . It was much on a par with that of the Pope and

' Emperor who in the Middle Ages were called

‘ Deus in N o miraculous powers were claimed for them beyond a vague gene ral authority over the minor gods of Japan . Deceased Mikados were occasionally worshipped by their descendants, ' — but whether ther e wa s anything in this so called worship to distinguish it from the ordinary funeral 1 0 ' GEN ERAL CHARACTER OF SHIN TO or commemorative services there is nothing to ’ a n d r ituals in show. They had no shrines , no their honour are preserved in the Ye n gishik i collection . At a later period the cult of deceased d ni a h Mikados acquire a more defi te char cter . T ey re were prayed to for rain, to stay curses , to ’ store the Mikado s health , etc . They had shrines

to ff a t wr , erected, them the o erings which e e “ m N - assimilated to those ade to ature deit ies . The

G l v Mikado j in, if we may believe an oracle de i ered

Wa r- od h r by imself, became an impo tant g under

n o the name of Hachima The Empress Jing ,

K a the legendary conqueror of ore , also received

. s divine honours At the pre ent day , solemn services are held periodically in the I mperial

i s Palace for the worsh p of all the dyna ty.

o a Man N r B th c tegories of deities , and atu e

a i c a s gods , h ve three subd visions a cording they are deities of individuals , of classes, or of qualities . All these are exemplified in Shinto.

-

The Sun goddess represents an individual object,“

Kuk uchi od a n d , the g of Trees , a—class , Musubi , a i od G n c t . the g of rowth , a abstE qual ty Tem a e i vid l Ko an e mangu is deifi d ndi ua statesman, y

‘ N ak a tomi represents the clan or family, and Taji kara no wo (hand - strength - male) is a personified human quality. I I SHIN TO — D ev elopment of the Ide a of God The N ature

of i i gods Shinto , as of other rel g ons, are in the first place the actual material objects or pheno

mena regarded as living beings . Sometimes the

personification proceeds no further . There are

Mud and Sand deities which have no sex, and no

mythical record beyond a bare mention . But in the case of others the same progressive hum a nis ‘ ing process that is to be observed elsewhere has

already begun . The Sun is not only the brilliant heavenly being whose retirement to a cave leaves

e the world to darkn ss, she is a queen , a child,

— in and a mother a miraculous fashion . She ~ speaks , weaves , wears armour, sows seed , and does many other things which have nothing to

do with her solar quality . At a still more recent — — stage though not in the old records she be comes an independent personage who rules the

Sun , while with many worshippers at the present

day her solar character is forgotten altogether,

' m e re l as a and she is considered y. great divine ancestor who dwells at Ise and exercises a pro i l v ide n t a guardianship over Japan . This line of development is familiar to us in other mytho

logies, the two stages of thought being often con

’ m st . a Te e founded In Shakespe re s p , Iris is at once the rainbow and an anthropomorphic messenger r:

SHIN TO

Olympus . Their doings are modelled on those

not of living men and women , on those of ghosts .

W z a followe d his z hen I an gi ‘ wife I anami to the land of the dead he found there not a spirit, but

G t a a putrefying corpse . hos s are as bsent from the Kojiki and N ihon gi as they a re from the Old

’ a s Test ment Scriptures . Herbert Spencer s gho t theory of the origin of religion derives no support from the Japanese evidence . There is, however , a spiritual element in Shinto which dema nds

o n tice. Some of the gods are represented as having W (august jewels or fioll l ‘) which M Q - é reside invisibly in their t emples and are the means of communication between Heaven and

K Ohon a this world . The Earth or osmos deity it mochi had a m a m a. (double) which appeared to him a se a in a divine radi nce illuminating the , and obtained from him a promise that, in considera tion of the assistan ce the latter had rendered in the to reducing world order, he should have a

M oro shrine consecrated to him at im . Susa no

’ ‘ ’ I dzum wo s meta ma was settled at Susa in o .

tor/ma nte rs n to the n The element q j j ames hi of several deities . T s implies a more or less

a spiritu l conception of their nature . Sometimes

fmitarna , f , one of a e tle,- —n we hear of two Q w g n other ‘ the of a violent nature. GEN ERAL CHARACTER OF SHIN TO

There are (mly one or two cases of deceased men a m a mita m a having mit . In one of these the takes the shape of a bird Mgta mg rp hose s are frequently mentioned in the old legends . Shek inah — As in the analogous case of the

a i ta ma Shekin h of Juda sm , the doctrine of the mi of gods apparently does not arise from that of

a ul the sep rability of the human so and body . It seems rather to have been' invented in order to smooth over the difficul ty of conceiving how the

“ gods of Heaven c a n exercise their po wer and

a t hear and nswer prayer in heir shrine s on earth . i It may, however, owe someth ng to the notion of t separa e human souls , which , though we do not

d m a find it in the ol er Japanese records , is fa ili r

a to races of a much lower degree of civilis tion . — M orta lity of the Soul This doctrine is nowhere directly taught in the Shinto books . There is a land of Yomi to which we are told

o that some of the g ds retired at death . It is represented as inhabited by various pe rsonifica tions of death and disease , but not by human beings or their ghosts , though the phrase even

’ a cilis descen su s A ver /rift pass of Yomi , like the f , e x rgss the seems intended t”o fl p facility with which au n all r wa we mo tal men find our y thither . In one —fi v a n a g the N ikon i p ssa e of g , Yomi is clearly no more I S SHIN TO

n 1119 311 91 ?? t tha a 91 grave . A brother of

Jimmu Tenno, the first Mikado , is said to have L ’ gone to the Eternal and at his death , and in Man oshiu a poem of the y , a deceased Mikado is

a said to have scended into heaven . The pre historic custom of sacrificing wives and atten dants at the tombs of dead sovereigns may be thought to imply a belief in their continued existence . But there are other motives for this practice than the wish to gratify the deceased by providing him with companions in the other

n orito r world . The or ituals contain no reference to the immortality of the soul . — Shintai The mita m a is represented in the shrine by a concrete object terme d the Shintai

‘ ’ - mirro God . r a or body It may be a , _ sword, a

’ a tablet with the god s n me , a pillow, a spear , etc .

A round stone, which is cheap and durable, is a

od very common Shintai . The g is sometimes represented as attaching himself to the Shintai, an d may be even considered identical with it by

mita ma ehin ta fi the ignorant . The and are fre quently confounded . The latter was in many ff i hi cases originally an o er ng w ch, by long asso cia tion c ul , ame timately to be looked upon as

in i partaking some measure of the d vine nature. — W I dols ith a few unimportant exceptions, 1 6 N I GE N E RAL CHARACTER OF SHI TO

Shinto has no idols . The Shintai is not in the thr s ds least an o imo . The picture of the go - — c g rphic w M “ sold at shrines a t the present day are due to C hinese or Buddhist influence . — Functions of Gods The two great cla sses of

N - M - deities , ature gods and ang ods , have a ten deney mutually to encroach on each other ’s

n ass1m1 functio s , so that ultimately they become

1 1 1 3 1 K lated under the 953 8 2 32 term ami. As we

e e Sun - e hav se n above, the godd ss does not confine

. herself to her function as a giver of light and

r heat , but does many things cha acteristic of a

wo magnified human being. Susa no , the Rain

d n H e e . e storm , provi es ma kind with us ful tr es

c and his wife are regarded as gods of wedlo k.

G - od r Inari , the rain g , is a comprehensive answe er of prayer from a petition for a good harvest to

oi one for the restoration \ stolen property . On

m a n the other hand, a genuine deified like

Te mma n u m a ‘ se n d i g y ra n in time of drought. An o Suite n u obscure deity, kn wn as g , is wor

‘ shipped in Tok io at the present day as a prote ctor sea against the perils of the , burglary , and the

n . Ka pains of parturitio Almost any mi, whatever o his rigin , may send ram , bestow prosperity in r t ade, avert sickness , cure sickness or sterility, and on s m o so , without much di cri inati n of function. B 1 7 C H A P T E R I I I

— Chara cte r of Jap ane se Myth Japanese myth covers much the same ground as the myths of t We o her countries . have the explanatory myth , invented in order to account for some custom or e rite, some natural phenom non, a name of a place s hi hl or per on, etc . There is an abundance of g y ,

a - frivolous , revolting, childish , and unme ning to — s n us at least matter, and the various ver io s of m the stories which have co e down to us. are often wholly inconsistent with one another» From the sketch of the mythical narrative which is given o h c bel w, many details of t is des ription have

s nece sarily been omitted . There are , however, two leading ideas by which Japanese myth is redeemed from summary condemnationas a mere farrago of childish nonsense . In the first place, it is p rmeate by the cg n cep tion of the se - called e d. as be n n re a y t mammate universe i g n i m lit ins inct li with sentient fe . The old Shintoists had not 1 8 MYTH graspe d the more general and philosophic notion of the Immanence of Daisy things, With their limited scientific knowle dge this was im possible . But they had the same idea in a more

a . desultory, fragmentary wy To them , the Sun , Sea Ka mi ul the Wind, the , were who co d hear al and answer prayer, and exercise a providenti care over mankind . But of these and other aspects of nature a n d humanity into i one divine whole is n ece sarily wan tng . The ‘ s second idea which m sPire s Japanese myth corre spon ds to our European notion of the rig ht of kings , which , apart from the accident of b heredity , is not such a negligi le quantity as is

re re sometimes supposed . The Mikados are p

e . a s sented as d riving their authority , whether

- high priests or sovereigns , from their ancestor,

- s the Sun goddes , and have therefore , a divinely to the reverence and obedience of their subjects There is no summer and winter myth in the old records, no deluge myth , and no eclipse myth . ne The stars are strangely glected . Earthquakes e ni are hardly notic d . There is no Retur ng

