Shinto (神道 Shintō) is the native religion of Japan and was once its state religion. It is a polytheistic and animistic faith, and involves the worship of kami (神), or spirits. Some kami are local and can be regarded as the spiritual being/spirit or genius of a particular place, but others represent major natural objects and processes; for example, Amaterasu (the Sun goddess), or Mount Fuji.
The word Shinto, from the original Chinese (神道), combines two kanji: “shin” (神) (compound words use Chinese pronunciation, hence shin not kami), meaning gods or spirits; and “tō” (道), meaning a philosophical way or path (originally from the Chinese word dao). As such, Shinto is commonly translated as “The Way of the Gods.” Some differences exist between Shintoism (the ancient Shintō) and the many types of Shinto taught and practiced today, showing the influences of Buddhism when it was introduced into Japan in the sixth century.
Shinto is no longer Japan’s official state religion. However, it is considered the native religion of Japan. While some Shinto practices and teachings were given a great deal of prominence during World War II, they are no longer taught or practiced today. There are others, though, that still exist as commonplace activities, such as omikuji (a form of fortune-telling) and the Japanese New Year to which few people give religious connotations. Important national ceremonies such as coronations and imperial marriages are conducted at the Three Palace Sanctuaries in Tokyo.
Characteristics
The most immediately striking theme in the Shinto religion is a great love and reverence for nature. Thus, a waterfall, the moon, or just an oddly shaped rock might come to be regarded as a kami; so might charismatic persons or more abstract entities like growth and fertility. As time went by, the original nature-worshipping roots of the religion, while never lost entirely, became attenuated and the kami took on more reified and anthropomorphic forms, with a formidable body of myth attached to them. (See also: Japanese mythology.) The kami, however, are not transcendent deities in the usual Western and Indian sense of the word. Although divine, they are close to humanity; they inhabit the same world as we do, make the same mistakes as we do, and feel and think the same way as we do. Those who died will usually become kami, with their power and main characteristics given by their doings in life. Those believing other religions may be also venerated as kami after death, if there are Shinto believers who wish them to be.
Four affirmations
Though Shinto has no absolute commandments for its adherents outside of living “a simple and harmonious life with nature and people”, there are said to be “Four Affirmations” of the Shinto spirit:
Tradition and the family: The family is seen as the main mechanism by which traditions are preserved. The main Shinto celebrations relate to birth and marriage, which maintain the family unit.
Love of nature: Nature is considered sacred as it is imbued with spirits known as kami; to be in contact with nature is to be close to the kami. Natural objects are worshipped as containing these kami.
Physical cleanliness: Followers of Shinto take baths, wash their hands, and rinse out their mouths often.
“Matsuri“: Any festival dedicated to the Kami, of which there are many each year.
