Shinto And Religion

Human search for meaning in Shinto is based off of their beliefs, rituals, origins and culture. There are four components that make up the Shinto human search of meaning, Simplicity, one with the world, peace within the world and the individual journey to self-discovery and potential. Simplicity refers to the lack of scripture, rules and expectations the individual to interpret hoe they are to live their lives. Peace with the world is to be what the individual interprets to be the best person they can have an optimistic approach to the world encouraging world peace and peace within themselves. One with the world refers to the immanent nature of the religion, the way the world is viewed individually contributing to their connection with the

I feel that Shinto is similar to Confucianism. There is an unequivocal accentuation in transit. The "to" some portion of the word is based of "do" which is the way. Shinto additionally is vigorously centered around nature. In japan that is really simple in light of the fact that in spite of contamination there is huge regular excellence. Indeed, even today the Japanese respect nature by making rock greenhouses and tea functions.

Hinduism, Buddhism and Shinto, while vast in differences there is much to learn about these three religions similarities as well. Some facts and history of Hinduism include, Hinduism (being the oldest of the three) is dated back in pre-history before 10000 BC even believed to predate the Indus River Valley Civilization! The Vedas (the holy text of Hinduism) is the foundation for Indian culture and also the basic belief system of Hinduism. The basic belief structure of Hinduism is as follows, the three doctrines; Samsara (1) which means “successive rebirths” indicating the belief in reincarnation started by ATMA or the spark of life given by the god Brahma. This cycle continues until the soul collects enough good Karma (2) to break from the

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

While I was reading these interesting stories, each story had some qualities that where similar, but there were also many differences. Which wasn’t really a huge surprise since the setting of each story happened during different times, and on different parts of the planet. All the stories involved a special child, and everyone knew he was gifted. A few characters in these myths have powers, but some do not. Sikhism and Christianity seem to be based on Monotheistic viewpoint, but Buddhism and Shinto seem to be based on a polytheistic viewpoint. Each story was either about a god, or a prophet spreading his new found message to the people.

The nobles of Japan claim that they are the descendants of the five gods which Susanoo-Wo created. In Japanese art Amaterasu is seated with her other brother Tsukuyomi no Mikoto, who is the moon god. The cocks from the myth are associated with her and the rising sun. In Japan the Ise Grand Shrine is the most important Shinto shrine. It is dedicated to Amaterasu, and represented with three of her symbols. The cocks, the mirror, and a raven (who is believed to be her messenger.) The mirror is called the Yata no Kagami, held in the center of Japan at the Great Shrine at Ise. The mirror has been hidden for over a thousand of years but it is said to have eight sides which is also Shinto’s number of perfection.

The supernatural powers and deities of Shinto are Kami. Kami are not Gods but spirits that intervene with humans that do not live in a separate dimension but in the same dimension as humans. Kami can take form of elements of nature such as rivers, mountains, storms and earthquakes but they were also the deities that created the universe as stated in their holy text. They can also be spirits that take the form of the living and the souls of humans that have demonstrated outstanding achievement (such as soldiers that gave up their lives for war, emperors and leaders) becoming Kami after their death. Kami are also the ancestors and protectors of human beings. Kami can also influence the course of nature and events of humans. They like the human

One of the first aspects of Shinto to look in regards to relations with Buddhism is the name itself; the meaning of the name “Shinto”

The two religions that are located in Japan are Shinto and Buddhism. The two religions in japan are extraordinarily unalike, while Shintoism believes that every living thing including rocks and sounds contain some type of god in them, and Buddhism is concerned with the soul and afterlife that happens in Buddhism. The religions differ very much from each other with little similarities. Buddhism and Shintoism differ in one using shrines while the other has temples, the two both have religious ceremonies, and one believes in the afterlife while the other does not.

For instance, shrines, temples, and alters are very important in each religion because it allows the follower to connect with whatever deity they are trying to worship, let it be the Buddha or the kami. However, another difference between Shinto and Buddhism are the practices. One practice that sets the two apart is purification. Purification, such as Harai (the rinsing of hands and mouth before proceeding to a shrine), is a vital part of Shinto because it rids away evil and unrighteousness. Outer self and inner self purification includes acts such as the observance of festivals throughout the year or simply living before the kami in reverence and worship. Buddhism does not have purification or a different form of it. However, one thing that Buddhism has that Shinto doesn’t is images and sculptures of what it is being worshipped. Shinto does not have images or sculptures of the kami unlike Buddhism which has them of the Buddha. Additionally, Buddhism does not have prayer like Shinto, but rather meditation. According to The Essence of Shinto, to pray correctly in Shinto, “a yearning feeling for kami that flows from the bottom of your soul and reaches the end of the universe” must be felt. Buddhism has equal love and respect for the Buddha as Shinto does for the kami, but the goals of the two traditions are different which is why the forms of prayer and meditation contrast.

Shintoism has four affirmations that should be followed in everyday life. The first affirmation is tradition and family must be honored above all. This is a great example of how Shintoism places a great importance on the community and not on one single person. It is also the reason why Japanese

Kanetomo’s description of Honjaku-engi reveals that this type of Shinto was heavily influenced by the shrine traditions during that time. Based on Kanetomo’s definition of Honjaku-engi, I believe that this type of Shinto connects people with their spirituality through shrine rituals. By passing down the stories, secrets, and rituals of the Kami worshipped at the shrine, worshippers are able to connect the physical world with the spiritual world (Debary 352).

Amaterasu, also known as Ōkami Amaterasu, is a fictional character from Capcom’s video game Ōkami. Amaterasu is a white wolf that appears in the Marvel vs. Capcom series (Wikipedia). Her backstory claims that she is from the Celestial Plains, the domain of the spirits, and rules over the Celestials and the mortal world as a “proctor deity” (Wikipedia). Ōkami Amaterasu is based off the Shinto goddess Amaterasu-ōmikami , meaning “shining in heaven,” who is seen as the goddess of the sun and the universe (Wikipedia). She is deemed to be the most important deity of the Shinto religion, she like Ōkami Amaterasu is the ruler of the Celestial Plains (Cartwright).

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

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).