Saviour myth , and no Journey of the Dead,

’ though the ex pressions ‘ Even Pass of Hades

Ya so - kwma de - - and (eighty road windings, an alter I 9 SHIN TO native word for the lan d of Darkness) suggest” was n The that this idea not unknow . creation of mankind generally is not a cc ount d f r ; but e n ‘q the origin of many of the ruling caste is ascribed i s en to d rect de c t from the principal divinities, just as the Mikado is said to be descended from

- the Sun goddess . — First Gods Four different first gods are men tion e d N n by the various authorities . o e of these

‘ a e ever att in d to much importance . They were no doubt coll ected or iny e nted with the purpose of eking out a genealogical tree for the greater

n . s divi ities who came afterwards One of the e ,

' me tri K called Ame yudzwru h7. a sa g u n i

K n t - n o sa 13 71. ten ki a m e 7/ d g , describ d as

the Heavenly Parent . But we knownothing — — more about him or her the sex is doubtful a n d it is impossible to regard this interminable title od as the name of a real g , any more than we can

’ think that Shakespeare s he m myte a bttttu dta tta

tiba s was ever meant for a genuine word . The e derivation , however, sh ws that this, like the

e n - other first gods, was intend d as a ature deity . The four generations which follow consist of e obscure personages , all of whom disappear at onc

are su e s from the record . Their names , too, gg e tive of . nature, and more esp cially agriculture 2 0

SHIN TO in the most literal sense ; second , as reducing to M e as u ga be . ord r ; and third , growth ( )

‘ The two iti s avi sc O no oro - ima de ”e h ng de ended on g j ere cted there a n e ight- fa thom house with a n a ugust ra i a r e I a a i a re ss I a a mi sa i e . c nt l p ll Th n z n g dd ed z n , y ng, “ L e t me a nd t o u the h a a u st i a r hee g ro nd e venly ug p ll , a n d ha i me t a t the r si us com it v ng” othe de, let be e un ed n c is i a r to sai D c th i . u o wedlo k Th be ng g eed , he d, o g” ro fr m the ft a nd I wi o rou fr m the ri ht und o le , ll g nd o g . h th ha d r u I a a mi s rst a nd W en ey gone o nd, z n poke fi x c aime d i tfu I ha m e t a e l ”d, How el gh l ve lovely u h I a a i th sa i i htfu I ha me t yo t . z n g en d, How del g l ve “ mei Af r a r s he sa i I t wa u a o e . s uc l v ly den te w d d, nl ky f h ma s a rst Th chi w i h or t e wo n to pe k fi . e ld h c was the first offspring of their union Wa s the Hiruko (leech c i ic a t the a e of thr wa s s i u a to h ld), wh h g ee t ll n ble s a u ri ht a nd wa s th e f r a c in a e - a t nd p g , er o e pl ed re d bo t ’ and sent a drift .

Izanagi and Izanami then procreated the islands of Japan with a number of other gods , among

f I ha - tsu chi- biko - - whom were (rock earth prince),

Oho- a - bilco - s - - y (great hou e prince), the Wind gods ,

Ame n o Miku ma frfi a variety of marine deities ,

od (the heavenly water distributor) , the g of Moors

o od G (who is als the g of Herbs and rasses) , the

d of V o s , , g _ Tree the gods of Mountains and alleys a and the goddess of Foo d . The l st deity to be

' f od Ka u - tsu cht produced was the g of Fire , g , also

Ho - musu bi - called (Fire growth) , In giving birth 2 2 MYTH

him z was so to , I anami burnt that she sickened a e n e and lay down . From her vomit, f ec s , and uri were born deities which pe rsonify the elements of

z i in e tal . , water, and clay When I anami d ed ,

z a r I anagi , in his grief and r g e, drew his swo d and

l K - s ew agu tsuchi , thereby generating a number of

- a other deities, two of whom , named Take mik

utsunushi r c tsuchi and F , we e favourite obje ts of worship 1n later times . The creation of the Sun and Moo n is variously

o accounted for. S me say that they were the

i z z ch ldren of I anagi and I anami , others that they were born frpm the lustrations of Iza nagi when

. ir s he returned from Yomi A th d child , Su a no ’ wo o un n - od , the b isterous and m Rai storm g , was i produced at the same t m e . When Izanami died she went to the Land of was d Yomi, whither she followed by her husban But as she had already eaten of the food of that region , he could not bring her back with him .

She forbade him to look on her, but he persisted and saw that she was already a putrid corpse . Izanami then complain ed that he had put her to him shame, and caused to be pursued by the Ugly Females of Hades and other pe rson ifica tions u of corr ption and disease who dwelt there . She i s za herself had become Death per onified . I nag , 2 3 SHIN TO

u d own ' va rious in his flight, fl ng obj ects which — delayed his pursuers a well - kn own incident — of myth until he reached the Even Pass of

o Hades , where he pronounced the formula f divorce .

' Whe n Izanagi returne d to earth he bathed in the se a in order to remove the pollution incurred

to m n by his visit Yo i, and in so doi g produced a

- number of deities , some of whom are Ocean gods and others associated with the ancient Japanese

s r ceremonies of religiou pu ification.

n t - — Susa no wo a d he Sun Godde ss. Susa no wo

(the Rain - storm god) was at first appointed to rul e

his the Sea, but he preferred to join mother,

z c l I anami, in Hades , and was a cording y de

Sp a tche d thither by his father . Before taking his departure, however, he ascended to heaven e t to take leave of his eld r sis er Amaterasu , the

- s an d Sun goddes . All the mountains rivers shook, and every land and country quaked as he passed

d . e upwar s Amaterasu, in alarm , arm d herself as e a warrior with sword and bow, stamp d her feet

u u . into the hard gro nd p _ to her thighs, kicking n away the earth like rotten snow, and, co fronting him i m an l ke a valiant , challenged him to declare

u . wo the reason of his coming. S sa no protested of that it was only a friendly visit , and as a proof 2 4 MYTH his good intentions proposed that they should pro duce children between them by each one crunching in his mouth and Spurting out fragments of the sword and jewels worn by the other . One of the

was Ma ea ! children thus born called ya. a. ea ten ka chi ha a hi a m n o oshihomifmfi f th y , the fore a er e of the present Imperial dynasty . There wer seven others who figure largely in the genealogies of the Japanese nobility .

B ut the true nature of the Rain - storm god wa s

’ not long repressed He destroyed his sister s rice

fie lds de file d , the sacred hall where she was cele bra tin g the harvest festival, and flung a piebald colt that had been flayed backwards into the s e - r the acred w aving room where the ga ments of .

o Sun - ha d g ds were woven . The goddess borne his previous outrages with ca lmness and forbear a ? ance , but this last (a malicious magic l practice ) was be yond endurance . She retired in disgust

R - and shut herself up in the ock cave of Heaven , leaving the world to darkness . This proceeding of Amaterasu was followed by dire results . The voices of the evil deities were like unto the flies the e in fifth moon as they swarm d, and a myriad

1D n portents of woe arose . The gods , conster ation, held an assembly 111 the dry be d of the River of He aven (the Milky Way) to devise means for 2 5 SHIN TO inducm e g her to emerge from the cave, and a numb r of expedients were adopted which were evidently borrowed from the ritual of the time when the myth became current The deities who were spe ci ally concerned with this duty are obvious counter

’ of ffi s the parts the actual o cial of Mikado s Court,

- - ff . and included a prayer reciter, an o ering provider,

- - a mirror maker, a jewel maker, a diviner , with

— r according to some accounts many othe s . All this is most convenient for the ge nea logists of n . e e later times Amaterasu at le gth reapp ar d, to

s wo the great delight of everybody. Su a no was fined in a thousand tables of offerings and ex ll e ed . p from Heaven Before proceeding to Yomi , he went down to Earth . Here he appears in a totally new chara cter as the Perseus of a Japanese e e Andromeda, whom he rescu s from a hug ser o t . pent, having firs intoxicated the m nster Of ceurse they are married and have numerous

dr a - - - . d chil en Her name, In da hime (rice land la y), is probably not without significance as that of the

- od o wife of a Rain storm g . Another story repr

- sents him as the murderer of the Food goddess, who had offended him by producing viands for his entertainment from various parts of her body. But a different version ascribes this crime to the

“

- s Moon god , and gives it as the rea on why the 2 6 MYTH

S un - goddess refused to have a ny further relations two with him . This , of course , explains why the

1 e luminar es are not s en together .

n o twith Here it may be pointed out that, standing the anthropomorphic character o f many of the - above details it is evidently the sun itself

hi - w ch is concealed in the Rock cave . Modern

fa r Euhemerists deny this . But the evidence is d e too strong to be disregarde Her nam s , Ama te ra su (Heaven Shining- one) and Hirum e (Sun female), are conclusive on this point . The modern

Motoori n commentator agrees , or rather maintai s, that Am aterasu is the very sun which we see in heaven . Those Japanese who in the twentieth century talk of the imperial visit to Ise as ancestor - worship are sorely puzzled to j ustify their position . Imbued with the philosophy of

Ch e ina and the scienc of Europe , they naturally find it difficult to understand how the Mikado can be really descended from the sun. Some resort to the Euhemeristic theory that she was a mortal Empress who lived in a plac e on earth

Tak a nna - ofa hi h- called no hara (plain g heaven), and speak of rice - culture and the art of weaving being known in her reign .

