Taking part in a series of actions or behaviours is a religious act that 'does' religion, provides a holistic religious experience, and strengthens the participants' relationships with the kami and with other members of the community. The lack of intellectual content is in one way is a strength, since it excludes the doubting mind. Intellectual content may be lacking, but important truths are not. For example: Taking part in certain ceremonies teaches the participants ethics, i.
Taking part in a ceremony which asks the kami for a favour, or thanks the kami for past favours, teaches the participants that they can have a relationship with the spiritual elements of the world. Taking part in festival procession through the village teaches that the spiritual is an inseparable part of this world, and that the community itself is a key focus of the participants' lives.
Shintoism also views that some individuals live such an exemplary life that they become deified in a process called apotheosis. Many in the imperial family have experienced this honor, as have successful warriors. Because of the negative concept of death in the Shinto religion, most people in Japan have a Buddhist funeral and follow Buddhist funeral procedures. Shinto beliefs about the impurities associated with death would limit family gatherings prior to death. Preparation of the body after death is often left in the hands of professionals.
A Buddhist funeral is simple and quiet. The service seeks to show respect for the deceased, as well as bring honor and comfort to the surviving family and friends. The service attempts to create a positive atmosphere to assist the spirit of the deceased in leaving this world and processing to the next. Nearly all funerals in Japan were Buddhist until the 19th century when a revival of Shinto traditions spread throughout the country. A distinctively Shinto funeral service was devised with many of the practices being in direct contrast with the Buddhist traditions.
For example, Shinto priests will wear white to the funeral, while the Buddhist priests will wear black. The emphasis upon ritual in the Shinto religion is clearly evident in the funeral services.
The main purpose of the ritual is to provide a connection with the kami and to purify things that have become contaminated through death. There are twenty distinct steps in a Shinto funeral, each needing to be carried out completely and with proper reverence.
A Shinto priest is needed to perform many of the rituals. The Shinto religion teaches that it is natural to grieve the loss of family members and friends at the time of death. They would emphasize the need to have personal reflection and rededication to the correct spiritual paths during a time of grief.
Mourning is often seen as a regimented response to death. It has proper rituals and expressions. It should be endured in an almost stoic fashion. Mourning is a time of reflection on personal life, on the loss of companionship and the adjustment to life without the deceased. Industrialization and centralization gave the Japanese a strong sense that their country could rival Western powers technologically and socially.
Moreover, successful foreign wars gave the populace a sense of martial pride in their nation. The rise of Japanese nationalism paralleled the growth of nationalism within the West. During the Meiji period , such nationalists railed against the unequal treaties, but in the years following the First World War, Western criticism of Japanese imperial ambitions and restrictions on Japanese immigration changed the focus of the nationalist movement in Japan.
In the s and s, the supporters of Japanese statism used the slogan Showa Restoration , which implied that a new resolution was needed to replace the existing political order dominated by corrupt politicians and capitalists, with one which in their eyes , would fulfill the original goals of the Meiji Restoration of direct Imperial rule via military proxies.
Japan had no strong allies and its actions had been internationally condemned, while internally popular nationalism was booming. Local leaders, such as mayors, teachers, and Shinto priests were recruited to indoctrinate the populace. The Japanese government, in fact, nationalized the various Shinto Shrines for the sake of promoting the emperor as a divine being, and a descendent of Amaterasu. These ambitions led to the outbreak of the Second Sino-Japanese War in After their victory in the Chinese capital, the Japanese military committed the infamous Nanking Massacre.
Japan also attempted to exterminate Korea as a nation. The continuance of Korean culture itself became illegal. Worship at Japanese Shinto shrines was made compulsory.
The school curriculum was radically modified to eliminate teaching of the Korean language and history. Japan reacted by forging an alliance with Germany and Italy in , known as the Tripartite Pact , which worsened its relations with the U.
In July , the United States, Great Britain, and the Netherlands froze all Japanese assets when Japan completed its invasion of French Indochina by occupying the southern half of the country, further increasing tension in the Pacific.
Shinto "the way of the gods" is the indigenous faith of the Japanese people and as old as Japan itself. It remains Japan's major religion alongside Buddhism. Shinto does not have a founder nor does it have sacred scriptures like the sutras or the Bible.
Propaganda and preaching are not common either, because Shinto is deeply rooted in the Japanese people and traditions. They are sacred spirits which take the form of things and concepts important to life, such as wind, rain, mountains, trees, rivers and fertility.
Humans become kami after they die and are revered by their families as ancestral kami. The kami of extraordinary people are even enshrined at some shrines. The Sun Goddess Amaterasu is considered Shinto's most important kami. In contrast to many monotheistic religions, there are no absolutes in Shinto.
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