ENCYCLOPEDIA: 神道・Shintou

If you look it up in a dictionary, "Shintou" is described as the indigenous religion of Japan. This is not an inaccurate definition, but there's a lot of things about it that are misleading. Especially if we compare it to "religions" like Buddhism or Christianity. To explain a bit about why that is and also to understand Shintou in a more authentic way, we need to give an overview of where the term came from and also what the history of religion in Japan has looked like. This is a highly abbreviated account with a lot of important points left out, but I still aim to reduce confusion by being thorough.

神道 is made up of two kanji. One for "kami" or "god(s)" and one for "way" (literally "path"). In that sense, Shintou literally means "the way of the kami (gods)." Those in all sorts of traditions often use the metaphor of a "spiritual path" to describe the religious life. But the truth is that we should be wary of this tendency to view the "way of the gods" as something distant, removed, and connected to withdrawal from and disdain for a "normal" existence. The kanji 道 (pronounced as "tou" or, more commonly, "dou") literally means "path," but it is used in a very prosaic terms in the description of many other activities and forms of everyday "know-how" in Japanese. For example:

書道 (shodou) = calligraphy, the "way of writing")
武道 (budou) = martial arts, the "way of arms" (see also many individual martial arts like juDOU, aikiDOU, and kenDOU that have the same etymology of ending in 道)
弓道 (kyuudou) = archery, the "way of the arrow"
華道 (kadou) = flower arrangement, the "way of flowers"
茶道 (sadou) = tea ceremony practices, the "way of tea"

In the perspective of many modern "religions" like Buddhism and Christianity, it might seem strange to merely think of spiritual practice as a kind of "know-how" on the same level as knowing how to play an instrument. But this is a modern imposition. The entire conception of "religion" as something meant to be separated from life and delimited as a more elevated form of transcendent activity is a modern idea which is not borne out in the entire history of even just the west.

(NOTE: There is some notable overlap in this concept of "know-how" with Heidegger's discussion on art as being one "techne" among other to the ancient Greeks. We can imagine he would say the same about their religious rites. I address this in my lecture MARTIN HEIDEGGER EXPLAINED: LATER WRITINGS.)

The ancient Japanese did not use the word "Shintou" to refer to the rites and customs in which they related to the gods. They did not even have a word like "religion" to refer to it. Nor is this solely a unique quirk of Japan. We see the same lack of this concept in most "pagan" societies like ancient Greece and many Native American tribes. When you read about the ancient Greeks and Romans, they often expressed a sort of intolerance about the "barbaric" religious practices of other groups like the Gauls or Carthaginians. But note the important distinction: They disapproved of different PRACTICES, not different "religions." If you asked them to distinguish the "religion" of the Gauls and their "religion," the question wouldn't even make sense. They were all just practicing the "way of the gods!" It would be like a disagreement in musical customs. They could have very different instruments, but they were all playing "music" with them at the end of the day.

The concept of "religion" does not even emerge with the dominance of Christianity. For the medieval Christians, there was still nothing like "religion." There was only truth and various forms of ignorance and heresy. "Religion" is rather an Enlightenment-era idea. It is a term people have used to try to isolate these systems of practice and belief from the stuff that "really matters" (laws, government, ethics, etc.) for the sake of creating tolerant, pluralistic societies and while respecting the cultural importance of potentially incompatible sources of dogma. Such was the story in the west that led to the creation of the concept of "religion". It sounds strange to say it, but "religion" is a term that implies disagreement (even if in a tolerant and respectful fashion). "Religion" is always what THOSE superstitious people do, not what WE rational people do.

2. The History of Shintou and Other Japanese "Religions"

2.a. Early Coexistence With Buddhism

The story in Japan was completely different. The inhabitants of Japan have been doing spiritual rituals and holding spiritual beliefs for as long as we have records of them. Around the late 6th century AD, the Japanese began to trade and exchange information with the surrounding kingdoms on the continent more regulraly (mostly via the Korean peninsula, of course). It was during this time that Buddhism was first introduced to Japan after it had found its way to China and Korea from India and Central Asia. Other Chinese influences like Confucianism and Daoism came along with it. (Of course, none of these "isms" existed back then)

The transition was not an easy one. Many rejected Buddhism as a destructive, evil, foreign religion. (In cases like these, we can indeed correctly use the phrase "religion!") But the story goes that the kami were asked and officially sanctioned Buddhism as something to introduce to the Japanese archipelago. After all, there seemed to be nothing inherently contradictory in the practice of the two at first glance. Buddhism had made room for indigenous gods and the worship of them when it swept through India, China, and Korea, so there was no reason to think it couldn't do the same thing in Japan. A standard conception to make sense of this pluralism is that the kami worshipped in Japan were in truth 権現 ("gongen") or "incarnations" of Buddhas in another form in order to benefit the Japanese in particular. Some have also preferred the reverse formation: In fact, the Buddhas were merely kami in a guise designed to beneit those overseas!

2.b. The Clash With Christianity and Sakoku

The pluralist conception resulted in some 1000 years of syncreticism. Most religious centers in Japan were full of native gods being worshipped next to Buddhas and monks. And the coexistence was by and large a peaceful one. (The coexistence of Shintou and Buddhism that is... Japan itself was often a war-torn battlefield during this time!) But in the late 1500s, a very different religion emerged on Japan's shores: Christianity. Strange, blue-eyed men who stank like butter said that they arrived from a far-away land called "Portugal." One thing was certain: They would be useful, if nothing else, for their scientific knowledge, which was immense. The aristocracy learned quite a lot about navigation, astronomy, and, most importantly, firearms. For this reason these "padres" were quite useful for a shougun to have in his court. But there was a price to pay. They were spreading a religion called "Christianity" which taught that all native Japanese religion was false and heretical.

This alien religion threatened to destroy the entirety of Japanese society. Christianity was outlawed in the early 1600s and the entire country of Japan was soon closed to the rest of the world to prevent the further erosion of society and tradition by foreign religions and cultures. The 鎖国 "sakoku" period was not marked by total ignorance of the outside world. Nor by complete hatred of it. Foreign influences continued to enter the country. Calvinist merchants from the Netherlands proved less interested in mass conversion of the Japanese population, and so were allowed to have special access to a port in Nagasaki where they brought European goods as well as European learning. Buddhist monks were often allowed special trips to China for the sake of religious learning. It wasn't uncommon for young, curious men to join the temple merely for the sake of experiencing the novelty of travel to foreign lands.

2.c. "Shintou" and the Question of "Japaneseness"

This is the circumstance in which the term "Shintou" came into being. The desire to isolate Japanese culture and society from the rest of the world had to sustain itself by a special question: What was "Japanese" culture? What was "Japanese" society? What did Japan have that was distinctive and indigenous, and not merely inherited from China, India, or, more recently, the west? This constellation of spiritually "Japanese" tradition began to be labelled "Shintou" in contrast to the Buddhism, Confucianism, and Christianity that had become entangled with it over the years.

This was not merely a scholarly, intellectual movement. It has popular, grassroots support. One effect of outlawing Christianity was a requirement for all Japanese citizens to nominally join a local Buddhist temple. All of Japan became "Buddhist." Of course, this was not strictly monitored. It was more of a way that the government rooted out hidden Christians. Most leaders didn't care whether the adherents went to a temple regularly or supported one monetarily. They just cared about proving that you were not a Christian.

That said, no all temples were so benign. Many leaders of temples realized that they had a great opportunity to exploit peasants: Force the peasants to pay or they would report them as Christians to the shougun and they would be executed. Lots of corruption seeped into the Buddhist institutions as a result of being so powerful. This fueled a nationalistic, anti-Buddhist movement which sought to destroy Buddhist institutions and expel Buddhism as a foreign, corrupting religion. But wait... If these people were not Buddhists but also not Christians, what were they? Ah. This is where the term "Shintou" began to emerge as an alternative to both. It was what was left after you stripped away the influences from overseas.

