,note3 ,images of the original pages are
 available through        ,internet     
,archive_/,american ,libraries4 ,see    
http3_/_/archive4org_/details_/shintocul
tchrist#jjterrrich      ,transcriber's  
note3          ,text enclosed by        
underscores is in italics 7italics74    
,text enclosed by equal signs is in bold
 face 7bold74            ,,the ,,shinto 
,,cult    ,a ,christian ,study of the   
,ancient ,religion of ,japan    by      
,,milton ,s4 ,,terry1 ,d4,d41           
,lecturer on ,comparative ,religion in  
,garrett ,biblical ,institute4          
,illustration    ,cincinnati3 ,jennings 
and ,graham  ,new ,york3 ,eaton and     
,mains    ,copyright1 #aiaj1  ,by       
,jennings and ,graham4          ,,note4 
,the following pages are the substance  
of a course of lectures on the  old     
,shinto cult which the author has been  
giving for a number of  years to his    
classes in ,comparative ,religion4 ,they
 are here condensed  and adapted to the 
purpose of a little manual which1 it is 

believed1  may interest many readers1   
and bring together within a small space 
information gathered from many sources  
not easily accessible to  ordinary      
students4 ,at the same time it is hoped 
that this little  volume may serve to   
suggest some valuable hints to the      
,christian  missionary who is to come   
face to face with the ,japanese people  
in  their beautiful land of the reed    
plains and the fresh ears of rice4  ,it 
is possible that some portions1 if not  
every jot and tittle1 of  this ancient  
cult may1 like the law and the prophets 
of ,israel1 find a  glorious fulfillment
 in the pure gospel of ,jesus ,christ4  
,the principal  authorities relied on in
 the preparation of this essay are named
 in the  ,select ,bibliography given at 
the end4          ,,contents4        #a4
 ,,the ,,country                        
#g      #b4 ,,is ,,shinto ,a ,,religion8
                                        
#aj      #c4 ,,origin ,,and ,,relative  
,,age ,,of ,,the ,,people               

#ab      #d4 ,,meaning ,,of ,,the ,,term
 ,,shinto                               
#ad      #e4 ,,sources ,,of             
,,information                           
#ae      #f4 ,,japanese ,,cosmogony     
,,and ,,mythology                       
#ai      #g4 ,,the ,,japanese ,a        
,,self-,,centered ,,people              
#bi      #h4 ,,essence ,,of ,,the       
,,shinto ,,cult                         
#cj      #i4 ,,the ,,great ,,sanctuaries
                                        
#ca     #aj4 ,,five ,,noteworthy        
,,objects ,,connected ,,with ,,the      
,,worship               #cd     #aa4    
,,the ,,ancestor ,,worship              
#cg     #ab4 ,,elements ,,of ,,animism  
#da     #ac4 ,,the ,,domestic ,,cult    
#dc     #ad4 ,,the ,,communal ,,cult    
#de     #ae4 ,,the ,,national ,,cult    
#di     #af4 ,,the ,,harvest ,,service  
#eb     #ag4 ,,the ,,great              
,,purification                          
#ed     #ah4 ,,other ,,ritual ,,services
                                        

#fj     #ai4 ,,influence ,,of ,,china   
,,on ,,japanese ,,thought               
#fc     #bj4 ,,influence ,,of ,,buddhism
                                        
#fd     #ba4 ,,revival ,,of ,,pure      
,,shinto                                
#fh     #bb4 ,,esoteric ,,shinto        
#gj     #bc4 ,,mingling ,,of ,,shinto1  
,,confucianism1 ,,and ,,buddhism        
#ga     #bd4 ,,roman ,,catholicism ,,in 
,,japan                                 
#gc     #be4 ,,alleged ,,present        
,,religious ,,indifference              
#gd     #bf4 ,,concluding ,,observations
                                        
#gh          ,,the ,,shinto ,,cult4     
#a4 ,the ,country4 ,in taking up the    
study of a religion which has never     
extended beyond the limits of an easily 
defined territory1 we may  appropriately
 first of all take a hasty glance at the
 geographical  outlines of the system we
 call ,shinto1 the primitive faith of   
the  people of ,japan4 ,to appreciate   
the geographical position of ,japan1    

one needs to have before him a map of   
the world4 ,he may then see at a  glance
 how remarkably the three thousand      
islands of that ,empire stretch  for    
some twenty-five hundred miles along the
 coast of ,asia1 from  ,kamchatka on the
 north to the island of ,formosa on the 
south1 which  island is crossed by the  
tropic of ,cancer4 ,it may be called the
 longest  and the narrowest country in  
the world4 ,it looks like an immense    
sea-serpent1 with its northern tail     
twisting toward the ,aleutian  ,islands1
 which our ,government acquired from    
,russia in #ahfg1 and its  southern head
 pointing toward the ,philippine        
,islands1 which we acquired  from ,spain
 in recent years4 ,it seems to guard the
 whole eastern coast  of ,asia1 and     
along with ,china1 on the mainland1 is  
suspected and feared  by some ,european 
diplomats as embodying some sort of a   
,yellow ,peril4  ,it may be that its    
noteworthy contiguity to our ,alaskan   
possessions at  one extremity and our   

,philippine wards at the other bodes    
some sort of  peril to any ,western     
nation that may hereafter presume to    
enlarge its  dominions in the ,orient by
 force of arms4    ,attention has often 
been called to the fact that the        
,british ,isles1 in  the ,atlantic      
,ocean1 just off the northwestern coast 
of ,europe1 occupy a  corresponding     
geographical relation to the ,western   
world4 ,the islands  themselves are     
comparatively small1 but their measuring
 line has gone  out into all the earth1 
and their civilization is dominating the
 world4  ,asia1 on the east of the      
,eastern hemisphere1 is a land of       
innumerable  population2 ,europe1 on the
 west1 is a land of new ideas and of    
hopeful  progress4 ,the ,united ,states1
 resting her ,atlantean shoulder on the 
island-empire of ,europe1 and her       
,pacific shoulder on the island-empire  
of the ,orient1 may be1 in the order of 
,god1 a mighty mediator1  possessed both
 of a great population and of new and   

commanding ideas1  and destined to bring
 about the universal peace1 the sound   
knowledge1  and the highest prosperity  
of the world4    ,we are told that      
,japan is a country of diversified      
beauty4 ,compassed  round about with the
 vast ocean1 yet not far from the       
,asiatic mainland2  supplied also with a
 wonderful inland sea1 and with lakes   
and rivers  and fountains of waters2 a  
land of mountains1 and valleys1 and     
broad  meadows1 and all manner of trees 
and shrubs and fruits and flowers1  and 
charming landscapes1 and all varieties  
of climate2 it is no wonder  that the   
people and their poets have called this 
group of islands the  sun's nest1 the   
country of the sun-goddess1 the region  
between  heaven and earth1 islands of   
the congealed drop1 the grand land of   
the eight isles1 central land of        
reed-plains1 land of the ears of  fresh 
rice1 land of a thousand autumns1 and   
other similar names  indicative of      
manifold excellence4#a    ,this         

island-empire of the ,orient is the home
 of the religious cult  called ,shinto1 
a religion which has never traveled nor 
sought to  propagate itself beyond the  
dominions of ,japan4 ,it has never put  
itself  in a hostile attitude toward any
 other form of religion1 either at home 
or abroad1 except when a foreign cult   
has entered its ancient home and  sought
 to meddle with affairs of ,state or to 
interfere with loyalty to  the ,emperor4
    #b4 ,is ,shinto a ,religion8 ,at a  
meeting of the ,society of ,science1    
held  at ,tokyo in #ahij1 the president 
of the ,imperial ,university expressed  
the opinion that ,shinto should not be  
regarded as a religion4 ,he  believed it
 to be an essential element in the      
existing national thought  and feeling  
of ,japan1 but destitute of the         
essential qualities of a  strictly      
religious cult4 ,others have expressed a
 similar opinion2 but  we are disposed  
to think that this judgment arises from 
an incorrect  concept of religion1 and a

 consequent defective definition of the 
same4  ,a similar denial has been made  
of the religious character of other     
cults and systems4 ,taoism1             
,confucianism1 and even ,buddhism have  
been  said to lack the elements         
essential to a real religion4 ,but if   
these  systems do not constitute a      
religion for the peoples who accept     
them1  they are in every case their     
substitute for religion4 ,any religion  
or any form of religion may so involve  
its thought and its practices  with     
philosophical speculation1 or with      
social customs1 or with the  political  
management of the ,state1 as to have the
 appearance of a  philosophical or a    
political system1 rather than a form of 
religion4  ,but1 however it may1 in such
 ways1 ignore the religious ideas and   
practices of other systems1 if there be 
no other religious cult among  the      
people1 the philosophy1 the ethical     
policy and the customs1 which  make up  
this important element of the           

civilization and the national  life1 are
 as truly tantamount to a religious cult
 as any form of faith  and practice     
which all men agree to call religion4   
#c4 ,origin and ,relative ,age of the   
,people4 ,the main body of the          
,japanese people are believed to have   
migrated in old times from the  northern
 central part of ,asia1 and to have     
worked their way eastward  into ,korea1 
and thence into the islands of ,japan4  
,they expelled  or subjugated the       
aborigines of the country1 and made     
themselves  masters of the great islands
 and the inland and surrounding seas4   
,but their origin and early history are 
involved in dense obscurity4  ,they     
doubtless brought with them from their  
earlier dwellings in ,asia  various     
myths1 legends1 and traditions1 and     
these grew and strengthened  amid the   
simple habits of life which they adopted
 in their new  island-world4 ,according 
to a writer#b in the ,westminster       
,review of  ,july1 #ahgh1 ,japan is yet1

 in more senses than one1 a young       
country4  ,their language and their     
institutions show us a people still in a
 very  early stage of development4 ,w4  
,g4 ,aston holds that the earliest date 
of accepted ,japanese chronology is ,a4 
,d4 #dfa1 and he says that ,japanese    
history1 properly so called1 can not be 
said to exist previous to ,a4  ,d4 #ejj4
 ,he regards ,korean history more       
trustworthy than that of ,japan         
previous to that date4#c ,according to  
,satow1 everything points to the        
descent of the ,japanese people in great
 part from a race of ,turanian  origin1 
who crossed over from the continent by  
way of the islands  ,tsushima and ,iki1 
which form the natural stepping-stones  
from ,korea to  ,japan4#d    ,but the   
last twenty-five years have witnessed a 
most remarkable advance  in the use of  
modern inventions1 and more than any    
other nation of  the far ,east have the 
,japanese displayed both a willingness  
and an  ambition to improve their       

condition by means of the ideas and     
usages of  ,western civilization4 ,the  
war with ,china in #ahid1 and that with 
,russia  in #aijd-aije1 displayed a     
wisdom1 tact1 and energy which were a   
great  surprise to the world4 ,the      
self-poise1 the generosity1 the         
far-sighted  statesmanship exhibited in 
her concluding terms of peace with her  
haughty but defeated enemy1 have        
commanded universal admiration4 ,these  
facts make the study of this people's   
ancient religious cult1 which is  still 
a powerful element in the popular life1 
a matter of no little  interest at the  
present time4#e    #d4 ,meaning of the  
,word ,shinto4 ,the word ,shinto means  
the way of the  gods4 ,it came into use 
when ,buddhism was introduced into      
,japan1 and  designates the old1        
ancestral worship as a way of the gods  
distinct  from the way of the           
,buddhists1 or of any other rival way of
 religious  life4 ,the ,japanese name is
 ,kami no michi4 ,in its essential      

elements  it is a commingling of        
,animism and ancestor-worship4 ,not only
 are the  spirits of departed ancestors 
reckoned among the gods1 but there are  
innumerable deities of other kind and   
character4 ,the mountains and  valleys1 
the rivers and the seas1 the trees1 the 
wind1 the thunder1 the  fire1 all moving
 things and objects of sense are        
supposed to have each  a deity within4  
,and these deities seem for the most    
part to have been  regarded as          
beneficent powers1 and their worship is 
of a joyous kind4    #e4 ,sources of    
,information4 ,the sources of our       
knowledge of this  ancient cult are     
quite numerous1 but not as accessible to
 ,english  and ,american students as is 
desirable4 ,the oldest existing monument
  of ,japanese literature is known as   
the ,ko-ji-ki1 the text of which  would 
make a book about the size of our four  
,gospels4 ,it contains  #ahj short      
sections or chapters4 ,the word         
,ko-ji-ki means a ,record  of ,ancient  

,matters1 and appropriately designates  
this oldest known  record of the        
mythology1 history1 and customs of the  
people of ,japan4  ,it is the nearest   
approach to a sacred scripture of the   
,shinto cult  which we possess4 ,it has 
been translated into ,english1 and      
supplied  with a learned introduction   
and many explanatory notes by ,basil ,h4
  ,chamberlain1#f a distinguished       
scholar1 who has made the ,japanese     
language1 literature1 and archology a   
subject of extensive and minute         
research4    ,another and much larger   
work1 comprising thirty books1 and      
containing  a record of much of the same
 mythology and history as the ,ko-ji-ki1
  is called the ,nihongi1 or ,chronicles
 of ,japan4#g ,it is a composite  of    
various elements derived from numerous  
different sources1 and while  it reports
 in substance the myths and stories of  
the gods as they are  found in the      
,ko-ji-ki1 it makes no mention of that  
older work and  omits some things which 

the older work records4 ,it gives1      
however1 a  number and variety of       
reports of the myths and traditions1    
informing  us how1 in one ancient       
writing1 it is so and so recorded2 in   
another  writing1 it is somewhat        
differently told4 ,this feature enhances
 its  value for purposes of comparison  
among the varying traditions4    ,this  
later production lacks the simplicity   
and originality of the  ,ko-ji-ki1 and  
bears abundant evidence of the ,chinese 
influences under  which it was composed4
 ,it is written for the most part in    
,chinese1 and  exhibits numerous        
examples of the learning and            
philosophical cast of  thought peculiar 
to certain well-known ,chinese writings4
 ,as a specimen  of this rationalistic  
type of construing the ancient myths of 
creation1  we here cite the opening     
sentences from the first book of the    
,nihongi3    ,of old1 ,heaven and ,earth
 were not yet separated1 and the ,in and
 ,yo  or ,yin and ,yang1 female and male

 principles not yet divided4  ,they     
formed a chaotic mass1 like an egg1     
which was of obscurely  defined limits  
and contained germs4 ,the purer and     
clearer part was  thinly drawn out and  
formed ,heaven1 while the heavier and   
grosser  element settled down and became
 ,earth4 ,the finer element easily      
became  a united body1 but the          
consolidation of the heavy and gross    
element  was accomplished with          
difficulty4 ,heaven was therefore formed
 first1  and ,earth was established     
subsequently4 ,thereafter ,divine       
,beings were  produced between them4    
,hence it is said that when the world   
began to  be created1 the soil1 of which
 lands were composed1 floated about in  
a manner which might be compared to the 
floating of a fish sporting  on the     
surface of the water4 ,at this time a   
certain thing was produced  between     
,heaven and ,earth4 ,it was in form like
 a reed-shoot4 ,now  this became        
transformed into a god1 and was called  