The myth of the Sun - goddess and Susa no wo is the central pivot on which the old mythology 2 7 SHIN TO

e be r e a turns . All that prec des may rega d d as sort ea of gen logical introduction, and the subsequent

de n to om le te th , g narrative as an epilogue sig ed _ p e connexion between the living Mikadosa nd their

al celesti ancestor. — ’ Ohonamochi One of Susa no wo s children was an E arth - god name d Ohon am ochi (great

- name possessor), who is at this day a , very

Ko iki a d important deity. The j relates his d ventures a t great length . He was ba ly treated ‘ e by his eighty elder brothers , but assist d by a hare to whom he had rendered service . He went down to the land of Yomi, where he married the

wo u wo i daughter of Susa no . S sa no mposed

’ tasks upon him which by his wife s assistan ce he d s performe succes fully, and ultimately made his

him . escape , taking her with The Yomi of this narrative has little that is characteristic of the

b Ohonam ochi a ode of the Dead . is frequently ’ refe rre d o God t as the who made the land, and

- o his various names show that he is an Earth g d. ‘ He wa sassisted in reducing the country to order

mita ma - od by his own or double , and by a dwarf g called Suk un a - bik on a who came from beyond the sea and is credited .W1th having instructed man kind in the arts of medicine and brewing. Ohona m ochi had a numerous progeny by various 2 8

SHIN TO

s a a Ho no Su ori, became fisherm n , the second son ,

Hohode mi , a hunter .

’ Ho no Susori once proposed to his brother to n h exchange their respective calli gs . Ho ode mi accordingly gave over to his elder brother his

fi - bow and arrows and receive d . a sh hook in

return . But neither of them profited by the

exchange, so Ho no Susori gave back to his . brother the bow and arrows and ‘ demanded from

him the fish- hook Hohode mi ha in , however, d the meantime lost t00k h1 it in the sea. He s sword and forged from

it a number of new fish- hooks which ! he piled up in a winnowing tray and offered to his brother by

way of compensation . But the latter would have his none but own , and demanded it so vehemently

Hohode mi H of as to grieve him bitterly . oho demi went down to the sea - shore and stood th”ere n lamenti g , when there appeared to him the Old

Man of the Sea, by whose advice he descended

into the sea- depths to the abode of the god of the t Sea, a stately palace with lofty towers and ba tle B ments . efore the gate there was a well , and

the we ll i k - "over . grew a th c branching cassia tree ’ Hohode mi - into which climbed. The Sea god s

daughter Toyo - tama - hime (rich -jewel - maiden) t then came out from the palace to draw wa er. 30 MYTH

’ saw Hohodemi s a e She f ce reflect d in the well, ” and re turning within reported to her father that she had seen a beautiful youth in the tree which

Hohode mi s grew by the well. was courteou ly

d - od - - hi receive by the Sea g , Toyo tama ko (rich

- jewel prince), who, when he heard his errand , summoned before him all the fishes of the sea

fish - and made inquiry of them for the lost hook , which was eventually discovered in the mouth of

Ta i - - the . Toyo tama hiko delivered it to Hoho his demi , telling him when he gave it back to

t sa bro her to y, a hook of poverty, a hook of ruin , ’ a hook of downfall, to spit twice , and to hand it over with averted face .

’ Hohode mi married the Sea - god s daughter

Toyo - tama - hime and remained with her for three

'

He - years . then became home sick and returned to the upper world . On the beach where he

his came to land , he built for wife , who was soon to follow, a parturition house which he thatched ’ ll with cormorant s feathers . The roofing was sti . unfinished when she arrived , riding on a great tortoise . She went straight into the hut, begging

’ B ut Hohode mis her husband not to look at her . cun os1t y was too strong for him . He peeped in and behold ! his wife had become changed into a

n i - wa (sea dragon) eight fathoms long . Deeply 3 1 SHIN TO

d the in ignant at disgrace put upon her, Toyo tama - hime abandoned her new - born child to the s e care of her ister, and barring b hind her the sea path in such a way that from that da y to this all communication be tween t he realms of land and has off sea been ( cut , returned hastily to her ’ father s pa lace. ’ Hohode mis troubles with his elder brother

a were renewed on his arriv l home. He was obliged to use against hiin two talisman s given

a - in - him by his f ther law . One of these had the virtue of making the tide flow and submerge Ho no Susori and thus compel ‘ him to sue for mercy (another account says that Hohode mi whistled

a and thereby r ised the wind and the sea) . Then by a second talisman the tide was made to recede

’ Ho usori s and no S life was spared . He yielded complete submission to his younger brother and promised that he and his descen dants to all generations would serve Hohode mi and his suc ce ssors as mimes and bondservants The N ihon gi adds that in that day it wa s still customary for the Hayato (or Imperial guards), who were

a descended from Ho no Susori, to perform mimic dance before the Mikados, the descendants and Hohode mi hi successors of , in w ch the drowning struggles of their ancestor we re represented. l 32 MYTH

There are several features in this story which betray a recent origin and foreign influences . A comparatively advanced civil isation is indicated ~

fi h- by the sword and s hook forged of iron . The institution of the Hayato as Imperia l Guards belon s to a period not very lon antecedent to g , g the date of the N ik on gi and Kojiki. The palace of

- - the sea depths and its Dragon king are of Chinese, and therefore of recent origin .

’ One of Hohode mis grandchildren was Jimmu Tenn o who is usually reckoned the first human so ve re l n g of Japan . He was the youngest of four brothers and his selection as heir shows that primogeniture, though to some extent acknow n t the ledged in A cien Japan , was by no means

i r d un ve sal rule. At the age of forty five he starte

Kiushiu ha from , which d been the home of the N Imperial family since inigi descended there, on an expedition for the conquest of the central

. t part of Japan, known as Yamato This even B C 7 470 . . 66 is dated in , years after the N a fi descent of inigi from he ven . He nally suc

d is B ce e ed . C in e stablishing h capital . there in . 0 is 66 . From this date Japanese history usually n said to begi . In reality there is no genuine history ofJapan for one thousand years more . The chronology for all this period is a colossal fraud C 33 SHIN TO and there is abundant intrinsic evidence tha t the narrative itself is no better than legend when it is

s e to not ab olut fiction. There is, however, much be learned from it of the beliefs a nd custom s of the ancient Japanese . The descent of the Imperial dynasty from a Sea - god has been note d as an auspicious omen for the development of Japan as a great naval C H A P T E R I V

THE e ons

N AT URE- G ODS or I N DI VI DUALS AN D or Cu ssns

SOME of the principal gods have already be en in Le t introduced the preceding chapter . us a now consider them separately, ccording to the n classification already i dicated (p. It is often difficult to say whether a nature - god re pre an di ob sents in vidual ject or phenomenon , or a class . This is chiefly owing to the circumstance

n s l h - s n u that Japa e e , ike ot er Far Ea tern la g ages, habitually neglects the distinction between the sm ul ar a n d t e g h plural number . The idea of making verbs and adjectives agree in number with the substantives to which they belong does

to an d not seem have occurred to these nations , ,

n n n a n d ronouris eve in the case of ou s p , plural a v p rticles are ery sparingly used . Ya/ma n o

Ka mi Godof , for example, may mean either the God G ! Mountain , of Mountains, ods of the Moun G n tain , or ods of Mountai s .

- - - Amaterasu Sun Godde ss. T e , the h Sun god 35 SHIN TO

s i e b i v z. d ss elongs unm takably to the first class , ,

of i I s that ind vidual objects personified. She much the most prominent member of the Shinto

Pantheon, and is described as the Rul er of

a l Heaven and unriv l ed in dignity . She wears

a n d royal insignia, is surrounded by a court . The chief religious ceremony of state was in he r honour. Yet she is not what we should call a

. e Supreme Deity She is by no m ans an autocrat . s Even in heaven , which she is suppo ed to govern, there is a Council of the Gods which dec ides m important atters . In some myths she has a

d e Ta ker musu bfi od G o formi abl rival in , a g of r wth. The ascription of the female sex to the deity of the Sun has more meaning than might be sup W a posed . omen held far more important and independent position in ancient Japan than they did at a later time when Chinese ideas ‘of their subjection be came prevalent . Several of the n C ancient Mikados were wome . Old hinese — ’ books call Japan the Q ueen country. Women n chieftains are frequently mentio ed . Some of the most important monuments of the old litera ture were the work of women. G G e Like . the Sun ods of ancient re ce and e Egypt, Amaterasu poss sses a sacred bird, the

Ya ta a ra su . g , or eight hand crow An old Japanese 36

SHIN TO come down from heaven in a heavenly rock

. of boat , and to have become the chieftain of one

the . trib m a e s b J o. subdued y immu Tenn He y,

a however, have been a hum n being named as a compliment afte r the Sun . This proceeding is

11} i r not unknown Japanese h sto y . But I rather

od suspect that he is a real Sun g . Then there

u 2 2 first- is the Hir ko mentioned at p . as the born

N ow of all the deities . Hiruko , though written

r - with Chinese characte s which mean leech child ,

- - may also mean Sun male child , and this is i obviously its proper meaning . The H ruko was a male Sun ~de ity who afterwards became obso a lete . For some unknown re son Hiruko has been identified with a popular modern deity

to named Yebisu , who has all appearance nothing i to do w th either the sun or the le ech . He is pictured as an angler with a fish dangling at the

' e ha s e end of his lin . He a smiling count nance an d old wears Japanese costume . Merchants m pray to hi for success in trade. At the present day the title Amaterasu no oho - kami (the great deity who illumines heaven) is generally replaced by its Chinese equival ent

T n r e shodaijin . The meaning of the latte is less c a e le r to the uneducat d , who forget that she

h S u - o t e . n has any c nnection with sun worship , 38 THE GODS ‘

wo an d d e . however , procee s indep ndently men children especially call it by the respectful name

‘ O te n to without a ttribu tion of sama , of sex , with u e no formal c lt, and no myth , but endow d with al re mor attributes , punishing the wicked and

Griffis warding the Dr. describes a scene e which he witnessed in Tokio when , lat one O te n to i afternoon, sama, wh ch had been hidden behind clouds for a fortnight, shone out on the

a muddy streets . In moment scores of people u r shed out of their houses , and with faces west ward began pra yer and worship before the great luminary . Many pe ople keep awake all night on the last day of the year so as to worship the

N e w rising sun on the first day of the Year .