2.d. The Meiji Restoration and State Shintou

In 1868, the American officer Matthew Perry put an end to Japan's isolationist period via a sort of forceful "gunboat diplomacy." The Japanese world shook. A new era had dawn. The Meiji Restoration occurred, which essentially constitutes the creation of the modern Japanese state. On the one hand, the Meiji Restoration was horrifying to the most staunchly conservative Japanese. The country westernized at a rapid pace. Some two centuries' worth of closed-off political and technological reform seemed to now flood Japan in an instant. Japan became rapidly westernized, both in society and government.

However, the Meiji Restoration also made Japan much more "Japanese" than ever before in a politically nationalistic sense. That is, the Emperor finally became the central figure of Japanese politics again. This had not been the case since the Heian period (794-1185). For over 500 years, Japan had been ruled by shouguns from the military class. It was also under Meiji that the religious policy of Japan massively changed. Japan adopted the policy of freedom of religion like other western countries. Christianity was officially legalized. But more importantly, Buddhism was defined as a "religion" just like Christianity, and was no longer intertwined with the state. But something else was in its place: Shintou.

The framers of the Meiji Constitution did not put Shintou on the same level as other "religions" like Buddhism or Christianity. They did not see it as a "religion." Shintou was now interpreted as an apparatus of the state, as the Emperor was divine. It became nationalistic rather than religious. Shintou was Japanese culture and spirit itself. To be a Japanese was to be a Shintouist and vice versa. As a part of this, the policy of 神仏隔離 (shinbutsu kakuri) was introduced, which did not allow the now government-owned Shintou shrines to be connected to Buddhist instutitions. You can see remnants of this today in Japan. A lot of Shintou shrines are right next door to Buddhist temples. In most cases, they were probably originally part of the same complex, but had to be isolated during the Meiji Restoration.

"State Shintou" would meet an untimely end. It was the ideology which propelled Japan to become a fascist state in World War II. When the war was lost, Emperor Shouwa was forced to give his famed 人間宣言 ("Human Declaration"). In it, he explained that his role was to merely be one of trust and admiration. He claimed that he was not in fact divine, nor were the Japanese any more divine or destined for supreme rule than any other races in the world. State Shintou was finally outlawed and Shintou was finally set apart as one "religion" among others in the country. It was one with a particularly central and imporant cultural history to the country, to be certain, but no longer one to be tied to the state. The Emperor's position would become like that of the royal families of England and other European constitutional monarchies.

TODO: History of the Emperor's relationship with Shintou and how to understand his "divinity" in a way that does not entail holy war and racial supremacy.

2.e. The Modern Status of Shintou

In this case, we can see how the whole idea and label of "Shintou" is itself a new concept. It is now considered a "religion" in the western sense, but only after having been through a strange journey to get there, usually more as a reaction to external circumstances than anything inernal. In its most original, primal conception, Shintou was not a "religion" at all. It had no founder, no holy texts, and no proscribed beliefs. There were only customs, practices, and teachings. Shintou could not be disentangled from other elements of Japanese culture and society, any more than traditional forms of music and art could. When you actually talk to people who work at shrines in Japan, they rarely use the word "Shintou" or say "I'm a Shintouist." In fact, many of them have Buddhist altars in their private houses next to their kamidana (a household "shelf" with offerings to certain kami).

I aim to make the case that the recongition of "Shintou" as something distinct from other traditions like Buddhism is legitimate and important. And I claim that it is one of the most pure and ideal forms of spiritual practice on earth today.

But I also aim to make the case that it is not "unique." It is unique in the sense that it is tied to the customs, history, and landscape of Japan. But it is not unique in that it represents something alien to the world. I believe, rather, that something like Shintou is the form that all spiritual practices would have if they never became "organized religions" in the manner of Christianity and Buddhism. If the Native Americans and pagan Europeans were left alone by Christianity, they would have something very much like Shintou as their "religion." That is to say, as a "know-how" involving gods, fully intertwined with all the other rituals and events of their daily existence.

3. Distinguishing Features of Shintou

Now that we know a bit about what Shintou is NOT, we should talk about what actually makes up these traditional rites and beliefs. Shintou is not a faith into which one is initiated. It is one into which one grows organically, as a part of culture and customs. And as such, it always has a strongly "local" character. What an individual manifestation of Shintou looks like can look as different as the rites and customs of different cities in any major country. Even one as densely populated as Japan has these distinctions. On this page, however, I can sketch out some broad themes that are for the most part the same of Shintou no matter where you are in Japan.

3.a. The Venn-Diagram of Polytheism, Animism, and Nature Worship

The three terms polytheism, animism, and nature worship are often used interchangeably to refer to Shintou. But all three of these have slightly different definitions that don't necessarily imply each other. We should spell these out.

Polytheism means that Shintouists believe that there is more than one god, just like the ancient Greeks, Egyptians, and most other societies before the aberration known as the Abrahamic religions were born. In fact, their pantheon puts most others to shame. The traditional set phrase to indicate the endless myriad of gods in the world is 八百万の神 ("yaorozu no kami"), which literally means the "8 million gods." This is not to say that there are literally 8 million gods. Since there was no coneption of "infinity" in ancient Japan, the number 8 million stands in as a way to signify that there are an infinite, uncountably large number of kami. Shintou enshrines and pays tribute to many, many kami, including many individual human beings who have become apotheosized after death (all canonized pre-Human Declaration, of course).

Animism refers to the belief that all things, including "material" objects like stones, trees, etc. have spirits or "anima" inside of them. That is, there are no truly "inanimate" objects. Shintou is a species of animism. It is believed in Shintou that all things have a kami of their own. Shintou does not have a proscribed metaphysics, so the exact nature of this is left open-ended. It is not clear, for example, if each individual thing actually IS its spirit to the degree that we OUR our minds, or if some closer-to-inanimate things like stones rather have a sort of "guardian angel" who animate them and are responsible for them. Or perhaps both. Colloquial Japanese speech talks of gods of abstract properties like gods of love, of wealth, of computer security, of well-developed boobs (!) and so on, which seems to indicate that the latter is certainly a possibility in at least some cases. In any case, the animism of Shintou is decidedly pluralistic, unlike the animism of some tribes who believe that all things are "animated" by an identical sort of spirit-stuff that flows through everything, like the Polynesian concept of mana or Haudenosaunee (aka Iroquois) conception of orenda.

Lastly, Shintou is a form of nature worship. This is not an uncommon pattern in polytheism. Most polytheistic societies have gods that are related to natural phenomena like wind, rain, sun, harvests, and so on, and Shintou is no exception. Most all Shintou rites somehow revolve around reverence of the natural world and a desire to exist in harmony with it. This, again, was common to most religious traditions before a strange species of anti-natural religions called the Abrahamic faiths were born in the desert lands of the Middle East and proceeded to destroy most of the diversity of religion around the world.

3.b. The Shrine

If there is one thing that most immediately "bounds" Shintou and sets up its form in the modern day, it is the 神社 (jinja) or shrine. There are some 80,000 shrines in Japan today (though this number is even fewer than there used to be, as many were merged and consolidated under the Meiji Restoration).

In simplest terms, a shrine is a place where the kami is enshrined. This is once more an important point that separates a shrine from a church, mosque, or Buddhist temple. It is not a place that is set up primarily for social worship and religious community. But it is not merely the RESIDENCE of its kami either. Kami do not sit idly around waiting for worshippers. They are active in the world and instantiated in phenomena. The shrine is more of a symbolic dwelling, one where the kami can make itself (or one aspect of itself) manifest for worship and communion.

The typical shrine today consists of an ornate building with several distinctive architectural features:

Its pathway is marked by a 鳥居 (torii), which is a large, red, wooden gateway. Entering the torii is the first place where one prepares one's heart to be deferent and open to all that is numinous and sublime. We also often find traditional rock lanterns and statues of 狛犬 (koma-inu), or lion-dogs. These are meant to be a kind of protective figure to ward off menacing spirits, in the same manner as gargoyles and other grotesques on western churches.

The central building has a hemp rope made of rice straw called a 注連縄 (shimenawa). Shimenawa are made out of rice stalks. We rarely see fully-grown rice stalks these days. But rice, being the staple of all Japanese diets, is a food which is essential to all life and existence. The straw floors in many shrines are also made of the same material. There will often be white zigzag-shaped paper streamers called 紙垂 (shide) hanging from the shimenawa.