,kuni-toko-tachi  no ,mikoto            
,land-eternal-stand-of-august thing4    
,next there was  ,kuni-no-sa-tsuchi     
land-of-right-soil1 and next1           
,toyo-kumu-nu  rich-form-plain--in all1 
three deities4 ,these were pure males1  
spontaneously developed by the operation
 of the principle of ,heaven  the ,yo1  
male principle4    ,the ,ko-ji-ki was   
written about #gab ,a4 ,d41 and the     
,nihongi in  #gbj ,a4 ,d41 and they are 
both remarkable for the nave and        
peculiar  manner in which they unite    
together in their narratives matters of 
traditional mythology and of history    
without apparent consciousness of  any  
noteworthy differences between the two4 
,besides these remarkable  books there  
is a ,code of ceremonial laws1 in fifty 
volumes1 known as  the ,yengishiki1     
which was published ,a4 ,d4 #ibg4 ,it   
includes a large  number of ancient     
,japanese rituals1 called ,norito1 of   
which several  have been translated into
 ,english and provided with a commentary

 and  learned notes by ,ernest ,satow   
and ,karl ,florenz4#h ,there is also  an
 interesting collection of ancient      
poems1 called the ,manyoshu1            
,collection of ,myriad ,leaves1 which   
furnishes numerous pictures of  the life
 of the early ,japanese1 both before and
 after the time of the  compilation of  
the ,ko-ji-ki and the ,nihongi4 ,there  
are also the  voluminous writings of the
 three famous ,shinto scholars1         
,mabuchi1  ,motowori1 and ,hirata1 who  
flourished between the middle of the    
eighteenth and the middle of the        
nineteenth century1 and effected an     
intellectual revolution and a remarkable
 revival of the ,shinto cult4#i    #f4  
,japanese ,cosmogony and ,mythology4    
,our study of ,shinto may well  begin by
 a brief notice of ,japanese cosmogony  
as presented at the very  beginning of  
the ,ko-ji-ki3    ,i1 ,yasumaro1 say3   
,now when chaos had begun to condense1  
but force  and form were not yet        
manifest1 and there was naught named1   

naught  done1 who could know its shape8 
,nevertheless ,heaven and ,earth first  
parted1 and the ,three ,deities         
performed the commencement of creation2 
the ,passive and ,active ,essences then 
developed1 and the ,two ,spirits  became
 the ancestors of all things4 ,therefore
 did he ,izanagi enter  obscurity and   
emerge into light1 and the ,sun and     
,moon were revealed by  the washing of  
his eyes2 he floated on and plunged into
 the sea-water1  and heavenly and       
earthly ,deities appeared through the   
ablutions of his  person4 ,so in the    
dimness of the great beginning1 we1 by  
relying on the  original teaching1 learn
 the time of the conception of the earth
 and  of the birth of islands2 in the   
remoteness of the original beginning1   
we by trusting the former sages1        
perceive the era of the genesis of      
,deities and of the establishment of    
men4    ,this brief fragment from the   
compiler's ,preface furnishes a         
condensed  outline of what we read in   

the first part of the ,ko-ji-ki1 and  it
 indicates the peculiar cosmogony of the
 ,japanese mythology4 ,the  early       
sections of the book record the names of
 the first deities1  who are said to    
have been born alone1 and hid their     
persons2  which seems to mean that they 
came into being in some exceptional     
way1 and then disappeared4 ,then        
followed what are termed the  ,seven    
,divine ,generations1 among which we    
find such names as the                  
,earthly-eternally-standing-,deity1 the 
,mud-,earth-,lord1 and his younger      
sister1 the ,mud-,earth-,lady2 the      
,germ-,integrating ,deity1 and his      
younger sister1 the ,life-,integrating  
,deity4 ,these seven generations of     
gods end with the birth of a brother and
 sister1 named ,izanagi and  ,izanami   
7i4 e41 the male-who-invites and the    
female-who-invites74  ,these two are    
commanded by the higher and more ancient
 heavenly deities  to make1 consolidate1
 and give birth to this drifting land2  

whereupon  they two1 standing upon the  
floating ,bridge of ,heaven1 pushed down
 a  jewelled spear1 and stirred the     
ocean brine till it became thick and    
sticky2#aj and then1 drawing the spear  
upward1 the brine that dropped  down    
from the end of the spear became an     
island4 ,upon this island  ,izanagi and 
,izanami descended from the ,heaven     
above1 and in course of  time generated 
all the islands of the ,japanese world4 
,when they had  finished giving birth to
 countries they proceeded to give birth 
to  deities1 and so by them were        
begotten fourteen islands and           
thirty-five  deities4 ,there is little  
room to doubt that ,izanagi and ,izanami
 are a  mythological representation of  
the generative powers of nature2 but    
their portraiture in the ,japanese      
literature has probably received some   
coloring from ,chinese influence and    
thought4    ,but in giving birth to the 
deity of fire1 ,izanami died1 and her   
brother buried her1 and drawing his     

mighty sword he proceeded  to cut off   
the head of his son1 the deity of fire4 
,whereupon1  wonderful to tell1 sixteen 
deities were born from the blood and    
the different parts of the body of the  
fire-god4 ,among the names  of these we 
find such titles as ,rock-splitter1     
,root-splitter1  ,brave-snapping1 and   
,possessor-of-,mountains2 and the name  
of  the sword which cleft the head of   
the fire-god was ,heavenly1 or          
,majestic-,point-,blade-,extended4      
,after the birth of these deities1      
,izanagi longed to see again his  sister
 and spouse1 and went to seek her in the
 underworld4 ,he called  to her and     
asked her to come back to him4 ,she     
answered that such was  her desire1 but 
she must consult the deities of ,hades1 
and she bade him  wait1 saying1 ,look   
not at me4 ,one can not help comparing  
here the  ,greek myth of ,orpheus and   
,eurydice4 ,orpheus descended into the  
lower  world1 charmed ,pluto with his   
lyre1 and obtained permission for his   

wife ,eurydice to return1 following     
behind him1 but only on condition  that 
,orpheus should not look back at her    
till they had both reached the  upper   
world4 ,he grew impatient1 looked back  
to see if she were indeed  following1   
and she at once vanished from his sight4
 ,according to the  ,japanese myth1     
however1 ,izanagi grew tired of waiting 
outside1 made a  light and entered1 and 
was shocked to behold maggots swarming  
over her  body1 and eight               
thunder-deities dwelling in her rotting 
form where they  had been born4 ,he     
turned and fled back1 but she pursued   
him with the  forces of the underworld4 
,he succeeded in driving them all back1 
and  with a mighty rock blocked up the  
pass of ,hades4 ,then he went to purify 
himself by bathing in a stream1 and from
 his staff1 and girdle1 and  bracelet1  
and various garments1 and from the filth
 which he contracted  in the underworld 
were born a multitude of deities1       
bearing composite  names of strange     

significance4 ,there was also born1 as  
he washed his  left eye1 a deity who was
 called the                             
,heaven-,shining-,great-,august ,one2   
and from his right eye was born the     
,moon-,night-,possessor1 and as he      
washed his nose there was born          
,susa-no-,wo1 ,impetuous-,male-,deity4  
,but we need not pursue further this    
seemingly endless genealogy of  the     
deities4 ,we are told in section xxx    
that in a divine assembly of  eight     
hundred myriad deities it was decided to
 send one of their number  to govern the
 ,central ,land of ,reed-,plains1 and   
subdue the savage  ,earthly ,deities4   
,various deities were sent1 and at      
length a grandchild  of the             
,sun-,goddess#aa became the ,ruler of   
the ,empire1 and bears the  composite   
name of ,kamu-yamato-ihare-biko1 but is 
commonly called  by his canonical name1 
,jimmu1 a title given him long after his
  decease4 ,from such heavenly origin   
sprang all the ,emperors of ,japan1  and

 the present ,mikado1 like all his      
predecessors1 is thus conceived  as an  
offspring of ,heaven1 a direct          
descendant of the ancient heavenly      
deities4 ,the significance of this fact 
will appear conspicuously when  we come 
to notice more particularly the         
essential elements in the  ,shinto cult4
    ,on this remarkable cosmogony and   
mythology we do well at this point to   
offer the following observations3       
7#a7 ,these accounts of the origin of   
the ,japanese ,archipelago and its      
rulers are regarded as genuine          
traditions handed down from former      
ages4 ,one part of the tradition is that
 the ,emperor1 who took pains to  have  
the old records carefully looked after1 
employed a person living  in his        
household1 who was gifted with marvelous
 memory2 he could  repeat without       
mistake the contents of any document he 
had ever seen1  and never forgot        
anything that he had heard2 and from the
 lips of this  man of prodigious memory 

the scribe ,yasumaro wrote down the     
contents  of the ,ko-ji-ki4#ab    7#b7  
,notice1 in the next place1 that the    
island world of ,japan is all  the world
 which these records know anything      
about4 ,the universe of  this cosmogony 
consists of the islands of the          
,central-,land of the  ,reed-,plains1   
with their inland and surrounding seas1 
and the ,plain of  ,high ,heaven1 which1
 however1 was not conceived as very far 
away above  them4    7#c7 ,the entire   
description of the beginnings of heaven1
 and earth1  and gods1 and men accords  
with the idea of a continuous process of
  evolution4 ,the first three heavenly  
deities were born alone1 and hid  their 
persons1 or disappeared4 ,all the other 
deities are spoken of as  begotten1 or  
born1 and the deities give birth to the 
different islands  of the earth4#ac     
7#d7 ,the world-idea of this old        
mythology is in notable keeping with    
the ancestor worship1 and the ,animism  
which enter so largely into the  ,shinto

 faith4 ,in spite of all the wars and   
discords of the deities1  this a        
primordial monism1 so to speak1 at the  
basis of ,japanese  cosmogony1 and of   
all its diverse generations of the      
heavens and the  earth2 and yet there is
 no one ,supreme ,ruler in all the      
,pantheon of  eight hundred myriad gods4
 ,when a great council of the gods      
assembles  in the bed of the ,tranquil  
,heavenly ,river1 no one deity is chief 
among  them1 and we are at a loss to    
imagine who has authority to call them  
together or to preside over the         
assembly4 ,izanagi seems for a while to 
be the chief creator and ruler1 but     
after a time he disappears1 and the     
,sun ,goddess1 his daughter ,amaterasu1 
has her heavenly domain shaken  and     
ravaged by her younger brother1 but is  
avenged by the heavenly  assembly of    
gods1 who fine and punish the offender1 
and expel him with  a divine expulsion4 
,so the ,sun ,goddess maintains her     
dominion by the  help of the eight      

hundred myriad gods1 no one of whom is  
invested with  supreme power4 ,it       
appears from certain poems of the       
,manyoshu that the  moon as well as the 
sun was extensively worshiped among the 
primitive  ,japanese4#ad    7#e7 ,it    
accords with all these ideas that the   
devotees of the pure  ,shinto faith     
trace all their history back to the age 
of the gods1  and recognize some deity  
in1 or back of1 all phenomena4 ,japan is
 the  country of the gods2 every        
,japanese is a descendant or offspring  
of  the gods1 and the ,mikado is the    
direct descendant of the imperial line  
which has continued in unbroken         
succession from the beginning of the    
world4 ,japan is1 therefore1 superior to
 all other countries1 and the           
,japanese1 being thus directly from the 
gods1 are superior in every  respect to 
other people4 ,sprung from the gods1    
they need no codes of  moral law 7like  
the ,chinese71 for they are naturally   
perfect1 and do  the right things       

spontaneously4    #g4 ,the ,japanese a  
,self-centered ,people4 ,the ,japanese  
people1 with  such traditions and such a
 faith1 would naturally be a            
self-centered  people1 and they         
conceived their island-empire as        
occupying the summit  of the earth4 ,the
 ,mikado is the ,son of ,heaven1        
entitled and empowered  to reign        
perpetually over the land and the sea4  
,but as all the people  are descendants 
of the gods1 and the islands and all    
that is in them  have also been begotten
 of the gods1 it follows that the       
worship of  ancestors is a worship of   
all the gods of whom they have          
knowledge1 and  all the lower animate   
and inanimate things in the world are   
also in  some way instinct with the     
deities from whom they were born1 and   
whose  they are4    ,accordingly1 the   
honoring of the gods is a fundamental   
thing in the  ,shinto thought and in the
 ,japanese civilization and government4 
,every  loyal subject of the ,mikado's  

,empire is expected to be true to the   
ancient faith4 ,it is assumed that      
religion and worship and the proper     
administration of government are all    
essential to each other4 ,the  ,japanese
 word 7,matsuri-goto71 which is used to 
denote the art of  government1 means1   
literally1 worshiping4 ,and it is a     
common thought  and saying3 ,everything 
in the world depends on the spirit of   
the  gods of heaven and earth1 and      
therefore the worship of the gods is a  
matter of primary importance4 ,the gods 
who do harm are to be appeased1  so that
 they may not punish those who have     
offended them2 and all the  gods are to 
be worshiped1 so that they may be       
induced to increase their  favors4#ae   
,one of the rules which all the         
ministers of the ,mikado  emphasized in 
the old times1 before the introduction  
of ,buddhism into  ,japan1 was1 ,first  
serve the gods1 and afterwards          
deliberate on matters  of government4#af
    #h4 ,essence of the ,shinto ,cult4  

,from what we have now stated it is to  
be seen that reverence and worship of   
the ancestors of the ,japanese1  and the
 recognition of the ,mikado's divinity  
as the incarnation and  earthly         
representation of the celestial gods1   
constitute the essence  of the ,shinto  
cult4 ,all the ,japanese are offsprings 
of the gods1 but  the imperial ,sovran  
,grandchild of ,amaterasu1 the          
,sun-,goddess1#ag  is pre-eminently     
divine and worshipful4 ,the first       
,mikado1 however1 was  not the real son 
of ,amaterasu1 according to the mythic  
tradition of  the prehistoric time1 but 
her nephew1 the son of ,oshi-ho-mi-mi1  
whom  she adopted as her son4 ,but the  
title of ,sovran ,grandchild1 having    
been applied first to the founder of the
 ,mikado's dynasty1 came in time  to be 
the common title of all the ,mikado's   
successors4 ,the imperial  worship1     
accordingly1 represents the most        
conspicuous national form of  the       
,shinto cult4    #i4 ,the ,great        

