Preview

Japanese History: Shinto Religion Essay Example

Powerful Essays
Open Document
Open Document
1524 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Japanese History: Shinto Religion Essay Example
Studies of Japanese culture and history have always pointed to Shinto as the defining element of Japanese religion, having continually existed from prehistoric to modern times. There are those who go so far as to say that Shinto is even more than a religion, that it is and has always been the very nature and spirit of the Japanese people. Shinto is argued to be the unifying force among the Japanese people, bringing together the heterogeneity of rituals and practices and thus defining Japanese religion and culture. However, Kuroda Toshio, in his article "Shinto in the History of Japanese Religion," refutes the claim that Shinto is a native Japanese religion that has existed throughout history. He asserts that Shinto did not emerge as an independent religion until the end of the fifteenth century, and argues instead that kenmitsu Buddhism, which does include Shinto as one of its components, is the true native religion of the Japanese. He then questions the legitimacy of accepting Shinto as the dominant primitive religion simply because historic sampling has made it appear so, and casts doubt on what may be accepted as a "true picture of history" (Kuroda, 20). In this essay, I will be arguing for the validity of this question, while nonetheless asserting the importance of the pursuit of history. History cannot be accepted as an absolutely accurate representation of the past, but rather as a reformation of the past in light of today's concepts. At the same time, efforts to understand history accurately are essential because, as Robert Bellah shows, historical concepts may have important applications in today's world. The word Shinto as it is understood today is different from its original meaning, argues Toshio. This implies that history undergoes constant change, and shows the difficulty of pinpointing a single stage in time and accurately describing that point in today's language. Today Shinto is accepted as a word that has always meant Japan's indigenous

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    The Shinto religion is a tradition that has close ties to nature and the upkeep of nature’s beauty (Fisher, 2014, p. 222). Shinto traditions believe in giving honor to the spirits of nature, and partaking in traditional cultural festivals (Fisher, 2014, p. 222). The Shinto that lives close to nature has structured their lives to accommodate the turn of the seasons. Shinto’s respect the roles of the sun, the position of the lightning in their rice farms, likewise the moon (Fisher, 2014, p.223). The Shinto also notice the natural beauty in minor scale art; they feel as though the rock gardening flower arranging, poetry, tea ceremony, are all reverenced as being modest and natural (Fisher, 2014, p.224). However, the Shinto (Kami) is honored…

    • 283 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Indigenous Religions Dq 4

    • 319 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Michael, P. (n.d). Religion and conflict in Japan with special reference to Shinto and Yasukuni Shrine. Diogenes, 50(199), 45. Retrieved from Gale: InfoTrac OneFile (PowerSearch) database.…

    • 319 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    REL 133 week 4 Shinto

    • 671 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Shinto is the religion that is indigenous to Japan. Shinto is a ritual based religion and the rituals must be completed with precision and diligence to maintain the connection between the ancient past and modern-day Japan. Shinto is based in mythology on a collection of beliefs from the earliest Japanese writings in the Kojiki and the Nihon Shoki. Public shrines that are devoted to multitudes of gods, or kami, that are devoted to various memorials or festivals.…

    • 671 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Religion 133 Bota Paper

    • 1507 Words
    • 7 Pages

    “I love Hawaii,” says Ganga. “I love that it is a combination of all of our cultures.” “It’s your turn to share with us about Shintoism.” Ganga gently reminds him. “Yes.” agrees Huang He, “How does Shintoism play into all of this?”…

    • 1507 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Samurai William

    • 1724 Words
    • 7 Pages

    In Giles Milton’s novel, Samurai William, the reader is taken to the other side of the globe to experience the history of old world Japan. Though out the book, Milton provides reason for complex historical events and actions, while still communicating the subtleties and mysterious customs of the Japanese. The novel also closely examines the wide range of relationships between different groups of Europeans and Asians, predominantly revolving around the protagonist, William Adams. The book documents the successes and failures that occur between the two civilizations, then links them back to either the positive or negative relationship they have. As the book goes on, the correlation is obvious. Milton shows us the extreme role that religion, etiquette and trade played in establishing positive relations between visiting Europeans and the Asian civilizations.…

    • 1724 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Tokugawa Japan’s history began in the 17th century when Tokugawa Ieyasu forged documents in order to validate his claim on the title shogun and ended those who opposed his position. It is during the Tokugawa regime that foreign influences changed and evolved the political, social, and, to an extent, economic lives of the people. From the westerners, Christianity entered and the religion shaped the policies and social issues, also foreign trade affected the natural resources of Japan. On the other hand, China and Korea exerted a lot amount on Tokugawa Japan as well with Neo-Confucianism and the concept of mu’en would change the intelligentsia and aesthetics sphere. In contrast to the foreign influences that developed in the 17th century, there were also movements that came in response to challenge Neo-Confucianism such as Ancient Learning and the revival of Shintoism. With all the foreign influences in the 17th century, it brings to question of Japanese authenticity during Tokugawa Japan. With many foreign influences that helped develop Tokugawa Japan, it is crucially imperative to…