The central building will also often (though not always) have ornamentation on their roofs called 千木 (chigi) and 鰹木 (katsuogi). Shrine roofs are gabled, and feature forks called chigi at the edges that point out at the edge of the roof, looking sort of like horns. Along the gable, there are logs laid on top in a perpendicular fashion called katsuogi.

Many shrines also have a sort of yard which is cordoned off by a fence to delimit a space of earth where the kami makes itself manifest. The fence is called a 神籬 (himorogi). It usually has a 榊 (sakaki) tree either set at each of its four corners or in the middle. Some of these areas are left barren, while some have an object in the center such as a tree, rock, or even animal in some cases. The object in this case is called a 依代 (yorishiro), which is an object that attracts a kami to its place, like a sort of spiritual antenna (to use a phrase from Yamakage Motohisa). A himorogi and indeed a shrine itself is a kind of yorishiro, of course.

All shrines will have a 御神体 (goshintai), literally a "god's body." This is a central object in their main halls which stand in as a sign of the kami. In many cases, this is a mirror. The mirror is not itself thought to be the kami, but to represent it through its clarity and purity. Some very special and old shrines do not use a mirror as an object but rather build the entire shrine around the goshintai itself, usually when it is too large or too embedded in the surrounding scenery to be removed. These goshintai are usually things like particularly magnificent mountains, rocks, trees, and bodies of water. This is especially common at some of Japan's oldest shrines, which gives us a hint that the oldest forms of Shintou practice predated the establishment of a building around the goshintai itself.

TODO: Shrine architectural styles. The oldest ones look like granaries, hinting at the importance of rice-centered agriculture.

3.c. Kannushi and Miko

Like all spiritual institutions, shrines are staffed. The main figure in charge of a shrine is known as a 神主 (kannushi). The term literally means a "master of gods" in the sense of a "master of ceremonies." The clothes he wears are not necessarily tied to religion on their own, but are simply the clothes of nobles from the Heian period. The typical outfit will consist of the following:
浄衣 (joue): A light robe, generally colored white, made of linen or silk.
袴 (hakama): Streaming trousers that reach down to the ankles.
烏帽子 (eboshi): A pointed mesh cap made of silk or hemp that is died black.
笏 (shaku): A flat scepter made of smoothly-carved wood, which serves a ritually decorative purpose today, but originally was used as a tablet for recording notes.
大幣 (oonusa): A wand, usually made from the branch of a sakaki tree, with white shide hanging from it. A commonly-seen form of oonusa with only two shide is called a 御幣 (gohei). These are used in purifiction rituals.

Young females called 巫女 (miko) are also a common sight at most shrines of decent size. Female figures in Shintou have traditionally had a role of peforming roles like shamans, mediums, diviners, and other sacred roles. This role has eroded over the years. Miko do not take as much of a central role in worship and ritual today, but their ancient role is hinted at in the performance of the 神楽 (kagura) dance, which is a sort of dance in which the miko becomes a yorishiro and becomes "possessed" by the god during it. Before the Meiji Restoration, miko also used to serve as sacred prostitutes and offer sexual favors in exchange for money at shrines. Can we please bring that practice back???

Traditionally, kannushi and miko would achieve their positions hereditarily. Today, this is no longer institutionalized. To become a kannushi today, one must study at a special university and become certified. There are two major ones: 國學院大學 (Kokugakuin Daigaku) in Toukyou and 皇學館大学 (Kougakkan Daigaku) in Ise. Despite this, it is common to see lineages with a "family business" of owning a shrine. Women can also become kannushi today.

For miko, the conditions are less strict. In fact, it is very common for young high school or college girls to become miko as a part-time job. There is no "belief" required for this position. This is a strong difference from the Abrahamic religions and even perhaps from Buddhism, but it is actually a pretty common state of affairs. The famed orator Cicero from ancient Rome gives us an example: Cicero was employed as an augur, meaning someone who divined things from the flight paths of birds. Cicero, however, made it clear that he did not believe in augury at all! But that didn't matter. The divinations simply had to be done, no matter if the "vessel" doing them believed or not. Most duties of miko are similar, and so it is not uncommon for girls with no "spiritual" beliefs to become miko. You can even see foreign exchange students do it over the holidays sometimes.

3.d. The Day-to-Day of Shintou

What actually happens at one of these shrines? What do the kannushi and miko, and the laity for that matter, actually do that entails Shintou? A lot of it comes down to stewardship. Shrines are kept clean and orderly, but also allow nature to "present" itself. So there is a lot of sweeping, trimming of plants, and so on. Shrines are above all meant to be places that preserve a special majesty. But there is more that goes on in them than something like a mere park or garden.

The local character of shrines entails that the details about these things are as varied as the many different festivals and traditions across the Japanese archipelago are. Most Japanese festivals are somehow supported and sustained by shrines. The busiest time of year for any shrine is usually new years', which is the most important holiday in Japan. Today it is celebrated according to the western calendar on December 31 to January 1, but it used to follow the old, Chinese calendar and occur at the beginning of spring.

Like in many cultures, the new year represents transition, rebirth, purification, and so on. Japanese have a custom of visiting a shrine at the end and beginning of the year. Many will traditionally hang out at the shrine itself until midnight and then proceed towards the main hall of the shrine to make a prayer for the new year and buy a fortune. And drink lots of sake! This much is what every Japanese knows and is the very basic acquaintance with Shintou you will have as a Japanese person by mere cultural osmosis. But it does reflect some of the deeper important elements of the faith.

There are still a lot of Chinese influences on the calendar in the Shintou world, as many divination methods involving the sexagenary cycle to predict lucky and unlucky days, years, and other such taboos are core in many Shintou practices. But not all of this is a slavish imitation of the Chinese system. One can find out how to deal with these taboos. Shrines have a lot of things you can buy for protection, fortune, commemoration, and so on. But these are more of additions to the main "center" of Shintou practice. Only larger shrines really have them, and they are more of an addition for the enjoyment and pleasure of others on top of the real "core" of Shintou practice. That isn't to say that they are by any means a "gimmick" of course! But they are not essential to a shrine.

3.e. Harae

But much of this is more of an aside to the real "center" of Shintou practice. And that can be broadly summed up in the word "purification." Everything in Shintou revolves around becoming pure and clean in body, mind, and spirit. The general term for this is 祓え (harae). For a religion without any proscribed "sins," one might wonder what all the emphasis on purity is about. What are we becoming "pure" of? Well, Shintou does not "proscribe" specific sins, but that certainly doesn't mean that it doesn't recognize that they exist! It is simply left more open to the practitioner and the kami what those sins to purify are. I use the word 罪 (tsumi) here, which is translated as "sin." This is a common word in a Shintou context. But in order to avoid linking it too much with a Christian conception of "sin," a related word that makes it easier to understand is 穢 (kegare), which is better translated as "defilement" or "impurity."

Kegare can be thought more broadly as any kind of defiling or "dirty" spiritual stuff. And the connection with physical defilement is intentional, which is why a lack of both are prized at a shrine. When we wash away a bit of our physical dirtiness in the water, our spiritual "dirt" also falls off. Kegare is more generally any kind of spiritual "grime." And though there isn't an official cosmology of "demons" in Shintou, it is believed that there are unclean spirits that can be responsible for at least some of this defilement. It's why you always gotta call the venerable kannushi in the Japanese ghost story, like you do the exorcist in the western one! Also, the fear over kegare is the reason that menstruating women traditionally were not allowed on shrine grounds.

There are many ways that we are purified in Shintou practice. Some of them I have already touched on. The rinsing of our hands and mouth with water is a form of purification that we do upon entrance to the shrine grounds. I also mentioned that the oonusa (wand) is a standard part of the kannushi's attire. And it is a ritual implement which is, in the end, used to purify people and objects before they partake in any ceremony. This usually, of course, consists of just waving the wand in front of the worshipper, who bows their head before it.