,sanctuaries4 ,the ,mikado's palace     
would1 accordingly1 be  the most holy   
shrine of the national worship1 the     
private and exclusive  sanctuary of the 
imperial ancestors4 ,but the most       
notable shrine of the  ,sun-,goddess is 
not now the residence of the ,mikado4   
,on account of some  great calamity that
 occurred far back in prehistoric times1
 her worship  was removed to a separate 
temple1 and was finally established in  
the  province of ,is1 in which the      
temples1 called the ,two great divine   
,palaces1 are the resort of thousands of
 pilgrims every year1 and1  though not  
the most ancient1 are regarded as first 
among all the ,shinto  temples in the   
land4#ah ,these two divine palaces1 or  
temples1 called  ,geku and ,naiku1 are  
about three miles apart1 and stand in   
the midst  of groves of aged cryptomeria
 trees4#ai ,they are approached through 
archways 7called torii1 or toriwi7 of   
simple construction4 ,the  ,geku temple 
is an irregular oblong structure1 #bdg  

feet wide at the  front1 but only #bce  
feet wide in the rear2 while the side to
 the right  of the entrance is #cci     
feet1 and that on the left is #cce4     
,within this  large enclosure are others
 of similar structure1 all made of the  
wood  of cryptomeria trees1 and left    
unpainted and without ornamentation4    
,the  various buildings of the temples  
are thus fashioned after the manner  of 
the simple huts1 or dwellings of the    
earliest inhabitants of these  islands4 
,some of the buildings are covered with 
thatched roofs and  have their walls and
 doors made of rough matting4 ,mr4      
,satow1 who has  visited and described  
the temples of ,is1 says that ,all the  
buildings  which form part of the two   
temples are constructed in a style that 
is disappointing in its simplicity and  
perishable nature4444 ,none  but those  
which are roofed with thatch are        
entitled to be considered  as being in  
strict conformity with the principles of
 genuine ,shinto  temple                

architecture4#bj ,the perishable nature 
of these temples is  such that it       
becomes necessary1 and is1 in fact1 the 
standing rule1 to  rebuild them every   
twenty years4 ,two sites for each temple
 are used  alternatively2 they lie close
 to each other1 so that the new building
  is constructed and ready for use      
before the old one is removed4    ,the  
temple which1 though less venerated than
 those at ,is1 is the  shrine-center of 
the more ancient ,shinto cult1 is the   
one at ,kitzuki1  in the ancient        
province of ,idzumo4 ,these famous      
shrines of ,is and  ,kitzuki represent  
the two supreme cults of ,shinto2       
namely1 that of  the ,sun-,goddess1     
,amaterasu1 and that of ,oho-kuni-nushi1
 offspring  of the brother of the       
,sun-,goddess1 who became the ruler of  
the unseen  world of the spirits of the 
dead4 ,but there are many other great   
temples maintained in whole or in part  
from the imperial revenues4  ,some are  
of greater sanctity and renown than     

others1 but those of ,is  and ,kitzuki  
are the most celebrated1 and every      
,shinto worshiper is  expected1 at least
 once in his lifetime1 to make a        
pilgrimage himself1  or send a deputy to
 one of these most famous shrines4      
#aj4 ,five ,noteworthy ,objects         
,connected with the ,worship4 ,one      
noteworthy fact is the absence of images
 from the pure ,shinto temples2  that   
is1 images exposed as objects of        
worship4 ,but there is a number of      
objects connected with these sacred     
places which should receive brief       
notice3    7#a7 ,there is1 first1 the   
wooden archway 7called torii1 or toriwi7
  through which one passes in           
approaching the temples4 ,it consists of
  two upright posts set in the ground on
 the tops of which is laid a  long      
straight beam1 the two ends of which    
project a little beyond the  uprights4  
,under this top beam is another         
horizontal beam connecting the  two side
 posts after the manner of a girder4    

,according to ,satow1 ,the  toriwi was  
originally a perch for the fowls offered
 up to the gods1  not as food1 but to   
give warning at daybreak4 ,it was       
erected on any  side of the temple      
indifferently4 ,in later times1 not     
improbably after  the introduction of   
,buddhism1 its original meaning was     
forgotten1 and  it was placed in front  
only and supposed to be a gateway4#ba   
7#b7 ,opposite the various entrances to 
the temples is placed a wooden  screen1 
or fence1 called ,banpei1 which serves  
as in other dwellings  to guard and hide
 the privacy of the interior4    7#c7   
,another object of special interest is  
the ,go-hei1 a slender wand1  originally
 a branch of the sacred tree called     
sakaki4 ,from the ,go-hei  hang two long
 slips of white paper notched on the    
opposite sides4 ,these  wands of        
unpainted wood are supposed to represent
 offerings of white  cloth and to have  
the power of attracting the gods to the 
places where  they are kept4    7#d7    

,the offerings presented consist of cups
 of water and small vessels  filled with
 rice1 vegetables1 fruits1 salt1 fish1  
birds1 and other  simplest products of  
the land and of the sea4 ,it is         
noteworthy that we  find no bloody      
sacrificial rites in ,shinto worship1 in
 which one life1  animal or human1 was  
made a vicarious substitute for a guilty
 soul4    7#e7 ,the sacred mirror1 which
 figures in the mythology of the        
,sun-,goddess1 and is said to have been 
once used to entice her from a  cave    
into which she had hid herself in a     
spell of anger1 is carefully  guarded in
 one of these temples1 and also many    
copies of the mirror4  ,each mirror is  
contained in a box which is furnished   
with eight  handles1 four on the box    
itself and four on the lid4 ,the box    
rests on a  low stand and is covered    
with a piece of cloth said to be white  
silk4  ,the mirror itself is wrapped in 
a brocade bag1 which is never opened or 
renewed1 but when it begins to fall to  

pieces from age1 another bag is  put on1
 so that the actual covering consists of
 numerous layers4 ,over  the whole is   
placed a sort of cage of unpainted wood 
with ornaments  said to be of pure gold1
 and over this again is thrown a sort of
  curtain of coarse silk1 descending to 
the floor on all sides4#bb  ,one can not
 read this description of the sacred    
mirror thus secretly  guarded in a      
costly box without being reminded of the
 sacred ark of the  ,levitical          
sanctuary1 and its enclosed tables of   
testimony4    #aa4 ,the ,ancestor       
,worship4 ,we have already observed that
 ancestor  worship is the basis of the  
,shinto cult4 ,this kind of worship is  
also  conspicuous among the ,chinese1   
and is held by many writers to have been
  the original cult of all civilized    
races and peoples4 ,it began1 they  tell
 us1 with a belief in ghosts1 and at the
 first there was no clear  distinction  
between ghosts and gods4 ,the departed  
spirit was thought  of as abiding near  

the place where the dead body was       
deposited1 and  the earliest shrines    
would therefore be the graves or tombs  
of the  dead4 ,later thought would beget
 the idea that the invisible spirits    
were present to witness the acts1 and   
share the joys and sorrows of the       
living4 ,and this fundamental idea      
would1 of course1 develop into many     
diverse conceptions and practices among 
the different tribes4    ,without here  
discussing this theory of aboriginal    
religious thought  and practice1 as     
applicable to all peoples1 we may note  
that it  accords with the facts of      
,japanese history and civilization so   
far as  we can now trace them back into 
the mists of prehistoric time4#bc  ,we  
have seen that ,japanese history and    
mythology run together and  blend in    
remarkable artlessness as they stand    
recorded in the oldest  literature 7e4  
g41 the ,ko-ji-ki and the ,nihongi74    
,unthinkable  monstrosities of the      
origin of gods and lands and men are    

told with  the same simplicity as the   
unquestionable facts of historic times4 
,but  taking the one leading thought    
which runs through all these records and
  appears to be fundamental in the      
,japanese civilization--namely1 that    
all their islands and emperors and      
chiefs and people are offspring of  the 
gods1 the very first of whom were       
somehow self-evolved from the           
primordial elements of the universe--we 
look upon the ,shinto worship as  it    
exists in its purest form to-day1 and   
note the most apparent facts4    ,mr4   
,lafcadio ,hearn1 in his attempt at an  
interpretation of ,japan1  has1 more    
clearly than any other writer ,i have   
consulted1 described  the ,shinto       
ancestor-worship under its three forms  
of ,domestic1  ,communal1 and ,state    
cults4 ,in every case it is a worship of
 the  dead1 but the individual1 whether 
he be the most obscure servant1 the     
influential citizen1 the commanding     
chieftain1 or even the ,mikado1 is  but 

a part and parcel of the body politic4  
,there is a most remarkable  unity of   
popular and national life4 ,government  
and religion are  virtually identical1  
and there is no distinction between     
religion and  morality4 ,obedience and  
conformity to the rules of family life1 
and to  the customs of society and the  
requirements of the ,state--these are   
the simple sum-total of ,shinto law and 
gospel4 ,the individual must  always    
stand ready to be sacrificed for the    
good of the community or  of the ,state4
 ,everything is to be regarded as       
public1 and must serve  the public weal4
 ,there is no such thing as privacy1 and
 oddities have  no respectable standing4
 ,tradition and custom seem to          
constitute the  essence of religion as  
well as of family1 communal1 and more   
public  life4 ,there is no code of moral
 law2 there is nothing in the worship   
that is fairly comparable to what we    
understand by dogma1 creed1 or  ,church4
 ,strictly speaking1 this system has no 

heaven or hell1 no deep  sense of sin1  
and no concept of mediatorial redemption
 from sin and  evil4 ,the dead--all the 
dead of all the ages--are conceived as  
somehow  living in the unseen vacancy   
around1 above1 below2 they are present  
at  the worship2 they haunt the tombs2  
they are interested in the life and     
works of their descendants2 they visit  
their former homes and attend  the      
family worship there2 their happiness1  
in fact1 depends upon the  honor and    
worship which their living descendants  
pay them2 and also the  happiness and   
prosperity of the living is believed to 
depend upon their  sense of filial duty 
and proper reverence toward the dead4   
,furthermore1  all the dead are supposed
 to become gods and attain to           
supernatural  power4 ,but there is no   
one ,supreme ,deity2 no central throne  
of ,god2  no paradise of heavenly       
blessedness4 ,so far as any ideas of    
this kind  obtain among the people1 they
 may be regarded as later conceptions   

introduced by missionaries or adherents 
of other religious systems4  ,but the   
cult implies beyond question a belief in
 some kind of future  life4 ,the ,yomi1 
or ,hades1 of ,shinto mythology1 into   
which ,izanagi  went to seek his lost   
sister1 was conceived as a hideous and  
polluted  land1 and even the realm of   
the unseen heavenly deities was never   
longed for by the devotees of ,shinto4  
,dooman observes that to the  ,japanese 
mind and imagination ,japan1 as a place 
of residence1 was far  superior to      
heaven1 and its inhabitants a far more  
desirable society  than those living in 
the transcendent regions4 ,we see that  
every god  who is sent from heaven to   
,japan on some important business by the
  divine assembly marries1 and is       
utterly unwilling to go back once more  
to the place from which he descended4#bd
    #ab4 ,elements of ,animism4 ,the    
ancestor-worship of ,shinto can not be  
disassociated altogether from the       
elements of ,animism which appear in    

the names and titles of certain deities1
 and also in the fact that  there are   
evil gods and demons who are capable of 
working mischief  and calamity in the   
family1 the community1 and the ,state4  
,how these  evil deities originated is  
matter of myth1 legend1 and speculation4
 ,bad  men would naturally be supposed  
to carry their evil character with them 
into the unseen world of the dead1 and  
to have the same power to work  harm    
among the living as the good spirits    
have to bestow benefits4 ,but  human    
spirits would hardly be supposed to     
become deities of the wind1  and the    
thunder1 and the waves1 and the         
mountains2 of the trees1 and  the fire1 
and the sun1 and the moon1 and the      
autumn1 and the food of  men4 ,here the 
old mythology of the ,ko-ji-ki comes in 
to tell us of  a prehistoric and        
cosmical origin of evils4 ,when ,izanagi
 went to find  his sister ,izanami in   
the hideous and polluted underworld1 and
 found  her body swarming with maggots  

and eight thunder deities dwelling in   
the different parts of her decaying     
form1 he fled back in astonishment  and 
awe1 and she in a rage of shame pursued 
him with all the horrid  forces of that 
nether sphere4 ,he escaped1 but not     
without contracting  much pollution on  
his august person1 and when he sought to
 wash and  cleanse himself in the waters
 of a certain river1 there were born    
from  the filth of his person two       
deities1 named the wondrous deity of    
eighty evils1 and the wondrous deity of 
great evils4 ,these evil gods           
afterwards multiplied1 and may be       
supposed to be the authors of all the   
demons1 goblins1 and mischievous spirits
 of evil that disturb the world  and its
 inhabitants4 ,but there are also good  
spirits innumerable that  animate all   
moving things4 ,the winds and the       
waters1 the songs of birds  and the hum 
of the bees1 the growing plants and     
trees1 are all instinct  with a sort of 
conscious life1 and the spirits that    

live and move in  them are to be        
recognized and reverenced by prayers and
 offerings4    ,the spirits of dead     
ancestors and the powerful spirits of   
the winds and  the storms and the       
growths of nature may or may not have   
been supposed  to have concert of action
 understood between them4 ,the ,japanese
 mind  seems never to have elaborated   
any formal philosophy of this life or   
any specific theories of the life to    
come4    #ac4 ,the ,domestic ,cult4 ,the
 simplest and most original form of the 
,shinto worship is that of the family4  
,in the inner chamber of every  home    
there is a high shelf against the wall  
called the ,shelf of  the ,august       
,spirits4 ,upon it is placed a miniature
 temple1 in which  are deposited little 
tablets of white wood bearing the names 
of the  deceased members of the         
household4 ,these are often spoken of as
 spirit  sticks and spirit substitutes4 
,before these household shrines simple  
offerings are offered daily and a few   

words of prayer are spoken4 ,the        
ceremony is a very short one1 but as    
regular as the coming of the day4  ,it  
is usually performed by the head of the 
family1 but it frequently  devolves upon
 the woman1 the mother or the           
grandmother1 rather than  the father4   
,no religion1 says ,hearn1 is more      
sincere1 no faith  more touching than   
this domestic worship1 which regards the
 dead as  continuing to form a part of  
the household life and needing still the
  affection and the respect of their    
children and kindred4 ,originating  in  
those dim ages when fear was stronger   
than love1 444 the cult at  last        
developed into a religion of affection2 
and this it yet remains4  ,the belief   
that the dead need affection1 that to   
neglect them is a  cruelty1 that their  
happiness depends upon duty1 is a belief
 that has  almost cast out the primitive
 fear of their displeasure4 ,they are   
not  thought of as dead3 they are       
believed to remain among those who loved