- - Ts Tsuk i om . The i uki y i Sun being fem nine ,

- o a t . yomi, the mo n deity , is n urally masculine

s Though he has shrines at Ise and other place , he occupies a far less prominent place in Japanese myth and cult than his elder sisterAmaterasu . — Susa no wo . The true character of this deity had been forgotten by the Japanese themselves

wa s until he shown by an American scholar, k . Chic Dr Buc ley of ago, to be a personification

- e of the Rain storm . The generally acc pted etymology of his name derives it from a verb sued/mu s l , to be impetuou . This accords wel 39 SHIN TO with his character as desor1bed in the Koj t k'i ho C N i n . . . and gi. Mr B H hamberlain translates ’ by the Impetuous Male , and he may be correct . But there is a town in I dzumo called Susa where

a n d this god had a shrine , it seems possible that it was from this that he took his na me .

St ar - Go t t ds are few and unimpor an in Shinto .

E art - wor - o f h ship . The direct worship the

- l Earth is well known in a apan . At the present day, when a new building is erected or new

c - ri e land brought under cultivation , the ground is solemnly propitiated by a ceremony called

i- - rs L J matsuri or earth wo hip . ocalities were per sonifie d under names which recall Erin , Britannia ,

e tc K Dea Roma, . Such deities were called uni

c t . dama , oun ry or province spirit The greatest

e of th se , and one of the three greatest gods of o hi K Ohon am c . Shinto, is His shrine at itsuki in I dzumo is known as the Taisha or great shrine, and he has numerous other shrines , called

n o the . Sa n or Hiye , in all parts of country In his case the de ifica tion has proceeded beyond the

L re re m ere personification of the soil . egend p

him . sents as the maker of the land , not the land itself, and in modern times nobody thinks

- od of him as an Earth g . His various names, l however, - show conclusive y that he is as much 40 THE GODS

’

- i G G an earth de ty as the reek aia, who , like him ,

’ La was one shape of many names . fcadio Hearn

him be od of would make out to the g the dead ,

' though there are already two othe r rule rs of

s . Hade , and Dr Buckley thinks that he is a

- d Ohon a m ochi e Moon go . With ther is associated

m o Ko to shiro his inister, an imp rtant deity named

* - a dwa rf. od Suk una bik on a nushi , and g , , who is di credited with the invention of me cine, magic,

n and the art of brewi g sake .

- o d Asuha an r Another Earth g is , obscu e per son a e to the g , who is supposed be the deity of r courtya d. Mud , sand, and clay are deified under

‘ Uhi ini Suhi ini - the names of j , j , and Hani yasu

i - s h me , the last name meaning clay ea y (in the

a sense of pl stic) lady . Clay was deified because it supplied the material for the domestic cooking na fur ce, a defence against the encroaches of that unruly power, fire .

- - t Mountain Gods. Most mountains have heir h deity , w ich is sometimes conceived of as the

e o d mountain its lf, at others as a g of the moun

‘ tain . Mountain gods do not take high rank in h e the S into Panth on . They were propitiated l for , bui din before trees were cut g purp oses .

E arth ua k e - s q God are little heard of. But any od ff g might cause an earthquake if o ended . 4 1 SHIN TO

- — - Sea Gods. The chief Sea gods of Shinto are

Sok otsu - - dzumi - - N wata (bottom sea body), akatsu

- dz a m m dl - - o Uha tsu - W wata i ( id e sea b dy), and ata dzumi - se a - e e (upper body), thr e deities produc d

’ from Izanagi s ablutions in the sea when he re l turned from Hades . They are a so represented as forming one deity . So that we have here an — — example Hot the only one of a Japanese

‘ n Tri ity. They have a famous shrine at Sumi

a re yoshi near Osaka, and much prayed to for w safety from shipwreck and for fair inds .

- od To ota ma e Another Sea g , y hiko, has b en a lready mentioned above (p .

River - Gods are represented a s dragons or

re serpents . The semblance of a river with its r its winding serpentine cou se, and mysterious

l to e motion without egs , a great serp nt, has

s . struck mankind in many countrie The Chinese, the Mexicans, and the Semitic nations concur m associating water with the serpent . It is mostly the m ale fice n t aspect of rivers that is

n Ja a ne se thus symbolised . There are traditio s in p

m . llegend of hu an sacrifices to rivers

- - - Rain Gods. Special Rain gods are mentioned in the old myths, but in practice any deity might be appealed to for. aid in time of drought. — a Wells. There are s cred wells from which 42 THE GODS

, a i The the water required in s cr fice was drawn. water itself was made a female deity under the

Midz u ha . name of no me At the present day, the ordinary well or stream from which wate r is ta ken for domestic purposes is propitiated early on the morning of the N e w Year by small offerings

- — W - Wind God8 . Sometimes one ind god is m s one spoken of, so etimes two, one ma culine and feminine . They were formerly much prayed to

a l for good h rvests . One legend ca ls them the Ame no mihashira and Kuni no mihashira

(august pillar of heaven and august - pillar of

a u earth) . The ide that the winds s pport the sky is not unknown in other mythologies . — Tak e - mik a - danchi and Futsunushi The proper character of these two deities is not quite clear. The name of the former is frequently ‘written with Chinese characters which imply

’ - an d Futsun ushi that he is a Thunder god , is od probably a g of fire, perhaps more specifically

h i n s t e l ght ing. They are constantly as ociated

r hi in legend and wo s p. They were sent down from heaven together to prepare Japan for the

N the - G s advent of inigi , Sun oddes s grandchild,

e a t K K on and their shrin s ashima and atori, the of east coast Japan , are adjacent to one another. 43 SHIN TO

At . the present day they are universally recog ‘

- nised as War gods . This acco unts for the choice of f Ka shim a and Katori as the names of recently launched battle - ships of the Imperial Japanese e d . N avy. These eities also predict the weath r ’ The Japanese equivalent of old Moore s Almanac

K n o Ko tofure n is the ashima , otification from

Kashima .

There is another Thunder - god called I k adzuchi

a N K - od (dre d father) or aru ami (sounding g ). — - Fire Go Ka u tsu chi . ds g , mentioned above (p

fir - He a e . o is the chief deity , is ls known as

Ho - fire - an d musubi ( growth), his shrine stands on the summit of the high hill of Atago ne ar

K a - ioto . Hence the name At go Sama by which

u c - he is sually alled . Hill shrines are dedicated to him at the chief cities of Japan ; and he is believed, when duly propitiated, to preserve them

on fia ra tion from c g . In the old State religion the

o g d and fire are regarded as identical . s The sacrificial fire was deified, and al o the

N iha bfi t , a fire kindled with the objec of pro

u in an d d c g sunshine . Both in ancient modern times the domestic cooking - furnace has been considered as deity. ‘ a Uk émoc i - s two h ; the Food goddes , is one of the

s hi the Sun great god wors pped at Ise, goddess 44

SHIN TO only offerings to the deities before whose shrines

r t they are planted. O chard trees are the objec of a quaint ceremony which has its counterpart

n v in ma y other places , De onshire amongst the

’ i number, of cajoling or intimidat ng the trees

o m into bearing good crops . In Japan ne an the climbs the tree, while another stands at bottom with an axe , threatening to cut it down e if it do s not promise to bear plentifully. The

a man above responds th t it will do so . Perhaps , n l however, the pleasure of acti g a ittle drama has more to do with such customs than any real belief f in theire ficacy .

' We also meet with a Kuk unochi (trees - father)

- and a Kaya nu hi me (reed lady) . Their worship was probably prompted by gratitude for their providing materials for house building and thatching.

A House - God named Ya bune is mentioned in one of the old rituals . A certain sanctity attaches

- ll to the Daikoku bashira, or central pi ar of the

- i . s house , corresponding to our king post There

G - od also a ate g (or gods), who guards the dwell

h n r n i in t e . e t a ce n g against of evil things , and , God v modern times, a of the Pri y .

46 THE GODS

Gons or ABSTRACT I ON S — I za nagi and I za nami I have little doubt

. 2 1 e e . that thes deiti s (see above, p ) were

the and n suggested by Yin Ya g, or male and

Chi . female principles , of nese philosophy They were probably in troduced into Japanese myth in order to account for the existence of the Sun s i goddess and other deitie , and to l nk them m r s together by a co mon pa entage . Their name

fiza n a u are supposed to be connected with a verb, f , to invite , and to refer to their mutual invitation to become husban d and wife . They are not im rtan t m in ritual . usu i n M b mea s growth or production . In the

v ia old myths there are two Musubi deities , Taka

K m m - musubi and a u r usu bi (high growth and

i - t i d vine grow h) . It is not d fficult to conjecture

‘ ’ ‘ ’ that high and divine were originally nothing more than laudatory epithets of one and the same a r . e s n e G pe son ge Poetry r cognise only o od. In later times there were no fewer than eight Musubi who had shrines in the precincts of the Impe rial a c w p la e . The orship of this god is now much d neglecte .

