Ancient Japanese Culture

Firstly, the traditions within Shintoism were important to help the Japanese people to connect with their ancestors and the nature around them. The word ‘Shinto’ itself means way of the gods. It is as old as the Japanese culture and was the only religion in Japan until the 6th century. According to the Shinto religion, there exists a basic life force called kami. Kami are close to human beings and respond to human prayers. They can influence the course of natural forces, and human events. Shinto tradition says that there are eight million kami in Japan. Due to their deep respect and love for nature and Japan itself, many shrines were set up in places of natural beauty. Followers went to pray here to receive good fortune and samurai would often go to the shrines to pray for victory before and after battle. Shinto’s traditions involved having a clean lifestyle. They washed and bathed everyday which made most of japan a fresh

Shinto and Buddhism are two different traditions that have flourished in Japan for hundreds of years. Generally, followers from one of the traditions tend to follow the guidance of the other as well, which makes the relationship between Shinto and Buddhism very rare in world religions. At first, when these two traditions contacted each other in ancient Japan, there was a lot of confusion, but eventually they were able to coexist. However, even though Buddhism and Shinto share similarities regarding flexibility and independence, there are more differences between them proven by Buddhism’s spread to ancient Japan, their contrasting practices and beliefs and the different outlooks on the afterlife.

The Japanese culture has been greatly influenced by its religions, and one of the most influential religions has been Shintoism. Shintoism has been dated back to 500BC, when the descendants of the sun goddess, Amaterasu-OmiKami, worshiped the gods and goddesses of Japan. Shinto means "way of the gods" and that represents what people who practice Shintoism believe in. Shintoism is a religion based on Japanese mythology, which is centered on a male god, Izanagi, and a female goddess, Izanami. These two gods were believed to have created Japan, which was thought to be the only land in the whole word. The two gods had two children, the sun goddess Amaterasu, and the storm god, Susanowo. These two gods fought over control of the people of

Shintoism is an ancient religion that originated in Japanese culture. Shinto is a general term for the activities of the people of Japanese descent to worship all the deities of heaven and earth, and at the end of the 6th century the Japanese were conscious of these activities and called them the "Way of Kami" (the deity or the deities)'. The practice of Shintoism finally recognized when Yomei, the 31st Emperor of Japan, prayed before an image of Buddha for the first time as an emperor for recovery of his illness. Then Yomei accepted Buddhism, a foreign religion, the Japanese realized existence of a tradition of their own faith.

Shintoism is Japan native religion. In this religion, every living thing in nature, from the wind, animals, trees and even sound contain gods which are referred to as kami (1). The religion worships nature and arose by the desire to include human life in the great harmony manifested in the universe. They have shrines to honor the gods. While Shintoism contains the spirituality of the living, Buddhism contains the spirituality of the afterlife and soul. This is why these religions compliment each other so well. Bought over from Chinese culture was Confucianism, which is a code of ethic that also influenced the way Japanese lived their lives. As you place these religions together, the health of each individual determines if they are living a purified and meaningful life or if there soul has been tainted, unclean, and impure.

4) in our daily lives. In more prominent ways, Japanese culture can be noticed through cuisine and religion. “Buddhism” and “Shintoism” are the two significant religions of Japan, though in Hawaii more buddhist temples are seen rather than shinto shrines. Besides the majority of the Japanese population in Hawaii, buddhism is also practiced by a great amount of Hawaii locals. The only set back being, “The only temple activities that cater to non- Japanese…are taiko drumming and meditation.” (Borup

Japans history dates back almost 53,000 years and is filled with interesting and fascinating events. Most of Japans actions have left the major world powers in the world stunned. The base of this amazing country is astonishing just by itself. The base is a bunch of active and large under water volcanoes. Japans uniqueness from the rest of the world ranges from its culture to its very interesting history to the change in government every few hundred years and their trading dilemma with petroleum and their assortment of fish that they export. Japan as a country is so very appealing and kind compared to the rest of the world its no wonder that it’s geographically separate from the rest of the world.

Shinto is one of the prime religions side-by-side Christianity and Buddhism. People who have a lot of knowledge in Japanese culture are conscious of this, but how many people realize how much Shintoism has changed and evolved throughout time. In this research paper, I will reveal a bit more on what the Shinto religion is, their past beliefs with how that has affected their new beliefs and their old and new rituals.

As an ancient religion of Japan, Shinto was originally a combination of nature worship, divination techniques, and shamanism. Meaning "the way of the Gods", the origins of Shinto are not apparent in comparison to other religions, especially other Asian religions and beliefs. With no obvious founder, as well as original written scriptures and authentic laws, a number of theories exist about the origination of Shinto as a religion and its development across the Japanese lands. However, the significance of the religion has shifted the importance of discovering its origins to the religious influences that Shinto has embarked upon Japanese

The Shinto religion is one of the most prominent religions in the world. 80% of Japan’s population practices Shintoism, and it is the fifth largest religion in the world. While there is recorded history of this religion dating back to the 8th century, there is archaeological evidence that dates back several centuries prior to any written records. Traditions, rituals and beliefs in regards to this religion cause historians to believe this religion is much older than what written records say. This religion involves the worship of multiple Gods and Goddesses, and has also been described as a worship of ancestors. The goal of the practices of this religion is to connect modern day Japan with the traditions of the past.

Many religions are popular within the Japanese culture. Two of the most influential religions, Shinto and Buddhism that help shaped a lot of Japanese values are Shinto and Buddhism, played a large role in shaping Japanese values. Numerous similarities and differences run between these two religions; nonetheless, the Japanese often believe in more than one religion at the same time. This is possible due to the polytheistic nature of most popular religions in Japan. It is not hard to say that religion is a big part of Japanese culture because a lot of religious beliefs can still be seen in their everyday lives.

All around the world, religion is a dominant idea for many cultures; exemplifying a certain way of life, serving as a basis for faith, and bringing charity to the world, religion is a extensive concept. For several cultures and countries religion may vary according to demographics, socio-economical class, and ethnicity. Main concepts of religion in Japan are natural and superstitious based. The leading religion in Japan remains Shinto, while other religions have come and go, interweaving themselves among the Japanese society.

Japanese cuisine is an appetizing art form brought to us by an ancient food culture. Japan’s cuisine reflects their traditionally-shaped and evolutionary food culture. Normally, food in any other country is just a sustenance for the body, but in Japan there is a deeper meaning. Japanese cuisine is very authentic in terms of the type of food served and the manner of which it is served. The art has been influenced by numerous countries only to perfect their cooking style and eating habits.

One of the key aspects of Shinto, and an aspect that made it somewhat difficult for me to study in a more isolated context, is the flexibility of it. Unlike the Abrahamic religions, there is no strict religious doctrine or meticulous set of rules that governs the practitioners. Instead, it's much more a conceptual idea that carries with it various commonalities, specifically in terms of practices and a very nature-based system of deities (Religions of the World). Although, despite Japan's more isolated society, they did share certain ideas with other Eastern religions, such as a focus on the cosmos and harmony with nature and others (Return of the Gods).

The dominant religions are Shinto and Buddhism both complement each other in various ways. They have harmonious cohabitation within the nation and promote peace and harmony. Moreover, religion does not necessarily play a large part in the average everyday life of a Japanese person outside of holidays and special occasions.