  them4 ,unseen1 they guard the home and
 watch over the welfare of its  inmates2
 they hover nightly in the glow of the  
shrine-lamp1 and the  stirring of its   
flame is the motion of them4444 ,from   
their shrine they  observe and hear what
 happens in the house2 they share the   
family joys  and sorrows4 ,they were the
 givers of life2 they represent the past
 of  the race1 and all its              
sacrifices4444 ,yet1 how little do they 
require in  return6 ,scarcely more than 
to be thanked1 as founders and guardians
 of  the home1 in simple words like     
these3 ',for aid received1 by day and by
  night1 accept1 august ones1 our       
reverential gratitude4'#be    #ad4 ,the 
,communal ,cult4 ,the next phase of the 
,shinto worship to be  noticed is that  
which is represented in the temples     
scattered about  everywhere in the land 
and which are said to number over       
#aie1jjj at  the present time4 ,in every
 community1 village1 and large city is  
found  the parish-temple1 and in the    

larger towns each section or district   
has its public shrine1 in which the     
whole community honor the deified       
ancestors of certain noble families of  
ancient time1 or the spirit of  the     
first great patriarch of the clan4 ,the 
farmers1 or those who till  the fields1 
usually dwell in a village on the       
principal highway1 and  go out thence to
 work the rural districts round about4  
,so the villages  vary in size from     
fifty houses set on a single street half
 a mile long  to a large town of many   
hundred houses4 ,in ,simmons and        
,wigmore's ,notes  on ,land ,tenure and 
,local ,institutions in ,old ,japan1#bf 
we read that  the ,japanese rural       
population is1 as a rule1 exceedingly   
stable4  ,the villagers are for the most
 part engaged wholly or partially as    
cultivators of land1 and in the vast    
majority of cases many generations  of  
cultivators have been born and have died
 on the same spot4 ,from the  almost    
numberless replies to inquiries1 the    

answer usually is1 ',we do  not know    
where our ancestors came from1 or when  
they came to live on  this spot4 ,our   
temple register may tell1 but we have   
never thought  about the matter4'       
,the deity honored at these village     
temples is called the ,ujigami1  and    
recognized as the patriarchal and       
tutelary god of the community4  ,just   
whether he were the clan-ancestor of the
 first settlers in  that particular     
parish1 or the spirit of some mighty    
ruler of that  district at a former     
time1 or the patron-god of some noble   
family  once resident there1 is as      
uncertain as the knowledge of the common
  villagers touching their earliest     
progenitors4 ,but in every class these  
,ujigami were worshiped as the tutelar  
deity of the community in which  the    
temple stood4 ,also1 in the larger towns
 there are ,shinto temples  dedicated to
 certain patron-gods of other           
localities4    ,each one of these parish
 temples naturally has a most intimate  

relation  to the life of the community  
about it4 ,thither every child born in  
the  parish is taken1 when a month old1 
and formally named and placed under  the
 protection of the ancestral deity4 ,as 
it grows up it is regularly  taken to   
observe all the festivals and the       
processions and ceremonies1  and the    
temple groves and gardens become its    
common playground4 ,there  is nothing   
somber or solemn about this religious   
cult to scare a  child1 but rather very 
much to attract and interest4#bg ,every 
village  temple has its appointed days  
of public worship1 and neighboring      
districts vie with each other in making 
their great festival days  occasions of 
popular delight4 ,to these joyous       
festivals every family  contributes     
according to ability1 and the worship is
 accompanied by  public amusements of   
various kinds1 athletic sports1 and the 
sale of  toys for children4 ,the temple 
worship consisted in the presentation   
of offerings of cloth1 herbs1 fruits1   

and other of the most common  products  
of the country1 and in a ritual prayer  
enumerating the various  gifts and      
supplicating for prosperity and success 
in all communal  affairs1 for protection
 against sickness1 plague1 and famine1  
and  for the triumph of their chieftains
 in time of war4 ,in this way the       
,ujigami was recognized as the tutelar  
deity of the community and the          
district1 the abiding friend and helper 
of his offspring4 ,the communal  cult   
thus powerfully confirmed the family    
cult1 and enforced the lesson  that no  
man could live unto himself alone4      
#ae4 ,the ,national ,cult4 ,but it is in
 the ,state or ,national observances  of
 the great temples that the ,shinto     
worship is seen in its most  elaborated 
form4 ,the substance and manner of this 
worship may be  learned from the ancient
 ,japanese rituals1 which make mention  
of the  chief deities1 enumerate the    
offerings that are presented at the     
sacred  shrines1 and furnish us the very

 language employed in the presence of   
the sovran gods4 ,how early these       
rituals of worship were committed  to   
writing is an open question1 but it is  
altogether probable that in  substance  
they had been transmitted orally through
 many generations  before they were put 
in written form4 ,from these rituals1   
and the  practices of the worship as    
they may be observed at the present     
time1  we are able to learn the chief   
features of the service4#bh    ,in      
connection with this national worship we
 may here note 7#a7 that  the great     
festivals and occasions of worship were 
observed in all the  principal temples  
at the same time2 7#b7 the ,yengishiki  
mentions  #c1acb shrines distinguished  
as great and small2 there were #dib     
great  shrines1 and #b1fdj small ones4  
,but besides these there were many      
thousands of smaller1 undistinguished   
temples scattered all over the  lands4  
7#c7 ,these various shrines were        
dedicated to a great number of  deities1

 and there were many gods who received  
worship in a number  of temples at one  
and the same time4 7#d7 ,the offerings  
were made in  the name of the ,sovran   
,grandchild of the sun-goddess1 the     
divine  title of every ,mikado1 and     
,satow remarks that it is difficult to  
resist the suggestion that the sun was  
the earliest among the powers  of nature
 to be deified1 and that the long series
 of gods who precede  her in the        
cosmogony of the ,ko-ji-ki and ,nihongi1
 most of whom are  shown by their names 
to have been mere abstractions1 were    
invented  to give her a genealogy1 into 
which were inserted two or perhaps more 
of her own attributes1 personified as   
separate deities4#bi 7#e7 ,the          
priesthood seems to have been for the   
most part hereditary1 and many  priests 
claimed descent from the chief deity to 
whom the temple was  dedicated4 ,the    
reader of the ritual was a member of the
 priestly tribe  which traced its origin
 to ,oho-nakato-mi1 chief of the whole  

,nakatomi  family4 ,another priestly    
family is the ,imbibi tribe4#cj 7#f7    
,virgin  priestesses also figure in the 
celebration of the great ceremonies  of 
,state4 ,princesses of the ,mikado's    
family have been consecrated to         
officiate in the temples of ,is and in  
other great temples also4 ,while  some  
of the priestesses are virgin           
princesses1 some of them also are       
young1 not yet having reached the nubile
 age1 and when they reach that  age they
 cease to be priestesses4 ,with others  
the office is hereditary1  as it is with
 men1 and the women of this class retain
 and exercise  their priestly office    
after marriage4    #af4 ,the ,harvest   
,service4 ,as an example of public      
worship of  exceptional interest1 we    
take the ritual ceremony for ,harvest1  
which  is celebrated once a year--the   
fourth day of the second month4 ,the    
chief service is at the capital1 but the
 festival is observed in all  the       
provinces under the direction of the    

local rulers4 ,preparations go  on for a
 fortnight beforehand1 and the service  
begins twenty minutes  before seven in  
the morning4 ,at the capital1 in the    
large court used  for the worship of the
 ,shinto gods1 the ministers of ,state  
assemble1  along with the priests and   
priestesses of many temples which are   
supported from the ,mikado's treasury4  
,when all things are in readiness1  the 
ministers1 priests1 and priestesses     
enter in succession and occupy  the     
places assigned them4 ,the various      
offerings are duly presented and  the   
ritual is read4 ,at the conclusion of   
each section of the ritual as  recited  
by the reader1 all the priests respond1 
,o6 7,yes1 or ,amen47    ,the following 
is a portion of the ritual used on one  
of these  occasions3 ,hear1 all of you1 
assembled priests of higher and lower   
order4 ,i declare in the presence of the
 sovran gods#ca whose  praises are      
fulfilled as heavenly temples and       
country temples4#cb ,i  fulfill your    

praises by setting up the great         
offerings of the sovran  grandchild's   
augustiness1 made with intention of     
deigning to begin the  harvest in the   
second month of this year1 as the       
morning sun rises in  glory4 ,i declare 
in the presence of the sovran gods of   
the harvest3 ,if  the sovran gods will  
bestow in many-bundled ears and in      
luxuriant ears  the late-ripening       
harvest which they will bestow1 the     
late-ripening  harvest which will be    
produced by the dripping of foam from   
the arms  and by drawing the mud        
together between the opposite thighs1   
then ,i  will fulfill their praises by  
setting up the first fruits in a        
thousand  ears1 and many hundred ears1  
raising high the beer-jars1 filling     
them1  and ranging them in rows4 ,the   
ritual goes on to specify1 among the    
offerings1 sweet and bitter herbs1      
things which dwell in the blue          
sea-plain2 clothes bright1 and          
glittering1 and soft1 and coarse2 a     

white horse1 a white boar1 and a white  
cock4 ,the names also of many  deities  
are declared3 the divine ,producer1 the 
great ,goddess of  ,food1               
wonderful-rock-,gate1 the               
from-heaven-shining-great ,deity who    
sits in ,is1 sovran gods who sit in the 
,farms1 sovran gods who sit  in the     
mouths of the mountains1 and those who  
dwell in the partings  of the waters4   
,as soon as the reader had finished the 
words of the ritual1 he retired1  and   
the priests distributed the various     
offerings and presented them to  the    
gods for whom they were set apart4      
#ag4 ,the ,great ,purification4 ,but the
 ritual of the ,great or ,general       
,purification is said to be one of the  
most important and most solemn          
ceremonies of the ,shinto religion4     
,professor ,karl ,florenz1 who has      
given us a translation of this          
ritual1#cc informs us that it is by     
means of this ceremony that the         
population of the whole country1 from   

the princes and ministers down to the   
common people1 is purified and  freed   
from sins1 pollutions1 and calamities4  
,it is celebrated twice  a year1 on the 
thirtieth day of the sixth and twelfth  
months4 ,the  chief ceremony was        
performed in the capital1 near the south
 gate of the  imperial palace1 and might
 be styled the purification of the      
court1  because it was to purify all the
 higher and lower officials of the      
imperial court4 ,in a similar way the   
ceremony was celebrated also at  all the
 more important public shrines of the   
whole country4 ,besides  the regular    
semiannual celebration of the ,great    
,purification 7called  ,oho-harahe71 it 
is also performed on such special       
occasions as at the  accession of a new 
emperor to the throne1 or when an       
imperial princess  was chosen as a      
virgin priestess and sent to the temple 
of ,is4    ,without detailing the       
movements1 positions1 and practices of  
the  assembled priests1 officials1 and  

common people at the service of the     
,general ,purification1 we simply cite a
 few extracts from the ritual  which may
 serve to show us the underlying concept
 of purification4  ,while the ritual is 
only a part of the entire ceremony of   
the  occasion1 we are told that it is   
not infrequently recited without        
performing the ceremony4 ,moreover1     
while in ancient times the reader  was  
always a member of the priestly         
,nakatomi tribe1 at the present time    
the ritual is read by the officiating   
priest of each particular temple4  ,the 
following excerpts are made from        
,florenz's translation3    ,hear1 all of
 you1 assembled princes of the blood1   
princes1 high  dignitaries1 and men of  
the hundred offices4 ,hear1 all of you1 
that  in the ,great ,purification of the
 present last day of the sixth month  of
 the current year1 the ,sovran deigns to
 purify1 and deigns to  cleanse the     
various offenses which may have been    
committed either  inadvertently1 or     

deliberately1 especially by the persons 
serving  in the imperial court3 7viz47  
the scarf-wearing attendants1 the       
sash-wearing attendants 7of the         
kitchen71 the attendants who carry      
quivers on the back1 the attendants who 
gird on swords1 the eighty  attendants  
of the attendants1 and1 moreover1 by the
 people serving in  all offices4    ,the
 ritual goes on to declare how the      
,sovran's dear progenitors1 in a  divine
 assembly1 ordained that the ,sovran    
,grandchild's ,augustiness  should      
tranquilly rule the luxuriant reed-plain
 region of fresh  young spikes as a     
peaceful country2 how they expelled with
 a divine  expulsion the savage deities1
 and silenced the rocks and trunks of   
trees2 how they let him go down from his
 heavenly place1 and dividing  a road   
through the eightfold heavenly clouds1  
they sent him down and  gave the land   
into his peaceful keeping4 ,the ritual  
also makes mention  of various kinds of 
offenses which need to be cleansed and  

purged away1  and distinguishes them as 
heavenly offenses and earthly offenses4 
,among the former are breaking down the 
divisions of the rice fields1  filling  
up the irrigating channels1 and opening 
the floodgate of  sluices1 and the      
evacuation of one's bowels in improper  
places4 ,among  earthly offenses are the
 cutting the skin of the living or the  
dead  body so as to become defiled by   
blood1 being affected with corns1       
bunions1 boils1 or proud-flesh2 sins of 
adultery1 the offense of using          
incantations1 and various kinds of      
personal calamity4    ,it is expected1  
the ritual adds1 that the heavenly gods 
will be  favorably disposed by reason of
 these offerings1 ceremonies1 and ritual
  of the ,great ,purification1 and will 
deign to purify and cleanse1 and  make  
all the specified offenses disappear1   
even as the clouds of heaven  and the   
dense morning and evening mists         
disappear before the blowing  winds4 ,it
 is expected that the goddess who       

resides in the current of  the rapid    
stream that comes boiling down the      
ravines1 from the tops  of the          
mountains1 and the goddess who resides  
in the currents of the  briny ocean will
 carry them away1 and swallow them down 
with gurgling  sound1 and they shall be 
utterly blown away1 banished1 and got   
rid  of1 so that from this day onwards  
there will be no offense in the  four   
quarters of the region under heaven1    
especially with regard to  all people of
 all offices who respectfully serve in  
the court of the  ,sovran4 ,the offenses
 were thought of as somehow swept away  
by the  winds and the waves1 and then   
swallowed into the depths of the sea1   
and  so cast down into the underworld1  
the realm of death and pollution1       
whence all defilements were supposed to 
have originated4 ,so they were  cast    
down into the depths whence they came   
forth4    ,the concluding words of this 
ritual are a command for the diviners   
of the four countries to leave and go   