- - — Kuni tok o ta chi N othing is re ally known of s ‘ thi deity . The name means literally land (dr 47 SHIN TO

’ - - f e arth) eternal stand, and I of er as a mere con je cture that he is a personification of the durable

The character of the earth . circumstance that he is the first god of the N ihon gi myth led tq his receiving a prominence in later times which is justified by nothing in the older religion . There was an abo rtive attempt to make of him a sort of

Supreme Deity , and to substitute his worship for

- that of the Food godde ss at Ise .

D x mmn I N DI VI DUAL MEN

Though all the greater gods of the old Shinto

' N - we c a nn ot ffi were ature gods, a rm that none of the numerous obscure deities mentioned in the

Ko ki N ihon i ji and g were deified individual men . The impulse to exalt human beings to the rank of an d deity has always existed , may have left traces in the older Shinto, though the evidence that this wa s so in a ny particular case is not forthcoming .

Ta k e - minak ata od , the g of Suha, in the pro

ma a vince of Shinano, y be a deity of this cl ss .

was Ohon am ochi d alle i He a son of , who refuse g a - nce to the Sun goddess and fled to Suha, where

l . he was ob iged to surrender Tra"dition says that the present high pries ts of his shrine are his be dir ect descendants . They are held to his 48 THE GODS

n rn i are all I ki am i ‘ i ca at on, and c ed g or live

’ a e h deities. There re at the pr sent day s rines to

Suha Sama 1n many parts of Japan . Hachiman is not mentioned in the Kojiki or

h n ' Th N o . e i g i. His history is a curious one c Kinshiu original pla e of his worship was Usa in ,

r i s e near the St aits of Sh mono eki , an old, p rhaps

i e the oldest, Sh nto centre of Japan. He first cam ce 72 0 d to e into noti in , when he helpe rep l a piratica l descent by Koreans . At a somewhat later period he be came associated with the grea t

M a inamoto f mily, and attained to popularity as a War - god But his cul t is deeply tinctured with

e l Buddhism . In his oracles he calls hims f by

Bosa tsu Boddhisa ttwa the Buddhist title of ( ),

’ hi o ur ‘ n ni somet ng like sai t, and ordains huma s a tarian fe tivals for the rele se of living things, a

hl is in con thoroug y Buddh t institution, and quite

ruou s his g with character as a Japanese Mars . It

“ is explained that the reaso n for his de ifica tion as a Wa r - god is that he was an unborn child in his

’ mother Jingo s womb when she achieved her K famous conquest of orea . His identification

O l n a t with the Emperor J , however, d es from long

a a after he bec me popul r.

Temma n u G od of L a n C li g , the e r ing and a graphy. If we pass over the honours p aid to D 49 SHIN T O living and dead Mikados as of doubtful religious

o n quality , the first genuine deified human being t r Michiza n e the Shin o record is Sugaha a , who wa s raised to divine rank under the name of

T mm a n Mi hiza n 84 e u c 5 . g . e was born in His n e family had a hereditary reputatio for l arning, and traced its descent from the Sun - goddess His in herself. erudition gained him high rank the government , and a system of national educa tion which he established acquired for him the of gratitude the people, who called him the

’ ‘ n Father of letters . But owing to the calum ies . n e Kiu shiu of a rival he was ba ish d to , where he G ‘ died in exile . reat calamiti s followed, which

’ w ichiza n e s ere attributed to the wrath of ghost, and it was not until his sentence had been for t mally cancelled , shrines erec ed, and other honours paid him that it ceased to plague his enemies and the nation . The story has come down to us enriched with a profuse embroidery of legenda ry details drawn from Buddhist and

Chinese sources . Te mm a n u t he g is , or was until recently , one of

ed most widely worshipp of Shinto deities, espe

iall - 1 8 c . 2 0 y by pedagogues and school boys In , there were twenty - fiv e shrines to him in Yedo and its neighbourhood . His cult was probably so THE G OD S ” e s l sugg ted , and was certain y promoted , by the corresponding Chinese honours to Confucius . L r ti — I n K N a te D eifica ons. the ojiki and ihongi , a sort of titular divinity is ascribe d to some of the

n Mikados . It was not u til a later period that u ff they had shrines or reg lar o erings . Chief k J o among deified Mi ados are Jimmu , ing , and r K Ta k hi Kwa mmu . e c , the founde of ioto no

’ Sukune , Jingo s chief counsellor ; Prince Yamato dake , the legendary hero who, in the second

' century of our era , subdued the eastern parts of ’ N Japan to the Mikado s rule ; omi no Sukune, the . d Hitom aro o patron eity of wrestlers ; , the p et

Sotoorihime a and , the poetess , though tre ted as ordinary human beings in the old records , were

ua sid i in deified in subsequent times . Q v e honours are paid to Iyeyasu , the founder of the Tokugawa o dynasty of Sh guns , and to many other distin

uished . g men Strange to say , a kind of religious ul c t is rendered to remarkable criminals , such as

Kuma za k a o the famous robber Ch han , and to

N B unta ro , ishi no who ‘ in our own day n a te d Arin ori the Minister of Education , Mori , because he raised with his walking - stick a curtain

‘ which scree ned off part of the shrine of I se from

z vu lgar ga e .

5 ! SHIN TO

Gons or CLASSE S or ME N

In the older Shinto, gods of types or classes occupy a fairly prominent position . They repro sent the heredita ry corporations by which the government of Japan was ca rried on in early ffi ’ times. The o cials of the Mikado s Court had their mythical counterparts in the ministers of the

- o ss Sun g dde , who were supposed to be their

N ak a tomi ancestors . Thus the family, who

. hi c the besides holding other gh offi es , were recognised vicars of the Mikado in the discharge

‘ u e r of his priestly f nctions , trac d thei descent

Ko a ne a n from y , a deity who, by re di g a liturgy

- e s e in honour of the Sun godd s , help d to entice her from the dark Rock - cave of hea ven The

who ff ‘ e Imbe , provided the o erings for the stat c Shinto ceremonies, re ognised as their ancestor a

- od ff . ful g called Futo dama (great o ering), who

' . Uzum e the filled the same office in heaven , c Dread Female of heaven , had des endants in the

al fem e officials of the palace . There is a n omito

he r re in honour, in which she is besought to p m the serve order a ong courtiers of all ranks. May we not trace a relatio"nship between her and ‘ G o r . u own Dread Female deity, Mrs rundy ?

- The mirror makers of the palace had their p roto f 5 2

SHIN TO

were a familiar sight by the roadsides an d at n crossings in a cient Japan . They might be seen even in the busy thoroughfares of the capital itself. At first representatives of the procreative,

- o life giving p wer, they were used as magical

appliances for promoting fertility. But they became symbolical of life generally— the enemy

— - an d n n. of death disease and, on the well k ow principle of magic that the symbol po sse sses something of the ac tua l physical virtue of the t as thing which it represen s , were employed pro lac tics e phy against death and pestilenc . For s their service in this capacity they were deified . Their cult has long a go disappeared from the

s the out- of- state religion , but it still linger in the

way parts of Eastern Japan. C H A P T E R V

THE PRI E STHOOD

I N an d e ancient Japan, the sacred the s cular were imperfectly differentiated from one an other. The Department of Shinto was simply a Govern ment bureau . Miya meant equally shrine and palace . Matsuri , a Shinto festival , is the same

Ma tsuri oto word that we also find in g , govern i t ment . The Mikado was at once the h gh pries l t and the sovereign of the nation . In the o des legends he appears frequently in a sacerdotal n da capacity , and, eve at the present y, he takes a personal part in some of the Shinto rites. Only last year he went to Ise to perform the ceremony N ihin am e r of , or tasting the first ice of the new harvest after making an offering of it to the Sun goddess . But even in the oldest records there occur instances of his deputing his sa cerdotal

a functions . Jimmu Tenno is said to have p pointed Michi N o Omi (minister - of- the - way) as

‘ ’ R n e frilto uler of a festival . The rubrics of the 5 5 SHIN TO

(rituals) show that they were intended to be read by a deputy and not by the Mikado in person. — The N a k atomi The chief officials of the Bureau of Shinto were appointed from the here dita r N a k a tomi y clan or family of the , from which the principal min isters of state and the Imperial Consorts were also selected The great Fujiwara in e House , so famous later tim s , was a branch of

the N ak a tomi.

The I mbe had the duty of prepa ring the offer

. n es ings for sacrifice Their ame , which includ ’ o the word imi, signifying religi us abstinence, e purity, refers to the strict avoidanc of ritual pollution which was incumben t on them in the discharge of this function. The Ura b e were di viners attached to the bureau of Shinto . Kannushi is the ordinary word for a Shinto

‘ s - Ka nn ushi not e prie t. The are celibat s, and are not distinguishable from the laity except when in n n the actual discharge of their functio s . Eve the costume which they wear on these occasions a n is not properly sacerdotal. It is only ancient S court uniform . All hinto priests are appointed by the pigil authoritie s . They have no cure of

’

a d . e a souls , n their duties are confined to r ding the lita nies an d seeing to the repairs of the shrine . 56 THE PRIESTHOO D

—I n Prieste sse s. ancient times it was the custo m to attach a virgin princess of the Imperial Al l blood to the great shrine of Ise . great shrines have a corps of girl dancers for the perform K ance of the sacre d pantomimes ( agura). The a on i a l tter, reach ng a marriage ble age, usually fi th resign their of ce , and are merged in e general population.

