©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Shinto Religious Practices Shinto practices occur at several levels Formal worship and blessings by priests at jinja, shrines Blessings by priests away from the shrines Observances of holidays, seasons and nature Everyday practices by individuals in their homes Ceremonial practice of Shinto by the emperor and other authorities

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Individual Worship at Shrines Worship at shrines occurs for three purposes Individual worship and prayer Enter through the Torii, a ceremonial gateway Ceremonial washing of hands and mouth Proceed through the courtyard to the haiden, a building where kami is enshrined Actions include bowing, donating a coin, ringing a bell, clapping, praying, bowing again, attaching an ema, a small wooden plaque or a paper with prayer requests written on them to a fence or tree

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Blessings at Shrines and Other Locations 2nd reason for worship at a shrine—blessing by a priest Often on special days,such as when babies are born Priest will pray and wave a wand adorned with streamers over the person for purification 3rd reason for worship at a shrine—celebration of matsuri, festival days Can include processions, entertainment, and parade carrying the kami on a omikoshi, a hand carried litter Blessings by priests at other locations Usually for weddings or other special events

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Observance of Holidays, Seasons & Nature Celebration of the New Year The home must be thoroughly cleaned. Gates are decorated with kadomatsu,“entry pine,” made of bamboo, pine and plum Bamboo symbolizes persistence Pine symbolizes freshness and life through the winter Plum symbolizes the first sign of life in spring Altogether kadomatsu symbolizes human virtue Special foods include mochi and ozoni Kimonos are worn Offerings are taken to shrines and prayers are offered.

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Observance of Holidays, Seasons & Nature Observances of seasons and nature Respect for nature is often shown by placing in forests, fields, or other natural places reverential objects or small shrines including Torii Pile of stones, possibly phallic Shiminewa, a sacred rope Respect for ancestors shown by offerings at graves, often beautiful locations in nature. Cleansing rituals also show respect for nature by using water in the rituals, including misogi, standing under a waterfall for purification Climbing of a mountain is also seen as an act of respect for the kami of the mountain

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Other Shinto Practices Everyday practices in the home Practicing purification by cleaning, sweeping and washing Daily worship and prayers at the Kamidana, a small shrine in the home. Ceremonies involving the emperor Inauguration of emperor Ceremonial rice planting on the palace grounds every spring Burial rites for emperor only—all others are buried with Buddhist rites

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Historical Development of Shinto Co-existence with Buddhism and Confucianism Both imported religions blended well with Shinto beliefs and practices, often practiced simultaneously. In the 19 th century, the government emphasized the emperor as a descendant of the gods and Shinto as the only proper religion in an attempt to install patriotism

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Shinto and Japanese National Identity Japan sealed itself off from outside contacts after deciding western influence was dangerous for Japanese culture. This lasted until the mid 1800s. Shinto was used during this time to establish a Japanese national identity. Movement for Shinto independent of Buddhist influence began Writers focusing on this include Kamo Mabuchi and Motoori Norinaga

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. The Meiji Restoration Real rather than symbolic power assumed by Emperor Matsuhito Opened borders, imported European and American experts to build government, military and educational systems based on western models Forced Shinto to separate from Buddhism Used the emperor myth to establish authority State Shinto was established in 1882

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. State Shinto and Sect Shinto State Shinto—a national religion Thousands of shrines received national status Government financial support Government control Priests were government employees and expected to represent the Imperial household Emperor’s divinity was taught in schools Sect Shinto Shrines All shrines not given national status called sect Shinto, given no financial support, maintained independence State Shinto abolished, emperor’s divinity denounced and all shrines returned to independence after World War II

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Offshoots of Shinto—The New Religions Tenrikyo—”heavenly reason teaching” Founded by Nakayama Miki Miki had a mystical experience in which many kami, including the parent kami of humans, spoke through her The parent kami’s name was Tenri-o-no-mikoto “Lord of divine wisdom” Faith healing is an important element Scripture is poetry written by Miki about her revelations Established their own city, Tenri City, that has a university, library and museum

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Offshoots of Shinto—The New Religions Omoto –”great origin teaching” Founded by Deguchi Nao She experienced a vision after going through terrible ordeals and personal tragedies Focus is on this world rather than an afterlife Goal is to transform society Sees the essence of religious manifestation in the creation of art Promotes the use of Esperanto, the universal language Headquarters in Kameoka

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Offshoots of Omoko Sekaikyusei-kyo—Church of World Messianity Founded by Okada Mokichi Believed to be able to heal using a light source within his own body—shared this healing light by giving followers a piece of paper with the symbol for light written on it. Believers work for a coming utopia on earth Some elements of Buddhism Supreme deity is called Miroku, the Japanese name for Maitreya, the Buddha expected in the future.

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Offshoots of Shinto—The New Religions Offshoots of Omoko Seicho-no-le— “House of Growth” P. L. Kyodon— “Perfect Liberty Community Offshoot of Tenriko Honmichi Goals of all 3 of the above offshoots are similar: harmony, beauty, health, happiness and the creation of a paradise on earth

©2007 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved. Some Key Terms of Shinto Kami Jinja Tsumi Harai Gagaku Noh Bushido Nihonga torii Kadomatsu Shimenawa Kamidana Matsuri Isee Kamikaze Kojiko Misogi Samurai