away to the great river-way1 and  carry 
away the offenses by purification4 ,thus
 divination was honored1  as moving in  
the will and way of the gods2 but       
incantation is mentioned  among the     
earthly offenses4 ,probably these evil  
incantations refer to  evil-minded      
witchcraft and invoking calamity on     
others4    ,this great ritual ceremony  
of purification1 being one of the most  
solemn formal expressions of the ,shinto
 cult1 calls for the following  remarks3
    7#a7 ,the central idea is           
purification from certain forms of evil1
 or  certain kinds of offenses4    7#b7 
,the offenses are conceived as either   
willfully committed1 or  committed      
inadvertently4    7#c7 ,they are also   
spoken of as heavenly and earthly4 ,this
 distinction  seems to us quite         
arbitrary and unnatural1 but it probably
 had a  mythical origin and the offenses
 called heavenly are mainly such  as    
involve distress for an agricultural    
community4 ,they are sins  against the  

land of the gods1 while the earthly     
offenses are mainly  matters of personal
 defilement4 ,in all cases it is        
conspicuous that  the ,shinto concept of
 offenses which need purging away is    
that of  outward physical pollution and 
damage4 ,they are all offenses committed
  against the interests of the community
 and likely to bring some kind of       
calamity upon the people4    7#d7 ,we   
should also remark that while1 according
 to the ritual of the  ,great           
,purification1 it is expected that from 
that day forwards no  offense which is  
called offense will occur again in the  
four quarters  of the whole region under
 heaven1 the same ceremony of           
purification is  repeated every six     
months--year in and year out4    7#e7   
,these facts serve to show a moral and  
religious basis for the  ,japanese love 
of cleanliness and the scrupulous care  
with which these  people of the         
luxuriant central land of the ears of   
fresh rice study  to keep their bodies1 

their houses1 their temples1 and their  
whole  domain free from all manner of   
physical impurity4    #ah4 ,other       
,ritual ,services4 ,other rituals for   
other occasions and  purposes furnish   
nothing of a different character or of  
exceptional  importance that we need    
here give further attention to their    
various  contents and suggestions4      
,there are1 in the voluminous           
,yengishiki1  rituals for the service of
 the gods of ,kasuga1 for the service of
 the  goddess of food1 and of the gods  
of the wind1 and for the service of     
particular temples4 ,some of these      
services are occasions of grand         
ceremonial display4 ,the place1 the day1
 the hour1 and all the details  of the  
service are arranged beforehand4 ,the   
procession of those who  take part is   
ordered with extreme precision and made 
in every way  magnificent4 ,various     
orders of officials move along in       
separate ranks4  ,the priestess1        
accompanied by many mantled attendants1 

is drawn in a  car1 and on either side  
four men in scarlet coats carry a silk  
umbrella  and a huge1 long-handled fan4 
,the female attendants and servants of  
the priestess1 each a lady of rank1     
follow in seven carriages4 ,chests      
filled with sacrificial utensils and    
food offerings1 the messenger of  the   
,mikado and his attendants of rank1 have
 their assigned places in  the          
procession4 ,upon arriving at the temple
 enclosure1 the priestess  alights from 
her car or palanquin1 passes into the   
courtyard behind  curtains so held by   
her attendants as to hide her from the  
gaze of the  crowd1 enters her private  
room and changes her traveling dress for
 the  sacrificial robes4 ,meantime the  
,mikado's presents and all the other    
offerings are duly placed on the tables 
and in the various chapels  prepared for
 them and the high officers of ,state   
take their seats  within the temple     
enclosure4 ,all the prescribed forms are
 observed with  scrupulous care1 and the

 ritual is read4 ,in many services      
harpists1  flute-players1 singers1 and  
dancers perform their several tasks4 ,at
  the conclusion of the services the    
company clap their hands and then       
separate4 ,the priestess changes her    
robes again for her traveling  dress1   
and returns to her lodging in like      
stately procession as she  came to the  
shrine4    ,the mirror1 sword1 bow1 and 
spear1 which are mentioned in the       
rituals  as presents offered to the gods
 at the great festivals1 doubtless have 
their symbolical significance1 and like 
the three divine insignia  of sword1    
precious stone1 and mirror--the regalia 
or symbols of  ,japanese power and      
glory--have doubtless their mythic      
connection with  prehistoric traditions2
 but these belong to the study of       
,japanese  antiquities rather than to   
the religious elements of ,shinto4#cd   
#ai4 ,influence of ,china on ,japanese  
,thought4 ,so far we have spoken  only  
of what may be called the original or   

pure ,shinto cult as the  religion of   
the ancient ,japanese4 ,but it is       
important to observe that  the moral and
 religious ideas of other peoples and   
other systems have  for some two        
thousand years past been affecting the  
life and thought  of the ,japanese      
people4 ,one noteworthy foreign         
influence came in from  ,china1 and as  
early as the first century of the       
,christian era--perhaps  somewhat       
earlier--,chinese scholars made their   
way into ,japan4 ,this was  very        
natural1 for the proximity of ,china    
favored intercourse between  the two    
nations1 and ,confucianism was at the   
beginning of our era  five hundred years
 old4 ,ancestor-worship was common to   
the people of  both lands1 and the arts 
and industries of the two countries     
might  have found affiliation in many   
ways we can not now determine4 ,that    
such a leavening ,chinese influence was 
early introduced into ,japan is  simply 
matter of fact4 ,the ,preface of        

,yasumaro1 the compiler of the  most    
ancient records of the ,ko-ji-ki1 shows 
the effect of ,chinese  philosophy in   
its incidental mention of the ,passive  
and ,active  ,essences which co-operated
 at the beginning of the creation2 and  
,chamberlain1 in his ,introduction to   
his ,english translation of the         
,ko-ji-ki1 observes that at the very    
earliest period to which the  twilight  
of legend stretches back1 ,chinese      
influence had already begun  to make    
itself felt in these islands1           
communicating to the inhabitants  both  
implements and ideas4 ,then it is to be 
further remarked that the  ,nihongi1    
completed in #gbj ,a4 ,d41 although     
essentially a parallel  chronicle of    
,japanese traditions1 is in thought and 
style conspicuously  ,chinese4 ,it is   
made in every aspect and element of its 
composition to  resemble as far as      
possible a ,chinese history4    #bj4    
,influence of ,buddhism4 ,but a deeper  
and more widespread influence  than that

 of anything of ,chinese origin was the 
introduction into ,japan  of ,buddhism1 
which was first brought in about ,a4 ,d4
 #eeb1 but did not  succeed in leavening
 the whole country until the middle of  
the ninth  century4 ,it was quietly     
propagated by leaders of various        
,buddhist sects  which differ in minor  
practices1 and slowly it gained         
ascendency1  but its first more notable 
triumph followed the teaching of ,kukai1
  founder of the ,shingon sect1 who so  
adapted ,buddhist doctrines to the      
traditional ideas of ancestor worship as
 to maintain that all the  ,shinto      
deities were avatars or incarnations of 
,buddha4 ,with great  ingenuity and     
cunning1 a new interpretation was given 
to ancient  myths1 and new constructions
 were put upon old beliefs4 ,the ,shinto
  gods1 rites1 customs1 and traditions  
took on a ,buddhist significance1  and  
many of the mysteries of birth and of   
death were explained in a  manner so    
simple and popular as to commend them to

 all who listened  to the new teaching4 
,for ,buddhism had already learned in   
,india and  in ,china the clever art of 
appropriating old beliefs and customs   
and  of clothing them with a new and    
higher meaning4 ,confucianism itself    
had already in part prepared the way for
 ,buddhism in ,japan1 and the           
successful ,buddhist propagandists were 
wise enough to suppress or  keep out of 
sight all that might be offensive in    
their system1 and  to teach only such   
forms of doctrine as could be made      
attractive to  the masses of the people4
 ,kukai thus succeeded in converting the
  ,mikado to his new interpretations of 
the ,shinto beliefs1 and the new  system
 thus put forward received the name     
,riyobu ,shinto1 which means  two parts1
 or the double way of the gods1 or the  
twofold divine  teaching4 ,so complete  
and general did this ,riyobu ,shinto    
become in its  spread throughout ,japan 
that for a thousand years it dominated  
the  civilization of the ,empire4 ,it   

had its priests1 its gorgeous temples   
and ritual services1 its philosophy1 and
 its divers sects1 and it is  said that 
there are at least twelve distinct      
,buddhist sects in ,japan  to-day4      
,according to ,lafcadio ,hearn1 the     
religion of the ,buddha  brought to     
,japan another and a wider humanizing   
influence--a new gospel  of             
tenderness--together with a multitude of
 new beliefs that were  able to         
accommodate themselves to the old1 in   
spite of fundamental  dissimilarity4 ,in
 the highest meaning of the term1 it was
 a civilizing  power4 ,besides teaching 
new respect for life1 the duty of       
kindness to  animals as well as to all  
human beings1 the consequences of all   
present  acts upon the conditions of a  
future existence1 the duty of           
resignation  to pain as the inevitable  
result of forgotten error1 it actually  
gave  to ,japan the arts and the        
industries of ,china4 ,architecture1    
painting1  sculpture1 engraving1        

printing1 gardening--in short1 every art
 and  industry that helped to make life 
beautiful--developed first in ,japan    
under ,buddhist teaching4#ce ,to which  
may well be added the following         
statement of ,aston3 ,there was nothing 
in ,shinto which could rival in         
attraction the sculpture1 architecture1 
painting1 costumes1 and ritual  of the  
foreign faith4 ,its organization was    
more complete and effective4  ,it       
presented ideals of humanity1 charity1  
self-abnegation1 and purity  far higher 
than any previously known to the        
,japanese nation4#cf    ,but after a    
thousand years of mixture1 who can now  
tell for certain  just what is original 
,shinto and what is the ,buddhist       
supplement  or modification8 ,the       
,buddhism of ,japan is as far from the  
original  teachings of ,gautama as the  
,roman ,catholic religion of ,spain is  
from  the simple precepts and practices 
of ,christ and ,his first apostles4     
,the same is true of the ,buddhism of   

,china and ,thibet4 ,the ,shingon  sect 
of ,buddhists in ,japan1 of which ,kukai
 was the founder1 has taken  up into    
itself many ideas which are neither     
purely ,buddhist nor purely  ,shintoist4
 ,superstitions alien to both cults are 
likely to have found  their way among   
the people and to have exerted          
influences on the  popular cult1 and no 
man is now able to point out their      
origin or their  history4#cg    #ba4    
,revival of ,pure ,shinto4 ,we are not  
here concerned1 however1 with  ,japanese
 ,buddhism4 ,our inquiry is after the   
facts and the significance  of the      
essential ,shinto cult4 ,a great and    
remarkable revival of the  older ,shinto
 began near the beginning of the        
eighteenth century and  persisted with  
great success for more than one hundred 
years4 ,the most  distinguished scholars
 of ,japan were the chief leaders in    
this reform4  ,we have already had      
occasion to mention the names of the    
three most  famous men among            

them--,mabuchi1 ,motowori1 and ,hirata4 
,these by their  expositions of the     
ancient scriptures and traditions turned
 the tide  of popular thought against   
,buddhism and ,chinese philosophy4 ,it  
is  quite interesting to note in some of
 their writings the antipathy and       
hostility to ,chinese teachings4        
,motowori had a remarkable answer to    
those critics who say that ,shintoism   
knows no moral code4 ,he declared  that 
all a loyal ,japanese subject was       
concerned to do was simply  to obey the 
,mikado1 whether his commands were right
 or wrong4 ,he  maintained that morals  
were invented by the ,chinese because   
they were  an immoral people2 but in    
,japan there was no necessity for any   
system  of morals1 as every ,japanese   
acted aright if he only consulted his   
own heart4#ch ,whatever we may think or 
say of such self-complacency1  it       
accords well with ,japanese religion1   
mythology1 and history1  and it is a    
simple fact to be noted that in #ahga   

,buddhism in ,japan  was disestablished 
and disendowed1 and the old ,shinto was 
declared  to be the national religion4  
,percival ,lowell observes that this    
reinstatement of the ,mikado and the old
 national faith is a curious  instance  
of a religious revival due to           
archological1 not to religious  zeal4#ci
 ,but while the old ,shinto is at       
present the official cult of  ,japan1 it
 appears to have little life or force4  
,japanese ,buddhism is  said to be      
showing signs of renewed activity1 and  
is likely to prove  a powerful          
antagonist of ,christianity4 ,it is     
certainly a question of  vital          
importance to the future civilization of
 ,japan which of these  mighty rivals   
shall gain ascendency over the popular  
mind4    #bb4 ,esoteric ,shinto4 ,shinto
 did not continue very long to hold its 
newly proclaimed status as the ,state   
religion4 ,its own most devoted         
adherents and leaders felt that its     
highest interests would be best  served 

without official and governmental       
prestige4 ,a wise and prudent  ,state   
policy determined that its permanence   
and success should be  left to care for 
themselves and to depend upon the merits
 of its  teachings and its historic and 
popular hold upon the national1 the     
communal1 and the family life4 ,as a    
cult it is deeply rooted in the         
civilization of the empire1 and its     
pilgrims swarm along the highways  of   
travel and at the historic shrines4     
,they are found journeying to  the      
summits of sacred mountains1 and there  
performing esoteric rites  which induce 
mystic divine possession4 ,the          
performance of such mystic  rites and   
incantations seems to be no modern      
innovation4 ,it may have  its           
connections with ,buddhist counting of  
rosaries1 and possibly other  foreign   
influences have helped to cultivate its 
somewhat mantic forms1  but its origin  
is from a remote antiquity4 ,this       
esoteric ,shinto is  essentially akin to

 that self-induced religious fervor     
which exhibits  itself in many lands and
 in connection with various cults1 and  
is often  seen among the ,mohammedan    
dancing and howling dervishes4 ,its     
existence  and its practices in ,japan  
refute the notion of those who would    
deny  to ,shinto the character of a real
 religion4#dj ,the excrescences and     
extravagancies of religious fervor must 
have some sort of a religion to  inspire
 them4    #bc4 ,mingling of ,shinto1    
,confucianism1 and ,buddhism4 ,the      
noteworthy  fact that ,shinto1          
,confucianism1 and ,buddhism have for   
more than  a thousand years mixed with  
each other in ,japan demonstrates the   
susceptibility of the ,japanese people  
to foreign influence and  teaching1 and 
their natural hospitality toward the    
various religious  cults4 ,the ethical  
teachings of ,confucius prepared the way
 for  ,buddhism1 and1 in spite of       
antipathy and wars between the nations1 
maintain a powerful hold upon the       