57 C H A P T E R V I

WO RSHI P

WI T f H n o in a few exceptio s , no great importance n Shi to , the outward forms of the worship of the gods have been previously made use of as tokens

W off of respect to living men . hether I take my d hat to a la y or on entering a church, the act is d the same, it is the ideas associate with it that f u make the dif erence. The word worship m st d W e therefore be use with caution. ought not,

to s - for example , as ume that ancestor worship is nl necessarily divine worship . It may o y mean acts indicatin g affection and reverence for the

m o w - C dead, co m n to ourselves ith non hristian peoples, and need not involve any superstitious belief in a supernatural power exercised by dead forefathers or heroes . In modern Japan, ancestor worship is a comparatively rational cult, and it is surely undesirable that missionaries shoul d create for themselves great and needless difficulties by i condemning it ind scriminately. 5 8 WORSHIP

sture s of Worshi - I n Ge p Shinto, as in other religions, bowing is a common form of respect to

‘ the gods . It is the custom to bow twice before f ff K and a ter making an o ering. neeling is also

l. known , but is less usua I have not met with any case of prostration as an act of adoration . Clapping hands was in ancient Japan a general

e . token of resp ct, now confined to religious worship

Sometimes a silent hand - clapping is prescribed in f c s the rituals . O f erings and other obj e t used in worship were raise d to the forehead as a mark of reverence . Offering s were in the older Shinto regarde d as o e t kens of r spect, and were not supposed to be

e r . eat n , worn , o otherwise enjoyed by the deity

There is , however , a more vulgar current of opinion according to which the god actually benefits in some obscure physica l way by the offerings made

n ff The , general object of maki g o erings is to propitiate the god or to expiate offences against nl n him . Sometimes it is very plai y i timated that

u id r o uo a q p q is expected . The original and most important form of offer in g was food and drink of various kinds . The cardinal feature of the great ceremony by which the Mikado in augurated his reign was an offering 59 SHIN TO

of ce a n d to - ri sake the Sun goddess . Other food

ff n se a o eri gs were cakes , fruit, vegetables, edible e weed, salt, water, and the fl sh of deer, pigs, hare, a n d wild boar, birds . There were no burnt ff . N o o erings or incense ext to food, cl thing took r a the most impo tant pl ce. Hemp and mulberry r f ba k fibre , with the stuf s woven from them , are fre quently mentioned They are now represented Goh i i o by the e . These are wands to wh ch sc llops a nd e of paper are attached , are to be se n in every shrine and at every Shinto ceremony . Some times the god is supposed to come down and

Goh take up his temporary abode in the e i. n Ski s, mirrors , jewels , weapons , and many other article s are mentioned in the Ye ngishiki enumera ff tions of o erings . — Human Sacrifice We nowhere hear of human sacrifices in co nnection with official Shinto . But

‘ there are se veral indications of the existence of

—“ a - e s eci this pr ctice in ancient times. River gods p ally were propitiated by human victims. Human

‘ e e figures of wood or metal are fr quently mention d , but it is doubtful whether these were by way of substitute s for living persons . Slaves were dedicated to some of the more n important shri es . Presents of horses are often me ntioned . Albinos are usually selected for this 60

SHIN TO Shinto shrine is marked by one or more honorary

a ! - i g teways of the special form known as tori ,

- he n literally bird rest , from its resemblance to a

i n roost. It has its analogues in the Ind an tura and the Chinese pailoo, and is doubtless of exotic origin . It is not mentioned in the older books .

— K iki N n P ra yer . The oj and iho gi conta in

r scarcely any notices of p ivate individual prayer. But there are abundant examples in the Yen

ishtki oflficial g , and other authorities , of the

n or tto re liturgies known as , add ssed by the i u G M kado , or his vicars, to vario s ods or cate i or e s G . g of ods, on ceremonial occasions They r contain petitions for rain in time of d ought,

on fire good harvests , preservati from , flood, and

a e rthquake , for children , health and long life to the sovereign. Sometimes the wrath is depre ca te d of deities whose services had been vitiated by ritual impurity, or whose shrines had been

an neglecte d . Important national events were

m r n ounce d to the . There were no n o ito o 85 0 addressed to deceased Mikad s before , when Jimmu Tenno was supplicated to spare the life

i i of the re gn ng sovereign , who was then danger are ou sly ill . Shinto prayers for material blessings only. — Ra nk of D eities I n the seventh century a 62 WORSHIP system of official ranks was introduced into Japan

x from Chin a . It was e tended from the Court u a G a l t f nction ries to the ods , and was very prev en in the eighth century . A curious feature of this practice was the low rank given to the deities . I t was seldom that they received so high a rank as that of a Minister of State . Ka a — K m The agura, or pantomimic dances

as n s with m ks and music , representi g ome incident of the mythical narrative , has been at all times a

an d prominent part of Shinto religious festivals , , u as in other co ntries, has become the parent of the secular drama. Pilgrima ges are an ancient institution in t Japan . Even the Mikado paid occasional visi s K to the shrines in or near ioto . At the present day most Japanese think it a duty to make a pilgrimage at least once in their lifetime to one

s t a or more of the most famou Shin o f nes , and believe that their success in life depe nds on their

C th ur os . e e doing so lubs are formed for p p , the subscriptions going to pay the expenses of these fortunate members who are selected to represent

a their fellows . Pilgrim trains t ke the place of our excursion trains . B0ys and girls frequently run away from home in order to make a pilgrimage to Ise . 63 C H A P T E R .V I I

MORALI TY AN D PUR I TY

— Mora l Coda Shinto has hardly anything in the

. Ohoha rahi shape of a code of morals The , a se rv we m which the Mikado, by divine authority , declared to his ministers and people the absolu ff a tion of their o ences gainst the gods , makes no mention of any one of the sins of the D e ca

Re v on al logue . M . , the author of a v uable se treati on Shinto, challenges this statement, which I had already made in my Histor y of

Ja p cm esc Liter a tu r e . He maintains that from a co mparison of the Decalogue and the Oho harahi I l é é , r sulte avec vidence que tous les commandements essentiels du Decalogue (sur ls

l l f a on e a ornic ti . meurtre, vol , \ , etc , se retrouvent ’ 1 V16 W the dans notre rituel. In of importance of B ’ . e d the subject, and of M evon s acknowl dge com

e te nc e e p as a writer on Shinto , it is desirabl to s ’ examine t his a sertion more closely . His e tc.

1 Se e his Shintoisme . 15 note , p , . 64 MORALITY AN D PURITY

zz m pu les e . I am unable to find in the Oho ha rahi the sm allest trace of any - o f the seven

n comma dments which it covers , and can only B ’ suppose that it is a mere flourish of M . evon s exuberant imagination . It will be seen that for ’ ‘ n the adultery of the Decalogue M . Re vo has ’ substituted fornication . Is it not a ca s p en da ble to tamper with the ten commandments in this way ? But neither adultery nor fornication a re

hoharahi is men tioned in the O . Incest included ’ e ff a ce in the latt r s schedule of o ences , but , p M . B e i n ff n von , incest and adultery are d sti ct o e ces . Theft is n ot mm tion ed in the Ohohara hi The planting of skewers (of offerings in rice - fie lds) is f one of its of ences , but even if the commentator is right who conjectures that this was done for a

s e l dishone t purpos , I submit that so high y specific an offence is by no means the sam e thin g as the

r t u far mo e general thef of the Decalog e . The case ’ of murder of the Mosaic code , and the cutting ’ of living bodies of the Ohoharahi is more com plicated . Murder is at the same time more and less co mprehensive than the corresponding Shinto

’ o fl en ce . The Jewish prohibition is more exte n sive , as it includes murder by poison , strangling, mi drowning, etc and it is more restricted as it o ts minor injuries But there is a profound difference 5 5 SHIN TO be tween the motives which prompted the two I t prohibitions . is the crime of taking away human life which is condemned in the Deca

: Ohoha ra hi as logue the objects to wounds nasty, a God unsightly things , unmeet for to look upon

l - infl icte d or to be in any way associate d with. Se f d es wounds , the cutting of dea bodi , or wounds inflicted by others , caused uncleanness just as

“ c Justifia ble mu h as the wounding of others . homicide required absolution equally with feloni

. se f c ous murder In a word, the Japane of en e was ritual , the Jewish moral.

