A History of the World’s Religions Thirteenth Edition David S. Noss Blake R. Grangaard

Shinto The Native Contribution to Japanese Religion Chapter 11 Shinto The Native Contribution to Japanese Religion

Introduction Shinto is the native religion of Japan Not fundamentally a system of doctrines Reverent alliance with supramundane realities of Japanese life

Background of Shinto Shinto is derived from the Chinese shendao meaning “the way of higher spirits or gods Kami-no-michi Shinto myth holds that Japan was once peopled exclusively with kami Early Japanese regarded the whole of nature as imbued with kami powers

Background of Shinto Ethnic origins Likely a mixed people (Korean, Mongolian, Malayan) Ancient Japan was a loose conjunction of tribes and clans Comingling of magic, taboo, and religion common in primitive societies Passion for personal cleanliness

Background of Shinto Prehistoric cultures Jomon period Pottery dating to 6000 bce Relics suggest ritual burial, fertility rights Yayoi period (250 bce to 250 ce) Cultivation of rice Kofun period (250 ce to the 5th century) Burial mounds Asiatic warriors

Background of Shinto Three main centers of culture (1st century bce) Island of Kyushu Concerned with gods of the sea Izumo Worshiped the storm god Yamato Adored the sun goddess Yamato ascendancy

Background of Shinto The effect of Chinese culture Civilizing influences (5th century ce) Metalworking, agriculture, engineering Language The sun goddess

Background of Shinto Early sacred literature Buddhist impact Chronicle of Ancient Events (712 ce) Chronicles of Japan (720 ce) Gleanings from Ancient Stories (806 ce) The Engi-shiki (10th century ce) Manyoshu The Tale of Genji

The Shinto Myth The primal progenitors Izanagi Izanami Pollution and the deities of cleansing Amaterasu and other kami The composite nature of the myth

Shinto in Medieval and More Recent Times Two orientations The family model The guest model Confucian and Buddhist influence on the elite The revival of Shinto as a separate religion

Shinto in Medieval and More Recent Times Shinto classical scholars Kamo Mabuchi Hirata Atsutane Motoori Norinaga Upheld the superiority of the ancient way of Japan No need of a moral code Advocated for “pure Shinto”

Shinto in Medieval and More Recent Times The restoration of 1868 The Constitution of 1889 and the state cult Military placed under the emperor’s control Incorporation of the emperor’s descent from the sun goddess into the Constitution Buddhism disestablished Shinto designated as the state religion

State Shinto to 1945 Government-fostered program of patriotic rites Shrines were made national property Purpose was the systematic cultivation of patriotic feeling American occupation in 1945 led to voluntary as opposed to compulsory worship

State Shinto to 1945 Western ideas and agnosticism in Japan Resurgence of Buddhism Reentrance of Christianity Estrangement from officially sanctioned shrines Disbelief and agnosticism became widespread Fueled by introduction of Western science Census of university students in 1920 found that 65% identified as agnostic; 33% identified as atheist; and 2% identified as Christian

State Shinto to 1945 Efforts to revise the myth Shinto as national ethics State Shrines before 1945 The Grand Imperial Shrine at Isé The O-Harai purification rite

Shinto and the warrior The eight attitudes of the Bushido code Loyalty Gratitude Courage Justice Truthfulness Politeness Reserve Honor

Shinto and the Warrior The example of “The Forty-Seven Ronin” The Bushido and the modern warrior Harakiri and jigai Human Bullets Kamikaze pilots Mishima Pre-World War II ethnocentric rational

Shrine Shinto Today In 1945 110,000 shrines were cut-off from state supervision and subsidies Now 86,000 shrines are maintained by a nationwide Shrine Association

Domestic and Sectarian Shinto The festivals Shinto in the home The Dolls’ Festival Children’s Day Sectarian Shinto The new religions Sects founded by women Continuing growth of new religions