Water is a common element of purification. Ritual bathing, drinking, washing, etc. is a common feature in Japanese myths (and myths from other religious traditions, for that matter). One form of it is called 禊 (misogi), which is most typically practiced by standing under a waterfall wearing nothing but a fundoshi. A more beginner-friendly version simply consists of drinking the water. One Shintou kannushi, Yamakage Motohisa, suggests that misogi may have originally been practiced in the ocean. He argues that most activities in Shintou seem to have evolved out of a more "primal" sort of being-in-nature.

Some partciularly important purifications will have people rub dolls over their body in order to channel out the bad energy. You can think of it kind of like a reverse voodoo doll, meant to absorb and take away the bad stuff instead of inducing it! Traditionally, these were full-blown dolls made of wood and cloth, but recently they are simple white paper cutouts of a human shape. They are traditionally cast into rivers or oceans after being used, so the shift to easily-biodegradable paper has prevented the accumulation of trash.

Salt is another substance which has special purifying powers in Shintou. The symbolism of it is of course similar to rice and water, as it is one of the staple substances that humans need to consume to live. Salt is often placed in a pile as an offering to the kami, along with water or sake. Sometimes salt is sprinkled over people before partaking in a ceremony. Or a bit may be offered to eat. One of the areas you see this most commonly is in a sumou match, where wrestlers sprinkle salt around the ring before fighting as a way of purifying it. Sumou wrestling actually originated as a Shintou ritual and is still considered to be one in spite of becoming a spectator sport on top of that. It's why the ref is usually in kannushi wear. It's also why no women are allowed in the ring! A while ago I saw a case where a female paramedic ran into the ring to try to help one of the wrestlers who was in pain. Even she was scolded harshly. Oldschool rules!

Prayers are an important part of Shintou. Like many other religions, there are both individual, silent prayers and proscribed ritual words of worship. There is a metaphysical importance to this. The word 言霊 (kotodama) literally means something like "word spirit." It is believed that the actual sounds of words carry a power of their own and that they have the power to influence both the mind of the practitioner and the matter of the world around them. For that reason, many of the most important liturgical 祝詞 (norito, "prayers" addressed to a specific kami) have a power when read which is deeply affecting.

The belief in the spiritual power of word sounds/vibrations is also the root for many Japanese superstitions based on homophones. The number four (四, shi) sounding similar to the word for death (死, shi) is a well-known example. But there are positive ones as well. For example, it's a common belief that a five-yen coin (go-en) is lucky to donate to a shrine because it sounds like ご縁 (goen, "fate" or "connection"). Of course, shrines existed before the yen currency did, so this itself is not an ancient belief. But it reflects the ancient belief in kotodama. Another nice example: sometimes shrines sell amulets in the shape of frogs, because the word for frog (蛙, kaeru) is a homophone for the word "to return" (帰る, kaeru). So they are seen as lucky charms for a safe "return." This was more common when the pilgrimage to a shrine was a particularly arduous ordeal.

The two most common norito texts are:
祓詞 (harae no kotoba): The most common text which most kannushi will read before a service.
大祓詞 (ooharae no kotoba): A longer text which is also common, though takes more effort to read and memorize.

Unlike a church, mosque, or temple, shrines do not host funerals or burials. Dead bodies and the tasks associated with them are considered to be kegare and thus not appropriate for a shrine. This is, of course, not to imply any coldness or disinterest in the deceased and his family. Before the advent of Buddhism, Japanese hosted funerals privately at their own homes. Today, the vast majority of Japanese funerals are Buddhist affairs. Buddhism, with its importance on impermanence and transience, has never feared "staring death in the face," and so it was natural for Buddhist institutions to fill this area where shrines did not. Weddings at shrines, however, are common.

One side note: Modern Shintou is remarkably open-minded, and willing to accept all those who come with open hearts. However, like all religious traditions, it has had its negative sides. One of these is that the idea of "kegare" has come to fuel the discrimination of so-called 部落民 (burakumin). This is a prejudicial term used to refer to those who were said to inherently have "kegare," usually those who worked in businesses associated with death. Examples include not only those who "kill" for a career like executioners, butchers, and tanners, but even those who simply have contact with dead bodies like gravediggers and cremators.

Still, I think most modern Shintou practitioners would say that the kegare associated with any profession are purified at a shrine as much as any other, that it's not our business to pry and probe, and that we should leave these things between the kami and their worshippers. We should have an attitude of humility in the shrine and carry that into our daily lives. This is at least what I have heard from talking to Japanese about this touchy subject to the degree that I have, and I believe that it is certainly the correct attitude.

4. Mythological Dimensions of Shintou

Shintou has no one central "canon" of holy texts like a Bible or Tripitaka. But it is a faith which is rich in myths and stories of old. In this sense, it is comparable to the faith of the ancient Greeks and Romans. What is distinctive, however, is how intertwined these myths are to the national history of Japan and its land. The Greek and Roman myths occupied a fairly distinct realm from their study of "factual" history. Not so in Japan. The most authoritative canons of these myths come from two histories that were commissioned in the early 8th century, the 古事記 (Kojiki) and 日本書紀 (Nihon Shoki). The two purport to tell the history of Japan from the beginning of time to the time of their writing. However, these histories were imperially comissioned and intended to provide a "unified" history of the country. It has roots in a lot of local traditions, some of which can appear quite distinct. There are a lot of mythological strands in the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki. I will not attempt to be comprehensive here but merely introduce some of the most famous ones about the kami that are most important.

4.a. Izanagi-no-Mikoto and Izanami-no-Mikoto

Every mythology has to set up its "In the beginning..." story. In Shintou, we begin with three kami who appear and then give birth to seven generations of kami after them. Do not be biased from a Christian perspective to assume that these first three kami are inherently more worthy or supreme because they appeared "first." In fact, these early kami are rarely discussed or venerated in Shintou. But for the record, they are named:
Ame-no-Minakanushi-no-Kami
Takamimusubi-no-Kami
Kamimusubi-no-Kami

The first truly famous kami are the last of the seven generations descended from these three primordial kami. Thehy are the brother and sister pair of Izanagi-no-Mikoto (male) and Izanami-no-Mikoto (female). At the time of their creation, the earth is an unstructured mass that floats "like oil" on the ocean. Izanagi and Izanami use a heavenly spear to churn up the ocean until lands form. The first to emerge is an island named Onogoro. There are varied claims for this island today, mostly in the Seto Inland Sea.

Izanagi and Izanami mate and give birth to a whole bevy of other kami, as well as the physical landforms of the earth. There is not an explicit "cosmology" spelled out in the Kojiki or Nihon Shoki, but there are some realms referred to which seem to have boundaries that are spiritual and not merely physical:

高天原 (Takamagahara): The "Plain of High Heaven." A celestial abode of various kami. We should again not be misled by a Christian bias that makes us think that the kami here are somehow "superior" to the ones below them. But it is certainly described as a marvelous, beautiful place.

葦原中国 (Ashihara-no-Nakatsukuni): The "Central Land of Reed Plains." This is an ancient title for Japan. There are many names to refer to the lands now known as Japan in the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, but this is the most common. The ancient texts are of course limited to Japan when discussing the earthly realm, with some minor discussion of Silla (Korea) and China.

黄泉 (Yomi): The underworld or land of the dead. The etymology behind the word "Yomi" is uncertain. The kanji (which literally means "yellow springs") are actually adopted from the Chinese equivalent of an "underworld." In any case, this is a dark and gloomy underground area which seems to be quite similar to the pre-Christian conceptions of the underworld in Greece.

根の国 (Ne-no-Kuni): Another name for a sort of "netherworld." The name's etymology means literally "Land of Roots," which implies that it is underground. Sometimes this is taken as an alternate epithet of Yomi. But it is unclear.

常世の国 (Tokoyo-no-Kuni): Literally "Land of Eternity." Descriptions of this land are the most obscure, but general interpretation is that it seems to refer to a "paradisical" other realm or Elysian Fields of sorts (though not necessarily an afterlife) where people live in eternal youth. Some have later identified it with the legendary island of Mount Penglai in Chinese mythology.

Izanami ultimately dies when giving birth to a kami of fire named Kagutsuchi-no-Kami, who burns up her insides. Izanagi is furious and slays Kagutsuchi in retaliation. It is with this that the world first knows death and violence. And Izanagi is deeply distraught by it. He descends into Yomi (the underworld) to look for Izanami and bring her back to the surface. (Note the parallels to the myths of Orpheus and Inanna, though the story isn't quite the same.) Izanagi succeeds in finding his sister, but she tells him that she is unable to return as she has already eaten the food of the underworld.