Ohoharahi There are moral elements in the ,

Re v on but they are scanty, and M . greatly over

N o n e stimates their importance. t o ly doe s it contain no explicit mention of any of the sins of the Decalogue— which is all that I contended for

- but it has hardly anything which even im plicitly condemns them . Shintoists do not deny o this feature of their religi n, but claim that the absence of a code of ethics is a proof of the superior natural goodness of the Japanese nation . It needs no such artificial aids to virtuous conduct

- o Purity. But if ethics are c nspicuously absent t t a from Shin o , the doc rine of uncle nness holds a n prominent positio . Actual personal dirt was 66 MORAL ITY AN D PURIT Y

obnoxious to the gods , as is evidenced by the frequent mention of bathing and putting on fresh garments before the discharge of religious func n d tions . Sexual acts of various ki s , such as the wi in consummation of a marriage, incest ( th narrow limits), interference with virgin priestesses , men struation and i - a ch ld birth, were accomp nied with i li d sabi ties for the se rvice of the gods. Curiously ul enough, ad tery , though cognisable by the courts

e . of justice, did not entail religious uncleann ss e s i Dis ase, especially lepro y (as in the Mosa c s e legi lation), wounds and sores involv d various Th e . e degr es of pollution death of a relative,

' fim e ra l a b attendance at a , touching a de d ody, pronouncing or executing a capital sentence, all incapacitated a man temporarily for the discharge L a r of religious duties. afc dio Hea n thought that the miya or shrine was a development of the m a. n n s r di oy or mour i g hou e , whe e the dead bo es of sovereigns and nobles were deposited until

i ot their costly megal thic tombs could be g ready . This view harmonises nicely with Herbert Spencer’s

- well known theories , but an ancient Shintoist would have considered it not only erroneous , but G d blasphemous . As in ancient reece, the go s

’ had nothing to do with such a polluting thin g\ a s u of e a death. Shinto f nerals , which we hav he rd 67 SHIN TO

o a e in a g od deal of l t , were unknown ancient

a . 18 8 J pan They date from 6 . Shinto shrines e t e hav no ceme eries attach d to them . Eating flesh was formerly not considered offensive to the s but god , later, under Buddhist influence , it fell under prohibition . The fire with which impure o e f od was cooked also contract d impurity . To

defile me n t avoid the danger of such , fresh fire

was made by a fire - drill for all the more important

e e . e c r monies Everything Buddhist, rites, t rms , e c etc w re at one time pla ed under a Shinto tabu .

W n hen a festival was approaching; the intendi g participant was specially careful to avoid (imi) o l i all possible so urces of p l ution . He shut h mself

e up in his house, refrained from spe ch and noise i and ate food cooked at a pure fire . A special mt of one month was observed by the pries ts before

r An ims- officiating at the greater festivals . don e (sa cred hall) was a hall in which purity was

' amt- imt- e observed , axes and mattocks wer used to cut the first tre e and turn the first sod when

' a sa cred . building was to be erected If, in spite

de file m e n t of all precaution , took place, con sciousl i y or unconsciously, various exped ents were

‘ L was resorted to for its removal. ustration the

un ha s most common . After a f eral, it been the rule at all periods of Japanese history for the 68

SHIN TO th r a f r r of it a i the a ti s e e te pa took long w th n on . Thu thepeople learnt tha t the gra in which they ea t is no other than the seed besto wed on them by the Gods of ’ Hea ven.

The O hon ihe was a most elaborate and costly function The preparations were be gun months

ce . to be in advan In times of scarcity, it had omitted as too great a burden on the nation .

The N ihiname - , or new tasting, is the annual ’ harvest festival when the new season s rice was

hon h fir st tasted by the Mikado . The O i e was s only a more sumptuou form of it. The English

N ihin a me L a counterpart of the is amm s , loaf

’ o mass , in which bread made from the new seas n s wheat was used for the first time in the Holy C u e omm nion. Ther was , in former times , a household as well as an official celebration of this

not . rite . Strict people will eat the new rice until it is over. The Toshig ohi (praying for harvest) was another n he e N o t importa t ceremony of t stat religion . s only the special god of harvest, but practically

“ ff all the divinities were propitiated by o erings,

n or ito e in the and a recit d their honour , of which following is a passage

‘ I i the Sovran Gods will bestow in e a rs many a ’ hand s brea dth long a nd ea rs a bundant the la tter MORALITY AN D PURITY

ha r s whic he i e s a e r ha r est ve t h t y w ll b tow, the l tt v produced by the la bour of me n from whose a rm s the

foa m d r i s o on - h s si thi hs the mud p d wn, w o e oppo ng g

is a -I i fu t e ir ra is s h m ff r g thered, w ll lfil h p e by u bly o e in rst f uits of a rs a h sa of cars ma a g fi r , e t ou nd, ny

r ra isi u the t0 s of the sa - a rs a nd hund ed, ng p p ke j ,

s t i in r s the i s of the sa - a s in uic a nd e t ng ow bell e ke j r , j e in e ar i I r s th m of thi s r i in the w ll p e ent e , ng g ow ng

- a t m o ai s e r s a nd itt r . h r s of gre or pl n, w et he b b e e b ,

hi s tha in the u sea - a i the d of fl u t ng t dwell bl e pl n, broa a nd the a of i s a f m the n rrow fin, ed ble e weed, too, ro ffi a nd s a e fr m the sh r of c t i ri t o ng e we d o o e, lo h ng, b gh stufl s a n d shi i s uffs s f s uffs a nd c a se s ffs n ng t , o t t o r tu ’ with these I will fulfil your pra ises .

’ Kiu no ma tsuri (prayin g for rain ) was a service — in which the gods of eighty fiv e shrines were .

asked to send rain . To some of these a black horse was offered as a suggestion that black rain s be cloud would welcome .

Ohoharahi t . , great purification or absolu ion This is one of the most curious and interesting of I S the great ceremonies of the state religion . It

t N a k a tomi Ohoha rahi of en called the no , because a N a k a tomi _ member of the priestly clan performed

' was ce le bra te d it on behalf of the Mikado . It

twice a year , on the last day of the sixth and of r the twelfth month, with the object of pu ifying a f the ministers of st te , o ficials , and people from their ceremonial offences committed during the 7 1 SHIN TO

re v10us p half year. It was also celebrated on occa sions of national calamity, such as an outbreak of pestilence , or the sudden death of a Mikado . The offerings made were thrown in to a river or an d the sea, were supposed , like the scapegoat of

r Israel, to car y with them the sins of the people. The offences more specifically referre d to a re various mischievous interference s with agricul

n fl a in fl a in tural operatio s , y g animals alive, y g

o r backwards, cutting living dead bodies, leprosy s s and other loathsome disea e , incest, calamitie s from the high god and from high birds, and killing animals by bewitchment . There were also

ific a tio local and individual pur ns . In the latter be to case, the person to purified had pay the n ul expenses of the celebratio , and so a reg ar system of fines for such o fl e n ce s came into exist ence .

Ho- shidzume no ma tsuri fire - - , or calming cere h to de re ca te mony . The object of t is rite was p the destruction of the Imperial Palace by fire .

The Urabe made fire with a fire - drill and wor shipped it . The service read is anything but

‘ - reverent . The Fire god is reminded that he is an ’ evil - hearted child who caused his mother s death when he came into the world, and that she had come back from Hades purposely to provide the 7 2 MORALITY AN D PURITY

i means of keep ng him in order . If, however, he

ul his wo d be on good behaviour, he should have

ff r d o e ings of the various kin s specified . N umerous other services are mentioned in the

' Yen ishcki L - g , such as the uck wishing of the

’ G Michia he l reat Palace, the , which is a phal ic a ritual for the prevention of pestilence, festival

- in honour of the Food goddess , one in honour of

- the Wind god e te . Modern cer monie s — At e e the pr sent day, most ' of the former elaborate ritu a l of Shinto is neglected or shorn of its ancient magnificence . One of the most important state ceremonies which is still

N a ilshtdokor o so - l kept up is the , ca led from the chamber in the palace where it is performed . It

l are k e t is here that the regalia p , consisting of a

w - mirror hich represents the Sun goddess, a sword , and a j ewel or jewels . The ceremony , which is

wa s performed by the Mikado in person , formerly in honour of these sacred objects , but is now

“ ‘ apparently addressed to the tablets of the Em — p e rors from Jimmu downwards an instance of the progressive development of ancestor- worship l in Shinto . In many private dwe lings there is a

K - - b ami dana (god shelf) where a arahi , consisting i of a piece of wood from the Ise shr ne, and tickets with the names of any gods whom the household 73 SHIN TO has r any special reason for wo shipping, are kept. La fcadio Hearn says that nowadays there is al so

Mita ma a u - - a y (aug st spirit dwelling), which is a model Shinto shrine placed on a shelf fixed

l e be I n against the wal of som inner cham r . this shrine a re placed thin tablets of white wood i inscribed w th the names of the household dead. Prayers are repeated and offerin gs made before t ma tes/rt hem every day . The annual festivals ( )

'

- of the Ujigami or local . patron deity a re e very f a where important functions . Of erings are m de, e and the god, or rather his emblem , is promenad d ' in a procession which reminds one of the carnivals

r of Southern Europe . There are Kagu a pe rform e ni a nce s which go on all day an d late into th ght . The re are also booths for the sale of toys a nd n r es o sweetmeats, wrestli g, firewo ks , rac , conjur rs

’ f the s. and tumblers per ormance In shWort, ma tsw i is not unlike an English fair . ith the

r e pilg images , it does much to help to keep aliv the not very a rdent flame of Shinto piety .

