Shinto

What is Shinto? Number of Adherents of Shinto Shinto is a general term of the activities of the Japanese people to worship all the deities of heaven and earth. Number of Adherents of Shinto   Shinto is a fairly small religious group compare to any other ones. Since it is a small group, and is mainly practiced in Japan, there are only 4 million adherents around the world.

Founder This ancient Japanese religion doesn't have a founder. Shinto is a polytheistic religion This means there are multiple “Kami" that people believe in ‘Kami’ is Japanese for ‘deity’ or ‘god’

SHINTO Beliefs Shinto believes that natural objects such as trees, rocks, mountains, rivers, represent or are the embodiment of ‘gods’ or ‘spirits’ – ‘kami. It is also possible for a revered person to become a ‘kami’ upon their death. Man is ‘one with nature’ and not separated from the ‘kami’. In Christianity God is separated from humanity due to sin. There are no concepts which compare to the Christian beliefs in the wrath of God

Place of Origin Shinto formally means “Way of the Gods”. It originated in approximately 500BCE. Shinto’s origin comes from worshipping nature called "Kami." These include: trees, water, rain, fertility, wind , spirits, mountains, plants, animals, and many more. ‘Amaterasu’, the sun goddess, is the most important kami.

It is an optimistic faith, and there is no right or wrong It is an optimistic faith, and there is no right or wrong. Shinto has some rituals that are seasonal and others that are for practical purposes: to purify places and thoughts, to make offerings of food and goods to the kami, to pray for health and success, and to keep evil spirits away. Children are also ‘presented’ to the kami at various stages of their growth. Shinto has festivals or celebrations known as “matsuri”.

Shinto Today Adherents of Shinto seek support from Shinto by praying at a home altar or by visiting the shrines. A whole range of talismans is available at shrines for traffic safety, good health, business success, safe deliveries, good exam performance and more. A large number of wedding ceremonies are also held in Shinto style these days.

Shinto’s significance and influence on society The influence of Shinto on Japanese culture cannot be overestimated. Japanese socio-cultural identity and its people is broadly shaped by Shinto. The obvious impact is national holidays, community festivals, familial rites, and traditional cultural

Religious Significance It is clear that the spirit of being one with nature that gave rise to this religion underlies such typically Japanese arts as flower-arranging and traditional Japanese architecture and garden design. A more explicit link to Shinto is seen in sumo wrestling: to purify the wrestling arena, wrestlers sprinkle salt before entering it. It is still very common for Japanese to say, "Itadakimasu" before eating, and the Japanese emphasis on proper greetings can be seen as a continuation of the ancient Shinto belief in kotodama (words with a magical effect on the world).

Compared to Christianity In Christianity, God is separated from humanity due to sin. In Shinto, there are no concepts which compare to the Christian belief in the wrath of God They share some symbols and have similar rituals - water - praying hands - priests - ceremonies - tree wands

Practices, Rituals and Ceremonies Miyamairi – similar to an infant baptism Child is taken to a shrine by their parents and grandparents where a Shinto priest prays for good health and happiness for the baby Takes place a month after the baby’s birth; 31st days for boys, 32nd days for girls Shichi Go San – also known as the 7-5-3 festival and takes place on November 15th Girls aged 7 and 3, and boys aged 5 dress in traditional clothing and visit the shrine where girls, 3, and boys, 5, are formally welcomed into the community and girls, 7, are welcomed into womanhood Seijinshiki or Seijin no Hi – Shinto ‘coming of age’ ceremony for people who have turned 20 Takes place on the second Monday of January

Hatsumode – the first visit to the shrine of the new year People give thanks for protection over the past year and ask for blessing of continual protection for the year to come Weddings – take place in hotels or ceremony halls that are specially designed for weddings with a shrine altar Led by a Shinto priest San-san-kudo is a special Shinto wedding ritual: sake is poured into three cups. The groom is first to sip the cups three times, and then the bride does the same after the groom. When the ritual is complete, the couple is officially wedded under Shinto

Symbols and Images Torii and Komainu Torii One or more Torii gates mark the approach and entrance to a shrine. They come in various colours and are made of various materials. Most Torii, however are made of wood, and many are painted orange and black. Upon going through the Torii, visitors leave the physical world of normal life and enter the spiritual world of the kami. Talking loudly, laughing and running around are frowned upon, as people approach the shrine with a sense of awe, respect and devotion. Komainu Komainu are a pair of guardian dogs or lions, often found on each side of a shrine's entrance. In the case of Inari Shrines, they are foxes (see picture) rather than dogs.

Purification: Stages: Shimenawa Purification through cleansing at the TEMIZU Found near the entrance, the TEMIZU water fountain is used for purification. Visitors use a scoop to clean their hands and mouth before approaching the main hall. First the left hand, then the right, then the mouth. Stage Stages for BUGAKU dance or NOH theatre performances can be found at some shrines. A shimenawa is a straw rope with white zigzag paper strips (gohei). It marks the boundary to something sacred and can be found on torii gates, around sacred trees and stones, etc. A rope similar to the shimenawa is also worn by yokozuna, the highest ranked sumo wrestlers, during ritual ceremonies. Shimenawa

Ema and Omikuji Shrine visitors write their wishes on these wooden plates and then leave them at the shrine in the hope that their wishes come true. Most people wish for good health, success in business, passing entrance exams, love or wealth. Ema Omikuji Omikuji are fortune telling paper slips found at many shrines and temples. Randomly drawn, they contain predictions ranging from daikichi ("great good luck") to daikyo ("great bad luck"). By tying the piece of paper around a tree's branch, good fortune will come true or bad fortune can be averted.

Key Characters Emperor Meiji made Shinto the State religion in 1868. Izanami and Izanagi were given a spear and task by god to create land. Before they died they created the god of sun, moon and storm.

About 84% of the population of Japan follow two religions: both Shinto and Buddhism Asia, Christianity is very much a minority religion two religions share a basic optimism about human nature, and for the world Shinto does not have as fully developed a theology as do most other religions. It does not have its own moral code. Shintoists generally follow the code of Confucianism All of humanity is regarded as "Kami's child." Thus all human life and human nature is sacred Morality is based upon that which is of benefit to the group. "Shinto emphasizes right practice, sensibility, and attitude There are “Three Affirmations“ in Shinto -Tradition and the family -Love of nature -Physical cleanliness

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Draw-a-Straw <The Shinto Game> RULES: 1) 3 names are randomly called. 2) Each person draws a straw. 3) The one who gets the lined, numbered straw can guess the answer. (in order) 4) The first person can pick the question. 5) If the first person doesn’t get it right, the second-person can guess 6) Whoever gets the right answer gets the prize.

There are going to be eight questions. 運を祈ります! (Oon-oh Eenori-mas!) (Good Luck!)