Izanagi has been talking to Izanami but has been unable to see her in the dark, so he lights a fire. He is then horrified at seeing her form, which is rotten and decomposing. Izanami is just as afraid at the shame of having her unsightly form uncovered. In retaliation, she sends a bevy of unsavory denizens of Yomi to attack Izanagi. These include kami of storms and thunder, warriors, and ugly hags. Izanagi, however, manages to evade them by taking off the cord and comb from his hair. These change into grapes and bamboo shoots, respectively, which the pursuers stop to eat. When Izanagi finally reaches the entrance to Yomi, he narrowly escapes by taking some peaches from a nearby tree and throwing them back towards his pursuers. While they are distracted, he seals off the entrance with a large boulder. This entrance is apparently located in what used to be Idzumo Province and is today the western part of Shimane Prefecture.

Izanagi has come into contact with death, with decay, with disgust, with fear, and with rage. He has come into contact with kegare for the first time. Therefore, he performs the first misogi as well. He purifies himself by immersing himself in a river in Himuka Province (which is today Miyazaki Prefecture). The most common norito in Shintou alludes to this very first purification, as it is the model for all Shintou practice. It sets the model for all purification to come. When we purify ourselves, we attempt to recreate this original action to whatever degree we can. Many kami are born from Izanagi during this misogi. But the three most important are:
Amaterasu Oomikami (born from washing his left eye)
Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto (born from washing his right eye)
Susanoo-no-Mikoto (born from washing his nose)

4.b. Amaterasu Oomikami and Susanoo-no-Mikoto

Izanagi-no-Mikoto allots the world to Amaterasu Oomikami, Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto, and Susanoo-no-Mikoto. Amaterasu is granted domain over Takamagahara, the Plain of High Heaven. She is the kami of the sun. Tsukuyomi is granted domain over the night. He is the kami of the moon. Susanoo is granted domain over the seas. At this point, Tsukuyomi more or less drops out of the accounts of the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki. But even though he doesn't have the same colorful stories about him, he is considered equally august as his sister and brother. It is interesting how in Japan the kami of the sun is female and kami of the moon is male when it is the opposite in many western mythological systems.

Amaterasu Oomikami reigns over Takamagahara and Tsukuyomi-no-Mikoto over the night with no problems. Susanoo-no-Mikoto, however, is distraught by the death of his mother and refuses to do his duty of reigning over the seas. Izanagi expels him for his refusal of his task. The despondent Susanoo then ascends to Takamagahara on the condition that he wishes to see his sister Amaterasu. Amaterasu is suspicious and goes out to meet him wearing armor.

Susanoo protests his innocence and endeavors to prove it by means of an うけひ ("ukehi"). This section can be pretty obscure and hard to follow, but ukehi pretty clearly refers to a form of divination that involves taking an oath. In the case of Susanoo and Amaterasu, the two perform this oath-divination by each taking an object of the other's, chewing it up, and spitting it out. Amaterasu chews up and spits out Susanoo's sword, whereupon five male kami are born. Susanoo chews up and spits out Amaterasu's 勾玉 ("magatama") bead, whereupon three female kami are born.

A quick note: "magatama" refers to a specific kind of decorative bead that is shaped like a comma and usually made out of jade. Prehistoric Joumon period sites reveal that these were very common regalia on jewelry, so they clearly have an ancient importance in Japan. However, whatever meaning they had in Joumon culture is something we can only speculate. These are still often sold as charms at shrines today. This site's mascot character, Ikeda Megumi, wears one. <3 Also, the three female kami born from Susanoo here are enshrined at the three parts of the Munakata Shrine complex in Fukuoka Prefecture.

Apparently, by producing female kami, Susanoo has "won" the trial. (This is the part that is a bit hard to follow.) In any case, he goes NUTS after winning. He wreaks havoc and makes a mess of everything in Takamagahara. He finally crosses the line when he breaks a hole in the top of the weaving hall of Amaterasu's celestial palace and throws a horse through it which he had flayed alive. One of the weavers is so shocked that she inadvertently hits her genitals with a weaving shuttle and dies. Amaterasu is furious and flees Takamagahara in anger.

Amaterasu she hides in a cave known as 天岩戸 (Ama-no-Iwato), sealing it with a boulder. This cave is in an area called Takachiho in Miyazaki Prefecture, by the way. As Amaterasu is the kami of the sun, the world was deprived of sunlight and cast into total darkness. This could not continue for long. In an effort to restore light to the world, a whole retinue of kami march up to the cave to urge her to come out. Their leader is Omoikane-no-Kami, a kami of wisdom and intelligence. The kami uproot some sakaki trees and bring them to the cave. They attach magatama beads to them as well as a bronze mirror. Other kami begin to dance and stamp around in fury, becoming divinely possessed. They do so in an attempt to get the attention of Amaterasu in the cave and cause her to emerge.

Eventually, Amaterasu Oomikami slides the boulder away to peek out from the cave, and the world is lit up once more with her radiance. At that moment, the mirror is presented before her. She is confused and beguiled by her reflection, believing it to be another kami. She nears the mirror and is pulled out of the cave, which is then immediately sealed with a shimenawa.

Lots of important iconography in Shintou date to this event. Sakaki trees are considered holy for their role in this rite. The dancing ritual is supposed to be the origin of the sacred kagura dance as well. Note that in the original text of the Kojiki it's described as pretty wild and perhaps sexual, as the main dancer exposes her breasts and pulls her skirt down to her genitals. It was, after all, meant to sound like the other kami were having a happy time in Amaterasu's absence.

Lastly, a magatama bead and the mirror from the tree are today two of the 三種の神器 ("Sanshu no Jingi") or Three Sacred Treasures. These three objects are owned by the Japanese imperial family and their locations are kept strictly secret. They are never shown outside of the ceremony where a new Emperor ascends the throne and is presented them. This ceremony has existed since the year 690. The objects are never seen outside of ceremonial boxes in public, but only by the Emperor himself and a few kannushi of particular high rank. The third of the treasures will be discussed shortly.

Susanoo is in the end expelled from Takamagahara for his misbehavior. He then takes the Central Land of Reed Plains as his home, specifically the land of Idzumo. He asks a kami of food named Oogetsuhime-no-Kami for food. In response, she expels food from her mouth, nose, and anus. Susanoo is disgusted and kills her in response. Her corpse provides the ground for many crops, which are all staples of Japanese agriculture. To be specific, these are silkworms, rice, millet, adzuki, wheat, and soy beans.

Susanoo's last major exploit is to save his wife Kushinadahime from an eight-headed serpent called Yamata-no-Orochi, which is terrorizing the land of Idzumo. Upon smiting the serpent, he finds a sword inside of it which is named Ame-no-Murakumo-no-Tsurugi (the most magnificent swords in Japanese history and folklore always have names of their own). He presents this sword as a gift to Amaterasu as a way to make peace and ask for forgiveness. (One might say, as a method of harae.)

This sword, by the way, is the last of the Three Sacred Treasures. Some historical accounts say that it was lost at sea in 1185 during a sea battle. But most say either that the one present at sea was a copy, or even that it was the original but managed to miraculously reappear.

4.c. The Trials and Triumphs of Ookuninushi-no-Kami

The narrative of the Kojiki shifts focus to one of Susanoo-no-Mikoto's progeny, Ookuninushi-no-Kami. It's not exactly certain if Ookuninushi is Susanoo's son, grandson, or even further down the line. Ookuninushi-no-Kami has 80 older brothers, all of whom long to marry a female kami named Yakamihime. She lives in the land of Inaba, which is next to Idzumo, the dwelling-place of Susanoo and his progeny. Today, Inaba makes up the eastern side of Tottori Prefecture. One day, Ookuninushi joins all 80 of his brothers on a trek to ask for her hand in marriage. That's going to be quite a competition!