74 C H A P T E R V I I I

D I VI NATI ON AN D I NSPI RATI ON — Divination The most ancient official method of d ivination was by interpreting the cracks made by

l - e fire on the shou der blade of a deer. This proc ss n n is know in ma y places from Siberia to Scotland,

‘ in which latte r country it is called reading the ’ sp eal A tortoise - shell was afterwards

’ e - substitut d for the deer s shoulder blade, in imi

ion d ta t of China. There was attache to the palace a coll ege of diviners whose business it was to ascerta in by this means whether a proposed expedition would be successful , the best site for

- a shrine, a tomb , or a dwelling house , from what provin ces the rice for the Ohonihe should be

. W k . ta en, etc etc ith private persons , the Tsuji

- e cross ura , or road divination, was a favourite

o as i i meth d of certa n ng the future . The person who wished to consult the god went out at dusk to a cross - roads and infefred the answer to his 7 5 SHIN TO question from the chance words spoken by the

first person who made his appearance. Other kinds of divination were by the sound of a boil in e n g cauldron , or of a harp, by lots , by b a s

do boiled in gruel , by the head of a g or fox m that had been starved to death, and by drea s n e and ome s. Ordeal was practis d by fire and boil

. ing. water

ti - re of I nspira on . The are frequent notices oracles in the old records; Legend has preserved an ‘ inspired utterance ’ given forth by the God dess Uzum e be fore the Rock - cave of Heaven to

hi - o w ch the Sun g ddess had retired . It consists of the numerals from one to te n ! The famous legendary invasion of Korea by the Empress

Jingo was suggeste d by a deity. Oracles had generally reference to the worship of the god c e di con ern d , recting that a shrine should be built

O se for him , or religious b rvances inaugurated in s his honour . They were ometimes used for a o the politic l purp ses . There is evidence that ll inspired person, genera y a woman, delivered the

e n divine m ssage whe in a hypnotic trance . This

‘ is undoubtedly the case at the present time. Mr.

’ L Occu lt Ja a n descri P . owell s fi gives a detailed p tion of a séance of this kind at which he was e in present. There are m diums Japan as there 76

C H A P T E R I X

LATE R HI STO RY

BUD D HI SM was introduced into aJapan in the sixth s century , but it had at fir t little influence on the

native religion . Two centuries later a process of pacific penetration began which had some curious

m1sswna ri and important results . The e s of Buddh ism applied to the Shinto gods a principle which

had been already adopted in China. They dis

covered that whether N ature - gods or Man - gods they were nothing more than avatars or inca r nations of the various Buddhas. The Sun

a be goddess , for example , was m de out to

Va irochana r , the Buddhist pe sonification of

“ essential boolht (enlightenment) and absolute purity ; and deifie d m en receive d the Buddhist

Gou eu a B osa tsu titles of g (avat r) or (saint).

Iyeyasu, the founder of the Tokugawa . dynasty

n G - a r ex cellen ce . of Shogu s , is the ongen sama p oha S into Ry h , which was in practice little s ul more than a form of Buddhi m , was the res t 78 LATE R HI STORY

rmc1 a l n of this process . Its p p fou der was the famous Kobo Daishi. At a later time other similar schools or sects were originated which drew their inspiration from Chinese philosophy or from Buddhism . Under these influences the

as c d true Shinto w much negle ted. The Mika os

t e themselves , af er a few years of reign , shav d hi their heads and became Budd st monks . One d l of them calle himself a s ave of Buddha. The

a gre ter Shinto ceremonies were omitted , or worse ll r sti , were perfo med by Buddhist monks, who also took possession of many of the Shinto shrines t s and celebrate d Buddhist ri e there . It should not be forgotten that the foreign religion cont ained valuable elements unknown t o the older Shinto , and that the latter had much i to gain by their absorpt on . The Ryobu Shin to inculcated uprightness , purity of heart, charity to ni the poor , humanity, and the va ty of mere out word forms of worship ; of all which there is little trace in the older cult. — Chinese Le a rning The civilisation of Japan during the Tokugawa dynasty of Shoguns (1 603 8 8 C 1 6 ) was modelled on hinese originals . Its moral ideals were drawn from the writings of s the ancient ages Confucius and Mencius, and the sceptica l philosophy of the Sung dynasty 7 9 SHIN TO

(960- 1 2 78) But in the eighteenth century a

- patriotic reaction set in , which strove to establish more purely national standards of ethics and prin ci l li p e s of government and re gion . This move

’ ment, known as the Revival of Pure Shinto, was first revealed to Europeans by a paper contributed

Tra n sa ction s o A by Sir E . Satow to the f the sia tic

Socie ty of Ja p a n in 1 875 . The principal pro

o r Motoori his mot rs we e and pupil Hirata, two

e earnest, able , and stupendously learned writ rs who devoted their lives to an endeavour by oral teaching and in a series of voluminous works to the dethronement of the established Chinese ethics and philosophy in favour of a Shinto purified from Buddhist an d other foreign adul te rations of later times . They succeeded to some extent in this object . It was no doubt partially owing to their teachings that the Mikado wa s restored in 1 868 to his sovereign position as the

- s descendant of the Sun godde s , the Shinto shrines purified from Buddhist ornaments and practices ,

x . e and the monks e pelled from them In . r ality ’ Mo toori and Hira ta s movement was a retro i grade one . The old Shinto, wh ch they wished

o ul own to restore, c d not possibly hold its as the national faith of a people famil iar with the far higher religious and moral ideas of India and 80 LATER HISTORY

e . China, not to sp ak of civilised Europe Without l an e flficien t e a code of mora s , or eccl siastical n organisatio , with little aid from the arts of t painting, sculpture , and archi ecture , and with a sacred literature scanty and fee ble dompa red with s l n e tho e of its foreign riva s , Shi to is doom d to t extinction . Wha ever the religious future of

' Shin to will d Japan may be, assure ly have little a place in it . Such me t for babes is quite ine de quate as the spiritual food of a nation which in these latter days has reached a full and vigorous manhood.

81 SELECTED WORKS BEARI N G ON SHI N TO

H a a E e rt Ka r - 1 . istor o J n n e em e 172 7 1 72 8. y f p , by g lb pf , Worthl for hin e ss S to . Archi 18 ne w . i 2 N on . 9 e ition n 7 P F vo ie o . pp f , ( d ), by . . S b ld

‘ Goo hen first u lishe but su e rse e b late r d w p b d , p d d y rk s in so f hi is con rne o ar as nto ce . w , S d 3 Tra n sa ctions o the Asia tic Socie t o Ja . . f y f p a n ’ (a ) A se rie s of pa pe rs on The Re viva l of P ure Shinto ‘ ’ an d Ancie nt Ja anese Rituals Sir E rne st ato p , by S w.

- The s ri us stu e nt ma sa n t ll 1874 81 . e o d y fe ly egle c a tha t

th - ar icl prece des ese epoch mak ing t es. Th K b ha m rl in 6 e o iki translate . . C e a ( ) j , d y B H b , f m h Accura in i nsa le or t . 883 . te s e 1 , d p b y

0 Ancient Ja an ese Ritua ls. The Ohoha r a hi ith ( ) p , w tion an d no b D r Karl F oren 18 transla tes . 99. Va u y l z, l

The N ihon i t a ns 4 Tran sa ctions o the J Societ . r . f W y g , Aston 1 8 6 imila r in sc o e to he la te W 9 . S t d by . G . , p

Ja a n a n A recia tion La ca dio ea rn 190 . S m p , pp , by f H , 4 y a thetic nsi ht a mira le st e lin a cce ta nce of p i g , d b yl , b d p ’ Hi . e ncer s hiloso h im e r e ct kno le e . s H Sp p p y, p f w dg outlook is se e n a t its best in the rece ntly publishe d a nd Letters onsta le Life (C b , ’ ir b E rifi se ul for some G s. U s E m e W. . The Mika do p , y f

as ects of mo e rn Shinto a nd the Fo k - lore associa te p d , l d it t w h i . riffis 1 5 h s G 89 . o WE . The Reli ions o Ja an . g f p , by , S w to u hism a nd on ucia ni the re lations of Shinto B dd C f sm . 82 SELECTED WORKS BEARIN G O N SHIN TO

el m t i b The D ev o en o Rel ion in Ja a n . Le ctur es 8. p f g p y

- - . Kn ox 1 907 Ju icious an u a W. . d to te G , d p d .

9. Germa n Asia tic Societ o Ja a n Ja a n ische M tho y f p . p y lo e b r Ka rl Fl or i n . A D . e 1901 . oo e rman g , y z g d G tra ns a tion of the m tholo ical art of the N ihon i l y g p g , ith n t w use ful o e s. ‘ 10 n a nd hina a tain rinkl 1 a C e . . . Ja C 903 Thro s p , by p B y w i ht on some as ec s of mo e rn hin to l g p t d S . ’ 1 M h m r 1 . urra s Ja a n . e lain an d . a W C . y p , by B H b . B M n d. 190 aso . 7 e 3.

in h m r 5 d. la . e 1 5 . 12 . Thin s a a n ese b C a e 90 g l p , y B . H. b ’ 1 in ntoi Re v on in the Re vue de I Histoire 3. Sh sme M. , by , des

' Reh ions 1905 - 1907 i hl rec omme n for its g , . H g y ded

u - to - a te the or and as a com re hensi e col e ction p d y, p v l f a o f cts. 5 i in to Aston 190 . Of s mi ar sco to h Sh W. . e t e 14. , by G , l p

rese nt ork but more com re hensi e. p w , p v 15 A st Whi a nd Ja La w obu nce or ors an ese N hi e . p p , by s g Hodzu 1 901 mi. .

1 . F a n u A a t s o Far Ja a ro S e ma tsu . 1 6 n a n 905 . y f p , by B y These two works re prese nt the a ttitude of modern Ja n e towa r s the old hin pa se d S to .

17 . A B ibliogra phy of the Ja p a nese E mpire Gives a c a ssifie list of ooks e ssa s an d ma s in E uro ean l d b , y , p p Tolera com re hens i e bly p v , but ina ccurate i d in re a rita in b T a nd A C ousu nm TD nte G t . . L Pr B y . a t the E d inburgh Unive rmty Pre ss