Online dictionary of history and traditions in Japan: shintoism

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Amaterasu

天照大神天照尊
alternative words: Amaterasu omikami, Amaterasu ominokami, Amaterasunomikoto, Amaterasu no mikoto, Goddess Amaterasu, God Amaterasu
keywords: god , mythology , shintoism
related topics: Kojiki , Nihonshoki , Himiko , Yamato dynasty , Izanagi Izanami , Susano , Takamagahara , Shintoism
related web sites: http://www.city.ise.mie.jp
explanation: Sun goddess and the most important god in Japanese mythology. Being born from god Izanagi after the death of Izanami, she has 2 brothers: Sea god, Susano with whom she is in a bad relation and Lunar god, Tsukiyomi. One day, she ordered his son, Ninigi to go down from Takamagahara to the earth on Mt Takachiho and to govern it. He became so the ancestor of Japanese imperial family. There are many shrines which adore her but the most important is Ise shrine.

Inari

稲荷
keywords: god , shintoism
related topics: Heian period , Edo period
related web sites: http://www.digimake.co.jp/webtown/fushimi/inari/inari.html
explanation: Initially, Inari had been a god of rice culture ("ina" or "ine" means rice) in shinto rite. During a merger of Bouddhism and Shintoism in Heian period, Inari became a messenger of gods, symbolized by the fox. During Edo period, Inari was widely venerated as a protector of merchants. The main shrine of Inari cult is at Fushimi Inari Taisha located in Kyoto city. There exist also many child shrines of Inari cult.

Jindai moji

神代文字
alternative words: Jindaimoji, Holly script, Shinto script
keywords: korea , mystery , shintoism
related topics: Invasion of Korea , Shintoism , Nara period
related web sites: http://www.age.ne.jp/x/oohashi/ , http://www.ne.jp/asahi/kami/asi-pon/jindai.html
explanation: There exist many shinto documents written with holly scripts (jaindai moji) such as "Uetsu fumi" or "Hotsuma zutae", being pretended by the nationalists that Japan should have had her own scripts before the introduction of kanji characters. They are all phonetic scripts based on 5 vowels so they should be invented after Nara period when Japanese language had 8 vowels. They may have originated from Korean alphabet, hangul, that Japanese brought during Hideyoshi's Korean campaign.

Kagura

神楽
alternative words: Kagura dance
keywords: shintoism , theater
related topics: Kojiki , Amaterasu , Noh , Shintoism
related web sites: http://homepage3.nifty.com/santoyjr/ , http://fish.miracle.ne.jp/haruka-s/menu.html , http://www2s.biglobe.ne.jp/~t-sato/
explanation: Man carried out music and dance for shinto gods since old times. For example, the people performed "kagura" when Amaterasu had hidden herself into a cave to plunge the world into the darkness. Each shinto shrines had own kagura but it has been gradually replaced by more sophisticated arts like Noh. Kagura practiced in the imperial court nowadays is one of rare survivors of the traditional kagura.

Kokugaku

国学
alternative words: Kokugaku school, Koku-gaku, Koku gaku, National learning, Japanese national learning
keywords: philosophy , school , shintoism
related topics: Motoori Norinaga , Edo period , Shintoism , Manyoshu , Kojiki
related web sites: http://www3.justnet.ne.jp/~rinri/036.htm
explanation: Beginning with an innocent study of Japanese classics such as Manyoshu and Kojiki by Kamo Mabuchi and Motoori Norinaga, in order to justify a lack of Japanese ideology in face to well structured foreign disciplines such as Confucianism and Buddhism, it became more radical with the works of Hirata Atsutane. It formed a core of ideological arm when Japanese began to feel pressures of westerners at the end of Edo period, especially among samurai of Mito domain.

Shimenawa

注連縄
alternative words: Shimenawa rope, Shime nawa, Sacred rope, Shinto rope
keywords: craft , shintoism , sumo , thing
related topics: Shintoism , Edo period , Yokozuna , Torii
related web sites: http://www2s.biglobe.ne.jp/~auto/SIMENAWA.html
explanation: A rope made by twisting together straws. It is hung horizontally to indicate a sacred shintoism place such as praying hall or torii. Since Edo period, it has been also used as a belt of sumo champion, yokozuna during his presentation (yokozun means "horizontal rope"). The most of shrines hang "shimenawa" with its root (thick side) on the right but Izumo shrine observes the inverse. Until recently, it was made by farmers living in vicinity but it has become difficult to find volunteers.

Shintoism

神道
alternative words: Shinto, Shintou
keywords: religion , shintoism
related topics: Yamato dynasty , Amaterasu , Buddhism , Nihonshoki , Kokugaku , Torii , Shimenawa , Jindai moji
related web sites: http://www.shinto.org , http://www.jinja.or.jp , http://www.kamnavi.net , http://www3.wind.ne.jp/~tnroom/
explanation: Indigenous religion based on a cult of the nature and great figures. Shintoists build no statues but only places to pray like in Islam or Judaism. There exist 2 groups of shintoism: the first, classic one, is tightly integrated into the state system built by Yamato dynasty. Ise-jingu which worships Amaterasu, is an example. The second category, "koshinto" i.e. old shinto, looks like an animism. During the Middle Ages, Shinto gods were frequently confounded with Buddhism (Honji suijaku theory).

Shugendo

修験道
alternative words: Shugen-do, Shugen do, Shugendou
keywords: mystery , religion , shintoism
related topics: Esoteric Buddhism , Shingon sect , Tendai sect , Yamabushi , Heian period , Nara period , Shintoism , En no ozunu
related web sites: http://www1.tcnet.ne.jp/miko/ , http://www.os.rim.or.jp/~yfuku/ , http://www.coara.or.jp/~daikoin/ , http://www1.ocn.ne.jp/~nijitu/index.htm
explanation: Merging a mountain faith proper to Japan and Esoteric Buddhism coming from China, this religious practice had become popular during Heian period though En no ozunu of Nara period is considered the founder. It consists to carry out ascetic religious disciplines in mountains in order to increase the spiritual power. The members of this religious order are called "Yamabushi" and usually adhere to Shingon or Tendai sects. Their favorite training grounds are Mts Dewa, Futara, Ontake, Hakusan etc.

Tenrikyo

天理教
alternative words: Tenri kyo, Tenri sect, Tenrikyo sect
keywords: religion , shintoism
related topics: Edo period , Meiji period , Shintoism
related web sites: http://www.tenrikyo.or.jp
explanation: Shintoism sect founded by Nakayama Miki, woman married with a rich farmer of Yamato region. Through an extreme sufferance of family problems, one day, she revealed the god wish by writing down an oracle and organized peasants to transform the society (yonaoshi). The movement was persecuted several times by Meiji government but recognized in 1908 after her death. Tenrikyo owns 16,000 temples over the world and an university. Its headquarters is located at Tenry city in Nara prefecture.

Torii

鳥居
alternative words: Torii gate, Shrine gate, Shinto gate, Torii shinto gate, Torii portal, Shrine portal, Shinto portal
keywords: architecture , shintoism
related topics: Shintoism , Yayoi period , Shimenawa
explanation: Portal to enter a shinto sanctuary. 2 horizontal bars are supported by 2 vertical sticks (it looks like rugby porch but the vertical sticks don't surpass the horizontal ones). The topmost bar is called Kasagi while the 2d bar little below is called Nuki where man hangs sometimes shinto decoration such as straw festoon (shimenawa). Torii means "bird sitting" because birds are frequently sitting there. But birds may represent also a totem symbol, if torii is a relic of Yayoi village's entry.

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