    • 1710 Words
    • 7 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Satisfactory Essays

    I am loving my time on the beautiful and mountainous island chain of Japan. The close proximity to China is very visible in the government and religion of this island. Peering into Zen Gardens, you can see people peacefully meditating attempting to achieve enlightenment in their calm meditation. If it was not for the Chinese, Zen Buddhism certainly would not be worshiping in this manner.Nonetheless, there are still some people practicing Shintoism. Tensions are slightly high with the increasing presence of Buddhism and there are battles beginning to brew between the peasants and the newly formed central…

    • 98 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
  • Good Essays

    Imagine a scrawny, scarred plantation worker living in the 1800’s out in Hawaii, hunched over all day long with fresh blood dripping down his muddy hands. Slapping at stinging wasps, and soothing scars all day, he struggles to live. This is just another day in the life of a Hawaiian immigrant worker, struggling through life. To keep it short- these plantation workers don’t have it easy. “What is a Hawaiian immigrant plantation worker?”…

    • 1011 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Geishas, Anime, Manga, J-Pop, what do they all have in common? Japanese culture. Japanese culture combines influences from Asia, Europe, and North America. In my opinion, Japanese culture is more unique than the others. They have similar interest as the United States. Geisha’s, sports, Anime, and music are the defining elements when one thinks about Japanese culture.…

    • 725 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Shinto: Types Of Religion

    • 1446 Words
    • 6 Pages

    There are many forms and types of religion throughout the world today. Religion being beliefs in and worship to a higher power. There are ethnic religions, meaning it is associated with certain ethnicity, that of its practitioners. One example of an ethnic religion is Shinto, it is nearly exclusively associated with Japan and the Japanese people. Shinto is an indigenous religious tradition of Japan. Its main concerns are the sacredness of Japan’s landscape, Japanese family ancestors, and heroes within the nation. Shinto helps form and maintain relationships with the sacred from birth to death and beyond (Williams 4).…

    • 1446 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In the past, many countries around the world suffered from similar problems. The rich were getting away with basically anything, and the poor were being taxed to death. This was especially big in France as well as other countries such as Japan. The taxation was mostly prominent in the era of Tokugawa. With all the Daimyos and Samurai, if you were a peasant, life would be incredibly hard to live. This was all changed by the Revolutionary Meiji Restoration.…

    • 405 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Better Essays

    Shinto Religion Essay

    • 1257 Words
    • 6 Pages

    The following that is known as Shinto is considered to be the main ethnic religion of the people of Japan. “Shinto” means “the way of the kami” or way of the gods in Japanese. Shinto is also known as “kami-no-michi” in Romanized Japanese. Originally, it was known and adopted from the term “Shindo”, which has roots from the Chinese term Shendao, which combines two Japanese Kanji (“shin”, meaning “spirit”, and “tō”, meaning “a philosophical study”) to create the word Shinto, which is commonly used today. One of the earliest recorded and stored usages of the term Shindo was found to be from the second half of the 6th Century in Japan. Shinto is factually the largest majority religion in Japan, and is practiced by nearly 80% of the current population.…

    • 1257 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Shinto Religion

    • 438 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Before there was a religion in Japan, there were just local gods and shrines. As the years progressed, Japan established connections with other religions. “Buddhist religion and Confucian social values from China and Korea brought a different way of life for the Japanese including changes to their religion” (Voorst 190). With these close connections to China and Korea, the new culture consisted of “Confucianism and Buddhism, literature, philosophy, art, architecture, science, medicine, and government” (Voorst 190). A unity was formed when Shinto was being combined with Buddhism and Confucianism. As the Japanese nation started to take shape, worship and religious obligations started to take over daily routines. “These annual ceremonies for purification and blessing, which soon included many Buddhist and Confucian elements, became a regular part of the Japanese government” (Voorst 191). This being said, the Shinto religion was greatly affected by other religions as well as other cultures.…

    • 438 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Japanese Culture Essay

    • 837 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Japan’s culture is rich in history that dates back as far as 100,000 years ago by historians, however official studies dating back to 8,000 years ago. Roughly the size of California, located in the Pacific Ocean, Japan consists of four major islands; Honshu, Hokkaido, Kyushu and Shikoku as well as thousands of much smaller islands. The general landscape of Japan’s four main islands are mountainous that are sometimes snow covered, the largest being MT. Fuji located on the island of Honshu. In all, two thirds of Japan’s overall landscapes are mountains with forest slopes, short flowing rivers, irregular lakes, and small rich plains that experience the four major seasons. Japan averages temperatures of 79 degrees throughout the year with the coldest…

    • 837 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Matsuo Basho

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Indeed, “The Narrow Road to the Deep North” provides a valuable insight into the cultural, historical, and religious of the Japan of 17th century together with a touching journey into the hidden recesses of the human…

    • 481 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays