1. Buddhism and Shintoism By Sofia, Lauren, Alex, Jose

2. Introduction to Religion of Japan  Religion is the backbone of Japan’s culture identity  Religion was important to Japan because it affected daily life  The two main religions were Shintoism and Buddhism

3. Beliefs of Shintoism  The word Shinto means “ Way of the Gods”  Shintoism expresses the love and respect for nature  They believed you must purify the unclean  This means that is a human was dead you could not touch him or have care for it since it is unclean  They worshiped a spirit named Kami  The Kami represents live things that are natural and clean (ex. Wind, lightning., river, mountains, etc.)

4. Shintoism Rituals  A Shinto tradition is the formal reading of prayers of ancient traditions  They had to bring things to offer to the Kami such as Food  The most common type of ritual involves purification  Purification is when you communicate with the Kami  You do the ritual of Purification is usually done with water

5. Transition to Buddhism  Buddhism was introduced to Japan in 538 CE  The ruler of the Baekje (Korean Kingdom) sent a bronze image of Buddha and some sutras (Sanskrit Literature) to the Japanese Emperor Kimmei.  Controversy broke between the emperor’s court, on whether or not they should accept the “foreign cult”  Clans that opposed the acceptance was the Monobe and Nakatomi because they thought that Japan already had its traditional religion of Shinto  The Soga clan favored Buddhism because they thought it was beneficial and would enrich the Japanese culture.  Even though there were opposing thoughts against Buddhism, the religion was accepted by Emperor Kimmei because the Soga clan was very influential.

6. Beliefs of Buddhism  Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha Gautama  The word comes from “ bidhi ” meaning “ to awaken ” because Siddhartha awakened when he saw suffering and death  Buddhists see life as pain and suffering  They thought life was just a big cycle of birth, death, and rebirth  They believed you had to follow the eightfold path to reach nirvana so you could stop this cycle

8. Buddhism Rituals  One ritual they did was meditation  They believed it was a way to clear your brain and relax  Similar to Shintoism, families would offer food and pray to a figure of the Buddha in their home  Some steps to connecting with the Buddha were - offer a blessing - connect to what is sacred - make a commitment - let go of something, leave something behind, or say good - bye

9. Combination of Buddhism and Shintoism  Shinbatsu Shugo was developed which involved both belief in kami and Buddha.  Throughout the country jingujis (Buddhist temples attached to shrines) were built and sutras were read before the kami.  The belief behind the creation of jing ū ji is that kami were lost and suffering beings who needed to be freed through the power of Buddhist teachings.  Buddhism and Shintoism co-existed for several centuries. However, in the 18 th century, scholars (kokugaku) devoted to Japanese studies tried to separate Shintoism from Buddhism  The kokugaku felt that Shintoism could be the unifying factor for the country to support the Emperor. A Ministry of Rites was created to formalize and promote Shintoism, but this ended abruptly in the 1870s.  Shintoism declined further after WWII when the Emperor lost his divine status. However, many Japanese continued to practice both Shinto and Buddhist rites that supposedly promote better fortunes or well-beings for its practitioners.  As there are very little devoted Japanese Shintoists nowadays, Shintoists visit Buddhist temples and pray for luck and happiness at Shinto shrines.

10. Conclusion  Japanese culture and religious beliefs allowed for the co-existence of Shinto and Buddhism for several centuries.  Shinto was closely tied to Japanese nationalism, as it is linked to the belief in the Emperor’s divinity.  However, belief in both Shintoism and Buddhism declined after WWII when the Emperor lost his divine status.  Nowadays, Shinto and Buddhism still coexist: many Japanese practice Shinto rituals in Buddhist temples.  Shinto and its teachings have become ingrained in the Japanese mindset.