thoughtful ,japanese to-day4 ,still     
more remarkable is it that millions of  
the ,japanese appear to accept  both    
,shintoism and ,buddhism1 and good      
,shintoists and good ,buddhists  may be 
found worshiping in some temples at one 
and the same time4#da  ,a ,japanese     
scholar1 speaking at the ,chicago       
,parliament of ,religions  on the       
,future of ,religion in ,japan1 declared
 that the three  systems named are not  
only living together on friendly terms  
with  one another1 but1 in fact1 they   
are blended together in the minds  of   
the people4 ,one and the same ,japanese 
is at once a ,shintoist1  a             
,confucianist1 and a ,buddhist4 ,our    
religion may be likened to a  triangle4 
,one angle is ,shintoism1 another is    
,confucianism1 and a  third is          
,buddhism1 all of which make up the     
religion of the ordinary  ,japanese4    
,shintoism furnishes the objects1       
,confucianism offers the  rules of life1
 while ,buddhism supplies the way of    

salvation4#db    #bd4 ,roman            
,catholicism in ,japan4 ,we must not    
omit altogether a notice  of the        
introduction of ,roman ,catholic        
,christianity into ,japan about the     
middle of the sixteenth century4 ,it was
 in #aedi that the famous ,jesuit1      
,francis ,xavier1 landed at ,kagoshima1 
and began his marvelous missionary  work
 through ,japanese interpreters1 and in 
two years of strenuous toil  he         
succeeded in winning many converts from 
all classes of the people4  ,fifty years
 thereafter the ,christian converts     
throughout the country  are said to have
 numbered nearly a million4 ,but the    
,jesuit habit  and policy of meddling   
with affairs of ,state1 their           
intolerance of  other cults1 and at     
length their crusade against the ancient
 national  faith and their burning of   
,buddhist temples and slaughter of      
,buddhist  priests1 aroused the bitter  
reaction and bloody persecutions1 which1
  after some forty years of struggle1   

succeeded in obliterating every  public 
sign of ,christianity from every        
province of the empire4 ,and for  over  
two hundred years ,japan closed her     
doors to all foreign influences  and    
appeals4 ,it was not until #ahgc that   
the edicts against ,christianity  were  
withdrawn4 ,of the ,protestant          
missionary movements in the island      
empire since that date1 it is not the   
purpose of this essay to speak4    #be4 
,present ,religious ,indifference4 ,much
 is said nowadays about the  apparent   
religious indifference of the ,japanese4
 ,some writers seem to  think that the  
,japanese and the ,chinese people are   
alike inferior and  defective in        
religious nature4 ,mr4 ,gulick1 in his  
,evolution of the  ,japanese1 reports   
,marquis ,ito1 ,japan's most illustrious
 statesman1  as having said3 ,i regard  
religion itself as quite unnecessary for
  a nation's life2 science is far above 
superstition1 and what is               
religion--,buddhism or                  

,christianity--but superstition1 and    
therefore a  possible source of weakness
 to a nation8 ,i do not regret the      
tendency  to free thought and atheism1  
which is almost universal in ,japan1    
because ,i do not regard it as a source 
of danger to the community4  ,and yet   
this same distinguished statesman is    
reported on the same  page 7#bhh7 to    
have given utterance to the following   
much more recent  statement3 ,the only  
true civilization is that which rests on
 ,christian  principles1 and            
consequently1 as ,japan must attain her 
civilization  on these principles1 those
 young men who receive ,christian       
education  will be the main factors in  
the development of future ,japan4       
,possibly  these two discrepant         
statements may be reconciled by         
supposing  that1 in the first case1     
,ito's thought was turned especially to 
the  superstitions and temporary phases 
incident to all religious cults1  and in
 his later remark he spoke of           

,christianity as somehow synonymous     
with ,western civilization4 ,but in any 
case it would seem that one  who deems  
the ,japanese either irreligious1 or    
non-religious1 or  deficient in         
religious sense1 ought to explain the   
manifold facts of  the ,shinto cult1    
such as the god shelf1 the ancestral    
tablets1 the  daily offerings1 and the  
family worship in almost every household
 of  that ,eastern island-empire4 ,what 
mean the hundreds of thousands of       
white-robed pilgrims who annually visit 
the numerous sacred shrines8  ,and is   
there no element of religion in the     
devout patriotism that is  ever ready to
 sacrifice life and all that men hold   
dear for the faith  and inheritance of  
their beloved central land of           
,reed-,plains given  long ago to the    
care of the ,sovran ,grandchild by the  
celestial  deities8    ,it is only a    
one-sided concept of religion1 and a too
 prevalent failure  to distinguish      
between its local temporary phases and  

its deeper  essentials as grounded in   
the spiritual nature of man1 that have  
led  superficial observers to deny the  
profound religious element in the       
,shinto and ,buddhist worship of ,japan4
 ,if ,paul1 waiting at ,athens1 and     
beholding the city full of idols1 could 
truly say1 ,i perceive1 ,o  ,athenians1 
that in all things ye are very          
religious1 just as truly may  we say1 in
 view of the #aie1jjj temples and the   
innumerable deities of  the ,shinto     
cult1 that the ,japanese are exceedingly
 religious4    ,let me add the testimony
 of ,mr4 ,gulick himself1 who spent     
years in the  country3 ,the universality
 of the tokens of family religion1 and  
the  constant and loving care bestowed  
upon them1 are striking testimony  to   
the universality of religion in ,japan4 
,the pathos of life is  often revealed  
by the family devotion of the mother to 
these silent  representatives of divine 
beings1 and departed ancestors or       
children4 ,i  have no hesitation in     

saying that1 so far as external         
appearances go1  the average home in    
,japan is far more religious than the   
average home  in enlightened ,england or
 ,america1 especially when compared with
 such  as have no family worship4 ,there
 may be a genuine religious life in     
these ,western homes1 but it does not   
appear to the casual visitor4 ,yet  no  
casual visitor can enter a ,japanese    
home1 without seeing at once the        
evidences of some sort of religious     
life4#dc    ,it is to be remarked that  
in the history and evolution of         
religion1  where there has been obvious 
evolution1 periods of long peace and    
repose1 marked by formalism1 skepticism1
 and indifference to religious          
obligation1 are generally followed by   
great revivals and reforms4  ,some new  
light breaks in2 some great prophet     
appears2 new ideas and  hopes take hold 
on the popular mind1 and thereupon a new
 era opens in  civilization4 ,the       
renaissance in ,japan of the last fifty 

years may be  the prelude to an         
epoch-making revival of the ,orient4    
#bf4 ,concluding ,observations and      
,suggestions4 ,our study of ,shinto has 
led us over a somewhat unfamiliar field 
of thought4 ,the mythology and  the     
records of the ,ko-ji-ki and the        
,nihongi are far apart from all  our    
,western legends and ideals of the early
 world1 and in great part  seem like    
monstrosities of fantastic speculation4 
,it is affirmed by  some that the       
,japanese people have been halting for  
two millenniums  in a state of          
childhood1 receiving nothing from       
,confucianism or  from ,buddhism to     
quicken or change the national life2 but
 with the  introduction of ,western     
thought and enterprise they have        
suddenly  leaped into comparative       
maturity1 and their new departure from a
 dreamy  past is likely to astonish the 
whole world4 ,it is very obvious that   
the introduction of modern science into 
her thousands of elementary  schools    

must sooner or later undermine all faith
 in the traditional  cosmogony1 and1    
along with that1 a whole world of       
notions bound up with  the ,shinto cult 
must needs be overthrown4 ,eminent      
,japanese scholars  say that ,western   
learning has sounded the knell and      
signed the death  warrant of the ancient
 religion of their island-world4    ,it 
is for us very easy1 in the light of our
 ,new ,testament revelation1  to point  
out defects in the ,shinto system4 ,some
 four or five of these  we may briefly  
mention as matters which a ,christian   
missionary should  keep in view as      
evincing the need of preaching among    
these people the  deeper demands of the 
religion of ,jesus ,christ4 7#a7 ,the   
first and  fundamental defect in ,shinto
 as a religious system is its lack of   
any  clear or helpful concept of one    
,god and ,father of all4 ,the doctrine  
of ,god is fundamental in any cult1 and 
where the idea is vague and  imperfect  
the entire system of doctrine and       

practice must needs possess  an element 
of uncertainty and weakness4 7#b7       
,another defect is its want  of a clear 
concept of sin as a moral disease of the
 heart4 ,the ,japanese  mind needs to be
 turned inward to a deeper sense of the 
real sinfulness  of sin4 7#c7 ,another  
serious fault in the ,japanese          
civilization is its  low estimate of    
womanhood4 ,here as in ,china woman has 
not attained her  proper sphere4 ,she is
 subjected to three forms of obedience1 
which  in actual life are too abject for
 her higher development--she must  bow  
to her parents1 to her husband1 and to  
her son in a manner that  involves what 
we should call a humiliating form of    
domestic slavery4  ,japan needs the     
practice of a monogamy of the highest   
,christian type  in order to rectify    
this inferior and one-sided view of the 
male  and female constitution of        
humanity4 7#d7 ,there is also in ,japan 
an  apparently low estimate of human    
life4 ,it is probably due largely to    

the communal and feudal system which has
 for a long time ruled the  people4 ,the
 individual is nothing2 the community is
 everything4 ,these  and other defects  
show our grounds for believing that the 
old order and  system must sometime     
change4 ,but it is no strange or unheard
 of thing  in our world for an old order
 to change and give place to something  
new and higher4 ,western civilization   
has seen not a few examples of  such    
changes2 but1 as touching religious     
evolution1 what a monumental  example we
 have in the transition from the ,old   
,testament ,judaism to  the ,new        
,testament kingdom of heaven6 ,the main 
contents and scope of  the ,epistle to  
the ,hebrews point out the fact that the
 old covenant1  with its sanctuary and  
altars and tables and sacrifices and    
priests1  could not make their          
worshipers perfect4 ,notwithstanding its
 long and  glorious history1 it waxed   
old1 and when the ,epistle was written  
it  was nigh unto vanishing away 7,heb4 

viii1 #ac74 ,it did pass away and  give 
place to a more spiritual cult1 the     
gospel of peace on earth and  universal 
love4 ,may not the national cult of     
,japan--with its faith in  the unseen1  
its rituals of purification1 its        
concepts of a heavenly  ancestry1 and   
its intimations of deification after    
death--be made to  give way before a    
superior cult that may have the wisdom  
to offer a  higher and more rational    
presentation of the essential truths    
embodied  in the ,shinto worship8       
,whatever men may think or say about the
 mystical  and legendary elements in the
 ,hebrew ,scriptures1 no one familiar   
with  the literatures of the nations can
 hesitate for a moment to acknowledge   
the immense superiority of the ,old     
,testament law and prophets and  psalms 
over the contents of the ,ko-ji-ki and  
the ,nihongi4 ,if1 then1  the covenants 
and the rituals of ,judaism waxed old   
and vanished away  before the clearer   
light and truth of the teachings of     

,jesus ,christ1  much more should we    
expect that the same superior ,light of 
the world  must needs1 sometime1        
supersede and supplant the rituals of   
the ,shinto  cult4    ,accordingly1 ,i  
shall venture to specify sundry elements
 of ancient  ,shinto1 which1 to use the 
language of ,jesus1 are not to be       
destroyed1  but rather fulfilled1 in the
 higher and more universal truths of the
  kingdom of ,christ4 ,fulfilled1 ,i say
 for ,i look upon all the religious     
longings1 and prayers1 and penitential  
psalms of the nations1 and  their       
inquiries after the ,unseen and         
,eternal1 as so many foregleams of  a   
coming ,light1 destined to enlighten    
every man that cometh into the  world4  
,we have seen that one of the most      
conspicuous aspects of the ,shinto  cult
 is its ceremonial of the ,great        
,purification4 ,physical pollution  of  
any kind is abhorrent to the ,japanese4 
,the touch of a dead body1  contact with
 a foul disease1 failure to wash and    

keep one's person  clean1 are regarded  
as of the nature of calamities4 ,we know
 that there  was much in the practices  
and traditions of the ,jewish elders    
that  closely resembled these ,shinto   
ideas of pollution4 ,the ,pharisees and 
scribes found fault with ,jesus because 
of ,his indifference to their  washings 
of cups1 pots1 and brazen vessels4 ,but 
cleanliness1 we all  admit1 is a near   
neighbor of godliness4 ,st4 ,paul said1 
,glorify ,god  in your body1 for he     
maintained that your body is a sanctuary
 of  the ,holy ,spirit which is in you4 
,jesus found no fault with ,jewish      
ablutions1 and enjoined the highest     
personal purity4 ,but ,he pointed  out  
the deeper lesson that the more horrible
 defilement of man is  a pollution of   
the heart4 ,for from within1 ,he said1  
out of the  heart of man1 evil thoughts 
proceed1 fornications1 thefts1 murders1 
adulteries1 covetings1 wickedness1      
deceit1 lasciviousness1 an evil  eye1   
railing1 pride1 foolishness3--all these 

evil things proceed from  within1 and   
defile the man4 ,this1 then1 is one     
fundamental truth  which the ,shinto    
worshiper should learn from the         
teachings of our  ,lord4 ,the clean body
 and the pure white robes are eminently 
proper and  beautiful in their way2 but 
they should symbolize the consciousness 
of a pure heart1 and a blameless life   
that keeps itself unspotted  from the   
world4 ,shinto purification needs the   
supplement of a deeper  knowledge of    
spiritual defilement in order to a      
deeper knowledge of  purity4    ,more   
exalted than any mere forms of          
purification1 or rituals of  worship1 is
 that notion of a living ,presence      
concealed in all  phenomena4 ,there has 
been and is to-day among all peoples a  
belief in  many invisible spirits that  
have some sort of power over the clouds1
  the winds1 the waters1 the earth1 and 
all its teeming growths4 ,we call  it   
,animism1 ,shamanism1 and in a certain  
specific form1 ,fetishism4  ,belief in a

 countless multitude of spirits who can 
influence the  elements about us for    
good or for evil1 is firmly rooted in   
all the  ancient peoples of ,eastern    
,asia1 from ,india to ,japan4 ,we have  
seen  how deep a hold it had upon the   
earliest ,shinto cult1 and the later    
influences of ,confucianism and         
,buddhism in ,japan have tended rather  
to  strengthen than to suppress it in   
the popular mind4    ,these animistic   
conceptions have played a noteworthy    
part in connection  with most1 if not   
all1 the religions of mankind4 ,when    
combined with a  groveling fear of the  
spirits1 and with the practice of magic 
rites and  incantations to propitiate   
them as so many evil demons1 the belief 
has  run into the lowest forms of       
superstition4 ,but is there no element  
of  truth in ,animism8 ,why should we   
speak disparagingly of the old ,japanese
  worshiper hearing the voices of unseen
 spirits in the moaning winds1  in the  
sounding waterfalls1 in the rolling     

thunder8 ,why should he not  adore the  
,sun as the heavenly ,benefactor1 and   
see in waving trees and  blooming       
flowers and drifting clouds the presence
 and activity of  beings1 perhaps       
sometimes a ,being ,supernatural8       
,one-sided1 defective  puerile notions  
controlled1 no doubt1 his thinking1 but 
the one supreme  and fundamental fact   
was that he felt himself in the presence
 of the  ,supernatural4 ,and that       
primeval concept is the one most        
essential  truth of all religion4 ,we   
have only to divest it of sundry errant1
  non-essential interpretations in order
 to come face to face with the          
grandest1 noblest1 and most affecting   
theism1 and monotheism as well4  ,for   
monotheism finds its most advanced      
exposition in the doctrine of  the      
universal immanence of ,god1--one ,god1 
the ,eternal ,spirit1 in all1  through  
all1 over all4 ,how far from such a     
concept of universal ,animism  was the  
old ,hebrew psalmist1 who sang of       