It just so happens that they run across a hare on the way. This hare had earlier been up to some mischief. He wished to pass from the coast of Inaba to an island out at sea. (This island has since been identified as one of the Oki Islands off the coast of Shimane Prefecture.) In order to find a way across, he challenges a group of sharks. (The term used here is 鰐 "wani," which today is the word for "crocodile" in Japanese. Sometimes this word seems to be used as a kind of sea dragon monster, but in this case it seems to be describing sharks.) The hare challenges all the sharks and all the hares to line up from head to toe in two lines in order to see whose clan is larger. When all the sharks have lined up, the hare runs across them to the Oki Islands, using them as a land bridge. He then boasts of his cleverness and reveals to the sharks how he has duped them. In retaliation, they maul him and rip all his fur off.

It is at this point that the flayed hare meets Ookuninushi and his brothers. He is in pain and asks what he should do. The brothers, feeling cruel, tell him to wash himself in the ocean and dry himself in the wind. He does so, but this only makes his pain worse. The brothers laugh at his gullibility. Ookuninushi, however, is compassionate. He recommends the hare to bathe in fresh water at the mouth of a river and to roll in the pollen of 蒲 ("gama" or cattails). Upon doing so, the body of the hare reverts to its original state. It turns out that it was a kami in disguise! This kami then tells that Ookuninushi that he is the one destined to have Yakamihime's hand in marriage, presumably as proof of his good nature.

Ookuninushi's brothers are furious and make attempts on his life. Ookuninushi hides from them in Ne-no-Kuni (the other "netherworld" besides Yomi). This is the best description we have of Ne-no-Kuni in the Kojiki, but it is not particularly detailed. There seem to be a lot of insects and reptiles, which along with the etymology of the name (meaning "Land of Roots") is the only hint we have that it is supposed to be underground. This land is, in fact, ruled over by Ookuninushi's forebear Susanoo. While in Ne-no-Kuni, Ookuninushi falls in love with one of Susanoo's daughters, Suseribime-no-Mikoto. When Susanoo discovers their illicit affair, he sentences Ookuninushi to four trials to prove his worth.

In the first trial, Ookuninushi must sleep overnight in a "snake-house" (presumably some room filled with snakes). Suseribime gives Ookuninushi a "snake-scarf" which apparently he waves to keep the snakes away. The second trial is essentially a repeat of the first, but it is a "centipede and wasp-house" instead, and the item he receives is a "centipede and wasp-scarf." For the third trial, Susanoo shoots an arrow into a plain of grass and asks Ookuninushi to find the arrow and bring it back. While he is searching, Susanoo sets the field on fire. However, a mouse in the field approaches Ookuninushi and leads him around the fire, as well as where the arrow is located.

The last trial is strange: Susanoo asks Ookuninushi to pick the lice and centipedes out of his hair. Suseribime gives Ookuninushi some berries that he chews on. Susanoo is deceived by this and believes that the sound is Ookuninushi chewing and spitting out the insects he picks out of his hair. (Was this normal? I'm not sure.) In any case, Susanoo feels comfortable and falls asleep while he is being groomed. When he is asleep, Ookuninushi ties his hair to the rafters of the room and blocks the door with a large boulder.

Ookuninushi and Suseribime flee together. Ookuninushi takes Susanoo's sword, koto, and bow and arrows with him. Upon awakening, Susanoo grudgingly gives Ookuninushi his blessing as the ruler of the Central Land of Reed Plains. It is at this point that Ookuninushi receives his name ("Ookuninushi-no-Kami," literally "Master of the Great Land"). Before this point in the legend he was named Oonamuji-no-Kami, but I have referred to him with one name for ease of understanding. With Susanoo's arsenal, he effortlessly defeats the 80 brothers who still were out for him and becomes the ruler of the Central Land of Reed Plains.

Upon Ookuninushi-no-Kami's triumph over his brothers, a tiny kami appears riding on the crest of the waves and arrives on the shore. This kami is riding in a boat made of a tiny bean-pod. The kami will not speak his name, nor can anyone identify him save a kami of wisdom named Kuebiko who appears in the form of a scarecrow. Kuebiko identifies this small kami as Sukunabikona-no-Kami, a son of Kamimusubi-no-Kami, one of the three first kami to come into existence at the beginning of the Kojiki. Sukunabikona-no-Kami aids with the establishment of the country, but in the end crosses over to the mysterious Tokoyo-no-Kuni. Another kami called Oomononushi-no-Kami aids Ookuninushi and is enshrined in Mount Mimoro in Yamato Province (modern-day Mount Miwa in Nara Prefecture).

4.d. The Struggle for Control of the Central Land of Reed Plains

The Central Land of the Reed Plains is decicded to be in need of "pacification" (of a violent variety), since it is full of evil and unruly kami. (We here see how the unification of the many peoples and traditions of Japan under one Emperor is being reflected in the myth. History and myth feed into each other.) Ookuninushi has not succeeded on his own in subjugating the lands. Amaterasu Oomikami decides that a kami should be sent down from Takamagahara to do the job, and the candidates are among the sons born from the ukehi ritual when Susanoo chewed and spit out her magatama beads. One son, Ame-no-Oshihomimi-no-Mikoto, is nominated, but he is afraid and refuses to even descend. A second, Ame-no-Hohi-no-Mikoto, is sent, but ends up currying favor with Ookuninushi. Three years pass with no sign of him having accomplished his mission.

A third, Ame-no-Wakahiko, is sent, but he ends up marrying Ookuninushi's daughter Shitateruhime and follows the same pattern as Ame-no-Hohi-no-Mikoto. Eight years pass with no sign of him having accomplished his mission. The kami in Takamagahara give him a sign by sending a pheasant down which will accuse him of not doing his duty. When Ame-no-Wakahiko sees this pheasant, he shoots it with an arrow. The arrow passes through the bird and ascends all the way to Takamagahara. The kami who find it there recognize it as one of Ame-no-Wakahiko's. A kami named Takamimusubi throws the arrow back down to earth, saying that it should spare Ame-no-Wakahiko if that arrow was in fact shot during the pacification of unruly kami, but that if it was not, it should kill Ame-no-Wakahiko himself. The arrow returns to earth and pierces Ame-no-Wakahiko through the chest.

A funeral is then held for Ame-no-Wakahiko. This section provides an interesting glimpse at pre-Buddhist funeral customs in Japan. A "mourning house" is built around the corpse, which seems to be where the body is kept before it is buried. For eight days and eight nights, there is a vigil of sorts where loved ones come and visit the body before it is buried. At this time, Shitateruhime's brother Ajihikitakahikone-no-Kami visits. When that happens, the mother and father of Ame-no-Wakahiko mistake Ajihikitakahikone for Ame-no-Wakahiko and cheer that their son is in fact still alive. When that happens Ajihikitakahikone is enraged and starts to destroy the mourning house. To us, this seems like a very strange reaction. But you have to remember the idea of kegare. Ajihikitakahikone was offended because he was being compared to an "impure" and "unclean" dead body, which was the height of insult for a kami.

A new kami is sent on the mission of subjugating the country. This one, Takemikadzuchi-no-Kami, is a kami of thunder and certainly not one to mess with. This kami wastes no time in challenging Ookuninushi to relinquish the right to rule to a kami from Takamagahara. Ookuninushi lets his sons decide if they should accept the decree or challenge it. One son, Kotoshironushi-no-Kami, decides that it would be wrong to challenge it and accepts the reign of the heavenly kami. Another son, Takeminakata-no-Kami, refuses to give in and challenges Takemikadzuchi to a test of strength. However, Takeminakata is defeated. He flees to Lake Suwa in Shinano Province (modern-day Nagano Prefecture) and surrenders there. Ookuninushi then relinquishes control of the land, only asking for a shrine to be built in his honor. This is the origin of Idzumo Taisha in Shimane Prefecture. Suwa Taisha in Nagano Prefecture is dedicated to Takeminakata. These are two of the oldest and most sacred shrines in Japan. Takemikadzuchi returns to Takamagahara.

