At the same time, Buddhism was suppressed. This all changed, however, after the Meiji Restoration of 1868 when Shinto was deemed the dominant religion, largely to re-establish the importance of the emperor, as the emperor is considered to be a living Kami. Throughout most of Japanese history, Shinto did not play a particularly important role in state politics. In return for the love and protection they receive, they are obliged to treat both of them with loyalty and honesty, and to continue the family line showing kindness and guidance to their descendants. People are believed to be the children of both their parents and Kami and therefore owe their lives to both society and nature. Shinto is a personal faith in the Kami, a communal way of life in accordance with the mind of the Kami and a spiritual life attained through worship of and communion with the Kami. It is a combination of attitudes, ideas and ways of doing things that for more than 2,000 years has become an integral part of what it is to be Japanese. But Shinto is more than just a nature worshipping faith. mountains, trees, waterfalls, strangely shaped rocks, even in sounds). Gods (Kami) are felt to be present in natural phenomena (e.g. But Shinto was firmly entrenched in Japan long before Buddhism arrived. Shinto, or “Way of the Gods”, only received its name in the sixth century to distinguish it from the newly arrived Buddhism. It is a set of ancient customs handed down from generation to generation that are to be followed more or less, but not to be pondered deeply. To most Japanese, Shinto is part of the backdrop of daily life. In other words, Shinto is not so much a matter of personal belief as it is of being Japanese.
It revolves around the rites and festivals of the community, not of the individual, in a way that can only be described as tribal. Upon comparison with more organized religions, Shinto is characterized not by scriptures and buildings but by myths, a concern for purity and defilement, and a combination of shrines and rituals.
Shinto, a term that embraces a diverse body of beliefs and practices is an anachronism among the religions of modern societies, one that would seem to have little relevance to Japan today.
0 kommentar(er)