,jehovah laying the beams of  ,his      
chambers in the waters1 making the      
clouds ,his chariot1 walking upon  the  
wings of the wind1 sending forth springs
 into the valleys1 causing  the grass to
 grow upon the mountains1 and receiving 
tribute of praises  from the            
sea-monsters and all deeps2 fire and    
hail1 snow and vapor2  stormy wind      
performing ,his word2 mountains and all 
hills2 fruitful  trees and all cedars2  
beasts and all cattle2 creeping things  
and flying  birds4 ,to such a worshiper 
the world was all alive with ,god4 ,and 
,jesus  added an intensity and an       
affecting beauty to this whole concept  
of an  immanent ,god when ,he said3 ,my 
,father worketh hitherto1 and ,i work1  
and not one sparrow falleth on the      
ground without your ,father4 ,i  can    
conceive no ,animism and no             
,supernaturalism more minute or more    
adorable than the ever acting and ever  
continuous presence of an unseen  but   
all observant ,father in the heavens4   

,the heavens in which ,he  dwells are   
above1 below1 within1 and all around us4
    ,and this is the higher ,animism    
which ought to be welcomed by the       
,shinto pilgrims of ,japan as the       
beautiful fulfilling of their ancient   
dreams4 ,not so many gods1 not a        
multitude of unfriendly spirits that    
need propitiation by our gifts of food  
and clothing1 but ,,one ,heavenly       
,father1 immanent in every plant that   
grows and in every dewdrop on the       
flowers1 forever working for our good1  
caring for every birdling1 and          
numbering the very hairs of our head4   
,with such a monotheistic conception of 
the world all mythologic and            
polytheistic notions of deity and the   
rule of the spirits of the dead  must   
sooner or later disappear4 ,japanese    
scholars of high rank are  telling their
 people and others that the modern      
,western learning has  already destroyed
 the cosmogony of the ,shinto cult4     
,what is now most  needed is a class of 

teachers straightforward and broad      
enough to  show these people a nobler   
and truer concept of the world4 ,the new
  conception need have no conflict with 
the belief that the spirits of  the dead
 are all about us1 and are deeply       
interested in us still4 ,the  family    
cult may adjust itself to the new and   
higher doctrines1 and lose  none of the 
beauty and tenderness and sanctity which
 old affection  connects with the       
domestic tablets of the honored and     
beloved dead4  ,herein the new faith is 
to fulfill rather than destroy the      
ancient  rites of love4 ,such a         
monotheistic cult will find no reason or
 occasion  to commit the blunder of the 
,jesuit missionaries1 and seek          
interference  with the government of the
 land4 ,the ,mikado may still command   
the  reverence and the love of the      
people and be rationally honored as  a  
child of heaven4 ,loyal ,christians do  
that under every form of  government4   
,fear ,god2 honor the king2 for there is

 no power but ,god1  and the powers that
 be are ordained of ,god2 for they are  
the ministers  of ,god's service2--these
 are the precepts of the earliest       
apostolic  gospel1 and the modern       
missionary of ,christ is bound to       
observe and  teach them4 ,he should     
exhibit common sense and discretion in  
foreign  politics1 recognize and honor  
the legitimate power1 and like the      
,great  ,teacher1 render unto ,csar the 
things that are ,csar's1 and unto ,god  
the things that are ,god's4    ,the     
,shinto cult is essentially a religion  
of race and national  patriotism4 ,it is
 the secret of ,japanese heroism and    
sacrifice in the  day of battle4 ,he    
counts it sweet and glorious to die for 
his country4  ,he is not his own2 he    
belongs to the ,state4 ,we are told that
 the three  principal commandments of   
the public and official ,shinto faith   
are  these3    #a4 ,thou shalt honor the
 gods and love thy country4    #b4 ,thou
 shalt clearly understand the principles

 of ,heaven1 and the duty  of man4      
#c4 ,thou shalt revere the emperor as   
thy sovereign1 and obey the will  of his
 court4    ,surely these principles and 
precepts are capable of easy adjustment 
to  any form of national government1 and
 the ethics of ,christianity are in     
fundamental accord with their essential 
claims4    ,but how can the ,christian  
religion1 with its monotheistic worship1
  adjust itself without antagonism to   
the ancestor worship of ,japan8  ,many  
seem to think that in this particular   
there must needs be an  irrepressible   
conflict1 for the worship of ancestors  
is central and  fundamental in the      
,shinto faith1 and the most precious and
 hallowed  bond that holds the family1  
the community1 and the ,state together4 
,in this matter we do well to observe a 
number of relevant facts4  ,ancestor    
worship has existed in a variety of     
forms among many peoples4  ,it has      
undergone various modifications in      
different countries1 and it  appears to 

have ceased among some peoples and given
 place to other  ideas and forms of     
worship4 ,the ,japanese conception is   
that their  ,mikado and all his people  
are offspring of the gods1 and each one1
  when he dies1 becomes a deity1 but    
does not cease to have interest in  the 
relatives and companions of his earthly 
life4 ,during the siege of  ,port       
,arthur1 ,togo sent the ,mikado a       
message in which he expressed the       
thought that the patriotic manes of the 
fallen heroes might hover  over the     
battlefield for a long time and give    
unseen protection to the  ,imperial     
forces4 ,such a faith and such          
inspiration from the dead are  things   
which a proud nation does not easily let
 die4    ,but may we not approach the   
devotees of such a faith with the words 
of  the old ,hebrew prophet3 ,have we   
not all one father8 ,hath not one ,god  
created us8 ,ye think your honored      
ancestors still live1 and love to  think
 of you and aid you from their higher   

sphere2 is it not also just  as true of 
the ancestors and heroes of other lands 
and peoples8 ,you  have learned that    
your beautiful land of the reed-plains  
and the fresh  rice-ears is only a very 
small portion of the world of men4 ,have
 these  broader lands and more numerous 
peoples sprung from other and greater   
gods than yours8 ,may it not rather be  
that1 as there is only one sun to  shine
 on all this habitable world1 so there  
is one ,heavenly ,father of  us all8    
,then we are all offspring of one       
,supreme ,god and we should all  be     
brethren4 ,our ancestors and dear       
kindred who have passed out of our      
sight should lose no place in our       
affection by this larger thought4#dd    
,by some such suggestions1 and by such  
friendly and persuasive appeal to       
larger truths1 it would seem that a     
higher and purer faith may commend      
itself to the adherents of ,shinto1     
without provoking their hostility1  and 
without the compromise of any essential 

,christian truth4 ,as surely  as        
self-evidencing science wins her onward 
way among the nations1 so  surely will  
self-evidencing truths of religion win  
the hearts of men4  ,we are familiar    
with the ,christian congregations       
singing3        ,faith of our fathers1  
holy faith6      ,we will be true to    
thee till death4    ,but ,christian and 
,shintoist should note the fact that the
 fathers and  the sons are greater than 
the faith4 ,as the ,sabbath was made for
 man1  and not man for the ,sabbath1 so 
the faith1 the forms of worship1  the   
sthetic arts1 the culture1 the learning1
 and all the ennobling  elements of the 
highest civilization are made for man1  
not man for  them4 ,being1 therefore1   
not an end in themselves1 but a means to
 the  attainment of some higher boon1   
they must all be judged according to    
the broad and noble proverb3 ,whatsoever
 things are true1 whatsoever  things are
 honorable1 whatsoever things are just1 
whatsoever things  are pure1 whatsoever 

things are lovely1 whatsoever things are
 of good  report2 if there be any       
virtue1 and if there be any praise1 take
  account of these things 7,phil4 #d3h74
    ,it may be that ancestral shrines   
will become more sacred and more        
heavenly when lighted with the glimmer  
of immortal hopes of blessed  reunion in
 the unseen world1 and our forms and    
manner of honoring  father and mother   
and friends that pass out from our homes
 may be  safely left to adjust          
themselves to an uplifting faith that   
lives in  the heart and ever longs for  
all that is holiest and best4    ,the   
whole world looks with admiration upon  
that island-empire of the  ,orient that 
has shown within thirty years such      
marvelous capacities  of adaptation and 
improvement4 ,if she thus go on to prove
 all things  and hold fast to that which
 is good1 who knows but her brilliant   
rising to great power and influence     
among the nations may mark the          
beginning of world-wide reforms8 ,her   

tremendous1 bloody battles should  say  
to all mankind3 ,let us have no more of 
this4 ,let us establish  great1         
trustworthy tribunals of arbitration1   
and settle our rights  and differences  
there4 ,let us beat our swords into     
plowshares and our  spears into         
pruning-hooks4 ,such triumphs of peace  
and righteousness  might well bring to  
pass the old ,shinto ideal of a code of 
morals  so deeply written in the hearts 
of men and of rulers that they          
spontaneously do that which is obviously
 right4 ,for is not this lofty  ideal in
 accord with that of the ,hebrew prophet
 who descried a coming  golden age when 
they should teach no more every man his 
neighbor1 and  every man his brother1   
saying1 ,know the ,lord2 for they shall 
all know  the ,lord1 from the least of  
them unto the greatest 7,jer4 #ca3cd78  
,on the assumption that the highest form
 of religion must needs respond  to the 
highest moral test1 the editor of ,the  
,hibbert ,journal#de  propounds the     

following startling question1 ,how would
 the general  status of ,christianity be
 affected by the appearance in the world
  of a religion which should stand the  
test better than herself8  ,that is1 a  
religion or people that should present  
an exhibition of  moral excellence      
superior to that seen among the         
,christian nations4  ,our own belief is 
that such an exhibition of moral        
excellence in  a non-,christian people  
would set the ,christian searching his  
own  standards of morality4 ,it may be  
that ,japan in her late exhibitions  of 
ability in political diplomacy1 and her 
sacrifice and waiving of  certain       
rightful claims to indemnity1 and the   
exalting of the right  and the truth    
above narrow1 selfish interests1 has put
 to shame the  ,christian ,powers of    
,europe1 whose conspicuous qualities    
have been  baneful statecraft1 jealousy 
of rivals1 and greed to enlarge their   
territory by crushing feebler ,states1  
and grinding down the masses  of the    

people4 ,such an exhibit would not prove
 the inferiority of  ,christian ethics1 
but the failure of the so-called        
,christian ,powers to  honor and        
exemplify the ethics of our gospel4 ,the
 plain fact in this  matter is1 as      
thoughtful men must everywhere          
acknowledge1 that the  aggressive       
,christian ,powers have enlarged their  
empire at the expense  of weaker ,states
 and1 by taking advantage of their day  
of weakness and  adversity1 have by such
 ambitious procedures belied and        
violated the  fundamental commandments  
of the religion which they profess4     
,we ,americans have dreamed and         
sometimes boasted that our great        
,republic  of freedom has proven a      
mighty evangel of human liberty and     
rights4  ,it is a luminous star of the  
first magnitude1 and it arose in the    
,western hemisphere4 ,but this brilliant
 star of the ,west has cast its  helpful
 beams across the ,pacific ,ocean upon  
the blooming rice-fields  of ,japan4 ,it

 may be that those grandchildren of the 
sun-goddess may  by their skill and     
prowess flash upon the world a light so 
strong as  to eclipse to some extent our
 own1 and be so self-evidently excellent
  that all mankind will bid it welcome4 
,it may or may not be that all  will    
acknowledge the radiant ,evangel as the 
root and the offspring of  ,david4 ,with
 the ,japanese it may for long be       
insisted that this new  ,light is the   
root and offspring of the ,mikado and   
the ,goddess of the  ,dawn4 ,but we can 
waive that point and all of us cry out1 
,let the true  ,light come4 ,if it make 
for righteousness and love and the peace
 of the  world1 we shall hail its rising
 in the far ,east as the light of the   
bright1 the ,morning ,star2 for there is
 no other that can ultimately  prove    
itself to be the true ,light that       
lighteth every man that cometh  into the
 world4          ,,select               
,,bibliography4       ,,aston1 ,w4 ,g4  
,shinto1 ,the ,way of the ,gods4        

,london1 #aije4     ,,brinkley1 ,f4     
,japan and ,china4 #ab volumes4 ,london1
 #aijc4     ,,chamberlain1 ,b4 ,h4      
,things ,japanese4 ,london1 #aijb4      
,,dyer1 ,,henry4 ,dai ,nippon4 ,a ,study
 in ,national ,evolution4 ,london1      
#aijd4     ,,griffis1 ,,william         
,,elliot4 ,the ,mikado's ,empire4 ,new  
,york1 #ahgf4        ,religions of      
,japan1 from the ,dawn of ,history to   
the ,era of ,meiji4      ,new ,york1    
#ahie4     ,,gulick1 ,,sidney ,l4       
,evolution of the ,japanese1 ,social and
 ,psychic4      ,chicago1 #aijc4        
,,hearn1 ,,lafcadio4 ,japan4 ,an        
,attempt at ,interpretation4 ,new ,york1
 #aijd4     ,,ko-,,ji-,,ki1 or ,records 
of ,ancient ,matters4 ,translated by    
,basil ,h4      ,chamberlain4           
,published as a ,supplement to ,vol4 ,x 
of the ,transactions of the             
,asiatic ,society of ,japan4 ,yokohama1 
#ahhc4     ,,lowell1 ,,percival4 ,the   
,soul of the ,far ,east4 ,boston1 #ahif4
     ,,maclay1 ,,arthur ,c4 ,a ,budget  

of ,letters from ,japan4 ,reminiscences 
of      ,work and ,travel in ,japan4    
,new ,york1 #ahhf4     ,,nihongi1       
,chronicles of ,japan from the ,earliest
 ,times to ,a4 ,d4 #fig4                
,translated from the original ,chinese  
and ,japanese by ,w4 ,g4 ,aston4 #b     
vols4 ,london1 #ahif4        ,published 
as a ,supplement to the ,transactions   
and ,proceedings of      the ,japan     
,society1 ,london4     ,,reed1 ,,edward 
,j4 ,japan3 ,its ,history1 ,traditions1 
and ,religion4 ,london1      #ahhj4     
,transactions of the ,asiatic ,society  
of ,japan4 ,from #ahgb to the present   
time4     ,transactions and ,proceedings
 of the ,japan ,society1 ,london4 ,from 
#ahib      to the present time4         
,these separate series of volumes of    
,transactions of ,japanese              
,societies1 running through many years1 
are an invaluable repository      of    
information on the history1 customs1    
religion1 and literature of      ,japan4
          ,,footnotes3    #a ,the       