4.e. The Descent of Hikoho-no-Ninigi-no-Mikoto

The Central Land of Reed Plains has now been officially sanctioned to the kami in Takamagahara, but the problem of who to nominate as its ruler re-emerges. The first son of Amaterasu Oomikami who was too afraid, Ame-no-Oshihomimi-no-Mikoto, once again is chosen. But he offers his son to go in his place. This son is named Hikoho-no-Ninigi-no-Mikoto. He is officially sanctioned as the ruler of the Central Land of Reed Plains and makes his descent along with a retinue of some other kami. A kami of the earth named Sarutabiko-no-Kami welcomes him. When Ninigi descends, he is given the Three Sacred Treasures of the sword, mirror, and magatama. All the Emperors of Japan claim that they descend from Ninigi, meaning ultimately from Amaterasu and the kami in Takamagahara.

Ninigi makes his descent in Takachiho in Himuka Province (modern-day Miyazaki Prefecture). This is the same region where his grandmother, Amaterasu Oomikami, hid herself in a cave in the past. Much of the story has focused on Idzumo and the western coast of Japan in recounting Susanoo and his descendents. Now we shift to Miyazaki again as the "origin" of the imperial line. Some interpret this as rival traditions of Shintou that the Kojiki attempts to chart the competition of.

However, Iwanagahime is very ugly and so Ninigi rejects her and sends her back. When this happens, however, Ooyamatsumi is disappointed. The meaning behind the sisters' names are now revealed: With these two daughters, Ninigi's rule would be as eternal as the rocks and as flourishing and brilliant as the flowering trees. However, as he has only married Konoha-no-Sakuyabime, his rule will be as brilliant as the flowers, but also transient and temporary as the flowers. This "curse" is why Ninigi's descendents (the Emperors of Japan) now are mortals and have "normal" lifespans.

Konoha-no-Sakuyabime conceives after only one night of mating. Ninigi is thus incredulous and refuses to believe that it is his child. To prove her fidelity, she makes an oath that if her child is of an earth kami it would be an inauspicious birth, but if it was a heavenly kami, it would be an auspicious birth. She creates a sealed hut to give birth in and sets it on fire before the moment of birth. It seems as though doing this is supposed to prove that the child is a heavenly kami, as to survive the birth in the midst of the fire would be auspicious. Konoha-no-Sakuyabime gives birth to three children. Their names are:
Hoderi-no-Mikoto
Hosuseri-no-Mikoto
Hoori-no-Mikoto

4.e.f. Hoderi-no-Mikoto and Hoori-no-Mikoto

Hoderi-no-Mikoto and Hoori-no-Mikoto become accomplished masters of the sea and the mountains, respectively. Hoderi is an excellent fisherman and Hoori is an excellent hunter. The division and almost "competition" between seas and mountains is an ancient theme in Shintou, reflecting this original struggle. The two brothers decide to change places and see if they retained their luck. Hoori uses his brother's fish hook in the sea, but he drops it in the water and loses it. The two brothers then meet. Hoderi reports that he was unsuccessful as a hunter and that the two should stay in the positions that suit them best. But Hoori has to report that he lost Hoderi's fish hook. He offers up to 500 other fish hooks in compensation, but Hoderi is still upset. He wanted his original one back at all costs. (An animist belief at work: the hook had a kami of its own so cannot be replaced by just any other hook.)

Hoori-no-Mikoto then goes back out to sea, searching for the fish hook. He doesn't find it, but another kami named Shiotsuchi-no-Kami directs him to a path that leads to the palace of Watatsumi-no-Kami, also known as Ryuujin. This kami is the master of the sea and has the form of a dragon. The palace is gorgeous and shimmering, with walls that resemble the scales of fish. Hoori is spotted by the daughter of Watatsumi, Toyotama-hime. The two immediately fall in love. Hoori then forgets all about his original mission of finding the hook and lives with Toyotama-hime in Watatsumi's palace for three years.

But Hoori slowly starts to miss his life on the surface and appears sad for the first time. When Watatsumi asks why he seems upset, Hoori explains his situation. Watatsumi helps by summoning all the fishes of the sea and asks if any of them has seen the hook. A 鯛 (tai, sea bream) fish turns out to be the one that has Hoderi's hook stuck in its throat. Watatsumi then gives Hoori two magical jewels, one of which raises the tides and the other of which ebbs them. He implores Hoori to use them to subdue his brother. It's a little unclear why now Hoori has to do battle with Hoderi when he has his hook. But the two seem to have become rivals in their time apart. Hoori returns to the surface on the back of a wani. (shark? crocodile? dragon? This word is always a bit hard to interpret in these old texts.) Hoori defeats Hoderi and claims the land.

Toyotama-hime follows her husband to the land, and she is pregnant with his child. A birthing house is constructed for her. (It seems as though temporary houses are made for both births and deaths at points in this story, perhaps reflecting an ancient Japanese practice.) The house is thatched with cormorant feathers. Toyotama-hime implores Hoori not to look at her while she is giving birth. He breaks his promise and looks anyway. He is shocked, because he sees that during her birth, Toyotama-hime has reverted to her "true form:" a wani! (Probably a dragon.) She is ashamed and furious, so she dives back into the ocean and is never seen again. (An interesting echo of Izanami being seen by Izanagi, perhaps.) However, the child she bore remains with Hoori. He is named Ugayafukiaezu-no-Mikoto.

4.e.g. Emperor Jimmu and the Imperial Line

Ugayafukiaezu-no-Mikoto gives birth to a son, whose lengthy name is given as Kamu-Yamato-Iwarebiko-no-Mikoto. However, he is better known as the first Emperor of Japan, Emperor Jimmu. This is the first figure in the Kojiki who is given explicit dates. His reign is said to have begun in 660 BC. This is considered the true founding of the nation of Japan, not merely the Central Land of Reed Plains. It is said that the date of foundation was February 11th, which is still a holiday called National Foundation Day in Japan today. In the Meiji Period, a custom emerged of setting this foundation as the beginning date in their calendar, in the same manner as the birth of Christ in the Gregorian calendar or the Hijrah in the Islamic calendar. This has become associated with militarism and quickly suppressed after World War II, but it is still used in a Shintou context. So if you want to know the Japanese Imperial Year, just add 660 to the Gregorian year! (2025 is 2685, for example)

Emperor Jimmu was born in Takachiho. However, he moved up through the Seto Inland Sea, Naniwa (Oosaka), and landed on the Kii Peninsula. At this point, Emperor Jimmu spots a three-legged crow called Yatagarasu. This crow itself was a kami, sent by Takamimusubi in Takamagahara. It guides him inwards to Yamato Province, which is modern day Nara Prefecture. It is here that Emperor Jimmu settles and, for the first time, ascends the throne. This represents the foundation of the Japanese state and the Imperial line. This is where the earliest capital of Japan was located, until the Imperial capital moves to Kyouto in the Heian Period (794) and the government capital later moves to Kamakura and Edo (Toukyou). Emperor Jimmu is said to be buried near Mount Unebi in Kashihara today.

With the reign of Emperor Jimmu, the Kojiki shifts tone to reading more like the annals or chronicles of other countries. This is not to say that more fantastical elements disappear. Myth and history are deeply intertwined in Shintou. But the style of the Kojiki now shifts to recording the reigns of the Emperors, and some of these are more eventful than others. For this point, I will refrain from spelling out all the interesting points from the 1000 years or so between the reign of Emperor Jimmu and the writing from the Kojiki, as my point here is to give readers an overview of the main kami and mythological foundations of Shintou, not a complete history of Japan.

5. Philosophical Dimensions of Shintou

As I have mentioned, there is not a canon of proscribed metaphysical beliefs in Shintou. But there are some teachings that certain Shintou masters have given us which are worth considering and studying, even if we should not take them as official dogma to the tradition as a whole.

5.a. Ichirei Shikon

The term 一霊四魂 (ichirei shikon) literally translates to "one spirit, four souls." As I have explained, Shintou is a form of animism that affirms the existence of spirits or kami within everything. But to get more granular, what that actually looks like is a singular "spirit" which consists of four "souls." This theory affirms the existence of something like a spirit or soul. In this sense, it could possibly be interpreted as one area that Shintou is explicitly at odds with Buddhism, which claims that there is no such thing as a "self" or "soul" (clearly quite credibly, in my opinion). However, this "soul" in Shintou is inherently compound and plural, not singular. In that sense, it very much does not resemble the traditional image of a "soul" in the western (or Vedic) sense.

