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Differences Of Shinto And Buddhism In Japan

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Japan has many religions but Shinto and Buddhism are Japan’s two major religions. Shinto is the oldest religion in Japan and Buddhism was imported from the mainland in the 6th century. Since then, the two religions have been co-existing relatively and harmoniously. It is common for one person or family to believe in several Shinto gods and at the same time belongs to Buddhism. Most Japanese consider themselves as a Buddhist, Shintoist or both. Today, religion does not play as vital role in the everyday life of most Japanese people. Children in Japan usually does not receive any formal religious training.
Shinto is a polytheistic religion because it has many gods. Shinto or the English word, ‘’the way of gods’ does not have any founder nor does it have sacred scriptures like the …show more content…

Yami is define as a gloomy underground realm with a river separating the living from the dead. Nowadays, funerals are usually carried out in a Buddhist way but when it comes to Shinto funeral, mourners wear solid black on the day of mourning called kichu-fuda and Shinto priest will perform various rituals. People or visitors give monetary gifts (koden) to the deceased …show more content…

Mostly western and traditional way. Traditionally, the religious wedding ceremony will be held in Shinto style at a shrine and the couple is dressed in traditional kimono. A Shinto priest conducts the ceremony, which is only visited by the close family members of the couple. During the ceremony, the couple is purified, drinks sake (alcohol), and the groom reads the word of commitment. At the end of the ceremony, symbolic offerings are given to the kami. Recently, the number of Japanese couples who hold their wedding ceremony outside of Japan has also increase. The reason is, because they want to combine the honeymoon with the ceremony to minimize the amount of cost for the

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