,ko-ji-ki 7section ,,xxx7 has this      
remarkable combination3 ,the            
luxuriant-reed-plains-land-of-fresh-rice
-ears-of-a-thousand-autumns-of-         
long-five-hundred-autumns4 ,the ,ritual 
of the ,great ,purification and  other  
rituals call ,japan the luxuriant       
reed-plain region of fresh  young       
spikes4 ,the word spikes here is a      
synonym for ears of rice4    #b         
,understood to be ,sir ,ernest ,satow4  
#c ,transactions of the ,asiatic        
,society of ,japan1 vol4 xvi1 part ,i1  
page #gc4    #d ,westminster ,review1   
,july1 #ahgh1 p4 #ah4    #e ,it may not 
be improper to suggest that some of the 
notions of  the ,western peoples as to  
the backwardness of ,japan in the past1 
and  the relative stage of civilization 
reached generations ago in the  island  
empire may be very ludicrous to the mind
 of a self-respecting1  thoughtful son  
of ,japan4 ,the ,mikado's minister at   
,paris is reported  to have said3 ,we   
have for many generations sent to       

,europe exquisite  lacquer work1        
delicately carved figures1 beautiful    
embroidery1 and many  other things which
 show our artistic ability and          
accomplishments1 but  the ,europeans    
said we were uncivilized4 ,we have      
recently killed some  #gj1jjj ,russians1
 and now every ,european nation is      
wondering at the high  civilization we  
have at last attained6    #f ,it is     
published as a ,supplement to vol4 x of 
the ,transactions of  the ,asiatic      
,society of ,japan1 pp4 lxxv and #cfi4  
,yokohama1 #ahhc4    #g ,there is an    
,english translation of the ,nihongi1 by
 ,w4 ,g4 ,aston3 #b  vols4 ,london1     
#ahif4 ,it is published as a ,supplement
 to ,transactions  and ,proceedings of  
the ,japan ,society1 ,london4    #h     
,these appear in vols4 vii1 ix1 and     
xxvii of the ,transactions  of the      
,asiatic ,society of ,japan4 ,over      
thirty-five volumes of these            
,transactions have appeared1 and they   
are an invaluable repository of         

information on the history1 customs1    
religion1 and literature of ,japan4     
,other journals of like value are the   
,transactions and ,proceedings  of the  
,japan ,society of ,london and the      
,deutsche ,gesellschaft fr  ,natur-und  
,vlkerkunde ,ostasiens in ,tokio4    #i 
,sketches of these men and numerous     
extracts from their works may  be found 
in ,satow's essay on ,the ,revival of   
,pure ,shin-tau1 published  as ,appendix
 of vol4 iii of the ,transactions of the
 ,asiatic ,society of  ,japan4    #aj   
,japanese cosmology seems to postulate  
eternal matter1 but it  is matter almost
 completely lacking consistency--an     
indescribable1  nebulous1 unsubstantial1
 floating1 muddy foam--,japan3 ,its     
,history1  ,arts1 and ,literature4 ,by  
,captain ,f4 ,brinkley4 ,vol4 ,v1 p4    
#ajh4 7,j4 ,b4  ,millet  ,co41 ,boston  
and ,tokyo47    #aa ,in the rituals he  
is often called ,the ,sovran            
,grandchild1 though  an adopted son of  
the ,goddess2 so the sovran grandchild  

is first  applied to the founder on     
earth of the ,mikado's dynasty1 and     
afterward  to each and all of his       
successors on the throne of ,japan4     
#ab ,see ,chamberlain's ,english        
translation of the ,ko-ji-ki1 p4 iv4 ,it
  is interesting to compare the story of
 ,ezra dictating the lost sacred  books 
of ,israel1 from a memory inspired      
supernaturally1 while five  rapid       
scribes wrote down what was told them4  
,see #b ,esdras1 chap4 xiv4    #ac ,we  
may compare the fact that in our book of
 ,genesis the formation  of the earth   
and the heavens is called the           
generations of the  heavens and the     
earth 7,gen4 ii1 #d74 ,in a paper of the
 ,transactions  of the ,asiatic ,society
 of ,japan 7vol4 xvi1 part ,i71 ,dr4 ,j4
 ,edkins has  an interesting comparison 
of ,persian elements in ,japanese       
legends1  in which he shows analogies   
between ,mithra and ,amaterasu1 the     
seven  ,japanese deities of wood1 water1
 fire1 wind1 earth1 sea1 and mountain   

with the ,mazdean ,amesha-spentas1 and  
analogies of the underworld in  several 
other mythic cults4    #ad ,see the     
valuable paper on ,the ,beginning of    
,japanese ,history1  ,civilization1 and 
,art1 by the ,rev4 ,i4 ,dooman1 in ,vol4
 ,,xxv of  ,transactions of the ,asiatic
 ,society of ,japan2 especially his     
chapter  iv1 on ,the ,fundamental       
,religious ,ideas of the ,early         
,japanese4    #ae ,see ,satow's ,the    
,revival of ,pure ,shintau1 in          
,transactions of the  ,asiatic ,society 
of ,japan1 vol4 iii1 ,appendix1 p4 #ga4 
#af ,lafcadio ,hearn puts this whole    
matter very tersely1 thus3 ,the  ethics 
of ,shinto were all comprised in the    
doctrine of unqualified  obedience to   
customs originating1 for the most part1 
in the family  cult4 ,ethics were not   
different from religion2 religion was   
not  different from government1 and the 
very word for government signified      
'matters of religion4' ,all government  
ceremonies were preceded by  prayer and 

sacrifice2 and from the highest rank of 
society to the  lowest every person was 
subject to the law of tradition4 ,to    
obey  was piety2 to disobey was impious1
 and the rule of obedience was  enforced
 upon each individual by the will of the
 community to which he                  
belonged4--,japan1 an ,interpretation1  
p4 #age4    #ag ,this respect for the   
,sun-,goddess points to an aboriginal   
worship  of the sun among the ancestors 
of the ,japanese people4    #ah         
,strictly speaking1 the ,shinto         
sanctuaries are shrines rather than     
temples1 so that the ,japanese would    
always speak of ,shinto shrines as      
distinct from ,buddhist temples4    #ai 
,a kind of evergreen1 like the pine1 and
 peculiar to ,japan4    #bj ,the        
,shintau ,temples of ,is4 ,the          
,transactions of the ,asiatic  ,society 
of ,japan1 vol4 ii1 p4 #ajh4    #ba ,the
 ,shintau ,temples of ,is4 ,transactions
 of ,asiatic ,society of  ,japan1 vol4  
ii1 p4 #ajd4    #bb ,satow's ,the       

,shintau ,temples of ,is1 pp4 #aai1     
#abj4    #bc ,according to ,aston1      
ancestor worship1 in the sense of a     
deification and honoring of the departed
 spirits of one's own  ancestors1 was no
 part of the oldest ,shinto cult1 but   
rather a later  importation from ,china4
 ,see his ,shinto1 the ,way of the      
,gods1 pp4  #dd-dg4 ,london1 #aije4     
#bd ,japanese ,history of ,civilization 
and ,arts4 ,transactions of the         
,asiatic ,society of ,japan1 vol4 xxv1  
p4 #hi4    #be ,japan3 an               
,interpretation1 pp4 #eb1 #ec4 ,new     
,york1 #aijd4    #bf ,in vol4 xix1 pt4  
,i1 of the ,transactions of the ,asiatic
 ,society of  ,japan1 pp4 #ic1 #id4     
#bg ,this cheery and jubilant aspect of 
,shintau worship ought not to  be deemed
 an objectional element of true         
religion4 ,rather the opposite  idea1   
that religion is a matter of soul-peril 
and seriousness so grave  as to produce 
fear or dread of the deity1 is a        
perversion of the truth4  ,true love of 

,god 7or of the gods7 must needs have   
wholesome reverence  for what is        
adorable1 but also ought to inspire a   
warmth of affection  and a confidence   
that drives out superstitious fear and  
begets  exquisite delight in the heart  
and soul and mind of the true worshiper4
    #bh ,see ,ancient ,japanese         
,rituals1 translated and annotated by   
,e4  ,satow1 in ,transactions of the    
,asiatic ,society of ,japan1 vol4 vii1  
part ,,ii1 and part ,,iv2 vol4 ix1 part 
,,ii4 ,also by ,karl ,florenz1 in vol4  
xxvii1 part ,i4 ,in vol4 vii1 part ,,ii1
 pp4 #ajf-ajh1 ,satow gives a list  of  
the ,norito rituals contained in the    
,yengishiki1 to the number of           
twenty-seven4 ,of these he translates   
only nine4    #bi ,transactions of the  
,asiatic ,society of ,japan1 vol4 vii1  
part ,,ii1  p4 #abg4    #cj ,the priests
 who officiated at the chief festivals  
belonged  exclusively to two families1  
the ,nakatomi and the ,imbibi1 both of  
whom  were descended from inferior      

deities1 who accompanied the ',sovran   
,grandchild' when he came down to       
earth4--,satow1 in ,westminster ,review 
for ,july1 #ahgh1 p4 #af4    #ca ,the   
reader of the ritual here personates the
 ,mikado4    #cb ,temples here used by  
metonymy for deities4    #cc ,in vol4   
xxvii1 part ,i1 of ,transactions of the 
,asiatic ,society of  ,japan4 ,from this
 our extracts are taken4 ,florenz gives 
in great detail  the various practices1 
and the ancient and modern forms of the 
ritual1  and the customs at different   
shrines4 ,he also discusses the question
 of  the origin and age of the ceremony4
    #cd ,see the interesting article by 
,thomas ,r4 ,h4 ,mc,clatchie on ,the    
,sword of ,japan1 in ,transactions of   
the ,asiatic ,society of ,japan1  vol4  
ii1 pp4 #ej-ef4    #ce ,japan3 an       
,interpretation1 p4 #bjh4    #cf        
,shinto1 the ,way of the ,gods1 p4 #cfj4
    #cg ,it is admitted by all writers  
on ,japan that the practical ethics  of 
,confucianism has from the first largely

 nullified the more subtle  and dreamy  
elements of ,buddhism4 ,the common sense
 of the ,japanese  people1 in spite of  
all peculiarities1 has made it necessary
 for  ,buddhism to adjust itself to the 
popular mind4    #ch ,satow1 in         
,transactions of ,asiatic ,society of   
,japan1 vol4 ii1 p4  #aba4 ,compare the 
statement of ,mabuchi as given in       
,satow's paper on ,the  ,revival of     
,pure ,shin-tau1 in ,appendix to vol4   
iii of ,transactions of  the ,asiatic   
,society of ,japan1 p4 #ad4    #ci ,the 
,soul of the ,far ,east1 p4 #aff4    #dj
 ,for interesting information on this   
mystic phase of ,shinto see the         
articles of ,percival ,lowell on        
,esoteric ,shinto1 in ,transactions of  
the ,asiatic ,society of ,japan1 vols4  
xxi and xxii4    #da ,the gods of       
,japan1 writes ,gulick1 are innumerable 
in theory  and multitudinous in         
practice4 ,not only are there gods of   
goodness1  but also gods of lust and of 
evil1 to whom robbers and harlots may   

pray for success and blessing4 ,but in  
all this multitudinous pantheon  there  
is no one ,supreme ,deity4 ,there is no 
word in the ,japanese  language         
corresponding to the ,english term ,god4
 ,the nearest approach to  it are the   
,confucian terms ,jo-tei1 ',supreme     
,emperor2' ,ten1 ',heaven1'  and        
,ten-tei1 ',heavenly ,emperor2' but all 
of these terms are ,chinese2  they are  
therefore of late appearance in ,japan1 
and represent rather  conceptions of    
educated and ,confucian classes than the
 ideas of the  masses4--,evolution of   
the ,japanese1 p4 #caa4    #db ,the     
,world's ,parliament of ,religions1 vol4
 ii1 p4 #abhb4  ,we must not overlook   
the fact that the modern ,shintoism has 
its  sects1 as well as ,buddhism4 ,there
 is the sect called ,ten-,ri-,kyo       
7,heaven-,reason-,teaching74 ,also the  
,kurosumi sect1 putting noteworthy      
emphasis on morality4    #dc ,gulick's  
,evolution of the ,japanese1 p4 #bid4   
,whatever may be  the defects of        

,japanese character in general1 it is   
common for nearly  all travelers who    
have visited the country and studied the
 habits  of the people at their homes1  
to speak of them as mild1 courteous1    
cleanly1 frugal1 intelligent1 quick to  
learn1 and gifted with a genius  for    
imitation4 ,their soldiers have proved  
themselves a match for the  most        
renowned warriors1 and are marvelously  
apt to make the most of  opportunities4 
#dd ,in his ,evolution of the ,japanese 
7p4 #ge7 ,gulick quotes from the  ,japan
 ,mail 7of ,september #cj1 #ahii7 a     
number of special instructions  to be   
given to the pupils in the ,japanese    
schools touching their  behavior toward 
foreigners4 ,one of the orders reads    
thus3 ,since all  human beings are      
brothers and sisters1 there is no reason
 for fearing  foreigners4 ,treat them as
 equals and act uprightly in all your   
dealings  with them4 ,such instruction  
should surely1 in time1 enlarge the     
world-conception of the ,shintoist4     

#de ,vol4 iv1 #aijf1 pp4 #ai-da4        
99      99      99      99      99      
99          ,transcriber's note3        
,every effort has been made to replicate
 this text as faithfully as  possible   
including inconsistencies of            
hyphenation4