TODO: More talk about possible uniting philosophy between Shintou and Buddhism, especially under the Shuugendou tradition.

Now, we can sketch out what these four "souls" are:
荒魂 (aramitama): "ara" means wild, unruly, boisterous, etc.
和魂 (nigimitama): "nigi" means harmonious, tranquil, peaceful, etc.
幸魂 (sachimitama): "sachi" means happy, joyous, glad, etc.
奇魂 (kushimitama): "kushi" means mysterious, strange, sublime, etc.

Everything has these four souls, including the very universe itself. We are a microcosm of the whole. We can best understand the functions of these souls with the example of a human, in this case. In a fully balanced, healthy, moral person, all four of these act harmoniously together and are not out of balance. I'll quote Yamakage directly in his description of what these souls do in a human:
Aramitama: "Emotional operation of rigidity and hardening of the mind/heart. Destructive consciousness. Desire of materialistic expression."
Nigimitama: "Emotional operation of flexibility. The emotion of stagnatoin as well as driving desire--the emotion of feeling and touching."
Sachimitama: "The senses, passion, love, harmonious consciousness, desire to study or inquiry."
Kushimitama: "The desire to seek mystery, desire for creative contemplation, the ability of intuition and apperception." [1]
In brief, we might say that aramitama is physical, nigimitama is emotional, sachimitama is intellectual, and kushimitama is spiritual. The aramitama and nigimitama are seen as manifest and to some degree material, while the sachimitama and kushimitama have something of a higher nature.

5.b. The Souls After Death

Note: This section is almost entirely the teachings of Yamakage Motohisa and should not be taken as authoritative for the entire Shintou tradition.

According to the tradition of Yamakage Shinto, our universe (or the big circle of the the universe) is a current of whirling spirits springing out of daigenrei (great original spirit). In this spiritual current individuals with their own identity are generated, like sparks of energy, which are also manifested as a vortex.
Yamakage Motohisa, The Essence of Shinto: Japan's Spiritual Heart [2]

Human beings are seen as an assemblage of these spirits. So we must ask what happens when we die? The two "material" souls, the aramitama and nigimitama decay along with the body. The aramitama is what emits negative energy and causes kegare in death. The nigimitama is what stays behind for later worship and reverence in rituals of remembrance. It is not eternal, but it does have quite a long afterlife on the earth. The two "higher" souls, the sachimitama and kushimitama, ascend to higher realms of the kami. However, they often must go through an interim state before they can be purified of earthly pollutants.

5.c. Chinkon

Note: This section is exclusively concerned with the Yamakage Shintou tradition, which is not entirely the same as orthodox Shintou, although there are many parallels. To what degree it is accurate and genuine esoteric knowledge of Shintou in general is a matter of debate.

Yamakage Motohisa's tradition also has its own specially proscribed method of spiritual training to become purified, to calm our disordely spirit, and to potentially even become kami. When we do so, the original spirit within us that is a part of daigenrei (the great original spirit) can shine forth. Note that I have not tried this myself and that all of this should be consulted with a Shintou master to assure that it is not carried out wrongly (easier for some of us than others, I'm aware). I defer to Yamakage and urge others to read his book.

1. Misogi
Clean the physical body and the spirit. Traditionally one would use a body of water like a waterfall and stand nude under it. A shower can work today. Clean your body in this order: Crotch, eyes, mouth (hold a lot of water in the mouth several times, like when you enter a shrine), face, ears, chest, left shoulder down to hand, right shoulder down to hand, stomach, left thigh and foot, right thigh and foot, back. While your back is facing the water, chant the 祓詞 (harae no kotoba). Then clap your hands twice. If you can use salt to clean the whole body, it is ideal. If you cannot go through the whole process, at least wash your hands, mouth, and face.

2. Recitation
Sit directly facing the shrine (a kamidana or similar household installation is possible to use). Close your eyes and pacify your mind. Do the typical ritual of bowing twice, clapping tiwce, and bowing once. Ten read the 祓詞 (harae no kotoba) again and then the 祓詞 (ooharae no kotoba). Voice from the bottom of your belly with energy gathered at your 丹田 (tanden), which is basically right under your belly button. Attempt to become one with the words and lose yourself in them, fully embodying your reverence.

3. Seated Meditation
Sit in seiza posture (on your shins). Keep the knees about two fist-lengths apart and cross one big toe over the other. If this is too taxing, you may sit in a cross-legged posture instead. Keep your eyes slightly open and try to look up at the center of your forehead through the inside of your eyelides. If this is too taxing, you may keep your eyes closed instead. Fold your hands at the location of the tanden. There are other hand postures that are kept as secret knowledge and can only be esoterically transmitted.

4. Furitama
Furitama literally means a "shaking up the soul" and is where we make contact with the kami itself. Your should stand for this or sit in a cross-legged posture (not seiza). Lace your fingers together and keep the index fingers stretched straight up together. Place your hands in front of your chest like that. Spread out your elbows. Put energy into your arms and gently swing them. The spiritually receptive will feel their hands shake automatically until it spreads out through the whole body. This may not happen if you are a beginner. If not, "tremble" your hands intentionally to awake that power. This can only last a few minutes. Let that happen, then slow everything back down. Repeat the process 2 or 3 times and clear your mind of anything worldly. If correctly practiced, you will start to feel an electric sensation spreading from your fingers out through the whole body.

5. Breathing
Breathe in slow, long breaths. Breathe in lightly through your nostrils and draw your abdomen back to push up the diaphragm. Begin breathing in your chest for 8 counts and then move down to breathing from your abdomen. Count from 1 to 10 and then 100, 1000, 10000 in traditional Japanese:
hi, fu, mi, yo, i, mu, na, ya, koto, tari, momo, chi, yorozu
Free yourself of wordly throughts. You may experience some incredible insights during chinkon, but you should not mistake them for the words of the kami itself. You should try to ask questions to the kami and receive answers, but be very careful about not becoming arrogant around answers that could have really come from you or from lower spirits that hijack the process. You should be able to focus on one pure thought before you can experience this and enter a state of bliss and nonduality.

6. Other Realms
With refined chinkon practice, one can have remarkable experiences. One of the most common is to feel the brain brimming with light. From there, one must imagine a small sun or moon in the center of one's forehead. The esoteric teachings claim that people will see "mist, smoke, sun, wind, fire, fluorescence, crystal, and a moon." One must not lose one's concentration at this state. One should not become attached to these mystical experiences as they are themselves not the goal.

7. Esoteric Teachings
Yamakage's school has secret methods that are not open to all. Three of them have been sanctioned for release to the public:

Goten gassho: Sit in seiza or cross-legged. Stretch arms to the sides and bring them up over your head, making a large arc. Turn your palms towards the heavens to feel as though you are catching the energy of the sky in your hands. Keep them in a posture where your hands are not touching with the bottom of your palms about 5 cm apart and your fingertips are touching each other, lightly curved inwards. Bring them down towards your forehead. Visualize the whole universe being in your palms and its energy flowing into you through the forehead. Think of the kami. Then bring your hands down to the tanden and visualize the energy of the universe being stored in the tanden.

Godaiboin: Chant each vowel A-O-U-E-I as long as you can in one breath. Voice them out loud from the bottom of the abdomen. Do it five times.

Daijinju: Recite the sound "ajimarikan." This is an ancient word of special power and mysterious meaning. Recite it in the same reverent manner, highlighting each syllable: A-JI-MA-RI-KA-N. The "N" in Japanese is somewhat between an "n" and "m" sound in English and has the mouth closed entirely at the end. There is a longer version of this recitation as well: 大臣呪 (daijinju).

TODO: Double-check all this stuff, look for more "orthodox" Shintou techniques of a similar nature.

FOOTNOTES

1. Yamakage Motohisa [trans. Mineko S. Gillespie, Gerald L. Gillespie, & Yoshitsugu Komuro], The Essence of Shinto: Japan's Spiritual Heart, Kodansha USA, 2006, p. 135

神道・Shintou

Table of Contents

1. The "Know-How" of Shintou