basic beliefs of shinto

8/12/2019 Basic Beliefs of Shinto

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birth for girls. Traditionally, the grandmother takes the baby to the shrine, as the

mother is thought to be impure from childbirth. In modern times, the mother

takes the child.

Shichigosan: When children at the ages of 3-7 are taken to a shrine to celebratetheir aging of childhood.

Haru Matsari: The Japanese spring festival. It emphasizes on good luck in asuccessful planting of crops, especially rice.

Rei-Sai: An annual, festival, its date pending on the date the local shrine wascreated. Basically, Rei-Sai celebrates the birthday of the shrine.

Aki Matsuri: A festival that celebrates the annual harvest of rice and other crops.

Shinto Weddings: In a traditional style wedding, the couple is at first purified withwater. After that, they drink sake, and the groom reads the words of

commitment to the bride. In terms of dress, both the newlyweds wear a kimono.

A kimono traditional dress.

Kanushi: groundbreaking ceremonies for a new building to ensure its stability andquality. Nowadays, Shinto priest perform purification and Kanushi rituals to new

cars and electronics on the assembly line before they are exported to other

countries.


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A Kanushi groundbreaking ceremony.


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Different Types of Shinto

Shrine Shinto: The most popular of all forms of Shinto. It holds a firm positionalong Japan's history and is considered as the main flow of Shinto. Shrine Shinto

is commonly associated with summer festivals, good luck talismans and

groundbreaking ceremonies. Before the nationalization of Shinto, Shrine Shinto

was a series of disorganised shrines connected to Buddhist worship. After, Shrine

Shinto was systemized and utilized for patriotism. After Shinto nationalization

was disbanded in 1946, by General Douglas MacArthur, the mantle of organizing

shrines went to the Association of Shinto Shrines, overseeing about 80000

shrines all over the world.

Imperial Household Shinto: The official worship practiced by the Imperial Familyof Japan. There are 3 shrines in the Imperial Palace, for example The Ancestral

Spirits Shine, and Sanctuary of the Kami.

Folk Shinto:based on a series of numerous but disorganized beliefs in deities anddivinities. Forms of worship in divination, spirit possession, and shamanism.

Contains elements from Buddhism and Confucianism, but most rites come from

ancient Japanese traditions.

Sect Shinto: a term used in the 1980s to distinguish state-owned shrines fromtraditional worship. Followers of Sect Shinto do not practice in a shine. Instead,they worship in meeting halls, auditoriums, and rented rooms. Sect Shintoists

typically pray to mountains, for example Mount Fuji, practice a form of

Confucianism, and abstain from connecting with mainline Shinto.

Koshinto: Means "Old Shinto." This refers to practicing a form of Shinto before itwas affected by Buddhism form mainland Asia.


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Shinto Religious Symbols

Ofuda: Religious talismans Omamori: personal good luck charms Daruma: Round, paper dolls in which recipients set goals on them and try to

accomplish.

Dorei: earthenware bells used to pray for good fortune. Humaya: paper arrows used to represent the fight between good and evil. Inuharuto: paper dogs used to induce and bless successful births.

Dorei earthenware bells.


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Shinto Afterlife

Shinto families use Buddhism rites in handling funerals, since death is considered

pollution in Shinto. The Japanese version of an afterlife is very similar to the Greek

Hades: a dark, damp underground realm with a river separating the living and the dead.The general description of it is very gloomy. However, some ancient Japanese scrolls

also mention a heaven-like place where heroes and people who do wonderful things in

their life go when they die. The Japanese name for the afterlife is yomi, meaning "land

of the dead."


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Political and Social Roles of Shinto

In about 1870 CE, the Meiji Dynasty implemented what would become known as the

Meiji Restoration, when the Shinto religion was combined with the country to make

State Shinto. As a result, the emperor and government would go to shrines not only topray to kami, but also pray for peace and the welfare of the nation (matsuri-goto). A

motto of state officials was "Shinto ceremonies and political affairs are one and the

same." A bit lower down the chain, villagers still prayed to kami for unity in the state

and the health of the emperor. Priority to teaching of religion in schools was given

purely to Shinto, despite the Japanese constitution of 1889. Besides that, a majority of

national holidays reflected on Shinto festivals. The "Great Promulgation Movement"

refers to when the emperor was revered as a kami, from 1869 to 1884. The government

also brought back "National Shrines" which were government funded and held some

sort of national significance. Some example of national shrines were the Six Sanctuaries.

One of the National Shrines: The Keta Taisha.


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Foundation of Shinto

Shinto is too old to know the specific founder, like Jesus Christ of Christianity or

Gautama Buddha of Buddhism, but it is well-known that Shinto is associated with the

prehistoric religious practices of the Japanese people. However, it was officiallyrecognized as a religion in 660 BCE. Obviously, it originated in the Japanese Islands.

Creation Myth

The Japanese believe that two kami, Izanagi no Mikoto and Izanami-no-Mikoto, were

tasked by the myriad gods to create the Japanese Islands. They were given a spear in

which they used to stir the water, and when water dripped off the end, an island was

created. After a while they bore offspring, the other 8 Japanese islands.

Extra Facts

Shinto has no sacred books, no teachers, so saints, and no well-definedpantheon.

The word "Shinto" actually comes from the Chinese word shin tao,meaning "theway of the kami."

About 3-4 million people in the world worship Shinto. Shinto does not require followers to profess their faith, so anyone practicing aShinto rite is counted as a believer, making it hard to count the exact amount of

worshippers.

The Christian God, Islamic Allah, and Hindu gods are considered Kami for thepurpose of the Shinto faith.

Shinto is the 15th largest religion in the world.

basic beliefs of shinto

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